Demo Terms & Conditions
It’s likely that every website, blog, mobile app and ecommerce store has a Terms and Conditions agreement posted, and for good reasons.
The Terms and Conditions agreement explains appropriate and allowed use of the website or app, what users can and can’t do on the site, what user rights are, and what information legally belongs to the company. In order to use the product or service, you must agree to abide by its Terms and Conditions.
Here, we’ll take a closer look at what a Terms and Conditions agreement is and why it’s important to have one for your online business.
By the time you’re finished reading this article, you’ll have a better understanding of the different clauses that should be considered when creating your Terms and Conditions agreement, why they’re important, and how different businesses display Terms and Conditions on their sites.
A Terms and Conditions agreement (also known as a Terms of Use or Terms of Service agreement) is a legally enforceable agreement that lays out the rules users must abide by in order to use a website, mobile app, or service.
After a user agrees to the Terms and Conditions, both the company and the user are in a position to enforce the terms of the agreement. The company can do so by refusing their service to customers who fail to comply with the agreement. Customers can file a lawsuit if they’re able to prove a breach in the Terms and Conditions they agreed to.
Typically, a Terms and Conditions agreement will contain sections and clauses that define and clarify key terminology and phrases, the end user’s rights and responsibilities, disclaimers, and information on how the user will be notified if the Terms and Conditions are modified.
For example, GitHub’s Terms of Service page has a section on the definition of the terms used throughout the agreement.
Generally speaking, there are six main types of clauses that companies include in the end user’s rights and responsibilities section of their Terms and Conditions agreement:
- Expected usage of service – This clause defines how the end user is expected to use the service. In some cases, it also details what misuse of service means.
- Accountability for actions – How will the end user be held accountable for their behavior and actions in the event of misuse?
- Privacy Policy – It can also include a clause linking to or briefly describing the company’s Privacy Policy agreement.
- Payment details – The payment details section describes everything related to payments such as how the end user will be charged for the service, explanation of the subscription model and fee structure, etc.
- Opt-out policy – If an end-user wants to opt out of the service or a value-added service, what is the process for doing so? What rules surround account termination and what is the procedure that needs to be followed?
- Information on arbitration – An explanation of the dispute resolution process and what needs to be considered before either party can take a claim to court.
YouTube’s Terms of Service page details the General Use of the Service – Permissions and Restrictions, which explains that the end users can access and use YouTube’s services as long as they agree to follow certain rules.