SaaS Terms of Service: Subscriptions, SLA, Liability & IP

Set subscription terms with precision: billing cycle, auto-renewal, free trials, proration on upgrades/downgrades, and how price changes take effect. In the U.S., the federal Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (15 U.S.C. §§8401–8405) and California’s Automatic Renewal Law (Bus. & Prof. Code §17600 et seq.) demand clear disclosures, affirmative consent, and easy cancellation. In the EU, send renewal reminders and provide pre-contract information under the Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU. Offer a self-serve Cancel button and email confirmations. LegalDocs.ai can generate compliant, plain-English subscription clauses.

For SLAs, define uptime (e.g., 99.9%), support hours, response and resolution times, maintenance windows, and exclusions. Tie credits to monthly fees and state that SLA credits are the customer’s sole remedy. Include security and data-processing commitments consistent with GDPR Article 28 and breach notification timelines under GDPR Article 33 and applicable U.S. state breach laws. Avoid guaranteeing performance of third-party networks. Reference industry standards (SOC 2, ISO/IEC 27001) as targets, not warranties. LegalDocs.ai helps you standardize SLAs and map them to your support playbooks.

Limit liability to a reasonable cap (often 12 months’ fees) and exclude indirect damages, with carve-outs for IP infringement, confidentiality, and data protection. In the UK, the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 requires reasonableness and prohibits excluding death/personal injury; in the EU, beware the Unfair Contract Terms Directive 93/13/EEC for consumer deals. Clarify IP: you own platform code; customers own their data; secure a license to use feedback and anonymized analytics. Address open-source obligations (e.g., AGPL) and DMCA §512 notices. Set termination for cause/convenience, cure periods, data export/erasure (GDPR Arts. 17, 20), and survival clauses. LegalDocs.ai templates cover these.