Terms

(Click here to see our privacy policy.)

Welcome to SpareRoom (the "Platform") brought to you by Flatshare Ltd trading as "SpareRoom" ("SpareRoom", "We", "Us"; and "Our"), a company registered in England and Wales with company number 04407847. Flatshare Ltd’s registered office is at Suite 2.06, Colony One Silk Street, Ancoats Urban Village, Manchester, M4 6AG, United Kingdom.

These terms and conditions (the "Terms") constitute a legally binding contract between you, the user, and us. Please take the time to read these Terms carefully as they explain the legal relationship between you and us and will govern your use of the Platform and the services made available through it. By accessing or using the Platform and/or any content, materials or services made available through it you are agreeing to be legally bound by these Terms.

We reserve the right to change these Terms from time to time in our sole discretion. Your use of the Platform will be subject to the most recent version of the Terms posted on the Platform at the time of such use. Although we recommend that you read through the Terms available on the Platform from time to time, so that you can be sure that you are aware of the latest version, we will give you reasonable prior notice if we intend to make any changes to these Terms that may be materially to your detriment before such changes take effect.

Contact us
1. If you would like to contact us about the Platform, please do so using the following details:
  Flatshare Ltd
  Suite 2.06
  Colony One Silk Street
  Ancoats Urban Village
  Manchester
  M4 6AG
  United Kingdom
  
  Email: customerservices@nullspareroom.co.uk
  
  Tel: 0161 768 1162
Registration
1. You do not need to register as a member of the Platform in order to browse some sections of the Platform, but you may not be able to access all of the features of the Platform unless you register with us and create an account on the Platform. If you are browsing the Platform and have not yet registered with us, your use of the Platform will still be subject to these Terms.
2. You will need to register with us in order to create and post any ads (also known as "listings") on the Platform. You can register by clicking on "Register" on our homepage and submitting the information required. You’ll need to provide a valid email address and a password, which you will be required to submit each time you log into the Platform. You may also be required to submit some additional personal information about yourself as part of the registration process.
3. We also allow users to log in to our Platform using their Facebook account details, by utilising the Facebook Connect feature. If you choose to create an account with us that’s linked to your Facebook profile in this way you will only need to enter your Facebook login details in order to create an account with us. By entering your Facebook log in details you’re granting us permission to share certain information with Facebook and display this on SpareRoom's platforms, so that we can provide you with an enhanced service. For more information on the information that may be shared between us and Facebook please refer to our privacy policy.
4. You must be at least 18 years old to register and you are only permitted one account on the Platform. Multiple live accounts are not permitted. By registering with us you are representing and warranting to us that: (i) you are over 18 years old; (ii) you have not previously been banned from the Platform; and (iii) you do not already have an account registered with us.
5. 1. You agree that all registration information you submit to the Platform will be truthful and accurate and you will maintain the accuracy of this information. This includes the user type you register as. Agents found to be falsely registering as Live Out Landlords (or any other type of user) will be removed from the Platform.
  2. Agents (including those operating a "Guaranteed Rent" or "Rent to Rent" model) may use the Platform providing they are a registered company and are a member of a government approved Property Redress Scheme (see 2.5 c). Freelance agents must either use the official SpareRoom accounts of the agencies they work with or must be registered with a Property Redress Scheme as an individual.
  3. There are only two government approved property redress schemes - all agencies must be registered to one of them.
    They are:
    
    The Property Ombudsman (https://www.tpos.co.uk)
    The Property Redress Scheme (https://www.theprs.co.uk)
    
    The company name on your SpareRoom account must match the trading name on your membership certificate.
    
    All agents using SpareRoom must read and abide by our Code of Practice
6. Your account is for your use only and you agree that you will not share your account with any other person. It is your responsibility to keep your password secure. You will be responsible and liable for any actions of any person logging into the Platform using your username and password (including, without limitation, any ads posted on the Platform via your account). You should notify us immediately if you suspect that anyone else knows your password or that anyone has accessed your account without your permission. Unless we have been notified otherwise we will be entitled to assume that any person logging into our Platform using your username and password is you.
7. We may at any time and for any reason refuse to accept a registration from any person.
Access and use of the Platform
1. We do not charge any fees for registering an account with us. Some aspects of the Platform are also made available free of charge, such as posting a single standard ad and browsing and searching on the Platform.
2. We also offer a number of additional features and functionality on the Platform that are only available to members who have paid to upgrade their account. For more details on how to upgrade your account please refer to clause 5 below.
3. You agree not to use the Platform or any information or material made available to you on the Platform, in any improper or unlawful manner or in breach of any rule, regulation, legislation or licence that applies to you. You will not create any integrations (software or otherwise) to the Platform without the express written consent of SpareRoom.
4. Without limiting the foregoing, you agree that when using the Platform you will not:
  1. harass others or disclose personal information about others that could amount to harassment;
  2. publish, post, upload, store, distribute or disseminate any unlawful, defamatory, infringing, obscene, sexually explicit, harmful, confidential, libellous, hateful, threatening or otherwise illegal material or information, or anything which might constitute a criminal or civil offence;
  3. upload files that contain software or other material which are the Intellectual Property Rights of any third party, or which are protected by rights of privacy or publicity of any third party without having received all necessary consents;
  4. upload files that contain viruses, corrupted files, or any other software or programs that may interfere with or damage the operation of the Platform or any other computer;
  5. impersonate others or create false accounts or ads on the Platform;
  6. promote any activity that is illegal;
  7. use software or any other means to harvest information from the Platform;
  8. use any unauthorised integrations (software or otherwise) to the Platform;
  9. Send chain letters, junk mail, ‘spamming’ material or any other form of bulk communication;
  10. act in contravention of any policies for uploading content and/or posting ads that we may make you aware of from time to time; or
  11. do or omit to do anything that, in our opinion: (i) brings us or the Platform into public disrepute, contempt, scandal or ridicule; (ii) damages or puts at risk any other users of the Platform; or (iii) materially prejudices us or the Platform.
5. You agree to comply with all reasonable instructions that we may give you regarding your use of the Platform.
6. You are responsible for obtaining (at your own cost) all necessary equipment and telecommunications services required to access and use the Platform.
7. You agree that we may suspend access to the Platform temporarily and without notice in the case of system failure, maintenance or repair or for reasons beyond our control and we shall not be liable to you in any way for such suspended access.
8. You agree that your interactions with other members of the Platform and our personnel, whether via message, email or over the telephone, will at all times remain respectful and courteous.
9. You agree that any tenancy, license or lodger arrangements entered into in respect of any room and/or property you rent out will be in compliance with all laws and regulations; and you will act in accordance with such arrangements, laws and regulations at all times.
10. Except in the case of live-in landlords seeking a lodger, if you are a user who wants to post an ad for a room and/or property to rent in Scotland, then notwithstanding the fact that you may be permitted by law to advertise or rent a room and/or property in Scotland without the following, for the purposes of advertising a room and/or property to rent in Scotland on this Platform, you must either:
  1. have a valid and active registration in the Scottish Landlords Register; or
  2. have a valid application and have paid the relevant fee for registration to the Scottish Landlords Register and not previously had:
    1. a Scottish Landlord Registration revoked and/or been removed from the Scottish Landlords Register; or
    2. an application to the Scottish Landlords Register refused.
  We reserve the right to request evidence from you of the above and/or seek confirmation from the relevant local authority at any time. We also reserve the right to temporarily suspend an account whilst we obtain such evidence and/or confirmation.
Posting and responding to ads on the Platform
1. All ads posted to the Platform must:
  1. be for residential lets only;
  2. be compliant with all appropriate legislation;
  3. save where an exception may be permitted as part of the Managed Service (as described at clause 6.1(d)), be for a single property having its own unique and identifiable postal address. In other words, an ad cannot advertise more than one property where each property has a different unique identifiable postal address, irrespective of whether they are both located within a single larger building;
  4. save where an exception may be permitted as part of the Managed Service (as described at clause 6.1(d)), be specific to the room and/or property being advertised and must not be generic, for example, an ad cannot simply advertise the facilities of a building where there are multiple properties/units to rent, the ad must be specific to a particular property;
  5. where advertising a room or rooms rather than a full property, list all of the available rooms to rent within that single property in a single ad; and
  6. be distinct, for example, where you have several ads advertising different properties but the properties are very similar (because they are perhaps within the same building complex) ensure that you adjust the order of the photos or use different photos so that it is clear it is a different ad for a different property and not a duplicate ad for another property.
2. You need to register an account with us in order to create and post an ad (also known as a "listing") on the Platform. When you register for a free account on the Platform, this enables you to post a single ad/listing for rooms and/or properties to rent on the Platform at any one time. You can upgrade your account in order to be able to post additional ads/listings for rooms and/or properties available to rent at the same time. The number of ads/listings for rooms and/or properties available to rent that you can post at any one time on the Platform attracts a "listing allowance", which is the number of times you can take an action to post a new ad/listing or reactivate an expired ad/listing in a rolling 28-day period. The listing allowance applicable to you is calculated by taking the number of ads/listings you are able to post at any one time on the Platform and multiplying it by 3. For example, with the free account you are able to post a single ad/listing which gives you a listing allowance of 3. In other words, within a rolling 28-day period you could replace your ad/listing with a new ad/listing, or reactivate your ad/listing if it expires, 3 times. If you upgraded your account to enable you to post 5 ads/listings at the same time then you would have a listing allowance of 15 that would mean you could replace your ads/listings with new ads/listings or reactivate your ads/listings if they expire, 15 times. You can use your listing allowance across all of your ads/listings as you please, for example, you can use all of your allowance against a single ad/listing or shared between 2, 3 or all of your ads/listings. Any actions other than posting a new ad/listing or reactivating an expired ad/listing, for example editing a live ad/listing, will not affect your listing allowance. For additional information on the listing allowance, please refer to the FAQ section.
3. There are two types of ad that can be posted on the Platform. The first is an ad that can be posted by any normal non-paying member who has registered an account with us (a "Free Ad"). The second type of ad, "Bold Ads", can only be posted by members who have paid to upgrade their account. Bold Ads appear highlighted in blue on the search results pages and feature above Free Ads of the same age and with the same response rates (as explained in clause 4.9). For more on the benefits of Bold Ads please refer to the FAQ section.
4. To post an ad on the Platform click on the "Post ad" link on the homepage and follow the instructions. By posting an ad on the Platform you are representing and warranting (which is a legal promise) to us that:
  1. all the information you include in your ad will be truthful and, to the best of your knowledge and belief, accurate and not in any way misleading;
  2. any photos or videos you include in your ad will be current and accurate representations of the room(s) and/or properties you are advertising;
  3. you have all necessary rights and permissions to advertise and/or rent or let the applicable room or property (note we reserve the right to request proof of such rights and/or permissions);
  4. all ads will comply with these Terms, including clause 7;
  5. you will read and respond to any and all enquiries to your ad promptly and efficiently; and
  6. you will remove and/or deactivate ads on the Platform promptly when the room(s) and/or properties you are advertising are, for whatever reason, no longer available or you are no longer seeking a room and/or property (as appropriate).
5. You may not:
  1. post multiple ads for the same room and/or property;
  2. post dummy or fake ads for rooms and/or properties that aren’t available for let or aren't available to be viewed;
  3. delete an ad and repost it in order to make it appear as "New Today"; or
  4. in any rolling 28-day period, replace your ad/listing with a new ad/listing, or reactivate your ad/listing if it expires, once you have used up your listing allowance in that 28-day period (as explained in clause 4.2).
6. You are responsible for the content of any ads you post to the Platform, including any errors, omissions or inaccuracies contained in such ads. We accept no liability to you or any other person for the content of any ads posted on our Platform. We advise that you check the content of your ad immediately after posting it to the Platform to ensure you are happy with it. You may edit or remove any ads you have posted on the Platform at any time by logging into your account and clicking on the My Ads link. For more details on how to do this please refer to the FAQ section.
7. Once a Free Ad has been posted on the Platform, only users who have paid to upgrade their account to get "Early Bird Access" will be able to respond to that ad for the first 7 days, commencing on the day it was first posted. After an ad has been on the Platform for 7 days or more any registered user of the Platform may respond to that ad via the Platform. Bold Ads can be contacted by all registered users immediately.
8. You agree to only contact advertisers by means of the official "contact advertiser" options available on each ad. For your own security, you must not use any contact details contained within the body of an ad itself or hidden within images.
9. As an advertiser, it is essential to the proper functioning of the Platform that you read and respond to any and all enquiries that your ad receives and that such responses are done in a timely manner. Advertisers using the Platform are given a “response rate” based upon how active and efficient they are in reading and responding to enquiries received. Your response rate will (with the exception of ads that have been Boosted) affect the position that your ad appears in any search results/listings. In other words, the lower your response rate, the lower your ad will appear in any search results/listings as against equivalent ads, for example ads with photos or bold ads. Where you are not reading and responding to enquiries promptly then SpareRoom reserves the right to temporarily exclude your ad from the search results/listings entirely (even if you have upgraded your account) until you recommence reading and responding to enquiries again. For the avoidance of doubt, Boosted ads will not be excluded from the search results/listings during the period they are Boosted. SpareRoom reserves the right to make user’s response rates (such as your average response times and/or percentage of enquiries read and responded to) public, for example on your profile page or ad.
10. You may contact other members of the Platform via our on-site messaging system. However, please be advised we will not reveal any of our members' contact details or other personal information without the relevant members' permission. We do not routinely monitor all communications between Users via our on-site messaging system, but we may use software to track communications and we reserve the right to monitor them in order to investigate any suspected breach of our terms and conditions, any illegal behaviour or any other misuse of our service, or for any other reasonable reason as determined by us from time to time. We reserve the right, in our discretion, to archive or discard communications sent via the messaging system on our Platform after a minimum of fifty six (56) days or otherwise immediately if we feel that the message is unlawful or inappropriate.
11. We reserve the right to refuse to list or deactivate any ads or edit any User Generated Content we deem, in our reasonable discretion, to be in violation of these Terms or which we are instructed to refuse to list or deactivate by any court or law enforcement or regulatory authority. In such cases no refunds will be given. We reserve the right to request proof of your right to post ads and/or other User Generated Content. In the event we: (a) receive any complaints about an ad or advertiser; (b) receive notice of an investigation into an ad or advertiser by any law enforcement or regulatory authority; or (c) otherwise become aware of any violation of these Terms or any illegal behaviour conducted by an advertiser, we reserve the right to temporarily suspend or deactivate (with or without notice) any ad or account in question while we investigate the matter.
12. We reserve the right to publish any ads you post to the Platform across the SpareRoom network of sites, as well as uploading any ads that are posted to the Platform to other relevant portal websites from time to time, such as other third-party property search websites. We will never post users’ contact details with their ads on third-party websites.
13. We allow all users the ability to Renew their ads. Renewing reposts the ad back into the listings as New, and posts your ad at the top of the New listings subject to your relevant response rate (as explained in clause 4.9). Renewing won't post your ad back as New Today. The search results your Renewed ad appears in, and its position on that page, is determined by the number of newer, or more recently Boosted and/or Renewed ads that have been posted by other advertisers, and your response rate as against other advertiser's response rates (as explained in clause 4.9). For a full explanation of how ads are ranked on SpareRoom please refer to our FAQ section. Renewing an ad restarts the 7 day Early Bird phase.
14. All ads on the Platform contain a public profile of the advertiser. By posting an ad you consent to information such as your age and gender being included in your profile. To update any of the information shown on your profile, please contact the Customer Services team at customerservices@nullspareroom.co.uk

Upgrading your account

You may upgrade your account at any time by clicking on the "Upgrade" link in the "My account" section of our Platform. For more details of the different upgrade options available, and payment options on offer, please refer to the Upgrade section of our Platform. Where any upgrade includes an increase in the number of ads/listings you can post at any one time, your listing allowance (as explained in clause 4.2) will increase accordingly (taking into account any part of the allowance already used in the current rolling 28-day period).
Where a four week upgrade of your account is purchased:
1. subject to clause 5.2 (b) below, you can during that four week upgrade period (via the "My account", "My Ads" or "Upgrade" section of our Platform) pause that upgrade once for a maximum of twelve months. When you confirm the upgrade is to be paused, you will be provided with a unique code and instructions on how to reactivate your upgrade again. When you reactivate your upgrade, it will continue to run for the remaining period of your upgrade. For example, if you purchase a four week upgrade on 1 January and pause it on 14 January, you have twelve months to reactivate your upgrade and, once reactivated, the upgrade will run for the remaining fourteen days (even if reactivated on the last day of the twelve month reactivation period). If you fail to reactivate your upgrade within the twelve month reactivation period then the remaining period of your upgrade will be lost; and
2. providing you have not previously paused your original four week upgrade under clause 5.2 (a) above and you email customerservices@spareroom.co.uk or call 0161 768 1162 within three (3) days of your original upgrade ending, SpareRoom offer a success guarantee whereby if (for whatever reason) by the end of your four week upgrade you’re unsuccessful in either renting out your room and/or property or finding a room and/or property to rent (as applicable), then SpareRoom will reactivate your upgrade for a further four (4) week period free of charge (“Success Guarantee”). Claims for the Success Guarantee after the three (3) day claim period has expired and/or where your original four week upgrade was previously paused in accordance with clause 5.2 (a) above will not be valid. The Success Guarantee can only be claimed once for each four week upgrade purchased and, during the reactivated Success Guarantee period, the upgrade may not be paused under clause 5.2 (a) above.
When you choose to upgrade your account we will charge you a payment for the upgrade period you have chosen. Payments will be processed by our third party payment processor, currently Stripe or Worldpay, using their secure server or can be made using Paypal or any other payment method as advertised on the Platform from time to time.
Your account will automatically revert to our free service at the end of your upgrade period unless you opt to extend your upgrade period by making a further payment or the Success Guarantee is claimed and applied to your account. When any upgrade which included an increase in the number of ads/listings you could post at any one time expires and your account reverts to our free service or a lower number of ads/listings you can post at any one time, your listing allowance (as explained in clause 4.2) will be adjusted to reflect the reduction in the number of ads/listings. We will only charge you for the period you have selected to upgrade for (save where the upgrade is extended by means of the Success Guarantee, in which case it is free of charge). By giving us your payment card details you are not granting us any continuing payment authority to automatically extend your upgrade period unless you have specifically opted to make regular, ongoing payments as part of a monthly subscription package, or any activated auto top-up of funds for our Featured Ads service (as explained in clause 6.1 (a)).
For monthly subscription packages, your monthly subscription will be auto-renewed each month unless you cancel your subscription (and the cancellation will operate in accordance with clause 5.7), or we terminate it (which will operate in accordance with clause 15). The contract for the monthly subscription package will be deemed continuous from the date of purchase of the first month of your monthly subscription package. By providing your payment card details you are granting SpareRoom a continuous payment authority to deduct the cost of a monthly subscription package from your payment card each month. SpareRoom reserves the right to alter the cost of a monthly subscription package from time to time, but you will be notified in advance of any increase in the price, and such price increase will only take effect from your next subscription renewal payment date (subject to earlier cancellation or termination).
Once you've confirmed the payment to upgrade your account and we have sent you a confirmation email confirming your purchase, a contract for upgraded services between you and us will have been formed. Your confirmation of payment will be taken as your express request for us to begin supplying the relevant services immediately following our sending of the confirmation email. You have the right to cancel your contract for upgraded services for up to 14 days after the contract has been formed under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges Regulations) 2013 (the "Regulations"). To exercise your right to cancel, you must inform us of your decision. You may do this by contacting us via email, telephone or post, by completing the cancellation form which can be found on the Platform.When any upgrade which included an increase in the number of ads/listings you could post at any one time is cancelled and your account reverts to our free service or an alternative upgrade which includes a lower number of ads/listings you can post at any one time, your listing allowance (as explained in clause 4.2) will be adjusted to reflect the reduction in the number of ads/listings. Please note that in accordance with the Regulations, once you have started to receive the benefits of our upgraded service you will not be entitled to a full refund and we are entitled to charge you a pro rata amount for any services you have already received. The amount you are refunded will depend on when you decide to cancel your contract and will be calculated as follows:
1. if you cancel your purchase within the first 7 days of your contract with us and while your upgrade is still active, you will be charged a pro rata amount for each day or part of a day of your subscription period that you have used. In the event the upgrade has already expired before contacting us to cancel, the upgrade will no longer be eligible for a refund of any kind.
2. the pro rata amount you will be charged will be based on the full price for a 7 day upgrade, i.e. 1/7th of the price of a 7 day upgrade will be deducted from the total amount you have paid for each day or part of a day that you have used and you will be refunded the remainder of your payment;
3. for the purposes of calculating the amount to be refunded, a 'day' means a complete 24 hour period starting from the time that we send you confirmation of your upgrade purchase;
4. for the avoidance of doubt, any cancellation requests received in the first 24 hours of your contract will incur 1 days' charge; requests received after 24 hours but before 48 hours have passed will incur 2 days' charge and so on; and
5. if you cancel your purchase after 7 days but before the end of the 14 day cancellation period, we will charge you the full cost of purchasing a 7 day subscription period but will refund you the remainder of your payment.
6. If you make use of any additional services provided to you as part of your purchase, a pro rata amount for these services will also be charged.
You have the right to cancel your monthly subscription package under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges Regulations) 2013 (the "Regulations") as outlined in clause 5.6. Any cancellations of a monthly subscription package outside of the 14 day period from initial purchase as permitted under the Regulations will be effective from your next subscription renewal payment date. When any monthly subscription package which included an increase in the number of ads/listings you could post at any one time is cancelled and your account reverts to our free service or an alternative upgrade which includes a lower number of ads/listings you can post at any one time, your listing allowance (as explained in clause 4.2) will be adjusted to reflect the reduction in the number of ads/listings.
We may, at our discretion, provide users amending their monthly subscription package part way through a month with a pro rata refund based on any remaining services not used during the active monthly subscription period. The amount due will be calculated on the time remaining before the next payment date and any Boosts which have been used during that time. If all allocated Boosts have been used during the active monthly period, you won’t be eligible for a pro rata refund whilst amending your subscription. This doesn’t affect your right to cancel under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges Regulations) 2013 (the "Regulations") as outlined in clause 5.6

For the purposes of calculating a pro-rata refund, the number of Boosts used will be assigned a monetary value up to and including the value of your full monthly payment should all Boosts have been used prior to us receiving your request for cancellation. If there are Boosts remaining, an amount based on the number used will be deducted from the overall refund due. For example:

Number of Boosts used	Cost to be deducted
1 boost used	£39 to be deducted
2 boosts used	£44 to be deducted
3 boosts used	£49 to be deducted
4 boosts used	£59 to be deducted
5 boosts used	£69 to be deducted
6 boosts used	£79 to be deducted
7 boosts used	£89 to be deducted

If more than 7 Boosts are made available to you as part of a higher listing subscription package, the amount deducted will rise in increments for every Boost up to and including the value of your full monthly payment should all Boosts have been used.

Annual packages cannot be cancelled or downgraded. However, at our discretion, we may allow a user to cancel an annual package to increase their overall number of listings by opting for an alternative professional upgrade package. In these cases, a pro rata refund will be calculated on the remaining time based on the nearest month’s usage. The refund amount for the existing month will be calculated on the volume of Boosts used in that month. For the avoidance of doubt, the month period will run from the date of purchase. The new higher listing upgrade package must be purchased at the time of cancellation. This doesn’t affect your right to cancel under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges Regulations) 2013 (the "Regulations") as outlined in clause 5.6
Refunds will be made via your original method of payment and will usually be processed within 7 working days.
Please note that you will no longer have the right to cancel your upgraded subscription after your contract for upgraded subscription has been fully performed which in the case of a contract for a 7 day subscription period will be after the expiry of the 7 day period.

Additional features for room and/or property advertisers
1. This clause of these Terms only applies to members of the Platform who are advertising rooms and/or properties. Any members of the Platform advertising rooms and/or properties that have registered an account with us, and are paying for an upgraded subscription service, may also elect to take advantage of some of the additional features and services we offer to those advertising rooms and/or properties as described in this clause of these Terms.
  1. Featured Ads
    1. We operate a pay per click system, which you can use to give your ads greater prominence in search results/listings. Search results/listings will generally be displayed by relevance to a user’s search query. However, we also permit members of the Platform advertising rooms and/or properties to set their own pay per click fees to promote their ads (the "PPC Rate"). Ads that are subject to such pay per click arrangements will receive greater prominence than normal ads. Ads that have the highest PPC Rate set for the relevant search terms will be given the greatest prominence in the search results/listings on a declining scale. For the avoidance of doubt, your response rate (as explained in clause 4.9) will not impact the placement of your ad in the search results/listings, this will be determined entirely based on your PPC Rate. However, where you are not reading and responding to enquiries promptly then (as explained in clause 4.9) SpareRoom reserves the right to temporarily exclude your ad from the search results/listings entirely until you recommence reading and responding to enquiries again.
    2. Once selected, in order for the Featured Ads service to be active, it is necessary for your account to have a positive funds balance. If your account has a positive funds balance but that balance is insufficient to cover your PPC Rate, the Featured Ads service will still be active, but any click on your ad will still apply your chosen PPC Rate and your account will go into a negative balance. If there are no funds available within your account, including any negative balance, then the Featured Ads service will be automatically deactivated, and your ads will return to being normal ads.
    3. Funds for the Featured Ads service (minimum of £10) can be added manually to your account at any time through our third party payment processor, currently Stripe, using their secure server, or made using PayPal or any other payment method as advertised on the Platform from time to time.
    4. In addition, we offer an auto top-up feature on the iOS App and the website (www.spareroom.co.uk) whereby, when the funds in your account reach £0 or you have a negative balance (as described in (ii) above), they are automatically topped-up, utilising your chosen debit or credit card, by the amount you pre-selected (either when you set the feature up or subsequently). The auto top-up feature is not available on the Android App or for use with PayPal.
    5. The minimum amount that can be selected for the auto top-up feature is £10 and the maximum amount that can be selected for the auto top-up feature is £1,000. Spending on the Featured Ads service will continue to be governed by the daily spend limit set by you.
    6. Where your account has a negative balance (as explained in (ii) above), any funds added manually or through the auto top-up feature will first clear the negative balance, with any remaining balance being credited to your account. For example, where £10 is added to an account which has a negative balance of 5p, the account balance will show as £9.95.
    7. The auto top-up feature can be cancelled at any time through the Platform by accessing "payments" in the Featured Ads section of "My Account" and following the instructions.
    8. If you want to find out more about the Featured Ads service or request the return of funds within your account that are no longer needed for the Featured Ads Service, then please email customerservices@nullspareroom.co.uk or call 0161 768 1162.
  2. Boosts
    1. Boosts can be applied to new ads or reactivated ads after a period of 7 days and are used to push your ads back up to the very top of the search results/listings. Once applied, the ad remains Boosted for 24 hours. The search results page your Boosted ad appears on, and its position on that page, is determined by the number of New Today and/or Boosted ads posted to SpareRoom after your Boost was applied. For the avoidance of doubt, your response rate (as explained in clause 4.9) will not impact the placement of your ad in the search results/listings. For a full explanation of how ads are ranked on SpareRoom please refer to the FAQ section.
    2. Boosts can be used on the same ad or applied to different ads, but only one Boost can be used on the same ad within a 7 day period. Once a Boost has been successfully applied to an ad it can't be paused or applied to another ad and that ad can't also be Renewed for a period of 24 hours. For an overview of our Renew feature please refer to clause 4.13
    3. Certain subscription packages (as identified on our Platform) automatically include a number of Boosts. In these circumstances, the number of Boosts applied to your account is calculated as 50% of the monthly listings your package contains, rounded down to the nearest whole number. For example, a user with 10 listings gets 5 boosts per month, a user with 5 listings gets 2. The number of Boosts included in your subscription package and available to use resets each month on your subscription payment date. Unused Boosts which are automatically included in your subscription package can’t be carried over or saved.
    4. If you have an upgrade or subscription package which does not automatically include Boosts or you want additional Boosts to those already automatically included in your subscription package then these can be purchased through the "My ads" section of our Platform or via the link on your ad panel. Boosts purchased in accordance with this clause 6.1 (b) (iv): (i) are valid for a period of 12 months from the date of purchase (and expiry dates for these Boosts can be found in the "My ads" section of our Platform); and (ii) can be used after the expiry or termination of your upgrade or subscription package up to the Boost expiry date. Any Boosts not used within 12 months of purchase will expire and no longer be available for use.
    5. For more information on Boosts and how they work, please contact customer services on 0161 768 1162.
  3. Branded Ads
    1. We may also permit certain members of the Platform who are advertising a large number of properties or rooms on our Platform to include their own branding on their ads and/or to be awarded "pro landlord status" and have that status recognised in their ads. These additional services are offered entirely at our discretion and you may be required to pay additional fees and/or sign up to additional terms before you are able to take advantage of them. If you’re interested in finding out more please contact us to discuss this further.
  4. Managed Service
    1. For those members of the Platform who are advertising a large number of properties and/or rooms on our Platform, for example, co-living businesses, estate agents and property management companies, SpareRoom offers a managed service whereby SpareRoom will work with you to upload and update your vacant ads/listings, interact with and pre-qualify users that enquire about your ads/listings and then send over the qualified leads to your sales/leasing team (“Managed Service”). The Managed Service, from time to time, offers ad types with custom features unavailable to other users of the Platform who do not take the Managed Service. The Managed Service is offered entirely at our discretion, is subject to an alternate pricing structure and you will be required to sign up to additional terms and conditions before you are able to take advantage of the Managed Service. If you’re interested in finding out more, please contact us via email at tom.macthomas@spareroom.co.uk to discuss this further.
  5. Lodger and tenancy agreements
    1. We always recommend that you enter into a lodger agreement when acting as a live in landlord. Both tenancy and lodger agreements are available to purchase and download from our Platform. To purchase an agreement simply click on the link to download the agreement, enter your payment details and click to confirm the purchase. Please note that, once you have downloaded the agreement, you will not be able to cancel the purchase and claim a refund as you will have already received the benefit of this service.
    2. Both our lodger and tenancy agreements have been provided by a third party. We cannot be held responsible for any failure or deficiency in such agreements and any reliance you place on them is entirely at your own risk. You are advised to make your own inquiries and check that the agreement is suitable for your needs before entering into any legally binding commitment.
Additional features for individuals who are either landlords advertising or individuals looking for a room and/or property to rent
1. This clause of these Terms only applies to members of the Platform who are individuals and are either landlords advertising or individuals looking for a room and/or property to rent. In other words, this clause does not apply to companies and/or agents.
  1. Verification
    1. If you are a member of the Platform who is an individual and either a landlord advertising or individual looking for a room and/or property to rent then we offer the ability for you to undertake a verification check (“Verification Check”) which consists of:
      1. verification of your mobile telephone number; and
      2. verification of your name and date of birth using a form of photo identification, such as your driver’s license, passport or national id.
    - The cost of a Verification Check is set out within the “Edit my details” section of our Platform. Due to language and other constraints in the system, it is not possible to conduct Verification Checks involving Chinese, Russian, Japanese, Cuban, Iranian, North Korean or Syrian documentation.
    - Where the Verification Checks mentioned in (i) A and (i) B above are successfully passed, your profile will be automatically updated by the system to display a green “tick” and “Verified User” icon and explain what aspects have been verified, such as your name and date of birth. The results of the actual Verification Checks will not be shared with other Users of the Platform. The green “tick” and “Verified User” icon will be visible against your profile for a period of twelve (12) months from the successful completion of the Verification Check unless we become aware of or receive notification from either you or another person that, subsequent to the Verification Check, circumstances are such that you would no longer pass the Verification Check. In which case, the green “tick” and “Verified User” icon will be removed from your profile and such removal will not entitle you to a refund of the cost of the Verification Check.
    - If you undertake a Verification Check and your identity is not verified for whatever reason through the Verification Checks mentioned in (i) A and (i) B above, then you will be notified on screen that we have been unable to verify you for the purposes of the Platform and your profile will not display a green “tick” or “Verified User” icon. Other Users of the Platform will not be able to see that you undertook and failed the Verification Checks. Failure to pass the Verification Check, for example because the picture of your photo identification is too blurred, too dimly lit or there is glare, does not entitle you to a refund of the cost of the Verification Check. Refunds will only be provided when you are unable to complete the Verification Check due to the system being unavailable for technical reasons.
    - We use third party suppliers in order to carry out the Verification Checks and whether you pass or fail is determined by the third party supplier in its sole discretion, we do not participate in the processing or evaluation of the Verification Checks. You:
      1. consent to your personal data, such as your name, username, other similar identifier and date of birth and images, being provided either direct or through the Platform to such third parties and processed for the purposes of the Verification Checks and for the supplier further developing and improving their service;
      2. agree that you shall indemnify and compensate us and our affiliates for and against any loss, liability, claim, damage, fines, penalties, costs or expense, whether in law or equity and whether known or unknown, that (i) you have or may in the future have against us or our affiliates arising out of or in connection with your use of the Verification Checks (including use by us or our third party suppliers of your personal data provided in relation to the Verification Checks for the purposes of the Verification Check and/or development and improvement of the service); and (ii) any third party claim against us or our affiliates arising out of or in connection with your use of the Verification Checks; and
      3. acknowledge and agree that, where any identity documents submitted as part of the Verification Checks are suspected to be fraudulent, they may be retained by Fraud Database Service Providers (being a government body or other third party service provider that checks whether an identity document has been previously identified to them as lost, stolen, fraudulent or otherwise compromised) for the purposes of identifying fraud in the future.
User generated content
1. In these Terms:
  1. "Intellectual Property Rights" means patents, rights in inventions, trademarks and service marks, domain names, registered designs and design rights, copyright (including rights in computer software and databases), database rights, moral rights and any rights of privacy or confidentiality (in each case whether registered or unregistered and for the full period of protection including any extensions, revivals and renewals) and including any applications for the same and the right to apply for any of the foregoing anywhere in the world, and all similar or analogous rights anywhere in the world; and
  2. "User Generated Content" means any information, text, image, photo, audio, video, works of authorship or other content or materials of any kind which are uploaded, posted, published, displayed, transmitted, shared or otherwise made available on the Platform by you or any other user, including any ad or any such content or materials included in any ad.
2. The Platform includes functionality that enables you to submit or upload User Generated Content directly to the Platform, including, without limitation, by posting ads on the Platform. By posting any User Generated Content to the Platform you are representing and warranting (which is a legal promise) to us that you have not posted or submitted any User Generated Content to the Platform:
  1. which is confidential, defamatory, offensive, infringing, obscene, sexually explicit, indecent, discriminatory or otherwise unlawful or objectionable;
  2. that you do not own, have the right to post, or for which you do not have the permission of the owner or any other relevant person who may have rights in or connected to such User Generated Content, including any individuals who appear in any photos or other images that you upload to the Platform;
  3. if submitting it to the Platform would be a breach of the Data Protection Act 2018 or any other applicable data protection or privacy legislation; or
  4. if submitting it to the Platform would infringe the Intellectual Property Rights of another person.
3. SpareRoom is committed to equal opportunities. You agree that you will not advertise on the Platform in such a way as to discriminate against any particular nationality, racial, ethnic, or religious group, sexual orientation, age, gender or disability. For details on discrimination law as it applies to housing click here. In cases where a preference is permitted, we ask for an explanation to be outlined within your ad for that preference. If no satisfactory explanation is provided, we reserve the right to remove that section of your ad without notice.
4. You must, by law, ensure that all ads you post to the Platform contain full details of any fees associated with entering into the relevant lodging, license or tenancy arrangement, including any agency fees that may apply.
5. You acknowledge that it is your responsibility to ensure that your ads comply with all applicable laws, including any laws in relation to discrimination and transparency of pricing.
6. You acknowledge that any User Generated Content that you post to the Platform may be seen by other users of the Platform.
7. You are responsible for your relationship with other members of the Platform. However, we reserve the right, but are not obliged, to monitor disputes between you and other members.
8. You agree that you shall indemnify and compensate us for any loss, liability, claim, damage or expense (including reasonable legal fees and court fees) suffered by us as a result of:
  1. any breach by you of the warranties and representations in clause 7.2; and
  2. any third party claim against us in connection with any ads posted to the Platform under your account.
Notice and take down procedure
1. Although we take reasonable steps to scan ads that are posted to our Platform for spam and scams, we do not actively monitor all the ads and other User Generated Content on the Platform. We do not therefore accept any responsibility or liability for any User Generated Content on the Platform.
2. If you become aware that other members of the Platform have posted any ads or other User Generated Content that is inaccurate, inappropriate, offensive (or does not comply with any of the provisions of these Terms) you may notify us by contacting us at customerservices@nullspareroom.co.uk.
3. We may, without notice, remove any ads or other User Generated Content posted to the Platform that, in our sole judgement, violates these Terms or may be offensive, illegal, inaccurate, misleading or may violate the rights, or harm or threaten the safety of any person.
4. For the avoidance of doubt, any decision we make in connection with the removal of any ads or other User Generated Content from the Platform is final and we accept no liability to you in respect of any such decision.
Intellectual Property
1. We do not claim any ownership of any Intellectual Property Rights in the User Generated Content that you or any other user posts to the Platform. After posting any User Generated Content you retain all rights of ownership in it and you may use the User Generated Content in any way you choose (provided it does not breach these Terms).
2. By submitting any User Generated Content to the Platform you automatically grant us the indefinite right to reproduce, display, modify, manage, distribute and store such User Generated Content as part of the Platform or as part of any materials used to promote or advertise the Platform anywhere in the world.
3. We will not be under any obligation whatsoever to pay you for any of the User Generated Content you upload to the Platform.
4. Save in respect of the User Generated Content, all Intellectual Property Rights in and to the Platform and all content and materials contained on the Platform are owned by and shall remain owned by us or our licensors. You may view, use, download and print any materials and information made available to you through the Platform (including any User Generated Content) subject to the following conditions:
  1. the material may only be used for your personal non-commercial use;
  2. the material shall not be reproduced or included in any other work or publication in any medium;
  3. the material may not be modified or altered in any way;
  4. the material may not be distributed or sold to any third party; and
  5. you may not remove any copyright or other proprietary notices contained in the material.
5. These Terms are not intended to prevent you recording in manual form any individual item of information, or disclosing any individual item of information, free of charge, to friends or relations for non-commercial purposes, provided you take all reasonable steps to ensure that any person to whom you may disclose that information complies with these Terms.
SpeedFlatmating
1. SpeedFlatmating events are operated by Flatshare Ltd. By registering for an event you are bound by the same terms and conditions as you would be by registering for SpareRoom, including our privacy policy.
2. If we have to postpone, cancel or modify an event, we’ll inform attendees via email as soon as possible.
3. We reserve the right to exclude individuals from an event if their behaviour is threatening, offensive or in any way inappropriate. Exclusion may lead to a ban on registering for future events.
4. At every SpeedFlatmating event we take photos of the room and people in attendance to use for promotional purposes. By signing up for an event you give your consent to this photography and agree SpareRoom will own any such footage and may use it for promotional purposes without restriction. If you don’t want to be photographed, please let a member of staff know.
Disclaimers
1. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law and, except as expressly provided in these Terms, the Platform and all content, products and services provided through it are provided on an "as is" basis. We do not make any representation or warranty of any kind, either express or implied (whether by common law, custom, statute or otherwise), in relation to the Platform or any content, products and services provided through it including, without limitation, any warranties in relation to fitness for a particular purpose or in relation to the quality, completeness, accuracy or reliability of the Platform and all content, products and services provided through it.
2. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing you acknowledge and agree that any rooms, flats, houses, properties or tenancy/license/lodger arrangements are provided by our members and not by us. We have no control over, nor accept any responsibility or liability for, any such arrangements or issues you may encounter with them.
3. We do not inspect any of the properties or rooms that feature in ads on our Platform. We strongly advise you to inspect properties thoroughly before you make any binding commitments in respect of any properties or rooms listed on our Platform.
4. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, you acknowledge that where the profile of a User shows a green “tick” and “Verified User” icon that SpareRoom is not giving any opinion on the suitability or otherwise of the User as a potential landlord, tenant, licensee and/or lodger (as applicable) and you take sole responsibility and liability for any conclusions drawn by you. A green “tick” and “Verified User” icon is not intended to be a substitute for conducting your own checks such as in-person interviews, reference checks, online and social media searches, and obtaining copies of identification documentation. You recognise that Verification Checks are not always accurate due to errors or omissions. Verification Checks can only be made against information and using technologies available on the date that the Verification Check is made and will not take into account information or technologies that may subsequently become available after the Verification Check has been made.
5. The information made available on the Platform, whether posted by us or by any other users, is provided for information purposes only. We cannot guarantee that any ads or other information provided on the Platform will be correct, accurate, up to date or meet your needs or requirements. The information provided on the Platform is not intended to be professional or legal advice of any kind and should not be relied on as such. Any reliance you place on any materials or information made available on the Platform is entirely at your own risk.
6. Although we do our utmost to ensure a reliable service we do not guarantee that the Platform will always be available or error free, that defects will be corrected, or that the Platform or the server that makes it available are or will be always free of viruses or other harmful components.
7. Please note that some jurisdictions may not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, so some of the above exclusions may not apply to you. Please check the local laws of the jurisdiction in which you are resident to determine the extent to which any implied warranties may be relevant to our legal relationship with you.
8. Nothing in these Terms is intended to disclaim or exclude any warranty or liability that cannot be disclaimed or excluded by operation of applicable law.
9. We reserve the right to withdraw or discontinue any product or service at any time at our sole discretion.
Limitation of liability
1. Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes our liability for: (a) death or personal injury caused by negligence; (b) any loss suffered by you as a result of your reliance on any fraudulent misrepresentation made by us; (c) breach of your legal rights as a consumer in relation to the services or products provided by us; or (d) any other liability which may not be limited or excluded by applicable law.
2. Subject to clause 13.1 above, you agree that we shall not be liable for:
  (a) any indirect loss, claim or damage, or any punitive, special, incidental or consequential damages of any kind; or
  
  (b) any direct or indirect loss of profit, anticipated savings, opportunity or business and loss, corruption or damage to data,
  in each case whether based in contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability, or otherwise, which arises out of or is in any way connected with: (i) any use of this Platform or the services provided through it; (ii) any failure or delay in the use of any component of the Platform or any service including, without limitation, any unavailability of the Platform or the services provided through it irrespective of the duration of any period of unavailability; (iii) any use of or reliance upon any ads, information, material, or other products or services offered through the Platform, in all cases even if we have been forewarned of the possibility of such loss or damage; and (iv) any tenancy, license or lodging arrangements of any kind that you enter into as a result of using our Platform.
3. Subject to clause 13.1 above and without limiting clause 13.2 in any way our total aggregate liability to you under these Terms whether based in contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability, or otherwise shall be limited to direct losses not to exceed the greater of: (a) total payments you have made to us for services offered to you through the Platform in the 12 months preceding your claim; and (b) £250.
Third party sites
1. This Platform contains links to other websites operated by third parties that are not under our control. We make no guarantees, warranties or representations whatsoever about any third party websites that you may access through this Platform, or any services that may be provided through such third party websites.
2. Without limiting the foregoing, please note that any third party websites that you may access by clicking on a link available on our Platform are in no way approved, vetted, checked or endorsed by us and you agree that we shall not be responsible or in any way liable to you for the content, accuracy, compliance with relevant laws or accessibility of any information, data, advice or statements or for the quality of any products or services available on such third party websites. If you choose to access any such third party website that we do not control, you do so entirely at your own risk. In addition, please note that your use of any such third party website may be subject to that third party’s additional terms and conditions.
Termination
1. We may remove the Platform or cease the provision of any of the services made available through it, or terminate your membership of the Platform, at any time in our sole discretion for any reason whatsoever.
2. In the event that we remove the Platform or terminate your account through no fault of your own and in circumstances where you have not breached these Terms you will be entitled to a refund for any unused subscription fees that you have pre-paid to us.
3. We may in our absolute discretion either suspend or terminate any accounts which we deem to be in violation of any of these Terms. If you are found to have breached these Terms and we choose to terminate your account you will not be entitled to a refund of any subscription fees you have pre-paid to us.
4. You may de-activate (either temporarily or permanently) your account with us at any time by notifying us that you wish to do so at the following email address customerservices@nullspareroom.co.uk.
5. Termination of these Terms and/or your account with us, howsoever caused, shall not affect the accrued rights and liabilities of either you or us as at the time of such termination.
Data Protection and Privacy
1. We will only use any personal information that we may collect about you in accordance with these Terms and our privacy policy. Our privacy policy is an important part of these Terms and it is important that you read it. By accepting these Terms you also accept and consent to our use of your personal data in accordance with these Terms and our privacy policy.
Third Party Beneficiaries
1. Except as set out in clause 17.2 below, SpareRoom and you do not confer any rights or remedies upon any person other than SpareRoom and you and our respective successors and assigns.
2. Where you have opted to undertake a Verification Check in accordance with clause 7.1, SpareRoom and you hereby designate our Verification Check supplier, Onfido Limited, as a third party beneficiary of clause 13 of these Terms, having the right to enforce clause 13.
General
1. These Terms and our privacy policy set out the full extent of our obligations and liabilities concerning the Platform and the services offered through it and replace any previous agreements and understandings between us and you.
2. Subject to clause 13.1, you shall have no remedy in respect of any untrue statement made to you upon which you relied in entering into these Terms other than for any breach of our express obligations set out in these Terms.
3. Except as expressly set out in clause 17, these Terms do not create or infer any rights that are enforceable by any person who is not party to them.
4. You may not assign, sub-license or otherwise transfer any of your rights and obligations in these Terms to any other person.
5. If we decide not to exercise or enforce any right that we have against you at a particular time, then this does not prevent us from later deciding to exercise or enforce that right.
6. If any part of these Terms is found to be illegal, invalid or otherwise unenforceable by a court or regulator, then, where required, that part shall be deleted from the Terms and the remaining parts of the Terms will continue to be enforceable.
7. These Terms, including their subject matter and formation, are governed by English law. You agree that the courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms, save that if you are a resident of Northern Ireland or Scotland you may also bring proceedings in the jurisdiction in which you are resident.

(Click here to see our privacy policy.)

Contact us

Registration

Access and use of the Platform

Posting and responding to ads on the Platform

Upgrading your account

Additional features for room and/or property advertisers

Additional features for individuals who are either landlords advertising or individuals looking for a room and/or property to rent

User generated content

Notice and take down procedure

Intellectual Property

SpeedFlatmating

Disclaimers

Limitation of liability

Third party sites

Termination

Data Protection and Privacy

Third Party Beneficiaries

General