Terms of Service

Welcome to Hostlelo. By accessing our website and using our services, you agree to these Terms of Service. Please read them carefully before proceeding with any service purchase or usage.

By accessing or using our services, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms of Service, together with our Privacy Policy and Refund Policy. The acceptable use rules that apply to your services are set out in section 9 of this document.

If you are entering into these terms on behalf of a company or other organisation, you confirm that you have the authority to bind that organisation to these terms.

Hostlelo provides the following services:

• Shared Web Hosting
• VPS and VDS Hosting
• Cloud Hosting
• Dedicated Servers
• Domain Registration
• SSL Certificates
• Website Security Solutions
• Backup Services
• Technical Support

Some terms in this document apply only to specific service types. Where a section refers to VPS, VDS, Cloud or Dedicated Servers, it does not apply to shared hosting, and vice versa.

You must:

• Provide accurate and complete information when creating an account
• Maintain the security of your account credentials
• Promptly update your account information when necessary
• Be at least 18 years old to use our services
• Use services in compliance with applicable laws

You are responsible for all activity carried out under your account, including activity by anyone you give access to.

Subscription basis

Our services are provided on a subscription basis. Your service period begins at the moment the service is activated, and billing is calculated from that activation date onward. The renewal date is determined by the subscription period you selected at checkout, for example monthly, quarterly or annually.

Renewal

• Subscriptions renew automatically at the end of each subscription period unless you cancel before the renewal date
• Renewal invoices are generated in advance of the renewal date
• Fees are billed in advance for each subscription period
• Pricing may change with 30 days notice; any change takes effect from your next renewal, never mid-period
• Applicable taxes and duties are charged in addition to the listed price where required

Due dates

Invoice due dates are fixed by your subscription period and do not change. In particular, a due date is not postponed, extended or recalculated because of:

• An open support ticket or a pending configuration request
• Port 25 or any other port being blocked on your server, as described in section 7
• An abuse investigation, or a suspension arising from one
• Your service being unused, partially configured, or not yet deployed by you

If payment is not received by the due date, we may suspend the service, and may terminate it if the invoice remains unpaid. Refunds are governed by section 6 and by our Refund Policy.

Our Refund Policy is the authoritative document on refunds and forms part of these terms. The summary below is provided for convenience; where it differs from the Refund Policy, the Refund Policy applies.

Shared hosting

• New shared hosting accounts carry a 30-day money-back guarantee
• The guarantee covers hosting fees only, and is available once per customer
• Domain registration fees are deducted where a domain was provided free with the hosting plan

VPS, VDS, Cloud and Dedicated Servers

Payments for VPS, VDS, Cloud and Dedicated Server plans are non-refundable once the service has been activated. This applies in all cases, including where:

• Port 25 or SMTP is blocked on your server, whether by default or following a review, as described in section 7
• The service is suspended or terminated following an abuse issue
• You decide not to deploy, configure or use the server after activation
• You purchased a plan that does not suit your intended use

Setup, configuration, hardware and administrative fees are non-refundable, and the billing due date does not change in any of the circumstances above.

Other non-refundable items

• Domain registrations, transfers and renewals
• Control panel, operating system and third-party software licences
• SSL certificates
• Setup, migration, installation and custom development work

Terminations for cause

No refund is issued where an account is terminated for a breach of these terms, the acceptable use rules in section 9, our SPAM policy, or for fraudulent activity or a chargeback.

How to cancel

To cancel a service, log in to your client area and submit a cancellation request by support ticket before your renewal date. Cancelling stops future renewals; it does not by itself create a right to a refund for the current period.

Port 25 is blocked by default on our servers to prevent misuse of mailing functionality and to protect the reputation of our network. This is a standard, deliberate configuration and applies to new servers as delivered.

Requirements before SMTP is enabled

Before we enable the SMTP port, reverse DNS (rDNS) must be configured for your server IP address. A valid PTR record is what builds the reputation and trust of a sending IP, and mail providers rely on it. To request that SMTP be opened, you must:

• Provide a hostname on a domain you control, in fully qualified form, for example server.yourdomain.com
• Ensure that hostname resolves to your server IP address
• Open a support ticket from your client area with that hostname

Once we receive a valid request, we configure the rDNS record and open the SMTP port for your server.

Refusal and re-blocking

We may decline a request, or block port 25 again after it has been opened, where the hostname supplied is invalid or does not resolve to your server IP, where the sending reputation of the IP degrades, or where the server is used in breach of section 9.

No refund or billing change

Port 25 being blocked, whether by default or following a review, is not a service fault, a service outage, or a failure to deliver the service you purchased. It does not entitle you to a refund, a service credit, a discount, or any change to your billing due date or renewal date.

We strive to maintain 99.9% uptime for all hosting services. This excludes:

• Scheduled maintenance windows
• Force majeure events
• Issues originating from client-side applications
• Suspension of a service for a breach of these terms or of section 9
• Faults arising from your own configuration, software or misconfiguration of the server
• Email deliverability and the availability of port 25 or SMTP, which are governed by section 7 and are not covered by the uptime commitment

You agree not to use our services for:

• Illegal activities
• Distribution of malware
• Unauthorized access to other systems
• Spamming or unsolicited mass emailing
• Operating an open mail relay, or sending bulk mail without the recipients' consent
• Phishing, fraud, or impersonation of any person or organisation
• Resource usage that degrades service for other customers on shared infrastructure
• Content that infringes intellectual property rights

Where we identify a breach of this section, we may suspend or terminate the service immediately and without notice. No refund is issued for a service suspended or terminated on these grounds, and the billing due date is unaffected.

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate services if:

• You violate these terms
• Payment is not received by the due date
• Your usage poses a security risk
• You engage in fraudulent activity
• You breach the acceptable use rules in section 9

Suspension or termination on any of these grounds does not entitle you to a refund. See section 6 and our Refund Policy.

You may terminate your own service by submitting a cancellation request as described in section 6.

Our liability is limited to the amount paid for services in the previous 12 months. We are not liable for:

• Indirect or consequential damages
• Data loss
• Business interruption
• Lost profits

Hostlelo operates through separate entities in the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and India. These terms are governed by the laws of the jurisdiction in which the Hostlelo entity that issued your invoice is established, and the courts of that jurisdiction have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute arising from them.

Separately, you remain responsible for complying with the laws of your own country, and of any country in which your website, content or services are made available.

We reserve the right to modify these terms at any time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the updated terms on our website, and the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page will reflect the revision. Continued use of our services after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the revised terms.

For questions about these Terms of Service, please contact us at legal@hostlelo.com. For billing and refund questions, contact billing@hostlelo.com.