Membership terms and conditions

Updated May 2024

Whether you are living with macular disease or have been recently diagnosed, we're here to help. Members are at the heart of the Macular Society, and it’s important to provide these terms and conditions to inform you about Membership on applying to become a member. Once you become a member, you accept the terms and conditions set out below, and authorise Macular Society to manage and process your personal information in line with our privacy policy which is compliant with the data protection laws in the UK.

For the purposes of this agreement, personal information and personal data have the same meaning to that specified in the UK General Data Protection Regulation, and references to the words "Society", “our”, "we" or "us" are references to Macular Society. References to the word "members", “you” and "Membership" are references to Macular Society members and Macular Society Membership.

1 Who we are

1.1 Macular Society is the trading name of the Macular Disease Society. A charity registered in England and Wales 1001198, Scotland SC042015 and Isle of Man 1123. A company limited by guarantee, registered in England No. 2177039

1.2 Registered office: Crown Chambers, South Street, Andover SP10 2BN and will be referred to as "Macular Society" or "we" or “our” in these terms and conditions.

2 Information we give you

2.1 By law, the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 say that we must give you certain key information before a legally binding contract between you and us is made. If you want to see this key information, please:

• read the acknowledgement email or letter (see clause 5.3); or
• contact us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org.

3 What we do

3.1 Every day, around 300 people are diagnosed with macular disease. It’s the biggest cause of sight loss in the UK. There is only one way to Beat Macular Disease for good. We must fund much more research now, until we find a cure, or find treatments that stop it in its tracks.

3.2 When you become a member of the Macular Society you'll have access to the very latest expert advice, information and support from our team of experts, and you’ll be Beating Macular Disease and supporting those living with it today.

3.3 Together we can fund the research that will find the cure. Together we can make sure the next generation won’t have their sight, confidence, and love of life stolen from them by macular disease.

4 What you receive when you become a Macular Society member

4.1 When you sign up as a member, you will receive a welcome pack. You will also receive an invitation to participate in research, and a Membership handbook after you have paid for your Membership. You will receive our members’ magazine four times each year during your Membership, and if you have opted to receive communications via email, you will also receive regular emails.

4.2 You will receive an invitation to join our Annual General Meeting (AGM). The AGM is your opportunity as a member to find out how the Society is run and vote in the resolutions. All paying members of the Society are entitled to take part, ask questions and vote. Members who are within a free trial period cannot vote. For more information about the AGM rules, a copy of our Memorandum and Articles of Association is available on request.

4.3 We may provide alternative benefits in some circumstances. If this applies to you, we will communicate this and explain why.

5 How to become a member

5.1 Please check your Membership details carefully and correct any errors before you submit it to us. You can take out Membership via many methods including online, over the phone, by post or with a face-to-face representative of the Macular Society.

5.2 After you apply to take out Membership, we will acknowledge your request. This does not mean that your request has been accepted by us.

5.3 Acceptance of your Membership takes place when we send you written confirmation, at which point a legally binding contract is formed between you and us on these terms.

5.4 Following any trial period or offers, we will request a one-off payment for the amount requested or you can arrange a Direct Debit payment. You will be responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the details provided upon application. We may contact you to request further information if the details you have provided are incomplete or invalid and we cannot process your Membership application.

5.5 If we do not accept your Membership, for example because we are unable to take payment, you are under 18 or live outside of the UK, or there has been a mistake regarding the pricing or description of Membership, we will contact you using the details you provided when you joined. We have the right to reject any request for Membership for any reason.

6 Price of Membership

6.1 All quoted Membership prices are for a one-year Membership subscription. Upon accepting your request for Membership, we will send you a notice setting out relevant details for your subscription including the renewal date, amount, and your rights to cancel. We will also send you a renewal notice setting out the necessary information about the renewal of your subscription including the renewal date and the amount. If you have any questions, please contact us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org.

6.2 The subscription amount paid for Membership will be regarded as a donation to the Charity and we will use these funds to help fulfil Membership obligations and our charitable objectives.

6.3 The Macular Society reserves the right to increase the amount Membership costs. We will communicate any changes to the amount reasonably in advance.

7 How payments for Membership are processed

7.1 We accept payment for Membership via cheque, credit/debit card or Direct Debit. Please ask us if you wish to pay by another method not included here. Payment will be taken annually during the month you initially paid for Membership, and we will contact you in advance of your payment becoming due.

7.2 If you pay by Direct Debit, you can select a payment date from two available dates following the date your Membership is due to renew. If you wish to change the date set out in your Direct Debit agreement to the alternative date we offer, we can do this once the first payment has been taken.

7.3 If an error has been made in the payment of your Direct Debit by us or your bank/building society, under the Direct Debit guarantee scheme you are entitled to a full and immediate refund of the amount paid from your bank or building society. If you receive a refund you are not entitled to, you must pay it back when requested to do so by the Macular Society.

7.4 You can cancel a Direct Debit any time by simply contacting your bank or building society.

7.5 If you do not make a payment by any method, we will attempt to contact you to remind you to pay. If, after our attempts to contact you, no payment is received, we will cancel your Membership. We would be grateful if you could also let us know that you wish to cancel your Membership.

8 Your right to cancel

8.1 You have the right to change your mind and cancel your Membership anytime. We will notify you of your right to cancel in our confirmation communication and any subsequent renewal notification.

8.2 To cancel your Membership, please contact us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org.

9 How you can end your Membership

9.1 We tell you when and how you can end your Membership with us when you initially take out Membership, and with reminder notices at the required intervals. We confirm this information to you in writing after we've accepted your Membership. If you have any questions, please contact us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org.

10 Our right to withdraw Membership

10.1 We can stop providing features of Membership, such as an ongoing service. We let you know at least 30 days in advance.

10.2 The Macular Society reserves the right to withdraw Membership at any point. If we do this, we will inform you in writing through your preferred communication channel. If we decide to withdraw your Membership, our decision will be final, and no correspondence will be entered into.

11 How we communicate with members

11.1 When you take out Membership, we will ask what format you wish to receive your members’ magazine. If you do not specify how you wish to receive your members’ magazine, we will send it by post. We will send you information about your Membership by post. We will send you communications in your preferred format wherever possible.

11.2 We will ask you if you wish to use 3rd party services such as Articles for the Blind when we send your post, and we will use your preferred service wherever possible.

12 How to change your Membership details

12.1 You can let us know at any point throughout your Membership if your circumstances change and you want to change your details, name or address by contacting us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org

12.2 You cannot transfer a Membership into someone else’s name. If you no longer require your Membership, please contact us and we will cancel the Membership for you.

12.3 Membership of the Macular Society may not be used by anyone to promote an individual or business, nor is Membership an approval, endorsement or support of an individual or business. We reserve the right to cancel any Membership we find to be in breach of this provision.

13 How we take care of members’ personal information

13.1 When you apply to become a Macular Society member (and throughout the course of your Membership), it will be necessary for us to collect details from you (for example your name, your address etc.) to provide you with your Membership. This information is regarded as personal information. We may also request special details about you (for example if you have macular disease) to understand more about our members. This information is regarded as special category data. Any personal information or special category data you provide to us will be processed in line with applicable Data Protection laws and in accordance with our privacy policy, which explains what information we collect and hold about you, and how we collect, store, use and share such information.

13.2 The credit/debit card details you provide us with for a Membership transaction is used solely for the purpose of processing that Membership transaction. If we are unable to process payment from the credit/debit card details you have provided, we will contact you to verify your card details.

13.3 If you are not using your own credit/debit card to pay for the Membership, you must ask permission of the credit/debit card holder before entering payment details. When you pay for Membership of the Macular Society you are confirming that you have obtained the express prior permission of the credit/debit card holder.

14 How to contact us to make a query, comment or complaint

If you have any queries or complaints, please contact us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org. Office hours are usually Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays).

15 General terms and conditions of Membership

15.1 If you apply for Membership with us, we assume you have read and accepted these Terms and they will form a contract between you and us.

15.2 Please read our privacy policy which sets out how we hold and handle your data and personal information.

15.3 These Terms, together with our privacy policy referred to above, constitute the entire agreement between you and us and supersede all previous agreements, promises, assurances, warranties, representations and understandings between us.

15.4 You acknowledge that by accepting these terms and conditions, you do not rely on any statement, representation, assurance or warranty (whether made innocently or negligently) unless set out in these Terms.

15.5 We may amend these Terms from time to time in the event of:

• changes in law and regulation; or
• material changes to the relationship with our suppliers
• any identified errors or inaccuracies.

15.6 Every time you renew your Membership, we would advise you to check these Terms to ensure that you have the most up-to-date version which you can find on the Macular Society website or available on request.

16 Liability

16.1 If we breach these terms or are negligent, we are liable to you for foreseeable loss or damage that you suffer as a result. By ‘foreseeable’ we mean that, at the time the contract was made, it was either clear that such loss or damage would occur, or you and we both knew that it might reasonably occur, as a result of something we did (or failed to do).

16.2 We are not liable to you for any loss or damage that was not foreseeable, any loss or damage not caused by our breach or negligence, or any business loss or damage. Nothing in these terms and conditions excludes liability for death or personal injury caused by the Macular Society’s negligence or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

17 Force majeure

17.1 We are not liable to you if we fail to comply with these terms because of circumstances beyond our reasonable control.

18 Third parties

18.1 You are not allowed to transfer your rights under these terms to anyone without our prior written consent. We may transfer our rights under these terms to another organisation or business without your consent, but we will notify you of the transfer and make sure that your rights are not adversely affected as a result. This Contract is between you and us. No other person shall have any rights to enforce any of its terms, whether under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 or otherwise.

19 Entire agreement

These Membership terms and conditions constitute the entire agreement between the parties and supersede and replace any previous Membership terms and conditions or other agreement between us.

20 Severance

If any court finds that any provision of this agreement is invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that provision or part-provision shall, to the extent required, shall be deemed to be deleted, and the validity and enforceability of the other provisions of this agreement shall not be affected. If any invalid, unenforceable or illegal provision of this agreement would be valid, enforceable and legal if some part of it were deleted, the provision shall apply with the minimum modification necessary to make it legal, valid and enforceable.

21 Notice

All notices given by you to us must be provided in writing to Macular Society, PO Box 1870, Andover, SP10 9AD. We may give notice to you via either the email or postal address you provide to us when placing an application to become a member. Notice will be deemed to have been received 24 hours after an e-mail is sent, or three days after the date of posting of any letter.

22 Governing law and jurisdiction

22.1 The laws of England and Wales apply to these terms, although if you are resident elsewhere you will retain the benefit of any mandatory protections given to you by the laws of that country.

22.2 Any disputes will be subject to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales. This means that you can choose whether to bring a claim in the courts of England and Wales or in the courts of another part of the UK in which you live.

23 Dispute resolution

23.1 If you are unhappy with us or the services we have provided to you, please contact us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org. If the parties are unable to resolve their dispute, then the matter shall be reviewed by a senior level representative of each party. In the event these senior representatives are unable to resolve the matter, the parties agree to attempt to mediate their dispute within 30 days after the dispute initially arose, using a third-party mediator.

23.2 All mediation proceedings shall be confidential, and no information exchanged in such mediation shall be discoverable or admissible in any litigation involving the parties.

23.3 Proceedings shall not be commenced by any party unless every effort to resolve the dispute has been exhausted.

24 Six-month free trial Membership terms and conditions

• This offer is only available to non-members of the Macular Society, or to those who have not been a member of the Macular Society for more than two years and enables you to join the Macular Society for a six-month free trial period. If you do not fulfil these criteria, you can still join us today for £22 by contacting us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org.
• This offer is only open to those living in the UK. For those living overseas, you can still join us today for £22.
• You may only use this free trial offer once per household.
• Your six-month free trial period will start as soon as your Membership has been verified and processed.
• We will send you a welcome pack to notify you of the start of your six month free trial period, and a letter to tell you when the six months will end and that the £22 Membership payment will be due if you wish to continue with full Membership and become a voting member.
• By submitting your application together with your contact details, you accept the six-month free trial and consent to us using the information you provide in accordance with our privacy policy.
• If you decide that you do not want to be a member of the Macular Society or want to change how you hear from us, you can cancel your six-month free trial Membership at any time by contacting us on 01264 350 551 or info@macularsociety.org
• The Macular Society reserves the right to modify or withdraw the six-month free trial at any time at its absolute discretion and without notice or liability.
• Standard rules and Membership regulations will apply.
• The decision of the Macular Society is final in respect of awarding subscription trials.