Terms of service

This is a legal agreement (“Agreement”) between you and Freelancertank (“Company,” “Service,” “we,” “us,” or “our”). By using our website, mobile app, and/or other services we provide (collectively, “Freelancertank”), or otherwise accessing the pages of Freelancertank you become a user and agree to, and are bound by, the terms and conditions of this Agreement for as long as you continue to use the Site or Services. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THIS AGREEMENT, DO NOT USE THE SITE OR THE SERVICES. Your use of, or participation in, certain Services may be subject to additional terms, and such terms will be either listed in this Agreement or will be presented to you for your acceptance when you sign up to use such Services.

This Agreement is subject to change by Freelancertank its sole discretion at any time, with or without notice. If you continue to use the Services after the changes become effective, then you agree to the revised Agreement. Please review the end of this Agreement for the date this Agreement was last revised.

Eligibility

To use the Site and certain Site Services, you must register for an Account.  Freelancertank offers the Site and Site Services for your business purposes only, and not for personal, household, or consumer use.  To use the Site and Site Services, you must have, and hereby represent that you have, an independent business (whether it be as a self-employed individual/sole proprietor or as a corporation or other entity) and further represent that you intend to use the Site and Site Services for your business purposes only, unless you use the Site and Site Services solely as an employee and Agency Member of a registered Agency Account.  You understand that you must comply with any licensing or registration requirements with respect to your business, and you represent that you comply with all such requirements.  To register for an Account, you must be, and hereby represent that you are, a legal entity or an individual 18 years or older who can form legally binding contracts.  By registering for an Account, by using the Site or Site Services after the Effective Date if you had an account on the Effective Date, or by clicking to accept the Terms of Service when prompted on the Site, you agree to: (a) abide by this Agreement and the other Terms of Service; (b) be financially responsible for your use of the Site and the purchase or delivery of Freelance Services; and (c) perform your obligations as specified by any Service Contract that you enter into, unless such obligations are prohibited by applicable law or the Terms of Service.  Freelancertank reserves the right, in our sole discretion, to refuse, suspend, or revoke your access to the Site and Site Services upon discovery that any information you provided on any form or posted on the Site is not true, accurate, or complete, or such information or other conduct otherwise violates the Terms of Service, or for any other reason or no reason in Freelancertank’s sole discretion.

You represent that you will comply with the Agreement and all applicable local, state, national, and international laws, rules, and regulations.

Identity Verification

Account will be subject to verification from time to time thereafter registration, including, but not limited to, validation against third-party databases or the verification of one or more official government or legal documents that confirm your identity and your ability to represent your business on Freelancertank, if it is a separate legal entity.  You authorize Freelancertank, directly or through third parties, to make any inquiries necessary to validate your identity and confirm your ownership of your email address or financial accounts, subject to applicable law.  When requested, you must provide us with information about you and your business.

Account Information

It is your responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of your login credentials, and you are responsible for all activities that occur under those credentials. You should use your account for yourself. You may not authorize others to use your account, and you may not assign or transfer your account to any other person or entity. If you believe that someone else has gained access to your account, please contact us immediately.

Risks and Limitations

Geographic Limitations. Using the Service may be prohibited or restricted in certain countries. If you use the Service from outside of the United States, you are responsible for complying with the laws and regulations of the territory from which you access or use the Service. The Services may not be used where prohibited by law.

Payment to Freelancers

In order to use certain Site Services, Client must provide account information for at least one valid Payment Method.

Client hereby authorizes Freelancertank to run credit card authorizations on all credit cards provided by Client, to store credit card and banking or other financial details as Client’s method of payment for Services, and to charge Client’s credit card (or any other Payment Method).  Payments will be charged by Freelancertank. By providing Payment Method information through the Site, Client represents, warrants, and covenants that: (a) Client is legally authorized to provide such information; (b) Client is legally authorized to perform payments using the Payment Method(s); and (c) such action does not violate the terms and conditions applicable to Client’s use of such Payment Method(s) or applicable law.  When Client authorizes a payment using a Payment Method via the Site, Client represents, warrants, and covenants that there are sufficient funds or credit available to complete the payment using the designated Payment Method.  To the extent that any amounts owed under this Agreement or the other Terms of Service cannot be collected from Client’s Payment Method(s), Client is solely responsible for paying such amounts by other means.

When Client authorizes the payment of the Freelancer Fees for a Fixed-Price Contract on the Site, Client automatically and irrevocably authorizes and instructs Freelancertank to charge Client’s Payment Method for the Freelancer Fees.

Nonpayment

If Client fails to pay the Freelancer Fees or any other amounts due under the Terms of Service, whether by canceling Client’s credit or debit card, initiating an improper chargeback, or any other means, Freelancertank may suspend or close Client’s Account and revoke Client’s access to the Site, including Client’s authority to use the Site to process any additional payments, enter into Service Contracts, or obtain any additional Freelancer Services.  Without limiting other available remedies, Client must pay Freelancertank upon demand for amounts owed under the Terms of Service, plus interest on the outstanding amount at the lesser of one and one-half percent (1.5%) per month or the maximum interest allowed by applicable law, plus attorneys’ fees and other costs of collection to the extent permitted by applicable law.  To the extent permitted by applicable law, Freelancertank, at our discretion, may set off amounts due against other amounts received from or held by Freelancertank, make appropriate reports to credit reporting agencies and law enforcement authorities, and cooperate with credit reporting agencies and law enforcement authorities in any resulting investigation or prosecution.

Refunds and Violation of Terms of Service

Client accepts and agrees that Freelancertank charge Client’s designated Payment Method for the Freelancer Fees upon Client’s acceptance and approval of Freelancer Services. Client agrees that once Freelancertank charges the Client’s designated Payment Method for the Freelancer Fees as provided in this Agreement or the other Terms of Service, the charge is non-refundable, except as otherwise required by applicable law.

Notwithstanding any other provision of the Terms of Service, and except as prohibited by applicable law, if we determine in our sole discretion that you have violated the conditions and restrictions of the Site or the Terms of Service, Freelancertank may hold the disbursement of the Freelancer Fees.  Additionally, Freelancertank may also hold the disbursement of the Freelancer Fees if: (a) we require additional information, such as Freelancer’s tax information, government-issued identification, address, or date of birth; (b) we have reason to believe the Freelancer Fees may be subject to dispute or chargeback; (c) we suspect fraud; (d) we believe there are reasonable grounds for insecurity with respect to the performance of obligations under a Service Contract, this Agreement, or other Terms of Service; (e) we deem it necessary in connection with any investigation; or (f) required by applicable law.

In cases of fraud, abuse, or violation of the Terms of Service, Freelancertank reserves the right to revoke any payments and will have the right to hold and reclaim from Freelancertank all Freelancer Fees due to Freelancer (not just the Freelancer Fees from the Service Contract(s) under investigation) unless prohibited by applicable law.  In addition, we reserve the right to seek reimbursement from you, and you will reimburse us, if we suspect fraud or criminal activity associated with your payment, withdrawal, or Engagement; if we discover erroneous or duplicate transactions; or if we have supplied our services in accordance with this Agreement yet we receive any chargeback from the Payment Method used by you, or used by your Client if you are a Freelancer.

You agree that we have the right to obtain such reimbursement by instructing Freelancertank to charge an applicable Account, and any other accounts you hold with us, offsetting any amounts determined to be owing, deducting amounts from future payments or withdrawals, charging your Payment Method, or obtaining reimbursement from you by any other lawful means.  Failure to pay for reimbursements of chargebacks is cause for termination of the applicable Account and revocation of your access to the Site.

Invoicing

Freelancer will be solely responsible for determining whether it is required by applicable law to issue any formal invoices for the Freelancer Fees and for issuing any invoices so required.  Freelancertank will have no responsibility for determining the necessity of or for issuing any formal invoices, or for determining, remitting, or withholding any taxes applicable to the Freelancer Fees.  Freelancer will also be solely responsible for determining whether: (a) Freelancer or Freelancertank is required by applicable law to remit to the appropriate authorities any value added tax or any other taxes or similar charges applicable to the Freelancer Fees and remitting any such taxes or charges to the appropriate authorities on behalf of itself or Freelancertank, as appropriate; and (b) Freelancertank is required by applicable law to withhold any amount of the Freelancer Fees and for notifying Freelancertank of any such requirement and indemnifying Freelancertank (either by Freelancertank, at our sole discretion, offsetting the relevant amount against a future payment of Freelancer Fees to Freelancer or Freelancer reimbursing Freelancertank for the applicable amount) for any requirement to pay any withholding amount to the appropriate authorities (including penalties and interest).  In the event of an audit of Freelancertank, Freelancer agrees to promptly cooperate with Freelancertank and provide copies of Freelancer’s tax returns and other documents as may be reasonably requested for purposes of such audit, including but not limited to records showing Freelancer is engaging in an independent business as represented to Freelancertank.

Service Fees

The fees to use the Site and Site Services are paid solely by the Freelancer. When a Client pays a Freelancer, or when funds related to an Engagement are otherwise released to a Freelancer as required. Freelancertank will credit the Freelancer Account for the full amount paid or released after subtracting the service fee in the amount specified in the Agreement.

Membership Fees

Freelancers will subscribe to different levels of participation and privileges on the Site, by payment of subscription fees as described in and subject to the terms in Agreement. They may be revised from time to time upon such notice as may be appropriate.

Termination of a Service Contract

Either Client or Freelancer has the right to terminate the Service Contract after providing any required notice, or immediately on the end date specified in the Service Contract terms and/or upon completion of the Freelancer Services, in the event of a material breach, or with the consent of the other party.  Except as required by law, Client remains obligated to pay the Freelancer Fees for any Freelancer Services provided prior to termination of the Contract.

Once a Client’s Payment Method has been charged to fund the account for the Engagement, absent a full refund to Client by Freelancer, the Service Contract does not terminate until the Freelancer Services are completed.  However, either Client or Freelancer has the right to terminate a Fixed-Price Contract at any time with the consent of the other party or in the event of a material breach.  If a Fixed-Price Contract is terminated, Client does not have the right to recover any payments already released to Freelancer from the escrow account for the Engagement.

Site Feedbank and Ratings

You acknowledge and agree that feedback benefits all Users, and the efficiency of the Site. You acknowledge and agree that feedback results for you, including star rating, if any, will consist of comments, ratings, indicators of User satisfaction, and other feedback left by other Users.  You further acknowledge and agree that Freelancertank will make feedback results available to other Users, including composite or compiled feedback.  Freelancertank provides this feedback system as a means through which Users can share their opinions publicly and Freelancertank does not monitor or censor these opinions.  You acknowledge and agree that posted composite or compiled feedback and any ratings relate only to the business advertised in the Freelancer Profile and not to any individual person.  You agree not to use the JSS to make any employment, credit, credit valuation, underwriting, or other similar decision about any other User.

Freelancertank does not investigate any remarks posted by Users for accuracy or reliability but may do so if a User requests that Freelancertank do so.  You may be held legally responsible for damages suffered by other Users or third parties as a result of your remarks if such remarks are legally actionable or defamatory.  Freelancertank is not legally responsible for any feedback or comments posted or made available on the Site by any Users or third parties, even if that information is defamatory or otherwise legally actionable.  In order to protect the integrity of the feedback system and protect Users from abuse, Freelancertank reserves the right (but is under no obligation) to remove posted feedback or information that, in Freelancertank’s sole judgment, violates the Terms of Service or negatively affects our marketplace.  You acknowledge and agree that you will notify Freelancertank of any error or inaccurate statement in your feedback results, including the ratings, and that if you do not do so, Freelancertank may rely on the accuracy of such information.

No Warranties

You hereby acknowledge and agree that Freelancer may provide information on the Site about a Freelancer or Client, such as feedback, composite feedback, including a strength or risk score, geographical location, or verification of identity or credentials.  However, such information is based solely on data that Freelancers or Clients voluntarily submit to Freelancertank and does not constitute and will not be construed as an introduction, endorsement, or recommendation by Freelancertank; Freelancertank provides such information solely for the convenience of Users.

Reporting of Violations

You will promptly report to Freelancertank any violation of the Agreement by others, including but not limited to, Registered Users.

Content Removal

Freelancertank reserves the right, but has no obligation, to monitor the information or material you submit to the Services or post in the public areas of the Services. Freelancertank will have the right to remove any such information or material that violates or may violate any applicable law or either the letter or spirit of this Agreement or upon the request of any third party.

No Harassment of Freelancertank Employees or Agents. You will not harass, annoy, intimidate or threaten any Freelancertank employees or agents engaged in providing any portion of the Services to you.

Privacy Statement

For information about the collection and possible use of information and material provided by you, please read our Privacy Statement above. By using the Site or the Services, you are consenting to the terms of Freelancertank Privacy Statement.

Disclosure By Law

You acknowledge and agree that Freelancertank may disclose information you provide if required to do so by law, at the request of a third party, or if we, in our sole discretion, believe that disclosure is reasonable to (1) comply with the law, requests or orders from law enforcement, or any legal process (whether or not such disclosure is required by applicable law); (2) protect or defend Freelancertank’s, or a third party’s, rights or property; or (3) protect someone’s health or safety, such as when harm or violence against any person (including the user) is threatened.

Links to Third-Party Web Sites / Dealings with Advertisers and Sponsors

The Services may contain links to web sites of third-parties, including without limitation, advertisers, which are not under the control of Freelancertank, and Freelancertank is not responsible for the content of any linked site or any link contained in a linked site, or any changes or updates to such web sites. Freelancertank provides these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply that Freelancertank endorses or accepts any responsibility for the content on such third-party web site. Your correspondence or business dealings with, or participation in promotions of, advertisers or sweepstakes sponsors found on or through the Services (including payment and delivery of related goods or services, any personal information or opt-in contact information voluntarily given to advertisers and sweepstake sponsors, and any other terms, conditions, warranties or representations associated with such dealings) are solely between you and such advertiser or sweepstakes sponsor. You agree that Freelancertank will not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any sort incurred as the result of any such dealings, including the sharing of the information you supply to Freelancertank with advertisers or sweepstakes sponsors, or as the result of the presence of such advertisers on the Services. Please visit our Privacy Statement to learn more about how we use your information.

 

Third Party Content.

Opinions, advice, statements, offers, or other information or content made available through the Services, but not directly by Freelancertank, are those of their respective authors, and should not necessarily be relied upon. Such authors are solely responsible for such content.

 

New, Continued, and Discontinued Features

From time to time, Freelancertank may offer new features or discontinue existing features in its sole discretion. Some features may be offered for experimental purposes without any warranty.

 

Limitation of Liability

Freelancertank is not liable, and you agree not to hold us responsible, for any damages or losses arising out of or in connection with the Terms of Service, including, but not limited to:

  • your use of or your inability to use our Site or Site Services;
  • delays or disruptions in our Site or Site Services;
  • viruses or other malicious software obtained by accessing, or linking to, our Site or Site Services;
  • glitches, bugs, errors, or inaccuracies of any kind in our Site or Site Services;
  • damage to your hardware device from the use of the Site or Site Services;
  • the content, actions, or inactions of third parties’ use of the Site or Site Services;
  • a suspension or other action taken with respect to your account;
  • your reliance on the quality, accuracy, or reliability of job postings, Profiles, ratings, recommendations, and feedback (including their content, order, and display), or metrics found on, used on, or made available through the Site; and
  • your need to modify practices, content, or behavior or your loss of or inability to do business, as a result of changes to the Terms of Service.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, in no event will Freelancertank, its affiliates, employees, licensors or service providers be liable for any indirect, consequential, exemplary, incidental, special or punitive damages, including, without limitation, loss of profits, whether incurred directly or indirectly, or any loss of data, use, goodwill, or other intangible losses, resulting from: (i) your access to or use of or inability to access or use the services, (ii) the conduct or content of other users or third parties on, through, or following use of the services; or (iii) unauthorized access, use or alteration of your content, even if Freelancertank has been advised of the possibility of such damages. in no event will Freelancertank’s aggregate liability to you for all claims relating to the service exceed the amount paid, if any, by you to freelancertank for the service while you have an account.

Class Action and Jury Trial Waiver

This arbitration provision affects your ability to participate in class, collective or representative actions.  Both you and Freelancertank agree to bring any dispute in arbitration on an individual basis only, and not on a class, collective, or representative basis on behalf of others.  There will be no right or authority for any dispute to be brought, heard or arbitrated as a class, collective, representative or private attorney general action, or as a member in any such class, collective, representative or private attorney general proceeding (“Class Action Waiver”).  The Class Action Waiver does not prevent you from bringing a Claim in arbitration as a private attorney general solely on your own behalf and not on behalf of others.  Notwithstanding any other portion of this Arbitration Provision or the JAMS Rules, the arbitrator will have authority to hear any Claim on a class, collective, or representative basis if, only if, and only to the extent that, the arbitrator determines that the waiver of such class, collective, or representative Claim is unenforceable.  You and Freelancertank agree that you will not be retaliated against, disciplined or threatened with discipline as a result of exercising any rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act by filing or participating in a class, collective or representative action in any forum.  However, Freelancertank may lawfully seek enforcement of this arbitration provision and the Class Action Waiver under the Federal Arbitration Act and seek dismissal of such class, collective or representative actions or claims.

Indemnification

You agree, to the extent permitted under applicable law, to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Freelancertank, our affiliates, and their, and our respective officers, directors, agents, and employees from and against any and all complaints, demands, claims, damages, losses, costs, liabilities and expenses, including attorney’s fees, due to, arising out of, or relating in any way to your access to or use of the Services, your Content, or your breach of this Agreement.

Complaints / Law Enforcement Contact

To resolve a complaint regarding the Service, please contact our Customer Service.

Communication and Privacy

You may not add any separate contact information (email, telephone number, other site IDs, etc) in your user-made profile. FreelancerTank admins reserve the right to delete contact information in profiles that violate terms of service. There may be times when we use your private profile information given at sign up to send you messages notifying you of important changes to the Services or special offers.

Dispute Process and Resolution

Dispute If a dispute arises between you and Freelancertank or our Affiliates, our goal is to resolve the dispute quickly and cost-effectively.  Accordingly, you, Freelancertank, and our Affiliates agree to resolve any claim, dispute, or controversy that arises out of or relates to this Agreement, the other Terms of Service. For the avoidance of doubt, Claims include, but are not limited to, all claims, disputes, or controversies arising out of or relating to the Terms of Service, any Service Contract, payments or agreements, any payments or monies you claim are due to you from Freelanceertank or its Affiliates or successors, trade secrets, unfair competition, false advertising, consumer protection, privacy, compensation, classification, minimum wage, seating, expense reimbursement, overtime, breaks and rest periods, termination, discrimination or harassment and claims arising under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act as enacted in any state, Civil Rights Act of 1964, Americans With Disabilities Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Family Medical Leave Act, Fair Labor Standards Act, Employee Retirement Income Security Act (except for claims for employee benefits under any benefit plan sponsored by the Company and (a) covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 or (b) funded by insurance), Affordable Care Act, Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act, state statutes or regulations addressing the same or similar subject matters, and all other federal or state legal claims arising out of or relating to your relationship with Freelancertank or the termination of that relationship.  Only with respect to the Arbitration Provision, Claims do not include disputes that may not be subject to a pre-dispute arbitration agreement as provided by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Public Law 111-203) and are excluded from the coverage of the Arbitration Provision.

You agree that any Claim must be resolved as described in the subsections below titled “Informal Dispute Resolution” and “Mandatory Binding Arbitration and Class Action/Jury Trial Waiver.”

Term and Termination

This Agreement will become effective upon your acceptance of the Agreement by your use of the Site or the Services and will remain in effect in perpetuity unless terminated hereunder. Either you or Freelancer may terminate your account at any time, for any reason or no reason, without explanation, effective upon sending written notice to the other party. Freelancertank reserves the right to immediately suspend or terminate your access to any of the Services, without notice, for any reason or no reason. We also reserve the right to remove your account information or data from our Services and any other records at any time at our sole discretion. In the event your access to any of the Services is suspended due to the breach of this Agreement, you agree that all fees then paid to Freelancer by you will be nonrefundable and all outstanding or pending payments will immediately be due.

Digital Millennium Copyright Act Notice

If you believe that your copyrighted work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement and is accessible on this Site, please notify Freelancertank. You must provide the following information in writing in your complaint: 1. An electronic or physical signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner; 2. Identification of the copyrighted work that you claim is being infringed; 3. Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing and where it is located on the Site; 4. Information reasonably sufficient to permit Freelancertank to contact you, such as your address, telephone number, and e-mail address; 5. A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or law; and 6. A statement, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information is accurate, and that you are the copyright owner or are authorized to act on behalf of the owner. The above information must be submitted to Freelancertank.

Proprietary Rights

Ownership of Proprietary Information. You hereby acknowledge and agree that Freelancertank is the owner of highly valuable proprietary information, including without limitation, the matching algorithm, profiles, and profile questions. Freelancertank owns and hereby retains all proprietary rights in the Services and the Site, including but not limited to, all Confidential Information.

No Use of Confidential Information

You will not post, copy, modify, transmit, disclose, show in public, create any derivative works from, distribute, make commercial use of, or reproduce in any way any (i) Confidential Information or (ii) other copyrighted material, trademarks, or other proprietary information accessible via the Services, without first obtaining the prior written consent of the owner of such proprietary rights.

Other Users’ Information

Other Registered Users may post copyrighted information, which has copyright protection whether or not it is identified as copyrighted. You agree that you will not copy, modify, publish, transmit, distribute, perform, display, commercially use, or sell any Freelancertank or third party proprietary information available via the Services or the Site.

License to Posted Content

By posting information or content to any profile pages or public area of the Services such as Advice, you automatically grant, and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant, to Freelancertank and its users, an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, fully-paid, worldwide license to use, reproduce, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute such information and content, and to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into other works, such information and content, and to grant and authorize sub-licenses of the foregoing. From time to time, we may create, test or implement new features or programs on the Site in which you may voluntarily choose to participate, in accordance with the additional terms and conditions of such features or programs. By your voluntary participation in such features or programs, you grant us the rights stated in this subsection in connection with the additional terms and conditions of such features or programs.

Miscellaneous

This Agreement, which you accept upon registration for the Services, the Privacy Statement located on the Site, and any applicable payment, renewal, Additional Services terms, comprise the entire agreement between you and Freelancertank regarding the use of this Service, superseding any prior agreements between you and Freelancertank related to your use of this Site or Services (including, but not limited to, any prior versions of this Agreement).  Unless otherwise explicitly stated, the Agreement will survive termination of your registration to the Service. The failure of Freelancertank to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this Agreement does not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of this Agreement is held invalid, the remainder of this Agreement will continue in full force and effect.