Terms of Service

Welcome to Underground Aquarium. These Terms of Service (the “Terms”) are a binding agreement between you and Underground Aquarium (“we,” “us,” or “our”) covering your use of our website, marketplace, and community features (together, the “Service”). By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account or use the Service. By using Underground Aquarium, you represent that you are 18 or older and able to enter into a binding contract. The Service is not directed to anyone under 18, and we do not knowingly allow people under 18 to register.

Your account

You are responsible for keeping your login credentials secure and for all activity that happens under your account. Provide accurate information, keep it current, and let us know promptly if you believe your account has been compromised. You may not share your account, create more than one account to evade restrictions, or impersonate anyone else.

Acceptable use and community conduct

Underground Aquarium is a community built on good faith. When you post, comment, message, or otherwise participate, you agree not to:

• post content that is unlawful, fraudulent, deceptive, infringing, defamatory, hateful, harassing, threatening, or sexually explicit;
• harass, bully, dox, or threaten other members, or incite others to do so;
• spam, advertise off-platform schemes, or post repetitive or misleading content;
• impersonate another person, business, or Underground Aquarium itself;
• attempt to access accounts or data that are not yours, scrape the Service, or interfere with its operation or security; or
• use the Service to break any applicable law or regulation.

We may remove content, limit features, or suspend accounts that violate these rules or that put the community at risk.

Content you post

You keep ownership of the content you post — listings, tanks, reviews, forum posts, photos, club information, and so on. By posting it, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, display, reproduce, and distribute that content as needed to operate and promote the Service. This license ends when you delete the content or your account, except for content others have already shared or that we must keep for legal or record-keeping reasons.

You are responsible for the content you post and represent that you have the rights to share it. We do not claim ownership of your content, and we are not obligated to monitor it, but we may review and remove content that violates these Terms.

The marketplace

Underground Aquarium is a venue that connects buyers and sellers. We are not the buyer or seller in any transaction, we do not take title to any item, and we do not guarantee any listing, item, quality, or sale. Sellers are solely responsible for their listings, for the accuracy of what they describe, for the legality of what they sell (including any rules that apply to shipping live plants across state lines), and for fulfilling and shipping their orders.

Live animals may not be listed or sold on Underground Aquarium. The marketplace is for aquatic plants, equipment, hardscape, decor, and other dry goods only. We may remove listings and restrict or prohibit additional categories of items at our discretion.

Buying and selling

When you buy an item, your contract for that item is with the seller, not with us. Returns, refunds, and disputes are handled between the buyer and the seller; we may help facilitate a resolution but we are not obligated to and we are not responsible for the outcome.

To sell, you must connect a payout account and complete the setup steps we require before your listings can go live. You agree to describe items honestly, honor your listings, ship promptly, and comply with all laws and taxes that apply to your sales. You are responsible for determining, collecting, and remitting any taxes on your sales.

Fees and payments

Payments are processed by Stripe, and your use of payments is subject to Stripe's terms. We charge a service fee on marketplace transactions and a fee on club dues we help collect; applicable fees are disclosed before you complete a transaction. We may change our fees going forward, and we will give notice of material changes. Payouts to sellers and clubs are made through Stripe once the applicable conditions are met.

Clubs and dues

Clubs are operated by their own officers and members, not by Underground Aquarium. If you run or join a club, you are responsible for how you use member information and for following your club's own rules and any laws that apply to it. Dues and payments collected through the Service are handled the same way as marketplace payments and are subject to the fees described above.

Reviews and store listings

Reviews must reflect a genuine experience. Store owners may claim their listing and respond to reviews, but may not post fake reviews, offer incentives for reviews, or remove honest ones. We may edit or remove content that violates these Terms.

Care information

Our species profiles, tank tools, and other care content are provided for general guidance only. They are not a substitute for professional or veterinary advice. Always research the specific needs of any plant or animal before you keep it.

Our content and intellectual property

The Service itself — its design, text, logos, branding, and software — belongs to Underground Aquarium and is protected by intellectual property laws. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or reuse it without our permission. These Terms do not grant you any right to our trademarks or branding.

Copyright complaints

We respect intellectual property rights. If you believe content on the Service infringes your copyright, email us with a description of the work, a link to the infringing content, your contact information, and a statement that you have a good-faith belief the use is not authorized. We will review and, where appropriate, remove the content and may disable repeat infringers.

Third-party services

The Service relies on third parties — including Stripe for payments and other providers described in our Privacy Policy — and may link to third-party sites. Your use of those services is governed by their own terms, and we are not responsible for them.

Suspension and termination

You may stop using the Service and close your account at any time. We may suspend or close accounts that violate these Terms, that create risk for the community, or as needed to comply with law. Some obligations — including those about content licenses, disclaimers, liability, and governing law — survive the end of your account.

Disclaimers

The Service is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free, or that any listing, item, or user is as represented.

Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent allowed by law, Underground Aquarium will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any lost profits or data, arising from your use of the Service or from transactions between users. To the extent we are found liable, our total liability will not exceed the greater of the fees you paid us in the twelve months before the claim or one hundred U.S. dollars. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so some of these may not apply to you.

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Underground Aquarium from claims, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your content, your use of the Service, your sales or purchases, or your violation of these Terms or of any law or the rights of others.

Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Before filing any formal claim, you agree to first contact us and try to resolve the matter informally. Any dispute that cannot be resolved that way will be handled in the state or federal courts located in California, and you consent to their jurisdiction.

Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “last updated” date above and, for material changes, provide additional notice. Continued use of the Service after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms.

General

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, are the entire agreement between you and us about the Service. If any part is found unenforceable, the rest stays in effect. Our not enforcing a provision is not a waiver of it. You may not assign these Terms; we may assign them in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email us at Chris.m.lewis2020@gmail.com.