Terms of Service

1. Acceptance

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the UniBudz mobile application and related services ("UniBudz", "the Service"), operated by Ryan Daniel van Eeden ("we", "us", "our"). By creating an account, you agree to be bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, please don't use the Service.

2. Eligibility

You must be 18 years or older to use UniBudz. By creating an account, you confirm you meet this age requirement and have full legal capacity to enter these Terms. UniBudz is designed for university students in South Africa but is available to any eligible user.

3. Your account

• You are responsible for keeping your sign-in credentials confidential and for all activity that happens under your account.
• You agree to provide accurate information at signup and to keep it up to date.
• You may only have one account per person.
• You must notify us immediately at unibudzapp@gmail.com if you suspect unauthorised use of your account.
• You can delete your account at any time from the app's profile screen, or by emailing us.

4. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• Use UniBudz to harass, stalk, threaten, defame, or invade the privacy of any person.
• Misuse the SOS feature for non-emergency purposes — false SOS activations may result in immediate account termination and, if appropriate, reporting to authorities.
• Submit false venue suggestions, deal submissions, event submissions, or reviews.
• Attempt to scrape, reverse-engineer, decompile, or extract data from the Service in bulk.
• Use the Service for any unlawful purpose or in violation of any applicable law.
• Impersonate another person or misrepresent your affiliation with any university or organisation.
• Upload images that infringe copyright, contain nudity, or otherwise violate community standards.
• Interfere with the operation of the Service or access it via automated means.

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these rules, with or without notice.

5. Expense data — important disclaimer

UniBudz helps you track and split shared expenses between friends and housemates. We are not a payment processor, financial institution, or escrow service. We do not move money between users. Any actual settlements (cash, EFT, or other) happen between you and the other people in your group, outside of UniBudz. We make no warranty as to the accuracy of any balance calculation and recommend you treat the figures as a helpful summary rather than a binding accounting record.

6. UniBudz Pro subscription

• UniBudz Pro is an optional paid subscription that unlocks additional features (receipt scanning, recurring expenses, spending trends, premium themes, wishlist events, early event drop access — full list inside the app).
• Pricing is shown in the app. As of the effective date, Pro is offered at R29 per month, billed monthly in advance.
• Subscriptions auto-renew at the end of each billing period unless cancelled before the renewal date.
• You can cancel at any time from your Google Play subscription settings. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period — no partial refunds.
• If you cancel, Pro features remain available until the end of the period you've paid for, then revert to the free tier.
• We may change Pro pricing or feature lists in future. We will notify you at least 14 days before any change takes effect.
• Billing is processed by Google Play. Refund requests for Google Play purchases must be made via Google's refund policy.

7. User-generated content

You retain ownership of any content you create or upload (reviews, event submissions, profile photos, expense notes, receipt photos, etc.). By submitting content, you grant UniBudz a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, display, and process that content as needed to run the Service.

You represent that the content you submit:

• Does not infringe any third party's copyright, trademark, or other rights.
• Is not defamatory, obscene, or otherwise unlawful.
• Is your own work or is content you have the right to share.

We use automated moderation (OpenAI's moderation API) to screen reviews before publication. We may remove any user-generated content at our discretion if it violates these Terms or community standards, or if other users report it.

8. Venue and event listings

Venue locations, hours, contact details, and deals are compiled from public sources (Google Places, venue websites, user submissions). We do our best to keep them accurate but make no warranty. Events are sourced from public APIs (e.g. Quicket) and user submissions; we are not the organiser of any event. Always check directly with the venue or event organiser before relying on details for plans.

9. Location features

Live location sharing and SOS features are off by default. You must explicitly opt in to each. You can turn them off at any time from within the app. Location data shared with other users (group members or reciprocal friends) is processed in line with the Privacy Policy.

The SOS feature is a peer-to-peer alert tool that notifies the friends you choose. It is not a substitute for emergency services. In a genuine emergency, contact South African emergency services on 10111 (police) or 10177 (ambulance).

10. Service availability

We aim to keep UniBudz available 24/7 but make no uptime guarantee. We may pause or restrict access for maintenance, security, or operational reasons. We may add, change, or remove features at any time without notice. Where reasonably possible we will give advance warning of significant changes.

11. Disclaimer of warranties

UniBudz is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, or non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or completely secure.

12. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by South African law, in no event will we be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or punitive damages arising out of or in connection with your use of (or inability to use) UniBudz, including but not limited to loss of data, loss of profits, or reliance on any balance calculation, venue listing, event listing, or location data shown in the app.

Our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of these Terms or the Service will not exceed the greater of (a) the amount you have paid to us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) R500.

Nothing in these Terms limits any liability that cannot be limited under South African law (including under the Consumer Protection Act, 2008).

13. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless UniBudz and its operators from any claim, demand, loss, or liability (including legal fees) arising out of (a) your breach of these Terms, (b) your misuse of the Service, or (c) any content you submit that infringes a third party's rights.

14. Termination

• By you: delete your account at any time from the profile screen, or by emailing unibudzapp@gmail.com.
• By us: we may suspend or terminate your account at any time if you breach these Terms, abuse the Service, or if we are required to do so by law. Where appropriate we will give notice and an opportunity to remedy.
• Termination of your account does not refund any Pro subscription fees already paid.
• Sections 5, 7, 11, 12, 13, 15, and 16 survive termination.

15. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes we will notify you in-app and bump the "Last updated" date at the top. Continued use after a change means you accept the updated Terms. If you don't accept the new Terms, please delete your account before they take effect.

16. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. Any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Service will be resolved in the courts of South Africa, subject to any consumer protection rights that apply to you under South African law.

17. Contact

Questions about these Terms, or about UniBudz in general:
unibudzapp@gmail.com