Kitchen partner terms

Eat Seaham is a trading name of Accelerated Media UK Limited, a company registered in England and Wales (company number 14817428) with its registered office at Suite 2 Byron House, Hall Dene Way, Seaham Grange Industrial Estate, Seaham, SR7 0PY. Contact: hello@eat-seaham.co.uk.

Eat Seaham provides an online marketplace and ordering tools. We act as your commercial agent only to take orders and payments from customers on your behalf. You are the seller. Each contract for food, and for its delivery, is between you and the customer. We do not prepare, handle, store, package or deliver food, and we do not employ or supply drivers.

You are solely responsible for, and must at your own cost:

• be registered as a food business with your local authority, and keep a current food hygiene rating;
• comply with all food safety, hygiene, labelling, allergen, health and safety, licensing, employment and tax laws;
• keep your menu, prices, descriptions, photos, opening hours and allergen information accurate and up to date at all times;
• prepare every order safely, as described, and on time;
• deliver orders using your own staff or drivers, and make sure every driver is legally entitled to work, properly licensed, and insured (including hire-and-reward / business-use insurance), and that their vehicles are roadworthy;
• hold and maintain suitable insurance, including public and product liability insurance, and give us copies on request;
• deal with customer complaints about food, delivery or your staff and drivers, and provide refunds where the law or these terms require; and
• accept or reject each order promptly, and keep your order printer or dashboard switched on while you are open.

We review every business and every kitchen location before it is listed, and may ask for documents such as insurance and food registration. We may refuse, pause or remove a listing at any time if we reasonably believe it breaches these terms, puts customers at risk, or damages Eat Seaham's reputation.

• Our commission is 5% of each order's food and delivery total, unless we agree a different rate with you in writing. It is taken automatically from each payment. Customers also pay Eat Seaham a 50p service charge per order; this is added to the customer's bill and is not taken from your share. We donate 10% of our commission to The Bradley Lowery Foundation; this does not change what you receive.
• Card processing. Card payments are processed by our payment provider, Stripe. On each order you accept, a card processing fee of 1.5% + 20p of the order's food and delivery total (the same total the commission is worked out on) is also taken automatically from your share. This is Stripe's standard charge for UK cards, passed on at cost: we add nothing to it. We pay the card fee on the customer's service charge and on charity round-ups, and any extra Stripe charges for business, premium or non-UK cards. If Stripe changes its charges, we may change this fee with at least 30 days' written notice.
• The 9% rate applies only if you choose to use our drivers instead of your own. If we agree in writing that our own drivers deliver for one of your kitchens, our commission on that kitchen's delivery orders is 9% of each order's food total (collection orders stay at the normal rate), and the delivery charge the customer pays is ours, to pay the driver. A driver accepts each delivery order before it is sent to you; if no driver is free, the order is cancelled and the customer isn't charged.
• Payments are processed by Stripe. You must open and keep a Stripe account through our onboarding, and accept Stripe's terms. Stripe pays your share to your bank account on its payout schedule. We never hold your bank or card details ourselves.
• A customer's card is charged only when you accept the order. If you reject it, or don't respond in time, the customer is not charged and no fee is due.
• Refunds for problems you caused (for example missing, wrong or unsafe food) are deducted from your share. On a full refund we also give back our commission, but not the card processing fee, because Stripe does not return its fee when a payment is refunded. Chargebacks relating to your orders are your responsibility.
• Our fees are exclusive of VAT, which is added where applicable. You are responsible for your own VAT and tax on your sales.

We give you customers' names, phone numbers, addresses and order notes so you can fulfil their orders. You are an independent controller of that information under UK data protection law. You must use it only to fulfil and support the order, keep it secure, and not use it for your own marketing unless the customer has separately agreed to that with you.

You give us a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to use your business name, logo, menu and photos to list and promote you on Eat Seaham. You confirm you have the right to use everything you upload.

You indemnify us against all claims, losses, fines, costs and expenses (including reasonable legal costs) arising from the food you sell, its delivery or collection, the acts or omissions of your staff and drivers, any inaccurate menu or allergen information, or your breach of these terms or of the law.

We provide the marketplace with reasonable care and skill but don't guarantee it will always be available or error-free. We are not liable for lost profits, lost business or indirect losses. Our total liability to you in any 12 months is limited to the fees you paid us in that period. Nothing in these terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud, or any liability that cannot be limited by law.

You can stop selling at any time by telling us; orders already accepted must still be fulfilled. We can end this agreement on 14 days' notice, or straight away if you seriously or repeatedly breach these terms. Sections 5 (for amounts owed), 6 and 8 continue after it ends.

We may update these terms by giving you at least 14 days' notice; continuing to sell after that means you accept the changes. You are an independent business and nothing here makes us partners or employer and employee. These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, and its courts have exclusive jurisdiction.