Terms of Service

London Sperm Bank Terms & Conditions

Conditions of Use

London Sperm Bank (referred to as 'LSB') is a registered company located at 112 Harley Street, London, and is fully licensed by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA License No. L0011-20-a). By placing an order on this site, you, the recipient of the Sperm, confirm that you have:

Attended a consultation at an HFEA licensed clinic or an appropriately accredited overseas clinic, with a treatment date agreed upon at that clinic.
Received both verbal and written information about your treatment and discussed the procedures involved in receiving sperm as part of your treatment with your clinic.
Obtained all relevant information pertaining to your treatment, as required by the HFEA Code of Practice, from your treating clinic.
Been offered counselling by your treating clinic about the implications of the treatment using donor sperm.
Been informed about the screenings that the Sperm donor has undergone and the limitations of that screening in avoiding transmissible conditions.

Ordering and Purchasing Samples

An order is considered completed when the recipient has submitted all required documentation, made payment, and the recipient clinic has approved the transport of the allocated samples from your order. A completed order will be confirmed by LSB.
You should complete your order at least 4 weeks before the intended treatment date. Orders completed later may not be guaranteed delivery in time for treatment.
LSB will accept your order for Sperm when you have an open account with LSB.
An account will be created for you upon confirmation from an HFEA licensed clinic or accredited overseas clinic that you are registered for treatment there, and you have attended your clinic for a consultation and have a treatment plan/date in place.
If LSB is unable to verify your details with your chosen clinic, your order will be cancelled, and a refund will be issued minus an administration charge of £150.
LSB will confirm your order upon receipt of confirmation of your treatment cycle from your chosen clinic, as well as your signed consent form and full payment.
Please respond to LSB’s confirmation email within 5 days of receipt. Check your junk/spam mail folder if necessary.

For any queries regarding the confirmation email, please call 020 3826 3217 between 08:30 – 17:30, and a staff member will assist you.

Sperm will only be reserved and dispatched after full payment is received.
Orders placed separately for 3+ vials do not qualify for LSB Multibuy discounts.
Refer to the Refunds and Cancellation policy for more details.

General

Donor Sperm provided by LSB (‘Sperm’) may only be used for fertility treatment at an HFEA licensed clinic in the UK or an appropriately accredited overseas clinic.
LSB provides Sperm to you for your exclusive personal use. You confirm that you will only use it as such.
LSB Sperm provided to you may not be resold or distributed without LSB’s written permission.
Information on donors comprises sensitive personal data under the Data Protection Act 1998. LSB will provide relevant information to you for the purpose of selecting a Sperm donor, without breaching the donor’s confidentiality.
LSB aims to have as many donors available as possible at one time. However, sample availability may be limited. LSB sells Sperm on a first come, first served basis.
It is important that you inform LSB of your agreed treatment date and inform them of any changes immediately, should they occur.
This agreement does not override the terms of paragraph 4A of Schedule 3 to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (as amended) ('HFE Act'), which provides that the Sperm donor may withdraw or vary his consent about the use of his Sperm in treatment at any time. This includes any embryo created using his Sperm until that embryo is transferred to a woman or allowed to perish.
Where the Sperm is used in licensed treatment, under the HFEA Act, the Sperm donor will not be the legal parent of any resulting children.
You confirm that you are aware: i. that non-identifying information about you and the outcome of your treatment will be available to the Sperm donor; and ii. of the information about the Sperm donor that will be available to you and your children created as a result of the Sperm (for example the number and sex of any resulting children), including information recorded on the HFEA Register that the children are entitled to receive and the circumstances under which they may receive it.
This Agreement is personal to you. You cannot assign or transfer any rights or obligations under it to any other person.

Quality Standards

All donors available via the LSB online database have been recruited and screened in compliance with donation criteria under the European Tissues and Cells Directive ('EUTCD'), HFEA standards, and professional guidance.
All Sperm samples have been procured, tested, processed, preserved, and stored in compliance with EUTCD and HFEA requirements.
LSB also assesses Sperm according to LSB’s motility standard of 10 million motile Sperm per ml of sample. If a sample falls below this standard, the treating clinic may judge that ICSI may be appropriate to optimize the chances of fertilization.
Very occasionally, at the time of treatment, a thawed and prepared sample may not meet the predicted standard. All UK licensed clinics have protocols for dealing with these situations and will be in contact with LSB.
LSB Sperm meets all required quality standards. However, LSB cannot guarantee that a pregnancy will be achieved using Sperm or that any pregnancy or offspring derived as a result of using the Sperm will be free from genetic disorders/defects or infectious diseases. In particular: i. it is impractical to test for ALL genetic markers or infectious diseases, and in some cases, there are no available tests; ii. donor testing is properly administered; however, even where the results show normal, the tests have limitations and may not be entirely reliable; and iii. LSB’s recruitment processes (including counselling) rely on the donor providing accurate and correct information about their genetic and general health history. We treat the information provided by the donor in good faith. LSB has no way of independently verifying this information. In our experience, we are not aware of any inaccurate information being provided by our donors.

At London Sperm Bank (LSB), our donor screening process adheres to the highest standards, following the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) Code of Practice (version 9), the UK guidelines for the medical and laboratory procurement and use of sperm, oocyte, and embryo donors (2019), and the SABTO microbiological safety guidelines. This ensures that all donors meet our strict criteria for health and safety:

Medical Assessments: Potential sperm donors are evaluated by a clinician who assesses both the donor's and their immediate family's medical history, followed by a comprehensive physical examination.
Genetic Testing: Specific genetic tests targeting high-risk genes are conducted under the supervision of a clinical geneticist.

All potential donors must pass these assessments during their initial screening and throughout their donation period to ensure the highest safety standards are maintained.

Handling of Donor Information

LSB takes the confidentiality of donor information seriously:

Assignment of Donor Codes: To maintain donor anonymity, donor codes are used internally to track the use of individual donors' gametes. These codes are assigned according to strict protocols that prevent disclosure beyond necessary administrative use.
Disclosure Practices: Recipients are given access to non-identifying information through a catalogue code that offers an additional layer of anonymity. Donors are not informed of their catalogue codes to further safeguard their privacy.

Donor Confidentiality

Non-identifying information about each donor is displayed on the database. LSB is unable to provide any further personal information on donors.
Subject to disclosures required as a matter of law, LSB will keep your personal information confidential at all times. However, in accordance with LSB’s registration (No. ZA054217) at the UK Information Commissioner’s Office, LSB may, on request, share health information with healthcare professionals at the treating clinic and non-health information with LSB administrators for financial and/or auditing reasons.

Information Available to Donors

At London Sperm Bank, our policy ensures strict adherence to privacy and regulatory guidelines. Consequently, we do not facilitate the exchange of personal communications such as letters or direct messages between donors and recipients. The information available to donors regarding the outcomes of their donations is strictly non-identifying and includes:

Number of Children: Donors can be informed about the number of children born from their sperm.
Year of Birth: Donors can receive information regarding the years in which children were born.
Sex of Children: Information about the biological sex of any children conceived from their donations can be shared.

This information is provided to help maintain a record of the use of donated sperm and to ensure compliance with the limits on the number of families created from a single donor's sperm, as stipulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). No identifying information about the recipients or the children is shared with the donors to protect the privacy of all parties involved.

Creating Families

According to UK law, Sperm procured from UK-based donors may be used to create up to 10 families within the UK. As an HFEA licensed Sperm bank, we are obligated to ensure that this limit is not infringed. This 10-family limit does not apply if LSB Sperm is used in treatment outside the UK.
Where the sperm donor has provided explicit consent that his sperm can be used in treatment outside the UK, LSB will determine a limit to the number of families that the Sperm Donor can help on a case by case basis. Note that since LSB is currently not exporting sperm for treatment outside of the UK, this is not presently applicable. Should this change in the future, LSB will ensure transparency is provided regarding the specific implications of an exported donor to potential recipients.
Our catalogue occasionally includes imported donors from outside of the UK, primarily from the United States and Denmark, particularly during past periods of donor sperm shortages in the UK. These donors are clearly marked as such on their profile.
The maximum UK family limit of 10 will still apply to the use of these imported donors within the UK, the number of families that can be created with these samples outside the UK may exceed this limit of 10. This will vary depending on the regulations in the country of the donor's origin. Donors must consent to the legislation of their originating country, which might allow for more than 10 families. We advise patients purchasing LSB imported donor sperm samples to contact our team for more information regarding this matter.

Delivery Policy

LSB will ensure that all orders placed on a weekday are processed within 24 hours. Orders placed on a weekend will be processed the next working day. Orders will be dispatched no later than 7 days from when completion of the order process and receipt of your completed consent form unless otherwise requested by your treating centre or yourself.
LSB will ship the Sperm sample via DHL in a liquid nitrogen vapor tank designed to keep the sample frozen for up to 5 days. The vapor tank has an integral monitor to ensure that the temperature is monitored at all times.
LSB staff will ensure that all samples are properly packed in the transport vessel. However, LSB is not responsible for any damage caused by shipping delays or tank failures outside of LSB control.
It is the responsibility of the receiving clinic to check the tank immediately on arrival, to ensure that it is fully functional and that the sample is frozen. Any concerns regarding the integrity of the shipment must be immediately reported to LSB.
For the purposes of quality assurance, once a sample has been shipped out of LSB, the sample cannot be returned.

Returning Recipient/Sibling Treatment

You may order Sperm for sibling treatment by ordering from the LSB online database or contacting the LSB Customer Service Team (LSBcustomerservice@londonspermbank.com) prior to embarking on treatment preparation. However, LSB does not guarantee the availability of Sperm for sibling treatment.
Once a Sperm sample is purchased from LSB, a family slot is automatically allocated and will remain allocated until confirmation of a negative treatment outcome with no embryos or Sperm samples remaining in storage owned by the recipient.
LSB retains the right to relinquish a family slot due to an unsuccessful outcome. There will be no hold on the family slot and the donor will be released back onto the catalogue if no embryos or Sperm samples remain in storage owned by the recipient.

Notification of Treatment Outcomes

The ability to track pregnancies is very important in order that LSB can monitor the number of families created by each donor.
By ordering from LSB, you hereby accept responsibility for reporting your treatment outcome. Negative outcomes should be reported to LSB no longer than 15 days after insemination, and positive outcomes should be reported no later than 12 weeks after insemination (clinically confirmed by gestational sacs and fetal heartbeat). By placing an order with LSB, you also give LSB permission to contact your clinic in the unlikely event that we are unable to make contact with you regarding the outcome of your treatment.
You must inform LSB where any resulting embryos are created and stored.
A member of staff from LSB will contact your treating clinic if you fail to provide this information within 2 weeks of a pregnancy test or the birth of a child.

Use of Donor Sperm in a Non-UK Clinic (Overseas)

The export and import of Sperm for use in treatment in an overseas clinic is regulated by the HFEA (UK) and European Tissues and Cells Directive (EUTCD – EU). LSB will not deviate from the regulations under any circumstance. Sperm purchased from LSB must not be exported overseas without prior agreement from LSB.
Sperm can only be exported to an overseas clinic:

where the clinic is accredited, designated, authorized, or licensed in accordance with the requirements of the European Tissues and Cells Directive (EUTCD) or an internationally recognized equivalent if the clinic is based outside the EU;
where the clinic can provide evidence that a Quality Management and traceability system is in place;
when the donor has provided specific consent to export; this is part of our recruitment process. Please note that some donors may not provide consent for the export of their Sperm.

The recipient should note that where donor Sperm is used in treatment at an overseas (non-UK) clinic it is under the terms of local law. This should be discussed in detail with staff at the treating clinic, in advance of treatment.

Refund & Cancellation Policy

We want you to be happy with your purchase. Please read the following carefully to ensure you are fully aware of our obligations to you, should you want to cancel your order with us:
If you wish to cancel your order because you have changed your mind about your purchase, London Sperm Bank will offer you a full refund provided that you cancel your order within 3 days of placing the order.
Orders cancelled after 3 days will be refunded minus an administration fee of £150.00.
Orders placed separately for 3+ vials will not qualify for LSB Multibuy discounts.
Any orders that have not been dispatched to your clinic and do not have a storage reservation in place after 3 months since the order was placed will be cancelled minus the £150.00 administrative fee.
Samples that are reserved with LSB (paid storage) and are subsequently cancelled will be refunded 50% of the cost of the samples, storage fees are non-refundable.

Copyright

The entire content included in this site, including but not limited to text, graphics, or code, is copyrighted as a collective work under the United Kingdom and other copyright laws, and is the property of London Sperm Bank. The collective work includes works that are licensed to London Sperm Bank - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Permission is granted to electronically copy and print hard copy portions of this site for the sole purpose of placing an order with London Sperm Bank or purchasing London Sperm Bank products. You may display and, subject to any expressly stated restrictions or limitations relating to specific material, download or print portions of the material from the different areas of the site solely for your own non-commercial use, or to place an order with London Sperm Bank or to purchase London Sperm Bank products. Any other use, including but not limited to the reproduction, distribution, display, or transmission of the content of this site is strictly prohibited unless authorized by London Sperm Bank. You further agree not to change or delete any proprietary notices from materials downloaded from the site.

Trademarks

All trademarks, service marks, and trade names of London Sperm Bank used on the site are trademarks or registered trademarks of London Sperm Bank (LSB).

Limitation of Liability

London Sperm Bank shall not be liable for any special or consequential damages that result from the use of, or the inability to use, the materials on this site or the performance of the products, even if London Sperm Bank has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Applicable law may not allow the limitation of exclusion of liability or incidental or CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you.

Typographical Errors

In the event that a London Sperm Bank product is mistakenly listed at an incorrect price, London Sperm Bank reserves the right to refuse or cancel any orders placed for products listed at the incorrect price. London Sperm Bank reserves the right to refuse or cancel any such orders whether or not the order has been confirmed and your credit card charged. If your credit card has already been charged for the purchase and your order is cancelled, London Sperm Bank shall issue a credit to your credit card account in the amount of the incorrect price.

Use of Site

Harassment in any manner or form on the site, including via e-mail, chat, or by use of obscene or abusive language, is strictly forbidden. Impersonation of others, including a London Sperm Bank or other licensed employee, host, or representative, as well as other members or visitors on the site, is prohibited. You may not upload to, distribute, or otherwise publish through the site any content which is libelous, defamatory, obscene, threatening, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, abusive, illegal, or otherwise objectionable which may constitute or encourage a criminal offense, violate the rights of any party or which may otherwise give rise to liability or violate any law. You may not upload commercial content on the site or use the site to solicit others to join or become members of any other commercial online service or other organization.

Communications and Opt-Out Option

We may use the information that you provide to send you information and materials that we think may be of interest to you. If you do not wish to receive any further information or materials from us, you may opt-out by contacting us in writing. London Sperm Bank will not share your personal information with a third party for the purpose of solicitation without your prior consent. Any disclosure of personal information to a third party will require those parties' adherence to at least equivalent Privacy policies.

Privacy Notice

London Sperm Bank is committed to protecting the privacy of our customers. This statement outlines our privacy and data protection policy. The website https://www.londonspermbank.com, its pages and sub-domains are owned and run by us, London Sperm Bank. By clicking the tick box in the pop-up that you encountered on first using our website, you signal that you have read this Policy and that you consent to the setting of “cookies” on your computer or device as well as to their subsequent access. This document tells you what they are, why and how we use them, and how you can remove them.

What Cookies Are

A “cookie” is a small text file, containing an anonymous, unique identifier, which is sent from a web server and placed on your computer's hard drive. Whenever your Internet browser requests a web page from this server, the server detects the cookie. Only the website that placed the cookie on your hard drive can access it. There are two types of cookies. “Session cookies” expire when the web browser is closed at the end of each user session. “Persistent cookies” are stored by browsers and remain there until the sooner of their expiry date or deletion by the user.

Why We Use Cookies

We use cookies to help us to identify recurrent users and to analyze their use of our website.

Which Cookies We Use, and Why

We use both session and persistent cookies on our website. This section provides details:
Analytic Cookies
We use Google Analytics to produce reports of statistical and other information about the use of our website. Google Analytics’ privacy policy is available here.

Personal Information

Your personal details will be collected and processed when you order, purchase, register, subscribe or make use of any of our products or services. In addition, when you visit our website or use any of our digital applications (such as our iPhone or iPad applications), we also collect website and application usage information (which may include your reading history and any advertisements you may have viewed), and information about your computer or other digital device and your internet connection. This includes your computer's or digital device’s IP address, the type and version of the browser and operating system you use, your internet domain and, if you visited via a link from another website, the URL of the linking page.

This information is collected to help us:

fulfil your order
manage your registration preferences
send you service notifications
personalize web content based on your personal characteristics or preferences
ensure, as far as is practical, that our websites and applications are compatible with the browsers and operating systems used by most of our visitors
conduct customer satisfaction surveys

Security

Rest assured that your sensitive information is safe and sound in our highly sophisticated data centre. Our IT team is always working to ensure that your most important data is never compromised, regardless of the latest technology.

Card Details

We do not store card details, nor do we share customer details with any third parties.

Who We Are

Our website is owned and operated by us, London Sperm Bank, a limited company based in England and Wales (registered number 05925090).
Our registered office is 113 & 115 Harley Street, London, W1G 6AP.
Our physical address is 1 Saint Thomas Street, London, SE1 9RY.

Management Team Contact Information

For any issues or concerns, our management team is available to assist:

Operations & Laboratory Manager: Nicole Nel - Nicole.nel@londonspermbank.com
Quality Manager & Deputy Laboratory Manager: Michael Thomson - Michael.thomson@londonspermbank.com
Donor Quality & Publication Lead: Zahira Nahim - Zahira.nahim@londonspermbank.com