GETTING STARTED

Beginning research

Our free 30-minute preliminary consultation (by phone, email or Skype) provides an opportunity to discuss the assistance you require, what you already know and the budget.  We will outline how we think we can help, the records we may use, and try to provide a realistic sense of the possible results.  While we can never guarantee we will find the answers you are looking for, we will only undertake work which we believe has a reasonable chance of success.

Assuming you would like to proceed, we will suggest a research plan based on the scale and scope of the work required.  We will confirm what has been agreed, in writing, after the initial consultation.

What information we need from you

We can usually find the answers you are looking based on the tiniest clues.  If you are unable to provide very detailed background information, don’t worry. However, any and all information you are able to provide is helpful, especially if your surname is quite common, and will help us keep costs down.  Any details or documentation you can supply will help keep costs down and avoid us spending time duplicating information you already know.

Timings

Every project is different.  We will discuss an appropriate timescale and start date at the outset.  Please provide as much notice as possible if you are commissioning research for a specific deadline such as a birthday or anniversary gift.  Our minimum project for private family research is 5 hours. We can normally begin work with 2-3 weeks of a commission.

We will keep a time log documenting how the time has been spent and make sure you are regularly updated.  Please bear in mind international research can be very time consuming.  With your agreement, we may sometimes ask to extend the timetable to allow for responses from third parties.  The best results are not always the fastest.

Cost

Prices are calculated on the basis of an hourly rate and full payment is taken in advance at the time of commission.  Please contact us for pricing details. Our rate covers our time and access to a number of key, subscription-only genealogical resources.  It does not include additional disbursements such as the cost of ordering and copying certificates and other records, translation services, travel, and visiting archives.  These vary project-by-project.  It is not always necessary to incur additional costs and we will not do so without contacting you first, to explain why we believe they are necessary.  Please bear in mind it may be difficult to obtain the answers you are looking for without some extra outlay. You will be invoiced for separately for any such additional costs.

Payment terms

Research will commence once full payment has been received. You will receive an electronic invoice by email. Payment can be made by direct bank transfer (BACS) or cheque is preferred.  Payments from outside the UK can made by PayPal.  Currency conversion fees may apply to international payments.  Research Roots is not registered for VAT.

Privacy policy

We respect the privilege of researching your family history and will keep confidential the personal information you give us. Our working, digital copy of your family tree is stored privately on Ancestry.com and accessible by invitation only. We will not share any information concerning your family, business or personal affairs without your express, prior consent. Neither will we publish the results of any research for which you have paid without your consent.  Research Roots is a Registered Data Controller under the terms of the Data Protection Act, 1998 (registration no. Z2900951).

Copyright

The copyright of all reports supplied remains with Research Roots.  The research material we deliver is for the sole use of you and your family and should not be reproduced either in hard copy or digitally.

Code of practice

As Associate members of the Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives (AGRA), we adhere to its rigorous code of practice in relation to any and all research we conduct for our clients, please see here for further information.