Support and Maintenance Contracts: What Do They Cover?

A maintenance contract is a legal agreement between a business and a maintenance service provider, covering a range of different maintenance services: For the purposes of this article, we’re going to be looking at software and hardware support and maintenance contracts.  

A maintenance contract would typically detail the type of work required, schedules and frequency of maintenance work or repairs, along with an agreed service level or expected performance on the tasks being carried out by the maintenance service.

When Should You Use a Maintenance Contract?

There could be several reasons for outsourcing your technical support and maintenance services, including  

• The overall workload associated with support and maintenance of your computer systems may be too much for an internal team to handle by themselves
• Your business may not have the specialist knowledge or skills required for the type of support and maintenance needed, and this may only be available from the original equipment manufacturer
• It may not be cost-effective to hire a position as a permanent role if the work is only sporadic or occasional, such as routine maintenance or repair call-outs for machines such as printers.

What Should be Included in a Support and Maintenance Contract?

There are several important details that should be included in a support and maintenance contract, such as

• Details of both parties, including names and addresses
• What type of support and maintenance will be carried out and the scope of the work - i.e. whether there are any routine tasks to be performed, or whether the services are purely for fixing issues
• Details of the equipment or software being maintained
• The information that the customer must provide if there is an issue that requires fixing
• Expected response and fix times, or other performance indicators
• Schedule and processing method of any payments
• Warranties, guarantees, and compensation
• Information on contract termination

If you are unsure about any of these aspects of maintenance contracts, it is always advisable to seek professional advice from qualified legal experts and specialist contract lawyers if possible.

What are the Different Types of Long-term Maintenance Contracts?

The two main types of long-term maintenance contracts are AMC or annual maintenance contracts and CMC or comprehensive maintenance contracts.

The AMC type is simply paid on a yearly basis but may involve additional costs for any extra services or parts needed.

CMC or comprehensive maintenance contracts are paid for based on services rendered such as callouts and repair work. These may be more expensive initially but with no hidden or additional costs to pay the business can find it easier to understand their position and therefore budget more effectively.

What to look out for in a Support and Maintenance Contract

The main thing to remember when drafting or reviewing a support and maintenance contract is that the terms of the deal must be clear, and written in language that is simple to read and understand.

It is important to remember that support and maintenance contracts are legally enforceable and the laws that apply will vary - usually dependent on which country or state the service provider is operating in.

For this reason, on any support and maintenance contract you are considering entering into, the best course of action is to have a qualified legal expert or business lawyer review the documents or assist with the draft of the maintenance contract.  That way you can be sure that the maintenance contract will work in your favor and not leave you open to future risk.

It is always more favorable and less costly to have a legal team quickly review your documents rather than being instructed to fight a lengthy legal battle for you in the courts, should a dispute arise.

For this reason, the best piece of advice in terms of agreeing support and maintenance contracts is to get those documents checked!  Don’t be fooled into thinking that they are “standard” or unimportant.

What are the Differences Between Support and Maintenance Contracts in the USA, the UK, and Australia?

If your business is operating overseas and has a maintenance contract in countries such as the USA, the UK, and Australia, it is important to remember that there may be different legal requirements in each country.  Typically, the support and maintenance agreement will be governed by the regional laws in which the maintenance workers are operating, so it’s always sensible to check where this is.

In particular, if support teams will have access to personal data held within your computer systems (as is often the case, where the support staff will need to review a fault to see what is causing it) the would be considered a “processor” under GDPR in the EU or the UK equivalent.  This will require them to enter into additional contractual provisions wherever in the world the supplier is located.

Get In Touch With Biztech Lawyers

If your organization is looking to enter into a support maintenance contract - either as a customer with an outsourced provider, or as a tech supplier - and you have any concerns or questions, contact our expert advisors today.

Our business experts can help you draft your own support and maintenance contract or review any documentation from other parties to ensure the terms comply with the legal jurisdiction it is operating within and that the contract serves the best interests of your company.

For any queries relating to maintenance contracts in the UK, the USA or Australia, contact Biztech Lawyers today for an informal conversation.We are more than happy to answer any questions you may have and share some of our expert knowledge gained from many years in the industry.