Terms of Service

1. Acceptance & Scope

These Terms of Service ("Terms") form a legally binding contract between you and TrainerConnect ("we", "us", "Platform"). They apply when you (i) create an account, (ii) post or browse training requirements, (iii) submit or receive applications, or (iv) otherwise interact with the platform. If you do not agree, do not use the Platform.

These Terms must be read together with our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated by reference.

2. Eligibility

• You must be 18 years or older and legally capable of entering binding contracts under the Indian Contract Act, 1872 (or your local equivalent).
• Vendors must be registered legal entities (private limited, LLP, partnership, sole proprietorship, college, NGO, or government department) or authorised representatives thereof.
• Trainers register as individuals (freelance) or as authorised representatives of a training firm.
• The Platform is currently designed for users based in India; if you use it from another jurisdiction, you are responsible for compliance with local laws.

3. Account & Profile Responsibilities

• One account per individual or legal entity. Multiple accounts for the same person are grounds for suspension.
• You are responsible for safeguarding your login credentials and for all activity under your account; notify us immediately at hello@trainerconnect.space if you suspect unauthorised access.
• Profile information (experience, rates, skills, certifications, company details, contact information) must be accurate, current, and verifiable.
• Impersonation, fake profiles, ghost organisations, or material misrepresentation are grounds for immediate, permanent suspension and may invite legal action.

4. The Marketplace Relationship

TrainerConnect is a discovery and communication platform. We help vendors and trainers find each other and exchange initial information. We are not a party to any agreement formed between you and a counter-party, do not employ trainers, and do not staff training engagements.

Specifically:

• Pricing, scope, schedule, deliverables, IP terms, taxes, and payment mechanisms are negotiated directly between the trainer and the vendor.
• Invoicing and tax compliance (GST, TDS, professional tax) are the responsibility of the contracting parties.
• We do not collect or hold escrow on payments between users.
• Reviews and ratings on the Platform reflect users' subjective experience; we don't verify the accuracy of every review.

5. Content & Intellectual Property

You retain ownership of all content you submit to the Platform (profile bios, resumes, course outlines, requirement descriptions, messages, etc.) ("User Content"). By submitting User Content, you grant TrainerConnect a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, store, reproduce, display, distribute, and index that content solely to operate, market, and improve the Platform. This licence ends when you delete the content, except for backup copies retained for 30 days for restoration purposes.

The Platform itself (code, design, branding, "TrainerConnect" mark, the curated category structure, etc.) is owned by us and protected under the Indian Copyright Act, 1957 and the Trade Marks Act, 1999. You may not copy, reproduce, scrape, or create derivative works without our written permission.

6. Prohibited Conduct

You agree not to:

• Post or share unlawful, defamatory, obscene, hateful, discriminatory, or violently extremist content;
• Harass, threaten, dox, or intimidate any other user;
• Send unsolicited promotional messages, recruit users to a competing platform, or use Platform contact data for any purpose outside the engagement at hand;
• Misrepresent your identity, experience, or affiliations; create fictitious requirements to harvest applicant data;
• Reverse engineer, decompile, scrape, or automate access to the Platform beyond what robots.txt and our public APIs permit;
• Upload malware, exploit security vulnerabilities, or attempt to disrupt the Platform's availability;
• Use the Platform to launder money, sanction-evade, or facilitate any activity prohibited under Indian law (IT Act 2000, Prevention of Money Laundering Act, etc.);
• Circumvent the Platform to avoid any fees we may introduce, or to avoid the dispute / reputation system.

We may, at our sole discretion, remove content, suspend, or permanently terminate accounts that violate these provisions. Repeated or severe violations may be reported to law-enforcement authorities.

7. Verification & Trust Signals

We may offer optional verification (email, phone, KYC). A verified badge means we have validated the data point indicated — not that we endorse the user's professional competence or guarantee their work. You should still evaluate each counter-party on your own.

8. Fees

During the early-access period, registration, profile creation, browsing, applying, posting requirements, and messaging are free of charge. We may introduce optional paid features (premium listings, advanced analytics, featured placement) in future; any such fee will be communicated in writing at least 30 days before it takes effect and will require explicit opt-in.

9. Disclaimers

The Platform is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, reliability, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that any specific trainer or vendor will meet your expectations, that listings will produce successful engagements, or that the Platform will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by Indian law, TrainerConnect, its directors, employees, and agents shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or exemplary damages, including but not limited to lost profits, lost data, business interruption, or reputational harm, arising from or relating to your use of the Platform — even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Our total cumulative liability to you for any claim arising out of these Terms or the Platform is limited to the greater of (i) the amount you have paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (ii) INR 5,000.

11. Indemnity

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless TrainerConnect from and against any claim, demand, loss, or damage (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of (a) your User Content, (b) your breach of these Terms, (c) your violation of any law, or (d) your infringement of any third-party rights.

12. Dispute Resolution & Governing Law

1. Inter-user disputes. Disputes between a trainer and a vendor should first be raised through the in-product dispute mechanism. We may, at our discretion, mediate; we are not obligated to do so and any opinion we share is non-binding.
2. Disputes with us. Any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Platform shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India. The parties shall first attempt good-faith negotiation; if unresolved within 30 days, the dispute shall be settled by arbitration under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, by a sole arbitrator appointed by mutual consent. The seat and venue of arbitration shall be Bengaluru, Karnataka. The language shall be English.
3. Jurisdiction. Subject to the arbitration clause above, the courts of Bengaluru, Karnataka shall have exclusive jurisdiction.

13. Termination

You may terminate your account at any time from Settings > Privacy > Permanently delete my account (see Privacy Policy §9 for what happens to your data). We may suspend or terminate your account if we reasonably believe you have violated these Terms, with notice where practical and without notice where the breach is severe or ongoing (e.g. fraud, security abuse). Sections 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14 survive termination.

14. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will note the "Last updated" date at the top and, for material changes, notify registered users by email and an in-app banner at least 14 days before the change takes effect. Continued use of the Platform after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

15. Miscellaneous

• Entire agreement. These Terms (with the Privacy Policy) are the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Platform.
• Severability. If any provision is held unenforceable, the remainder remains in full force.
• No waiver. Our failure to enforce any provision is not a waiver of our right to do so later.
• Assignment. You may not assign these Terms without our consent. We may assign them to a successor entity (e.g. on acquisition or restructuring).
• Force majeure. We are not liable for delays or failures caused by events outside our reasonable control.
• Headings are for convenience only.

16. Contact

For questions or legal notices, write to hello@trainerconnect.space.