Terms and conditions - customer


 

This document details the terms under which Avant-garde Logistics Limited offers access to our services. The use of our services under the www.ukbackloads.com and ukbackloads.co.uk domain names are subject to the terms and conditions of this agreement. Once you accept the terms and conditions of this User Agreement, you hereby agree and acknowledge that we may at anytime modify the terms and conditions of this Agreement by displaying the modified Agreement with its new terms and conditions on the ukbackloads website. Such modified terms and conditions shall take effect immediately after posting to the ukbackloads website. You agree and consent to any and all modified terms and conditions hereunder. This Agreement cannot be amended, modified, and/or changed by you in any manner whatsoever. This agreement is effective on July 1st, 2008 for all members (users and service providers).

For the purposes of clarity throughout this agreement; a person/entity listing goods to move is referred to as a shipper and a person/entity who provides a transport service is referred to as a courier. These are both defined as members when referred to collectively. An agreement between a shipper and a courier to transport goods from point to point is referred to as a job. ukbackloads is a trading name of Avant-garde Logistics Limited.

 

1) Avant-garde Logistics are A Neutral Channel
Avant-garde Logistics are not a transportation service provider, freight forwarder, broker or "middle-man". www.ukbackloads.com acts as a channel through which shippers and couriers can meet and enter into agreements between one-another. Avant-garde Logistics is in no way involved in the actual transaction between shippers and couriers. Consequently, we have no and assume no control over the quality, safety, or legal aspects of the transactions that take place through our website.
Although every effort and precaution is made to validate and verify couriers, Avant-garde Logistics assumes no responsibility for claims made by couriers with respect to their licenses, insurance, registration, membership or trade association or indeed any other claim made at any point during the transaction. www.ukbackloads.com functions purely as a neutral channel through which two parties may agree on a price for a particular service.
We do not provide any endorsement for you or your services, you acknowledge and agree that we do not provide the services and we are not in any way responsible for assisting in any manner with your provision of the services contracted for. We cannot and will not guarantee the ability of users to complete payment for any of the provided services. Furthermore, we cannot verify, validate or confirm the identity or ability of users to pay for the services provided. You acknowledge and agree that any and all communications whether verbal or written, or any warranties or representations made with regard to the transportation services are not provided by Avant-garde Logistics and are to be regarded as solely between the shipper and the courier.

 

2) Membership
Our services are available only to those in a position to form legally binding contracts under UK law. Our services are not available to under 18's or temporarily/indefinitely suspended easybackload.com members. Under 18's may only use this service in conjunction with their parents/guardians. Your ukbackloads membership may not be transferred or sold to another party. If you are registering as a business entity, you represent that you have the authority to bind the entity to this agreement. Couriers that transport goods must have a valid license to operate the vehicle they intend to use. You agree that the website is for shipping/transportation related services only and that work that you provide will only involve services. You agree that you will not use your participation in the ukbackloads website as a means to market or sell any goods or products, unless specifically approved by Avant-garde Logistics Limited.

3) Other/Additional Terms and Conditions
You acknowledge and agree that we have the sole discretion to set forth and post additional terms and conditions for your use of the ukbackloads website at various places throughout the website. You agree that those additional terms and conditions shall be considered an immediate effective amendment to this Agreement and said terms and conditions shall be incorporated herein. You agree that if there is any conflict between those additional terms and conditions and the specific terms and conditions set forth herein, the terms and conditions set forth herein shall govern.

4) Fees
There are currently no fees to join ukbackloads.com as a shipper and no listing fees. We reserve the right to change our fees at any time. We may also temporarily change or suspend our fees for a promotional period and such changes will be described on the website. All fees are quoted in GBP (£). You are solely responsible for all actions taken with your User ID and password, including fees. We recommend that you choose a strong password, keep it safe and secure and do not disclose it to any third parties.

 

5) Membership Termination
You may terminate your membership at any time, for any reason. In the case of violation of one or more of the terms of this Agreement by you, we may block your account(s), delete prohibited content, prevent publication of all or part of your profile. We may also block your access to all or part of the Service, either permanently or temporarily.

6) Job Cancellations
A "cancellation" may occur on www.ukbackloads.com when either member has to cancel AFTER a job is accepted but BEFORE any services are performed. After a job is agreed and the two parties communicate directly, occasionally one or both of the parties determine that they cannot complete the transaction. Cancellations should only be requested after reasonable attempts have been made to reach an agreeable solution and it is certain that the services that were booked on ukbackloads.com will not be performed. If your request for cancellation is accepted by the other member, the shipment listing can be either relisted or deleted. Avant-garde Logistics Limited accepts no responsibility for any losses incurred by either party as a result of a job cancellation.

 

7) No Agency
You hereby agree and acknowledge that your execution of this Agreement, your provision of services and/or your use of the ukbackloads website does not confer or imply any contractor, agency, partnership, joint venture, employee-employer or franchiser-franchisee relationship with us, and that no affiliation, association or connection exists between you and Avant-garde Logistics Limited. There is no mutual obligation for us to provide shipments for couriers to bid on, nor is there mutual obligation to provide shippers with couriers to bid on their shipment listings.

8) Release
Should you have a dispute with one or more ukbackloads shippers/couriers, you release Avant-garde Logistics Limited, its officers, directors, and employees from all claims, demands and damages (direct and indirect) of any kind and nature, known and unknown, suspected and unsuspected, disclosed and undisclosed, arising out of or in any way connected with such disputes.

9) Shipping
As a shipper, you are obligated to complete the transaction with the courier if you accept the couriers offer to perform the job, unless the transaction is prohibited by law or by this Agreement. By accepting a job, you agree to be bound by the conditions included in the job details so long as the details are not in violation of this Agreement or unlawful. Acceptance generally is not retractable unless: the shipper materially changes the job details after acceptance. The courier reserves the right to inspect the shipment before accepting it, and to refuse to transport any item prohibited by this Agreement or by law. Therefore it is recommended that you do not fully seal any item/package before inspection by the courier.

 

10) Restricted Items
Restricted Items include hazardous/dangerous goods as well as items which generally do not pose a danger to health, safety, or property while being transported, but their transport is regulated or banned for public policy reasons. Hazardous goods can lawfully be transported depending on certain conditions (e.g. if they are properly packaged and labelled) and these may be listed - provided that the shipment listing contains a clear notice of the hazardous nature of the material and a description of the planned method of shipping that complies with the law. Full responsibility rests with the shipper and courier to comply with all laws and regulations that relate to the transportation of hazardous and restricted goods. Anyone who sends, or causes to be sent, a prohibited/restricted item or improperly packaged hazardous material can be subject to severe legal penalties.

11) Information You Supply
You are solely responsible for the information you provide to Avant-garde Logistics Limited or other members in the registration, shipping, or transportation process. Your personal information and any listing of goods to move must be true, legal, accurate, and non-fraudulent. Information may not contain any viruses or other malware that may damage or interfere with our website. You authorize Avant-garde Logistics Limited to use the information you supply to us in connection with our services and in accordance with this Agreement. We have no control, over any communication, information, and specifically, over the content of communication or information supplied by members. We do not and will not ensure the accuracy or reliability of such communication or information nor will we act as a monitor over the content of such communication for information. However, we do reserve the absolute right to remove or restrict any communication or information that you post to the website that is in violation of this Agreement, illegal, threatening, coarse or inappropriate.

You expressly represent and warrant the following: (1) You are the owner, of any and all communication, content and/or information that you supply on the website, or; (2) You are the legitimate and rightful grantee of a worldwide, royalty free, perpetual, irrevocable, sub-licensable, non-exclusive license to use, distribute, reproduce and distribute such communication, content and/or information. To only that extent to allow us to use your communication, content and/or information and not violate your rights in the same. You grant to us a royalty free, perpetual, irrevocable, sub-licensable, non-exclusive license to exercise the copyright, publicity and database rights that you have in your communication, content and/or information. You further represent and warrant that any and all of your online communication, content and/or information:

• Will not violate UK law;
• Will not violate the terms of this Agreement;
• Will not infringe any third party's intellectual property rights including but not limited to copyright, patent or trademarks;
• Will not contain obscene, lewd, pornographic or suggestive content;
• Will not be libellous, harassing, threatening, or defamatory. This specifically includes making legal claims of any sort about Avant-garde Logistics employees, suppliers, other members, or the marketplace itself;
• Will not contain any computer hardware or software, viruses, trojan horses, worms, or any other computer programming that may interfere has the intention to interfere with the operation of our website, operation of any of our systems and or create or impose a large burden or load on our website;
• Will not be used to scan or test the vulnerability or security of our website or the system within which it operates;
• Will not be used for commercial or public purposes outside of the requirements of this Agreement;
• Will not create liability for us in any manner whatsoever;
• Will not frame or link to our website without our written permission;
• Will not involve the upload, or insertion of, any programming language or code into or onto, our website.

You agree to use common sense and good judgment when conducting or posting any online communication or distribution of information. You assume legal responsibility for all damages incurred as a result of any of your online communication or distribution of information.

12) Fraud
Avant-garde Logistics Limited may suspend or terminate your account if it is suspected that you have engaged in fraudulent activity in connection with our website. Members are not permitted to manipulate or interfere with other members' listings or transactions. You shall not charge members a higher price (including taxes, service charges, or any other fees whatsoever) than that which was agreed upon on the ukbackloads website (given that the particulars of the service requested are materially the same as those requested on the ukbackloads website). Your price must include ANY and ALL charges, including any taxes, fees, etc.;

Manipulating feedback - The key component and integrity of the website is the ability of members to leave feedback about you and/or your services (whether positive, neutral or negative) AND for other members to read and evaluate those feedback reviews and make voluntary choices based upon those feedback ratings and comments. Therefore, in order to preserve the key component and integrity of the website, you shall NOT:

• Improperly influence in any manner, or cause another to, improperly influence in any manner the feedback of the member;
• Post and/or cut and paste and/or copy the content of a member feedback review from the ukbackloads website to your own personal or business website, to any other third party web site and/or on any of your own personal, business or third party marketing/advertising materials;
• Post or attempt to post, in any manner or by any means, a feedback review on your own account.

13) Right to Reject or Remove Members
We reserve the right to reject your participation, or remove you from your current participation, in the ukbackloads website/service at any time. If you are removed from the website for failing to adhere to any part of this agreement then you may forfeit any monies paid to Avant-garde Logistics by way of a subscription.

 

14) Appeal for Reinstatement
Upon your removal from the ukbackloads website/service, you may appeal for reinstatement. Your appeal must include a written statement as to why you should be reinstated along with your contact information. Your appeal may be reviewed at our discretion and any determination as to your reinstatement will be based on our sole judgment. Your submission of an appeal does not, in any manner, guarantee, that you will be reinstated or that the appeal will necessarily be reviewed. We will contact you as to our decision to reinstate you. All decisions are final.

15) Record Keeping/Audit
We reserve the right to keep a copy of all records of any and all transactions and communications between you and other members for administration and improvement of service purposes.

16) Non-solicitation
During the term of this agreement, you shall not solicit to employ nor employ any of our employees of whom you become aware of through the performance of this Agreement. Furthermore, you shall not otherwise hinder any of our other business relationships including those with our members.

17) Identity Verification
We use several techniques to help verify the identity of couriers when they register on our website to make the marketplace as safe as possible. However, Avant-garde Logistics Limited cannot and will not confirm each couriers identity. We have implemented a feedback system to help you evaluate other members you are transacting with.

18) Feedback
For each transaction, the shipper and courier are allowed to rate each other by leaving feedback. Feedback involves leaving one rating (positive, negative or neutral), along with a short comment about the experience. Feedback scores are calculated when another member gives you a +1, 0, -1 score. Each member’s overall feedback score is the difference between the positive ratings and the negative ratings left. If you attempt in any way whatsoever to undermine the integrity of the feedback system, or if you earn a feedback rating of negative three (-3) or lower, your membership may be suspended. You acknowledge that your feedback consists of comments left by other ukbackloads.com members and a composite feedback number compiled by us. You agree that you will not use your ukbackloads feedback in any venue/web site other than ukbackloads.com. Members are reminded to always use common sense and respect when leaving feedback for another member, members could be held legally responsible for damages to a member’s reputation if a court were to find that the remarks constitute libel or defamation. We do not censor feedback or investigate it for accuracy, Avant-garde Logistics Limited are not legally responsible for the remarks that members post no matter what their content.

19) Resolving Feedback disputes
To maintain integrity within the ukbackloads feedback system, feedback left for a member is permanent. Feedback comments left cannot be edited / removed at a later date. Members should resolve any misunderstandings prior to leaving feedback since most misunderstandings can and are resolved quickly through direct friendly communication.

20) Remedies
Remedies for improper use of our service that violates this agreement include, but are not limited to, the immediate removal of your goods to move listings, notifying our members of your actions, issuing a warning, temporarily suspending your account, terminating your account, and refusing to continue providing our services to you.

21) No Warranty
Avant-garde Logistics Limited, our employees, and our suppliers provide services without any warranty or express, implied or statutory conditions.

22) Limited Liability
In no event shall we, our employees, or our suppliers be liable for lost profits or any special, incidental or consequential damages arising out of or in connection with our website/service, our services or this agreement however arising, including negligence. Our liability, and that of our employees and suppliers, to you or any third parties in any circumstance is limited to the amount of fees you pay to us in the 6 months prior to the action giving rise to liability, and £25.

23) Indemnity
You agree to indemnify and hold us and our directors, and employees harmless from any claim or demand, including reasonable legal fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your negligence, breach of this Agreement, or violation of any law or the rights of the third party.

24) Legal Compliance
You shall comply with all applicable UK, EU and international laws, and regulations regarding your use of our web site/service and your listing, shipping, transporting, and solicitation of offers to ship and transport items.

25) Dispute Resolution
Disputes between you and Avant-garde Logistics Limited regarding our services should be reported to sales@ukbackloads.com. We will attempt to resolve any disputes you have with us. Because we are a neutral venue (as explained above), we are not responsible for resolving any disputes between you and other members regarding services. If you report a dispute to us, we will aid in facilitating the means for both parties to communicate, however, all disputes must be resolved directly between you and members. Therefore, if we are contacted by a member who claims to have a dispute with you regarding the services, you expressly authorize us to release your provided contact information to the member and you agree to release us from any and all liability associated therewith. We encourage (but not endorse) you to report member-to-member disputes to legal officials or a certified mediation/arbitration entity. If appropriate, we also strongly encourage you to report disputes involving theft, fraud, or other criminal activity to the police.

26) Protection of Intellectual Property Content
The ukbackloads website contains copyrighted material including logos, phrases, HTML/ASP Code ("Intellectual Property Content") all of which, unless otherwise indicated and/or provided pursuant to a third party license, are the sole property of Avant-garde Logistics Limited and we retain all rights, interests and title thereto. We also claim ownership rights under international copyright law with regard to the "look", "feel" and "appearance" of this website including but not limited to its colour combinations, layouts and designs. You agree that your using this website does not confer upon you any license or permission to use our (or any third party's) Intellectual Property Content. You shall not and will not reproduce, modify, display, sell, or distribute this Intellectual Property Content, or use it in any other way for public or commercial purpose.

27) Domain Name Protection
The ukbackloads.com and ukbackloads.co.uk domain names are owned or licensed for use by us. You shall not utilize the name in any manner that would diminish its value or harm its reputation. You shall not use or register any domain name that is identical to or similar to the name.

28) Security
ukbackloads uses industry standard practices to safeguard your personal information, including firewalls and Secure Socket Layers. Although we utilize several different security techniques to protect data from unauthorized access and take this matter very seriously, we cannot guarantee the security of our system. Furthermore, we do not guarantee uninterrupted or secure access to our system, as the operation of our website can be interrupted by numerous factors outside of our control.