1. Operator and agreement
These Terms govern the Missing Pets South Africa website and related services operated under the name Missing Pets South Africa, from Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. Contact contact@missingpets.co.za. By using the Service, you agree to these Terms and the Privacy Policy.
2. Nature of the Service
The Service helps communities report, search and share missing and found pet information. It is not an emergency, veterinary, law-enforcement or animal-control service and cannot guarantee a reunion, identity, ownership, safety or response time.
3. Accounts and profile completion
Email registration initially asks only for an email address and password. After verification and first login, users must complete their profile before using member features. Provide accurate information and protect your credentials. Authenticated sessions are signed out after 30 minutes without activity.
4. Guest reports
A guest may submit a missing or found report. A protected guest profile may be created from the supplied email and contact details. The guest can later claim the profile through an authorised account-recovery or sign-in process. Do not submit another person’s contact details without permission.
5. Reports and moderation
Every report enters Review, regardless of membership, account type or Alert Booster selection. Only Approved reports are public. We may edit formatting, decline, close, remove or request evidence for inaccurate, unsafe, duplicated, fraudulent or unlawful content. An Alert Booster improves placement after verified activation but never guarantees approval or recovery.
6. Content responsibilities
You must have the right to upload photographs and information. Do not publish private addresses, identity documents, payment details, offensive content, false ownership claims, threats, scams or information that creates a safety risk. Optional microchip and response-cue details should be provided only when useful and lawful.
7. Found pets and ownership
A found-pet alert does not transfer ownership. Verify ownership carefully, use safe meeting practices and involve a veterinarian, welfare organisation or authority where appropriate. Never demand unlawful payment or expose a finder’s private contact details.
8. Memberships, payments and boosters
Paid services are subject to the displayed price and payment terms. PayFast or another approved provider verifies payments server-side. Browser return pages do not activate benefits. Refunds, cancellations and recurring payments are handled according to the displayed purchase terms and applicable law.
9. Communication preferences
You may select WhatsApp and email topics during profile completion and change them later. Turning off a channel’s master permission disables all topic permissions for that channel. Direct support replies, security notices and service messages may still be sent when necessary and lawful.
10. Pet-alert views
View counts may include on-screen website impressions and aggregate Facebook or Instagram post metrics where available. Website impressions are limited to one count per pet alert for the same connection within a 30-minute period. Counts are indicative, may be delayed, and are not guaranteed to be exact or comparable across platforms.
11. Acceptable use and security
Do not scrape private data, bypass access controls, automate submissions, overload the Service, manipulate alerts or metrics, impersonate others, upload malware, interfere with moderation or misuse affiliate, payment or membership systems. We may rate-limit, investigate, suspend or terminate access where needed to protect users and the Service.
12. Intellectual property and links
The Service design, branding and original content are protected. Third-party names and links remain the property of their owners and do not imply endorsement or partnership. Public alerts may be shared for the genuine purpose of locating or reuniting a pet while the alert remains active.
13. Availability and liability
The Service is provided on a reasonable-efforts basis and may be unavailable, delayed or contain errors. To the extent permitted by law, the operator is not liable for indirect loss, failed reunions, third-party conduct, unsafe meetings, fraudulent claims, social-platform changes or decisions made from user-submitted information.
14. Changes and governing law
We may update features and these Terms. South African law applies, and disputes should first be raised with contact@missingpets.co.za so they can be addressed in good faith.