Terms of Service

1. Company Identity & Contact

Legal name: ZimEstimate (Private) Limited
CIPA registration: [Registration number — to be inserted upon incorporation]
Registered address: [Physical address, Harare, Zimbabwe]
Primary email: support@zimestimate.co.zw
ZIMRA TIN: [Tax Identification Number — to be inserted upon registration]
Data Protection Officer: privacy@zimestimate.co.zw

2. Nature of the Platform

ZimEstimate is a B2B technology marketplace and project-management tool that connects builders, contractors, and quantity surveyors with construction material suppliers in Zimbabwe. ZimEstimate is an intermediary only: we do not manufacture, stock, supply, or warrant the quality, safety, or fitness for purpose of any materials listed by suppliers on the Platform.

• All procurement contracts are concluded directly between the buyer and the supplier.
• Bill-of-quantities outputs, pricing estimates, and AI-generated figures are decision-support tools and must be independently verified before use in tendering, contracting, or procurement.
• ZimEstimate does not hold funds on behalf of buyers or suppliers. Payment processing is handled by Stripe (USD) and Paynow Zimbabwe (ZWG/EcoCash) as independent payment service providers.

3. Account Registration & Eligibility

To use the Platform you must:

• Be at least 18 years old and legally capable of entering contracts under Zimbabwe law.
• Provide accurate, current, and complete registration information.
• Maintain the confidentiality of your login credentials. You are responsible for all activity under your account.
• Notify us immediately at support@zimestimate.co.zw of any unauthorised access to your account.

Supplier accounts additionally require: valid CIPA registration, a ZIMRA Tax Identification Number, and completion of our Know Your Business (KYB) verification process. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that fail KYB verification or that we reasonably suspect involve fraud, money laundering, or sanctions evasion.

4. Subscription Plans, Billing & Payments

Supplier subscription tiers:

• Auto-renewal: Paid subscriptions renew automatically each calendar month on your billing date unless you cancel before the renewal date.
• Cancellation: You may cancel at any time from “Billing & Plan” in your supplier dashboard. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period; no partial refunds are issued for unused time within a paid period.
• Cooling-off right: Under the Zimbabwe Consumer Protection Act (Chapter 14:44), you have the right to cancel a new paid subscription within 5 business days of first payment and receive a full refund, provided you have not materially used the features exclusive to that paid tier.
• Price changes: We will give you at least 30 days’ written notice (by email to your registered address) before increasing subscription fees. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the new price.
• Currency: USD prices are charged via Stripe (card). ZWG equivalent payments are available via Paynow Zimbabwe (EcoCash). The applicable exchange rate for ZWG transactions is determined at the time of payment using the prevailing RBZ interbank rate.
• Failed payments: If a payment fails, we will retry up to three times over 7 days. If payment remains outstanding, your account may be downgraded to Basic tier until payment is resolved.
• Taxes: Prices are exclusive of VAT. We will add VAT at the applicable rate once ZimEstimate is VAT-registered with ZIMRA. If your business is VAT-registered, you may request a VAT invoice from billing@zimestimate.co.zw.

5. Acceptable Use

You must not:

• Use the Platform for any unlawful purpose under Zimbabwe law or applicable international law.
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Platform, its databases, servers, or connected systems.
• List prohibited goods — weapons, controlled substances, goods requiring import licences you do not hold, or goods in breach of Zimbabwe Standards Association (SAZ) regulations.
• Submit false, misleading, or fraudulent information in listings, KYC submissions, or transaction records.
• Use the Platform to facilitate money laundering, terrorist financing, or sanctions evasion.
• Scrape, crawl, or systematically copy platform data without our prior written consent.
• Interfere with or disrupt Platform availability, security, or performance.
• Impersonate any person or organisation, or misrepresent your affiliation with any entity.

We cooperate fully with the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Zimbabwe, and other competent authorities. We will disclose user information where required by law.

6. Supplier-Specific Obligations

Suppliers on the Platform warrant and undertake that:

• They are validly registered with CIPA and hold a current ZIMRA TIN.
• All product listings, pricing, stock availability, and lead times are accurate and kept current.
• Products comply with all applicable Zimbabwe standards (SAZ standards where published), import regulations, and consumer safety requirements.
• They will not post pricing that facilitates price-fixing, market allocation, or collusion with competing suppliers on the Platform — such conduct is prohibited under the Competition Act (Chapter 14:28).
• They hold, or will promptly obtain, any sector-specific licence required for their business category (e.g., building materials dealer, contractor registration with the Construction Industry Federation of Zimbabwe).
• The KYC and business documents submitted during registration are genuine, current, and belong to the registering entity.

7. Intellectual Property

The Platform software, design, trademarks, and all ZimEstimate-authored content are owned by ZimEstimate (Private) Limited and protected under Zimbabwe’s Intellectual Property Act (Chapter 26:04) and related legislation. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works without our prior written consent.

By uploading product listings, images, pricing data, or other content to the Platform, you grant ZimEstimate a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to display, reproduce, and distribute that content on the Platform for the purpose of operating the Service. You retain ownership of your content and may remove it by deleting listings or closing your account.

8. Data Protection

We process personal data in accordance with the Zimbabwe Cyber and Data Protection Act (CDPA), Chapter 12:07 and our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. Our Data Protection Officer can be contacted at privacy@zimestimate.co.zw. By using the Platform you acknowledge that we collect and process data as described in the Privacy Policy.

9. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by Zimbabwe law (including the Consumer Protection Act where applicable):

• Platform intermediary: ZimEstimate is not a party to any transaction between a builder and a supplier. We are not liable for the quality, safety, or delivery of goods, or for disputes between buyers and suppliers.
• Estimate accuracy: BOQ outputs, AI-generated pricing, and analytics are indicative only. ZimEstimate is not liable for any loss arising from reliance on these figures without independent verification.
• Liability cap: Our total liability to you for any claim arising from or related to the Platform shall not exceed the subscription fees paid by you in the 12 months preceding the claim.
• Excluded losses: We exclude liability for indirect, consequential, special, punitive, or loss-of-profit damages, to the extent permitted by law.
• Non-exclusion: Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud, or any liability that cannot be excluded under Zimbabwe law.

10. Termination

By you: You may close your account at any time via your account settings. Paid subscriptions remain active until the end of the current billing period.

By us: We may suspend or terminate your account immediately if you breach these Terms, fail KYB/AML checks, engage in fraud or unlawful activity, or if required by a competent authority. For termination without cause, we will give you at least 30 days’ notice.

Effect of termination: On termination, your right to use the Platform ceases. We will retain data for the periods specified in the Privacy Policy (minimum 5 years for AML/ZIMRA purposes), then delete or anonymise it. Sections 7, 8, 9, 11, and 12 survive termination.

11. Dispute Resolution

Internal complaints: Contact support@zimestimate.co.zw. We will acknowledge within 2 business days and endeavour to resolve complaints within 14 business days.

Governing law: These Terms are governed by the laws of Zimbabwe.

Jurisdiction: Disputes not resolved internally shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the High Court of Zimbabwe. For B2B disputes, either party may elect binding arbitration under the Arbitration Act (Chapter 7:15) and the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules, seated in Harare.

Consumers (individuals acting outside a business capacity) retain the right to refer unresolved complaints to the Consumer Protection Commission of Zimbabwe.

12. General Provisions

• Updates to Terms: We may update these Terms at any time. Material changes will be notified by email at least 14 days before taking effect. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance.
• Severability: If any provision is found unenforceable, the remainder of the Terms continues in force.
• Entire agreement: These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any supplemental policies published on the Platform, constitute the entire agreement between you and ZimEstimate.
• Force majeure: We are not liable for failure or delay caused by events outside our reasonable control (power outages, government action, natural disasters, internet infrastructure failures).

Support & Legal Contact

Questions about these Terms: legal@zimestimate.co.zw
General support: support@zimestimate.co.zw
Data protection / privacy: privacy@zimestimate.co.zw