Zarvice Terms of Service for Clients (Zarviceis)

Welcome to Zarvice (referred to as "the Platform," "we," "us," or "our"). "Zarvice" is a trade name used by Governance & Business Lab LLC, a Michigan limited liability company, pursuant to a Certificate of Assumed Name filed with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. These Terms of Service constitute a legally binding agreement between you ("Client," "Zarvicei," or "you") and the operating entity of Zarvice.

By creating an account, accessing the Platform, or requesting any service, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by these Terms.

1.1. Marketplace Platform: Zarvice is a digital marketplace and technological platform connecting clients with independent service providers and contractors (referred to as "Zarvicers"). Zarvice is not a general contracting or maintenance company and does not directly perform field services.

1.2. Independent Contractor Status: All service providers (Zarvicers) are independent contractors and are not employees, agents, or partners of Zarvice.

1.3. Workplace Environment: The Client agrees to provide safe and reasonable access to the property/job site at the agreed time, ensuring general site safety.

1.4. Service area note. Zarvice serves clients requesting home, auto, personal, and event services through the Platform. Geographic availability depends on where Zarvicers offer coverage and may expand over time. The Privacy Policy describes how we handle personal information and remains the controlling description of data-processing practices; this paragraph does not expand or narrow that policy.

2.1. Exclusive In-App Transactions: All payments, financial agreements, price estimates, and transaction details must be processed exclusively through Zarvice's approved in-app payment processing systems.

2.2. Prohibition of Off-Platform Payments: Paying cash or transferring funds outside the Platform is strictly prohibited. Any payment made outside the Platform automatically forfeits the Client's right to payment-hold protection, service guarantees, property damage coverage, or dispute resolution.

2.3. Payment-Hold Protection. All payments authorized through the Platform are placed on hold with our payment processor (Stripe) and are released to the service provider only once the booking reaches the Eligible stage described in §3, not automatically on a fixed clock. "Held" funds are not disbursed to Zarvice as principal and are not disbursed to the Zarvicer until the release conditions in §3 are met.

This section applies to all bookings on the Platform, regardless of value:

3.1. Price agreement and payment window. Once you and the Zarvicer agree on a price for the job (the job status becomes "Price Agreed / Assigned"), you have a 15-minute window to complete payment. If payment is not completed within that window, the booking reverts to a pending/open state and must be re-agreed.

3.2. Payment held. Upon successful payment, the full authorized amount is placed on hold by our payment processor before the Zarvicer begins work. This hold protects both parties: the Client's funds are not released prematurely, and the Zarvicer has confirmation that funds are secured before starting.

3.3. In progress and completion. Work proceeds through "In Progress" to "Completed." Completion requires both the Zarvicer marking the job done and the Client confirming completion in-app ("dual confirmation"). Neither party's unilateral marking of the job as complete, by itself, releases payment.

3.4. Eligible payout conditions. A booking becomes "Eligible" for payout to the Zarvicer only when all of the following are true: (a) both Client and Zarvicer have confirmed completion; (b) the Zarvicer's Stripe Connect account is payout-ready; and (c) there is no open Dispute Center case on the booking. Funds are not released merely because time has passed. If you have a good-faith concern about the work, raise it through the in-app Dispute Center before confirming completion, or as soon as possible after, since an open Dispute Center case blocks Eligible status and the associated payout.

3.5. Paid Out. Once Eligible, funds are transferred to the Zarvicer via Stripe Connect, net of the applicable platform commission. Client payment authorization alone — without the Eligible conditions above — never triggers payout to the Zarvicer.

3.6. Larger and milestone-based projects. For projects the Zarvicer proposes as a written, milestone-based Scope of Work (SOW) — typically larger or more complex jobs — the Client is under no financial obligation until the Zarvicer issues a detailed written proposal in-app specifying work, materials, a milestone schedule, and estimated delivery dates, and the Client accepts it by e-signature in-app. Each milestone is funded and held individually before the corresponding stage of work begins, and each milestone follows the same completion and Eligible payout conditions described in §3.2–§3.5. Any additional work outside the original SOW requires a paid, in-app "Change Order" that the Client approves before it is performed.

4.1. Free cancellation before price agreement. The Client may cancel a requested service free of charge at any point before the price is agreed (before the booking reaches "Price Agreed / Assigned").

4.2. Post-agreement cancellation fee. Once the price has been agreed and the booking has moved to "Price Agreed / Assigned" or later, cancelling the booking may carry a cancellation fee of $5 plus 2% of the booking value. The fee is calculated according to Zarvice's cancellation policy matrix, which also accounts for the responsible party and the stage of cancellation.

4.3. Fee waivers. The cancellation fee may be waived at Zarvice's discretion through its internal administrative fee-waiver process. Waiver is not an automatic or self-service Client option; it is evaluated case by case.

5.1. The Client agrees not to solicit, accept, or engage in any off-platform transactions or direct side-agreements with any Zarvicer introduced through the Platform.

5.2. Violation of this policy will result in immediate and permanent account suspension, forfeiture of all warranties on past services, and potential legal claims for lost platform fees.

If a disagreement arises regarding service quality, completion, or payout, the following two tracks apply. They are distinct, and neither requires paying a deposit to begin:

6.1. Dispute Center (internal, first-line review). The Client or Zarvicer may open a case in the in-app Dispute Center at any point before or shortly after completion is confirmed. An open Dispute Center case blocks the Eligible payout conditions described in §3.4. Zarvice Support reviews in-app evidence (photos, messages, job history) and applies a policy-coded outcome (for example, a full or partial refund, or release of funds to the provider) under Zarvice's internal operating policies. There is no fee or deposit required to open or participate in Dispute Center review. Dispute Center review is administered by Zarvice and is not binding arbitration.

6.2. Binding Arbitration Agreement. Certain disputes that are not resolved through the Dispute Center, or that a party elects to escalate, are subject to Zarvice's separate, mandatory Arbitration Agreement, administered by the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") under its Consumer Arbitration Rules (or another forum mutually agreed in writing). The Arbitration Agreement is a distinct document with its own notice procedure, fee allocation, and opt-out right. Nothing in §6.1 substitutes for, or narrows, your rights and obligations under the separate Arbitration Agreement.

6.3. Chargebacks. A chargeback or bank/card-network dispute is tracked separately from both the Dispute Center and the Arbitration Agreement, and may independently place a hold on funds pending resolution with Stripe or the relevant bank.

7.1. Direct Provider Liability: The Zarvicer is directly and legally liable for any physical damage caused to the Client's property during the execution of work.

7.2. Insurance Verification: For larger, milestone-based projects, Zarvice verifies that contractors maintain active General Liability Insurance, and Zarvice agrees to provide all logged project records to support the Client's insurance claim.

7.3. Platform Limitation of Liability: To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Zarvice's total cumulative liability to the Client for any claim arising from a transaction shall not exceed the total platform fees collected by Zarvice for that specific transaction.

8.1. Zarvicer profiles may display an optional "Verified" badge, obtained by the Zarvicer through a one-time verification process that may involve a fee, and/or a paid "Featured Pro" placement that increases a Zarvicer's visibility in search results.

8.2. Neither badge is a guarantee, endorsement, warranty, or certification by Zarvice of the quality, safety, licensure, or reliability of the Zarvicer's work. These badges reflect completion of an identity/verification step and/or a paid placement feature respectively, and do not alter the independent-contractor disclaimers in §1 or the liability terms in §7.

9.1. Zarvice reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. Updated terms become effective immediately upon posting to the Platform.

9.2. These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the law, without regard to conflict of law principles.

9.3. These Terms are entered into with Governance & Business Lab LLC d/b/a Zarvice.

By tapping "I Agree," creating a Zarvicei account, accessing the Platform, or requesting any service, you certify that you have read, understood, and agreed to all provisions of these Terms.