HireWrite Terms & Conditions / User Agreement

T&Cs last modified: 09/01/2023

We are HireWrite Limited Incorporated in the UK. This User Agreement describes the terms and conditions, by using our site, you indicate that you accept these terms and conditions, and the referenced policies, and that you agree to abide by them.

In this User Agreement:

"Account" means the account associated with your email address.

"Buyer" or “Client” means a User that purchases Seller Services or items from Sellers or identifies a Seller through the Website. A User may be both a Buyer and a Seller under this agreement.

"Dispute Resolution Process" means the process to be followed by Buyers and Sellers in accordance with the Dispute Resolution Services.

"HireWrite", "we", "our", "company" or "the company" or "us" means HireWrite Limited

"Intellectual Property Rights" means any and all intellectual property rights, existing worldwide and the subject matter of such rights, including: (a) patents, copyright, rights in circuit layouts (or similar rights), registered designs, registered and unregistered trademarks, and any right to have confidential information kept confidential; and (b) any application or right to apply for registration of any of the rights referred to in paragraph (a), whether or not such rights are registered or capable of being registered and whether existing under any laws, at common law or in equity.

"Milestone Payment" means a payment made by the Buyer for the provision of Seller Services under a User Contract and which will be released in accordance with the section "Milestone Payments" of these terms and conditions.

"Project" or "Listing" means a job offered or project awarded by a Buyer via the Website, which may include a Project listed by a Buyer, a Project awarded by a Buyer or a service bought by a Buyer from a Seller.

"Seller”, “Freelancer” or “freelance writer” means a User that offers and provides services or identifies as a Seller through the Website. A User may be both a Buyer and a Seller under this agreement.

"User", "you" or "your" means an individual who visits or uses the Website in any way

"User Contract" means: (1) this User Agreement; (2) the Code of Conduct as amended from time to time; (3) any other contractual provisions accepted by both the Seller and Buyer uploaded to the Website, to the extent not inconsistent with the User Agreement and the Code of Conduct; (4) the Project terms as awarded and accepted on the Website, to the extent not inconsistent with the User Agreement and the Code of Conduct; and (5) any other material incorporated by reference from time to time.

"Website" means the Websites operated by HireWrite and available at: https://hirewrite.io and any of its regional or other domains or properties, and any related HireWrite service, tool or application.

1. Overview

HireWrite operates a platform matching Freelance writers to Buyers / Clients.

1.1 Services

Services are offered on HireWrite through either Offers, which are fixed price services; or custom projects, which can be fixed price, price per hour or price per word. Services delivered in these ways on HireWrite are collectively referred to in these terms as “projects”. Whether or not a project is offered and/or accepted is entirely at the discretion of the Freelancer/Buyer. HireWrite has no control over this process. Services are provided by Freelancers directly to Buyers, who determine the deliverables, price and all other requirements.

On Commencement of a project the Buyer pays funds into the Escrow Account, and the Buyer must confirm their requirements upfront within the project chat. The Freelancer must provide regular progress updates and respond within two (2) working days to all messages from the Buyer within the project chat. Freelancers must deliver work within the delivery times either defined in their Offer, or agreed with the Buyer upfront in the project chat for custom projects. Freelancers' rankings and/or accounts may be penalised for late delivery.

Freelancers must fulfil their projects and Buyers agree to pay for work delivered. Users will be penalised for cancellations or refunds caused by them, without just reason. Freelancers must provide, and be given the opportunity by the Buyer to provide, at least two further iterations on the work delivered if the Buyer is not initially satisfied.

Once the project has been completed the Freelancer will raise a request to receive payment, including the release of funds held in the Escrow Account. Alternatively, the client can also release the funds. Freelancers must not request payment upfront before work has been completed. Buyers must pay within the 7-day payment terms.

1.2 Funds

HireWrite only holds funds for the purposes of settling the provision of services and specific invoices of Freelancers. We strongly recommend that all users do not hold dormant balances on the platform. No user is permitted to hold a dormant balance on the platform for more than 30 days. HireWrite reserves the right to apply Admin Fees or write downs to dormant balances until they are withdrawn or become zeroed. Funds held by HireWrite on the platform are not insured nor covered by any Financial Services Compensation Scheme or any other government agency. HireWrite holds the funds in a separate client account.

1.3 Payments

HireWrite acts as an Agent of Payment between the Buyer and Freelancer. In return for full invoice payment by the Buyer for the project, HireWrite agrees to discharge the Buyers obligations relating to debts owed to the Freelancer under this agreement. HireWrite agrees to make such funds available to the Freelancer, subject to our fraud and AML procedures. Freelancers are then able to withdraw those funds following a clearance period, subject to the setting up of a valid withdrawal account. HireWrite takes its obligations to prevent fraud and money laundering seriously and reserves the right to delay payments to Freelancers if fraud or money laundering is suspected. All payments for work completed must go via HireWrite unless we have provided written permission otherwise in relation to a specific payment or invoice; attempts to pay outside of HireWrite will lead to sanctions not limited to immediate account suspension. Users must immediately report to HireWrite any offers to pay outside of HireWrite made by their Buyer or Freelancer.

1.4 Rights

Once payment has been made, Buyers are granted all rights for the delivered work.

1.5 Contact

For purposes of service messages, notices, offers and news about HireWrite, Users receive alerts on certain pages and emails to the email addresses associated with their accounts. If you do not want to receive newsletters, announcements, or other communications and/or services from our Site, please do not opt-in for those communications or services at the time of registration. If you have opted-in and, at a later time, wish to opt-out, please click on the relevant link inserted in our communications. In every Interesting and Important e-mail communication sent to you, we provide you the opportunity to discontinue receiving future communications (i.e., unsubscribe). Simply follow the unsubscribe process or directions provided in these emails. For the orderly operation of the platform, users cannot opt-out from Essential emails such as when receiving an invoice or when a buyer requests a refund.

By accepting these terms, Freelancers automatically opt-in to receive emails from any other enterprise services powered or owned by HireWrite.

2. HireWrite Client / Freelancer accounts

To access the full HireWrite site, Users have to register for an account, provide accurate and complete information, and keep their account information updated. Buyers & Freelancers have different registration processes.

Each account must be a personal account, but Users may trade as a sole trader, company or any other legal entity (whether incorporated or unincorporated).

Users cannot register for more than one account of the same type. For example, as user may not have more than one freelancer profile, or more than one client profile.

The information that Users supply in the public profile of their account must comply with HireWrite profile policies.

HireWrite reserves the right to restrict your access, temporarily or indefinitely block your account, stop any projects you have in progress, warn other Buyers and Freelancers of your actions or issue you a warning if:

You breach these terms and conditions or the referenced policies;
We are unable to verify or authenticate any information or identification you provide to us;
We believe that your actions may cause any loss or liability to our Users or to us

Users are solely responsible for any activity that occurs on their account, unless it is a result of actions beyond their control (such as hacking or if someone steals their password when they have taken reasonable steps to keep it secure). Users are not permitted to share their account details, use another person's user account, or use another person’s registration information or identification for the Website.

You confirm that you are not economically barred/limited under sanctions rules of any country worldwide. If your circumstances change to be included in such lists, please cease using the HireWrite platform immediately.

As per UK AML regulation, HireWrite is unable to support users from North Korea, Iran, Syria, Sudan (Republic of Sudan or North Sudan), South Sudan (Republic of South Sudan) and Region of Crimea.

3. Project delivery

3.1 Projects

The Freelancer's payment for projects are either agreed as fixed price, price per word or as a per hour rate project:

For a per hour rate project, the Buyer agrees to pay the Freelancer based on the time spent, not on the real or perceived quality of any deliverables provided. The Freelancer must provide the Buyer, on request, with a breakdown of their billed hours as evidence;
For a fixed priced project, the Buyer agrees to pay the Freelancer based on deliverables. The parties should agree upfront in the project chat whether to divide the project into milestones, with associated milestone payments. If milestones have not been agreed, then the project will only be invoiced on full completion of all deliverables.
For a per word priced project, the Buyer agrees to payer the Freelancer based on the agreed words delievred at the agreed per word rate.

On acceptance of a Proposal the Buyer will pay into the Escrow Account the agreed project / first milestone amount.

The Buyer must then provide their detailed requirements in the project chat so that the Freelancer can get started. These requirements should include (but not be limited to):

Timeframe for delivery of the project or milestones;
Description of any subjective elements of the project like aesthetics providing similar examples;
Breakdown of all expected deliverables;
Any other expectations for the work.

Once requirements have been received from the Buyer, the Freelancer must:

Respond in the project within two (2) working days to confirm commencement of work. Failing to respond within this timeframe may mean the Buyer requests, and will be entitled to a refund in accordance with Section 6;
Provide regular progress updates in the project chat and respond within two (2) working days to all project messages from the Buyer;
Complete the project, including handover of all deliverables in the project, within the delivery timescales agreed with the Buyer,
If missing a previously agreed deadline is unavoidable then the Freelancer must inform the Buyer immediately in the project chat and provide a revised delivery date.
Failing to deliver the work within agreed timescales, or repeatedly revising previously agreed deadlines, may mean the Buyer requests a cancellation of the custom project and will be entitled to a refund of any funds in the Escrow Account.
Late or non-delivery of a project will negatively affect the Freelancer's rankings on HireWrite and continuous offences may lead to account suspension.

All direct communication between Buyer and Freelancer should go via the project chat to keep both parties protected in case of a Dispute, When a project is completed (or an agreed milestone has been reached) the Freelancer will request a release of the funds:

The fee requested by the freelancer should be as has been explicitly agreed upfront in the Proposal / Project. If requirements/scope changes materially during a custom project the Freelancer may need to propose a change to a previously agreed price. This must be explicitly agreed in the project chat before any extra work is undertaken so that the Buyer can confirm whether they wish to proceed with the additional scope for the extra cost;
The Buyer must pay the Invoice within seven (7) days of the Invoice being raised;
Alternatively, if the Buyer does not agree that the project has been completed then the Buyer can reject the Invoice. The Buyer must then provide the Freelancer with detailed feedback in the project chat on what work remains outstanding. The freelancer must provide, and be given the chance to provide, at least two iterations of the deliverables based on detailed feedback from the Buyer.

If the Buyer does not either:

Pay the Invoice
Reject the Invoice within such seven (7) day period

HireWrite will provide assistance to the Freelancer to chase payment and may temporarily or permanently restrict the Buyer's account. If the Invoice remains unpaid after fifteen (15) days a final 24-hour notification will be issued to the Buyer. If after 24 hours the Buyer has not responded to this notification the funds in the Escrow Account, up to the unpaid Invoice amount, will be automatically processed and will remain at the discretion of HireWrite for approval.

If the Buyer pays the invoice or funds are utilised in accordance with 4. above, HireWrite and the Freelancer will be entitled to assume that the Buyer is satisfied with the project and does not have a dispute of any kind in relation to the project. The Buyer agrees that they will not file a dispute or seek to reverse payment through their credit card provider, bank or PayPal.

3.3 Per Hour Contracts

The Freelancer's payment for Per Hour Contracts is set as a per hour rate project using the per hour rate as stated on the project at the time of the Per Hour Contract setup. The Buyer agrees to pay the Freelancer based on the time spent, not on the real or perceived quality of any deliverables provided.

On acceptance of a Per Hour Proposal, the Buyer must place a valid payment method on file and gives authorization to HireWrite to charge it repeatedly per HireWrite’s Terms and Conditions.

Every seven (7) days an invoice will be automatically raised by the platform on behalf of the Freelancer according to the number of hours tracked by the Freelancer during the last seven (7) days and the per hour rate of the Per Hour Contract.

Upon invoice raise:

The Buyer can pay the Invoice manually within three (3) days of the Invoice being raised.
If not paid manually by the Buyer within three (3) days, the invoice will be automatically paid by the system charging one of the payment methods of the Buyer on file at any time.

3.3.1 Protection for Freelancers

In the rare event that a Buyer refuses payment for legitimate services performed by a Freelancer, HireWrite will provide limited payment protection to the Freelancer as mentioned below (“Per Hour Payment Protection”). Per Hour Payment Protection will be provided only if all of the following criteria are met:

Buyer must have an Account in good standing and at least one valid and authenticated Payment Method, and Buyer must agree to automatically pay for hours billed by the Freelancer.
Freelancer’s Account must be in good standing.
The number of hours billed must not exceed the weekly limit of hours as defined in the Per Hour Contract.
Within ten (10) days after invoice raise, if the invoice is rejected the Freelancer must submit a Dispute specifically identifying the details of the work that should be paid. Within ten (10) days after invoice raise, if the invoice is not rejected and not paid the Freelancer must contact HireWrite Customer Support identifying the details of the work that should be paid.

Per Hour Payment Protection is available with a maximum rate per hour protected by HireWrite to Freelancer the lesser of

The rate defined in the Per Hour Contract terms;
The usual per hour rate billed by Freelancer on the Site/Platform across all Buyers; and
The going rates for the same skills on the Site in Freelancer’s area (such determination to be made in HireWrite’s sole discretion).

3.3.2 Protection for Buyers

HireWrite will adjust the invoice to Buyer for work that is not clearly related to either the project requirements or Buyer instructions in the project chat and within the hours authorized for the week, subject to and conditioned on the following terms:

Buyer must have an Account in good standing and at least one valid and authenticated payment method, and Buyer must agree to automatically pay for hours billed by the Freelancer.
Freelancer’s Account must be in good standing.
The Buyer rejects the invoice within three (3) days of the Invoice being raised identifying the time billed and other evidence that are not clearly related to either the project requirements or Buyer instructions in the project chat.

3.4 Quality of Work

All Freelancers on HireWrite must strive to deliver a high standard of work, appropriately meeting their Buyer's needs.

Specifically, Freelancers must ensure that all deliverables are:

Error free
Fully address each of the Buyer's defined requirements;
A complete set of deliverables as defined in the Offer description or as agreed in the project chat as part of the requirements for projects;
The standard of work is consistent with the level of expertise indicated in the Freelancer's profile and proposals.

3.5 Key Information

The Buyer and Freelancer decide on the type of project, Hourly, per word or fixed price. They determine the terms and conditions of “projects”, including deliverables, any specific requirements, and for “projects” the price, directly between them. The Buyer and Freelancer create a direct service contract between themselves and HireWrite are not party to that contract ('the Service Contract').

Subject to this being varied as part of the Service Contract, ownership in and to any materials and or deliverables arising from a project and any intellectual property rights therein, will be assigned to the Buyer upon successful payment to the Freelancer. If the Buyer and Freelancer wish to include any special terms of the contract (for example, in relation to the ownership of the work produced, ownership of intellectual property rights or special rights of termination), the Buyer and Freelancer should negotiate and document these terms in the project chat.

Subject to variation in the Service Contract, the terms and conditions of each project shall be deemed to incorporate a term that in consideration of the fee paid for the project the Freelancer thereby assigns to the Buyer absolutely with full title guarantee the following rights throughout the world:

The entire copyright and all other rights in the nature of copyright subsisting in the project
Any database right subsisting in the project and
All other rights in the project of whatever nature, whether now known or created in the future, to which the Freelancer is now, or at any time after the date of Commencement of the project may be, entitled by virtue of the laws in force in the United Kingdom and in any other part of the world.

In each case for the whole term including any renewals, reversions, revivals and extensions and together with all related rights and powers arising or accrued, including the right to bring, make, oppose, defend, appeal and obtain relief (and to retain any damages recovered) in respect of any infringement, or any other cause of action arising from ownership, of any of these assigned rights, whether occurring before, on, or after the date of Commencement of the project.

You agree and adhere that:

You are able to pay for the services if you are a Buyer and perform the services if you are a Freelancer;
You are not in breach of any applicable laws, rules or regulations or obligations to any other person;
You have made and will make all required legal and tax filings. If relevant, you will file all necessary legal documentation relating to your self-employment required by any governmental body, and pay all applicable taxes including without limitation PAYE or other income tax and national insurance;
You shall not (and shall not permit) any third party to either take any action or upload, download, post, submit or otherwise distribute or facilitate distribution of any Content, project, or Proposal on or through the services HireWrite provide, including without limitation any User Content, that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other right of any other person or entity or violates any law or contractual duty.

4. Payments

Payments are made as described in Section 3, for a project agreed by the Buyer as successfully completed. The payment terms are seven (7) days except for Per Hour Contracts which is three (3) days.

For projects, the Freelancer must not request a release of funds from the Escrow Account prior to project completion; the purpose of funds being held in the Escrow Account is to provide the Freelancer with the security needed for them to undertake the work. Buyers must report such cases immediately. In such cases the Freelancer's account may be temporarily or permanently suspended.

All payments between Buyer and Freelancer must be processed through HireWrite as described in Section 3, both for work sourced on HireWrite and for any follow on work between the Buyer and Freelancer, either for the same project or another project. A Freelancer may seek express written permission from HireWrite to allow payment by alternative means for a specific invoice or payment if the Freelancer intends to issue proceedings or pursue legal action against the Buyer.

Payment (or attempt of) outside of HireWrite is a breach of these terms and conditions unless the prior express written consent of HireWrite has been obtained. Such payment (or attempt of) and will lead to temporary and/ or permanent suspension of the Buyer and/ or Freelancer's account. The Freelancer will be liable for any loss of business and legal expenses that HireWrite may incur in recovering it. HireWrite reserve the right to sanction funds held in the Freelancer's Account in order to recover lost fees. Moreover, HireWrite will not mediate any Disputes or be liable to either the Buyer or Freelancer's loss of business as a result of violation of this clause. Users must report attempts or offers to make payment outside of HireWrite by their Buyer or Freelancer to HireWrite immediately.

Payments by Buyers are routinely checked by HireWrite for fraud prevention purposes, before any payments are released to the Freelancer. Funds are only made available for withdrawal following a clearance period of fourteen (14) days after the invoice has been approved by the Buyer. Freelancers with total invoices paid in the last two (2) calendar months (“Recent Income”) of between £2,000 and £6,000 (or equivalent if converted) are eligible to withdraw funds following a safety clearance period of seven (7) days after the invoice has been approved by the Buyer. Freelancers with a Recent Income of more than £6,000 (or equivalent if converted) are eligible to withdraw funds following a safety clearance period of three (3) days after the invoice has been approved by the Buyer.

To withdraw funds from a HireWrite User Account, a Freelancer needs to request a withdrawal on an authorized withdrawal account. An authorized withdrawal account can be either:

A bank account under the user's name as registered on his profile
A Paypal account with the same name and email address as registered on the user's profile
A Paypal account with the same name as registered on the user's profile and an email address that has been verified by the user

HireWrite process payments daily and will send the money to the Freelancer via their selected payment preference. Once HireWrite has processed payments, they are then subject to timescales imposed by the banking clearing system (BACS in the UK).

For security reasons, HireWrite reserves the right to request additional information from Buyers and Freelancers, including original documents, and to verify documents with issuing institutions. Therefore, we reserve the right to request the following proofs of identity:

A copy of a Government issued ID (Passport, Driver's License or National ID Card);
A copy of a recent utility bill showing your name and address (less than 3 months old);

For credit/debit card users (one of the following):

A copy of the front and back of the card used. For Security Compliance we recommend that you blank out the central 8 digits of the card number digits, and the last three digits from the number on the back;
Credit or Debit Card Bank Statement of the card used on your HireWrite User account (less than 3 months old). For Security Compliance you must blank out the central 8 digits of the card number digits;

For PayPal users:

PayPal Account statement showing your PayPal registered name, email address and verification status along with any relevant transactions.

For international Bank transfers, credit to the beneficiary may be delayed by factors such as local bank holidays, delays by an intermediary bank or other local conditions. Please note that some countries have been designated as “slow-to-pay” countries, and transfers made to those countries may take several days or even weeks in crediting the receiving account.

In using the Escrow Account HireWrite act, subject to these terms and conditions, on the User's behalf. HireWrite hold the funds in a separate client account. HireWrite does not operate as a bank and only holds funds for the purposes of settling the provision of services and specific invoices of Freelancers. We strongly recommend that all users do not hold balances on the platform. Funds held by HireWrite on the platform are not insured nor covered by any Financial Services Compensation Scheme or any other government agency. Users will not receive interest or other earnings on the funds in their Escrow Account or HireWrite User Account. HireWrite will endeavour to ensure that the funds in the Escrow Account or HireWrite User Account are available to the User in accordance with these Terms and Conditions but do not guarantee that they will be available to the User in circumstances which are unforeseen or beyond our control.

If HireWrite has to return funds to the Buyer due to the Buyer (contrary to these Terms and Conditions) filing a dispute or requesting a payment be reversed through its credit card provider, bank or Paypal then HireWrite will be entitled to recover any such amount from the Freelancer’s HireWrite User Account (and if insufficient monies are in the Freelancer’s Account), credit card or other previously made payment method if available. If HireWrite is unable to recover the amount returned to the Buyer from the Freelancer in full then the Freelancer agrees to pay to HireWrite any outstanding sums within 48 hours of HireWrite making a request.

To prevent funds being held indefinitely in the Escrow Account, HireWrite will notify the Freelancer in the event of funds being held in an Escrow Account for a project that:

i) does not have an unpaid Invoice nor an open Dispute
ii) has not had any activity in the project for a period of one (1) calendar month or longer. Activity is defined as any action by the Buyer or Freelancer in the project such as: a message posted, an Invoice is raised, a deposit into the Escrow Account made or a Refund Request raised.

The Freelancer will be asked to confirm either:

That the project is still in progress by posting a message to the Buyer in the project with an update on progress.
That the project has been completed by raising an Invoice in accordance with the terms defined in Section 3
That the project was cancelled and issuing the Buyer with a refund in accordance with the terms in Section 6.

If no action is taken by the Freelancer within seven (7) days, it will be assumed that the project was not delivered by the Freelancer and the funds held in the Escrow Account will be automatically refunded back to the Buyer's HireWrite User Account. In this event the Freelancer's ranking/account status will be affected in accordance with the terms in Section 6.

HireWrite uses third-party service providers including but not limited to: Paypal, Stripe, in order to process payments by Buyers and to transfer funds to Freelancers. These third-party payment service providers are regulated and authorised to provide payment services in the countries where they operate. HireWrite may share your personal or transactional information with third-party payment service providers when it is necessary to process payments.

5. Leaving Feedback

When the project is completed and the Freelancer has been paid by the Buyer, both parties are asked to provide both qualitative feedback and a rating from 1-5 for the other party. This rating influences each User's ranking on HireWrite. In order for a user to read a received review, they have to submit their feedback as well. A review (feedback) is published on the member profile page when both parties (Buyer and Freelancer) leave their feedback within the first 60 days since invoice payment (funds released / amount paid). In case 60 days have passed, any submitted review is disclosed and users that haven't left any review will no longer be able to do so.

Both parties should complete the feedback honestly. Users must not falsify feedback, manipulate or coerce another User by threatening negative feedback or offer incentives in exchange for feedback. Any attempts of this nature should be reported immediately to HireWrite.

Feedback comments that are reported to us as defamatory, abusive or offensive will be reviewed and may be removed at our discretion.

6. Cancellations and refunds

6.1 Cancellation of a project

After the Commencement of a project, the Buyer may request a cancellation:

If there are funds in the Escrow Account and the Buyer believes they are entitled to a refund, the Buyer can notify HireWrite of the cancellation by requesting a refund using the “Request Refund” action on the project.

6.2 Project Refund policy

A Buyer is entitled to receive a refund of funds held in the Escrow Account under the following circumstances:

No response: The Freelancer has not responded in the project within two (2) working days of the Commencement of the project.

Non-delivery:

Poor quality: with the exception of per hour rate projects, the deliverables provided by the Freelancer do not meet the terms defined in Section 3.2.

Buyer and Freelancer may mutually agree to a refund for reasons other than the previous clause however authorization of such refunds will be subject to a review by HireWrite, as defined in Section 6.2.1 .

Refunds are only applicable to funds held in the Escrow Account. As per Section 3, funds should only be paid out of the Escrow Account once the Buyer is satisfied that the project (or any agreed milestone deliverables) has been completed. By releasing funds from the Escrow Account the Buyer accepts that this money is non-refundable.

Buyers must avoid filing a dispute or reversing payment through their credit card holder, Bank or PayPal. Attempts to seek a refund in this way will lead to the Buyer's account being automatically suspended.

6.2.1 Requesting a refund

A Buyer can request a refund of the funds held in the Escrow Account using the “Request Refund” action in the project and specifying a reason for their request.

HireWrite will process refund requests subject to a review of the refund reason and circumstances to ensure that both parties have complied with these terms and conditions, and that the purpose of the refund is not to avoid any of the parties' obligations under these terms and conditions. If HireWrite reasonably believes that the parties have not complied with these terms and conditions or are seeking to avoid any such obligations HireWrite shall not be obliged to make the refund.

6.2.2 Refund and cancellation penalties

Users are strictly discouraged from causing cancellations and refunds. Refunds or cancellations will impact users standing in the HireWrite platform as follows:

Where the Freelancer is at fault for the refund (for example, due to no response, poor quality of work or they have cancelled the project), it will negatively impact their Freelancer status and rankings;
Where the Buyer is found to be the cause for the refund (for example, an early cancellation due to a change in their business need) it will negatively impact their Buyer status;
Multiple refunds attributed to a User will lead to temporary and/ or permanent restrictions on their account depending upon the severity.

6.3 PRO Membership Cancellations & Refunds

Pro memberships may be cancelled at any time before the next billing date is due. Under no circumstances are refunds avaialble on PRO memberships, should you purchase a PRO membership and wish to request a refund please contact us within 48hours of the initial purchase on hello@hirewrite.io after this time, we reserve the right to refuse a refund due to having consumed the benefits of our paid membership

7. Disputes

HireWrite encourages Freelancers and Buyers to try and resolve any disagreements between themselves. However, should that not be possible HireWrite Customer Service can provide Dispute resolution / Mediation.

A Dispute can be raised by the Freelancer manually after a Buyer has rejected an invoice;

To raise a dispute, the Freelancer is required to pay a non-refundable fee as per section 8.2

Disputes are available to Freelancers that have qualified as trusted members of the HireWrite community.

For Invoice Disputes specifically, the amounts taken into consideration for the Dispute are the lower of the escrow balance or invoice amount.

If the amount disputed is £100 (or €130 or USD $160) or above, HireWrite may reach out to both parties in order to mediate and try and bring the Dispute to resolution.

HireWrite will aim to make a resolution decision on behalf of both parties within seven (7) to fourteen (14) days. If a mutual resolution has already been agreed between both parties on the project, then the dispute will either be cancelled or resolved in line with the mutual agreement.

In the event of having to make a resolution decision, HireWrite will use only the communication in the project as sole evidence, and consider:

If both parties are acting in good faith and have tried to resolve the issue between themselves before contacting us, including at least a second attempt made between both parties to complete or rectify the project;
If the project was delivered (or the milestone was met, if the Dispute is for a milestone payment) in accordance with the terms in Section 3;
For Disputes concerning the quality of the work delivered: HireWrite will consider whether the Freelancer has met general quality standards as defined in Section 3.3. Assessments on quality i) down to perceived taste, or ii) requiring specialist technical or subject matter expertise, will not form part of the resolution decision;
If the Buyer and Freelancer have complied with these terms and conditions.
In the event of having to make a resolution decision on behalf of the parties, HireWrite will notify both parties within fourteen (14) days of the Dispute. The disputed funds shall be dealt with in accordance with the resolution decision and these terms and conditions. Our involvement with the Dispute ends once the resolution in relation to the Dispute has been communicated

Users agree and accept that any payments and/or other actions made by HireWrite in accordance with the resolution decision of a Dispute are made in good faith and Users shall have no cause of action against HireWrite (whether in contract, tort or otherwise) in respect of the resolution decision or any such actions or payments made pursuant to it. Users further agree and accept that they have no right to seek to hold HireWrite liable for a Buyer or Freelancer’s alleged actions or failures.

8. HireWrite fees

8.1 Buyer Fees

The Buyer fees are for the use of HireWrite as an intermediate platform, they do not reflect the outcome of any Freelancer collaboration and will not be refunded.

The fee charged to buyers upon payment of a project is 5% of the project amount + $2.99. For example, for a $10 fixed price project, the total fee would be $3.49.

We may make changes to our service fees from time to time. These changes will be reflected in updated terms issued by us, which will apply to any transactions which take place after the updated fees come into force.

HireWrite provides optional upgrades/listing fees where a Buyer may choose to upgrade their project listing at the specified price. This is completely optional and is not neccessary in order to post a project. These optional upgrades are non refundable under any circumstances.

8.1.3 Featured project Fee

HireWrite shall make available upon an optional fee at the time of listing a Featured Project Upgrade. Said fee will not be refundable and includes the time and effort spent by our team to review these projects, ensure they're suitable to be featured and given better visibility on HireWrite.

HireWrite guarantee no level of success from featuring or upgrading a project listing, in terms of any metric associated with a project - including but not limited to: proposals received, views received, likes the project received, and awarding the project to a Freelancer.

8.2 Freelancer fees

HireWrite reserves the right to charge Freelancers a Service Fee in accordance with our Terms & Conditions.

The following fees are applicable to freelancers:

Between $0-$5000: 10% of the project amount + $2.99

$5000+: 5% of the project amount

All Users are provided with a statement at the end of each month showing their net effective commission fee in their ‘Payments' section on the Website.

When a Freelancer withdraws funds from their HireWrite User Account, HireWrite pass on any fees incurred to process the payment by third parties as a withdrawal fee, as follows:

Withdrawal Currency	Withdrawal Method	Fee
USD	US bank transfer (ACH)	No charge
USD	SEPA/Local Currency*	$2.99
USD	India bank transfer	$23.99
USD	International bank transfer	$29.99
USD	Paypal	1.9%

*SEPA / Local currency bank transfer: - If your country is included in the SEPA/Local Currency countries list and you choose the local currency bank transfer option, our banking partner will automatically convert (at wholesale foreign exchange rates) and pay your withdrawal directly to your local bank account

Bank transfer reversal fees - If your bank transfer gets reversed due to incorrect banking information, wrong bank account type or foreign currency bank account settings limitation, you will be charged a reversal fee of £2 | €3 | $3 as well as the currency exchange difference (if applicable).

If Freelancer decides to raise a dispute as per section 7, they are required to pay a non-refundable fee equal to 10% of the invoice or refund amount, subject to a minimum charge of £ 5 (or € 7 or $ 8) per dispute.

Bank transfer investigation fee - Please note that if there is a delay in payment from the banking institution, a formal investigation can be initiated with the bank to determine transaction issues. There is a 25 GBP fee that is issued which must be applied by the customer in order to initiate this process.

Chargeback or RFI (Request for Information) fee - A chargeback is a disputed card transaction filed by a buyer with their card issuer when they dispute a payment or when their card is being used without their authorization. An RFI is a Request for Information the bank raises asking HireWrite for additional information regarding a particular transaction, which may be in dispute or unauthorized. The buyer’s bank charges HireWrite a fee in both of these instances and as a result, we are passing these fees to Freelancers whose buyer filed a Chargeback or RFI with their bank for a particular project/payment. The Fee per Chargeback is £15.00 and £7 per RFI.
In case of chargebacks, if the buyer’s credit card company decides in the Freelancer’s favour, the Freelancer will be refunded the money to their HireWrite User account. If the decision is in favour of the buyer, the transaction will be cancelled, the buyer will receive a full refund, and the Fee amount will be deducted from the Freelancer’s HireWrite User account.

Fast Track Fee - Once your Freelancer application is submitted and/or your Account/ID documents uploaded, you have the option of paying a fee of £ 10 / € 11 / $ 13, in order to have your application and documents reviewed within 24 hours (1 working day). The Fast Track Fee will provide you the Fast Track service for as long as HireWrite provides such service or similar.

8.3 Admin fee for inactive User accounts

HireWrite does not operate as a bank, and only holds funds for the purposes of settling the provision of services and specific invoices of Freelancers. We strongly recommend that all users do not hold dormant balances on the platform. No user is permitted to hold a dormant balance on the platform for more than 30 days. If a User has held dormant funds in their HireWrite User Account for a period of sixty (60) days or more then HireWrite reserves the right to charge a monthly administration fee of [£7/€10/$11] (excl. VAT) for holding those funds on behalf of the User. This fee will be automatically collected each month from the funds in the User's HireWrite User Account starting from the sixty first (61st) calendar day. The collection of this fee will end when either: Funds held are less than 60 days old, or the balance is cleared.

8.4 Currency Conversion

If you require a transaction within the HireWrite site which involves a currency conversion, it will be completed at a foreign exchange rate determined by an official institution, which is adjusted on a regular base. Exchange rates fluctuations are not under HireWrite’s control.

A Currency Conversion Fee of 2.5% will be applied every time HireWrite performs a currency conversion. When a currency conversion is available by HireWrite, you will be shown the exchange rate that will be applied to the transaction before you proceed with authorising the payment transaction. By accepting this transaction, you also agree to the exchange rate currency conversion terms.

9. Subscriptions & PRO Membership

9.1 PRO Membership Overview

For quality control purposes, Freelancers on a FREE plan can apply to ONE (1) project per 48 hours for free but can purchase an optional PRO membership allowing them to propose to TEN (10) projects per 24 hours. The charge for a PRO membership is currently:

$49 Per Month / $499 Per Annum

9.2 Subscriptions

PRO memberships are billed on a subscription basis. You will be billed in advance on a recurring and periodic basis (“Billing Cycle”). Billing cycles are set either on a monthly or annual basis, depending on the type of subscription plan you select when purchasing a PRO membership.

At the end of each Billing Cycle, your Subscription will automatically renew under the exact same conditions unless you cancel it or HireWrite Ltd cancels it. You may cancel your Subscription renewal either through your online account management page or by contacting HireWrite customer support team on hello@hirewrite.io.

A valid payment method, including credit card, is required to process the payment for your PRO membership. You shall provide HireWrite with accurate and complete billing information including full name, address, state, zip code, telephone number, and a valid payment method information. By submitting such payment information, you automatically authorize HireWrite to charge all Subscription fees incurred through your account to any such payment instruments.

Should automatic billing fail to occur for any reason, HireWrite will issue an electronic invoice indicating that you must proceed manually, within a certain deadline date, with the full payment corresponding to the billing period as indicated on the invoice. If you are eligible to a discount, know that you cannot use more than 1 (one) discount per subscription.

9.3 PRO Membership

PRO Memberships provide a number of benefits to your account outlined at the time of your purchase, however HireWrite do not guarentee any success/improvement in your ability to earn more money, get interest from clients, or be contacted for work through our platform.

PRO membership can be cancelled at any time within your dashboard however any amount of time remaining on your membership will not be refunded. Cancellation will simply stop the billing cycle and prevent further charges / renewal to your subscription. Refunds are not given on PRO account subscriptions under any circumstances

10. Referral/Affiliate Programme

10.1 Overview

The HireWrite Referral/Affiliate Program is a program that allows Users to receive certain benefits in their User account ("Referral Reward") if they refer a non-HireWrite user ("Referred User") to HireWrite and they then make a qualifying purchase on the site (“Successful Referral”). Users perform this referral by submitting the email address of the Referred User on a special referral form or by sharing a special referral link found through HireWrite within the account dashboard ("Referral Invitation").

10.2 Referral Reward

Referred Users may receive a discount for paid services such as PRO memberships or project listing upgrades.

Subject to the eligibility conditions in Section 9.3, Users who refer others will receive $20 credited to their HireWrite account as a reward for every successful referral.

10.3 Eligibility

To be eligible for the Referral Reward:

you must have an active User account on HireWrite;
you may not refer yourself for the Referral Program;
the Referred User should not already have a User account (active or inactive) on HireWrite;
the Referred User should sign up for a User account using the activation link of the Referral Invitation within one month;
the Referred User should have paid & upgraded to PRO membership within 360 days from registration and must not have submitted a cancellation or refund request.

Each User can receive monthly maximum of £1000|€1000|USD $1000 in referral rewards.

10.4 Discontinuance or modification

HireWrite reserves the right at any time to modify or discontinue the Referral Program either temporarily or permanently with or without notice. HireWrite will not be liable to you in the event of any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Referral Program. Non-fraudulent accrued Referral Rewards are not affected by suspension or discontinuance of the Referral Program.

10.5 Non-compliance

HireWrite reserves the right to not grant or to remove any previously granted Referral Reward from your User account should any of the HireWrite terms and conditions not be met. HireWrite reserves the right to suspend the User account or remove Referral Reward should abusive or fraudulent activity regarding the Referral Program be suspected at the discretion of HireWrite.

11. Privacy Policy

By proceeding to use the HireWrite service, Users consent that HireWrite may process the personal data (including sensitive personal data) that HireWrite collects from them in accordance with the HireWrite Privacy Policy and the terms of the EU General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679.

HireWrite may use your personal data to gather feedback regarding your experience you may have with our platform. This helps our business grow by assembling useful information from our end-users.

HireWrite is not a party to any Service Contract between Buyer and Freelancer. Any Service Contract between a Buyer and Freelancer shall be in accordance with such Freelancer's privacy policy and the terms of the EU General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679.

12. Governing Law

These terms and conditions and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them or their subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales. The courts of England and Wales shall have non-exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim that arises out of or in connection with these terms and conditions or their subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims).