Terms of Service

These terms cover two things: using this website, and the web design, development and digital work FM Digital Solutions does for clients. Part A is about the website. Part B applies to every project, together with the proposal we send you.

1. Who we are and these terms

The supplier is FM Digital Solutions, a digital studio based in Cape Town, South Africa.

• Business details: FM Digital Solutions (sole proprietor), Cape Town, South Africa
• Address for notices: Cape Town, South Africa (physical address available on request by email)
• Email: admin@fmdigitalsolutions.co.za
• Website: fmdigitalsolutions.co.za

By using this website, or by accepting a proposal from us, you agree to these terms. If you are accepting on behalf of a business, you confirm that you are allowed to bind it. If a signed proposal or agreement conflicts with these terms, the signed document applies to that project.

We have tried to write these terms in plain language. If something is unclear, ask us before you accept.

2. Words we use

• "Client", "you": the person or business that accepts our proposal.
• "Services": the work described in the proposal, such as web design, development, SEO, hosting set-up or related work.
• "Proposal": our written quote, scope and timeline for a project, including any later written changes you and we agree.
• "Final Deliverables": the bespoke design, custom code and written content that we create for you under the Proposal and hand over at launch.
• "Our Materials": everything we own or bring to the project: our tools, frameworks, libraries, code snippets, components, templates, themes, plugins we have written, methods and know-how, whether created before or during the project.
• "Client Content": text, images, logos, brand assets, data and other material that you give us.
• "Third-Party Materials": software, plugins, themes, fonts, icons, stock images and services that belong to someone else and come with their own licence.
• "Final Payment": payment in full of every amount due under the Proposal.

3. Part A: Using this website

3.1 About the content

This website describes our services and past work. The content is general information and may change without notice. Nothing on the site is an offer that binds us until both sides accept a written Proposal.

3.2 Our rights in the site

The design, text, code, graphics and case studies on this site belong to FM Digital Solutions or are used with permission. You may not copy, scrape or reuse them without our written consent. Names and logos of other products and companies belong to their owners.

3.3 Acceptable use

Do not misuse the site. This includes trying to gain unauthorised access, sending spam or malicious content through a form, probing or overloading the site, or using it in a way that breaks the law.

3.4 Links and beta products

The site links to other websites, including products we have built. We are not responsible for sites we do not control. Some products shown here are in beta, which means features can change and they are provided as they are while we keep developing them.

3.5 Availability

We take care to keep the site accurate and available, but we do not promise it will be uninterrupted or error free.

4. Part B: Project work

Clauses 5 to 21 apply to every project we do for you.

5. How a project is agreed

1. We send you a Proposal. It stays open for 30 days unless it says otherwise, and we may change it after that.
2. You accept the Proposal by replying to confirm in writing, by signing it, or by paying the deposit. Email and electronic signatures count as writing and as signing.
3. We schedule the work once we have your acceptance and the deposit.
4. These terms form part of the agreement. If there is a conflict, the order of priority is: a signed written agreement, then the Proposal, then these terms.

6. Scope, revisions and changes

The Proposal sets out what we will deliver. We work to that scope.

• Revisions. Unless the Proposal says otherwise, the price includes two rounds of consolidated revisions at the design stage and two at the build stage. A round means one set of feedback sent together.
• Extra work. Anything outside the Proposal, including new pages, new features, extra revision rounds, a change of direction after you have approved a stage, or content changes after sign-off, is a change request. We will quote it before we do it, and it is billed separately.
• Approvals. When you approve a stage in writing, we build on it. Going back to change an approved stage can affect the price and the timeline.

7. What we need from you

The project depends on you doing these things on time:

• give us the content, images, logins and decisions we need;
• send consolidated feedback within 5 business days of each request;
• make sure everything you provide is accurate and that you have the right to use it (see clause 10.6); and
• nominate one person who can give approvals for your business.

If you go quiet for 30 days, we may pause the project and move your slot to other work. The deposit is not refunded for work already done. If you want to restart after a pause, we may charge a reasonable restart fee and set a new schedule.

8. Timelines

Dates in a Proposal are estimates that assume you supply content and feedback on time. We will work to meet them, but delays caused by late content, late feedback, change requests or third parties move the dates and do not make us liable.

9. Fees and payment

1. Deposit. We require a 50% deposit before work begins. Until we receive it, the project is not scheduled.
2. Balance. The remaining 50% is due before launch. We will give you a preview on a staging site so you can review the work, but we will not move it to your live domain, or hand over final files and access, until Final Payment is received. We may agree different milestones in a Proposal.
3. Invoices. Invoices are payable within 7 days unless the invoice says otherwise. Payment is by electronic funds transfer to the account on the invoice. Use the invoice number as your reference.
4. VAT. Prices are quoted in South African rand. We will add VAT to invoices if and when we become VAT registered, and we will tell you before we do.
5. Third-party costs. Domain names, hosting, premium plugins and themes, fonts, stock images, email services and similar costs are not included unless the Proposal says so. We will tell you before we incur them, and bill them at cost.
6. Late payment. We may charge interest on overdue amounts at the prescribed rate under the Prescribed Rate of Interest Act 55 of 1975. We may also pause work, or hold back launch, until overdue amounts are paid.
7. Collection costs. If we have to take steps to collect an overdue amount, you agree to pay our reasonable collection costs, to the extent the law allows.

10. Ownership and rights to designs and code

1. Until you pay in full. Until we receive Final Payment, we own all copyright and other rights in everything we create for the project, including designs, mock-ups, drafts, code and content. You may view and test the work for review purposes only. You may not publish it, put it on a live site, or let anyone else use it.
2. Transfer on Final Payment. When we receive Final Payment, we assign to you all our copyright in the Final Deliverables, worldwide and for the full term of that copyright. This clause, together with your acceptance of the Proposal, is our written assignment, and it takes effect automatically on Final Payment without either side signing anything further. We will sign a short confirmation of assignment on request. If you cancel part way through, clause 16 explains what you receive.
3. What you do not receive. The assignment does not cover Our Materials. We keep all rights in Our Materials. We grant you a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive licence to use Our Materials, as they are built into the Final Deliverables, for your own business. You may not resell Our Materials on their own, or pass them to someone else except together with the website or business they were built for.
4. Design source files. We deliver the finished, working website, theme and plugin files. Working files such as Figma or Photoshop files are not part of the Final Deliverables unless the Proposal lists them.
5. Third-Party Materials. Third-Party Materials stay with their owners and are licensed to you under their own terms. Examples are WordPress, plugins, themes, fonts and stock images. We are not assigning them to you. Where a licence needs renewing, such as a premium plugin, you are responsible for renewing it after the first licence period unless we agree otherwise in writing. Our own fonts and assets on your site are used under licences that allow it, and we will tell you if a licence has limits.
6. Your Content and brand. You keep ownership of Client Content, your logo and your brand. You give us a licence to use Client Content to do the work and to host and display it as part of the project. You promise that you own Client Content or have permission to use it, that it does not infringe anyone's rights, and that it does not break the law. If it includes photos or details of children, you promise that you have the consent of each child's parent or guardian. See clause 18 and clause 19.
7. Logos and brand design. If the Proposal includes designing a logo or brand identity, the final approved logo and brand files you pay for are Final Deliverables. Concepts and options you did not choose remain ours, and you may not use them.
8. Unused work. Drafts, rejected concepts and unused design options remain ours and you may not use them.
9. Portfolio and credit. We may show the finished work, screenshots and a short description of the project in our portfolio, case studies and marketing, unless you tell us in writing before launch that you do not want this. We will not publish your confidential information. We may place a small "Built by FM Digital Solutions" credit in the site footer, and we will remove it on request.
10. Moral rights. You may modify, extend and build on the Final Deliverables. To the extent the law allows, we will not object to modifications, but we are not responsible for problems caused by changes made by you or anyone else.
11. AI-assisted work. We use modern tools, including AI-assisted tools, in our work, and we review what they produce before it is delivered. We do not knowingly put your confidential information into tools that use it to train public models. The law on copyright in machine-generated material is still developing, so our assignment applies to the extent that copyright exists in the work.
12. Platforms and products. If a Proposal covers a software platform or product that we will operate or keep developing for you, ownership of the platform and its reusable components is as the Proposal says. Without a clear statement, the platform and its reusable code remain ours and you receive a licence to use the platform for your business.

11. Hosting, domains and access

• Domain names. Your domain name belongs to you. If we register it for you, we register it in your name, or we transfer it to you on request.
• Hosting. Hosting is separate from the build unless the Proposal says otherwise. If we host your site, the Proposal or invoice will set out the plan, the price and the billing period, and hosting continues until either side ends it with 30 days' written notice.
• Access. At launch, and once Final Payment is received, we give you administrator access to your website. If we also keep access for support, you can ask us to remove it at any time.
• Backups and updates. After handover, you are responsible for backups, software updates and security, unless you have a support or maintenance plan with us.

12. Acceptance and bug fixes

• Review. After we tell you the site is ready, you have 7 days to review it and tell us in writing about anything that does not match the Proposal. If you do not respond, or if you use the site live, the work is accepted.
• 30-day bug fixes. For 30 days after launch, we fix free of charge any defect where the agreed work does not do what the Proposal says.
• What is not covered. The bug-fix period does not cover new requests, content changes, design changes, issues caused by changes made by you or anyone else, third-party software or hosting problems, or updates that change how a plugin works.

13. Support and maintenance

Ongoing support, updates, monitoring and content changes are not part of a project unless the Proposal includes them or you agree a separate support plan with us. After the 30-day period, we are happy to help on request, billed at our hourly rate or under a support plan.

14. Results and third-party services

We build to a professional standard, but we cannot promise commercial results. This includes search engine rankings, website traffic, enquiries, sales or revenue. These depend on factors we do not control, such as search engines, competitors and your own business.

We build with security in mind and follow sound practice, but no website or system can be made completely secure, and we do not guarantee that a site will never be attacked or compromised.

Your project may depend on third-party services such as payment gateways, email services, hosting providers, search engines, maps and plugins. We are not responsible for those services, their changes, their outages or their fees.

15. Confidentiality and data protection

• Confidentiality. Each side keeps the other's confidential business information confidential and uses it only for the project. This does not apply to information that is public, that the other side already had, or that the law requires us to disclose.
• Visitor and customer data. When we build or host a website for you, you are the responsible party for the personal information it collects, and we act as your operator. We process it only on your instructions, keep it secure, and tell you without undue delay if we become aware of a breach affecting it. You must have your own privacy policy and a lawful basis for collecting the information.
• Our own handling of your information. This is explained in our Privacy Policy.

16. Cancellation and termination

1. If you cancel. You may cancel at any time by written notice. You then pay for the work done up to the date of cancellation and for costs we have already committed to with third parties that we cannot recover. We keep the deposit toward these amounts. If the work done is worth less than the deposit, we refund the difference. If it is worth more, you pay the difference.
2. What you receive on cancellation. Once you have paid everything due under paragraph 1, we assign to you the Final Deliverables completed up to that date, on the same basis as clause 10, and you may collect them.
3. Consumer rights. If you are a consumer under the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 or the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002, nothing in these terms takes away any cancellation or cooling-off right the law gives you. If you have such a right and use it, we refund what you have paid, less the reasonable value of work you asked us to start. Work only starts after you accept the Proposal and pay the deposit.
4. If we cancel. We may suspend or end the project if you do not pay on time, if you breach these terms and do not fix it within 7 days of our written notice, if the project involves unlawful content or conduct, or if you are abusive toward our team. You then pay for the work done up to that date.
5. After the agreement ends. Clauses that by their nature continue, including ownership, payment, confidentiality, liability and disputes, continue after the agreement ends.

17. Limitation of liability

1. To the extent the law allows, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, or for loss of profit, revenue, business, goodwill, data or opportunity, even if we were told it was possible.
2. To the extent the law allows, our total liability to you for all claims arising from a project is limited to the amount you paid us for that project.
3. We are not liable for losses caused by third-party services, hosting providers, outages, cyber attacks that were not caused by our negligence, changes you or others make to the site, or Client Content.
4. You are responsible for testing the site before you rely on it, and for keeping your own backups after handover.
5. Nothing in these terms limits liability for fraud, wilful misconduct or gross negligence, or any liability that cannot be limited or excluded by law, including rights under the Consumer Protection Act.

18. Your promises and indemnity

You promise that Client Content, and any instructions you give us, do not infringe anyone's rights and do not break the law. You agree to indemnify us against claims, losses and reasonable costs that arise because Client Content, or your use of the Final Deliverables in a way that breaks these terms or the law, infringes the rights of someone else. This includes claims about photos or details of children for which you did not get the required consent. We will tell you about the claim promptly and let you help deal with it.

19. Events outside our control

Neither side is liable for a delay or failure caused by something outside its reasonable control. Examples are load shedding, internet or power outages, natural disasters, strikes, government action and failures of third-party networks. The affected side must tell the other, and must make reasonable efforts to carry on. Payment obligations for work already done are not suspended.

20. Disputes and governing law

1. If there is a problem, tell us in writing and give us a fair chance to put it right. We will try to resolve it within 14 days.
2. If we cannot agree, either side may propose mediation before going to court.
3. These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. The courts of the Western Cape have jurisdiction, subject to any right you have under law to approach another forum.
4. Nothing here stops a consumer from approaching the National Consumer Commission, a consumer ombud, the Consumer Tribunal or a court.

21. General

• Whole agreement. The Proposal and these terms are the whole agreement for a project. Changes must be in writing and agreed by both sides.
• Notices. We may give notice by email to the address you gave us. You give notice by email to admin@fmdigitalsolutions.co.za. Each side chooses the address it gave us or listed above as its address for legal notices.
• If part is unenforceable. If a part of these terms is found to be invalid, the rest continues to apply.
• No waiver. If we do not enforce a right straight away, we do not give it up.
• Transfer. You may not transfer your rights or duties under a project to someone else without our written consent. We may use subcontractors but remain responsible for the work.
• Electronic contracting. You agree that we may conclude and keep agreements and records electronically.

22. Our other products

Find My Nursery (findmynursery.net) and Find My Creator (fmc.fmdigitalsolutions.co.za) are separate products. They have their own terms and privacy policies, and these terms do not govern your use of them.

23. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms from time to time. The date at the top shows the latest version. An update applies to new projects and to your use of the website from that date. A project you have already accepted continues under the terms that applied when you accepted it, unless both sides agree otherwise.

24. Contact

Questions about these terms: admin@fmdigitalsolutions.co.za.

See also our Privacy Policy.