Terms of Service

Intellectual property

You own the material you provide me with, including code, designs, mock-ups, wireframes, documents, processes and anything similar. I have no rights, title or interest in your materials, except the right to use them as reasonably necessary to perform the Service. I shall return any and all materials to you upon your request.

By agreeing to this provision, you acknowledge that you own everything you provide me with throughout the Service and that nothing infringes on or misappropriates any third party's rights. You absolve me of all responsibility for any unauthorised use or misappropriation of any words, phrases, pictures, videos, images, or other content on your website.

The Service usually produces advice, reports, notes, call recordings, examples and other agreed deliverables. Unless we agree otherwise in writing, I do not provide production-ready code or production designs.

Upon receipt of full payment for the Service, I assign to you all right, title and interest that I can legally assign in custom deliverables created specifically for you under the agreed scope, excluding your materials, my background materials and any third-party materials. A payment that is refunded, reversed or charged back is not full payment.

I retain all rights in my pre-existing and independently developed materials, templates, examples, snippets, tools, methods, processes, know-how, ideas and general skills, including improvements to them, whether created before, during or after the Service.

If my background materials are included in a deliverable, then upon receipt of full payment for the Service I grant you a non-exclusive, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, copy and modify those background materials only as needed to use the deliverable internally for your business.

Third-party materials remain subject to their own licences and terms. I will identify third-party materials where reasonably practical.

This provision shall survive the termination of the Service.

Confidentiality

Both you and I agree to keep confidential information private.

Your data may contain trade secrets and I will always consider it confidential in nature. I have no rights and I cannot use it outside of the Service, unless given written permission by you.

Confidential Information does not include information that (i) has become publicly known, (ii) has been independently developed without access to confidential information; (iii) has been rightfully received from a third party without a breach of confidentiality by such third party; or (iv) is previously known to the recipient (without a breach of confidentiality).

This doesn't apply if either one of us is required to provide information to a third-party in compliance with a judicial decision or legal requirement.

Upon termination of the Service, I shall promptly return or, if so requested, destroy any confidential information in my possession, including all copies thereof. I shall notify you promptly and in writing of any circumstances of which I have knowledge relating to any possession, use, or knowledge of any portion of your confidential information by any unauthorised person.

Publicity

With your permission, I may display a link to your website or project, or a testimonial, on my website and talk about it in the media (websites, articles, books). I will never do this without your prior written permission.

I shall not use your name, logo or trademarks in connection with any sales, advertising, marketing and promotional activities, including without limitation, any publication, press release, advertisements, website or public forum, without your prior written consent.

These confidentiality and publicity terms survive termination of the Service.

Privacy and security

Your users' data

You are responsible for any third-party data, including your own users' data and privacy. You agree to fully indemnify me, and hold me harmless, to the full extent of any and all claims, actions, damages, losses, costs and fees arising from your unauthorised use or misappropriation of such data.

You are responsible for the data you process when making use of my Service. You guarantee that how you use the Service and processing of the data are not unlawful and do not infringe anyone else's rights.

Unless we expressly agree otherwise in writing, you must not give me access to production systems, live customer accounts, personal data, health data or other sensitive data. If access is agreed, you remain responsible for permissions, notices, security measures and data minimisation. If agreed access involves personal data processed on your behalf, we will sign a separate data processing agreement before access starts.

Your privacy

In short:

• You are not being tracked
• You are knowingly providing all the information I know about you
• You are in full control over your information and can tell me to delete it at any time

My Privacy policy explains how I handle personal data collected through this website. It does not describe all personal data that may be processed during the Service. Service-related personal data, including booking, billing, meeting, communication and client workspace data, will be handled under the written agreement for the Service and, where required, a separate data processing agreement.

Security

You acknowledge that you secure your systems and infrastructure. I am responsible for securing things on my end. This may include access codes, passwords, one-time passwords, or authentication codes.

I am not liable for any damage suffered or costs incurred as a result of the use or misuse of identification codes or certificates or any other security means unless the misuse is the direct result of any intent or deliberate recklessness on my part.

The Service

You get access to me through our agreed-upon communication channels, where you can request help and advice with accessibility questions related to your product, website, team or delivery process.

Price and payment

You agree to pay the Service fee in advance, before the Service starts and on time. The price is inclusive of all transaction fees.

Unless we agree otherwise in writing, invoices are due on receipt and must be paid before the Service starts. If an invoice is overdue, I may charge statutory commercial interest, reasonable collection costs and reasonable legal costs. I may also suspend or delay the Service until all overdue amounts are paid.

All prices are exclusive of value-added tax (VAT). All prices are quoted in euros and the payment is also in euros. I am not responsible for any currency conversion fees and taxes you may incur.

Working hours

I will only perform the Service during my usual working days and usual business hours.

My normal business hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Europe/Amsterdam time. My response and turnaround times apply during these working hours.

I observe holidays in the Netherlands and I will inform you in advance of any periods when I may not be available.

From time to time, I may take personal time off. I will inform you in advance of any periods when I may not be available.

Should you need the Service outside of the times I am generally available, I will do my best, without any guarantees, to accommodate your requests.

It is your duty to inform me about any intended temporary or permanent closure of your organisation or company.

Travel expenses

I will travel only with your prior written approval. If travel is approved and needed in the interest of properly performing the Service, you are responsible for all travelling expenses.

Travel expenses may include gas, flight, train, bus, taxi or similar transportation fares, as well as overnight hotel or similar accommodation stays. You are not responsible for paying a per-diem or any other expenses I might incur not directly related to performing the Service.

Participants

You must make sure the right people are available to participate in the Service. This includes people with the knowledge, experience and decision-making authority needed to make progress.

Where relevant, you must also make sure that end users, customer support or other subject-matter experts can provide input for testing and decision making. You agree to make progress-related decisions in a timely way during the Service.

You must provide accurate, complete and timely information, materials, access, decisions and feedback needed for the Service. If you do not respond or a dependency is missing, deadlines, estimates, response times and turnaround times move by at least the length of the delay, and I may re-prioritise, pause, defer or re-scope the work.

Requests

You can submit as many requests as you need during a billing period via our agreed-upon communication channels. This means unlimited submissions, not unlimited concurrent work, guaranteed output or guaranteed completion of every request during a billing period.

I will work on one request or agreed priority at a time unless we agree otherwise in writing. You are responsible for telling me which requests matter most. If you do not provide a priority order, I will use my judgment.

Requests must fit the agreed scope, my area of expertise and the information, materials and access you provide. Estimates are not deadlines unless we agree to a deadline in writing.

I may reject, defer or re-scope a request if it is unreasonable, outside the agreed scope, blocked by missing information or dependencies, likely to prevent reasonable service to other clients, or would require production-ready code, production designs, legal advice or work outside my expertise.

Control of Service

I know how I work best, so I'll control how I perform the Service. You will neither have nor exercise any control or direction over the methods by which I perform the Service.

I will exclusively control my hours and all other working conditions.

I will use my own equipment to get the work done, including any special materials, tools or equipment that are needed for the Service.

Relationship of the Parties

I'm an independent contractor. Nothing in this agreement will be construed or deemed to create an employer-employee or principal-agent relationship between you and me. I will not assert that the relationship with you is anything other than an independent contractor relationship.

I'll be responsible for paying my own taxes that result from performing this Service to you, including any payroll tax, national insurance contributions, employee insurance contributions or income-related healthcare contributions.

These service terms survive termination of the Service.

Business results

I will perform the Service with care to the best of my ability, on the basis of a best-effort obligation, without making any warranties relative to how my Service will impact your business, including but not limited to the amount of internet traffic, inquiries, clients and revenues you receive after implementing any advice, code or designs I provide you with.

I will perform the Service with reasonable professional care and skill, within the agreed scope and based on the materials, information and access you provide.

My advice does not guarantee legal or regulatory compliance, including compliance with WCAG, the European Accessibility Act, healthcare rules, procurement rules or any other law, rule, regulation or standard. You remain responsible for implementation, final testing, release decisions, legal decisions and business decisions.

Reviews are limited to the materials, information, access and scope supplied. No audit, certification, conformance statement or legal compliance assessment takes place unless we expressly agree to it in writing.

I do not provide legal, clinical, privacy, security or other regulated professional advice.

Transfer of rights

You cannot transfer your rights or obligations for Service to third parties without my prior written consent.

Conflicts of interest

I work for other clients, but that won't get in the way of my performance.

Termination

If I fail to perform any material obligations under the Service, you have the option to give written notice thereof. If I fail to remedy such failure within five business days of receipt of the notice, you may terminate the Service as of the fifth day.

I may elect, at my sole discretion, to terminate the Service without cause and without liability upon 30 days' prior written notice to you.

I have provided details and further information in the cancellation sections below in these Terms.

Communication

You consent to receive electronic communications from me and agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures and other communications sent via email satisfy any legal requirement that such communication be in writing. You also waive any rights or requirements under any statutes, regulations, rules, ordinances or other laws in any jurisdiction which require an original signature or delivery or retention of non-electronic records by any means other than electronic.

Notices to me must be sent to the email address shown in the contact information on this page. Notices to you will be sent to the email address you used to book or purchase the Service, or another address you provide in writing. Email notice is deemed received on the next business day after it is sent, unless the sender receives an automated delivery failure notice.

Legal stuff

It's not that I look forward to dealing with the law, but I also cannot pretend it doesn't exist. The following provisions are to help protect both of us from surprises.

Arbitration

Dutch law is exclusively applicable to all agreements between me and you. The Dutch court where I am established is exclusively competent in case of any disputes between me and you, unless the law prescribes otherwise.

Any disputes that may arise from an agreement between me and you and from any further agreements deriving from this agreement are resolved by arbitration in accordance with the Arbitration Regulations of the Foundation for the Settlement of Automation Disputes (Stichting Geschillenoplossing Automatisering (SGOA)(Opens external link in new tab)). This is without prejudice to either party's right to request preliminary relief in preliminary relief proceedings or arbitral preliminary relief proceedings.

If a dispute that arises from an agreement entered into by us or from any further agreements deriving from this agreement is within the jurisdiction of the cantonal section of the Netherlands District Court, either of us is entitled to bring the case as a cantonal court case before the competent district court in the Netherlands. Parties are only entitled to initiate these proceedings if arbitration proceedings concerning the dispute have not yet been instituted. If, with due observance of the provisions of this section, either of us has brought the case before the competent district court to be heard and decided, the cantonal judge of that district court is competent to hear the case and to decide on it.

Regarding a dispute that arises from an agreement entered into by us or from any further agreements deriving from this agreement, either of us is always entitled to institute ICT mediation proceedings in accordance with the ICT Mediation Regulations of the Foundation for the Settlement of Automation Disputes (Stichting Geschillenoplossing Automatisering (SGOA)(Opens external link in new tab)). The other party is then obliged to actively participate in the ICT mediation proceedings that have been instituted. This legally enforceable obligation in any case includes having to attend at least one joint meeting of mediators and parties, in order to give this extrajudicial form of dispute resolution a chance of success. Either party is free to terminate the ICT mediation proceedings at any time after this first joint meeting of mediators and parties. The provisions of this paragraph do not prevent either party, if this party deems doing so necessary, from requesting preliminary relief in preliminary relief proceedings or in arbitral preliminary relief proceedings.

In the event you breach these Terms in any respect, you shall be responsible for all reasonable costs and fees, of whatever nature and kind and including all reasonable attorneys' fees, incurred by me relative to the breach, regardless of whether any legal action is filed.

Waiver

You agree that I shall not be deemed to have waived any provision or right under these Terms without prior written consent that a particular provision or right is being "waived."

Liability

My total liability for an imputable failure in the performance of the agreement or arising from any other legal basis whatsoever is limited to the compensation of damages as described in more detail in this section.

If my professional liability insurance covers the damage, my total liability is limited to the amount actually paid by the insurer for the claim, plus any deductible I must pay. If insurance does not cover the damage or does not pay out, direct damage is limited to a maximum of the price stipulated for the Service in question (excluding VAT). If the Service is mainly an ongoing contract, the price stipulated for the Service is set at the total sum of the payments (excluding VAT) stipulated for the past six months of Service performed.

Liability for indirect damage, consequential loss, loss of profits, lost savings, reduced goodwill, loss due to business interruption, loss as a result of claims of your clients, loss arising from the use of goods, materials or software of third parties prescribed by you and any damage and loss arising from contracting suppliers you recommended to me is excluded. Liability for corruption, destruction or loss of data or documents is also excluded.

These exclusions and limitations cease to apply if and insofar as the damage is caused by intent or deliberate recklessness on my part.

The right to compensation of damages exclusively arises if you report the damage to me in writing as soon as possible after the damage has occurred. Any claim for compensation of damages filed against me lapses after twelve months following the inception of the claim, unless you've instituted legal action for damages before that period expires.

These provisions, exclusions and limitations of liability also apply in favour of any natural persons or legal persons I engage to help perform the Service.

Except where these Terms expressly say otherwise, these Terms do not give rights to anyone other than you and me.

Nullity

If one or more provisions of these Terms prove null or annulable, this will not affect the other provisions of these Terms.

I will, in that case, replace the provision that is null or annulable with another provision that comes closest to what I had in mind when drafting it.

Complete agreement

These Terms represent the full and complete understanding between me and you, and they supersede any and all prior understandings and communications unless otherwise explicitly stated. You understand and agree that I'm not making any guarantees, promises or warranties regarding the Service other than those expressly set forth in these Terms.

Force majeure

Neither you nor I is obliged to meet any obligation, including any statutory and/or agreed guarantee obligation, if circumstances beyond our control prevent either of us from doing so.

Circumstances beyond our control include:

• measures by public authorities,
• power failures, internet and network outages,
• (cyber) crime, (cyber) vandalism, war or terrorism, or
• general transportation problems.

Modifications to these Terms

From time to time, I may need to make changes to these Terms, or you may need some special provisions. This is how these changes will take place.

Changes

I am entitled to make changes of minor importance to these Terms at any time. By minor importance, I mean typos, grammar or editing for clarity, in ways that do not impact the Service.

I will communicate any major changes of content with you prior to them coming into force. By major changes, I mean adding, removing or editing large pieces of these Terms in a way that impacts the Service.

You are entitled to cancel the Service in the event of a major change to these Terms that you do not agree with. If you decide to cancel, you will be entitled to a 100% refund for the current billing period, minus applicable payment processing fees, regardless of when you cancel.

Amendments prior to start of Service

If it appears necessary to change or supplement these Terms before the Service starts, you and I will adjust the agreement in writing.

These Terms cannot be amended or modified verbally.

Survival

Any terms that by their nature should continue after cancellation, expiry or termination continue to apply. Confidentiality obligations survive for three years after the Service ends, and trade-secret confidentiality lasts for as long as the information remains a trade secret. Payment obligations, intellectual property rights and licences, privacy and security obligations, liability limits, dispute resolution, notices and restrictions on use of deliverables survive for as long as needed to give them effect.

The Service

Price and payment

I may, from time to time, adjust the price for the Service. I will never do this without at least three months' notice and in writing.

If you fail to pay on time, I will send you a payment reminder after three days. If after a maximum of seven days after the initial payment due date, you have still not paid, I reserve the right to cancel the Service, in writing. I will give you every chance to make the payment before doing so.

Duration

The standard duration of the Service is one calendar month. That means February is shorter than March, but the subscription is priced as a monthly service, not as a daily rate.

Requests

Requests may include:

• Review designs, components and flows for accessibility issues
• Prioritise accessibility findings and explain what needs attention first
• Review work in progress before too much has been built
• Recommend tools, checks and better ways of working
• Help your team decide what "done" means in real product work
• Provide accessibility advice across product, design, engineering and QA

Requests do not include:

• Writing production-ready code or creating production designs
• Fixing accessibility issues for you
• Issues outside my area of expertise

If a request does not fit my area of expertise, I will let you know and try to point you in the right direction.

Response time

I will respond to your requests on the same working day when reasonably possible, and no later than within 24 hours during business days. If I am unavailable, I will let you know in advance. If you send me a request outside business hours, on weekends or on Dutch holidays, the response window starts on my next business day.

I make a distinction between response time and turnaround time. Response time is the time it takes me to reply to your request. Turnaround time is the time it takes me to complete your request. In a lot of cases, they will be the same. Depending on the complexity of the request, I may need more time to complete it. I will let you know as part of my response if that's the case.

Turnaround time

On average, turnaround time will be 72 hours, counting only business days. If a request will take more than a few days, I'll let you know ahead of time.

Participants

The Service covers one cross-functional product team. Team members working in that team can use the Service without additional cost or a penalty on response or turnaround time.

You agree to notify me in writing when team members join or leave that team.

Cancelling

You can cancel the Service before your next billing period begins. I will continue to provide the Service until the end of the current billing period. You will not be charged again after that.

If you cancel within the first seven days of your first subscription month, I will refund 100% of that payment, minus payment processing fees.

I reserve the right to cancel the Service as well. If I decide not to continue providing the Service to you, I will refund the entire amount for the current billing period, minus the payment processing fees.

Here's an example. You are billed for a month on the 1st of January. I decide to cancel on January 29th. I refund 100% of the payment, minus the payment processing fees.

Both you and I can cancel only in writing via email. To meet a cancellation deadline, the email must be sent within the cancellation time frame.

When the Service ends, I will stop work on requests that are not complete unless we agree otherwise in writing. Completed deliverables remain subject to the intellectual property and refund terms in these Terms.

Pausing

You can pause the Service before your next billing period begins. I will continue to provide the Service until the end of the current billing period.

If you resume later, the Service is subject to availability and the price in effect at that time. Unused days do not carry over.

Returns and refunds

If you are not satisfied with the Service, I will refund the entire amount for your first billing period, minus payment processing fees, as long as you cancel within the first seven days of that first subscription month.

Force majeure

If a force majeure situation lasts for more than seven days, either party has the right to cancel the Service, in writing. In such event, you don't need to pay anything and are entitled to a refund on a proportional basis.

The Service

Price and payment

You agree to pay a one-time fee in advance, before the Service starts and on time. The price is inclusive of all transaction fees.

If you fail to pay before the start of the service, I reserve the right to cancel the Service, in writing. I will give you every chance to make the payment before doing so.

Duration

The duration of the Service is agreed in writing prior to the start of Service.

Requests

You can make requests via our agreed-upon communication channels.

I will prioritise requests with you based on the agreed duration, likely impact, dependencies and available materials. Unlimited requests means you can submit requests; it does not mean unlimited output, unlimited concurrent work or guaranteed completion of every request during the Service.

I may reject, defer or re-scope a request if it is unreasonable, outside the agreed scope, blocked by missing information or dependencies, or outside my expertise. Estimates are not deadlines unless we agree to a deadline in writing.

Requests may include:

• Review a design, component or flow for accessibility issues
• Explain what an audit finding means and what to do next
• Prioritise accessibility issues in your backlog
• Recommend tools or checks that fit how your team works
• Provide accessibility advice for a specific product decision

Requests do not include:

• Writing production-ready code or creating production designs
• Fixing accessibility issues for you
• Issues outside my area of expertise

If a request does not fit my area of expertise or the Service duration, I will let you know and try to point you in the right direction.

Response time

For a one-hour call, the Service is synchronous and takes place during the scheduled call. Response-time and turnaround-time commitments do not apply during or after the call unless we agree otherwise in writing.

For a full-day service, I will respond during the agreed service day as reasonably needed for the work. Turnaround depends on the agreed scope, priority, dependencies and available materials. If I think I cannot complete a request during the Service duration, I will let you know and work with you to find a practical next step.

Follow-up questions

For a one-hour call, you may ask follow-up questions by email for seven calendar days after the call. Follow-up is limited to clarification of advice given during the call and does not include new reviews, new research, production-ready code, production designs or fixing issues for you.

For a full-day service, you may ask follow-up questions by email for seven calendar days after the service day unless we agree another period in writing. Follow-up is limited to clarification of advice given during the Service.

I will respond to follow-up questions within 24 hours during business days when reasonably possible.

Participants

For a one-hour call, you can invite up to two team members in addition to yourself.

For a full-day service, you can invite the team members reasonably needed for the agreed scope, without additional costs, unless we agree a specific participant limit in writing.

You agree to notify me in writing prior to start of Service of all invitations of team members.

Recorded calls

If a call is recorded, you are responsible for making sure all participants know about the recording and consent to it before the call starts. If anyone objects, tell me before recording starts.

I own the recording I create, and I grant you a non-exclusive licence to use it internally for your business. You may not publish, sell or share the recording outside your organisation without my written permission.

Recordings may contain confidential information or personal data. You are responsible for deciding what you share during a recorded call. I will make the recording available for download when reasonably practical and may delete it after 30 days unless we agree otherwise in writing.

Rescheduling

You can reschedule the Service at any time prior to the day of the start of Service. I will work together with you to find a date on my calendar that suits us both. If I cannot find a date that suits us both, I will refund the entire amount you paid, minus the payment processing fees.

On rare occasions, I may reschedule as well. Should that happen, I will do my best to find the earliest date I can provide the Service to you. If I cannot or if that date does not work for you, I will refund the entire amount you paid, minus the payment processing fees.

Both you and I can reschedule only in writing via email. To meet the rescheduling deadline, the email must be sent at least one day prior to the start of Service.

Cancelling

You can cancel up to one day prior to the start of the Service. I will provide a full refund, minus the payment processing fees.

I reserve the right to cancel the Service as well. If I decide not to provide the Service to you, I will refund the entire amount you paid, minus the payment processing fees.

Both you and I can cancel only in writing via email. To meet the cancellation deadline, the email must be sent at least one day prior to the start of Service.

If the Service is cancelled or ends before all requests are complete, I will stop work on incomplete requests unless we agree otherwise in writing. Completed deliverables remain subject to the intellectual property and refund terms in these Terms.

Returns and refunds

If, at the end of the Service, you leave without at least one useful next step, you may request a refund by email within seven calendar days. You must explain why the Service did not provide at least one useful next step. Subjective dissatisfaction on its own is not enough for a refund.

If I agree that the Service did not provide at least one useful next step, I will refund the entire amount for the Service, minus payment processing fees.

The refund revokes the licence to use any deliverables I provided during the Service.

Force majeure

If a force majeure situation prevents a one-hour call from going ahead or prevents a full-day service from continuing for more than two hours, either party has the right to either cancel or reschedule the Service, in writing. In the event the Service is cancelled, you don't need to pay anything and are entitled to a full refund, minus applicable payment processing fees.