Terms of Service

1. Introduction

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the RubyCheck platform ("Service"), operated by Rubynet (Pty) Ltd ("we", "us", "our"), a company registered in the Republic of South Africa.

By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, you may not use the Service. These Terms should be read together with our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA). Where these Terms reference legal requirements, they relate primarily to the Rental Housing Act 50 of 1999 ("the Act"), POPIA, and the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (ECTA).

2. Service Description

RubyCheck is a web-based rental inspection management platform that enables landlords, property managers, and letting agents to:

• Create and manage property records
• Conduct digital move-in and move-out inspections with room-by-room checklists
• Capture and store photographic evidence during inspections
• Collect digital signatures from landlords and tenants
• Generate branded PDF inspection reports
• Compare inspections and calculate deposit deductions
• Share reports via email and WhatsApp

The Service is provided as a Progressive Web App (PWA) accessible via modern web browsers on desktop and mobile devices.

3. Account Registration

To use the Service, you must register for an account by providing your full name, email address, and organisation name. You must:

• Be at least 18 years old
• Provide accurate, complete, and current information
• Verify your email address before accessing the Service
• Keep your login credentials confidential and secure
• Notify us immediately of any unauthorised access to your account

You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account. We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms.

In accordance with POPIA, we process the personal information you provide during registration for the purposes of creating and managing your account and providing the Service. See our Privacy Policy for full details.

4. Subscription Plans and Billing

RubyCheck offers three subscription tiers:

• Free (R0): Limited to 2 inspections total, 3 properties, and 1 custom template.
• Solo (R99/month): Up to 10 inspections per month, 15 properties, 5 custom templates, and additional features including PDF reports without watermark, comparison reports, and WhatsApp sharing.
• Agency (R199/month): Unlimited inspections, properties, and templates, with full feature access including custom branding and API access.

All prices are quoted in South African Rands (ZAR) and include VAT where applicable. Payments are processed securely through PayFast, a South African payment gateway. We do not store your credit card or banking details; these are handled entirely by PayFast in accordance with PCI-DSS standards.

Paid subscriptions are billed monthly in advance. Your subscription will automatically renew at the end of each billing period unless cancelled. We may change our pricing with 30 days' written notice.

5. Acceptable Use

You agree not to use the Service to:

• Violate any applicable South African or international law or regulation
• Upload content that is unlawful, defamatory, obscene, or infringes on the rights of others
• Collect or store personal information of third parties without their consent in accordance with POPIA
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to the Service, other users' accounts, or our systems
• Interfere with or disrupt the integrity or performance of the Service
• Reverse-engineer, decompile, or disassemble any part of the Service
• Use the Service to send unsolicited communications (spam)
• Create fraudulent inspection reports or falsify inspection data

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account for any violation of these acceptable use provisions.

6. Your Content

You retain full ownership of all content you upload or create through the Service, including inspection data, photographs, notes, and reports ("Your Content"). By using the Service, you grant us a limited licence to store, process, and display Your Content solely for the purpose of providing the Service to you.

You are responsible for ensuring that Your Content does not infringe on any third-party rights and that you have obtained appropriate consent from any individuals whose personal information appears in Your Content, in accordance with POPIA.

7. Intellectual Property

The Service, including its design, code, features, branding, and documentation, is the intellectual property of Rubynet (Pty) Ltd and is protected by South African and international copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws.

Nothing in these Terms grants you any right to use our trademarks, logos, or brand elements without our prior written consent.

8. Rental Housing Act & Inspection Report Disclaimer

RubyCheck is a documentation tool that assists you in creating rental inspection reports. We do not provide legal, property valuation, or professional inspection advice.

The Rental Housing Act 50 of 1999 ("the Act") places specific obligations on landlords regarding property inspections. In particular, Section 5(3)(g) of the Act requires the landlord to inspect the property within 3 days of the tenant's move-out date. Failure to conduct an inspection within this timeframe means the landlord forfeits the right to make deductions from the deposit, and the full deposit must be refunded within 7 days.

RubyCheck provides features such as automated move-out reminders, compliance timestamps, and digital signatures to help you meet your obligations under the Act. However:

• RubyCheck does not guarantee legal compliance. It is your responsibility to ensure that your inspection process complies with the Act and any applicable provincial regulations.
• The accuracy of all condition ratings, notes, and photographs depends entirely on the person conducting the inspection.
• You must ensure that all relevant items and areas are inspected within the statutory timeframes.
• You are responsible for obtaining valid consent and signatures from all parties.
• Automated reminders are sent as a convenience only — we are not liable if a reminder is not received or acted upon.

All inspection actions are recorded with ISO timestamps to support a defensible audit trail. Generated PDF reports include a compliance footer noting that the inspection was conducted in accordance with the Act. This metadata is provided for your benefit but does not constitute proof of legal compliance — it records what was documented through the platform.

We strongly recommend seeking independent legal advice regarding your obligations as a landlord or agent under South African law.

9. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by South African law, including the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008:

• The Service is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied.
• We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of harmful components.
• We shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of your use of the Service.
• Our total liability to you for any claims arising from or relating to the Service shall not exceed the amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot be excluded or limited under South African law.

10. Cancellation and Refunds

You may cancel your paid subscription at any time from your account settings. Upon cancellation:

• Your subscription will remain active until the end of your current billing period.
• You will not be charged for subsequent billing periods.
• Your account will revert to the Free plan at the end of the billing period.
• You will retain access to all existing inspection data, but paid features will become unavailable.

We do not offer refunds for partial billing periods. In accordance with the Consumer Protection Act, you may cancel your subscription within 5 business days of initial sign-up for a full refund if you have not used any paid features.

We reserve the right to terminate your account for violation of these Terms. In such cases, no refund will be issued for the remaining billing period.

11. Data Protection

We process your personal information in accordance with POPIA and our Privacy Policy. By using the Service, you acknowledge that:

• You have read and understood our Privacy Policy.
• When you process personal information of tenants, landlords, or other third parties through the Service, you act as a "responsible party" under POPIA and are responsible for obtaining the necessary consent.
• We act as an "operator" under POPIA when processing personal information on your behalf, and we will only process such information in accordance with your instructions and these Terms.

12. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of South Africa. Any dispute arising from or in connection with these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Republic of South Africa.

13. Dispute Resolution

In the event of a dispute, the parties agree to first attempt to resolve the matter informally by contacting us at [email protected]. If the dispute cannot be resolved informally within 30 days, either party may refer the matter to mediation in accordance with the rules of the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa (AFSA). If mediation fails, the dispute may be referred to arbitration or the appropriate South African court.

14. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes at least 30 days in advance by email or by posting a prominent notice on the Service. Your continued use of the Service after the effective date of any changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

If you do not agree to the updated Terms, you must stop using the Service and cancel your subscription before the changes take effect.

15. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect. The invalid provision shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it valid and enforceable.

16. Contact Us

If you have any questions about these Terms of Service, please contact us: