BuildBLK — Terms of Service
Effective Date: [DATE]
Last Updated: [DATE]
1. Who we are
BuildBLK ("BuildBLK," "we," "us," "our") is operated by [LEGAL ENTITY NAME], a California nonprofit [public benefit] corporation, [EIN]. Our address is [ADDRESS]. You can reach us at [SUPPORT EMAIL].
These Terms govern your use of our website, mobile web application, and any related services (together, the "Service").
By using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.
2. What BuildBLK is — and what it is not
BuildBLK is a directory and discovery platform. We help people find businesses. That is the whole of what we do.
We want to be very clear about the limits of that role:
- We are not a certifying body. We do not issue minority business enterprise (MBE) certifications, supplier diversity certifications, or any government or industry credential. Our "Verified" designation means only what is described in our Verification Policy — nothing more.
- We do not endorse, guarantee, or warrant any business listed on the Service, or the quality, safety, legality, or pricing of any goods or services they provide.
- We are not a party to any transaction between you and a listed business. If you buy something, book something, or hire someone, that is entirely between you and that business.
- We do not verify the accuracy of every listing. Business information changes constantly. Hours, addresses, phone numbers, menus, and prices may be out of date.
Confirm details directly with a business before relying on them.
3. Eligibility and accounts
You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service, and at least 18 to create an account, post a review, or claim a business listing.
If you create an account:
- Provide accurate information and keep it current.
- You are responsible for everything that happens under your account.
- Keep your credentials secure and tell us promptly at [SECURITY EMAIL] if you suspect unauthorized access.
- One person, one account. Do not share, sell, or transfer your account.
We may suspend or terminate any account, at any time, for violating these Terms or our Acceptable Use Policy.
4. Listings
Listings on the Service come from several sources: information submitted by business owners, publicly available information, information from partner organizations, and information contributed by users.
Unclaimed listings. Some listings are created from public information without the business's involvement. These are marked as unclaimed and do not carry a Verified badge. If you own a business and want your listing corrected, claimed, or removed entirely, see our Takedown and Dispute Procedure. We honor removal requests from verified business owners.
Claimed listings. A business owner may claim their listing, which subjects them to our Business Listing Agreement.
Ownership representations. Where a listing indicates that a business is Black-owned, that indication is based on a representation made by the business itself, or on information from a partner organization. We describe exactly what we do and do not check in our Verification Policy. We do not independently audit ownership.
5. Your content
You may be able to post reviews, photos, tips, corrections, and other material ("User Content").
You keep ownership of your User Content. You grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable license to host, store, reproduce, modify (for formatting and display), publish, and display your User Content in connection with operating and promoting the Service. This license ends when you delete your User Content, except for copies already shared by others or retained in backups for a reasonable period.
You promise that:
- You own or have the rights to everything you post.
- Your User Content does not infringe anyone's copyright, trademark, privacy, or publicity rights.
- Your User Content is not false, defamatory, harassing, or otherwise in violation of our Acceptable Use Policy.
- Any review you post reflects your genuine, firsthand experience.
We do not pre-screen User Content, and we are not responsible for it. We may remove or refuse any User Content at our discretion, but we are under no obligation to monitor. See our Review and Moderation Policy.
If you believe content infringes your copyright, see our DMCA Policy.
6. Reviews
Reviews must describe your own genuine experience. You may not:
- Post a review of a business you own, work for, or are related to.
- Post a review in exchange for payment, discounts, free goods, or any other compensation.
- Post reviews on behalf of a competitor, or to damage a competitor.
- Post multiple reviews of the same experience, or use multiple accounts.
We do not sell, remove, filter, or reorder reviews based on whether a business pays us anything. Businesses cannot buy the removal of a negative review. This is a firm policy and we will not make exceptions.
We may remove reviews that violate these Terms, and we may display, sort, or filter reviews using automated systems designed to surface useful and authentic content.
7. Our content and brand
The Service, including our name, logo, the BuildBLK Verified badge, our design, text, graphics, and software, is owned by us or our licensors and protected by intellectual property law.
You may not use our name, logo, or badge without written permission. Businesses that earn the Verified designation receive a limited license to use the badge, on the terms in the Business Listing Agreement — and that license ends when the designation does.
You may not scrape, crawl, harvest, or bulk-download the Service or any part of it, or use it to build a competing database, without our written permission.
8. Third-party services and links
The Service may link to or embed third-party services, including mapping providers, social platforms, and business websites. Those services are governed by their own terms and privacy policies. We do not control them and are not responsible for them.
Map data and certain place information may be provided by third parties and is subject to their terms and attribution requirements.
9. Accessibility
We are committed to meeting WCAG 2.1 Level AA. If you encounter a barrier to accessing any part of the Service, please tell us at [ACCESSIBILITY EMAIL] and we will work to resolve it. See our Accessibility Statement.
10. Disclaimers
THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE," WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, express or implied, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and non-infringement.
We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, secure, error-free, or that listing information will be accurate, complete, or current.
We are a nonprofit organization operating a free public resource. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties, so some of the above may not apply to you.
11. Limitation of liability
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, neither BuildBLK nor its directors, officers, employees, volunteers, or agents will be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for lost profits, revenues, data, or goodwill, arising out of or relating to the Service.
Our total liability to you for all claims arising out of or relating to the Service will not exceed the greater of (a) one hundred dollars ($100) or (b) the amount you paid us in the twelve (12) months before the claim arose.
Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited under applicable law, including liability for gross negligence, fraud, or willful misconduct.
12. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless BuildBLK and its directors, officers, employees, volunteers, and agents from any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of: (a) your use of the Service; (b) your User Content; (c) your violation of these Terms or applicable law; or (d) your violation of any third party's rights.
13. Termination
You may stop using the Service and delete your account at any time.
We may suspend or terminate your access at any time, with or without notice, if we believe you have violated these Terms or if we discontinue the Service.
Sections 5 (license grant, as to content already shared), 7, 10, 11, 12, 14, and 15 survive termination.
14. Disputes
Governing law. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of laws principles.
Informal resolution first. Before filing anything, contact us at [LEGAL EMAIL] and give us 60 days to try to resolve the issue. Most problems get solved this way.
Venue. Any dispute not resolved informally will be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Sacramento County, California, and you consent to personal jurisdiction there.
[DECISION NEEDED — flag for attorney] Whether to include a binding arbitration clause and class action waiver. Trade-off: arbitration caps class-action exposure, but mass-arbitration campaigns have made it expensive, and for a community-facing nonprofit it can read as adversarial. Recommendation: omit arbitration, keep the 60-day informal resolution requirement and the venue clause.
Time limit. Any claim must be brought within one (1) year after it arises, to the extent permitted by law.
15. Changes to these Terms
We may update these Terms. If we make material changes, we will post the updated Terms with a new "Last Updated" date and, where we have your email address, notify you at least 30 days before the changes take effect. Continuing to use the Service after that means you accept the changes.
16. General
These Terms, together with the policies linked in them, are the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Service. If any provision is found unenforceable, the rest stays in force. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms; we may assign them to a successor.
17. Contact
[LEGAL ENTITY NAME]
[ADDRESS]
[SUPPORT EMAIL]