Effective date: [DD Month YYYY] Last updated: [DD Month YYYY]
⚠️ Template notice — This document is a starting draft prepared by a non-lawyer. It aligns with the South African Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (ECT Act), and common commercial practice, but it must be reviewed by a qualified South African attorney before publication. Replace every [bracketed placeholder] with your business's actual details.
These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your use of the services offered by Mdubusi Mathematics ("we", "us", "our"), operated by [PS Ndlovu — sole proprietor / Mdubusi Mathematics (Pty) Ltd, Registration No. YYYY/NNNNNN/NN] of [street address, city, postal code], South Africa.
By creating an account, booking a session, or otherwise using our website at [https://mdubusimaths.com](https://mdubusimaths.com) (the "Platform") or our tutoring services (the "Services"), you ("you", "the Student") agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, you must not use the Platform or Services.
If you are under 18, you may only use the Platform with the consent and under the supervision of a parent or legal guardian, who accepts these Terms on your behalf.
We provide online one-on-one and group tutoring in mathematics, statistics, data analytics, and related subjects for university and post-graduate students. Sessions are delivered over video conferencing provided by a third party (e.g. Google Meet, Zoom) at a scheduled time agreed between the Student and the tutor.
We do not provide formal qualifications, accreditation, or guarantees of academic outcome. Success depends on the Student's preparation, engagement, and institution's assessment standards.
Sessions are delivered online. To participate effectively you need:
- A stable internet connection of at least 2 Mbps download / 1 Mbps upload (5 Mbps recommended for screen sharing). - A recent version of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari, or Firefox. - A computer or tablet with a working microphone and, where the tutor requests it, a working camera. - A quiet environment for the duration of the session.
We are not responsible for a Student's inability to participate in a session because their equipment, internet, or power supply is unavailable. See § 17 (Force majeure) and the [Cancellation Policy](./cancellation-policy.md) for how load-shedding and connectivity outages are handled.
To book a session you must register an account with accurate, current information. You are responsible for:
- Keeping your login credentials confidential. - All activity that occurs under your account. - Notifying us immediately at [support@mdubusimaths.com] of any unauthorised use.
We may suspend or terminate an account that provides false information, is used to abuse the Platform, or is used to harass our tutors or other students.
Session types and prices, inclusive of VAT where applicable, are displayed on the Platform at the time of booking. As at the effective date these are:
| Session type | Duration | Price | |---|---|---| | Once-off | 60 minutes | R150 | | Monthly subscription | up to 24 hours per calendar month | R1,500 / month | | Group session | 120 minutes, up to 10 students | R800 per student |
Prices may change. Changes apply to bookings made after the change; existing bookings are honoured at the price paid.
Payment is required before a booking is confirmed. We process payments through Paystack (Pty) Ltd ("Paystack"). Your card details are collected and handled by Paystack under their terms and security standards; we do not store your card data.
A booking is only confirmed once we receive valid payment notification from Paystack. If payment fails or is not received within 15 minutes of the booking initiation, the time slot is released and made available to other Students.
You agree to:
- Join the session on time, at the scheduled start. - Maintain a respectful tone towards the tutor. - Use the session for legitimate educational purposes only. - Not record, stream, or redistribute any part of a session, or any supplied materials, without our prior written consent.
You further agree not to use the Platform or Services to:
- Submit work for which you have been expressly prohibited from receiving external help (the Student is solely responsible for their institution's academic integrity rules). - Infringe any third party's copyright, trademark, or other intellectual-property right. - Upload malicious code, probe the Platform for vulnerabilities, or attempt to circumvent access controls. - Harass, threaten, or discriminate against a tutor or any other person. - Impersonate another Student, provide false identity information, or use a payment instrument you are not authorised to use. - Scrape, reverse-engineer, or build a competing service using our content.
We reserve the right to end a session early, suspend your account, or refuse future Services — without refund — if you breach this clause. Serious breaches will be reported to law enforcement.
Sessions are ordinarily delivered by Mr PS Ndlovu. In the rare event Mr Ndlovu is unavailable due to illness or emergency, we will — at our discretion — either reschedule the session at no cost or refund the session in full.
Cancellations and refunds are governed by our separate [Cancellation Policy](./cancellation-policy.md) and [Refund Policy](./refund-policy.md), which form part of these Terms.
All content on the Platform — including text, graphics, logos, code, lesson notes, worked examples, and video materials — is owned by us or our licensors and protected by South African and international copyright law. You may:
- Use Platform content for your personal, non-commercial study.
You may not redistribute, sublicense, sell, reverse-engineer, or publicly display any Platform content without our prior written consent.
The trademarks "Mdubusi" and "Mdubusi Mathematics", together with the associated logos, are our property.
When you upload work, questions, or notes to the Platform (collectively, "Student Content") you retain ownership, but you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to store, display, and use that content solely for the purposes of delivering the Services to you.
You warrant that your Student Content does not infringe a third party's rights and does not contain unlawful or defamatory material.
The Platform integrates with third-party services including Supabase (data hosting), Paystack (payments), Cal.com (scheduling), Resend (email), Vercel (hosting), and Google (authentication and video conferencing). Your use of those services is subject to their own terms and privacy policies. We are not liable for acts or omissions of those third parties.
To the extent permitted by law, the Platform and Services are provided "as is" and "as available". We do not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of malicious code.
Nothing in these Terms limits your statutory rights under the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008.
To the maximum extent permitted by South African law, our total liability to you in respect of any claim arising out of these Terms or the Services — whether in contract, delict, or otherwise — is limited to the total amount you paid us in the [twelve (12) months] preceding the event giving rise to the claim.
We are not liable for any indirect, special, consequential, or punitive loss (including loss of profit, loss of data, or loss of academic opportunity).
This clause does not exclude liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, including liability for fraud or gross negligence.
You agree to indemnify us against any loss, damage, or claim arising from your breach of these Terms, your unlawful use of the Platform, or your infringement of a third party's rights.
We may suspend or terminate your account and refuse future Services if you breach these Terms, if we are required to do so by law, or if we reasonably suspect fraud or abuse. Any pre-paid but undelivered sessions at the time of lawful termination will be refunded pro-rata in accordance with the [Refund Policy](./refund-policy.md).
You may close your account at any time by emailing [support@mdubusimaths.com].
We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be notified by email to the address on file and by a notice on the Platform at least 14 days before the change takes effect. Continued use of the Platform after the change takes effect constitutes acceptance.
If a dispute arises, we encourage you first to contact us at [support@mdubusimaths.com] so we can try to resolve it directly. If that fails, you may:
- Refer the matter to the South African Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO), where the dispute falls within its jurisdiction, at [https://www.cgso.org.za](https://www.cgso.org.za); or - Lodge a complaint with the National Consumer Commission at [https://www.thencc.gov.za](https://www.thencc.gov.za); or - Approach a court of competent jurisdiction.
These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. The courts of South Africa have jurisdiction.
Neither party is liable for a failure or delay in performing its obligations under these Terms to the extent the failure or delay is caused by an event beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to:
- Electricity load-shedding, grid instability, or blackouts; - Internet or telecommunications outages, including submarine-cable failures; - Acts of government, lockdown orders, civil unrest, or protest action; - Fire, flood, extreme weather, or natural disaster; - Epidemics, pandemics, or public-health emergencies; - Failure of a third-party platform we rely on (Supabase, Paystack, Cal.com, Resend, Vercel, Google); - Strike or industrial action that is not within our control.
If a force majeure event prevents a scheduled session from taking place, the session will be rescheduled at no cost where practicable; if rescheduling is not possible, the session fee will be refunded in accordance with the [Refund Policy](./refund-policy.md). Persistent force majeure lasting more than 30 days entitles either party to terminate the affected booking without penalty.
- Severability — If any provision is found unenforceable, the remainder continues in force. - No waiver — Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of our right to enforce it later. - Entire agreement — These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, Cancellation Policy, and Refund Policy, constitute the entire agreement between us. - Assignment — You may not assign your rights under these Terms. We may assign ours on notice to you. - Notices — Written notices to us may be sent to [support@mdubusimaths.com]. We will send notices to the email address on your account. - Electronic communications — In accordance with the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002, you consent to receiving communications from us in electronic form and to entering into this agreement electronically. Electronic records and digital signatures (including clickwrap acceptance) carry the same legal effect as their paper equivalents. - Currency — All amounts are in South African Rand (ZAR) unless otherwise stated. - Language — These Terms are prepared in English. Any translation is provided for convenience; the English version prevails in the event of conflict.
Mdubusi Mathematics Email: [support@mdubusimaths.com] Website: [https://mdubusimaths.com] Postal address: [street address, city, postal code, South Africa]