Terms of use

Last update date: 24 January 2024

These Terms of Use ("Agreement") govern your use of us.kooth.com ("Site") and legal agreement between you and Kooth USA LLC ("Kooth USA", "we", "us" or "our"). Please review these Terms of Use carefully. If you do not agree to these Terms of Use, you should not use the Site.

1. Agreement

This Agreement describes the terms and conditions for use of the Site and governs your access to and use of the Site. You should read this Agreement carefully before using the Site. By using the Site, you are entering into this Agreement and are agreeing to the terms of this Agreement.
Kooth USA may revise this Terms of Use at any time by updating this Agreement and posting it on the Site. You should periodically visit the Site and review the Terms of Use to determine if any changes have been made. Your continued use of the Site after any changes have been made to the Terms of Use signifies and confirms your acceptance of any such changes or amendments to the Terms of Use.

2. Privacy

Protecting information you provide through the Site is important to us. Please review our privacy policy ("Privacy Policy"). By using the Site, you are also agreeing to the terms of the Privacy Policy.

3. Ownership

All content included on the Site is and shall continue to be the property of Kooth USA or its content suppliers and is protected under applicable copyright, patent, trademark and other proprietary rights. Except for any information that is in the public domain, you are not authorized to reproduce, transmit or distribute the proprietary information of the Site. Under no circumstances will you acquire any ownership rights or other interest in any content by or through your use of the Site. By posting information to the Site, you represent that you have the right to grant permission for use by Kooth USA.

4. Site use

Kooth USA grants you a limited, revocable, nonexclusive license to use the Site solely for your own personal use and not for republication, distribution, assignment, sublicense, sale, preparation of derivative works, or other use. You agree not to copy materials on the Site, reverse engineer or break into the Site, or use Site materials, products or services in violation of any law. The use of this Site is at the discretion of Kooth USA and Kooth USA may terminate your use of this Site at any time for any reason.

Keeping yourself safe

Please make sure that the information you give us is accurate. This includes the area where you live and the year and month you were born. If you have entered your information incorrectly by mistake, please let one of the practitioners know so that they can advise you what to do
Keep your account private - don't show anyone your password or share your account with someone else
Don't use your full name or surname, give out details of specific locations like the name of your school or a place you like to go to with your friends or share details such as email addresses or your phone number or your date of birth

Respect others

Be polite to other Kooth service users and the Kooth team of practitioners and counsellors
Show each other kindness; rude or offensive comments won't be published
Be sensitive to others and remember that things you say may impact on them
Don't bully or be unkind to other Kooth service users or talk in a violent or aggressive way
Make sure your language is appropriate - try not to use swear words or use sexually explicit language. Anything that is homophobic or racist won't be published
It's important to be truthful on Kooth and not pretend to be someone else
Sometimes you might feel cross or frustrated but it's important to try not to take it out on the Kooth team of practitioners and counsellors or other service users on the site
Any kind of abusive, violent or threatening behaviour towards other Kooth service users or our Kooth team of practitioners and counsellors will not be tolerated. This may result in your account being deactivated or we may take further action against anyone who threatens the safety of other service users or our staff. This could include an escalation to the police in cases of potential or actual criminal activity

Some topics are sensitive

You might hear the word "trigger" used on Kooth, a trigger is something that can set off memories, emotions or feelings in someone else. It's hard to avoid every possible trigger but there are some common things that shouldn't be posted on Kooth as they might trigger others. These topics are best spoken about with Kooth counsellors who are trained to support you.

Eating disorders - we won't publish height, weight or BMI calculations, posts that are pro eating disorder or competitive, descriptions of ED behaviours or details and quantities of food in relation to ED behaviours
Self-harm - we won't publish any posts that contain details of methods of self-harm or descriptions of self-harm injuries
Feeling suicidal - we won't publish anything that talks about suicidal plans
Experiences of abuse or trauma - details of experiences of abuse and trauma are best discussed with counsellors, you can share with others your stories of overcoming difficult events but we won't be able to publish any specific details
Legal stuff - we won't be able to post anything that talks about a criminal offence or criminal behaviour

Publishing and downloads

On Kooth, everything that you post or submit to the site is checked by staff members who moderate what you've written and make sure it doesn't break any of the community boundaries.

Sometimes a moderator might delete your post or change it slightly before it is posted, whoever moderates what you've written will message you to let you know if your post can't be published
Documents on the site may be downloaded and used for personal, non-commercial use only
All rights are reserved; no part of Kooth, including information, images, photos, trademarks & logos may be copied, republished, posted, broadcast or reproduced in any form whatsoever without our prior written permission from Kooth

5. Right to monitor

Kooth USA reserves the right to monitor materials or information posted to the Site and shall have the right to remove or modify any information for any reason. Notwithstanding the foregoing, you remain solely responsible for your use of any information contained on the Site.

6. Compliance with laws

You agree to comply with all applicable laws regarding your use of the Site. You further agree that information provided by you is truthful and accurate to the best of your knowledge.

7. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold Kooth USA and our partners, employees and affiliates, harmless from any liability, loss, claim and expense, including reasonable attorney's fees, related to your violation of this Agreement or use of the Site.

8. Disclaimer

The information on the Site is provided on an "as is", "as available" basis. You agree that use of the Site is at your sole risk. Kooth USA disclaims all warranties of any kind, including but not limited to any express warranties, statutory warranties, and any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. To the extent your jurisdiction does not allow limitations on warranties, this limitation may not apply to you. Your sole and exclusive remedy relating to your use of the Site shall be to discontinue using the Site.

9. Limitation of liability

Under no circumstances will Kooth USA be liable or responsible for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential (including damages from loss of business, lost profits, litigation, or the like), special, exemplary, punitive or other damages, under any legal theory, arising out of or in any way relating to the Site, your Site use, or the Site content, even if advised of the possibility of such damages. Your sole remedy for dissatisfaction with the Site and/or Site content is to cease all of your Site use.
You may have additional rights under certain laws (including consumer laws) which do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, or the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. If these laws apply to you, the exclusions or limitations in this Agreement that directly conflict with such laws may not apply to you.

10. Use of information

Kooth USA reserves the right, and you authorize us, to use and assign all information regarding Site uses by you and all information provided by you in any manner consistent with our Privacy Policy.

11. Applicable law

You agree that the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to conflicts of laws provisions, will govern these Terms of Use and any dispute that may arise between you and Kooth USA or its affiliates.

12. Severability

If any provision of this Agreement shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that this Agreement will otherwise remain in full force and effect.

13. Waiver

The failure of Kooth USA to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this Agreement shall not operate as a waiver of such right or provision. Any waiver of this Agreement by Kooth USA must be in writing and signed by an authorized representative of Kooth USA.

14. Termination

Kooth USA may terminate this Agreement at any time, with or without notice, for any reason.

15. Relationship of the parties

Nothing contained in this Agreement or your use of the Site shall be construed to constitute either party as a partner, joint venturer, employee or agent of the other party, nor shall either party hold itself out as such. Neither party has any right or authority to incur, assume or create, in writing or otherwise, any warranty, liability or other obligation of any kind, express or implied, in the name of or on behalf of the other party, it being intended by both parties that each shall remain independent contractors responsible for its own actions.

16. Entire agreement

This Terms of Use constitutes the entire Agreement between you and Kooth USA and governs your use of the Site, and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous communications and proposals, whether electronic, oral or written, between you and Kooth USA with respect to the Site. Notwithstanding the foregoing, you may also be subject to additional Terms of Use, posted policies (including but not limited to the Kooth USA Privacy Policy), guidelines or rules that may apply when you use the Site.

17. Contact information

Kooth USA
1828 Walnut St
3rd floor
Kansas City, MO
64108
dpo@kooth.com

California Residents

The Board of Behavioral Sciences receives and responds to complaints regarding services provided by therapists, clinical social workers, or professional clinical counselors. You may contact the board online at bbs.ca.gov, or by calling (916) 574-7830.