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Terms and Conditions

Effective date: November 2, 2026

Please read these Terms carefully. They are a legal agreement between you and DesiDots (“we”, “us”). They cover your use of the DesiDots mobile app and website (the “Service”). They contain an agreement to resolve disputes by individual arbitration and a waiver of class actions (section 20). By creating an account, placing an order, or using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy, Refund and Cancellation Policy and Shipping Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. What DesiDots is, and is not

DesiDots is an online marketplace for the South Asian community in the USA. It lists stores in the USA and in India, community events and tickets, and directories of professionals such as lawyers, tax professionals and wedding vendors.

  • We are a platform. Products are sold by independent sellers (“Vendors”). When you buy a product, the sale is between you and the Vendor. We collect your payment as the Vendor’s payment agent and pass the order to the Vendor. We do not make, pack, inspect, store or ship Vendor products.
  • Directory listings are information only. The directories (for example photographers, wedding vendors, lawyers and tax professionals) list independent businesses and people. Some are individuals or small businesses that may not be registered companies. We do not check registration, licences, insurance, qualifications or past work unless a listing says “Verified”, and “Verified” is not a guarantee of their work. We do not provide legal, tax, financial or other professional advice, and a listing is not an endorsement or a recommendation. We do not charge listed providers for being listed or take a fee from your booking. Contacting a lawyer through the Service does not create a lawyer-client relationship until they agree to act for you. Check a provider’s licence, ask for references and get a written agreement before you pay. Any service you arrange is a separate agreement between you and them, and we are not a party to it and are not responsible for it. If a listing is wrong or out of date, or a provider wants to be changed or removed, email privacy@desidots.com.
  • Events are run by their organisers. The organiser, not DesiDots, is responsible for the event.

2. Eligibility and your account

  • You must be at least 18 years old and able to form a binding contract to create an account or place an order.
  • You sign in with a Google account. Keep it secure. You are responsible for everything done through your account. Tell us at once if you think someone else has used it.
  • Give us true, current information (name, phone number, delivery address). Do not create accounts for others or more than one account for yourself.
  • We may refuse, suspend or close an account where we reasonably believe there is fraud, abuse, a breach of these Terms, or risk to others.
  • You can delete your account at any time (Profile, then “Delete my account”). See Delete your account.

3. Orders and acceptance

  • When you place an order you make an offer to buy. An order is confirmed only when your payment succeeds. An order that is not paid within 45 minutes is cancelled automatically. A payment that reaches us after an order was cancelled is refunded in full.
  • An order contains items from one store only.
  • We or the Vendor may cancel an order, in full or in part, if an item is unavailable, a price or description contains an obvious error, we suspect fraud, or the order breaks these Terms. If we cancel after you have paid, you are refunded for what was cancelled as set out in the Refund and Cancellation Policy.
  • Product descriptions, photos, ingredients and sizes are provided by Vendors. We try to keep them accurate but do not guarantee that they are complete or error-free.

4. Prices, fees and taxes

  • Prices are in US dollars. The total you see at checkout is the total you pay.
  • At checkout you see the item price, the shipping and the total. We add no card processing fee or handling fee. Shipping is set by the Vendor, usually by the weight of your order and your address, and is shown before you pay.
  • Taxes. Prices do not include sales or use taxes unless they are shown. If we are required to collect sales tax on an order, it appears at checkout before you pay. Orders from India must be shipped by the Vendor duty-paid, so you should not be asked to pay import duties on delivery (see the Shipping Policy). If you are, contact us before you pay.
  • Store prices. The Vendor sets the price in US dollars. The price and shipping you see when you place your order is what you pay, and it does not change after the order is placed. A store may have a minimum order, which the cart shows.
  • We may change prices, fees and features at any time. A change does not affect an order you have already paid for.

5. Payment

  • Card payments are processed by Stripe. You authorise us and Stripe to charge the total to your card. We never see or store your full card number.
  • You must have the right to use the payment card. We may hold, delay or refuse an order or payment to protect against fraud.
  • Your card statement. Charges appear as DESIDOTS. If you do not recognise a charge, check your order history in the app or email us before contacting your bank.
  • Disputing a charge. If you have a problem with an order, please contact us first at support@desidots.com. We aim to fix it quickly, and we reply within 24 hours. If you instead dispute the charge with your bank or card company, you agree that we may give them our records of your order, delivery and communications (tracking, delivery confirmation, photos and messages), and we may suspend your account while the dispute is open. Opening a dispute for a charge you know to be valid, or for an order you were already refunded, is a breach of these Terms. To the extent the law allows, if you do that we may recover the amount, any dispute fee our payment provider charges us and our reasonable costs, and close your account.

6. Delivery, risk and problems

  • Vendors ship your order by carrier. Delivery dates are estimates, not promises. See the Shipping Policy.
  • Delivery is complete when the carrier’s tracking shows the parcel was delivered to the address you gave, including when it is left at a door, mailroom, reception or safe place in line with the carrier’s normal practice. Once delivered, loss or theft of the parcel is not the Vendor’s or our responsibility, except where the law says otherwise.
  • Problems with an order (not received, damaged, wrong item, missing items) must be reported within the times set out in the Refund and Cancellation Policy. Keep packaging and take photos.

7. Cancellations and refunds

Our Refund and Cancellation Policy is part of these Terms. In short: you can cancel within 2 hours of paying, if the Vendor has not shipped yet, and after 8 days if it still has not shipped; if a Vendor cannot supply all or part of an order you choose between shipping the rest or cancelling. After the 2 hours, or once an order has shipped, it cannot be cancelled in the app, except as that policy says.

8. Event tickets

  • A ticket is a limited licence to attend one event, not property. Age limits, entry rules and event terms shown on the event page apply, and the organiser may refuse entry for breaking them.
  • Tickets cannot be cancelled or refunded once bought, unless the event is cancelled by its organiser. Refunds are governed by the Refund and Cancellation Policy. If an event is cancelled by its organiser, you are refunded the full ticket price. If it is postponed, your ticket normally stays valid for the new date.
  • Do not resell tickets for more than their price, or copy them.

9. Reviews and content you post

  • After an order is delivered you can rate the store. You can also send us messages, reports and screenshots. Post only honest content about your own experience that you have the right to share. It must not be unlawful, abusive, defamatory, misleading or private information about others.
  • You give us a free, worldwide, non-exclusive licence to host, show and use that content in and for the Service. Reviews are shown with your first name and last initial.
  • We may remove or edit content that breaks these Terms, and we do not promise to display every review. Fake reviews, paid reviews, and attempts to pressure people to change reviews are not allowed.
  • Copyright and other rights. If you believe content on the Service infringes your rights, email support@desidots.com with your name, what the material is and where it appears, a statement that you have a good-faith belief it is unauthorised, and a statement that your information is accurate. We may remove it and close accounts of repeat infringers.

10. Acceptable use

You must not:

  • use the Service for anything unlawful, or to buy or sell prohibited, stolen, counterfeit or unsafe items;
  • place orders you do not intend to pay for or accept, or abuse refunds, promotions or the dispute process;
  • harass, threaten or defraud Vendors, other users or our staff;
  • access accounts or data that are not yours, probe or test the security of the Service, disrupt it, or use bots or scrapers without our written permission;
  • copy, resell, reverse-engineer or build on the Service or its content, except as the law allows;
  • use the Service to send spam or marketing to other users.

11. Food, health and product safety

Vendors, not DesiDots, are responsible for the safety, labelling, ingredients and legality of what they sell. We do not verify allergen, ingredient, nutrition or health information. If you have an allergy or a medical condition, check the product’s own label and ask the Vendor before you buy. Food, herbs and Ayurvedic or cosmetic products are for personal use, and statements about them are not medical advice and have not been evaluated by us.

12. Vendors and third parties

Vendors are independent businesses and are responsible for their products, descriptions, packing, shipping and legal compliance. We are not liable for what Vendors do or fail to do. Links to carriers, tracking pages or other websites are provided for convenience; we do not control them and are not responsible for them.

13. Our rights

The Service, including its design, text, logo, software and data, belongs to us or our licensors and is protected by law. We give you a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable right to use the app for your own non-commercial use in line with these Terms. All other rights are reserved. If you send us feedback or ideas, we may use them freely without paying or crediting you.

14. Electronic communications

You agree that we may contact you electronically (in the app, by notification, or by email) about your account and orders, and that electronic notices satisfy any legal requirement that a notice be in writing. You can turn off non-essential notifications in Profile. We will keep sending messages needed to run your orders and account.

15. Disclaimers

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE”. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT THE LAW ALLOWS, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. We do not promise the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free, that listings are accurate, or that any product, Vendor, event or professional will meet your expectations. Some places do not allow some of these exclusions, so they may not apply to you.

16. Limit of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT THE LAW ALLOWS, DESIDOTS AND ITS OWNERS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES AND PARTNERS ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, DATA OR GOODWILL, ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE, EVEN IF WE WERE TOLD THEY WERE POSSIBLE. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS RELATED TO THE SERVICE IS LIMITED TO THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US FOR THE ORDER THE CLAIM IS ABOUT, AND (B) US$100. We are not liable for losses caused by Vendors, carriers, customs or other authorities, payment providers, or events outside our reasonable control. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited, including for fraud or for death or personal injury caused by negligence.

17. Your responsibility to us

You agree to defend and cover us, our owners, employees and partners against claims, losses and reasonable costs (including legal fees) arising from your breach of these Terms, your content, or your misuse of the Service, to the extent the law allows.

18. Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time. We may suspend or end your access at any time for the reasons in section 2 or if we stop providing the Service. Orders already placed are completed or refunded as set out in our policies. Sections that by their nature should continue (including 5, 9, 12, 15 to 17, 20 and 21) survive.

19. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms. The effective date at the top shows the latest version. For important changes we will tell you in the app or by email at least 14 days before they take effect, except where a change is required by law or to protect the Service. Using the Service after a change means you accept it. If you do not agree, stop using the Service and delete your account.

20. Resolving disputes: informal resolution, then individual arbitration

Please read this section carefully. It affects your legal rights.

  • Talk to us first. Most problems can be solved quickly. Email support@desidots.com with your name, order number and what you want. Both sides will try in good faith to resolve it within 30 days.
  • Arbitration. If it is not resolved, you and DesiDots agree that any dispute or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service will be decided only by final and binding arbitration under the Consumer Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA), and the Federal Arbitration Act applies. Arbitration is on an individual basis. The arbitrator can award the same relief a court could, but only for the individual claimant. Hearings may be held by video, phone or in writing, or in the county where you live. We will pay the AAA fees that go beyond what you would pay to file in court, where the AAA consumer rules require it.
  • No class actions, no jury. To the fullest extent the law allows, you and DesiDots each waive the right to a jury trial and to bring or join any class, collective or representative action. The arbitrator may not combine claims of more than one person.
  • What is not covered. Either side may bring an individual claim in small claims court if it qualifies, and either side may ask a court to stop infringement of intellectual property or misuse of the Service.
  • Opt out. You may opt out of arbitration by emailing support@desidots.com within 30 days of creating your account with the subject “Arbitration opt-out” and your name and account email. If you opt out, disputes go to the courts described in section 21.
  • Time limit. To the fullest extent the law allows, any claim must be started within one year after it arose, or it is barred.
  • If this section is held invalid as to a claim, that claim (and only that claim) goes to court under section 21.

21. Governing law and courts

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Georgia, USA, and the Federal Arbitration Act, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. For disputes that are not sent to arbitration, you and DesiDots submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Cobb County, Georgia, except that you may use small claims court in your own county. If you live outside the USA, your local mandatory consumer rights are not affected.

22. General terms

  • Entire agreement. These Terms, the policies they link to, and any specific terms shown at checkout are the whole agreement between you and us about the Service.
  • If a part is invalid, the rest still applies. If we do not enforce a right, that does not waive it.
  • Assignment. You may not transfer your account or rights. We may transfer ours as part of a business sale or reorganisation.
  • Events outside our control. We are not liable for delay or failure caused by events beyond our reasonable control, such as natural events, carrier or customs delays, strikes, power or internet failures, or acts of government.
  • Notices. We may give you notice by email or in the app. You can give us notice at support@desidots.com.
  • App store terms. If you got the app from Apple or Google, these Terms are between you and us only. Apple and Google are not responsible for the app, its support, or claims about it. They are third-party beneficiaries who can enforce these Terms against you. You must also follow the store’s own terms.
  • No agency. Nothing here makes you our partner, employee or agent, or makes us yours. Vendors are not our employees.

23. Contact

Email: support@desidots.com. Website: https://www.desidots.com
Customer support: https://www.desidots.com/contact/.