Terms of Service

1. About RateCollector

RateCollector helps businesses, especially restaurants and bars, collect and manage Google reviews by using engaging QR code flows and AI-assisted content suggestions. Customers scan a QR code, optionally interact with a short quiz, and may receive AI-assisted suggestions to help them express their own opinion. Businesses manage locations, Google Place IDs, and replies via the dashboard. Payments and subscriptions are processed by Stripe; authentication and data storage are powered by Firebase/Firestore.

2. Eligibility

• You must be at least 16 years old to use the Service.
• If you use the Service on behalf of a company, you represent that you have authority to bind that company to these Terms.
• You must comply with all applicable laws and third‑party platform rules (including Google policies).

3. Account Registration & Security

• You must provide accurate information and keep your account details up to date.
• You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your credentials and for all activity under your account.
• Notify us immediately of any unauthorized use or security incident.

4. Subscriptions, Billing & Trials

• Paid plans are billed in advance on a subscription basis via Stripe. Taxes may apply.
• Trials (if offered) grant temporary access. After a trial, billing starts automatically unless canceled.
• You can cancel at any time; access continues until the end of the current billing period. We generally do not offer refunds for partial periods except where required by law.
• Billing is managed through Stripe’s Customer Portal or our dashboard links.

5. Permitted Use

Subject to these Terms, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and use the Service for your legitimate business purposes.

6. Prohibited Conduct

• Creating, encouraging, or facilitating fake, deceptive, or paid reviews (“astroturfing”).
• “Review gating” or selectively soliciting only positive reviews in violation of Google policies.
• Misrepresenting identity, impersonating customers, or manipulating ratings.
• Reverse engineering, scraping, or abusing rate limits or the Service infrastructure.
• Uploading malware, infringing content, or violating others’ rights or applicable laws.

We may suspend or terminate accounts engaged in prohibited conduct and may cooperate with platforms (e.g., Google) or authorities to investigate abuse.

7. AI‑Assisted Content

• AI outputs are suggestions to help users express their own opinions; they are not published by us.
• You are solely responsible for reviewing AI suggestions and ensuring compliance with applicable platform rules (including Google Business Profile policies) and laws.
• AI may generate inaccurate or inappropriate outputs; you should verify all content before use.

8. Third‑Party Services

The Service integrates with third‑party providers such as Google (Business Profile and related APIs), Stripe (payments), and Firebase/Firestore (authentication and storage). Your use of those services is subject to their terms and policies. We are not responsible for third‑party outages, changes, or decisions that affect your use of the Service.

9. Your Content & License

• You retain ownership of content you submit (e.g., branding assets, banners, templates, review replies).
• You grant us a worldwide, non‑exclusive, royalty‑free license to host, process, and display such content solely to operate and improve the Service.
• You represent that you have the necessary rights to the content you submit.

10. Data Protection

Our handling of personal data is described in our Privacy Policy. Where required, a data processing addendum (DPA) may be made available upon request. We implement reasonable technical and organizational measures but cannot guarantee absolute security.

See: Privacy Policy.

11. Service Changes & Availability

• We may modify, suspend, or discontinue features with or without notice to improve reliability or comply with platform changes.
• Planned maintenance or third‑party outages may affect availability. We aim for reasonable uptime but provide no guaranteed SLA unless agreed in writing.

12. Intellectual Property

The Service, including software, interfaces, and branding, is owned by RateCollector and its licensors. No rights are granted except as expressly stated in these Terms. You may not remove proprietary notices or use our trademarks without permission.

13. Warranties & Disclaimers

• The Service is provided “as is” and “as available.” To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non‑infringement.
• We do not guarantee increased ratings, specific business outcomes, uninterrupted access, or error‑free operation.

14. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, in no event will RateCollector be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, or loss of profits, revenue, data, or goodwill. Our total liability for any claim arising out of or relating to the Service shall not exceed the greater of (a) amounts paid by you to RateCollector for the Service during the twelve (12) months prior to the event giving rise to liability, or (b) one hundred (100) EUR.

15. Indemnification

You will indemnify and hold harmless RateCollector and its affiliates, officers, agents, and employees from any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising from or related to your content, your use of the Service, or your violation of these Terms or applicable law.

16. Termination

• You may stop using the Service at any time and cancel your subscription as described above.
• We may suspend or terminate access for violations of these Terms, suspected fraud or abuse, or to comply with legal or platform requirements.
• Upon termination, rights granted to you under these Terms will cease, but sections intended to survive (e.g., IP, disclaimers, limitations, indemnity) will remain in effect.

17. Governing Law & Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of Poland, without regard to conflict‑of‑laws principles. The exclusive jurisdiction and venue for disputes arising out of or relating to the Terms or the Service shall be the courts located in Warsaw, Poland. If you are a consumer residing in the EEA or UK, you may have additional mandatory rights and the foregoing does not limit those rights.

18. Changes to the Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date above and, when appropriate, notify you via email or dashboard alerts. Continued use of the Service after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

19. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Contact us at contact@ratecollector.com.

20. Important Notices

• Nothing in these Terms constitutes legal advice. You are responsible for your compliance with Google’s review policies and applicable law.
• If any provision of these Terms is held invalid, the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.