Firstly, a free written diagnostic; secondly, a fixed quote before anything is touched; and in most cases you only pay if we recover your data. Below we explain what each type of device costs to recover, how the pricing is structured, and the commonest questions we get asked.
Once the free diagnostic has been carried out, we give you the figure in writing, but never before.
We do not provide estimates over the phone, nor do we proceed with any work without your approval. Every single recovery goes through the same four stages.
Simply bring your device in or send it by post, and we’ll assess it free, usually within 48 hours, to determine what has failed, what we can recover, and the total cost.
A clear, fixed price for the recovery will arrive in writing before any charges are incurred; nothing continues until we receive your authorisation.
In most cases you only pay if we recover your data, so simply allowing us to take a look will not cost you anything.
Given that board rebuilds and head swaps require matched donor components and real bench time, these jobs incur a 50% deposit at the start, with the remaining balance due only upon successful completion.
Where the price for each type of job begins, prior to adding VAT; your exact total will land in writing once the free diagnostic has been completed.
Each type of device’s starting price, and what is returned. Follow any row through for complete details and per-device FAQs.
| Device | From | |
|---|---|---|
| Hard Drive | £300 | details → |
| SSD & NVMe | £300 | details → |
| USB Stick | £250 | details → |
| Memory Card | £250 | details → |
| External HDD | £300 | details → |
| Mac & MacBook | £300 | details → |
| Laptop & PC | £300 | details → |
| RAID Array | from £500 | details → |
| NAS | from £500 | details → |
| Server | from £500 | details → |
| Virtual Machine | from £800 | details → |
| Database | from £500 | details → |
| SAN | from £1,250 | details → |
| CCTV / DVR / NVR | £400 | details → |
The questions we are most frequently asked about our service. For an individual device, its own page in the table above goes further.
The first step is a free written diagnostic of your device, normally completed within 48 hours. A fixed written quote follows, and no costs are incurred until you confirm that you wish to proceed. Roughly, SAN and enterprise storage starts from £1,250 + VAT, multi-disk RAID and NAS from £500 + VAT, a single hard drive, SSD, laptop or Mac costs £300 + VAT, and a card or USB stick £250 + VAT.
No. All prices are quoted before VAT, which is applied at the standard UK rate. The written quote you receive after the diagnostic, before you decide, shows the total including VAT.
Yes, in most cases you only pay if we recover your data. That does not apply to physical drive and card-level repairs, DVR work or forensic work.
Head swaps, platter or motor work and board rebuilds require hours of bench time and exactly matching donor parts, whether or not the recovery succeeds. DVR and forensic cases take up similar specialist time regardless. Therefore those jobs need an initial deposit towards parts and labour, with the remaining balance billed only on completion of a successful recovery.
We aim to complete the free diagnostic within 48 hours. A straightforward logical case is often resolved within days, while physical repairs and RAID and NAS rebuilds take longer, depending on parts and complexity. The timeframe on your quote gives a clear indication of what to expect, and if you have a deadline, we also operate a priority track.
There are two ways to get your device to us: hand it in at our Guildford unit, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm, or send it to us by post, fully insured. We don’t offer collection, so it is one of those two.
Send just the bare drives. Remove them from their enclosure and label each with the bay it came from (first drive, second drive and so on), since the rebuild depends on this order. The RAID controller and the NAS chassis can stay with you.
No. We specialise in drives, RAID, NAS, servers, SAN, virtual machines and databases; phones and tablets are outside what we handle.
All the major ones. We work with drives made by Samsung, Toshiba, WD and Seagate; NAS units from Netgear, WD, QNAP and Synology; servers from Lenovo, IBM, HP and Dell; and on the business side, Exchange, PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server, Hyper-V and VMware.
Do not. A physically failing drive (one that drops out, refuses to spin or clicks) only degrades further while recovery software keeps it powered. Shut it down and send it to us as it is.
If you provide the recovery key or password, then yes: we will recover the encrypted volume and open it up using your key. Without the key or password, we may attempt forensic decryption, but success is not promised.
Your data stays private. Our own engineers perform every recovery on-site. From the time it arrives at our facility until it is returned to you, your drives remain in our possession and your data remains confidential.
Begin with a complimentary written diagnosis for your device. We will establish what can be recovered and the cost, after which the decision whether to proceed is yours. Bring your device to us in Guildford, or send it to us fully insured.