Everything on this page is what you would hear over the phone written down by us: the three fixed price band levels, the components of the free diagnostic, what "only pay if we recover your data" entails, and then, as truthfully, the small number of services that we simply don't provide. We charge no evaluation fee. No hourly rate charge. And no figure will be quoted after your drive has been left at our bench to wait for service.
£250 + VAT: memory cards and USB sticks (and chip-level reads). £300 + VAT: one drive only, whether an internal or external drive, desktop or laptop, Mac hard drive, or SSD, regardless of the nature of the problem with that drive. From £500 + VAT: RAID arrays, NAS units and servers, quoted to the job. Every individual member of the RAID array is first fully imaged separately before attempting to rebuild the array. Work that requires specialised expertise falls into separate categories: BitLocker, priced at £800 + VAT; CCTV / DVR / NVR priced at £400 + VAT; virtual machines and forensic work, priced from £800 + VAT; Fusion Drive Macs priced at a flat £550 + VAT; and SAN & enterprise storage, priced from £1,250 + VAT, all fixed by us in writing after your free diagnostic.
Work that cannot be fixed with a price band (databases, virtual machines, forensic instructions, wallet searches, destruction batches) will require an individual quote in writing once you have received your free assessment. We rarely need to go outside of our price banding system, but when we do we name it in advance and never spring it on you afterwards.
What files can be recovered from each type of device and what the starting price for recovering them is. All prices exclude VAT and are fixed in writing after the free diagnostic.
| Device | From | |
|---|---|---|
| Hard Drive | £300 | details → |
| SSD & NVMe | £300 | details → |
| External HDD | £300 | details → |
| USB Stick | £250 | details → |
| Memory Card | £250 | details → |
| Laptop & PC | £300 | details → |
| Mac & MacBook | £300 | details → |
| RAID Array | from £500 | details → |
| NAS | from £500 | details → |
| Server | from £500 | details → |
| Database | from £500 | details → |
| BitLocker | £800 | details → |
| CCTV / DVR / NVR | £400 | details → |
| Virtual Machine | from £800 | details → |
| Forensic | from £800 | details → |
| SAN | from £1,250 | details → |
The sequence provides assurance of protection: free diagnostic, a firm written quotation for all work, authorisation from you prior to beginning the recovery process, and by the time the payment has been made you will be fully aware of what was recovered. All recovered data is sent to you on new, secure encrypted media. Your original device will either be returned to you or securely disposed of upon your request. We accept BACS and card payments equally well; all business customers receive VAT invoices automatically.
We use three fixed pricing bands to cover almost every conceivable scenario: £250 + VAT covers memory cards and USB sticks; £300 + VAT applies to any single storage unit (hard disk, SSD, laptop or Mac); and prices start from £500 + VAT, but this varies depending on the nature of each individual job (RAID, NAS, servers etc.), and we provide a full quote based on the specific requirements of each job. Database recovery, virtual machine recovery, forensic work and "wallet" searches are all priced individually. Every quote provided includes a clear fixed price in writing prior to commencing the work requested.
Our diagnostic service is completely complimentary: there is no charge for our assessment of your damaged device. No pressure, no obligation whatsoever. We will inspect your device, advise you as to why it failed and what parts may have been damaged during its failure. We will also inform you as to what data may possibly be recovered and what the fixed total cost would be to complete the recovery. There is absolutely no obligation on your part to purchase anything after receiving our assessment. Even if you decide against proceeding with the recovery, you will owe nothing beyond return postage if we are posting the device back. The diagnostic is how we quote honestly; guessing over the phone helps nobody.
On most types of data recovery project undertaken by us, you do not incur the cost of the recovery should we fail to recover the exact data requested. The only exception to this rule is when you ask us to perform some form of open-ended category of recovery (such as certain forms of forensic analysis, wallet searches and quoted-to-job work). In these instances, the cost is directly related to the amount of time and resources spent attempting to retrieve your lost data. Each and every one of these types of projects is clearly outlined in writing prior to commencement, thus allowing you to understand which terms apply prior to agreeing to commence.
The average time for most single-drive cases to complete from when they arrive is three to five working days; this includes all of the data being copied off. Because each disk in multi-disk arrays has to be imaged separately, these generally require longer to recover. If a compatible donor unit must be located in order to restore access to your data, then we'll let you know at diagnosis. In the case of genuine emergency situations, customers may use our priority track (evenings and weekends), and the charge for such work will be clearly stated within the quotation, alongside the standard figure.
No, and we're honest about it: phone and tablet recovery requires specialised tools and expertise, which are vastly different from those required to recover a failed hard drive. Rather than taking the risk of messing up your original data, we recommend finding a professional who specialises in recovering data from handheld devices. We focus on what we're genuinely expert in: drives, SSDs, RAID and NAS systems, memory cards, USB sticks and the machines around them.
No: we are strictly a recovery bench. While we'd be happy to provide you with suggestions after your recovery as to how to prevent future losses (and provide those recommendations absolutely free), we don't consider ourselves to be an IT support company. Our primary goal is to recover lost data. Should you wish to implement some form of ongoing backup service in order to protect your data going forward, however, we recommend that you find another qualified provider to assist you with that need.
Neither, and it's simply our company's policy, not lack of interest. Data safety dictates that the failed unit make only one padded trip. All of the necessary equipment needed to perform the recovery process (i.e., imaging hardware, donor units, etc.) resides at our recovery bench. Once you have a quote, please feel free to bring your device to Tay House, 300 Bath Street (Monday–Friday 9am–5:30pm) or post it to us via insured, tracked postal delivery from anywhere within the United Kingdom.
Your data will be kept safe using our own team in-house and nobody else: there's no outsourcing to other countries, no third-party labs. The media is safely stored with a documented chain of custody, and recovered data is sent to you on encrypted media; your data never leaves the UK. If requested, we will sign an NDA as part of the job. We're listed on the ICO register (ZC173784) as well.
Each donor unit used by our team is matched to your exact model so one single successful read of the drive is possible. The drive is revived for imaging, not returned to service. Your original drive is always returned to you. If you would prefer for us to dispose of your original securely then this can be arranged; also all recovered data will be provided to you on new, secure encrypted media and verified prior to shipping.
There are two ways of doing things in this business; we refuse both of them: the "£49 recovery" option which just runs software on top of what’s broken, and the open-ended "evaluation fee" options which don't show the cost until after your drive is held as collateral. We have fixed band pricing, no diagnostic charge, and quoted numbers in writing, so you can judge the value before we even touch the screws.
You'll receive a written quote after ten minutes on the phone with one of our team members or after we receive one padded parcel from you. You'll have a clear idea whether we believe your drive is recoverable or not, and you won’t incur any costs associated with either service, with no obligation and no drive held hostage. We’ll give you clear data recovery pricing in Glasgow, just as any other business should.