These Terms link to our Privacy Policy (bpanel.net/privacy) and our Acceptable Use Policy (bpanel.net/acceptable-use).
The key points, in brief
This summary is for convenience. The full Terms below are what apply.
- The Service is provided "as is" and "as available". We do not promise it will always be available, error-free or that your content will be preserved (clause 13).
- Any access we give you free of charge is a goodwill gesture and at your own risk. If you have paid us nothing, our liability to you is nil (clause 14).
- Paid Plans do not renew automatically. Your first payment comes with a 14-day money-back guarantee; after that, fees are non-refundable (clause 6).
- You are responsible for your Site and everything on it, including any personal data you collect (clauses 7 and 8).
- If your account or access ends, or a Paid Plan is not renewed, your Site is suspended and permanently deleted after 14 days. Keep your own copies (clause 10).
- Our liability is limited to the fees you paid us in the previous 12 months (clause 14).
- You must be 18 or over to hold an account (clause 1).
1. About us and these Terms
1.1 BPanel.net ("BPanel", "we", "us", "our") provides a platform that lets organisations build, publish and manage websites. You can contact us at [email protected].
1.2 These Terms of Service ("Terms"), together with our Acceptable Use Policy and our Privacy Policy, form the agreement between you and us for the use of the Service. If there is a conflict, these Terms take priority, except that Schedule 1 (Data Processing Terms) takes priority on matters of data protection.
1.3 You accept these Terms when you create an account, accept an invitation, sign in or otherwise use the Service. If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not use the Service.
1.4 If you accept these Terms on behalf of an organisation, you confirm that you are authorised to do so and the organisation is bound by them. If you are not authorised, you will be personally responsible under these Terms.
1.5 You must be at least 18 years old to create or hold an account.
1.6 These Terms apply to everyone who uses the Service. Anything we agree with you individually, such as Fees or Complimentary Access, is agreed under these Terms and does not change them. No change to these Terms applies to you unless we have expressly agreed it in writing.
2. Key words
2.1 In these Terms:
- "Admin User" means any person who has access to the admin area of the Service through your account, including committee members, editors and owners;
- "Content" means anything you or your Admin Users upload, enter, publish or collect through the Service, including text, images, files, events, forms and submissions;
- "Customer" or "you" means the organisation (or, where there is none, the individual) that holds an account with us;
- "Customer Data" means personal data contained in Content or collected through your Site, which we process on your behalf;
- "Fees" means any fees agreed between you and us for a Paid Plan;
- "Complimentary Access" means any use of the Service, or any part of it, that we choose to provide without charge, for example under a trial, a promotion or an individual arrangement, and "Paid Plan" means use of the Service for which Fees are payable;
- "Service" means the BPanel platform, the admin area, the Sites and any related features, as offered by us from time to time;
- "Site" means a website created or hosted using the Service.
3. The Service
3.1 BPanel is a platform for organisations to create and run their own websites.
3.2 The Service is provided "as is" and "as available". Clause 13 explains what this means.
3.3 We may change, add, suspend or remove any part of the Service at any time, including its features, design, limits, storage allowances, hosting, servers, infrastructure, specifications and suppliers. Where a change significantly reduces the core functionality of a Paid Plan, we will give you reasonable notice where practicable.
3.4 We may set and change usage limits, such as storage, number of Sites, page views or email volumes.
3.5 Each Site is run by the Customer responsible for it. Sites are not created, reviewed or endorsed by BPanel, and a Site's content does not represent our views.
4. Accounts and Admin Users
4.1 Accounts are created by invitation or by sign-up where we make it available. You must give accurate information and keep it up to date.
4.2 You must keep sign-in details secure and tell us immediately at [email protected] if you suspect any unauthorised access.
4.3 You are responsible for your Admin Users, for adding and removing them (including when your committee or team changes), and for everything done through your account. Anything done through your account is treated as done by you.
4.4 We may refuse, restrict or disable any account or Admin User at any time.
4.5 We may access your account and Sites to provide support, keep the Service secure, investigate a suspected breach of these Terms, or comply with the law.
5. Web addresses and domains
5.1 BPanel addresses. We may give your Site an address on a domain that we own or control (for example, groupname.elsagroup.uk). We own these addresses and domains. You have a non-transferable right to use your address only while your account is active, and you acquire no ownership of it.
5.2 We may change, reassign or withdraw a BPanel address, for example for technical or security reasons, to resolve a dispute, or to protect another person's rights. Where reasonably practicable, we will redirect the old address.
5.3 When a Site is deleted, its address may be held for a period and then made available to others.
5.4 Custom domains. Where we make it available, you may connect a domain that you own to your Site. You register and hold the domain yourself, with a registrar of your choice. We do not register, own, hold or renew it.
5.5 You are responsible for the domain, including its registration, renewal and fees, the security of your registrar account, the settings needed to point it to the Service (following our instructions), compliance with the registry's rules, and making sure it does not infringe anyone else's rights. You authorise us to obtain and renew security (SSL) certificates for the domain while it is connected to the Service. If you give us access to your domain settings to help you connect it, we act on your instructions and at your risk.
5.6 We are not responsible if a custom domain expires, is lost, hijacked, suspended or misconfigured, or stops pointing to the Service. Where this happens, your Site may fall back to its BPanel address. We may disconnect a custom domain at any time, for example for technical or security reasons, suspected misuse, or when your account ends. If you leave the Service, you simply point your domain elsewhere; we have no further obligation in relation to it.
6. Plans, fees and refunds
6.1 Complimentary Access. We may, at our discretion, provide the Service or any part of it without charge or at a reduced charge. Complimentary Access is a goodwill gesture, is provided entirely at your own risk and does not entitle you to continued free use. We may change, limit or withdraw it under clause 10, or ask you to move to a Paid Plan by giving notice under clause 6.4. If Complimentary Access ends and you do not move to a Paid Plan, clause 10.5 applies.
6.2 Paid Plans. The Fees for a Paid Plan are those agreed with you in writing (including by email or invoice), usually for a 12-month period, and are payable in advance by the method we specify. Fees are in pounds sterling. If VAT applies, it will be added.
6.3 No automatic renewal. Paid Plans do not renew automatically. Before the end of your paid period, you may renew by paying the Fees that apply at the time. If you do not renew, clause 10.5 applies.
6.4 Price changes. We will give you at least 30 days' notice of any change to the Fees. A change applies from your next renewal and never part-way through a period you have already paid for.
6.5 14-day money-back guarantee. If you are not happy with your first Paid Plan, you may ask for a full refund by emailing [email protected] within 14 days of your first payment. This guarantee applies once per Customer and does not apply to renewals, to Customers who have previously held a Paid Plan, or to accounts suspended or ended for breach of these Terms or the Acceptable Use Policy.
6.6 No other refunds. Except under clause 6.5 or as set out below, Fees are non-refundable, including where you stop using the Service, end your account or do not use part of a paid period. If we end your Paid Plan under clause 10.2 or close the Service under clause 10.7, and you are not in breach of these Terms, we will refund the Fees for the unused part of your paid period.
6.7 Non-payment and chargebacks. If Fees are not paid when due, or if a payment is reversed or disputed with your bank without first contacting us, we may suspend the Service immediately and recover our reasonable costs.
6.8 Consumers. The Service is intended for organisations. If you are a consumer, you have a legal right to cancel within 14 days of entering into a contract with us. For your first Paid Plan, the guarantee in clause 6.5 gives you a full refund during that period. For any renewal, if you cancel within 14 days we will refund the Fees less a proportionate amount for the Service provided up to the date you told us you were cancelling.
7. Your Content
7.1 You keep ownership of your Content.
7.2 You give us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, store, copy, process, adapt (for example, resizing or converting images), display, back up and transmit your Content as needed to provide, secure and improve the Service. This licence ends when your Content is deleted, except for copies held in backups until they are overwritten and copies we must keep by law.
7.3 You are solely responsible for your Content and your Sites, including:
- their accuracy and legality;
- having all necessary rights, permissions and consents, including for photographs, names and personal details of other people;
- any information you collect through your Sites, including forms, applications and sign-ups; and
- your dealings with your visitors, members and applicants.
7.4 We do not monitor or approve Content and have no obligation to do so. However, we may review, remove or disable access to any Content or Site at any time and without notice if we believe it breaches these Terms, the Acceptable Use Policy or the law, or if we receive a complaint about it.
7.5 Anyone may report Content they believe is unlawful or breaches our Acceptable Use Policy by emailing [email protected]. We will review reports and act as we consider appropriate.
7.6 Keep your own copies. You are responsible for keeping your own copies and exports of your Content. Any backups we make are for our own recovery purposes and are not a service to you. We do not guarantee that any Content can be restored.
8. Data protection
8.1 Our Privacy Policy explains how we use personal data about account holders, Admin Users and visitors to bpanel.net, for which we are the controller.
8.2 For Customer Data, you are the controller and we are your processor. Schedule 1 (Data Processing Terms) applies.
8.3 You are responsible for having a lawful basis for collecting and using Customer Data, giving your visitors and applicants an appropriate privacy notice, responding to their requests, and collecting only what you need.
9. Acceptable use
9.1 You and your Admin Users must comply with our Acceptable Use Policy at all times. You are responsible for any breach of it by your Admin Users. A breach of the Acceptable Use Policy is a breach of these Terms.
10. Suspension, ending the Service and deletion
10.1 Immediate action. We may suspend, restrict or end your account, any Admin User or any Site immediately and without notice if:
- you or your Admin Users breach these Terms or the Acceptable Use Policy;
- we reasonably believe your use creates a legal, security, technical or reputational risk to us, the Service, other customers or our suppliers;
- Fees are not paid or a payment is reversed or disputed; or
- we are required to do so by law, by a public authority or by any of our suppliers.
10.2 Ending with notice. Either you or we may end your use of the Service for any reason by giving 14 days' notice by email.
10.3 You may stop using the Service at any time. Refunds are dealt with only under clause 6.
10.4 We may also end or delete accounts with Complimentary Access that have been inactive for a long period, after giving notice to the account's email address.
10.5 Access that is not renewed. If a Paid Plan is not renewed by the end of its paid period, or Complimentary Access ends and is not replaced by a Paid Plan, your Sites will be suspended.
10.6 Grace period and permanent deletion. After your account or Site is suspended under clause 10.5 or ended for any reason, we will keep it for 14 days (the "grace period"). During the grace period you may renew (where applicable) or contact us. After the grace period, we may permanently delete your account, Sites, Content and Customer Data without further notice. Deleted data cannot be recovered, and we do not guarantee to provide any copy or backup of it. Copies remaining in our backups are overwritten in our normal backup cycle. Where the law requires, or Content is unlawful, we may delete it sooner.
10.7 Closing the Service. If we decide to close the Service, we will give you at least 3 months' notice. If we are unable to give that much notice because of events outside our control, a decision of one of our suppliers or a legal requirement, we will give as much notice as is reasonably practicable.
10.8 Clauses that by their nature are intended to continue after these Terms end (including clauses 7.2, 10.6, 11, 13, 14, 15, 18 and 19) will continue to apply.
11. Our intellectual property
11.1 We and our licensors own all rights in the Service, including the platform, software, themes, templates, designs and the BPanel name and logo.
11.2 While your account is active, we give you a non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable right to use the Service for your organisation's own Sites.
11.3 You must not copy, modify, reverse engineer (except where the law allows), resell, sublicense or create a competing product from any part of the Service, remove any notices from it, or use our name or logo without our written permission. Themes and templates may be used only on the Service.
11.4 If you send us feedback or suggestions, we may use them freely without any obligation to you.
12. Third-party services and links
12.1 The Service and Sites may link to, embed or work with services provided by others, such as video platforms, maps, meeting services and domain registrars. These are governed by their own terms and we are not responsible for them, their content or their availability.
13. No promises: the Service is provided "as is"
13.1 The Service is provided "as is" and "as available". Any Complimentary Access is provided entirely at your own risk.
13.2 To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not promise that the Service:
- will be available, uninterrupted, timely, secure or free from errors, bugs or viruses;
- will meet your requirements or be suitable for any particular purpose;
- will preserve, store or back up any Content or Customer Data; or
- will be compatible with any particular device, browser or other service,
and we do not promise that any defect will be corrected.
13.3 The Service may be unavailable from time to time, including for maintenance, updates, changes and outages affecting us or our suppliers, with or without notice.
13.4 If you are a business customer, all terms implied by law (including as to quality, fitness for purpose, and reasonable care and skill) are excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.
13.5 If you are a consumer, nothing in these Terms affects your legal rights, including your right to have services provided with reasonable care and skill. Advice about your legal rights is available from Citizens Advice.
14. Limit of our liability
Please read this clause carefully.
14.1 Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for anything else that cannot be limited or excluded by law.
14.2 Subject to clause 14.1, we are not liable to you, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty or otherwise, for any:
- loss of profits, revenue, business, contracts, opportunity, goodwill or reputation;
- loss, corruption or deletion of data or Content;
- loss caused by downtime, interruption, suspension or deletion, including under clauses 7 or 10 or the Acceptable Use Policy;
- loss caused by your Content, your Admin Users, your visitors or any other third party;
- loss caused by our suppliers, hosting or internet failures, cyberattacks or viruses that we could not reasonably prevent;
- loss caused by your failure to keep your own copies of Content or to keep your sign-in details secure; or
- indirect or consequential loss.
14.3 Subject to clause 14.1, our total liability to you for all claims arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Service will not exceed the total Fees you actually paid us in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim. If you have paid us nothing in that period (for example, because you have Complimentary Access), our total liability is nil.
14.4 Time limit for claims. If you are a business customer, any claim against us must be started within 6 months after the date on which you became aware, or ought reasonably to have become aware, of the facts giving rise to it. After that, the claim is barred.
14.5 Consumers. If you are a consumer, clauses 14.2 to 14.4 apply only to the extent permitted by law. We are responsible for loss you suffer that is a foreseeable result of our breach of these Terms or our failure to use reasonable care and skill. We provide the Service for organisational and non-commercial use only, and we are not liable for any business losses.
14.6 These limits reflect the fact that Complimentary Access is provided without charge and that our Fees are set on the basis of them. If you need greater protection, you should take out your own insurance.
15. Your responsibility for claims
15.1 If you are a business customer, you will indemnify us against all losses, damages, fines, costs (including reasonable legal fees) and expenses arising from:
- your Content or Sites;
- your collection or use of personal data through the Service;
- any breach of these Terms, the Acceptable Use Policy or the law by you or your Admin Users;
- any dispute between you and your members, visitors, applicants or any third party; or
- any dispute about a domain you use with the Service.
15.2 If you are a consumer, you are responsible for any loss we suffer that is a foreseeable result of your breach of these Terms.
16. Events outside our control
16.1 We are not responsible for any failure or delay caused by events outside our reasonable control, including failures, suspensions or decisions of our hosting providers or other suppliers, internet, power or telecommunications failures, cyberattacks, changes in law, acts of government, pandemics, fire, flood, storms or industrial action. Our obligations are suspended while the event continues.
17. Changes to these Terms
17.1 We may change these Terms at any time, for example to reflect changes to the Service, our suppliers, our business or the law.
17.2 For significant changes, we will give at least 30 days' notice by email to your account's email address or by a notice in the admin area. Minor changes (such as clarifications or corrections that do not reduce your rights) take effect when we publish them.
17.3 We may make changes with shorter notice where required by law, a regulator or a supplier, or for security reasons, giving as much notice as is reasonably practicable.
17.4 If you do not agree to a change, you must stop using the Service and end your account before the change takes effect. If you continue to use the Service, you accept the change. If a significant change is substantially to your disadvantage and you have a Paid Plan, you may end your account before the change takes effect and we will refund the Fees for the unused part of your paid period.
17.5 We recommend you check this page from time to time. The "last updated" date at the top shows when these Terms last changed.
18. Complaints and disputes
18.1 If you have a complaint, please email [email protected] with the details. We will try to resolve it promptly.
18.2 Before starting court proceedings, you and we will try in good faith to resolve the dispute for at least 30 days from the date the complaint was made. This does not prevent either of us seeking urgent relief from a court.
18.3 These Terms, and any dispute or claim (including non-contractual disputes or claims) arising out of or in connection with them, are governed by the law of England and Wales.
18.4 The courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction. If you are a consumer living in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you may also bring proceedings in your local courts.
19. General
19.1 Transfer. We may transfer our rights and obligations under these Terms to another organisation. We will tell you if this happens. You may not transfer your rights or obligations without our written consent.
19.2 Entire agreement. If you are a business customer, these Terms and the documents referred to in them are the entire agreement between you and us, and you have not relied on any statement or promise not set out in them. This does not limit liability for fraud.
19.3 Severability. If any part of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the rest will continue in full force.
19.4 No waiver. If we delay or do not enforce any right, we do not give it up.
19.5 Third-party rights. No one other than you and us has any right to enforce these Terms.
19.6 Notices. We will send notices to the email address on your account. You must send notices to [email protected].
19.7 Relationship. Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, joint venture or agency between you and us.