Terms of service

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of the Vessel Hunter platform, website, mobile apps and related services (together, the “Service”), operated by Vessel Hunter (“Vessel Hunter”, “we”, “us”). By creating an account, clicking to accept, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you are entering into these Terms on behalf of a company or other organisation, you confirm that you have authority to bind that entity, and “you” refers to that entity.

1. The service

Vessel Hunter provides AIS-based vessel intelligence, vessel dossiers, company and fleet information, and verified contact records for maritime commercial teams. The Service is intended for business and professional use only. We may add, change, or remove features from time to time to improve the Service.

2. Eligibility & your account

You must be at least 18 years old and use the Service for legitimate business purposes. You are responsible for keeping your account credentials confidential and for all activity that occurs under your account. Access is licensed per the number of users (seats) in your plan; you may not share a single seat among multiple individuals or allow access beyond your plan. Notify us promptly at contact@vesselhunter.io if you suspect unauthorised use of your account.

3. Plans & payment

Paid plans are billed in advance for the subscription term you select (for example, monthly or annually). Fees are stated exclusive of VAT and any other applicable taxes, which you are responsible for. Unless stated otherwise, subscriptions renew automatically for successive terms until cancelled. We may change pricing for future terms and will give you reasonable advance notice. Except where required by law or expressly stated in these Terms, fees are non-refundable. If an invoice is overdue, we may suspend the Service after notice until payment is received.

4. Licence & restrictions

Subject to these Terms and payment of applicable fees, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to access and use the Service and the data it surfaces for your own internal business purposes. You may not resell, sublicense, redistribute, publish, or otherwise make the Service or any substantial part of the data available to third parties, or use it to build or train a competing product or dataset.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use the Service in violation of any applicable law or regulation;
• crawl, harvest, or bulk-extract data beyond the limits of your plan, or circumvent rate limits, access controls, or technical protections;
• reverse engineer, decompile, or attempt to derive the source code or underlying database structure of the Service;
• resell, redistribute, or commercially exploit the data except as expressly permitted;
• use the Service to harass, defraud, or otherwise harm vessel operators or any other person;
• probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of the Service, or breach its security or authentication measures;
• introduce malware or interfere with the integrity or performance of the Service.

We may investigate and take appropriate action, including suspension or termination, for any suspected breach.

6. Vessel & contact data; lawful use

The Service includes information about vessels, companies, and individuals — including personal contact data such as names, roles, and business contact details. With respect to contact data and any other personal data you obtain through the Service:

• you act as an independent controller and are solely responsible for your own use of that data;
• you must comply with all applicable data-protection and marketing laws, including the GDPR and the ePrivacy rules, when contacting individuals;
• you must have a valid legal basis for your processing, honour opt-out and erasure requests, and not use the data for unlawful surveillance, profiling, or any purpose incompatible with those laws;
• you must not use the contact data to send unsolicited communications in breach of applicable anti-spam rules.

We provide the data as an information service and do not direct or control how you use it. You are responsible for ensuring your use is lawful.

7. Intellectual property

The Service, including its software, design, compiled database, and all related intellectual property, is and remains owned by Vessel Hunter or its licensors. These Terms grant you a licence to use the Service, not any ownership rights. If you send us feedback or suggestions, you grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual licence to use them to improve the Service, without obligation to you.

8. Third-party sources

Vessel data is derived from publicly available AIS signals and third-party data providers. The availability, accuracy, and continuity of those sources are outside our control, and your use of the Service may be subject to applicable third-party terms. We are not responsible for third-party data, websites, or services.

9. Disclaimers; no warranty

The Service and all data are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis, without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all implied warranties, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, completeness, timeliness, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that the data is accurate, current, or complete. Vessel positions, ownership, contact details, and other records may be incomplete, outdated, or incorrect. Any commercial decision you make based on the Service is made at your own risk.

10. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

• we will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, revenue, goodwill, business, or data, arising out of or in connection with the Service, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages;
• our total aggregate liability arising out of or in connection with these Terms or the Service, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), or otherwise, will not exceed the total fees you paid to us for the Service in the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the event giving rise to the claim.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable Dutch law, including liability for intent or deliberate recklessness.

11. Indemnification

You will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Vessel Hunter and its directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, damages, liabilities, and costs (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or related to: (a) your use of the Service or any data obtained through it; (b) your breach of these Terms; or (c) your violation of any law or the rights of any third party, including any data-protection or marketing claim arising from your communications.

12. Confidentiality

Each party may receive confidential information from the other. The receiving party will use it only to perform under these Terms and will protect it with reasonable care. This does not apply to information that is or becomes public, is independently developed, or is rightfully obtained from a third party, or where disclosure is required by law.

13. Suspension

We may suspend your access to the Service, in whole or in part, if (a) your account is overdue, (b) we reasonably believe the Service is being used in breach of these Terms or in a way that poses a security or legal risk, or (c) we are required to do so by law. Where practical, we will give you notice and an opportunity to resolve the issue.

14. Term & termination

These Terms apply for as long as you use the Service. You may stop using the Service and cancel your subscription at any time, effective at the end of your current term. We may terminate or suspend these Terms or your access if you materially breach them and do not cure the breach within a reasonable period after notice. On termination, your right to access the Service ends; on request and within a reasonable period, we will make your account data available for export. If we terminate without cause, we will refund any prepaid, unused fees. Sections that by their nature should survive — including those on data use, intellectual property, disclaimers, limitation of liability, indemnification, and governing law — survive termination.

15. Changes to the service & these terms

We may update the Service and these Terms from time to time. We will post any material changes here with an updated effective date and, where appropriate, notify you in-product or by email. Your continued use of the Service after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

16. Force majeure

We are not liable for any failure or delay in performance caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including acts of God, outages, network or third-party failures, labour disputes, or governmental action.

17. General

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and any plan-specific or order terms, are the entire agreement between you and Vessel Hunter regarding the Service. If any provision is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions stay in effect. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms without our consent; we may assign them in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets. Notices to you may be given in-product or by email.

18. Governing law & disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Netherlands. Any dispute arising out of or in connection with them or the Service will be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent Dutch court.

19. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Contact Vessel Hunter at contact@vesselhunter.io.