Terms of Service
These terms apply to homestay owners and anyone else who uses StayRated. Please read them carefully. By creating an account or using the service, you agree to them.
Last updated:
About these terms
StayRated is provided by [LEGAL NAME - TO FILL] ([BUSINESS TYPE - TO FILL]), registered address [FULL REGISTERED ADDRESS - TO FILL] ("we", "us", "our"). "You" means the person or business using StayRated to message guests of a property ("owner").
These terms work together with our Privacy Policy and our WhatsApp messaging and consent policy, which form part of these terms.
The service
StayRated lets owners collect guest consent through a QR card, send guests WhatsApp messages asking them to rate their stay, share the owner's Google review link with every guest who rates, and receive WhatsApp alerts about low ratings and weekly summaries. Owners manage their property through the dashboard at https://app.stayrated.co.
Eligibility and your account
- You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter into a binding contract under Indian law.
- You must own or be authorised to manage the property you register.
- You must give accurate details and keep them up to date.
- You are responsible for keeping your login secure and for everything done through your account. Tell us straight away if you think someone has accessed it without permission.
Your responsibilities as an owner
You are the Data Fiduciary for your guests' personal data, and we process it on your behalf. You agree that you will:
- Add guests' contact details only with their consent. Guests should opt in through the QR card. If you add a guest's number yourself, you must first have their clear agreement to receive WhatsApp messages from your property about their stay and feedback.
- Give accurate property details and a correct link to your own Google Business Profile.
- Follow the WhatsApp Business Messaging Policy, WhatsApp Commerce Policy and WhatsApp Business Terms, and Google's policies for reviews (including Google Maps user contributed content policy).
- Ask every guest the same way. You must not ask only guests you expect to be happy to leave a review, discourage unhappy guests from reviewing, or set up the service so that some guests do not receive the review link.
- Never offer guests money, discounts, gifts or anything else in return for a review, and never post, buy or ask for fake reviews.
- Never use the service to send spam, promotions or marketing messages, or to message people who have not agreed or who have opted out.
- Never send unlawful, misleading, abusive, hateful or obscene content, or content that infringes anyone's rights.
- Respond to guest complaints and data requests that we pass on to you within a reasonable time.
Acceptable use
You must not:
- break any law, including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the Information Technology Act, 2000;
- try to access accounts or data that are not yours, or interfere with the security or running of the service;
- copy, reverse engineer or resell the service, or use it to build a competing product;
- use automated means to access the service except through features we provide;
- impersonate anyone, or misrepresent your connection with a property.
Messaging limits and quality
WhatsApp sets limits on how many messages a business can send and monitors message quality based on how people respond (for example, if they block or report a business). To protect guests, owners and our ability to send messages for everyone:
- we only send the message types described in our WhatsApp messaging and consent policy, using templates approved by WhatsApp;
- we do not send messages between 9pm and 8am IST;
- we may delay, limit or pause messages for your property if WhatsApp quality ratings drop, if guests report or block messages, or if we believe these terms are being broken;
- we cannot guarantee that every message will be delivered, read or answered, or that any guest will leave a review.
Fees
StayRated is in early access. Fees, if any, will be agreed with you in writing (including by email or WhatsApp) before you are charged. Prices are not published on this website.
WhatsApp charges businesses for some conversations. Unless we agree otherwise in writing, these charges are included in or passed through as part of the fees we agree with you. We will tell you in advance if we change how fees are calculated. Fees do not include applicable taxes such as GST.
Third-party services
The service relies on WhatsApp (provided by Meta Platforms, Inc.) and links to Google. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Meta, WhatsApp or Google. We are not responsible for their services, outages, policy changes or decisions (for example, about which reviews Google publishes). Your use of those services is subject to their own terms.
Availability and changes to the service
We work to keep the service running smoothly, but we do not promise it will always be available or free of errors. We may change, add or remove features. If we make a change that significantly reduces what the service does for you, we will tell you in advance where we reasonably can.
Intellectual property
We own StayRated, including its software, design, name and logo. We give you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use the service for your property while your account is active.
You own your content, such as your property name, photos and your guests' feedback held on your behalf. You give us permission to use it only to provide the service to you. If you send us suggestions, we may use them without obligation to you.
Disclaimers
The service is provided "as is" and "as available". To the extent the law allows, we make no promises about the service beyond those in these terms, including any promise that it will increase the number of reviews, your rating, bookings or revenue.
Limitation of liability
To the extent the law allows:
- we are not liable for indirect or consequential losses, or for loss of profits, revenue, bookings, goodwill or data;
- our total liability to you for all claims relating to the service in any 12-month period is limited to the fees you paid us in that period, or ₹5,000 if you paid nothing;
- nothing in these terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law, such as liability for fraud.
Indemnity
You agree to compensate us for losses, claims and reasonable costs (including legal fees) arising from your breach of these terms, your breach of law, the content you send through the service, or your use of guests' personal data outside the service.
Suspension and termination
- You can stop using the service and close your account at any time by emailing hello@stayrated.co.
- We may suspend or close your account, with notice where reasonable, if you break these terms, if your use puts guests, other owners or our WhatsApp account at risk, or if we are required to by law or by Meta.
- When your account closes, we stop sending messages for your property and delete your guests' data as described in our Privacy Policy, within [NUMBER OF DAYS, e.g. 30 - TO FILL] days unless the law requires us to keep it. You can ask for an export of your data before closing.
- Sections that by their nature should survive (such as fees owed, intellectual property, liability, indemnity and governing law) continue after termination.
Governing law and jurisdiction
These terms are governed by the laws of India. The courts at [CITY - TO FILL] have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute arising from them. Before going to court, we both agree to try to resolve the dispute by talking to each other in good faith for at least 30 days.
Grievances and contact
If you have a complaint about the service or about content on it, contact our grievance officer:
- Name: [GRIEVANCE OFFICER NAME - TO FILL]
- Email: [GRIEVANCE OFFICER EMAIL - TO FILL]
- Address: [FULL REGISTERED ADDRESS - TO FILL]
For anything else, email hello@stayrated.co. For privacy requests, email privacy@stayrated.co.
Changes to these terms
We may update these terms from time to time. We will change the "Last updated" date and, for significant changes, email owners at least 15 days before the changes take effect. If you keep using the service after that, you accept the updated terms. If you do not agree, you can close your account.