Consent to Treatment & Terms and Conditions

Last updated: 7 September 2026

This document explains what to expect from counselling with Above & Beyond Addiction Services Ltd ("the practice", "we", "us"), the limits of confidentiality, our booking and payment terms, and what you're agreeing to when you sign. When you book a confidential consultation, you'll be sent a secure link by email to read and digitally sign this document. If anything here is unclear, please ask — you're welcome to discuss any part of it with your practitioner before your session.

Part One — Consent to Treatment

1. About this service

Your counselling will be provided by Andrew Hill, Level 7 Bachelor's Degree in Applied Addiction, a provisional member of the New Zealand Association of Counsellors (NZAC), practising as Above & Beyond Addiction Services Ltd. Unless otherwise organised, sessions are conducted by telehealth (phone or video) rather than in person.

This service provides addiction and behavioural-health counselling, including — depending on what you've booked — individual counselling, treatment planning, family support, or related services as described on our website. It is general counselling support and does not replace medical care; if you have medical concerns, please also see your GP or another appropriate health professional.

2. Voluntary participation

Taking part in counselling with us is voluntary. You may decline to answer any question, decline any suggested approach, pause, or stop counselling entirely at any time, without needing to give a reason. You can withdraw this consent at any time by telling your practitioner, verbally or in writing.

3. Confidentiality and its limits

We treat what you share with us as confidential. However, like all NZ health practitioners, we cannot promise absolute confidentiality in every circumstance. We may need to share limited information without your consent where:

• There is a serious risk to your safety, or the safety of another person;
• We are required to do so by law (for example, under a court order);
• It is necessary to protect a child or otherwise vulnerable person from harm;
• You have given specific consent for us to share information with a named person or organisation (for example, another treatment provider, a referrer, or a lawyer).

Where practical and safe to do so, we will discuss this with you first. Full detail on how your information is stored and used is in our Privacy Policy.

4. Telehealth — things specific to phone/video counselling

• Please try to find a private, quiet space for your session where you won't be overheard, and use headphones if that helps with privacy.
• Technology can fail. If we lose connection or a call drops, your practitioner will attempt to reconnect using the contact details you've provided. If we can't reconnect, we'll follow up by email to reschedule.
• Telehealth is not equivalent to a full in-person clinical assessment in every respect (for example, we can't observe body language or the surrounding environment the way we could in person). Your practitioner will let you know if, at any point, they believe in-person or a higher level of care would serve you better.
• This service, including any phone or email contact with the practice, is not an emergency or crisis service and is not monitored 24 hours a day.

5. In a crisis or emergency

If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 111. For urgent mental health or addiction support, you can free call or text 1737 (Need to Talk) at any time, or call the Alcohol & Drug Helpline on 0800 787 797 (24/7). Lifeline Aotearoa is available on 0800 543 354.

6. Fees, cancellations and missed appointments

Fees, payment, cancellation notice and our missed-appointment policy are set out in full in Part Two of this document (Terms & Conditions), which you're asked to read and agree to as part of booking. In short: your session is paid for at the time of booking, and if you don't answer when we call at your scheduled time (after the attempts described in Part Two), the session is treated as a missed appointment and the fee is not refunded, except where Part Two provides otherwise.

Part Two — Terms & Conditions

These terms apply to any booking made with Above & Beyond Addiction Services Ltd ("the practice", "we", "us"). By booking a session, you agree to these terms.

1. Bookings and payment

• Sessions are booked and paid for online at the time of booking. Full payment is required before a booking is confirmed, unless we've agreed otherwise with you directly.
• A confirmed booking includes a specific date and time, reserved exclusively for you.
• Fees are shown at the time of booking in New Zealand dollars (NZD) and may be updated from time to time; the fee that applied when you booked is the fee that applies to that session.

2. Rescheduling and cancelling with notice

• If you need to reschedule or cancel, please let us know at least 24 hours before your appointment time, using the contact details in your booking confirmation.
• With at least 24 hours' notice, you may reschedule to another available time at no extra cost, or receive a full refund.
• With less than 24 hours' notice (other than in a genuine emergency — see section 4), the fee is retained, for the reasons set out in section 3.

3. If we can't reach you at your appointment time

Sessions are conducted by phone at your scheduled time. Because we call you (rather than you calling us), here's exactly what happens if we can't reach you:

• We will call at your scheduled appointment time. Our number will show as private/withheld — please answer even if you don't recognise the number.
• If there's no answer, we will try again after approximately 10 minutes.
• If this second call also cannot be connected — whether because it isn't answered or goes straight to voicemail — and we haven't heard from you, the appointment is recorded as a missed appointment ('no-answer'). You will not receive a refund, and you'll need to book a new session if you'd like to reschedule.
• This reflects that your appointment time was reserved exclusively for you and could not be offered to another client.
• If you realise you're going to miss the call, contact us as soon as you can — if you reach us before the second call attempt above, we'll do our best to still run your session or rebook it at no extra cost.

4. Genuine emergencies

We understand that genuine emergencies happen, particularly in the context of addiction and behavioural health. If you miss a session because of a genuine emergency, please contact us as soon as you reasonably can — we'll consider a credit or rescheduled session at our discretion. This is a discretionary allowance, not a guarantee, and we may ask for some information about what happened.

5. What this service is — and isn't

• This is a private counselling and behavioural-health service. It is general support and does not replace medical treatment, diagnosis, or a Court-directed assessment unless specifically agreed and scoped in writing (for example, a Legal & Sentencing Report engaged separately).
• This service, including phone and email contact with the practice, is not an emergency or crisis service and is not monitored 24 hours a day. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 111.
• We do not guarantee any specific treatment outcome. Recommendations and the pace of work are individualised, and outcomes depend on many factors outside our control.

6. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law:

• Our total liability to you arising from or connected with a session or our services is limited to the fees you paid for that specific session.
• We are not liable for any loss or damage arising from technology failures outside our reasonable control (for example, your internet or phone network, or a platform outage), though we will always try to reconnect and, where that's not possible through no fault of yours, reschedule at no extra cost.
• Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or modifies any right or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded, including under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 where it applies.

7. Confidentiality

Confidentiality is described in Part One of this document (Consent to Treatment) and our Privacy Policy, both provided at the time of booking. In short: we keep what you share confidential, with limited exceptions (for example, a serious safety risk, or where required by law) — we do not promise absolute secrecy in every circumstance.

8. Ending the service

• You may stop counselling with us at any time, for any reason.
• We may decline to continue providing a session or the service — for example, where we reasonably believe it's not clinically appropriate, where there has been threatening or abusive behaviour toward the practitioner, or where fees remain unpaid. Where we end a booked but not-yet-delivered session for these reasons, any fee paid for that session will normally be refunded unless the reason relates to your conduct.

9. Reading and signing this document

It is your responsibility to read and sign this document promptly, using the link sent in your booking confirmation email. If a session goes ahead before your signed copy has been returned, taking part in that session is treated as your acceptance of, and agreement to be bound by, this Consent to Treatment and these Terms & Conditions — on the same basis as if you had signed beforehand. If you have any questions about this document, please contact us before your session — we're glad to discuss it with you.

10. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms from time to time; the current version is always available on this page and applies to bookings made after it's published.

11. Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of New Zealand, and any dispute will be dealt with in the New Zealand courts.

12. Contact

Questions about this document can be sent to info@aboveandbeyondaddiction.co.nz.

Your acknowledgement

By digitally signing this document via the secure link sent at the time of booking, you confirm that:

• You have read and understood Part One (Consent to Treatment) and Part Two (Terms & Conditions) of this document, and our Privacy Policy;
• You understand counselling with us is voluntary and you can withdraw consent at any time;
• You understand the limits of confidentiality described above;
• You understand this is a telehealth service, not an emergency service, and you know what to do if you experience a crisis;
• You understand our booking, payment, cancellation and missed-appointment policies, including that a missed appointment under section 3 of Part Two is non-refundable;
• You understand that if a session goes ahead before this document is signed, section 9 of Part Two applies;
• You consent to receiving counselling from Above & Beyond Addiction Services Ltd on this basis.