Sample Terms of Service Template - Privacy Policies

A Terms of Service agreement, or ToS agreement, is a contract between you and your customers or platform users. It controls the conditions under ... PrivacyPolicies.com Blog SampleTermsofServiceTemplate SampleTermsofServiceTemplate Lastupdatedon17May2022 byJenniferLaird (PrivacyPolicies.comLegalwriter) Ifyouhaveawebsiteoramobileapp,youshouldstronglyconsidercreatingaTermsofServiceagreement(ToS). Thisagreementwilloutlinethelegalrelationshipbetweenyouandyourusersorcustomers. Let'stakeacloserlookatwhyaTermsofServiceagreementisimportantandhowyoucancreateyourown.We'llalsolookathowtodisplayyouragreementonceyouhaveone,andhowtogetlegally-bindingconsenttoitsterms. TermsofServiceagreementsarecontractsbetweenyouandyourusers.Essentially,yousetoutwhatyou'lloffercustomersandwhatyouexpectinreturn. Likeanyothercontract,youcanenforceTermsofServiceagreements.Inotherwords,theyarelegallybindingagreementsandallpartiesshouldtakethemseriously. NeedTermsandConditionsforyourbusiness?WecanhelpyougenerateacustomizedTermsandConditionsagreementinaroundtwo-threeminutesforfree.TryourTermsandConditionsGeneratorandjustfollowthesesteps: Clickonthe"CreateyourTermsandConditionstoday"button. AtStep1,selectthewherewillyouuseyourTerms&Conditionsandclick"Nextstep": Addinformationaboutyourbusiness: Selectthecountryandcontinuetothe"Nextstep": Answerthequestionsaboutyourbusinesspracticesandclick"Nextstep"whenfinished: Enteryouremailaddresswhereyou'dlikeyouragreementsentandclick"Generate." You'redone!Nowyou'llbeabletoinstantlyaccessanddownloadyournewagreement. 1.WhyEveryWebsiteShouldHaveaTermsofServiceAgreement2.KeyClausesForaTermsofServiceAgreement2.1.EffectiveDate2.2.IntroductionClause2.3.ContactDetails2.4.LinkstoOtherKeyPolicies2.5.WholeAgreement2.6.IntellectualProperty2.7.ProhibitedBehaviors2.8.YourRighttoTerminateAccounts2.9.GeneralDisclaimerandWarranty2.10.LimitationofLiability2.11.AmendmentstotheAgreement2.12.GoverningLaws3.WheretoDisplayYourTermsofServiceAgreement3.1.AccountRegistrationorSign-upForms3.2.CheckoutScreens3.3.WithinYourPrivacyPolicy3.4.WebsiteFooter4.GettingConsentForYourTermsofService5.Conclusion WhyEveryWebsiteShouldHaveaTermsofServiceAgreement Sure,there'snolawsayingthatyoumusthaveaTermsofServiceagreement.Butit'ssimpletodraftandoffersmanybenefits.Herearesomeofthemainadvantagestohavingone: Itletsyoucontrolhowcustomersuseyourplatformandbehaveonyourwebsite There'slesschanceofadisputearisingbecausetherulesareclear Youcandeletesomeone'saccountquicklyiftheyviolateyourrules It'seasiertoenforceyourcopyrightandtrademarksifyouasserttheserightsintheagreement KeyClausesForaTermsofServiceAgreement YoushouldadaptyourTermsofServicetosuityourspecificbusinessneeds.Thatsaid,therearecertainclausesthatyoushouldalwaysincludetoprotectyourinterests. Theseclausesare: Effectivedateofyourdocument Introduction Contactdetails Linkstootherimportantdocuments Wholeagreementclause IPdeclaration Userbehavior,orrulesofconduct Yourrights Disclaimers Limitationofliability Amendments Governinglaws Dependingonyourbusiness,youmightalsoincludeclausesonothertopicssuchas: Licensingagreements Shipping Paymentandsubscriptions Returnsandrefunds Datahandling Tokeepitsimple,we'llsticktotheclausesyou'llfindinjustabouteveryTermsofServiceagreement.Then,youcanbranchouttootherclausesonceyouhaveyourtemplatebasestarted. Let'sbreakdownthekeyclausesmentionedabove. EffectiveDate YouneedtospecifywhatdateyourTermsofServiceagreementappliesfrom.Thisisthedatetheagreementcameintoforce.YoushouldmodifythisdatewheneveryouupdatetheTerms. It'srecommendedtoputthedateatthestartoftheagreement,likeWalmartdoeshere: IntroductionClause Next,beclearaboutwhatthedocumentactuallyisandwhatitmeans. Setoutthatit'salegallybindingcontract Explainhowitappliesandhowitaffectsthecustomer Statethatanyonewhousesthewebsiteagreesthatthey'reboundbytheagreementterms Here'sasimpleexampleofanintroductionsectionfromTimHortons: TheTermsofServiceislegallybindingandapplieswhenevercustomersuseaTimHortonsserviceonline.Ifcustomersdon'tagreewiththeTerms,theyshouldn'tusethewebsite ContactDetails Listasmanywaysasyouhaveavailableforcustomerstocontactyouiftheyhaveanyquestions. RogueFitness,forexample,givescustomersanemailaddresstocontactiftheywantmoreinformation: Thissectionisusuallyplacedattheendofanagreement,andcustomersknowtotypicallylookthere.However,aslongastheinformationisincludedintheagreement,itwillworkjustfine. LinkstoOtherKeyPolicies Youshouldincludealinktoyourotherpolicies,suchasyourPrivacyPolicy,withintheTermsofService.Thisreinforcestheideathatcustomersareboundbymultipleagreementswhentheychoosetouseyourwebsite. Here'sanexamplefromNeal'sYardRemedies.ThecompanydirectscustomerstothePrivacyNoticeatthestartoftheTermsandConditionsagreement: WholeAgreement MakeitclearthattheTermsofServiceandyourotherlegalnoticesformthewholecontractbetweenyouandyourcustomers. TimHortonshasaspecificclauseforthis.Importantly,ifanyclauseinthecontractturnsouttobeunenforceable,thecontractstillstands.Thisisgreatbecauseitprotectsthecompanyfromlosingallcontractualrightsifitturnsoutthatonespecificclausecan'tbeenforcedforonereasonoranother: IntellectualProperty UseyourTermsofServicetoprotectyourintellectualpropertyi.e.thingsyou'vecreated.Examplesofintellectualpropertyincludelogos,artwork,anddesigns. Beclearthatyou'renottransferringownershipofthiscontentandthatitstillremainsyourproperty.StatealsothatyouplanonenforcingyourIPrightsshouldanyonebreachthem. Here'sanexampleofanintellectualpropertyclausefromConverse.Let'squicklybreakitdown. Converseownsallcontentontheplatformunlessit'screatedbyusersthemselves. IfuserscandownloadConversecontent,theycanonlyuseitforitsintendedpurpose. ConversecansuepeoplewhobreachcopyrightorIPlaw. ProhibitedBehaviors Setoutthewayyouexpectusersorcustomerstobehaveonyourwebsite.Inotherwords,outlinewhatcountsasunacceptableconduct. Thingsyou'llcommonlyseeprohibitedinthesetypesofclausesinclude: Harassingotherusers Violatingcopyrights Deliberatelyuploadingvirusesortamperingwithwebsitecodes Conversesetsoutwhatthecompanyexpectsfromitscustomers.You'llnoticeitusegenerallanguagelike"anytypeofharm"ratherthanjustlimitingitselftothespecificexamplessetoutintheclause.Thislanguagemakestheclauseeasiertoenforce: YourRighttoTerminateAccounts Specifythatyoucanterminateanaccountofsomeonewhobreakstherules.Youmayalsowishtomaintaintherighttorestrictsomeone'saccesstoaservice,orwithdrawgoodsorservicesfromsalewithoutnotice. Herearesomeexamples. Barnes&Noblereservestherighttoterminateuseraccountsandaccesswithoutwarning: Walmartreservestherighttocancelanorderatanytimeifthere'sapricingerror,orsomeotheromission: It'simportanttoreservetheserightsincaseyouneedtoterminateanaccount.Withoutaclauselikethis,thepersonwhoseaccountyouterminatemaytrytocreatelegalissuesforyouwrongfullyterminatingtheaccount.Butaclauselikethismakesitclearthatyouareactingwithinyouragreed-uponrights. GeneralDisclaimerandWarranty Yourservicesshouldonlyeverbeavailable"asis."Youcan'tguaranteethat: Yoursitewillalwaysbeonlineandworkingproperly Goodsarealwaysinstockwhencustomersneedthem Customerswillenjoyyourservices Goodsandservicesarefitforthespecificpurposeacustomerboughtthemfor So,it'simportantyouincludeageneraldisclaimertothiseffect.Whileyoucan'texcludeallwarranties,youcanexcludethemsofarasthelawallows. Here'sanexampleofaconciseandstraightforwardWarrantyDisclaimerclausefromConverse: LimitationofLiability Aswithwarranties,youcan'trestrictyourliabilityforeverything.However,youshouldalwaysrestrictliabilitysofarasthegoverninglawsallow(moreonthatbelow). What'sthepointinrestrictingliability?It'stheonlywaytolimitthedamagesthatsomeonecansueyouforunderthecontract. Inotherwords,ifyoudon'tlimitliability,there'snotellinghowmuchsomeonecansueyoufor. Here'sagreatexamplefromTimHortons.Let'sbreakitdown. Thisclauseshouldbeinterpretedinlinewithprovincialgoverninglaws TimHortonsanditsaffiliatesarenotliableforthirdpartydamage,ordamagecausedbysomeone'sinabilitytoaccesstheservices Sincethecompanycan'tlimitallliability,itcapstheamountofdamagespayable.Youshouldalwaysdothis. AmendmentstotheAgreement It'simportantthatyoucanmakechangestotheTermsofServicefromtimetotime.Specifythat: You'relegallyentitledtoalteryourTermsofService You'llnotifyyourcustomersifyoumakechangesthataffectthem It'sthecustomer'sresponsibilitytochecktheTermsofServiceregularlyforanychanges Customersshouldalwayshavetherighttoendthecontractifthey'reunhappywiththechangesyou'vemade. TheWaltDisneyCompanyhasanAmendmentsclauseinitsTermsofUse.Heriswherecustomersaretoldthatthecompanycanchangetheagreementatanytime,andthechangesarebinding30daysaftertheynotifytheircustomers.Unlesscustomersformallywithdrawfromtheagreement,theDisneyStoreassumesthecustomersarehappywiththechanges: GoverningLaws Remember,thelawofcontractappliestoTermsofServiceagreements.However,themostimportantquestioniswhichcountry'slawswilltheagreementbeinterpretedunder? Typically,it'seasiesttochoosethelawsforthestate,territory,orcountrywhereyouhaveyourmainplaceofbusiness.Whatmatters,though,isthatyoudeclarewhichlawsapplysomewhereinyourTermsofService. Here'saclausefromAmericanAirlines.Asyoucansee,Texaslawapplies.Nomatterwherethey'relocated,customersacceptTexaslawgovernstheiragreementwithAmericanAirlines: So,nowwe'reclearonwhatTermsofServiceshouldinclude.ButhowdoyouknowsomeoneconsentstoyourTerms,andwhereshouldyoudisplaythemandhowshouldyougetconsenttotheterms? WheretoDisplayYourTermsofServiceAgreement WhendisplayingyourTermsofServiceagreement,makesurethatyouplaceitsomewherewhereit'seasytofind.You'lltypicallyfindlinkstotheTermsofServiceagreementinafewspecificplaces. AccountRegistrationorSign-upForms AlwaysgivecustomersthechancetoreviewyourTermsofServicebeforetheysignupforanonlineaccountorcompletearegistrationform. Neal'sYardRemedies,forexample,explainsthatsigningupforaloyaltyaccountmeansacceptingtheTermsagreement: CheckoutScreens GivecustomersonefinalopportunitytoreviewyourTermsofServicebeforetheyfinalizetheirorder. Here'sanexampleofgoodplacementfromLevi's: WithinYourPrivacyPolicy YoushouldalwayslinkyourTermsofServicetoyourPrivacyPolicy.Customerscantheneasilyreviewbothdocumentsbeforeusingyourwebsite. Youonlyneedonelink,likethisonefromEtsy.AcceptingthePrivacyPolicymeansacceptingtheTermsofService,andviceversa: WebsiteFooter PutalinktoyourTermsofServicebesideyourotherkeypoliciesinthewebsitefooter.Here'sanexamplefromRogueFitness: Peoplewillcheckthefooterforimportantinformation.Also,sincethefooterisavailableoneverywebpage,thismeansyourcustomerscaneasilyandquicklyfindyourTermsofServiceatanytime,andfromanypage. NowthatyouhaveyourTermsofServiceagreementreadyandhaveitdisplayedproperly,howshouldyougoaboutgettingconsenttoitsoit'slegallybindingandenforceable? GettingConsentForYourTermsofService There'snocontractbetweenyouandthecustomerunlessyoubothagreetobeboundbytheterms.Youneedacustomer'sconsentbeforeyoucanenforcetheagreementincourt. Consentshouldalwaysbeexplicit. ThemosteffectivewaytogetexplicitconsenttoyourTermsofServiceisbyusingacheckbox.Byclickingthebox,customersshowtheyclearlyandundoubtedlyagreetothecontractualterms.Theycan'tclaimtheydidn'tknowaboutyourTermsofService. Here'sanexampleofaclickableboxfromAmericanAirlines.Youcan'tsignupforanaccountunlessyouagreetotheTermsandConditions: It'ssometimespossibletorelyonacustomer'simpliedconsent.SolongasyoupostalinktoyourTermsofServicesomewhereobvious,andyoudrawattentiontoitbeforeacustomercompletestheirpurchaseoropensanaccount,impliedconsentmaybesufficient. Oneexceptiontothisiswhenyou'resellingtocustomersintheEU.UndertheGeneralDataProtectionRegulation(GDPR),impliedconsentisn'tgoodenough. RogueFitnessUSA,forexample,reliesonimpliedconsentbecauseitscustomerbaseisinNorthAmerica: Tobeonthesafeside,youshouldaimtoalwaysgetexplicitconsent.UnlessyousomehowbananyonefromtheEUfromvisitingyoursite,you'llneedtogetthisenhancedlevelofconsent. Conclusion ATermsofServiceagreement,orToSagreement,isacontractbetweenyouandyourcustomersorplatformusers.Itcontrolstheconditionsunderwhichyouletpeoplebuyyourgoodsandservices,orsimplyuseyourwebsite. TermsofServiceagreementsshouldbelegallybinding.Youcanrelyonthemincourtandenforcethemagainstyourcustomersifadisputearises.However,youcan'tenforce: Unfaircontractterms Termsthatcustomersknownothingabout Unclearorvagueterms So,youneedtopublishyourTermsofServicesomewhereobviousonline.Ataminimum,thismeanslinkingtoitinyourwebsitefooter,checkoutpage,andaccountsignuppage.It'sagoodideatolinktoitthroughyourPrivacyPolicypage,too. EveryTermsofServiceneeds,atleast: Adateandintroduction Limitationofliabilityanddisclaimer Rulesforuserconduct IPandcopyrightclause Jurisdictioninformation Contactdetails Linkstootherpolicies Clausesdescribingyourrights,includingyourrighttoamendtheTerms Andremember,it'sbesttogetexpressconsenttoyourTermsofService,butimpliedconsentissometimesacceptable. JenniferLaird PrivacyPolicies.comLegalwriter Lastupdatedon17May2022 Legalinformation,legaltemplatesandlegalpoliciesarenotlegaladvice.Pleasereadthedisclaimer. Articlecategories TermsandConditions Starthere #1PrivacyPolicyGenerator CookiesPolicyGenerator TermsandConditionsGenerator EULAGenerator Return&RefundPolicyGenerator DisclaimerGenerator CookieConsent Relatedarticles HowtoWriteaTermsandConditionsAgreement EveryonewhooffersgoodsandservicesonlineshouldhaveaTermsandConditionsagreementontheirwebsite. TermsandConditionsagreements(T&C)setoutexactlywhatyou'llofferyourcustomersand... Readmore 8CommonIssueswithTermsandConditionsAgreements YourTermsandConditionsagreement(T&C)isbothasocialandalegalcontract. Theseagreementsareanopportunitytoprotectyoursite,brand,andusers,andyoucanusethem... Readmore TermsandConditionsforSaaS DoesyourSaaSapplicationallowyouruserstouploadtheirowncontent,sendmessages,orotherwiseinteractwiththesoftware? Youlikelyhaverulesandguidelinesinplacetoensurethat... Readmore