ACE Energy Solution Uganda limited Loan Contract Terms and Conditions 2019-2021 (Uganda)

  1. Glossary 
    1. ACE Energy Solution Uganda limited (Uganda)
    2. Late Payment: a payment that is made more than 3 days after the agreed due date
    3. Unit: refers to any item purchased from ACE through a loan contract.
    4. Customer: refers to the person who has signed the loan contract.
    5. Group: refers to the group of customers who have committed to a joint ‘group contract’
    6. Office Hours: 8:00-17:00 Monday to Friday
  2. Basics
    1. 9 Month contract
    2. Mobile money  payments and or over the counter payments at the shop. 
    3. Groups of 3-11  persons
    4. Payments are considered on time if ACE receives them within 3 days of the agreed due date.
  3. Contracts and Waivers
    1. Contracts are legally binding and must be signed and dated by each customer who takes responsibility for the loan.
    2. Photos are taken, in part, to identify the customer, allowing ACE to be more flexible in regards to official identification of the customer. 
    3. Group contracts are binding and each member is vouching for the others. 
    4. Customers must be aware that if there is someone they KNOW to be fraudulent, in substantial debt or faking their identity that they must make ACE aware before signing the contract. 
  4. Commitment from ACE
    1. ACE commits to explain the functions of the stove, the methods of payment and the contracts to the best of our ability. 
    2. ACE commits to being transparent about the pricing of the stove and makes the customer aware of additional costs such as insurance, delivery costs or late fees (should they arise). 
    3. ACE will work with the customers to ensure the successful repayments in full of any item purchased through ACE, and work to find solutions in cases where repayment is not made or cannot be made on time. 
    4. ACE works hard to protect our customers from fraud. 
      1. Payment rules and regulations are put in place in order to protect the customer from paying any parties, including those not related to ACE, who may be trying to defraud the customer. 
      2. ACE will commit to helping solve any cases of fraud, and will actively try and prevent it, but can not be held responsible for any cases of fraud against the customer by parties outside of ACE. 
    5. ACE commits to providing maintenance services as swiftly as possible and according to the warranty length of 2 years on the ACE One cookstove. 
      1. Additional Accessories purchased or received with the ACE One may carry varying warranty limits and may require a fee for replacement. It is at ACE’s sole discretion to replace accessories not included in the standard ACE One package (ACE One Stove, Solar Panel, LED light).
  5. Expectations from Customer
    1. ACE expects the customer to pay in full and on time as agreed in their contract.
    2. IMPORTANT: ACE expects the customer to include their reference name or number in the transaction and to send payments from a mobile device that belongs to the customer.
      1. If this information is not sent with the transaction, ACE expects written notification (email or sms) of the day and time, the total amount paid and any other evidence of payment within 48 hours in order to accept the payment.
      2. WITHOUT THIS INFORMATION THE PAYMENT WILL BE LOST. 
      3. All lost payments will be kept open for 7 days. Should noone claim this repayment with the appropriate information and evidence, it will not be considered
    3. ACE expects timely notification in case there is a circumstance in which a payment can not be made in full or on time or both. 
      1. During office hours the Customer Service team is available for any questions, but they may request a written notification such as email, sms or a signed and dated letter as official notice in order to keep a record of such notification.
      2. The customer must be aware that in the case that no such written notification is on file, ACE may not have received it and therefore it may not have been taken into consideration.
      3. ACE encourages open communication about any problems that arise in order to ensure or facilitate timely payments. 
    4. If the customer makes a repayment that is not in full, ACE expects written notification (email or sms) from the customer within 24 hours to explain why the customer has not repaid in full. 
      1. Without such written notification, if a repayment does not cover the full payment for the customer, the customer  may still be charged a late fee over all units in the contract. 
  6. Expectations from Sales Teams
    1. The ACE Sales Teams are expected to explain the terms and conditions effectively and confirm with the customer they have understood the terms of the contracts and waivers. 
    2. The ACE Sales Teams are expected to work together with customers to create suitable groups and communicate openly and clearly with customers about contractual expectations. 
    3. The ACE Sales Teams commit to answering questions about ACE products and services as effectively, swiftly and as politely as possible. 
      1. This counts for both in person as well as mobile communications, but office hours are to be respected by customers.
      2. In cases where the ACE Sales Team is unavailable or unable to help, the ACE Customer Service Team is available during office hours to assist the customer with any questions, queries or problems they may have.
    4. The ACE Sales Team will try and accommodate the customer with days and times of availability as much as is possible. Weekend Sales Visits and Demos are at the ACE Sales Teams’ discretion and in general a customer can not rightfully expect services outside of office hours. 
  7. Complaints
    1. The ACE Customer Service team is available during office hours for any complaints from the customer.
    2. This is including but not limited to;
      1. Complaints about ACE Employees;
      2. ACE goods and services; 
      3. Good and services of partner companies;
      4. Other Customers;
      5. Contract Group Leaders;
      6. Other influencers.
    3. The customer must be aware that a record is kept of all complaints and that ACE may ask further questions to clarify the nature of the complaint. 
    4. Although ACE is committed to helping to resolve the problems that have led to the customer complaint we can not commit to being able to solve any and all problems. 
  8. In Case of consistent payment
    1. ACE will run campaigns to reward groups that have consistently paid on time and in full.
      1. Any campaign to this effect will be made public and the eligible customer will be notified. 
      2. It is at ACE’s sole discretion to reward our customers for consistent repayments and unless contractually agreed, no customer may withhold payments for services or rewards not rendered unless agreed upon by both parties in writing. 
  9. In case of inconsistent payment
    1. ACE will expect and commit to clear and consistent communication with the customers in order to resolve inconsistent payment issues. 
    2. ACE may extend the contract length ONE TIME ONLY in order to allow a customer to get back on track with repayments. This must be discussed, agreed to and logged in the system. In this case, a new repayment schedule will be agreed upon by both parties. 
    3. Repossession
      1. In the event of default repayments by the customer, ACE Energy Solutions reserves the right to repossess the unit as per the Hire Purchase Act, 2009, and the Hire Purchase Regulations, 2012.
  10. In case of default
    1. Every effort will be made to communicate with the customer. 
    2. If the customer does not respond in order to create a repayment plan or refuses to pay, the Chief of the village will be involved. 
    3. If the Chief is unable to persuade the customer to repay, the authorities will be involved.
    4. ACE will take legal action against those who do not repay their loan after every effort has been made to create a plan that both parties can agree to.
    5. As a final resort, the relevant authorities will be asked to reclaim the unit.
    6. In the case of the decease of the customer the following will occur:
      1. In the case that the optional “Insurance fee” was purchased with the contract, and with the presentation of a death certificate or signed and stamped letter from the chief, all remaining debt will be wiped clear and no further payments need to be made for the unit purchased by the deceased only (the rest of the group will continue to pay, but will be relieved of the burden of the deceased’s loan). 
      2. In the case where no “Insurance fee” is purchased, ACE will work with the chief of the village and the family of the deceased to confirm how the loan will be repaid. The remaining repayments are still owed and the group will be expected to assist in finding a solution for repaying the remaining loan.