Terms and Conditions
Terms and Conditions for the Use of Upway
(T&C)
Version 1.00
Valid from May 1, 2023
A. Definitions
1. Upway Terms and Conditions: These are the general terms and conditions governing the use of the upway platform in its respective current version.
2. Upway: A secure communication platform provided by the service provider. Upway primarily facilitates the exchange of experiences between individuals affected by various psychological stressors or disorders, communication among these individuals and their relatives, as well as professional service providers (referral or specialized centers). The platform provides information on mental illness and mental health for all users.
3. Service Provider: The service provider and owner of upway is the association upway, located at Seestrasse 6 in CH-2576 Lüscherz (CHE-216.511.483). The service provider reserves the right to outsource the technical operation of the platform to a third party.
4. User: Any participant who uses the platform in any way is a registered user.
5. Referral or Specialized Centers: Providers of services belonging to one of the following professional groups: doctors (physicians and psychiatrists), psychologists, therapists of all kinds, peers, all organizations, and individuals who can contribute to mental health and are subject to their respective professional codes of conduct.
B. Preamble
1. Upway is a communication platform provided by the service provider. The service provider aims to bring together people with depression or other mental disorders, their relatives or other individuals, and service providers in this field to promote exchange. For this purpose, it is crucial that communication primarily takes place between the affected individuals and all other users. The precise features, functionality, purpose, and intended use of Upway are described on www.upwayapp.com and in the app description. Furthermore, certain rules of conduct must be observed by all users of Upway to ensure orderly communication and exchange among all participants.
2. The service provider reserves the right, in cases of suspicion, to access the communication between the participants to verify compliance with the rules of conduct and the applicable legal and regulatory rules. The service provider also ensures compliance with the rules of conduct and the applicable legal and regulatory rules in publicly accessible areas through random checks or in cases of suspicion. The assessment of a violation is solely at the discretion of the service provider, who may take appropriate measures such as deleting or blocking posts or user accounts.
3. All data is stored fully encrypted on the server and can only be accessed by the programmers and authorized employees of the service provider. The service provider assumes no responsibility for the content of the exchange and communication between users conducted via Upway.
4. The service provider does not provide any medical or other advice. Upway is limited to facilitating contacts and providing information with proper sourcing.
C. General
1. The service provider does not offer medical or psychological advice. Upway is merely a platform for users to exchange information, where counselors can offer their services, and content in the form of posts and links can be provided by third parties.
2. The listed referral or specialized centers on Upway are not contractors or representatives of the service provider. These professional centers act independently and in their own name.
3. The service provider assumes no responsibility for the behavior of users on Upway. As the service provider has not implemented any algorithms to monitor exchanged messages, it can only control correspondence in case of specific indications.
4. The service provider bears no responsibility for the advice given by referral or specialized centers. Listing on Upway does not imply an assessment of the capabilities and service level of the listed centers. The service provider is not liable for any services provided by referral or specialized centers.
5. Upway conducts random checks on the information provided by referral or specialized centers during their registration. Additionally, the center’s details are verified through its account data. However, complete abuse prevention cannot be guaranteed. Upway assumes no responsibility for false information provided by referral or specialized centers.
6. Any doctor-patient relationship that a user enters into with a referral or specialized center is exclusively between them, and such communication should not occur via Upway. The service provider is not involved in this contractual relationship. The service provider has no access to the communication between the user and the referral or specialized center, which occurs directly through email or phone calls, and therefore has no knowledge of its occurrence, existence, scope, or content.
7. By using Upway, the user expressly acknowledges that the service provider is not a substitute for medication or immediate medical treatment in case of illness. The user agrees not to make any medical decisions solely based on information obtained through Upway.
8. Upway is not intended for medical diagnosis, prescription of medication, or advice regarding any illnesses or the use of medication. If a user utilizes Upway in such a manner, they must inform the service provider. Upway merely facilitates the exchange of general information, which cannot replace professional treatment.
9. None of the service provider’s statements should be considered a guarantee of suitability for a specific purpose, reliability, assurance of certain characteristics, or availability of Upway.
10. The flawless delivery of messages cannot be guaranteed, as it depends on circumstances beyond the control of the service provider. Any liability for the unavailability of Upway or for faulty or non-delivery of messages or other content is expressly excluded. Any claims for damages are excluded.
11. The service provider disclaims all liability for the realization of risks inherent to the internet, such as technical or organizational difficulties in data reception or transmission, transmission errors, technical defects, disruptions, or interruptions in telephone networks or internet access, regardless of their cause, unlawful interference with network facilities, the introduction of viruses, copying and falsification of data and content, network overload, and intentional or accidental blockage of electronic access caused by third parties.
12. To the extent permitted by law, all liability of the service provider is excluded. Liability for gross negligence is reserved. The service provider shall not be liable to the user, contractually or in tort, for (i) lost profits, (ii) lost revenues, (iii) lost business, or (iv) anticipated savings, or (v) destruction or loss of data (in both cases, directly or indirectly), and/or (vi) indirect or consequential damages.
E. Upway-User
1. Upway is intended for all individuals who have any connection to coping with depression or other mental health conditions.
2. This includes: those affected by mental health issues, family members of affected individuals, individuals in the circle of those affected, professionals offering help with or without a doctorate (psychologists, peers, alternative practitioners, therapists of any kind, coaches, qualified counselors, etc.), all health care providers covered by health insurance, and institutions providing services for the prevention and recovery from depression (fitness/gym centers, wellness providers, etc.).
3. The minimum age requirement for using Upway is 13 years. By using Upway, the user acknowledges that they are capable of making sound judgments and will comply with the behavioral guidelines.
4. Users are allowed to use a pseudonym but must not impersonate someone they are not.
5. Users with suicidal intentions are prohibited from expressing their intentions explicitly. Non-compliance with this rule may result in exclusion from the community and deletion of posts if discovered.
6. The service provider does not assume any control over content in posts or chats and disclaims any responsibility or pursuit of claims for damages. The service provider cannot be held liable for damages arising from violations of the behavioral regulations on Upway or actions related to Upway initiated outside the platform by third parties.
7. Any unlawful, misleading, or fraudulent behavior, or violation of these terms and conditions, may lead to the suspension or immediate deletion of the user’s profile. The service provider expressly reserves the right to take further legal steps, including informing the competent authorities and law enforcement, if deemed necessary.
F. Encrypted Communication
1. Data on Upway is stored in an encrypted manner.
2. The user is responsible for safeguarding their login credentials and the end device from third-party access. The user must not provide their login credentials to others. The service provider assumes no responsibility for any damages incurred by the user due to the misuse of their access data and/or end device by third parties to access Upway.
3. An internet connection is necessary for using Upway. The user is responsible for ensuring a functioning internet connection, which is not the responsibility of the service provider. Additionally, it is recommended to use the current version of the operating system being used.
G. Responsibility for Chat and Post Content
1. Upway is a platform for active anonymous exchange within protected groups, acting as a self-help communication platform.
2. Every user can create and moderate their own group on Upway. The group creator chooses one of the following group types: a) Public group: Any registered user can join the group. The moderator can tolerate or exclude members. b) Closed group: Any registered user can apply to join the group. The moderator decides whether to admit or reject the applicant. c) Private group: Any registered user can create a private group and invite members. This group is not publicly visible.
3. Each sender of a message in the chat or a post is solely responsible for its content, including texts and other media content, such as images.
4. Disclosing names, landline phone numbers, addresses, or any other personal descriptions and information, as well as publishing corresponding images of the user or individuals depicted in the images, or disclosing other identifying features, will result in the user losing anonymity. Each user is responsible for maintaining their anonymity by keeping the above-mentioned information confidential. If the user discloses the aforementioned information themselves, the service provider cannot be held responsible for the resulting consequences.
5. Personal information (directly or indirectly identifiable) about third parties may only be disclosed with their consent. Users are responsible for obtaining such consent themselves. If such information is published, the service provider assumes that the user has obtained the appropriate consent.
6. Chats on Upway are not moderated. The service provider does not actively monitor the content and does not have access under normal operation.
7. The responsibility for text and image content lies solely with the sender of each respective message. Users must adhere to copyright, personal rights, and data protection regulations.
8. Behavior control of users is the responsibility of each group.
9. Users can report personally offensive contributions or negative comments related to gender, age, language, descent, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, worldview, or any offensive behavior to the service provider.
10. If a user has been reported by other users due to a violation of the terms of use, the service provider will review the case and potentially block the user.
11. It is strictly forbidden for users to exchange or upload pornographic, racist, or criminal material on Upway. Misuse will be subject to criminal prosecution and may involve additional legal measures.
12. The service provider reserves the right to delete posts or entire groups that have been reported by users as violating the above-mentioned principles or if the service provider identifies a violation of the terms and conditions or legal regulations.
H. Specialist Agencies
1. Listed Specialist Agencies are also users of upway and can actively publish posts in the public area. However, posts that contain advertisements or provide other benefits for the author are strictly prohibited.
2. Every user can apply to be recognized as a specialized center in their profile. Upway will review, accept, or reject the application without providing mandatory reasons. Correspondence with the applicant is at the discretion of upway.
3. Any contractual relationship entered into between a user and a referral or specialized center is exclusively between the respective user and the referral or specialized center, and the respective services will be provided solely between them.
4. Upway assumes no responsibility for the referral or specialized centers. In particular, referral or specialized centers act solely on their own behalf and are not representatives, agents, or employees of the service provider.
5. The user acknowledges that, according to the applicable laws, referral or specialized centers have an obligation to take appropriate steps and possibly inform authorities in case of imminent danger to life. In such cases, the service provider is authorized to take all necessary steps to enable the identification of the respective user to the requesting authority. However, the service provider will refuse to disclose user information if the legal requirements are obviously not met or if a necessary order from the authority is lacking.
6. In principle, any institution and service provider contributing to depression management can register on Upway if their contribution is evident. However, the service provider is free to reject applications for registration without providing reasons or to delete referral or specialized centers subsequently. Such decisions are at the discretion of the service provider.
I. Posts in the “Info-Center
1. All posts are administered and authored by upway or other authorized third parties.
2. The categories, listings, and posts are not exhaustive and may be continuously supplemented, corrected, or deleted.
3. Every user can submit suggestions via support to upway. These suggestions will be reviewed, accepted, or rejected by the upway team. Correspondence with the author of the suggestion is not obligatory and is solely at the discretion of upway.
4. The accuracy and completeness of the information cannot be guaranteed by upway. The information is published to the best of its knowledge and belief.
5. The contents disclosed in the Info-Center are publicly accessible or authorized by the author for publication on upway. Contributions will be published with proper attribution to the original sources. Therefore, the content is solely the responsibility of the author of the original text. In case such content violates decency, good manners, or other codes of conduct or infringes upon the rights of third parties, the service provider must be immediately informed, and appropriate measures will be taken.
6. References and links to third-party websites are beyond the responsibility of the service provider. Any references and links are solely for the information of users and do not constitute a recommendation or any form of assessment. The service provider assumes no responsibility for the content and reliability of the linked pages and disclaims any potential claims for damages. Links should not be construed as indicating a business relationship or any other form of collaboration between the service provider and the linked website or its provider.
J. Availability of and Changes to Upway
1. The service provider does not provide any guarantees regarding the availability of Upway.
2. The service provider is entitled to make modifications to Upway at any time, even if this leads to impairments in the availability of Upway.
3. The service provider assumes no liability for damages that arise due to the non-availability of Upway.
4. Upway is continuously developed, and a flawless operation cannot be guaranteed. The user expressly agrees that neither interruptions in availability nor errors in the software nor any other impairments in the use of Upway will lead to claims against Upway. Upway is provided “as is and as available” in the respective current version.
K. Intellectual Property Rights and Licenses
1. By using Upway, the user is not granted any rights to Upway, the Upway app, the software, or any other intellectual property (such as articles, texts, software, music, sounds, photographs, graphics, video, page layouts) of the service provider. All intellectual property rights related to Upway and all associated rights remain the sole property of the service provider. Unless expressly stated here, you have no right to use and no ownership rights to Upway content.
2. The user acknowledges that they are granted a revocable and time-limited right to use Upway for the duration of its use.
3. Users are responsible for respecting any rights of third parties regarding the content they provide or other generated data. Users do not acquire any rights to content provided by other users. Private agreements between users are excluded, but these must be made outside of Upway. Users grant the service provider a right to use the content they upload to display this content in Upway.
L. Termination
1. The user can delete their user profile in the app at any time. By deleting the profile, the contractual relationship is automatically terminated. Deletion cannot be undone, and the data will be permanently deleted. Restoration is no longer possible. If the user has purchased paid services, they will not be refunded, even if a subscription or comparable services have not been fully used.
M. Final Provisions
1. The service provider reserves the right to amend these terms and conditions at any time. The service provider will inform users in an appropriate manner (e.g., on the website https://upwayapp.com, via email, or through notification at the next login to Upway) in advance about changes to the terms and conditions. Users are free to terminate Upway if they do not agree with the changes. If a user does not terminate, it means that the user accepts the changes. Without user notification, the amended terms and conditions will take effect after a period of 30 days from their information.
2. The user is not permitted to transfer or assign this agreement without the consent of Upway. Upway may transfer or assign this agreement to third parties or within its corporate group without the user’s consent.
3. Should one or more provisions of these terms and conditions be ineffective, this does not affect the validity of the entire contract. The parties agree to apply a provision that comes closest to the purpose of the invalid provision.
4. Swiss substantive law shall apply to the contractual relationship between the service provider and the user, provided that national consumer protection law does not preclude this. All disputes arising out of or in connection with these terms and conditions shall be settled by the ordinary courts at the registered office of Upway. If the national law of the user provides for a mandatory place of jurisdiction, the statutory provisions shall prevail. International law, in particular the UN Sales Convention, is expressly excluded.
Lüscherz, May 2023