Consumer Terms & Conditions

IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS

CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THESE SERVICES

Latest Version as of July 06, 2018

THE FOLLOWING TERMS AND CONDITIONS (THE “TERMS”) CONSTITUTE A LEGAL AND ENFORCEABLE CONTRACT BETWEEN ANSWERSBY (“ANSWERSBY” REFERRED TO AS SUTHERLAND, A THIRD PARTY VENDOR HEREAFTER) , AND YOU, FOR USE OF ANSWERSBY COMPUTER TECH SUPPORT SERVICES WHICH YOU SELECTED OR INITIATED ON THE ANSWERBY SITES (“SITES”) LOCATED AT HTTP://US.GATEWAY.COM/GW/EN/US/CONTENT/CONTACT-SUPPORT, HTTP://US.ACER.COM/AC/EN/US/CONTENT/SERVICE-CONTACT, HTTP://WWW.EMACHINES.COM/EC/EN/US/CONTENT/CONTACT, OR WWW.ANSWERSBY.COM (“SERVICES”). “YOU” OR “YOUR” REFERS TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHO IS UTILIZING THE SERVICES. THE POLICY AND MATERIALS SPECIFICALLY REFERRED TO IN THE TERMS ARE INCORPORATED INTO THE TERMS BY REFERENCE. BEFORE YOU CLICK ON THE “I ACCEPT” BUTTON OR OTHERWISE INDICATE ASSENT FOR CONTINUING TO USE THE SERVICES, OR BEFORE MAKING PAYMENT FOR SUCH SERVICES, PLEASE READ THE TERMS BELOW CAREFULLY. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THE TERMS, THEN SUTHERLAND IS UNWILLING TO PROVIDE THE SERVICES TO YOU, IN WHICH CASE YOU SHOULD CLICK THE “CANCEL” OR OTHER SIMILAR BUTTON, OR OTHERWISE INDICATE REFUSAL AND NOT USE THE SERVICES. BY CLICKING ON THE “I ACCEPT,” OR “CONTINUE” BUTTON OR “BY PRESSING NUMBER 1 IN THE PAYMENT IVR”, BY YOUR PAYMENT FOR THE SERVICES OR BY YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES, YOU ARE DEEMED TO HAVE ACCEPTED AND CONSENTED TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS.

Changes to these Terms of Service

These Terms may be amended by Sutherland and You will be notified on the Site of any such amendment(s). You can review the most recent version of these Terms at any time on the Site. Your use of the Service after the posted effective date of any revised Terms constitutes Your acceptance of those revised terms. We will indicate at the top of this webpage when the Terms were last updated. Sutherland/AnswersBy may, at any time, without notice change the amount of or basis for determining any fee or charge, institute new fees or charges or otherwise modify its billing practices on any of service offering to include the Monthly Subscription offering. All fees and charges are payable in accordance with billing terms in effect at the time the fee or charge becomes payable.

Supported Products

You hereby acknowledge and agree that the Service covers only the software, hardware and peripherals specifically listed in the product description for that Service on the Site. Please note that the list of supported software, hardware and peripherals associated with that product description, or any other aspect of the Service, is subject to change and may be modified at any time.

Description of Service

The goal of the Service is to provide You technical support services by telephone and remotely over the Internet if possible and necessary. Our Technicians ("Technicians") will make every reasonable attempt (commercially best effort) to assist You with software and hardware troubleshooting, installation, configuration, set-up, as well as networking and other technological matters that are specifically included in the Service you purchase. We also can assist You with electronic devices other than computers. We include tutorial assistance with installation, integration, and product functionality. We will not be held responsible for circumstances and causes beyond Our control such as natural or manmade disasters and Situations such as power outages, computer "hacking" attack or computer viruses, or technical equipment failures, that would prevent us from resolving your computer issue(s). Sutherland reserves the right to change or modify the specific Service offerings included within the Service at any time.

The Service does not include assistance with Alpha or Beta testing software. The Service does not provide any hardware or software warranty or repair service. We will not fix or replace broken equipment as part of the Service.

Customer Authorization of Remote Access & Customer Cooperation

We may, but have no obligation to, monitor and record the Services, including telephone calls and online sessions for purposes of improving customer service, internal training and internal market research. You hereby grant permission to Sutherland to monitor and record the Services and to use or disclose any information as necessary or appropriate to satisfy any law, regulation or other governmental request; to provide the Services to You and Our Users; to protect Ourselves and/or Our Users; and to enhance the types of Services We may provide to You in the future. You also grant Sutherland permission to combine your information with that of others in a way that does not identify you or any individual personally to improve the Services, for training, for marketing and promotional purposes, and for other business purposes. By registering for the Service, you agree to allow Our technicians to use the tools they deem necessary or advisable to perform the Service, including obtaining remote access to Your computer and related network and peripherals during your service session. If Our Technicians advise you to take such preliminary steps as buying cables or cords, acquiring software, etc., they will create and keep a ticket open for you so that it can be referenced again when you are ready to go to the next step. If you cannot, or elect not to, pursue the recommended course of action, our technicians will consider the ticket closed and resolution of Your issue provided.

Categories of Services Offered and Defined

Current services that are offered are service plans that are categorized as Base, Gold, Platinum and Platinum Pro. Existing services that are no longer available for sale are specialized plans and Incident based plans. There are also provisions that allow for the upgrade and renewal of some of these plans depending upon Your needs.

The unlimited plans/upgrades/renewals allow you to call for up to either a one (1) year(Gold Pack) or (2) year (Platinum Pack) or (2.5) year (Platinum Pro Pack) or (3) year period(Titanium Pack) without restriction for any number of technological incidents/issues that You may have.

A Monthly Subscription is valid up until the service is terminated within the guidelines of this agreement. A monthly Subscription does carry an early termination period that is in effect for 6 months, after which the billing will revert to automatic billing without notification to you. (*subject to Fair Use Policy)

The specialized/incident/issue plans/upgrades/renewals were designed to offer you the opportunity to work on a specific technological incident/issue or incidents/issues for the number of issues you purchased for use up to one (1) year from date of purchase or upon utilization of the incidents/issues purchased, whichever occurs first. The incidents/issues are open and available for the specific incident/issue to be worked on for up to three (3) days from the date of the opening of the incident/issue. Resolution of any and all incidents/issues will be determined and defined as described below. These services are currently not available for purchase.

And, for customers who require the recovery disks for their computer, and providing that they are still available (computer must be less than three (3) years old), recovery media would be shipped to your residential address as mentioned on the call. AnswersBy/Sutherland would not be responsible for any delays/cancellation for recovery disks/media order as it beyond our scope of control.

You hereby acknowledge and agree that the Services described above and detailed below are subject to change and may be modified at any time.

Specific Services Purchasable

Specialized Plans

Netbook/Tablet Plan which covers one (1) issue for a period of three days and good for one year from date of purchase or expiration of issue use, whichever occurs first. Resolution of issue will be determined and defined as described below. This is a non-refundable service.

Tablet Plans are available a one (1), three (3), or five (5) issue plans to specifically address tablet problems. Issues apply as described above and service is good for one year from date of purchase or expiration of issues purchased, whichever occurs first. Resolution of issue(s) will be determined and defined as described below.

Incident/Issue Plans

One (1) Incident/Issue Plan (Upgradable to five (5) or fifteen (15) issues or either unlimited plans)

Five (5) Incident/Issue Plan (Upgradable to fifteen (15) issue or 1-year unlimited plan and also renewable)

Fifteen (15) Incident/Issue Plan (Upgradable to 1-year unlimited plan and also renewable)

Three (3) Incident/Issue Plan
Ten (10) Incident/Issue Plan

NOTE: All incident based plans except Netbook/Tablet Plan and Base pack (1 Incident) will be discontinued and no refund/upgrade shall be provided to the existing plans.

Monthly Subscription Unlimited Plans

Monthly subscription plan is defined as a service agreement that entitles the customer to services for as long as the subscription plan is held in good standing and has not been cancelled or in any way deactivated by either the customer or Sutherland/AnswersBy. You would not be able to upgrade or downgrade from this plan.You may not substitute one plan for another after its use though another might have been more appropriate or cheaper in cost.

Payment

Payments for service may be made only via credit or debit card transactions. You agree to pay as specified by Sutherland the amount associated with the Service you choose, including any applicable sales, use or similar taxes, fees or duties (unless you supply exemption documentation), and any late payment fees. No other discounts, quantity entitlements, or promotions apply unless expressly specified for this transaction.

You must provide current, complete, and accurate information for your billing account. You are responsible for ensuring this information is correct and must promptly update all information to keep your billing account current, complete, and accurate (such as a change in billing address, credit card number, or credit card expiration date). You must promptly notify Sutherland if your credit card is cancelled (for example, for loss or theft). Changes to such information can be made by calling the Sutherland toll-free number 1-877-526-4466 which is provided to you upon initiation of your service. This Agreement will terminate automatically if you fail to comply with any of the terms and conditions or other requirements described herein but purchaser shall still bear responsibility for meeting terms of the Agreement.

The Customer agrees to pay as specified by Sutherland/AnswersBy, including any applicable sales, use or similar taxes, fees or duties (unless exemption documentation is presented and processed in advance), and any late payment fees.

Monthly Subscription:

Monthly Subscriptions Services can only be purchased using a valid credit card. This offering does carry an early termination period and auto-renews (invoices the customer) monthly until such time as the service is cancelled. The monthly billing is processed automatically and without notification or a receipt being sent to the customer. Proof of purchase can be evidenced by providing a valid credit card statement that details the specific charge in question. The customer will be billed immediately upon the purchase of a monthly subscription. All billings cover the month following. Sutherland/AnswersBy reserves the right to alter any part of an ongoing subscription without notification to the customer.

Sutherland reserves the right to refuse or discontinue participation to any user at any time at its sole discretion.

If a Service is quoted at an incorrect price due to typographical error or error in pricing information: 1) Sutherland has the right to refuse or cancel any orders placed for the Service quoted at the incorrect price, even if Sutherland has confirmed the receipt of your order and charged your credit or debit card: and 2) if Sutherland has charged your credit or debit card but subsequently cancelled your order, Sutherland will promptly issue a credit to your credit or debit card account for the amount charged.

Refund of Purchased Services

Any Service provided is not refundable due to data loss, or any hardware or software failures that could result from this service. Local service may also be advised depending on the results of the troubleshooting done such as Your need to obtain recovery media or parts to resolve the issue. Such situations are considered valid and chargeable support and will not be eligible for a refund of services purchased in part or whole. We do not provide warranty support or refund for customers that have warranty with other companies/agencies.

Refunds of other services will only be considered under the following conditions:
1) The service was not used and a refund is requested within 15 days from date of purchase the refund will be granted. No refunds will be given for unused Services requested after 15 days from date of purchase.
2) If We determine that the service provided by the technician(s), was not proper for the issue presented, and would not have contributed to a resolution of the issue or issues.
3) If an issue is considered out of scope by us. If You call Sutherland requesting a refund for a Service for which a refund will be considered, and You then decide to use the Service before the refund is processed receiving technical support of any kind, You are documenting by Your use of said support the request is then deemed null and void indicating Your satisfaction with the Service and its Terms.

AAny refunds exclusive to the single (1) issue plan, at the judgment of Sutherland are handled on a case by case basis depending on the circumstances of Your support sessions. At the discretion of Sutherland, for the five (5) and fifteen (15) issue plans an issue may be credited back for further use in lieu of any refund. No refunds will be granted after the use of two (2) or more issues. If a single issue has been used, and a refund considered, the maximum refund that will be given will be the purchase price of the plan less $99.99, the cost of a single issue as these plans represent part of a multiunit package of issues sold at a lower price-per-issue to the Consumer than a single issue and are not intended to be divided by the whole package to determine the retail value of an issue when considering a refund.

Monthly Subscriptions can be cancelled at any time via phone (877) 526-4466. If terminated within the early termination period, early termination fee would be applicable. The early termination period is defined as the first 6 months of the subscription offering being purchased. If terminated within 6 months from the date of purchase, early termination fee of $20 would be applicable. In the event the service is cancelled after the early termination period, the customer will be eligible for services up to the period of time that has been determined to have been paid for prior to cancellation.

Failure to maintain a valid card or failure to provide a non-expired card prior to expiration of the card on file may result in termination and an early termination charge may apply.

Guarantee of Results

Sutherland will use commercially reasonable efforts to assist you in receiving the specific Service you have purchased. However, not all problems can be diagnosed or corrected easily, and some may require you to return your computer to its original state, reload the operating system, application software, reload your personal settings and data, or work with a third-party hardware or software vendor to resolve the problem. In case of a possibility of the above scenarios, sales technician would inform you at the time of purchasing the product. However, not all sales representatives are as skilled as our software technician. If a call back is applicable to the Service purchased, every effort will be made for a Technician to call back at an arranged time. Although We will make every reasonable effort to keep the Service appointment, there is no guarantee that We will be able to do so due to circumstances that may be out of Our control. All Services sold are based on “commercially best effort” support with no guarantee of resolution implied or provided for troubleshooting of computers and other electronic devices.

Definition of Resolution of Issues

All services provided and as described above will be considered as resolved and therefore valid and chargeable under the following conditions:

A Problem (or Issue) will be considered resolved when you receive one of the following: (a) information or service that resolves the Problem or Issue; (b) information on how to obtain a software solution that will resolve the Problem or Issue; (c) notice that the Problem or Issue is caused by a known, unresolved issue or an incompatibility issue; (d) information that the Problem or Issue can be resolved by upgrading to a newer release of a product; (e) notice that the Problem or Issue has been identified as a hardware equipment issue; or (f) you cannot, or elect not to, pursue the course of action we recommend.

Privacy& Data Protection

When You request Our Services, the following information will be collected and sent from Your personal computer to Sutherland’s via an Internet connection:

• The information entered by You into to Sutherland’s online interface when requesting the Services;
• The type and version of operating system and Internet browser used by Your personal computer.
• The hardware that you have connected with Your personal computer
• The application, software and tools that you have on Your personal computer.

During Your Services session, the following information may be collected and sent to Sutherland via secured connection or from the computer on which the Support Tool or software is installed:

• Installed hardware and peripherals
• Installed Operating System
• Installed programs and active processes information; and
• Application log file information and registry data.
• Browser information including security and temporary file settings;
• System information related tthe operating system, memory and disk space, proxy configuration, and directory listings for the Support Tool or software;
• The security status (good/fair/poor) of the computer as determined by the Support Tool or software.
• The number of files scanned, threats found, and threats fixed by the Support Tool or software;
• The type of threats found;
• The number and type of threats remaining that have not been fixed by the Support Tool or software;
• Whether a firewall is active;
• Whether antivirus software is installed, running, and up to date;

The collected information as set out above is necessary for the purpose of analysing, diagnosing, resolving the problem You have encountered, and optimizing the functionality of to Sutherland’s products. The information may be transferred to the Sutherland in the United States or other countries that may have less protective data protection laws than the region in which You are situated (including the European Union), but to Sutherland has taken steps so that the collected information, if transferred, receives an adequate level of protection.

Sutherland may disclose the collected information if asked to do so by a law enforcement official as required or permitted by law or in response to a subpoena or other legal process. In order to promote awareness, detection and prevention of Internet security risks, Sutherland may share certain information with research organizations and other security software vendors. Sutherland may also use statistics derived from the information to track and publish reports on security risk trends.

Both parties (Sutherland/AnswersBy and Customer) agree that under this Agreement: 1), all information exchanged will be considered to be non-confidential. If either Party requires the exchange of confidential information, it will be made under a signed confidentiality agreement; and 2) any information disclosed or provided to Sutherland/AnswersBy, over the telephone or electronically is not customer proprietary information.

Sutherland/AnswersBy and their related companies will process, store and use information about the Customer’s transaction and contact information, including name, phone numbers, address, and e-mail addresses, to process and fulfil any transaction. We may also contact the Customer to notify of any safety issue or service actions. Where permissible under local law, we may use this information to inquire about Customer satisfaction with our products or services or provide the Customer with information about other products and services and, if we do so, The Customer may at any time decline to receive any further such communications from Sutherland/AnswersBy.

Termination of Service

You agree that Sutherland, in its sole discretion, may terminate Your account (or any part thereof) if Sutherland believes that You have violated or acted inconsistently with the letter or spirit of these Terms and Conditions. We reserve the right to refuse, suspend or terminate any of Our Services to any user at Our sole discretion, without notice. These reasons include but are not limited to such occurrences as using a computer system fraudulently, illegally, or for propagating libellous or otherwise defamatory, obscene, pornographic, abusive, harassing or threatening material.

Complaint Resolution Policy

We will respond to any complaint within five (5) business days of receipt and will address and resolve any complaint within that timeframe. In the event We cannot reach a satisfactory resolution, We will use third-party dispute resolution services. We believe in customer satisfaction and will take the necessary steps to provide You with a fair, timely and effective means to resolve problems with any transaction within Our Established Terms.

Fair Use Policy:

To protect AnswersBy against extreme cases of abuse, AnswersBy Support reserves its right to cancel your subscription at any time and at its discretion. Each subscription would be entitled for a maximum of 12 incidents per quarter post which support can be provided at AnswersBy discretion.

Limitation of Liability

IN NO EVENT SHALL SUTHERLAND, ITS SUPPLIERS, AND REFERRAL PARTNERS OR ANY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OR CONTENT OR SERVICE PROVIDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES OF ANY KIND OR NATURE, WHETHER FROM CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), MISPRESENTATION, STRICT LIABILITY OR ANY OTHER LEGAL OR EQUITABLE THEORY, ARISING FROM DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY RELATED TO THE USE OF, OR THE INABILITY TO USE, THE SERVICES, SOFTWARE, CONTENT OR YOUR PERSONAL COMPUTER AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOST SALES, LOST REVENUE, LOST PROFITS OR OTHER LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF OR DAMAGE TO DATA, OR COST OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES EVEN IF ANSWERSBY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE TOTAL LIABILITY OF ANSWERSBY, ITS SUPPLIERS, AND REFERRAL PARTNERS TO YOU IN THE AGGREGATE FOR ANY AND ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND CAUSES OF ACTION (WHETHER IN CONTRACT OR TORT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING FROM THE TERMS OR YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES, SOFTWARE OR CONTENT EXCEEDS THE GREATER OF THE AMOUNT PAID FOR THE SERVICES AT ISSUE.