Terms & conditions.

Purpose & scope

These General Terms and Conditions (hereinafter "T&Cs") define the rights and obligations of the parties in connection with any service offered by Lowai Dev (hereinafter "the Service Provider") to any professional or individual client (hereinafter "the Client").

The services covered include in particular: website creation and development, user interface design, web application development, system integration, corrective and evolutionary maintenance, and any related services.

Any order implies the Client's full and unconditional acceptance of these T&Cs. They take precedence over any other condition, including the Client's own general purchasing conditions, unless expressly agreed otherwise in writing by both parties.

Definitions

In these T&Cs, the following terms have the meanings given below:

• Service Provider: Lowai Dev, whose contact details appear in the legal notice.
• Client: any individual or legal entity who has accepted a quote issued by the Service Provider.
• Service: the full set of services detailed in the accepted quote.
• Deliverable: any output of the Service handed over to the Client (source files, live website, documentation, etc.).
• Quote: the contractual document detailing the scope of the Service, its price, and its terms of delivery.
• Party: the Service Provider or the Client, taken individually.

Quote & order

Issuing the quote

Any service request gives rise to a written, detailed quote, prepared free of charge by the Service Provider on the basis of information provided by the Client. The quote specifies the nature of the services, expected deliverables, price, timelines, and terms of delivery.

Validity

Unless stated otherwise, quotes are valid for thirty (30) days from the date of issue. After this period, they lapse and must be renegotiated.

Acceptance

The order becomes firm and final upon receipt by the Service Provider of:

• The quote signed by the Client with the notation "Agreed and accepted";
• The deposit payment as set out in article 5.

Acceptance of the quote constitutes unconditional acceptance of these T&Cs.

Pricing

Prices stated on quotes are expressed in euros, exclusive of tax (ex. VAT), and correspond to the Service described. They are fixed and non-revisable for the entire duration of the quote's validity.

In accordance with article 293 B of the French General Tax Code, Lowai Dev does (or does not, depending on its situation) benefit from the VAT exemption threshold: [to specify according to status — "VAT not applicable, art. 293 B CGI" for micro-enterprises below the threshold, or standard rate of 20% otherwise].

Prices apply exclusively to the services precisely described in the quote. Any additional service not included will be the subject of a written amendment (see article 11).

Additional costs

Unless stated otherwise in the quote, the following costs are not included and remain the Client's responsibility:

• Purchase of domain names, software licences, commercial fonts, licensed images or photographs.
• Subscriptions to third-party services (APIs, headless CMS, payment gateways, email services, etc.).
• Travel expenses if the Client requests an on-site presence.

Payment terms

Payment schedule

Unless stated otherwise in the quote, payment is made according to the following schedule:

• 50% deposit upon ordering, payable to trigger the start of the Service.
• 50% balance upon delivery, payable within a maximum of thirty (30) days from the date of the final invoice.

For projects exceeding €3,000 ex. VAT, a three-instalment schedule (40% / 30% / 30%) may be agreed upon request.

Accepted payment methods

Payments are accepted by:

• Bank transfer (SEPA) to the account indicated on the invoice.
• Credit or debit card via Stripe.

Cash payments are not accepted.

Invoices

Invoices are issued in PDF format and sent by email. They alone constitute proof of the parties' agreement on the amount and due date of payment.

Late or non-payment

Any late payment automatically and without prior notice gives rise to:

• The immediate due date of all sums still outstanding, regardless of their original payment schedule.
• Application of late payment penalties at the European Central Bank rate plus 10 percentage points (minimum rate: three times the statutory interest rate), in accordance with article L. 441-10 of the French Commercial Code.
• A flat-rate recovery fee of forty euros (€40) per unpaid invoice, in accordance with article D. 441-5 of the French Commercial Code. Additional compensation may be claimed with supporting evidence if actual recovery costs exceed this amount.

In the event of non-payment by the due date, the Service Provider reserves the right to:

• Immediately suspend the ongoing Service.
• Interrupt any associated maintenance, hosting, or support service.
• Take the site offline in the event of persistent non-payment, following a formal notice that has gone unanswered for fifteen (15) days.

Service provider obligations

The Service Provider undertakes to:

• Carry out the Service in accordance with the terms of the accepted quote, to professional standards and with all due diligence.
• Keep the Client informed of project progress and alert them to any event likely to affect proper delivery.
• Meet the agreed timelines, subject to the Client's responsiveness and any force majeure events.
• Maintain the confidentiality of all information shared by the Client in the course of the Service.

The Service Provider is bound by an obligation of means, not of result. It cannot guarantee a specific search engine ranking, a number of visitors, a turnover, or any other commercial outcome.

Client obligations

The Client undertakes to:

• Provide the Service Provider, within the agreed timelines, with all information, content (text, images, logos, documents) and access necessary for delivery of the Service.
• Respond to the Service Provider's approval requests within a reasonable timeframe, generally set at five (5) working days.
• Hold the exploitation rights to all submitted elements (texts, images, fonts, etc.) and indemnify the Service Provider against any claims relating to those elements.
• Pay the price of the Service on the agreed dates.

Failure to collaborate

If the Client does not provide expected elements within a reasonable timeframe (by default, thirty days from the written request), the Service Provider reserves the right to:

• Suspend delivery of the Service until the missing elements are received.
• Adjust the delivery timelines accordingly.
• Invoice the time spent on follow-up and coordination at the applicable hourly rate.
• Treat the Service as delivered at its current stage if the absence of response exceeds three (3) months, and invoice the balance.

Delivery timelines

Timelines indicated on the quote are indicative. They run from the date the Service Provider receives the deposit and all elements necessary to begin the Service.

Any delay caused by the Client in providing elements or in responding to approval requests results in an equivalent delay to delivery timelines, for which the Service Provider cannot be held responsible.

Unless formally agreed otherwise, no delivery delay can give rise to compensation, penalties, or cancellation of the Service.

Delivery & acceptance

Delivery

Delivery is deemed complete on the date the Service Provider makes the site or application available to the Client, either on the specified hosting or by handing over the source files.

Acceptance

The Client has ten (10) working days from the date of delivery to verify that the deliverables conform to the agreed specifications and, where applicable, to raise written, reasoned objections.

In the absence of written objections raised within this period, the Service is deemed accepted without reservation. The balance then becomes immediately due.

Corrections

Objections raised during the acceptance period may only relate to non-conformities with the quote and the approved specification. Any request that falls outside this scope is treated as a modification request and gives rise to an amendment (see article 11).

Corrections for verified non-conformities are carried out free of charge within a reasonable timeframe.

Post-delivery support

From the date of go-live, the Service Provider provides a thirty (30)-day warranty covering the correction of bugs or technical malfunctions not caused by a modification made by the Client or a third party.

Modifications & amendments

Any request for a substantial change to the initial specification, or for any additional service not provided for in the original quote, gives rise to a written amendment specifying the scope of the changes, their price, and their impact on timelines.

The following are considered additional requests in particular:

• Adding pages, sections, or features not originally planned.
• Requests for graphic revisions after the mockup has been formally approved.
• Major technical changes (change of CMS, framework, or structure).
• Integration of large volumes of new content not originally anticipated.

Amendments are invoiced at the current rate or at the Service Provider's hourly rate. They only come into effect after written acceptance by both parties.

Intellectual property

Transfer of rights

Subject to full payment of the Service, the Service Provider transfers to the Client the exploitation rights to the final deliverables specifically created for them, within the scope and for the use defined in the quote.

This transfer includes the rights of reproduction, representation, and adaptation, for a term corresponding to the full legal protection period and for the entire world.

Pre-existing elements

The Service Provider retains exclusive ownership of all its know-how, methods, components, modules, scripts, and tools that pre-exist or are developed outside the project, as well as any element not specifically ordered by the Client. A non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use is granted to the Client to allow normal exploitation of the deliverable.

Third-party elements

Third-party elements integrated into the deliverable (fonts, libraries, plugins, licensed images) remain subject to their original licences. The Client undertakes to comply with these licences.

Commercial reference

Unless the Client expressly objects in writing before delivery, the Service Provider reserves the right to:

• Mention the Client as a commercial reference (name, logo, project description).
• Present the project in its portfolio, on its website, and on its social media channels for promotional purposes.
• Include a discreet mention in the footer of the delivered site, such as "Site designed by Lowai Dev" with a link to its website, unless the quote states otherwise.

Confidentiality

Each party undertakes to treat as strictly confidential all commercial, technical, strategic, financial, or personal information brought to its attention in the course of the Service, and not to disclose it to third parties without the other party's written consent.

This confidentiality obligation applies throughout the contractual relationship and for a period of three (3) years following its termination, for any reason whatsoever.

This obligation does not apply to information that:

• Is or becomes public without breach of these terms.
• Was already known to the receiving party before its communication.
• Must be disclosed pursuant to a legal or judicial obligation.

Hosting & maintenance

Hosting

Hosting is included for the first year under the "Showcase" and "Showcase + Booking" packages. From the second year onwards, it is invoiced at a rate of between €70 and €120 ex. VAT per year depending on the required capacity, or may be transferred to an account owned by the Client.

The Service Provider may, without incurring liability, temporarily interrupt the service for technical maintenance purposes, giving the Client notice wherever possible.

Maintenance (Lowai Care plan)

The "Lowai Care" plan is offered as an optional add-on at €79 ex. VAT per month. It includes in particular:

• Regular backups of the site and database.
• Security updates and technical component updates.
• A monthly allowance of minor modifications (text, images, minor adjustments).
• Priority email support with responses within 24 working hours.

The subscription is without commitment and may be cancelled at any time with thirty (30) days' notice, by email. No pro-rata refund is made for the current month.

Liability

The Service Provider's liability can only be engaged in the event of proven fault, and is limited to direct damages, to the exclusion of any indirect damage (loss of revenue, loss of clientele, reputational harm, etc.).

In any event, and to the extent permitted by law, the Service Provider's total liability is limited to the amount ex. VAT effectively paid by the Client in respect of the Service concerned.

The Service Provider cannot be held liable for:

• Malfunctions resulting from a modification to the site made by the Client or an unauthorised third party.
• Failures of third-party services (hosting provider, APIs, payment gateways, etc.).
• Service interruptions related to the internet network or the Client's equipment.
• The use made of the site by the Client or by third parties.
• The non-compliance of content provided by the Client with applicable legislation.

Force majeure

Neither party shall be held liable for a failure to fulfil its contractual obligations resulting from a force majeure event as defined by article 1218 of the French Civil Code and applicable case law.

The following are considered force majeure events in particular: natural disasters, fires, floods, epidemics, armed conflict, general strikes, major internet or hosting infrastructure outages, and decisions by public authorities rendering performance impossible.

The affected party shall notify the other as soon as possible. Obligations are suspended for the duration of the event. If the situation persists beyond two (2) months, either party may terminate the contract without compensation.

Right of withdrawal

In accordance with article L. 221-28 of the French Consumer Code, the 14-day right of withdrawal does not apply to services fully performed before the end of the withdrawal period, nor to goods made to the consumer's specifications or clearly personalised.

As bespoke creation services are by nature personalised and commence upon acceptance of the quote, the Client expressly waives their right of withdrawal by signing the quote and paying the deposit.

This waiver does not apply to business clients, whose relationships are governed by commercial law.

Termination

Termination by the Client

The Client may end the contract at any time. In this case:

• The deposit paid remains with the Service Provider as compensation.
• The time actually worked up to the date of termination is invoiced to the Client on a pro-rata basis.
• Interim deliverables are only handed over to the Client once all sums due have been settled in full.

Termination by the Service Provider

In the event of a serious breach by the Client of its obligations (non-payment, failure to collaborate for more than three months, behaviour making the commercial relationship impossible), the Service Provider may terminate the contract by operation of law, following a formal notice that has gone unanswered for fifteen (15) days.

Personal data

The processing of the Client's personal data is carried out in accordance with the Service Provider's privacy policy, accessible at /privacy, as well as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the French Data Protection Act ("Loi Informatique et Libertés") as amended.

The Client has the right at any time to access, rectify, delete, and port their data, exercisable by email at contact@lowai.dev.

Applicable law & disputes

These T&Cs are governed by French law.

In the event of a dispute between the parties, they undertake to first seek an amicable resolution. Failing agreement within thirty (30) days of notification of the dispute, the matter will be referred to the competent French courts.

Consumer mediation

In accordance with articles L. 611-1 et seq. of the French Consumer Code, any consumer client has the right to use a consumer mediator free of charge to resolve a dispute with the Service Provider. [To complete: contact details of the chosen mediator — e.g. CNPM Médiation or AME, which can be joined online for a modest annual fee].

The Client may also access the European online dispute resolution platform: https://ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr/

Jurisdiction clause (business clients)

For disputes between the Service Provider and a business client, and by express derogation from article 48 of the French Code of Civil Procedure, any dispute shall fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Commercial Court of Lille, regardless of the place of performance, the payment terms, including in cases of a warranty claim or multiple defendants.