Terms of Use

Last updated: 13 November 2026 · Version 1.9

Adopt.me is operated and supported by BuxUp Limited. BuxUp Limited is a company registered in England and Wales, company number 05974418. Registered office: 318 Old Street, London, England, EC1V 9DR. Contact: contact@adopt.me. Official company record.

Current service: this release is a demonstration. Animal listings, product offers, prices, applications, orders, referrals and administration shown in the demo are examples. No adoption is arranged, no payment is charged and no purchase-related charity transfer is made through this demo. These Terms govern your actual use of the website; simulated actions do not create real purchases or adoption agreements.

1. Using adopt.me

You may browse these Terms before using the service. Use the website lawfully and respect animal welfare, other users and the privacy of people appearing in listings. You must be at least 18 and legally able to contract to create a live account, submit an adoption application or make a purchase when those features are enabled. Children should browse with a responsible adult. No paid service is created merely by browsing.

Use fictional information in demonstration forms. Keep any live account credentials secure, provide accurate information and tell us promptly about suspected misuse. Do not impersonate another person, introduce malware, circumvent security, harvest personal data, submit scams or manipulate reviews, referrals or the charity ledger.

2. Animals, listings and adoption

Animals are living beings, not shop merchandise. A listing or application does not reserve an animal or guarantee adoption. The responsible shelter or lawful rehomer makes adoption decisions, conducts appropriate checks and enters any written adoption agreement directly with the adopter. A listing owner must have authority to rehome the animal and accurately describe its location, care needs, health information, fees and permitted adoption area. We do not certify user-supplied veterinary information.

Adopters must assess suitability, housing permission, ongoing costs and care obligations, and obtain professional advice where needed. Restricted species, birds of prey, exotic animals and cross-border movements may require licences or other permissions. Do not use the site for illegal trade or to evade animal-welfare, wildlife or import rules. International transport is not included unless separately and lawfully agreed.

3. Shop, prices and payments

The current catalog and generated product pictures illustrate concepts, not exact stock or verified product specifications. USD is the demo base currency; EUR and GBP displays use a dated reference exchange rate and are estimates. A bank or payment provider may use a different rate or charge fees.

Before any real sale is enabled, the seller, final charge currency, total price including applicable taxes and delivery, product specifications, availability, delivery arrangements and cancellation/returns information must be displayed before you commit. A real order would be accepted only through an express order acceptance, not merely an automated acknowledgement. These Terms do not remove statutory rights concerning satisfactory quality, description, faulty goods, cancellation or refunds. No cancellation fee or limitation stated here overrides mandatory consumer rights.

4. Contributions to animal charities

For a live eligible retail sale under the advertised programme, the business contribution is 10% of product sales after discounts, excluding taxes and delivery charges and adjusted for refunds and cancellations. Processing costs do not reduce that calculation. It is paid by the business, without an additional charity surcharge to the customer. Buying a product is not itself a tax-deductible donation and does not create a charitable donation receipt.

The organisations listed on this release are suggested recipients with official website information, not confirmed adopt.me partners. A demo recipient selection records a preference only. Beneficiary allocation and transfer schedules must be established and disclosed before live sales under the programme. Stripe checkout does not automatically split funds with charities.

5. Care providers and guidance

Directory entries in the demo are illustrative unless expressly identified otherwise. Veterinary care, grooming, boarding, walking, sitting, training, burial and other services are supplied by the relevant independent provider, under its own terms. Confirm credentials, suitability, local availability, coverage, exclusions, fees and cancellation arrangements directly. A listing, link or referral does not guarantee quality or imply endorsement. We will identify any paid referral or commercial placement if introduced.

General care guidance and the assistant preview are not veterinary diagnosis, emergency care or legal advice. Seek an appropriate professional; contact a local emergency veterinarian for urgent animal-health concerns. No autonomous adoption decisions or live AI provider are enabled in this release.

6. Comments, uploads and community conduct

Only submit material you have permission to use. Do not post confidential details, home addresses, phone numbers, abuse, harassment, discriminatory attacks, unlawful content, advertising scams or misleading claims. Keep application details in the designated private flow, not public comments. Comments are moderated and may be withheld or removed for these reasons. Explain a concern or appeal a moderation decision by emailing contact@adopt.me.

You retain ownership of your submissions. To operate the requested service, you grant BuxUp Limited a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to store, reproduce, format and display them to the intended audience, and to allow necessary hosting providers to do so on our behalf. This is limited to operating and maintaining the service; it does not transfer ownership or grant an unrelated advertising right. Deletion may be subject to necessary backup, security, evidence or legal retention explained in the Privacy Policy.

7. Our content and automated access

Our branding, software and original content are protected by applicable intellectual-property rights. Third-party photographs remain subject to their owners’ rights and attribution requirements. Generated images are illustrative and do not prove product features. You may use public agent catalogs for lawful browsing and comparison, respecting published access documentation and applicable licences. Do not bypass access controls or attempt to retrieve private applications, messages, uploads, order records or CRM data. An agent needs the user’s specific authority for any real transaction; public catalog text is not permission to act.

8. Privacy, cookies and external services

The Privacy Policy explains personal-data use. The Cookies Policy and Privacy choices explain storage and optional consent. Browsing or agreeing to these Terms does not constitute consent to optional tracking. Sharing links and third-party donation or provider links open an external service under its own terms. We do not control those services or send private application text through the share buttons.

9. Availability, suspension and responsibility

We use reasonable care and skill in providing the website but cannot promise uninterrupted availability, an adoption match or the accuracy of third-party statements. We may make proportionate changes or restrict access to address security, misuse, legal requirements or serious breaches. Where reasonably practicable, we will explain a restriction and give a route to raise an error. This does not prevent a lawful privacy request.

Nothing excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, or any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded. For consumers, we remain responsible for losses that are a foreseeable result of our breach or failure to use reasonable care and skill. We do not exclude mandatory remedies. We are not a party to a separate shelter, provider or charity contract unless we expressly say otherwise.

10. English law and exclusive jurisdiction

These Terms and any dispute or claim arising from or connected with them, including non-contractual disputes or claims, are governed exclusively by the law of England and Wales. Subject to the consumer protections below, the courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction.

Mandatory consumer protections: if you are a consumer, this choice does not deprive you of protections that cannot be excluded by agreement under the law applicable where you habitually live. Where mandatory jurisdiction rules give you the right to bring proceedings in the courts of your home country or another competent court, that right is preserved; we will bring proceedings against you only where applicable law permits. This includes applicable rights of consumers in Scotland, Northern Ireland, the EU and other markets. The clause does not restrict complaints to a privacy regulator or another competent authority. Rome I, Article 6; Brussels I bis, consumer jurisdiction provisions.

11. Changes, complaints and contact

We may update these Terms for changes to the service or law, show the revision date and give appropriate notice of material changes. New terms will not retrospectively remove rights in an existing contract. If a term is unenforceable, the remaining terms continue so far as lawful. Failure to enforce a term immediately does not waive it. The English version is authoritative, subject to any mandatory local-language requirements.

Send questions, complaints or legal notices to contact@adopt.me or our registered office above. Please identify the relevant page or order without emailing payment-card details or unnecessary sensitive information.