Terms of Service

This website is informational. Browsing it, requesting a quote, or contacting us does not create a contract, reserve production time, or obligate either side to anything.

A project begins only when you approve a written scope and quote, and the kickoff payment is made.

Any price shown on this site — including 'starting at' and typical ranges — is an estimate, not a binding quote. A binding price is only set once we've reviewed your specific requirements and you've approved a written scope and quote.

Work does not begin until you've approved that written agreement.

Projects are billed in three milestones unless your written agreement states otherwise: 20% at kickoff after you approve the written scope, 30% after you approve the homepage and design direction, and the remaining 50% before the site goes live.

For unusually small, large, or complex projects, your written agreement may use a different milestone structure — the agreement always controls.

Full details are on our Payment & Cancellation Policy page.

Payments are connected to specific phases of work: once work begins on a phase, the payment for that phase is earned, while phases that haven't started aren't owed. The full rules — including cancellation by either side, nonrecoverable expenses, and how approved refunds are issued — are on our Refund Policy and Payment & Cancellation Policy pages, which are part of these terms.

Your written quote defines what's included in your project. Requests outside that approved scope — additional pages, features, integrations, content entry, redesigns, or extra revision rounds — are not automatically included.

When you ask for something new, we'll quote a price and timeline for it first. Work on the addition begins only after you approve that quote. Small additions may be billed as a change order; large additions may become a separate project.

Your written scope specifies the number of included revision rounds. A revision is an adjustment to work you've already approved — not a change in project direction, which is a scope change.

Consolidated feedback (one list per round rather than a trickle of messages) helps us use your included rounds well. Additional rounds beyond the included ones may be billed separately.

When you approve a phase, the next phase begins on that basis. Reopening an already-approved phase may require an additional fee.

You're responsible for providing accurate business information and the materials the site needs: logos, photos, menus, product information, service descriptions, pricing, and any claims you want published. You're also responsible for having permission to use what you provide, for account access we need to complete integrations, and for paying third-party subscriptions in your name.

Timely feedback and approvals keep the schedule real. When required materials or approvals are delayed, project dates move with them — we'll always tell you when that's happening.

You confirm that any content you provide — images, logos, text, music, video, trademarks — is either owned by you or properly licensed for use on your website, and that the information in it is accurate and lawful. We're not responsible for claims arising from materials or statements you supply.

If you'd like us to write copy or source images, that will be included as a specific line item in your scope.

Unless your written agreement says otherwise, ownership of the completed website — including design and code created for your project — transfers to you upon receipt of final payment. Until final payment is received, the work remains our property.

Third-party software, fonts, libraries, themes, plugins, platforms, and services used in the project remain governed by their own licenses; those aren't ours to transfer.

Third-party accounts you set up (hosting, domain registrar, Shopify, booking platforms, etc.) remain in your name and under your ownership throughout the project.

We may ask your permission to show completed work in our portfolio. We won't assume it — displaying your project is always your call.

Some projects rely on third-party platforms — domain registrars, hosting providers, Vercel, Shopify, Stripe, Toast, Square, Clover, booking systems, email providers, analytics, maps, plugins, and APIs. Any subscription, transaction, or processing fees charged by those platforms are billed directly to you by the provider and are separate from our fees.

You may need to create and maintain your own accounts with these providers. We don't control third-party outages, price changes, policy changes, account suspensions, or platform decisions, and integrations depend on the access and capabilities those services offer.

If an invoice is overdue, we may pause work until it's paid. If a project goes 30 days without a response from you, we may close or archive it; restarting an archived project may require a new schedule or a restart fee. (This window is a default — your written agreement controls if it says otherwise.)

Final launch, transfer of the website and source files, credentials, and domain connection are completed after the final balance has cleared. This isn't a lack of trust — it's the same phase-based structure the whole project uses: each side completes its part of a phase before the next begins.

Every project includes 7 days of launch support covering issues directly related to the original approved build. New requests, content updates, and feature additions after launch are billed separately unless covered by a maintenance plan.

Maintenance is optional and billed monthly. Either side may cancel a maintenance plan with 14 days' written notice. Maintenance covers the scope described at signup; larger requests may be quoted separately.

We cannot guarantee a specific amount of traffic, sales, search-engine rankings, or revenue. We build and configure the website according to the approved scope and accepted professional practices — what your market does with it isn't something anyone can honestly promise.

We work carefully to deliver a working, reliable website, but we cannot guarantee uninterrupted uptime, specific business outcomes, or compatibility with every third-party service. To the extent permitted by law, our liability for any claim related to a project is limited to the amount you paid us for that project.

We are not liable for losses caused by third-party services (hosting providers, payment processors, platforms we connect to) that are outside our control.

These terms are governed by the laws of the state where the business is registered, and any disputes will be handled in that state's courts. The specific governing state and venue are being finalized and will be stated here before these terms are used with clients.

We may update these terms from time to time. The 'last updated' date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision and effective date.

Questions about these terms can be sent to admin@harborlineco.org.