Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of these terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of Poynter ("Poynter", "we", "us"). By creating an account or otherwise using Poynter, you agree to be bound by these Terms and by our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, don't use Poynter.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old and able to form a legally binding contract to use Poynter. If you're signing up on behalf of a business, you confirm you're authorized to bind that business to these Terms.

3. What Poynter is

Poynter connects customers who need a local service with nearby businesses who can provide it. A customer submits a request; nearby businesses offering that service are notified; whichever business accepts first is matched to the customer. Poynter is a neutral intermediary that facilitates this introduction — we are not a party to, and assume no responsibility for, the agreement formed between a customer and a business once matched.

4. Accounts

You must provide accurate, current information when creating an account and keep it up to date. You're responsible for safeguarding your password and for all activity under your account. Notify us immediately if you suspect unauthorized access. One account per person or business; don't create an account for someone else without their permission.

5. Customer responsibilities

• Submit requests that accurately describe the service you need.
• Provide a real, accessible location for the job.
• Communicate and negotiate price directly and in good faith with a matched business.
• Pay the agreed amount for completed work directly to the business.
• Leave honest ratings and reviews based on your actual experience.

6. Business responsibilities and verification

Businesses are independent third parties — not employees, agents, partners, or contractors of Poynter. By registering a business, you confirm that:

• You're legally authorized to provide the services you list.
• You hold any licenses, registrations, or insurance your trade requires under South African law.
• Information in your profile — services offered, location, documents submitted for verification — is accurate.
• You'll respond to and complete accepted jobs in good faith and in a reasonable time.

A "Verified" badge reflects that a business submitted supporting documents for our review. It is not a guarantee, certification, or endorsement of the business's quality, licensing, insurance, or workmanship, and Poynter makes no warranty to that effect.

7. Ratings, reviews and reports

Ratings and reviews must reflect a genuine experience with the rated party — don't post fake, retaliatory, or unrelated reviews. If something goes wrong with a job, you can submit a report through the app. We may review reports and take action against an account, including warnings or suspension, but we're not obligated to mediate or resolve disputes between customers and businesses, and a report does not entitle you to a refund, compensation, or any specific outcome from Poynter.

8. Fees and payment

Job payment: the price for a job is agreed and settled directly between the customer and the business, by whatever payment method they agree on. Poynter is not involved in, and takes no fee from, that transaction.

Platform features: businesses may separately purchase optional paid features from Poynter, such as a featured listing ("boost"), processed through our payment provider. These purchases are for the platform feature itself and are non-refundable except where required by law, or at our discretion.

9. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• Submit false, spam, or duplicate service requests.
• Misrepresent your identity, or a business's identity, qualifications, or licensing.
• Harass, threaten, or discriminate against another user.
• Attempt to circumvent the matching, verification, or rate-limiting systems.
• Scrape, reverse-engineer, or interfere with the operation or security of Poynter.
• Use Poynter for any unlawful purpose.

We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate this section, at our discretion.

10. Intellectual property

Poynter's name, logo, and the app itself are our property or that of our licensors. Content you submit (business descriptions, photos, reviews) remains yours, but you grant Poynter a license to display it on the platform for the purpose of operating the service.

11. Third-party services

Poynter relies on third-party services to operate — including mapping, messaging, and payment processing providers. We're not responsible for outages, errors, or acts or omissions of those third parties, though we'll work to minimize disruption where we can.

12. Disclaimers

Poynter is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including fitness for a particular purpose or uninterrupted, error-free operation. We don't guarantee that any request will be accepted, that a matched business will complete the work satisfactorily, or that a customer will pay as agreed — those outcomes depend on the independent parties involved, not on Poynter.

13. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Poynter is not liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from your use of the platform, or from the acts or omissions of another user (customer or business) you were matched with. Our total liability for any claim relating to Poynter is limited to the greater of R500 or the amount, if any, you paid us directly in the 3 months before the claim arose.

14. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold Poynter harmless from any claim, loss, or damage (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your use of the platform, your breach of these Terms, or your interaction with another user.

15. Termination

You can stop using Poynter and delete your account at any time from your account settings. We may suspend or terminate your account if you breach these Terms, or for any other reason with reasonable notice where practical. Sections of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination (such as limitation of liability) will continue to apply.

16. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. Any dispute arising from these Terms or your use of Poynter is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the South African courts.

17. General

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions stay in effect. These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, are the entire agreement between you and Poynter regarding your use of the platform. We may update these Terms from time to time; continuing to use Poynter after a change means you accept the updated Terms.

18. Contact

Questions about these terms can be sent to the contact details listed on our homepage.