Terms of Service

Forgify (Pty) Ltd (“Forgify”, “we”, “us”) operates a South African platform that connects customers with contractors and builders, and provides quoting, invoicing, job tracking and payment tools to support that relationship. Our registered company details and physical address are available on request.

Questions, complaints, legal notices and suggestions can be sent to admin@forgify.co.za.

• Customer: a user who browses, requests quotes from, hires or pays a contractor.
• Contractor: a user who offers trade, building or related services to customers through Forgify. One Forgify account can act as both.
• Service Contract: any agreement between a customer and a contractor for work, including an accepted quote, whether or not it is recorded on Forgify.
• User Content: anything you upload or create on Forgify, including profiles, photos, quotes, invoices, job records, messages and reviews.
• Fees: amounts charged by Forgify itself, as described in section 8.

3.1 Forgify is a technology platform. We provide tools for finding contractors, requesting and issuing quotes, invoicing, tracking jobs and, where available, collecting payment.

3.2 Forgify is not a party to any Service Contract. A Service Contract is formed only between the customer and the contractor. We are not the contractor’s employer, agent or partner, we do not supervise or control the work, and we do not perform, guarantee or insure it.

3.3 Each user is responsible for deciding whether to deal with another user, including checking their credentials, registrations, insurance, references and suitability for the job.

3.4 Nothing in this section limits any right you have under the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA) in relation to the services we ourselves supply to you.

4.1 You must be 18 or older and legally able to enter into a contract. A business account must be opened by someone authorised to bind that business.

4.2 Give us accurate and current information, and keep it up to date. You are responsible for keeping your password and any authenticator app secure, and for activity on your account. Tell us immediately at admin@forgify.co.za if you suspect unauthorised access.

4.3 Multi-factor authentication is optional but strongly recommended. If you switch it on, you will be asked for a code each time you log in.

4.4 We may refuse registration, or suspend or block an account, where we reasonably believe these Terms or the law have been breached, or that an account puts other users or the platform at risk. Where practicable we will tell you why and give you a chance to respond.

5.1 Contractors are independent businesses. Using Forgify does not make a contractor, or anyone they engage, an employee or agent of Forgify.

5.2 A contractor is solely responsible for: how the work is done; holding every registration, licence, certificate and insurance the work requires (for example CIDB or NHBRC registration where applicable, and electrical or gas compliance certificates for regulated work); complying with the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 and the Construction Regulations; paying their own taxes; registering for and charging VAT where the Value-Added Tax Act 89 of 1991 requires; and the people and subcontractors they engage.

5.3 Forgify does not withhold tax, pay benefits or make any employer contributions for any user.

5.4 Subcontractors added to a team or project must hold their own Forgify contractor account. Whoever adds them remains responsible for the work they do.

6.1 Where we run verification, it is a tiered process: identity checks, business or registration checks (CIDB and NHBRC where applicable) and optional trade credential checks. A badge means only that the specific credential it names was checked at the time we checked it.

6.2 A badge is not a guarantee, warranty or endorsement of a contractor’s quality, workmanship, solvency, reliability or future conduct. Contractors who are not verified are listed with an “Unverified” marking and carry no representation from Forgify at all.

6.3 Submitting false, altered or someone else’s verification documents is a serious breach of these Terms and may be reported to the authorities.

6.4 How we handle verification information is set out in our Privacy Policy.

7.1 Quotes, invoices, job cards and contracts created or accepted through Forgify are data messages under the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (ECTA). Accepting a quote, or confirming an action in the app, is an electronic signature or acceptance that we record with a time stamp, and may be relied on as evidence.

7.2 A contractor is responsible for the accuracy and legal compliance of what they issue, including prices, scope, VAT details and any terms they add. Once issued, the financial content of an invoice is fixed and versioned so that it cannot be silently changed.

7.3 Forgify generates documents from what users enter. We do not check them for accuracy or legality, and they are not legal, tax or accounting advice.

7.4 Nothing here removes any cancellation or cooling-off right that the CPA or section 44 of ECTA gives you. Those rights apply only where the law says they do, and some services are excluded, for example services that start with your agreement before the cooling-off period ends.

8.1 Contractor subscription. Contractor accounts are charged a flat subscription, currently R149 per month. Founding contractors receive free access on terms we will communicate to them directly. If we start charging you, or change a price, we will give you reasonable written notice first and you may cancel before the change takes effect. You may cancel a month-to-month subscription at any time, and cancellation takes effect at the end of the period already paid for.

8.2 Customer platform fee. Customers currently pay no Forgify fee on transactions. If we introduce one, it will be shown as a separate line item before you confirm payment, and never added or deducted afterwards.

8.3 In-app payments. Where payment features are available, card and bank payments are processed by our third-party payment provider, Paystack, and are also subject to its terms. Forgify does not store card details. Funds due to a contractor are paid out to the bank account the contractor has supplied, so contractors must keep those details correct. An invoice is marked paid only after the payment provider confirms the payment, not when a customer merely reaches the checkout page.

8.4 Forgify is not a bank. We are not liable for delays, errors, chargebacks or failures caused by payment providers, banks or other financial institutions, and we may withhold or delay a payout where we reasonably suspect fraud, an error, a breach of these Terms or a legal requirement. Payment features may not be available in all cases, and we may switch them on or off.

8.5 Payments made outside the app. Where a contractor and customer settle in cash or by direct EFT, the invoice is marked paid only once the party who did not record the payment confirms it. Before it is confirmed, either side can withdraw or dispute the claim. A confirmed outside payment cannot be reversed by either party through the app, and any dispute about one is handled by contacting us.

8.6 Taxes. Each user is responsible for their own taxes. Our Fees include VAT where the law requires us to charge it. Fees are refundable only where the law requires or we say so in writing.

8.7 Avoiding disclosed Fees in bad faith, by steering a transaction that started on Forgify off the platform, is a breach of these Terms.

9.1 You own your User Content. You give Forgify a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, store, display, reproduce and process it for as long as needed to run, secure and improve the platform, and to display your public profile as you have set it up.

9.2 You confirm that you have the right to upload your User Content and that it does not infringe anyone’s rights or the law. This includes photos of people or private property: get any consent you need first.

9.3 The Forgify platform, brand, software and design belong to us or our licensors. Ownership of work produced under a Service Contract is a matter for the customer and contractor only, and Forgify claims no interest in it.

9.4 Reviews. Reviews may only be left by a customer for a job that was completed through Forgify, and must be honest and based on real experience. We may remove reviews that are false, abusive or unlawful.

You agree not to:

• break the law, or use Forgify to commit fraud or any offence, including under the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020;
• post content that is defamatory, harassing, discriminatory, obscene or infringes another person’s rights;
• impersonate anyone or misrepresent your qualifications, registrations or affiliation;
• submit false quotes, invoices, payment claims or verification documents;
• access another user’s account, probe or attack our systems, scrape data at scale, or interfere with the platform;
• use another user’s personal information for anything other than the job at hand, or send unsolicited marketing to users you meet through Forgify.

If you believe content on Forgify is unlawful or infringes your rights, or you want to report a user, use the report function in the app or email admin@forgify.co.za with the details, where the content is, and who you are. Notices should be accurate: a person who knowingly sends a false takedown notice may be liable for damages under section 77 of ECTA. We will review notices promptly and may remove content or suspend accounts.

12.1 A dispute about a Service Contract is between the customer and the contractor. We are not obliged to resolve it and do not decide who is right.

12.2 We may offer tools to help you communicate, and we may act on reports of misconduct by suspending or blocking accounts. Consumers may also approach the National Consumer Commission, an accredited industry ombud, or a court about a contractor’s work.

13.1 We work to keep Forgify available and secure, but we cannot promise it will be uninterrupted or error-free. We may change, suspend or discontinue features, and will give reasonable notice of material changes where we can.

13.2 Subject to the CPA and other laws that cannot be excluded, Forgify is provided “as is” and we give no warranty about the accuracy of User Content or the outcome of any work arranged through the platform.

14.1 To the maximum extent the law allows, Forgify is not liable for the acts or omissions of contractors or customers, for the quality, safety or legality of work done under a Service Contract, or for indirect or consequential loss such as lost profit, lost business or lost data.

14.2 To the maximum extent the law allows, our total liability to you for anything arising from your use of Forgify is limited to the greater of the Fees you paid us in the 12 months before the claim and R1,000.

14.3 Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes liability that cannot lawfully be limited or excluded, including liability for gross negligence, fraud or wilful misconduct, and any right you have under the CPA. Where a term here conflicts with a mandatory provision of the CPA, the CPA prevails.

Where the law allows, you indemnify Forgify against claims, losses and reasonable costs that arise from your breach of these Terms, your unlawful use of Forgify, or your User Content infringing someone else’s rights. This does not apply to loss caused by Forgify’s own gross negligence or wilful misconduct, and does not limit any right a consumer has under the CPA.

We process personal information under the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA). Our Privacy Policy forms part of these Terms.

17.1 You can stop using Forgify and ask us to close your account at any time. Closing an account does not cancel amounts already owed, or a Service Contract you have entered into.

17.2 We may suspend or terminate your access for a serious or repeated breach of these Terms, to comply with the law, or to protect users or the platform. Where practicable we will give notice and reasons. Some records, in particular invoices and payment records, must be kept after an account closes (see the Privacy Policy).

17.3 Sections that are meant to continue after termination, including those on content, liability, indemnity, governing law and record-keeping, do so.

We may update these Terms. For material changes we will give you reasonable notice, for example by email or a notice in the app, and post the new version with an updated date. If you keep using Forgify after the change takes effect, you accept the update. If you do not agree, you may close your account. A change will not take away rights you have under the CPA.

19.1 These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.

19.2 If you have a complaint, email admin@forgify.co.za first so we can try to fix it. This does not stop you approaching the National Consumer Commission, the National Consumer Tribunal, an ombud, the Information Regulator (for privacy complaints), or a competent South African court at any time.

19.3 Subject to your rights as a consumer, the South African courts have jurisdiction over disputes arising from these Terms.

20.1 These Terms and the Privacy Policy are the entire agreement between you and Forgify about the platform.

20.2 If part of these Terms is found invalid or unenforceable, the rest remains in force.

20.3 If we do not enforce a right straight away, we have not given it up.

20.4 You may not transfer your rights under these Terms without our written consent. We may transfer ours to a successor to the business, and will tell you if we do.

20.5 Neither side is liable for a failure caused by events outside its reasonable control, such as load shedding, network or cloud outages, natural disasters, strikes or government action.

20.6 Notices to you may be sent to the email address on your account. Notices to us should be sent to admin@forgify.co.za.