My costs for family history research are calculated on an hourly basis, with additional charges for some special items if you require them (see below). These hourly fees include travel to record offices, archives and libraries within the M25. The map below shows the area covered by this (the M25 is the motorway in blue that encircles London):

M25 map

My goal is to help you meet your family history goals, whether this is a comprehensive package of as much as I can find out, or a smaller task. I will assess the information you already have, provide you with a research plan and give you an estimated price. If you prefer, I can agree a certain number of hours of work and see what I come up with.

It is important to remember that I cannot guarantee results. Records of interest to family historians in the UK are extensive but they are not complete - for every type of record, there are areas or dates missing for a variety of reasons. There are also limitations on more modern records - many official records are subject to the '100 year rule' meaning they will not be released until 100 years after the event.

Testimonials

About me

Services

My quoted price includes the following:

Search of all available online indexes and databases to provide initial information, including images of original documents where these are available.
Research in record offices and archives within the M25, including photographs or photocopies of original documents where this is permitted. Note that some record offices charge a fee for this which will be passed on to you.
Provision of the results of my research - family tree, written notes, tables etc. - in electronic format.

For an additional fee I can provide the following:

Birth, marriage and death certificates: it may be necessary to obtain these to verify information or to continue to the next stage of the research, and I will not always be able to tell you this in advance when I provide my initial quote.
Research in records offices and archives outside the M25, if the records not available online.
Results of my research on paper in addition to electronic format - nominal fee plus postage costs to send this to you.

Prices for genealogy services

Basic hourly rate:

£30 per hour. This includes the results of your research job in electronic format as agreed with you. If you prefer to pay in US dollars, the rate is $45 per hour.

Additional costs:

printing of research results - £5 per 50 pages plus postage costs

travel costs to record offices outside London: 45p per mile, plus parking fees at cost
birth, marriage and death certificates at the standard GRO rate (currently £11.00 per hard copy certificate, less for electronic/digital copies of birth/death certificates if available)

Family History Research UK Terms of business

I will provide you with an estimate of costs for your approval before starting any work on your behalf. Once I have your go-ahead, I will give you a timeline for completing the work. I will also agree with you any additional items, such as printing, provision of certificates or travel to record offices outside my usual area of work. None of these additional costs will be incurred without your approval.

My report may include recommendations for further research. You are under no obligation to ask me to carry this out and I will not go beyond what you ask me to do without your authorisation.

I will ask you to pay a 50% deposit in advance, with the remainder due on completion. I will provide you with a brief summary of the results of my research and send you an invoice for the outstanding payment. After receiving payment, I will send you the full results of my research as previously agreed. All invoices must be paid within 14 days.

My preferred method of payment is by PayPal - this allows you to pay securely by credit or debit card, and all payments in currencies other than sterling must be made this way. I am not VAT-registered and no VAT will be applied to any invoices.

Genealogy is not an exact science; it may not be possible to provide all the information you want, if the records of it are not available. I cannot make any guarantees in advance of the amount of information I will be able to provide to you. I accept no liability for lack of available information, and research costs must still be paid even if the results do not provide the information you were looking for. I undertake to make all reasonable efforts to find the information you have asked for, and to provide an explanation if I cannot find it.

I will only charge you for the time incurred - if you agree a time limit up front and I do not reach this limit before deciding that no further research is going to be possible for whatever reason, I will charge you only for the time I actually spend on your research. You will not pay for anything that I am unable to attempt.

Any information you provide to me about yourself or your family members will be kept confidential and not revealed to anyone else without your permission. The copyright of all reports provided to clients, including images, remains with Family History Research UK and these may not be republished in any form (including online) without my permission.

By accepting my research proposal and instructing me to start work, you indicate your acceptance of these terms.

Prices may vary from time to time - for up-to-date information please refer to this website.

Rev. Dec 2024

Data protection

I operate in compliance with UK laws on protection of personal information. I am registered with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) as a data controller, registration number Z3256706, allowing me to process personal information enabling me to provide family, local and historical research services. This personal information may include:

Personal details

Family details

Lifestyle and social circumstances

Biographical information in connection with family, local and historical research services.

I process personal information about:

customers and clients

family, relatives, guardians and associates of the person whose personal information I am processing

enquirers

In exceptional circumstances I may be required to share the personal information I process with other organisations. Where this is necessary, I am required to comply with all aspects of the UK Data Protection (Charges and Information) Regulations 2018. These regulations replaced the UK Data Protection Act (1998) and include the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is a European-wide law that came into effect on 25 May 2018. You can find out more information about your individual rights under the GDPR here:

Data protection and information rights

Your information will never be shared with third parties for marketing purposes and will only be used for the purposes you specify when you share it with me in other words, to conduct the research you have asked me to do. It will not be used for any other purpose. I will retain your personal contact information after the research is complete and I may use it in order to contact you in future. If you do not want me to do this, it is your responsibility to inform me so that I can securely delete your contact information from my records. You may also ask me at any time to explain what personal information I hold about you and for what purpose I may use it.

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