Terms of Service

1. Who we are

TopTenTrades ("TopTenTrades", "we", "us", "our") operates the website at toptentrades.com, a platform that connects homeowners in the UK ("customers") with tradespeople to source quotes, agree contracts and manage home improvement jobs (the "Service"). These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Service. By creating an account, submitting a job, sending an enquiry, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms.

2. Who can use the Service

You must be at least 18 years old and able to form a legally binding contract under the law of England and Wales to use the Service. Tradespeople using the Service must operate a genuine trade business and provide accurate information about their qualifications, insurance and identity as requested during verification.

3. Accounts

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us promptly via our support page if you suspect unauthorised use of your account. We may suspend or terminate accounts that provide false information, breach these Terms, or are used in a way that risks harm to other users or the Service.

4. Job briefs, quotes and contracts

TopTenTrades provides tools for customers to post job briefs, for tradespeople to submit quotes, and for both parties to agree and electronically sign contracts. In using these tools:

• Job briefs, budgets and timelines are provided by customers and are not verified by TopTenTrades for accuracy.
• Quotes are prepared and offered by the tradesperson. TopTenTrades is not a party to any quote, contract or agreement formed between a customer and a tradesperson, and does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness or suitability of any quote.
• Electronic signatures captured through the Service constitute a simple electronic signature under UK law and are recorded with supporting audit information (including timestamp, IP address and device information) at the time of signing.
• Any contract formed through the Service is between the customer and the tradesperson directly. TopTenTrades is not responsible for the performance, quality, safety or legality of any work carried out, and is not a party to, and does not guarantee, any contract entered into between users.

5. Tradesperson verification

Where TopTenTrades displays verification indicators (such as insurance status, Gas Safe registration, or ID checks), these reflect information or documents provided by the tradesperson and checked by TopTenTrades to a reasonable standard, but are not a guarantee of a tradesperson's competence, conduct or the quality of their work. Customers should carry out their own reasonable checks before engaging a tradesperson for significant work.

6. Reviews

Reviews should reflect a genuine experience of working with a tradesperson through the Service. We may remove reviews that are fraudulent, abusive, unlawful, or that we reasonably believe do not relate to a genuine transaction.

7. Fees

Any fees applicable to use of the Service will be clearly displayed to you before you become liable to pay them. We will give reasonable notice of any change to our fees before it takes effect for your account.

8. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• provide false or misleading information on the Service;
• use the Service to send unsolicited marketing or spam;
• attempt to circumvent, disable or otherwise interfere with any security-related features of the Service;
• scrape, harvest or otherwise systematically collect data from the Service without our written permission; or
• use the Service for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these Terms.

9. Intellectual property

The Service, including its design, text, graphics and software, is owned by or licensed to TopTenTrades and is protected by intellectual property laws. Tradespeople retain ownership of the photos and content they upload to their portfolio, and grant TopTenTrades a licence to display that content on the Service for the purpose of operating and promoting the platform.

10. Liability

Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for any other liability that cannot be limited or excluded under English law. Subject to that, TopTenTrades provides the Service on an "as is" basis and is not liable for losses arising from work carried out by a tradesperson, disputes between users, or the accuracy of information supplied by other users.

11. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we will take reasonable steps to notify you, such as by posting a notice on the Service or updating the date at the top of this page. Continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

12. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales, and any disputes arising from them or the Service will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

13. Contact us

Questions about these Terms can be sent via our support page.