Service agreement

Yay! You made it to the technical stuff - in a legal sense of the word. This is the standard service agreement that comes with the proposal and project we work on. Unless we agree on something else.

I tried to make this as approachable and easy-to-understand as possible for a legal document. If you still have questions, by all means, ask me.

Version: 11 Jan 2025

1. The project

This agreement is between Drescher Visual Development ("I" or "me") and you (the "Client") for the software development project described in the above proposal.

2. What we are building

I'll build what is described in the attached proposal, which is included as part of this agreement. Any features or changes not specifically mentioned in the proposal are not included.

3. What you will get

  • All the features and functionality described in the proposal
  • Opportunities to provide feedback throughout the development process
  • Expert advice and guidance through the duration of our agreement
  • 14 days of support after final delivery

4. Your responsibilities

  • Providing timely feedback and approvals (within 2 business days)
  • Supplying necessary content, data, images, and materials
  • Paying for any required third-party services, software licenses, or subscriptions
  • Making payments according to the schedule in the proposal
  • Maintaining your own backups of any existing systems

5. My responsibilities

  • Building everything described in the proposal
  • Developing a well-coded solution that also looks good
  • Regular project updates
  • Being available for questions during development
  • Providing 14 days of post-delivery support
  • Fixing any bugs found during the 14-day support period

6. Ownership and rights

  • You'll own whatever app, automation, or solution I create for your project
  • You own and are responsible for the data used in your project
  • I maintain ownership of any pre-existing code, frameworks, or tools I developed before this project
  • I can use any solutions I develop for you as reference for future projects (unless otherwise agreed)
  • Third-party components remain under their original licenses
  • I can include this project in my portfolio (unless agreed otherwise)

7. Payment

  • Payment schedule and total cost are outlined in the attached proposal
  • All payments in EUR via bank transfer or other agreed payment method
  • Final payment must be received before final handover
  • Late payments (over 14 days) incur 1.5% monthly interest
  • Late payments may pause development

8. Changes and revisions

  • Minor revisions during development are included
  • 3 rounds of revisions per feature / project
  • Major changes or new features will require a separate agreement
  • I will let you know if a requested change will affect the timeline or cost

9. Support and maintenance

  • 14 days of free support after final delivery
  • Support includes fixing bugs and guidance on using the software
  • Additional support after the initial 14 days will be billed at an agreed-upon hourly rate
  • Emergency support (24-hour response) is available at 1.5x my standard rate

10. Project timeline

  • The timeline specified in the proposal assumes timely client feedback and approvals.
  • Delays in feedback or approvals may extend the project timeline accordingly.

11. Early termination

  • Either party can end this agreement with 30 days' notice
  • You'll pay for work completed up to that point
  • I'll hand over all completed work

12. More legal stuff

I am trying to keep it as brief as possible:

a. Confidentiality

  • We'll both keep each other's sensitive information private
  • I won't share your business secrets, you won't share my code/methods
  • This continues even after our project ends
  • Doesn't apply to public information or legally required disclosures

b. Liability & warranties

  • I'll do my best work, but I can't guarantee the software will be perfect
  • Maximum liability is limited to amount paid for the project
  • Neither of us is responsible for things completely outside our control (e.g. natural disasters)
  • The software is provided "as is" - I will fix bugs during the support period, but don't guarantee it will meet needs I did not know about
  • No software is ever fully future-proof. Our agreement does not include any adjustments to future developments in any of the used code and/or tools.

c. Other

  • If we disagree, we'll first try to work it out directly
  • If that doesn't work, we'll use mediation before going to court
  • This agreement is governed by German law, any legal proceedings will happen in Germany
  • This agreement and the attached proposal are our entire deal
  • Changes to this agreement must be in writing and signed by both of us
  • If part of this agreement isn't legal, the rest still applies
  • Notices must be in writing (email counts) to addresses we provided each other