Terms of use applicable to the websites

General

The texts below apply to our websites that fall under Sonic Healthcare Benelux, here referred to as ‘the laboratory’.

The Sonic Healthcare Benelux group includes the following companies:

• Algemeen Medisch LAboratorium, A.M.L. (Antwerp) – www.aml-lab.be
• Medvet – www.medvet.be
• Algemeen Medisch Laboratorium West (Ardooie) – www.laboardooie.be
• Klinisch Labo Rigo (Genk) – www.laborigo.be

Intellectual property rights

By accessing and using one of our websites, you expressly agree to the following terms and conditions.

The content of our sites, including brands, logos, drawings, data, product or company names, texts, images, etc. are protected by intellectual rights and belong to Sonic Healthcare Benelux.

Limitation of liability

The information on our websites is of a general nature. The information is not adapted to personal or specific circumstances, and can therefore not be considered as personal, professional or legal advice to the user.

The laboratory makes great efforts to ensure that the information made available is complete, correct, accurate and up-to-date. Despite these efforts, inaccuracies may occur in the information made available. If the information provided contains inaccuracies or if certain information is unavailable on or via the site, the greatest possible effort will be made to rectify this as soon as possible.

However, the laboratory cannot be held liable for direct or indirect damage resulting from the use of the information on this site.

If you should discover inaccuracies in the information made available via our sites, you can always contact the administrator of the site.

The content of our sites (including links) may be modified, changed or supplemented at any time without notice or notice. The laboratory does not guarantee the proper functioning of our websites and can in no way be held liable for a malfunction or temporary (un)availability of the website or for any form of damage, direct or indirect, which would result from the access or use our websites.

Under no circumstances can the laboratory be held liable to anyone, directly or indirectly, in a special or other way, for damage attributable to the use of this site or any other site, in particular as a result of links or hyperlinks, including, without limitation, of all losses, work interruptions, damage to programs or other data on the computer system, of equipment, software or other of the user.

The websites may contain hyperlinks to websites or pages of third parties, or refer to them indirectly. Placing links to these websites or pages in no way implies an implicit approval of their content.

The laboratory expressly declares that it has no control over the content or other features of these websites and can in no way be held liable for their content or features or for any other form of damage resulting from their use.

Applicable law and competent courts

This website is governed by Belgian law and the Belgian courts have exclusive jurisdiction to hear any dispute arising in connection with these websites.

Terms of use applicable to the laboratory

Scope

These terms and conditions apply to all services provided by the medical laboratory, the address of which is stated on the front of the registered office, and which is always referred to below as ‘the laboratory’. Deviations from, exceptions to and additions to these terms and conditions only apply if they have been accepted in writing by the laboratory.

Accreditation

Some of our laboratories are accredited for a wide range of analyses. A detailed list of analyzes covered by external accreditation is available at the laboratory. The Quality System includes the pre- and post-analytical phase and the analytical phase itself.

Offers

Offers and quotations are always without obligation and only valid for a period of 30 days, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Requests

Requests for analyzes must be submitted with a specific request form from the laboratory (on paper and/or digital) or in another written and clear manner. The laboratory accepts oral additions to existing applications and records this in writing. The laboratory has the authority not to accept an application and is obliged to inform the client immediately in that case.

Liability

The laboratory undertakes to perform the work according to generally recommended clinical standards, but does not guarantee the achievement of any result. The displayed analysis results must always be interpreted accurately with the necessary medical expertise of the applicant or another medical expert so requested. In case of doubt about the analysis results, the laboratory should in the first instance be contacted for further explanation. Any liability of the laboratory for damage suffered by the client or third parties, of whatever nature, is expressly excluded, unless there is demonstrable or gross negligence, in which case the laboratory’s liability is limited to EUR 25,000.00 per claim.

Confidentiality

The laboratory is obliged to comply with the legislation regarding the protection of privacy, except in the event of a legal obligation or court order to the contrary. The laboratory does have the right to use results for comparison, reference, statistical or scientific purposes, whereby the above legislation remains in full force and effect.

Samples, transport and storage

The client supplies samples for research in accordance with the laboratory’s guidelines. If so agreed, the laboratory is responsible for the transport of samples in accordance with the rules of the art, but is not liable for loss or damage, neither during transport nor at the laboratory itself. The laboratory stores the samples according to standard guidelines, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Performance

The laboratory determines the manner in which, the method and the equipment with which the activities of the laboratory are carried out. Information about this is available to clients.

Results

The laboratory will direct the results exclusively to the client, unless the latter instructs otherwise in writing. The report may only be reproduced in its entirety by the client, unless after written permission from the laboratory.

Prices

The laboratory invoices analyses, subject to the NIDHI legislation, at rates as determined by the Government. However, there are also non-contracted providers in the laboratory so that, in some cases, a supplement can be charged. The laboratory invoices analyzes outside NIDHI according to a standard price list, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the laboratory.

Payment terms

Each invoice is considered final by the recipient unless he or she submits a reasoned protest by registered letter within 21 days of the invoice date.
Invoices are payable within 30 days of the invoice date.

For invoices dated until 31/08/2023, the reminder costs are €5 (first reminder) and €8 (second reminder).
For invoices dated from 01/09/2023, and in the event of non-payment or incomplete payment of the amount due on the due date, you will still receive a free notice of default so that you have at least 14 days to pay without additional costs after dispatch of this reminder/notice of default. After this, you may be charged a damages clause: €20 for invoices up to €150, €30 for invoices between €150,01 and €500, and €65 for invoices higher than €500,01, in accordance with the code “XIX-Consumer Debt” of May 4, 2023. In addition, late payment interest may also be charged on the sum still to be paid at the interest rate in accordance with the law of August 2, 2002, on combating late payment in commercial transactions.
After the payment terms have expired, in the event of non-payment, your file can be transferred to a debt collector.

Complaints

The laboratory undertakes to carefully handle complaints from clients about any aspect of the medical-analytical services.

Other languages

In case of differences of interpretation in translations of this text, the Dutch version will prevail.

Applicable law and disputes

These terms and conditions are subject to Belgian law; the court in Antwerp is exclusively competent to settle disputes.