Terms & Conditions
Terms of Use
Definitions
About Us
Title Guardian, the brand that caters to consumers, is owned by First Guardian Ltd (FGL), a company registered in England and Wales under number 14019979. Our registered offices are located at We Work, 123 Buckingham Palace Road, London, England, SW1W 9SH. VAT Registration Number 426091900 You can access our services through our website at https://www.titleguardian.com and https://www.titleguardian.co.uk.
Parties
When we refer to "You" or "Your," we're addressing you as either a User or Third Party of the Site. A "User" is an individual who accesses, browses, or uses the Site in any way, while a "Third Party" refers to both individuals and organisations who do the same.
If you're a legal owner of a property, you fall under the category of a "Homeowner" or "Landlord," while a "Property Owner" can be either a Homeowner or Landlord.
Lastly, a "Renter" or "Tenant" is someone who seeks to rent a property or room from either a Homeowner or Landlord. As for us, "We," "Us," and "Our" refer to First Guardian Ltd.
Site
Unless otherwise stated, the terms "Site" or "Website" refer to the web pages hosted by First Guardian Ltd at https://www.titleguardian.com and https://www.titleguardian.co.uk, including subdomains. The phrase "Title Guardian" encompasses the infrastructure of the Site, the services offered by First Guardian Ltd primarily through the Site, and the Title Guardian brand.
Content
The term "Content" encompasses various forms of data or communication, such as text, images, photos, audio, video, and location data. "Your Content" refers to the Content that you submit or transmit to, through, or in connection with the Site, including property information, messages, and information displayed publicly on your account profile. "User Content" pertains to Content that users submit or transmit to, through, or in connection with the Site. "Title Guardian Content" pertains to Content that we create and make available in connection with the Site. "Third Party Content" refers to Content that originates from parties other than First Guardian Ltd or its users, which is made available in connection with the Site. "Site Content" encompasses all the Content that is made available in connection with the Site, including Your Content, User Content, Third Party Content, and First Guardian Content.
Terms of Use
Title Guardian is a company registered in England and Wales (company number 14019979), providing services to our valued clients through our website https://www.titleguardian.com and https://www.titleguardian.co.uk, along with their respective subdomains. For any communication, kindly direct your queries to this address.
By accessing and using our website and or mobile application, you agree to abide by the Terms of Use that exclusively fall under the jurisdiction of English courts, in case of any disputes that may arise. We collect anonymous data about your usage of the site, such as the pages you visit, the duration of your stay, and the type of browser you use. However, please note that this information does not contain any personal details and is covered by our Privacy Policy.
By utilizing this website and or mobile application, you acknowledge and accept that:
The information you provide on this platform is truthful and dependable to the best of your knowledge, including personal information, contact information, and data concerning properties or rentals.
You will not use Title Guardian as a means of distributing any illegal, obscene, or harmful content.
You will refrain from any action that could hinder other users' access to the website.
You will not duplicate any material from the site without obtaining our authorization.
Protection Plan
Property owners who wish to sign up for protection on their properties will need to follow our strict registration and fraud prevention procedures.
Visitors will use our technology to search for and identify their property.
The user will select their property address.
Visitors will follow a registration process that collects their name, email address, and mobile number. A User account is created and this information is securely stored in accordance with our privacy policy.
Users will be directed to pay for their protection through our integrated payment partner, Stripe. Title Guardian does not store any payment details in line with our privacy policy.
After payment has been made, users will be asked to verify their identity using our partner, Onfido. Users will need to provide a photographic proof of identity and take a selfie.
Title Guardian will obtain ownership details of the registered property or properties that the user wants to protect, from HM Land Registry.
Property ownership information will be retrieved online or offline according to the registration status of the property. If the ownership records are held offline, they will be requested by Title Guardian from HM Land Registry by post. Users will purchase a copy of their title register as part of their chosen protection plan.
Title Guardian will send a copy of the title register received from HM Land Registry directly to the users account and if there are any discrepancies will be asked to complete further offline security steps to verify their ownership.
The verified owner's details will be cross-checked with the ownership details that we retrieve from HM Land Registry and any discrepancies will be identified and investigated for fraud.
Verified Property Owners
As a homeowner or landlord, obtaining a verified badge is achievable by successfully completing an Onfido identity check that matches with the Proprietorship Register at HM Land Registry. This badge serves as an assurance that the individual has passed an identity check and is indeed who they claim to be. Additionally, the badge indicates that the person who underwent the Onfido identity check is the registered proprietor at HM Land Registry for the property they have protected to on a monthly or annual basis.
It's important to note that First Guardian reserves the right to withdraw verified ownership status from individuals and organisations if investigations reveal that the information provided during the verification process was inaccurate or has since become obsolete, or if fraudulent activity is detected.
Property Owner checking process
As part of our process to verify Property Owners and tenants, we work with leading third-party companies that provide credit checking services. By accepting our terms and conditions, you grant us permission to carry out necessary checks to verify identity, assess credit history, and prevent fraud.
In the event that our initial checks fail, we may reach out to you for additional information, such as supplementary forms of identification, in order to conduct a second check. Please note that we reserve the right to retain or refund the cost of the check, or to decline to process the check altogether.
It is possible for checks to fail due to legitimate reasons, such as a newly constructed property not yet having a registered address or title number with HM Land Registry. We encourage Property Owners to ensure the accuracy of any information they provide when applying for verification.
Title Guardian Service
Title Guardian is a monitoring and alert tool only.
We gather thousands of data points across a number of data suppliers.
The data is then compared against your data:
If we identify a match against any of your property or properties we will alert you via text message, email and push notification (Any Joint Guardians and or Joint Owners will be alerted simultaneously).
If we identify a match against your name, we will alert you via text message, email and push notification ( Any Joint Guardians will be alerted simultaneously ).
We will provide you with details from the match we have identified. This will include the following key information:
The Name of the Source who is using your details ( e.g., Estate Agent )
The Date the Transaction occurred at the Source. ( e.g., March 23rd 2023 )
The Type of Transaction the details are being used for by the Source. ( e.g., Sales Listing )
The URL (when available) referencing the transaction with the Source . ( e.g., www.exampleestateagents.co.uk )
After an alert has been successfully delivered to you, it is entirely your decision on how you respond to this information:
You can choose to inform us as to the accuracy of the information we have identified, by confirming the alert is not fraudulent. We will hold this for our records.
You can choose to inform us as to the accuracy of the information we have identified, by confirming the alert is fraudulent. We will hold this for our records.
If you have confirmed the activity as fraudulent, you can choose to contact the Source of the data directly (For example, Estate Agent ), who are using your details. You can access their contact details by clicking on the “view more” option presented in the alert.
Our support team are here to support you and with your consent, we can contact the Source of the data on your behalf, to halt their actions and prevent any potential fraud progressing.
Fraudulent data is important to our data suppliers and partners . We have a relationship with each of our suppliers to disclose any data, that you have deemed to be fraudulent in nature. As a result of this disclosure, the data supplier may want to support you and explore the matter further with you as they , like us, take fraud very seriously.
When you register with Title Guardian. We will carry out searches against both your property addresses and your name.
The results may instantly return matches from an existing source ( For example a live Estate Agent Sales Listing ). This will be delivered as per section 9.4.
The results may instantly return matches from a pre-existing source ( For example Companies House Directorship which started 5 years ago ). This will be delivered as per 9.4.
Charges, payment and refund policy
Payment methods include credit cards (including MasterCard and Visa), debit cards (including Maestro (Switch), Solo, Visa Electron and Visa Delta) and direct debits.
First Guardian do not accept cheques, bank transfers, postal orders, cash or any other form of payment other than those outlined above.
The Charges are inclusive of VAT.
We do not provide credit facilities.
Pro-rata refunds will not be issued for yearly services that are cancelled before the end of the year.
Should your chosen payment method fail we will attempt to settle your invoice using any other payment facilities available on your account.
All services will renew until cancelled by the customer. We emails the customer primary email address and send push notifications if you have downloaded the mobile app, prior to renewal of services, it is the Users responsibility to cancel services prior to renewal as no refund can be made once renewal has occurred.
Cancellation and Refund Policy
Users can cancel the renewal of their selected protection plan at any time.
Title Guardian offers a refund or transfer policy to users who sell their protected property during the protection plan period. If users sell their existing property and purchase a new property, Title Guardian will refund the pro-rata amount or transfer their protection plan to the new property at no cost.
Users must notify us at least 72 hours before a service is renewed if they wish to cancel that service. Users should contact support@titleguardian.com.
Warranties
First Guardian Ltd. provides alert services to Property Owners and will not be held liable for any losses incurred as a result of title or other fraud.
Risk and Information Quality
First Guardian Ltd. does not offer any assurance regarding the accuracy of the information provided on this website. Any material presented on this platform, including content on our social media profiles and blog, should not be considered legal advice and is intended solely for informational purposes.
Prohibited Activities
The content and information presented on this Site, which includes messages, data, text, photos, graphics, maps, icons, software, code, or other materials, as well as the infrastructure utilized to provide such content and information, are exclusive property of ours. When you access and use the Site, you agree not to modify, copy, distribute, transmit, display, perform, reproduce, publish, license, create derivative works from, transfer, sell or re-sell any information, software, products, or services obtained from or through the Site.
Moreover, you are prohibited from using this Website or its contents for any commercial purpose. You may not access, monitor, or copy any content or information of this Website using any automated means or any manual process without our express written permission. You must not violate the restrictions set in any robot exclusion headers on this Website, bypass or circumvent measures employed to prevent or limit access to this Website, or take any action that imposes, or may impose, an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our infrastructure, as determined at our sole discretion.
You may not deep-link to any portion of this Website for any purpose without our express written permission, or "frame", "mirror", or otherwise incorporate any part of this Website into any other website without our prior written authorization. Additionally, you are not authorized to attempt to modify, translate, adapt, edit, decompile, disassemble, or reverse engineer any software programs used by us in connection with the Website or the services we provide.
Copyright and Trademark Notices
The entire content of this Website is under the ownership of First Guardian Ltd and is protected by copyright laws. Any reproduction, imitation, or use of the First Guardian name or the site's look and feel, including page headers, custom graphics, button icons, and scripts, without prior written permission from First Guardian is strictly prohibited.
Title Guardian is a registered trademark, and any unauthorized use or copying of the trademark, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited. Furthermore, First Guardian does not assume responsibility for any content on websites operated by parties other than First Guardian.
The Site may mention other trademarks, product names, and company names or logos that are the property of their respective owners. Such owners have granted First Guardian permission to use their name and logo on the Site. However, reference to any products, services, processes, or other information, by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, supplier, or otherwise, does not imply endorsement, sponsorship, or recommendation by First Guardian.
Notice and Take-Down Policy
At First Guardian, we operate on a "notice and takedown" policy. If you have any objections or complaints regarding any material or content published on this Site, or if you suspect that any material or content posted on this Site violates your copyright, please do not hesitate to contact us without delay on support@titleguardian.com. We will make every reasonable effort to promptly remove any illegal content from the Site.
Modifications
At our sole discretion, we reserve the right to modify, add, or remove any part of these Terms and Conditions for legal, regulatory, or technical reasons. Additionally, changes may occur due to alterations in the services offered or the nature and layout of the Site. By continuing to use our services, you expressly agree to abide by any changes we make to these Terms and Conditions.
We may alter, suspend, or terminate any aspect of our First Guardian service, including the availability of features, databases, or content, at any time.
We may also place restrictions on certain features and services or limit or deny your access to all or part of the Site or any other website we own without notice or liability, for technical or security reasons, to prevent unauthorized access, data loss, or destruction.
We may also exercise this right when we determine, at our sole discretion, that you are violating any of these Terms and Conditions or any applicable law or regulation, or where we choose to discontinue providing a particular service.
Your continued use of First Guardian after any changes or updates to these Terms and Conditions will confirm your acceptance of these changes.
Indemnity
By accessing and using the First Guardian Site, you acknowledge and agree to assume responsibility for defending and indemnifying First Guardian Ltd, its affiliates, and any officers, directors, or employees against any claims, demands, losses, damages, fines, penalties, or other expenses brought by third parties. These may arise from your breach of this Agreement or any referenced documents, violation of any law or the rights of third parties, or your utilization of the First Guardian Site. Such expenses may include reasonable legal and accounting fees.
First Guardian acts an alert service to Property Owners and no claim for any losses occurred as a result of title or other fraud can be made against First Guardian.
Privacy Policy
At our core, safeguarding your privacy is paramount. Rest assured that any personal information shared on the Site will be treated in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Our company is registered with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) under reference number C1310485, and we treat all personal information provided to us as confidential. For more information on how we handle your data, please refer to our Privacy Policy.
