1. Introduction and Acceptance of Terms

These Terms of Service ("Terms") form a legally binding agreement between you ("User", "you", or "your") and Deposit Guard Ltd ("Deposit Guard", "we", "us", or "our"), a company incorporated in England and Wales. These Terms govern your access to and use of the Deposit Guard web application, related mobile experiences, and any associated services (collectively, the "Service").

By accessing or using the Service, you confirm that:

• You are at least 18 years of age;
• You have the legal capacity to enter into a binding contract;
• You are accessing the Service from the United Kingdom or, where applicable, from a jurisdiction in which the Service is lawfully available; and
• You have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated herein by reference.

If you are using the Service on behalf of an organisation, you represent and warrant that you have authority to bind that organisation to these Terms, and the word "you" includes both you personally and that organisation.

2. Description of the Service

Deposit Guard is a mobile-first web application designed to assist UK-based residential tenants in documenting the condition of their rental property at or around the time of move-in. The Service enables Users to:

• Create a digital record of one or more rental properties;
• Define and manage the rooms within a property;
• Capture photographs of each room directly via their device camera from within the application;
• Add descriptive notes or annotations to individual photographs;
• Generate a timestamped condition report compiled from their photographs and notes (the "Report");
• Store and download completed Reports for future reference.

Deposit Guard is intended as an evidence-gathering and organisational tool. It is not a legal service, and nothing in the Service or any Report generated constitutes legal advice. We strongly recommend that you obtain independent legal advice if you intend to use a Report beyond dispute resolution proceedings offered by the government-backed deposit protection schemes.

3. Account Registration and Security

3.1 Registration

To use the Service, you must register for an account by providing a valid email address and a password meeting our minimum security requirements. You agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information during registration and to keep your account information updated.

3.2 Account Security

You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials. You agree to:

• Choose a strong, unique password;
• Not share your password with any third party;
• Notify us immediately at if you become aware of any unauthorised access to or use of your account; and
• Log out of your account at the end of each session, particularly when using shared or public devices.

We will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with the above security obligations.

3.3 Account Suspension and Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account at our sole discretion if we have reason to believe you have violated these Terms, engaged in fraudulent activity, or caused harm to other Users or to Deposit Guard. We will endeavour to provide reasonable notice unless immediate action is required to protect the integrity of the Service.

4. Acceptable Use Policy

4.1 Permitted Use

The Service is provided exclusively for your personal, non-commercial use as a residential tenant for the purpose of documenting and evidencing the condition of your rental property.

4.2 Prohibited Conduct

You must not use the Service to:

• Upload, capture, or submit photographs or content that is obscene, defamatory, discriminatory, or otherwise unlawful;
• Attempt to document a property you do not have a lawful right to access;
• Misrepresent the condition of a property, including by attempting to submit photographs taken at a different time or place than stated;
• Reverse-engineer, decompile, disassemble, or otherwise attempt to derive the source code of the Service;
• Use automated tools, bots, scrapers, or scripts to access the Service in any manner not expressly permitted;
• Circumvent, disable, or otherwise interfere with any security feature of the Service;
• Use the Service for any commercial purpose, including resale, sublicensing, or providing competing services;
• Upload content containing viruses, malware, or any code designed to disrupt, damage, or interfere with the Service;
• Impersonate any person or entity, or falsely represent your affiliation with any person or entity; or
• Use the Service in any manner that could give rise to civil or criminal liability.

4.3 Photo Capture Requirements

A core integrity requirement of the Service is that all photographs must be captured directly within the Deposit Guard application using your device's camera at the time of documentation. You must not:

• Upload photographs from your device's gallery or camera roll;
• Submit photographs captured on a previous occasion as if they were taken at move-in;
• Digitally alter or manipulate photographs in any way before or after capture.

We implement technical controls to enforce direct camera capture, and we reserve the right to flag or remove Reports where evidence suggests these requirements have not been met.

5. Reports, Content, and Immutability

5.1 Your Content

You retain ownership of the photographs, notes, and other content you submit through the Service ("Your Content"). By submitting content, you grant Deposit Guard a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to store, process, display, and transmit Your Content solely for the purpose of providing the Service to you.

5.2 Report Generation

Once you initiate Report generation, the Service will compile Your Content into a Report. You acknowledge that:

• You must ensure all rooms are documented and marked complete before generating a Report;
• You are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the information and photographs included in the Report;
• Report generation may take several minutes depending on the number of photographs included.

5.3 Report Immutability

Once a Report has been generated and marked as completed, it becomes immutable. This means:

• No further photographs can be added to or deleted from the Report;
• Notes and annotations cannot be edited;
• The Report cannot be regenerated or replaced;
• The timestamp of Report generation is permanently recorded and cannot be altered.

This immutability is a deliberate and essential feature of Deposit Guard, designed to preserve the evidential integrity of the Report. You should satisfy yourself that your documentation is thorough before generating the Report.

5.4 Incomplete Reports

Reports that remain in an "in progress" state without being completed may be automatically expired and subsequently deleted in accordance with the retention periods set out in our Privacy Policy. We will endeavour to provide notification before deletion occurs.

5.5 Report Storage

Completed Reports are stored in your account and are accessible for download at any time your account is active. You are strongly advised to download and independently store copies of your Reports. We cannot guarantee indefinite storage, particularly in the event of account closure or service discontinuation.

6. Timestamps, Metadata, and Evidential Integrity

6.1 Timestamp Recording

The Service records a server-side timestamp at the moment each photograph is uploaded. This timestamp reflects the date and time at which the photograph was received by our servers, and is recorded in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) unless otherwise indicated.

6.2 Metadata

The Service may also capture and store metadata associated with your photographs, including but not limited to image resolution, file size, device timestamp extracted from EXIF data, and upload timestamp. This metadata is used to support the integrity of your Report.

6.3 No Guarantee of Legal Admissibility

While Deposit Guard is designed to generate documentation that may support a tenant in a deposit dispute, we make no representation or warranty that any Report or photograph will be accepted as evidence in any court, tribunal, or alternative dispute resolution process, including disputes administered by government-approved tenancy deposit schemes such as the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS), mydeposits, or the Deposit Protection Service (DPS).

The weight given to any Report will be at the discretion of the relevant decision-maker.

Deposit Guard accepts no liability for any tenancy deposit or portion thereof that is awarded to a landlord, letting agent, or any other party, whether through a deposit protection scheme, court, tribunal, or any other dispute resolution process. We do not guarantee any particular outcome in a deposit dispute, and we will not reimburse, compensate, or otherwise cover any deposit funds lost or deducted, regardless of whether our Service was used to document the property's condition.

7. Fees and Payment

7.1 Current Pricing

Details of current pricing, including any free tier allowances, pay-per-use charges, or subscription options, are set out on our website at depositguard.com/pricing. We reserve the right to amend our pricing at any time, subject to the notice provisions in these Terms.

7.2 Payment Processing

All payments are processed by our third-party payment provider. By making a payment, you agree to provide accurate and current billing information and to promptly update that information in the event of any change. We do not store full payment card details.

7.3 Taxes

All fees are stated inclusive of VAT where applicable. You are responsible for any other taxes or duties that may apply to your use of the Service in your jurisdiction.

7.4 Refunds

Unless required by applicable law, fees paid are non-refundable. If you believe you have been charged in error, please contact us at support@depositguard.com within 14 days of the relevant charge.

8. Intellectual Property

8.1 Deposit Guard IP

The Service, including all software, design, text, graphics, logos, trademarks, and other materials (excluding Your Content), is owned by or licensed to Deposit Guard and is protected by applicable intellectual property laws. You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to access and use the Service for the purposes set out in these Terms. No other rights are granted.

8.2 Restrictions

You must not copy, reproduce, distribute, modify, create derivative works of, publicly display, or exploit any part of the Service or its content without our prior written consent.

8.3 Feedback

If you submit feedback, suggestions, or ideas regarding the Service, you grant us a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free licence to use that feedback for any purpose without obligation to you.

9. Privacy and Data Protection

Your use of the Service is subject to our Privacy Policy, which explains how we collect, use, store, and share your personal data. Our Privacy Policy forms part of these Terms. By using the Service, you consent to the data practices described in the Privacy Policy.

We process personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. As a data controller, we are responsible for ensuring that your data is handled lawfully, fairly, and transparently.

In particular, you should be aware that:

• Photographs you capture may contain personal data, including images of individuals. You are responsible for ensuring you have any necessary consents from third parties who may appear in your photographs before submitting them through the Service;
• We use third-party infrastructure providers, including cloud storage and authentication services, who act as data processors on our behalf; and
• You have rights under UK GDPR including the right to access, rectify, erase, and port your personal data, subject to applicable exemptions.

To exercise your data subject rights, please contact us at support@depositguard.com.

10. Third-Party Services and Links

The Service may integrate with or link to third-party services, including cloud storage providers, payment processors, and mapping or address-lookup services. These third parties are subject to their own terms of service and privacy policies, and we are not responsible for their practices or content. Your use of any third-party service is at your own risk.

11. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

11.1 Service Provided "As Is"

The Service is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis without warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, or statutory, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, or non-infringement, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.

11.2 No Legal Advice

Deposit Guard is a documentation tool, not a legal service. Nothing in the Service, in any Report generated, or in any communication from Deposit Guard constitutes legal advice. You should seek independent legal advice before using a Report in any formal dispute process.

11.3 Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Deposit Guard and its officers, directors, employees, agents, and licensors shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including loss of profits, data, goodwill, or deposit recovery, arising from or in connection with your use of the Service, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages.

Our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of or related to these Terms or the Service shall not exceed the total fees paid by you to Deposit Guard in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim, or £50 (fifty pounds sterling), whichever is greater.

11.4 Exceptions

Nothing in these Terms shall limit or exclude our liability for:

• Death or personal injury caused by our negligence;
• Fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation;
• Any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by law.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Deposit Guard and its officers, directors, employees, agents, and licensors from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to:

• Your use of or inability to use the Service;
• Your breach of these Terms;
• Your violation of any applicable law or regulation;
• Your Content, including any infringement of third-party intellectual property or privacy rights; or
• Any dispute between you and a third party (including a landlord or deposit scheme) in connection with documentation you have created using the Service.

13. Modifications to These Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. If we make material changes, we will notify you by email to the address associated with your account or by displaying a prominent notice within the Service at least 14 days before the changes take effect.

Your continued use of the Service after the effective date of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms. If you do not agree to the updated Terms, you must stop using the Service and may request account deletion in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

14. Modifications to the Service

We reserve the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue the Service (or any part of it) at any time with or without notice, including for maintenance, upgrades, or business reasons. We will endeavour to provide reasonable advance notice of any planned discontinuation. We shall not be liable to you or any third party for any modification, suspension, or discontinuation of the Service.

15. Termination

15.1 Termination by You

You may close your account at any time by using the account deletion functionality within the Service settings or by contacting us at support@depositguard.com. Upon account closure, your personal data will be handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

15.2 Termination by Us

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Service immediately and without prior notice if we determine, in our sole discretion, that:

• You have breached any provision of these Terms;
• Your use of the Service poses a risk to other Users, to Deposit Guard, or to third parties; or
• We are required to do so by law or a regulatory authority.

15.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination of your account, your right to access the Service will cease immediately. You should ensure you have downloaded all Reports and data you wish to retain before termination, as we may delete your data in accordance with our Privacy Policy following account closure.

16. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

16.1 Governing Law

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales, without regard to conflicts of law principles.

16.2 Jurisdiction

Any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Service shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales, except that if you are a consumer resident in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you may also bring proceedings in the courts of your home jurisdiction.

16.3 Alternative Dispute Resolution

We are committed to resolving disputes fairly and efficiently. Before commencing formal proceedings, you agree to contact us at support@depositguard.com to attempt to resolve the dispute informally. We will endeavour to respond within 14 business days.

17. General Provisions

17.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and any other policies or guidelines incorporated by reference, constitute the entire agreement between you and Deposit Guard with respect to the Service and supersede all prior agreements, representations, and understandings.

17.2 Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.

17.3 Waiver

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of that right or provision. Any waiver must be in writing and signed by an authorised representative of Deposit Guard.

17.4 Assignment

You may not assign or transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign our rights and obligations without restriction, including in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

17.5 Force Majeure

We shall not be liable for any failure or delay in performance of our obligations under these Terms caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including acts of God, natural disasters, pandemic, government restrictions, or failures of third-party infrastructure providers.

17.6 Consumer Rights

If you are a consumer as defined under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, nothing in these Terms affects your statutory rights. Where any provision of these Terms conflicts with your statutory rights, your statutory rights shall prevail.

18. Contact Information

If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints regarding these Terms or the Service, please contact us at: