GENERAL LIABILITY. PoundTeam Incorporated cannot be held responsible in any way for (or be expected to resolve problems or challenges with arise from) circumstances beyond our control (Including but not limited to such things as connectivity, changes in 3rd party software upon which our software may depend, etc.) and will not be expected to resolve those issues or issue refunds or expend funds to resolve those issues beyond our control. If it is possible for PoundTeam Incorporated to resolve such a conflict through production hours, those hours will be invoiced at the same rate as any other service.

DATA LIABILITY. All client data on all client systems is/are the responsibility of the client. Backup of data, the responsibility to initiate and/or request initiation, plus the responsibility of verifying said backups have occurred and are valid is the sole responsibility of the client. This includes backups stored (and paid for) on PoundTeam Incorporated’s equipment. Our servers are not designed or certified to be permanent storage for mission critical information. Unless client receives a statement that specifies (and pays for) “Guaranteed Storage Reliability”, there will be NO recourse for lost data except return of 30 days storage fees if data is in fact lost. This policy applies whether client had direct access to the data in question or not.

HARDWARE/SOFTWARE LIABILITY. Regardless of the cause behind a specific failure of hardware or software, be it the result of a manufacturer/developer defect, wear and tear, power surge, or any other reason, PoundTeam Incorporated will have no liability unless said failure is demonstrated to be directly caused by personnel of PoundTeam Incorporated. This specifically excludes 3rd parties such as common carriers and subcontractors. In the case that a hardware or software failure was caused directly by PoundTeam Incorporated personnel, the limit of the liability will be solely to repair/resolve the defect in the most reasonable method deemed appropriate by PoundTeam Incorporated and will not include any data restoration services (see “DATA LIABILITY” above and “CODING ERRORS” below). To be clear, this statement expressly allows (as an example, not limited to:) the replacement of an overly expensive power supply (as determined by PoundTeam Incorporated) with a standard power supply, even if the result is not “cosmetically pleasing” to the client, as long as the result is a working system. Additionally, in the case of a software/programming error see “CODING ERRORS” below. The ONLY exception to this rule is that a client may request deep testing and notify PoundTeam in writing in the project ticket’s description field, on the first line, that deep testing (or other coding caution) is required and thus errors should not be billable. The reason behind this requirement is that deep testing takes extra time and costs more for those extra production hours. Most clients prefer not to spend the extra money for deep code testing, and as a rule we do not expend those dollars unless the client expressly requests that level of testing. In the event a client makes such a requirement a part of a project at the onset of the project, the sole requirement for PoundTeam will still be repair of the prepaid but broken code and/or recovery of the data deleted by said broken code from backups (for which the client is solely responsible to maintain). See “CODING ERRORS” below.

CODING ERRORS

In the event of a suspected coding error there are three possible scenarios:

  • The Client states that the error lies with PoundTeam Code. The client does not, however, provide proof by comparing the coding specifications to the actual behavior of the code in a way that demonstrates beyond any doubt that there is a coding error as opposed to an error in the specifications or use of the software.
       In this situation, there will be charges for troubleshooting to first demonstrate whether there is a coding error. In the case of a coding error being found, there will also be a charge for resolving the coding error. If there was a loss of data associated with the coding error, there will be a charge for recovery of said data using whatever method is necessary. All charges will be charged at the Service Level requested by the client (assumed to be the same Service Level as the original project or task unless otherwise specified).
    Note that these charges are the same as would have been expected had the coding error been noticed during original production. While it is easy to mistake these charges for “extra charges”, they are actually the charges that should have happened at the time of original service, not “extra” in any way except, perhaps, some of the data recovery charges if there are any.
  • The Client provides proof that there is a coding error by providing the coding specifications and enough evidence to demonstrate beyond any doubt that there is an error in coding.    This situation is treated exactly as the prior situation, however the expected charge for troubleshooting may be much smaller as “Proof of flaw” has already been accomplished.
    Note that, as above, had the original flaw been found during normal product: the correction would still have been billable and as such the correction is still as billable now as it would have been then. But the step of “Proving” the flaw has been handled by the client and need only be duplicated by PoundTeam, thus resulting in a smaller charge for any saved time.
       Additionally in this scenario only: If the client wishes to avoid any charges at all, PoundTeam may offer to “Verify flaw and repair IF verified” as long as there are enough funds on account to cover the costs if the client turns out to be in error. The client will still be invoiced (as above) if there is no flaw in the coding (this applies also if there was an error or misunderstanding in the specifications). It also applies if the client merely forgot a preference or switch or entry (etc.).
  • The Client initiated the project with a statement that deep testing should occur and agreed to pay the extra costs resulting from this limitation.
       In this scenario, the client must have enough funds on account to cover verification of the flaw. If the flaw is not verified, the client will be invoiced for the false alarm at the rate specified by the client for the verification (assumed to be the same as the original project/task if not specified). In the case that the coding error is verified, the client will not be billed for fixing the coding error or data recovery (if needed) from the client’s valid backup source. If recovery extends beyond the client’s valid backup source, those recovery efforts will still be billable.

HARDWARE/SOFTWARE LIABILITY LIMITS. In no case will a credit be issued or liability established in excess of either the immediate 30 days of prior service paid for by the client or the amount paid for the project or task in question (whichever is lower). Poundteam Incorporated will not be responsible for “Down Time” or any other form of incidental or miscellaneous damages unless there has been an express agreement in writing in the project/task ticket to such liability AND that agreement has resulted in a separate payment specifically for that level of service.

HARDWARE WARRANTY. Hardware warranties are issued by and honored by the Manufacturer of the hardware. We are not responsible for failed hardware under any circumstances unless we caused said hardware failure through direct action. All warranty repairs and returns must be handled through the manufacturer of the hardware. We will cooperate in any way that we reasonably can, but will not be held responsible for any lack of ability or timeliness of cooperation and if we deem it reasonable we may charge a fee at our sole discretion for any time or money spent to assist with warranty claims. This policy applies whether the hardware was acquired from PoundTeam Incorporated or any other source.

SOFTWARE WARRANTY. Open Source software has no warranty of any kind, this includes software created or modified by PoundTeam Incorporated. If we create software or modify existing software (whether Open Source or not), we warrant that it will work at the time we turn control of the software over to the client. We do not warrant that an estimate will provide completed software that i usable by the client. Failure to pay enough money to complete the software may result in partial and unusable software. The client will have the opportunity to test the software before acceptance. We do NOT warrant that it will perform in any way not specified during the order process. We do NOT warrant that it will continue to operate (without an existing maintenance contract specifying said software) beyond any particular period of time. If a client has purchased a Maintenance Contract from us to maintain software functionality and we find that the client or any third party has altered said software in any way, we may (at our sole discretion) cancel the contract and keep any pre-paid fees with no recourse for the client, or charge a fee to “recertify” the software’s functionality and then charge above that fee any other amount as needed to repair any alterations to said software.

LIABILITY EXCEPTIONS. Any exception or offer to make an exception to these policies will not constitute an agreement until and unless said offer has been made by PoundTeam, accepted by client and said acceptance acknowledged by PoundTeam. Until final acknowledgement by PoundTeam, any offer of an exception may be rescinded without recourse. Further, any prior exception will not constitute an expected future exception even if the future situation appears identical to the original.