Expertato Registered User Terms of Service

Last Updated Date: 10.5.2024

a. “Account Credentials” – A username, password, and any other multifactor authentication information used to access the account of a Registered User.

b. “Services Purchaser” – A Registered User who accepts the offer of an Expert in a Prepackaged Services Listing or an Expert Bid in a Project Listing.

c. “Project Listing” – a listing which details the service needs of a Registered User and invites Experts to bid on the right to provide such services.

d. “Listing Service” – A service provided by Expertato to a Registered User to post a Project Listing, Prepackaged Services Listing, or Job Listing to the Site. 

e. “Listing Transaction” – a legal transaction occurring when a Services Purchaser accepts an Expert ’s offer in a Prepackaged Services Listing, or when a Services Purchaser accepts an Expert’s bid on a Project Listing. 

f. “Expert ” – A Registered User who publishes a Prepackaged Services Listing on the Site, who Makes an Expert Bid on a Project Listing, or who publishes through their profile a description of services, goods, or expertise which they offer for sale .   

g. “Expert Bid” – An offer by an Expert in response to a Project Listing to perform the services required in the Project Listing upon certain terms and conditions. 

h. “Prepackaged Services Listing” – a listing which details an Expert’s offer to sell specific services or goods on the Site. 

a. You must be a Registered User to sell and/or buy services or goods on the Site. 

b. Registered Users must be a legal entity or an individual 18 years or older to register an account.  

i. If you are an individual who is entering into these Registered User Terms on behalf of an entity, you represent and warrant that you have the power to bind that entity and act as its authorized agent and you hereby agree on that entity’s behalf to be bound by these Terms, with the terms “you,” and “your” applying to you, that entity, and other users accessing the Services on behalf of that entity. You further agree that you will promptly update your account records to reflect any future changes in authorized agents.

c. You agree that the information You provide to Us during the registration process is true and accurate and that You will update your registration information as necessary to maintain the truth and accuracy of the information.

i. You further agree that, subject to applicable laws, We are authorized to take steps to verify your identity, or any other information You submit to Us, either directly or through a third party service provider.  

d. Upon Registration, We will provide You with, or allow You to create, Account Credentials to access the Site and its Services.  You agree that You are solely responsible for the security and confidentiality of your Account Credentials, and are liable for any fraud, misuse, or other activity taken by your account.

e. You agree that the following information You provide to become a Registered User will be available publicly on the site:

i. Username and/or Registered User ‘nickname’

ii. first and last name

iii. geographic location

iv. email address

v. languages spoken and level of proficiency

vi. education and work experience

vii. skills

viii. awards received

ix. date of registration as Registered User

x. any other information you voluntarily submit to your user profile viewable by the public.

f. You agree that, in addition to the information publicly available per the language of 2(e) above, the following information You provide to become a Registered User will be available to those Registered Users with whom You enter into a Listing Transaction:

i. billing address

ii. mailing address and physical address if different from mailing address

iii. phone number

iv. relevant third party payment service provider(s) information

v. any other information you voluntarily submit to your user profile or include in communications with other Registered Users on expertato.com

a. Expertato provides Services in the form of an online marketplace in which sellers and buyers of goods and services may connect and transact business.  Use of the Site can create a binding legal contract between Registered Users, but You acknowledge and agree that Expertato is not a party to any Listing Transaction, the terms of a Listing Transaction do not bind Expertato, and that Experato is not in any way responsible for the obligations of Registered Users arising out of a Listing Transaction. 

i. In view of the foregoing, You hereby release Expertato, its affiliates, officers, directors, agents, subsidiaries, employees, and service providers, from any and all claims and demands arising from or related to You and another party entering into an agreement via a Listing Transaction.  You have been made aware of, and understand, the provisions of California Civil Code Section 1542 (“Section 1542”), which provides: “A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS THAT THE CREDITOR OR RELEASING PARTY DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS OR HER FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE AND THAT, IF KNOWN BY HIM OR HER, WOULD HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS OR HER SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR OR RELEASED PARTY.” You hereby expressly, knowingly, and intentionally waive any and all rights, benefits, and protections of Section 1542 and of any other state or federal statute or common law principle limiting the scope of a general release.

b. You agree that Expertato is not obligated by these Registered User Terms to review the terms and conditions of any Listing Transactions. It is the responsibility of the Registered Users involved in any Listing Transaction to ensure that the terms and conditions in the listing are accurate and reflect the understanding of the Registered Users agreeing to transact.

c. Expertato does not endorse, warrant, make representations, or in any way guarantee the performance of Registered Users who enter into Listing Transactions on the Site.

d. You further acknowledge that Expertato does not control the performance of the services offered by Registered Users on its Site.

e. Nothing in the Registered User Terms shall be deemed to create any form of partnership, joint venture, employer-employee, or agency relationship between You and Expertato.

f. While Registered Users are permitted to use the Site to create legal agreements with other Registered Users, nothing in the Site constitutes, nor is intended to be, legal advice. 

g. You agree not to use the Site to enter into any agreement which would violate any applicable laws or regulations in any jurisdictions of relevance to the agreement.   

h. Experato does not directly process  payments for Listing Transactions on the Site and contracts with third party service providers to provide payment processing and other necessary payment related obligations to support the Services.  

i. Excluding Expertato fees, You acknowledge and agree that You and/or the Services Purchaser and Expert in connection with a Listing Transaction, as applicable, are solely responsible for all:

i. tax liability and documentation arising from payments invoiced through a Listing Transaction on the Site.  

ii. compliance with local, state, federal, and/or any other laws and regulations applicable to a Listing Transaction, including but not limited to:

1. 1. 1. 1. contractor, employee, or other designations and applicable documentation;
         2. insurance coverage;
         3. anti-discrimination regulations; and
         4. know your customer or anti-money laundering requirements
   2.  j. You agree to create and maintain all of the necessary documentation to serve as a record of Your transactions made through the Site.  You agree that, to the extent permitted by law, Expertato shall have no obligation to store or maintain transaction records on Your behalf.  

a. A Registered User may create one or more Prepackaged Services Listings on the Site for sale of goods or services.  Expertato charges a fee for its Listing Service. Registered Users may also bid their services in response to a Project Listing.  To post a Prepackaged Services  Listing or make an Expert Bid You must agree to the Expertato Payment Terms (https://expertato.com/directory/payment-terms/).

b. Each Prepackaged Services Listing or Expert Bid must:

i. Conform to the content standards (https://expertato.com/directory/privacy-policy/) and other provisions of the Website Terms;

ii. Accurately describe the goods and services being offered; and

iii. Set out the full legal terms of the offer.  

c. Expertato reserves the right to, at its discretion and without notice, unpublish and delete any listing for any reason or no reason, including, but not limited to, non-compliance with these Registered User Terms, the Website Terms, or the Payment Terms. 

d. By posting a Prepackaged Services Listing or Expert Bid, You agree that You are prepared to and will be bound to the terms of your listing or bid if such listing or bid is accepted by another Registered User in a Listing Transaction, and accept that You and the Services Purchaser will be responsible for all the obligations and liabilities arising from and related to the Listing Transaction according to its terms. 

e. All content submitted by a Registered User shall be considered User Contributed Data as defined in the Website Terms, and subject to all the rights, licenses, and liabilities set forth in the Website Terms (https://expertato.com/directory/terms-of-service/).

a. A Registered User may create one or more Project Listings on the Site soliciting Expert Bids for services needed.  Expertato charges a fee for its Listing Service.

b. To create a Project Listing or make a purchase on the Site You must:

i. be a Registered User;

ii. agree to the Expertato Payment Terms (https://expertato.com/directory/payment-terms/) ; and

iii. ensure and represent that your account and payment information are current and accurate.

c. You acknowledge and agree that it is solely your responsibility to evaluate the information in a Prepackaged Services Listing or Expert Bid, and to decide whether to finalize and accept the terms of a Prepackaged Services Listing or Expert Bid or to contact the Expert through the communication tools on the Site as part of the negotiation process.

d. By accepting a Prepackaged Services Listing or a Expert Bid on a Project Listing, You agree that You are prepared to, and will, be bound to the terms of the listing or bid, and accept that You and the Expert will be responsible for all the liabilities arising from and related to the Listing Transaction according to its terms.

e. Expertato reserves the right to, at its discretion and without notice, cancel any purchases by a Registered User which Expertato suspects may be fraudulent or otherwise illegal, or  which do not comply with these Registered User Terms, the Website Terms, or the Payment Terms.

a. Expertato charges platform fees and may, if applicable, impose certain taxes to use the Site and Services.  Fees and any applicable taxes will be clearly communicated through the Site prior to the finalization of a transaction.  

a. You agree to use Expertato as the exclusive channel to facilitate, negotiate, direct payment for, and enter into Listing Transactions with one or more Registered Users whose information and services You were provided access to, whether as a Registered User or not, via the Site, and not circumvent Expertato’s fees by arranging, negotiating, finalizing, or otherwise facilitating a Listing Transaction off-Site.  However, nothing in these Registered User Terms is intended to discourage or in any way prevent You from providing services or engaging in business transactions outside the Site using information not provided by Expertato.  

a. Expertato reserves the right to terminate the account of any Registered User for any reason or no reason, including but not limited to, a violation of the Registered User Terms, the Website Terms, or the Payment Terms, at any time.  

b. Termination of an Expertato account does not relieve a Registered User of any existing duties which may exist under a Listing Transaction.

a. You agree to, in good faith, attempt to settle any Disputes with other Registered Users which arise from transactions through the Site.  If such attempts are unsuccessful, both parties in dispute may jointly elect to participate in a dispute resolution process guided by Expertato as described below:

b. Should Registered Users involved in a dispute with another Registered User be unable to resolve the dispute after attempting to do so between themselves, either affected user may request that Expertato assist in the Dispute Resolution Process by utilizing the dispute resolution tools on the Site, and describing in detail the origin and nature of the dispute.  At its discretion, Expertato will work with the parties involved in the dispute to reach a resolution for a period of 30 days.  If Experato and all Registered Users involved in the dispute resolution process agree, an arbitration agreement may be entered into, the terms of which will be established in writing prior to the commencement of the arbitration process, in which Expertato may act as an arbitrator to decide the final outcome of the dispute.    

c. Expertato is not, and under no circumstances shall Expertato act as debt collector to collect on any obligations owed to a Registered User arising out of a Listing Transaction. 

a. You understand that We cannot and do not guarantee or warrant that files available for downloading from the internet or the Site will be free of viruses or other destructive code. You are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures and checkpoints to satisfy your particular requirements for anti-virus protection and accuracy of data input and output, and for maintaining a means external to our site for any reconstruction of any lost data. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY A DISTRIBUTED DENIAL-OF-SERVICE ATTACK, VIRUSES, OR OTHER TECHNOLOGICALLY HARMFUL MATERIAL THAT MAY INFECT YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT, COMPUTER PROGRAMS, DATA, OR OTHER PROPRIETARY MATERIAL DUE TO YOUR USE OF THE SITE OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE OR TO YOUR DOWNLOADING OF ANY MATERIAL POSTED ON IT, OR ON ANY WEBSITE LINKED TO IT.

YOUR USE OF THE SITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE SITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. NEITHER THE COMPANY NOR ANY PERSON ASSOCIATED WITH THE COMPANY MAKES ANY WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPLETENESS, SECURITY, RELIABILITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY, OR AVAILABILITY OF THE SITE. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, NEITHER THE COMPANY NOR ANYONE ASSOCIATED WITH THE COMPANY REPRESENTS OR WARRANTS THAT THE SITE, ITS CONTENT, OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, ERROR-FREE, OR UNINTERRUPTED, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, THAT OUR SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES IT AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT THE SITE OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE WILL OTHERWISE MEET YOUR NEEDS OR EXPECTATIONS.

WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE COMPANY DISCLAIMS ANY RESPONSIBILITY AND PROVIDES NO WARRANTY FOR ANY CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENTS BETWEEN YOU AND ANY THIRD PARTY ARISING FROM INFORMATION ACCESSED THROUGH THIS SITE.  

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, THE COMPANY HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHERWISE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY WARRANTIES THAT CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

a. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL THE COMPANY, ITS AFFILIATES, OR THEIR LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, SUBSIDIARIES, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS, OR DIRECTORS BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE SITE, ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO IT, ANY CONTENT ON THE SITE OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, AND WHETHER CAUSED BY TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT, OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE. 

The limitation of liability set out above does not apply to liability resulting from our gross negligence or willful misconduct.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY LIABILITY THAT CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

a. ANY CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM YOU MAY HAVE ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE REGISTERED USER TERMS OR THE SITE MUST BE COMMENCED WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ACCRUES; OTHERWISE, SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION OR CLAIM IS PERMANENTLY BARRED.

a. You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Expertato, its affiliates, licensors, and service providers, and its and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to your violation of these Registered User Terms or your use of the Site, including, but not limited to, your User Contributed Data, any use of the Site’s content, services, and products other than as expressly authorized in these Registered User Terms, or your use of any information obtained from the Site.

a. All matters relating to the Site and these Registered User Terms, and any dispute or claim arising therefrom or related thereto (in each case, including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Texas without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule (whether of the State of Texas or any other jurisdiction).

Any legal suit, action, or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Registered User Terms or the Site shall be instituted exclusively in the federal courts of the United States or the courts of the State of Texas, in each case located in the City of Austin and County of Travis, although We retain the right to bring any suit, action, or proceeding against You for breach of these Registered User Terms in your country of residence or any other relevant country. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over You by such courts and to venue in such courts.

a. You agree that, at Expertato’s sole discretion, We may require You to submit any disputes arising from these Registered User Terms or use of the Site, including disputes arising from or concerning their interpretation, violation, invalidity, non-performance, or termination, to final and binding arbitration under the Rules of Arbitration of the American Arbitration Association, applying Texas law, and conducted in Travis County, Texas.

a. No waiver by the Company of any term or condition set out in these Registered User Terms shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of the Company to assert a right or provision under these Registered User Terms shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.

If any provision of these Registered User Terms is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of the Registered User Terms will continue in full force and effect.

a. You may not assign, delegate, or transfer any rights under these Registered User Terms. Expertato may assign its rights, or delegate its obligations, in whole or in part, without further consent from You. Any purported assignment in violation of this Section shall be null and void.

a. The Registered User Terms, the Website Terms, our Privacy Policy, and Cookie Notice, and, if applicable, the Payment Terms, constitute the sole and entire agreement between You and the Company regarding the Site and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations, and warranties, both written and oral, regarding the Site.