1. Overview and Important Definitions
The eplcr.com World Wide Web site (site), and the Services provided in connection therewith (the Services) are owned, operated and maintained, as applicable, by epl (we, our or us). By (1) using or accessing the site or the Services; or (2) paying for someone else to use or access the site or the Services, you agree to the terms and conditions set forth below (Terms). If you do not agree with these Terms, neither you nor your designee or giftee may access, or use (as applicable), the site, or the Services. For the purposes of this agreement, you means a parent or guardian who pays for access to the Services as well as the student who accesses or uses the Services. If you are a parent, guardian, or other person who enables a child to access the Services, you agree to stand in the shoes of such child for the purposes of making us whole in case of damages or indemnification that could properly lie against a child, if not for his or her age.
If someone else is paying for (or authorizing) your tutoring account, you agree to print this document and give it to them.
We reserve the right to make changes to these Terms at any time. Any such modifications will become effective immediately upon posting to the site and your continued use of the site and/or Services constitutes your agreement to such modifications. You agree to periodically review the current version of these Terms as posted on the site.
2. Services
Through our Services, site and on-site tutoring, we enable users to connect with tutors (‘Tutors’) who provide live, one-to-one instruction or small group sessions, tutoring and learning Services in an agreed-upon online platform such as Skype™ or in our facilities (Tutoring Sessions). The Services include, without limitation, keeping track of users’ Tutors, matching users with the best available Tutors, facilitating Tutoring Sessions, and taking feedback from users.
You are solely responsible for all transportation, service, telephony and/or other fees and costs associated with your access to and use of the Services and for obtaining and maintaining all telephone, computer hardware and other equipment required for such access and use.
The Services are currently available approximately 300 days of each year, prior arrangement with the corresponding tutor. The Services are unavailable on New Year’s Day, Christmas Day, and other Costa Rican national holidays as will be announced on our social media channels.
3. Privacy Policy
We are concerned about privacy and your privacy while accessing the site and using the Services. Please review our Privacy Policy on the site.
4. Registration Obligations
To use the Services, you will need to register on the site, by telephone, or in person at our office. When you register, the information you provide to us during the registration process will help us in offering content, customer service, and network management. You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account(s), username(s) and contact information and for all activities and liabilities associated with or occurring under your account(s), username(s) and contact information. You must notify us immediately of any unauthorized use of your account(s), username(s) or contact information and any other breach of security, and (b) ensure that you exit from your account(s) at the end of each session. We cannot and will not be responsible for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with this requirement or as a result of use of your account(s), username(s) or contact information, either with or without your knowledge. However, you could be held liable for losses incurred by us or another party due to someone else using your account(s), username(s) or contact information.
In cases where you have authorized or registered another individual, including a minor, to use your account(s), you are fully responsible for (i) the online conduct of such user; (ii) controlling the user’s access to and use of the Services; and (iii) the consequences of any misuse. In the event that you permit a minor to use your account(s), we reserve the right to provide access to your account(s) and all information contained therein to such minor’s parents, guardians or other authorized adults, including, but not limited to, authorized school representatives. (An exception to this is that we will never share your credit card information.) For additional information on how we use your information, please see our Privacy Policy. Your obligations with respect to registration are described below.
In consideration of your use of the Services, you agree to (a) provide true, accurate, current and complete information about yourself as prompted by the Service’s registration form (such information being “Your Data”), (b) maintain and promptly update Your Data to keep it true, accurate, current and complete; and (c) comply with these Terms of Use. If you provide any information that is untrue, inaccurate, not current or incomplete, or if we believe that such information is untrue, inaccurate, not current or incomplete, we reserve the right to suspend or terminate and refuse any and all current or future use of the Services, or any portion thereof. You agree not to use the site, the Services or the Company Content (as defined below) to recruit, solicit, or contact in any form Tutors or potential Consumers for employment or contracting for a business not affiliated with us without our advance written permission.
If you reside outside Costa Rica or the United States, your registration indicates your explicit consent that the personal information you have provided may be transferred and stored in countries outside your home country—including Costa Rica and the United States. Your personal information shall only be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
5. User Content
Any materials, information, communications or ideas that you upload, communicate or otherwise transmit or post to us, the site, the Tutors or the Services by any means (“User Content”) will be treated as non-confidential and nonproprietary, and may be disseminated or used by us for any purpose whatsoever, including, but not limited to, quality control and professional development, as well as our developing, and marketing our current and/or future Services. By uploading or otherwise making available any User Content, you automatically grant and/or warrant that the owner has granted to us the perpetual royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide right and license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, distribute, perform, display, and transmit the User Content for any purpose, with the exception of academic source materials such as textbooks and workbooks, which you assert you are entitled to upload under the “fair use” doctrine of copyright law. In addition, if you request that our system display a representation of a page or problem from a textbook or workbook, you expressly warrant that you are in proper legal possession of such a textbook and that your instruction to our system to display a page or problem from your textbook is made for the sole purpose of facilitating your tutoring session, as a classic example of “fair use” under copyright law.
You agree that we may record all or any part of any Tutoring Sessions (including voice chat communications) for quality control and other purposes. We reserve the right to review the Tutoring Sessions for any purpose. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary above, you agree that we own all transcripts and recordings of Tutoring Sessions and that these Terms shall be deemed an irrevocable assignment of all such transcripts and recordings, each portion thereof and all intellectual property rights therein to us. You also hereby grant to us the perpetual royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide right and license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, distribute, perform, display, and transmit for any purpose all comments that you may provide to us on or through the site, the Services or any other means, including comments provided as a part of user satisfaction or other similar surveys.
6. Copyright
You acknowledge that the Services, and all other designs, materials, information, communications, text, graphics, electronic art, animations, illustrations, artwork, audio clips, video clips, photos, images, tutoring session data and other data or copyrightable materials, including the selection and arrangements thereof, provided or made available to you in connection with the site or the Services (collectively, the “Company Content”) are the proprietary works of us and/or our affiliated and/or third party providers and suppliers (Third Parties) and are protected, without limitation, pursuant to U.S. and foreign copyright laws. Except as expressly authorized by us or in these Terms, you may not copy, reproduce, publish, perform, distribute, disseminate, broadcast, circulate, modify, create derivative works of, rent, lease, sell, assign, sublicense, otherwise transfer, display, transmit, compile or collect in a database, or in any manner commercially exploit the site, Company Content or the Services, in whole or in part. You may not store any significant portion of any Company Content or the Services in any form, whether archival files, computer-readable files or any other medium. You may not “mirror” any Company Content or the Services on any server. Any unauthorized or prohibited use of the Company Content, the site or the Services may subject the offender to civil liability and criminal prosecution under applicable federal and state laws.
You may download and print a reasonable number of copies of documentation provided or available in connection with the Company Content for your own noncommercial personal or educational use only and we grant you a limited, non-perpetual, revocable, nontransferable, non-assignable, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to access and utilize the Services, the Software and the other Company Content for your own noncommercial personal or educational purposes while these Terms are in full force and effect; provided that (i) any permitted copies of documentation provided or available in connection with the Company Content contained, in an unmodified form, (a) all language designations contained in the materials originally provided to you by us indicating the confidential nature thereof and (b) all copyright or other proprietary rights notices contained in the materials originally provided to you by us and an original source attribution to us and/or the applicable Third Parties; and (ii) you will not modify of any of the Company Content except as approved by us in advance in writing. You acknowledge that we and/or Third Parties, as applicable, hold all right, title and interest in and to all tangible and intangible aspects of the Company Content, the site and the Services, including without limitation, all patents, copyrights and trade secrets pertaining thereto, and that, except for the limited rights set forth above, you do not acquire any intellectual property right or license in any of the foregoing by downloading or printing the Company Content or otherwise, including without limitation, by accessing or using the site, the Company Content or the Services. The rights granted to you herein are revocable by us in accordance with these Terms.
7. Confidential Information
You agree to safeguard the Company Content and the Services (collectively, Proprietary Information) and to prevent the unauthorized, negligent or inadvertent use or disclosure thereof. You will not, without our prior written approval, directly or indirectly, use or disclose the Proprietary Information to any person or business entity. You agree to promptly notify us in writing of any use or disclosure of Proprietary Information in violation of these Terms. You acknowledge that the use or disclosure of the Proprietary Information in any manner inconsistent with these Terms will cause us irreparable damage and that we will have the right to (i) equitable and injunctive relief to prevent such prohibited use or disclosure, and (ii) recover the amount of all damages (including attorneys fees and expenses) in connection with such prohibited use or disclosure.
8. Links
The site or the Services may provide links to non-eplcr.com World Wide Web sites or resources (Third Party Sites). This may include Tutors sending links to Third Party Sites and/or causing Third Party Sites (such as study resources or online education pages) to pop-up for your review. Because we have no control over Third Party Sites, you acknowledge and agree that we are not responsible for the availability of Third Party Sites, and do not endorse and are not responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products, Services or other materials on or available from Third Party Sites. You further acknowledge and agree that we shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such content, advertising, products, Services or other materials available on or through any Third Party Sites or for any mistakes, defamation, libel, slander, omissions, falsehoods, obscenity, pornography, or profanity contained therein.
9. Conduct, Fraud, and Consequences of Fraud
You may only access the site and use the Company Content and the Services for lawful purposes. You are solely responsible for the knowledge of and adherence to any and all laws, rules, and regulations pertaining to your use of the Services. You shall not upload to, distribute through, or otherwise publish through the site or the Services any content that you do not have the right to transmit or that is libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, threatening, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, abusive, illegal, otherwise objectionable, or that could constitute or encourage a criminal offense, violate the rights of any party, or otherwise give rise to liability or violate any law. You agree that you will not in any way: (i) interfere with the ability of others to access or use the Services; (ii) disrupt the normal flow of communication or otherwise act in a manner that negatively affects other users’ ability to use the site or the Services; (iii) claim a relationship with or to speak for any individual, business, association, institution, or other organization for which you are not authorized to claim such a relationship; or (vi) interfere with or disrupt the Services or servers or networks connected to the Services, or disobey any requirements, procedures, policies, or regulations of networks connected to the Services. You agree that you will treat the tutors with respect and not use obscenities in the classroom, make threats, or discuss matters other than those directly related to the academic subject for which you seek help. You agree that you will not disclose any information to a Tutor that could be considered personally identifiable information including your full name, address, telephone number, email address, social security number, password or any other information that could be used to identify or locate you. A violation of this agreement may lead to a suspension of your account. Similarly, you agree that you will not solicit any such information from any tutor, and agree that if any tutor ever discloses such information to you, asks you for any personal information, or suggests any offline meeting or conversation, you agree to immediately report this to us by phone and in writing.
You acknowledge that we may screen User Content, and that we shall have the right (but not the obligation), in our sole discretion, to remove any User Content, including terminating tutoring sessions. Without limiting the foregoing, we have the right to remove any User Content that violates these Terms or is otherwise objectionable. You agree and acknowledge that we may preserve User Content and may disclose User Content if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that any such preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to comply with legal process, enforce these Terms, respond to claims that any User Content violates the rights of third parties or protect our rights, property or personal safety or that of our users and the public.
You agree that if you defraud or access our system (or Tutors) through any method that is in any way improper, attempt to do so, or allow anyone else to do so, you will immediately pay us $60 per hour, plus all costs we incur related to detecting and investigating your improper action(s), for each hour (or part thereof) that you (a) obtain improperly, (b) use, and/or (c) allow anyone else to use.
You agree that our cost of investigation will always be a minimum of $250 and will include inside and outside attorney and paralegal time and related fees, as well as the fees of private and forensic investigators and all court and other costs associated with collecting the amounts you owe, such as the costs related to requesting subpoenas from courts and then serving those subpoenas on you as well as serving them on Internet Service Providers, phone companies, schools, and other persons or organizations that we feel may be able to assist with our investigation.
For the purposes of this document, defrauding our system means using our Services in any manner other than by following our defined procedures and then paying for the tutoring you receive.
Examples of improper access include (but are not limited to) using any means to circumvent our registration or payment systems, hacking our system in any way, using our Services when you have been notified that your permission to use them has been revoked, sharing your account information or anyone else’s account information with a third party (regardless of whether the particular third party can be identified). Improper access also includes using any artifice or method (such as using multiple email accounts, cell phone numbers, and/or credit card numbers) to attempt to avoid paying for service.
Further, you explicitly agree that if you have at any time provided us with a valid credit card number for any reason, including initial authorization of your account, you hereby explicitly agree that we have your approval to charge your card for the full amount of the time you obtained improperly, plus a minimum of $250 towards our costs.
10. Disclaimer of Warranty; Limitations
The company content, the site, the Services and each portion thereof are provided “as is” without warranties of any kind either express or implied. To the fullest extent possible pursuant to applicable law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, with respect to the site, the company content, the Services and each portion thereof, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement or other violation of rights. We do not warrant or make any representations regarding the use, validity, accuracy, or reliability of, or the results of the use of, or otherwise respecting, the company content, the site, the Services, each portion thereof or any third party sites.
Under no circumstances, including, but not limited to, negligence, shall we or third parties be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages, including, but not limited to, loss of data or profit, arising out of the use, or the inability to use, the company content, the site, the Services or any portion thereof, even if we or our authorized representative has been advised of the possibility of such damages. If your use of the site, the company content, the Services or any portion thereof results in the need for servicing, repair or correction of equipment or date, you assume any costs thereof. Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you. Neither we, nor third parties warrant the accuracy or completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained in the company content, the site, the Services or any portion thereof or in any reports of verification services. You agree not to hold us (or our agents, employees or tutors) liable for any instruction, advice or Services delivered which originated through the site, through any verification service or in connection with the company content, the Services or any portion thereof.
11. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless us, and our affiliates, officers, directors, agents, partners, employees, licensors, representatives and third party providers (including our affiliates’ respective officers, directors, agents, partners, employees, licensors, representatives, and third party providers), from and against all losses, expenses, damages, costs, claims and demands, including reasonable attorney’s fees and related costs and expenses, due to or arising out of any User Content you submit, post to, email, or otherwise transmit to us or through the Services, your use of the Services, the Company Content or any portion thereof, your connection to the Services, or your breach of these Terms. We reserve the right, at our own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, and in such case, you agree to fully cooperate with such defense and in asserting any available defenses
12. Trademark Notice
The trademarks, service marks, and logos (the “Trademarks”) used and displayed on the site or in any Company Content are registered and unregistered Trademarks of us and others and are protected, without limitation, pursuant to U.S. and foreign trademark laws. Nothing on the site, the Services or otherwise should be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel, or otherwise, any license or right to use any Trademark displayed on the site or in connection with the Services or Company Content without the written permission of the applicable Trademark owner. We aggressively enforce our intellectual property rights to the fullest extent of the law. You may not use the Trademarks, either ours or others, in any way without the prior written permission of the applicable Trademark owner. We prohibit use of our logo as a “hot” link to any other World Wide Web site unless approved by us in advance in writing.
13. Copyrights and Copyright Agents
We respect the intellectual property of others, and we ask our users to do the same. If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, or your intellectual property rights have been otherwise violated, please provide our Copyright Agent (identified below) a notice with the following information:
A. an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright or other intellectual property interest;
B. a description of the copyrighted work or other intellectual property that you claim has been infringed;
C. a description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the site;
D. your address, telephone number, and email address;
E. a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;
F. and f. a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice to us is accurate and that you are the copyright or intellectual property owner or authorized to act on the copyright or intellectual property owner’s behalf.
Our Copyright Agent for notice of claims of copyright or other intellectual property infringement can be reached as follows:
By mail: Silvia Quiros, Copyright Agent
Einstein Prep and Learning Ltda.
409-1250
Escazu – San Jose
COSTA RICA
By email: silviaq@eplcr.com
14. Local Laws; Export Control
Recognizing the global nature of the Internet, you agree to comply with all local rules including, without limitation, rules about the Internet, data or privacy. Specifically, you agree to comply with all applicable laws regarding the transmission of technical data exported from Costa Rica, the United States or the country in which you reside. In addition, if you reside in a country which is prohibited by law, regulation, treaty or administrative act from entering into trade relations with the United States or its citizens, you may not use this Site. Such countries may include Cuba, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Serbia, Syria and Sudan, and it is your responsibility to ensure that you comply with U.S. law in this regard.
15. Modifications to the Service
We may add, change or eliminate features, pricing, nomenclature and other aspects of the Services and make other changes at any time and these Terms will continue to apply to the Services as modified. We reserve the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the site or the Services (or any part thereof) with or without notice. You agree that we will not be liable to you or to any third party for any such modification, suspension, or discontinuance of the site or the Services.
16. Termination
We may terminate these Terms by providing the other with notice of such termination, which shall be effective immediately upon delivery of such notice to the other party. We may terminate these Terms immediately without notice for any breach by you of these Terms or any of our applicable policies, as posted on the site from time to time. Furthermore, we may terminate these Terms without notice to you by terminating your rights to use the site or the Services for any reason or no reason. In the event of termination or expiration of these Terms, the following sections of these Terms shall survive: all provisions regarding ownership of intellectual property, indemnification, disclaimer of warranties and limitations of liability, Consequences of Improper Conduct, Fraud or Abuse, the provisions of this section which, by their nature apply after termination, and the General provisions below. All licenses granted under these Terms terminate immediately at the end of your Service period, unless you pay any applicable service fees. You agree that upon the termination of these Terms, we may delete all information related to you on the Services and may bar your access to the Services. Upon the termination of these Terms you will immediately destroy any downloaded or printed Company Content.
17. General
These Terms and any policies applicable to you posted on the site constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersede all previous written or oral agreements between the parties with respect to such subject matter. All rights not expressly granted herein are expressly reserved. These Terms shall inure to our benefit and to the benefit of our agents, licensors, licensees, successors, and assigns. If any provision of these Terms is found to be illegal or unenforceable, these Terms will be deemed curtailed to the extent necessary to make the Terms legal and enforceable and will remain, as modified, in full force and effect. These Terms and all matters or issues collateral thereto will be governed by, construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Costa Rica applicable to contracts executed and performed entirely therein (without regard to any principles of conflict of laws). Furthermore, all legal actions concerning transactions on this site must be brought in an appropriate court within and belonging to the jurisdiction of the Republic of Costa Rica. Any notice or other communication to be given hereunder will be in writing and given by facsimile, postpaid registered or certified mail return receipt requested, or electronic mail. Nothing in these Terms shall be construed as making either party the partner, joint venture, agent, legal representative, employer, contractor or employee of the other. Neither party shall have, or hold itself out to any third party as having, any authority to make any statements, representations or commitments of any kind, or to take any action that shall be binding on the other except as provided for herein or authorized in writing by the party to be bound.
18. Payment and Billing
(a) Payment – We make certain products and Services available to visitors and registrants of eplcr.com. You agree to pay all fees, plus applicable sales tax, for any purchases you make concurrent with the Services you recive. If your payment method is declined and you receive the products and/or Services, you agree to pay all amounts due upon demand by us. If you have not yet received the products and/or Services, we will cancel your order. Certain products that you purchase may be subject to additional terms and conditions presented to you at the time of such purchase.
(b) Billing – When you select an online or on-site tutoring plan (“Plan”), we immediately charge the applicable fee to your credit card, or other accepted payment method, and deposit into your account the number of hours that correspond to your Plan.
The hour(s) we place in your account are available for tutoring sessions until these hours are exhausted. You may purchase additional hour(s) at the current applicable rates. You can cancel your Plan at any time. If you cancel your Plan, any remaining hours are available for use at a later date, provided that hourly rates remain unchanged.
You authorize us to charge the payment method we have on file, regardless of whether the information associated with such payment method has changed, including but not limited to the expiration date of a physical card. We may receive updated information about your payment method from the issuing financial institution. You agree to pay all fees and charges incurred in connection with your account (including any applicable taxes) at the rates in effect when the charges were incurred. You agree to pay all amounts due upon our demand. In the event we request a third party to collect unpaid amounts that you owe us, you will be liable for all of our attorneys’ and/or collection agency fees.
19. Satisfaction Guarantee
While we hope that you will be completely satisfied with our Service, and we are proud that more than 90% of our students are admitted into one of their top choice schools, we know that occasionally you may have an unsatisfactory experience.
If you do have an unsatisfactory session, please let us know about your experience so that we may investigate and hopefully improve our service. To report an unsatisfactory session you may call us during business hours at +506 2208-8973, or you may email us at info@eplcr.com.
Please remember that our tutors will not give answers to questions! They will only help you understand how you can solve problems for yourself. Accordingly, we do not give credit for sessions in which a student demands that a tutor provide the answer.
20. Cancellation Policy
We have a strictly enforced 24-hour cancellation and rescheduling policy. Any appointment missed, cancelled late or changed less than 24 hours in advance of the scheduled class time, will result in a charge equal to 100% of the service amount. The appointment will be deducted from the package or charged individually.
21. Refund Policy
If you feel entitled to a refund (for example, you consider that the service you paid for was not provided), you may request such a refund by sending us a detailed e-mail at info@eplcr.com explaining the basis for your request. We will review all refund requests on a case-by-case basis and reserve the right to decline any refund which in our sole discretion lacks substantive merit.
If a refund is approved, the refund will normally be paid back to you in the same manner in which payment was made to epl. For example, if payment to epl was made by credit card, then the refund will accordingly be credited to your credit/debit card, barring unforeseen obstacles.
22. Governing Law, Personal Jurisdiction, and Venue
The laws of the Republic of Costa Rica will govern these Terms of Use, as well as any claim that might arise between you and us, without regard to any conflict of law provisions. All parties to these terms of use waive their respective rights to a trial by jury. The exclusive means of resolving any dispute or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms of Use (including any alleged breach thereof) or eplcr.com shall be binding arbitration administered by the Centro de Conciliación y Arbitraje” operated by the Costa Rican Chamber of Commerce (Cámara de Comercio de Costa Rica). You may not under any circumstances commence or maintain against the Company any class action, class arbitration, or other representative action or proceeding. Any proceeding to enforce this arbitration agreement, including any proceeding to confirm, modify, or vacate an arbitration award, may be commenced in any court of competent jurisdiction. In the event that this arbitration agreement is for any reason held to be unenforceable, any litigation against eplcr.com be commenced only in the federal or state courts located in Costa Rica. You hereby irrevocably consent to the jurisdiction of those courts for such purposes.
