Clear Compliance Labs — Terms and Conditions
Last Updated: April 2026
Entity: Drink Safe Australia Pty Ltd (ACN: 688 581 722) trading as Clear Compliance Labs.
1. Introduction & Acceptance
1.1. These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern the purchase and use of compliance water testing kits and laboratory analysis services provided by Clear Compliance Labs ("we", "us", "our").
1.2. By placing an order, submitting an enquiry, or lodging a sample, you ("the Customer", "you") agree to be bound by these Terms. Where the Customer is an organisation, the individual placing the order warrants they have authority to bind the organisation.
2. Nature of Service
2.1. Logistical & Analytical Service: Clear Compliance Labs provides a logistics and reporting service to facilitate the collection, transport, and laboratory analysis of water samples through third-party NATA-accredited laboratories. Results are reported against the applicable Australian Standard or regulatory framework.
2.2. Compliance Testing — Not Compliance Certification: A result indicating that all parameters are within the limits of the applicable standard (AS 5369:2023, AS/NZS 3666, or other) does not constitute a guarantee of ongoing compliance, nor does it certify that your facility or practice is fully compliant with all obligations under the relevant standard. Water quality is dynamic. Our report represents the water quality at the time and location of sampling only.
2.3. Not Professional Compliance Advice: We are a laboratory testing and reporting service, not a compliance consultant, water safety engineer, or legal adviser. Our reports should be used as one component of your compliance programme alongside your Water Risk Management Plan, accreditation body guidance, and professional advisers as appropriate.
2.4. NATA Accreditation: Analysis is conducted by third-party NATA-accredited laboratories operating under ISO/IEC 17025. Our Certificate of Analysis carries the NATA endorsement. We do not hold NATA accreditation directly.
3. Customer Obligations & Sampling Protocols
3.1. Instruction Compliance: You must follow the provided step-by-step sampling instructions precisely. Results may be invalid if samples are collected incorrectly. We are not liable for inaccurate or rejected results caused by failure to follow instructions.
3.2. Authorised Sampling Personnel: You are responsible for ensuring that the person collecting samples is competent to do so and follows the instructions provided. Where your Water Risk Management Plan or applicable standard specifies trained personnel for sampling, you are responsible for meeting that requirement.
3.3. Sample Type: Sampling containers supplied in kits are for the collection of water samples as specified in your kit instructions. Containers must not be used for any other substance. We reserve the right to reject any sample suspected of containing non-specified substances without refund.
3.4. Legionella Cold Chain: For Legionella culture kits, samples must be placed immediately into the foam cooler with frozen gel ice packs provided upon collection. Ice packs must be frozen for a minimum of 8 hours before sampling. Samples must be available for same-day courier collection on the day of sampling. We are not liable for rejected or invalid results caused by failure to maintain cold chain requirements.
3.5. Holding Times: Samples received by the laboratory outside of the applicable technical holding time will be rejected by the laboratory. No refund will be provided for samples that exceed holding times due to customer delay in collection, failure to be available for courier collection, or other customer-side causes.
3.6. Courier Availability: For kits requiring same-day courier collection, you must ensure an authorised person is available at the nominated collection address during business hours on the nominated collection day. Rescheduling requests must be made with reasonable notice. We are not liable for failed collections caused by unavailability at the collection address.
3.7. Kit Expiry: Sample collection kits must be used and samples lodged for courier collection within 90 days of the kit dispatch date. We are not liable for invalid or degraded results arising from kits used after this period. Kits used outside this window will be processed at the laboratory's discretion and no refund will be provided if results are rejected due to sample degradation attributable to storage beyond the 90-day period.
4. Courier & Logistics
4.1. Courier Service: We arrange priority courier collection from your facility or practice using StarTrack or equivalent priority courier services. Courier collection is included in the kit price.
4.2. Carrier Delays: We are not liable for delays, lost parcels, or samples rendered invalid due to third-party carrier delays once the parcel has been collected and is in transit.
4.3. Outbound Dispatch: Sample collection kits are dispatched within one business day of a confirmed order. Dispatch times are estimates only.
4.4. Regional and Remote Locations: For facilities outside standard metropolitan courier networks, transit times may be extended. Where same-day delivery to the laboratory cannot be achieved due to geographic location, we will advise you prior to confirming your order and will work with you to identify the best available option.
5. Results & Reporting
5.1. Turnaround Times: Estimated turnaround times from laboratory receipt are:
AS 5369:2023 sterilisation room testing: 5–7 business days
Legionella culture testing: 10–14 business days
Turnaround times are estimates only and are subject to laboratory workload and sample volume. Priority turnaround is available at an additional surcharge — contact us prior to submission.
5.2. Delivery of Results: Your NATA Certificate of Analysis and audit-ready compliance report will be emailed to the address provided at the time of order upon completion of analysis.
5.3. Limits of Reporting (LOR): A result of "Not Detected" or "Below LOR" means the parameter was below the laboratory's technical detection limit. It does not guarantee the absolute absence of the substance.
5.4. Positive Legionella Results: In the event of a positive Legionella detection, we will notify you by phone and email as soon as results are received. Remediation decisions must be made in consultation with your water safety consultant and your Water Risk Management Plan. We are a testing and reporting service only and do not provide remediation advice or services.
5.5. Report Use: Results relate solely to the samples as received by the laboratory. Reports must not be reproduced except in full. Reports are issued for your compliance records and must not be used as the sole basis for legal proceedings without independent verification.
6. Public Health Notification
6.1. If a test result reveals a detection that constitutes, in our reasonable assessment, an imminent and serious threat to the health of residents, patients, or the public, we may be ethically or legally required to notify relevant authorities including state or territory health departments. We will endeavour to notify you prior to making any such notification where practicable.
7. Limitation of Liability
7.1. Australian Consumer Law (ACL): Our services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the ACL. For major failures with our services, you are entitled to a refund or to have the services supplied again.
7.2. General Limitation: To the maximum extent permitted by law:
(a) Our total liability for any claim arising under or in connection with these Terms is limited to the cost of resupply of the relevant service (replacement kit and analysis) or a refund of the amount paid for the relevant kit.
(b) We are not liable for consequential, indirect, special, or economic losses arising from the use of, or reliance on, our results, including but not limited to costs of remediation, regulatory penalties, accreditation failures, or claims by third parties.
(c) We are not liable for losses arising from your failure to follow sampling instructions, failure to maintain cold chain requirements, or failure to make premises available for courier collection.
8. Refund & Replacement Policy
8.1. Change of Mind: We do not offer refunds for change of mind once a kit has been dispatched.
8.2. Customer Error: No refund will be provided where a sample is rejected by the laboratory due to customer error, including failure to follow sampling instructions, failure to maintain cold chain, or samples submitted outside applicable holding times.
8.3. Damaged Kits: If a kit arrives damaged, notify us within 24 hours of receipt with photographic evidence. We will arrange a free replacement kit.
8.4. Laboratory Rejection: If a sample is rejected by the laboratory for reasons outside your control and outside the circumstances described in 8.2, we will arrange a replacement kit and analysis at no additional charge.
9. Confidentiality & Privacy
9.1. We manage personal and facility data in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles.
9.2. Individual results are confidential to the Customer. We will not disclose results to third parties except as required by law, as described in clause 6.1, or with your written consent.
9.3. Aggregated and de-identified data may be used by us for internal analysis and service improvement purposes.
10. Intellectual Property
10.1. All report templates, compliance summaries, and materials produced by Clear Compliance Labs remain our intellectual property. The Customer is granted a non-exclusive licence to use reports for their own compliance and accreditation purposes.
11. Amendments
11.1. We reserve the right to update these Terms at any time. Updated Terms will be posted on our website with a revised Last Updated date. Continued use of our services following notification of updated Terms constitutes acceptance.
12. Governing Law
12.1. These Terms are governed by the laws of New South Wales, Australia. Any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New South Wales.
Clear Compliance Labs is a trading name of Drink Safe Australia Pty Ltd (ACN: 688 581 722). Registered address: Australia.