Terms of Service

1. About Start Us

Start Us Ltd (“Start Us”, “we”, “our”, or “us”) is a company registered in England and Wales (Company No. 11566536), with its registered address at 20-22 Wenlock Road, London, N1 7GU.

We provide a fundraising campaign management software platform (“the Platform”) that enables campaign coordinators to manage personal and community fundraisers, including beneficiary verification, fund disbursement, donor communications, and financial reporting.

By accessing or using the Platform or this website, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”). If you do not agree, please do not use the Platform.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old and have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement to use the Platform. By using the Platform, you represent and warrant that you meet these requirements.

The Platform is intended for use by campaign coordinators, charities, community organisations, and individuals who are managing fundraising campaigns on behalf of verified beneficiaries.

3. Permitted Use

You may use the Platform to:

• Create and manage fundraising campaigns for verified beneficiaries.
• Collect and record donor contributions through authorised payment channels.
• Disburse funds to verified beneficiaries in accordance with your campaign terms.
• Communicate with donors and beneficiaries using authorised messaging integrations.
• Generate and store receipts and financial reports.

4. Prohibited Use

You must not use the Platform to:

• Conduct any fraudulent, deceptive, or misleading fundraising activity.
• Collect funds for purposes not disclosed to donors.
• Disburse funds to unverified or ineligible beneficiaries.
• Violate any applicable law or regulation, including anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) rules.
• Send unsolicited communications or spam to donors or beneficiaries.
• Misrepresent your identity, organisation, or the purpose of your campaign.
• Use the Platform in any way that could damage, disable, or impair its functionality.

5. Beneficiary Verification

Campaign coordinators are responsible for conducting appropriate due diligence on all beneficiaries before disbursing funds. Start Us provides tools to assist with this process but does not independently verify beneficiary identities or eligibility. The coordinator bears full responsibility for ensuring that funds are disbursed to legitimate, eligible beneficiaries.

6. Financial Responsibilities

Start Us is a software platform and is not a payment processor, money service business, or financial institution. All payments are processed through third-party payment processors (such as Stripe) in accordance with their terms and applicable regulations.

Campaign coordinators are solely responsible for:

• Ensuring compliance with all applicable tax, charity, and financial regulations in their jurisdiction.
• Accounting for and reporting all funds raised and disbursed.
• Any disputes arising between donors, beneficiaries, and the coordinator.

7. Messaging and Communications

Where you use the Platform’s messaging features (including WhatsApp Business API integration), you are responsible for ensuring that all recipients have provided their explicit consent to receive messages from you. You must comply with all applicable messaging laws and Meta’s WhatsApp Business Policy. Start Us reserves the right to suspend messaging access for any account found to be in violation of these requirements.

8. Account Responsibilities

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. You must notify us immediately at hello@startus.app if you become aware of any unauthorised access to your account.

9. Intellectual Property

All content, software, designs, and materials on the Platform are owned by or licensed to Start Us Ltd and are protected by UK and international intellectual property laws. You may not copy, reproduce, or distribute any part of the Platform without our prior written consent.

You retain ownership of any data and content you upload to the Platform. By uploading data, you grant Start Us a limited licence to process that data solely to provide the Platform’s services.

10. Disclaimer of Warranties

The Platform is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranties of any kind, express or implied. We do not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of viruses or other harmful components. We make no warranty regarding the accuracy or completeness of any information provided through the Platform.

11. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Start Us Ltd shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Platform, including but not limited to loss of funds, loss of data, or loss of reputation.

Our total liability to you for any claim arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform shall not exceed the amount you have paid to us in the three months preceding the claim.

12. Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Platform at any time if we reasonably believe you have breached these Terms, violated any applicable law, or acted in a way that is harmful to other users, beneficiaries, or donors.

You may terminate your account at any time by contacting us at hello@startus.app. Upon termination, you remain responsible for any obligations incurred prior to termination.

13. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any disputes arising from these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

14. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify registered users of material changes via email. Continued use of the Platform after changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

15. Contact