Terms of Service

PledgeMe is here to provide a collaborative way to help fund creative projects for anyone who has an idea they want to see happen, and just as importantly, give support to those who wish to contribute to the success of a project.

 

When a project is successful and reaches or exceeds the funding goal the project requires, the total amount raised by the contributions of the supporters is passed on to the creator of the project, minus the percentage due to PledgeMe and tariffs charged by our credit card gateway, Flo2Cash.

 

If a project is not successful and doesn't reach its funding goal, the funding intended for the project doesn't get charged to the supporters of the project.

 

PledgeMe only approaches project creators and pledgers or supporters of projects. We don't generate employment relationships, employment, association or partnership between the users and PledgeMe, and we don't represent business transactions or selling products or services.

 

PledgeMe is responsible for the proper operation of the website, but we don't guarantee that projects will be executed or that the incentives or rewards will be honoured, exempting itself from liability in this respect, with what project creators and supporters agree expressly. Project creators and supporters should settle any issues directly among themselves.

 

Campaigners should be over 18 years of age. If they are not over 18, a parent or guardian must front or manage the campaign, including the input of bank details for pledge pay-outs. By requesting a campaign, campaigners agree to this.

 

Definitions

 

A project creator is the user of PledgeMe interested in raising funds for a creative project. It's their role to:

  • Describe the project they want to develop, which must necessarily be lawful and in accordance with New Zealand legislation;
  • Set the value they want to fund the project;
  • Set the time within which they want to get the full amount intended to finance the project;
  • Promise incentives or rewards to supporters who finance their project, and determine the conditions and the number of supporters who are eligible for incentives or rewards.

 

A supporter or pledger is the user of PledgeMe interested in funding creative projects by financially contributing to the projects they are interested in supporting. It's their role to:

  • Choose the project they want to support;
  • Set the value they want to contribute to the project;
  • If they want, select one or more incentives or rewards they will receive directly from the project creator, under the conditions set for the selected project.

 

PledgeMe uses registration information from Facebook or you can directly join PledgeMe. The account access may be done by entering the username and password in the login fields on Facebook or PledgeMe.

 

The user is solely responsible for the security of his username and password. It is through this data that the user can access and change their personal information and other data from their registration.

 

If there is any suspected misuse or unauthorised use of your account, immediately notify PledgeMe by email. [email protected]

 

PledgeMe will never use your registration information to conduct any illegal activities.
 

 

Fees and Payments

All funds raised for projects require the use of a credit card through the credit card gateway Flo2Cash.

 

All the pledge details will be held till the project reaches its deadline. There are two possibilities when a project reaches its deadline:

 

  • If the project is successful, the total amount collected will be transferred from the account held by PledgeMe to the account of the project creator, less the success fee due to PledgeMe by its service and fees charged by Flo2Cash. If we encounter any declined payments (eg. insufficient funds on card) we will seek to capture these pledges within 7 days of your project closing. 
  • If the project doesn't meet its funding criteria, all the transactions are cancelled and neither PledgeMe or Flo2Cash charges anything.

 

Unless otherwise specified, all rates are quoted in New Zealand Dollars (NZ$). The user is responsible for paying all fees and taxes associated with the use of PledgeMe. If a project is withdrawn from PledgeMe for violating our Terms of Use, violation of law or by court order, all the supporting pledges will be cancelled.

 

Please note that Flo2Cash and PledgeMe are independent, and PledgeMe gives no warranty in respect of payments processed by Flo2Cash and is not responsible for failures of credit cards.
 

 

Fee structure 

PledgeMe.Project 

6.5% success fee (GST inclusive) charged to campaign creator if goal met by deadline

PledgeMe.Equity 

6.5% success fee (zero-rated) charged to campaign creator if goal met by deadline

PledgeMe.Lend 

5.5% success fee (zero-rated) charged to campaign creator if goal met by deadline. Note: there will also be fees to the pledger of 1% of principal repayment

CrowdfundingU

$4,000 + GST for 6 session programme. Required for all Equity and Lending campaigns. Reduced to $1,500 + GST for campaigns under $100,000

Pledgers

The cost of using your credit card will be passed onto you if your card is charged, currently, this is 2.5% + 25c per transaction attempt.

1% of the principal repaid to pledgers on PledgeMe.Lend campaigns (note: no fee on the interest earned)

 

Intellectual property

 

PledgeMe owns the intellectual property rights relating to its own service, which are protected by Australian law and international treaties. The rights of PledgeMe does not include any rights related to content created by users and displayed in PledgeMe.

 

The campaign creator is the holder of intellectual property rights of their own campaign and campaign content. However, PledgeMe reserves the right to use, edit, store, and publicly distribute all content that is uploaded to the PledgeMe platform without attribution and indefinitely in order to conduct our service. The aforementioned content includes content from information memorandums and offer documents. The use and distribution of this content by PledgeMe will be used to promote our service and the campaign from which the content was sourced. This does not grant PledgeMe the right to sell customer content or otherwise distribute or use it outside of PledgeMe’s service.

 

All campaign creators should be aware that by trying to raise funds publicly, the idea could be developed and copied by others. PledgeMe cannot prevent this from occurring, nor has responsibility for this situation.
PledgeMe reserves the right at its sole discretion, and as notified, to cancel campaigns and terminate the accounts of campaign creators that violate intellectual property rights of others or violate other rights guaranteed by Australian law.

 

PledgeMe reserves the right to remove content or refuse to serve any content to users. PledgeMe also reserves the right to access, read, preserve, and disclose any information necessary to fulfil this contract, comply with laws or respond to court orders.

 

Privacy and security

 

We do all we can to provide you with the best service possible, we take your privacy and security seriously and would never supply your information to a third party. We avoid keeping any personal data that isn’t absolutely required.

 

We have some Google Analytics Advertising features enabled (Search Console and Demographics and Interest Reports) that use cookies in order to collect general audience information, such as gender and age range. We use this information to provide the most relevant content on our website and blog. If you wish to opt out of this, download Google's opt-out browser add on.

 

All credit card information is fully maintained by Flo2Cash, a PCI compliant company. Being PCI compliant means Flo2Cash must fulfil all credit card security requirements. It also means that PledgeMe has got absolutely no access to this information, we rely on Flo2Cash to confirm whether your pledge was approved or not.

 

For ease of use we recommend using your Facebook account to connect with PledgeMe, especially if you are publishing a project. There are a few reasons for using your Facebook account.

 

  1. As a social network tool, Facebook is great for promoting your project and will improve its visibility.
  2. You don't need to worry about keeping several passwords.
  3. By using an integrated login your password information is secure. 
  4. You will only need a brief PledgeMe profile description if you already have a Facebook profile.

 

 

PledgeMe reserves the right to change its privacy policy at any time. All campaign updates are sent via email. If there is anything else you want to know about our privacy or security conditions, feel free to drop us a line at [email protected]

 

Email

 

PledgeMe will only send you emails related to your pledges, or if there are updates to our terms and conditions. We will also email you if you have signed up for our newsletter. If you are a project creator, we notify you when a pledge is received, and to update you on your project.

 

Cancellation Policy

 

Please contact PledgeMe if you would like to cancel your pledge (before the project has closed) on [email protected]

 

Refund / Return Policy

 

PledgeMe does not offer refunds once a pledge has been processed. A Project Creator is not required to grant a Backer’s request for a refund unless the Project Creator is unable or unwilling to fulfill the reward. Customer service contact details [email protected], 1/7 Dixon Street, +64 27 PLEDGE 1

 

Warning statement about equity crowdfunding

Equity crowdfunding is risky.

Issuers using this facility include new or rapidly growing ventures. Investment in these types of business is very speculative and carries high risks.

You may lose your entire investment, and must be in a position to bear this risk without undue hardship.

New Zealand law normally requires people who offer financial products to give information to investors before they invest. This requires those offering financial products to have disclosed information that is important for investors to make an informed decision.

The usual rules do not apply to offers by issuers using this facility. As a result, you may not be given all the information usually required. You will also have fewer other legal protections for this investment.

Ask questions, read all information given carefully, and seek independent financial advice before committing yourself.