Website Subscription Terms

The Monthly Fee covers keeping your existing website running well: hosting, SSL, software and security updates, monitoring, backups, and support.

Updates and changes to your existing site — content edits, image swaps, and small design adjustments — are included for the life of your subscription. That's the "lifetime" in "lifetime updates and changes": it runs as long as your plan does. Included updates are meant for the normal rhythm of running a business — we turn them around within a few business days, and if request volume outgrows what a maintenance plan reasonably covers, we'll talk about the right plan before anything changes.

It does not cover new builds: full redesigns, new feature development, custom software, copywriting campaigns, paid-ad spend, or standalone SEO campaigns, unless your invoice or a separate agreement says so. Where a request goes beyond routine updates — a redesign-level change or a significant new section — we'll tell you and quote it first. Nothing is ever billed by surprise.

Your Monthly Fee is the recurring amount listed on your invoice. It's billed in advance through Stripe, our payment processor — monthly, unless your invoice shows a different billing period — and is due upon receipt.

Fees don't include taxes. If a tax applies based on your location, it appears as a separate line on your invoice and is your responsibility.

We may change the Monthly Fee with at least 30 days' written notice. If you don't want the new price, cancel before it takes effect and you owe nothing further. Continuing service past the notice period means you accept the new fee.

Your subscription renews automatically — month-to-month, unless your invoice shows a different billing period, and a longer period only ever happens at your request. There's no term commitment, no termination fee, and no penalty for leaving.

Cancel anytime by emailing clement@heckofawebsite.com or by telling your usual project contact in writing — "in writing" means email or text message. Cancellation takes effect when your message reaches us; we'll confirm in writing, and that confirmation is simply your record. Cancel before your billing date and you won't be charged again. On or after it, service stays active through the end of that final paid period.

We can end the subscription too — with written notice, effective at the end of your current paid period, and with your Exit Path rights intact. If the site is used unlawfully, we may suspend it immediately.

If a payment fails, Stripe retries it automatically and we'll email you. You have at least 14 days from the original due date to update your payment method before anything is paused.

If the account is still unpaid after that, we may suspend the subscription services — hosting, updates, and support — until the balance is brought current. Suspension pauses our services only: your ownership (see Ownership) and your right to your files (see Your Exit Path) are untouched, and new monthly charges stop accruing while service is suspended — the balance owed is what was already invoiced. Bringing the account current restores your subscription at your existing rate; suspension never forfeits your pricing.

If an account stays unpaid for 60 days, we may end the subscription. Your site files remain available per Your Exit Path, and any outstanding balance remains due. If you're having a billing issue, reach out — clients who contact us can almost always avoid suspension.

Ownership of your website and its design assets follows your original build agreement. Once the build and design invoices under that agreement are paid in full, you own the website — its design, content, and files. If your site was built with no build fee, ownership transfers the day your site goes live. If there was no build agreement at all — including a site you brought to us — you own your website from day one, and every build-invoice condition in these terms is treated as satisfied.

Until build invoices are paid in full, ownership and copyright remain with Heck Design Group LLC. Hosting, maintenance, and subscription payments do not, by themselves, transfer ownership — and, just as importantly, missing them doesn't take ownership away once you have it.

We retain ownership of our pre-existing tools, code libraries, and general know-how. Third-party assets — stock photos, fonts, plugins — stay under their own licenses.

No lock-in is a promise, and this is the clause that keeps it. When you cancel, you keep what you own.

If your build invoices are paid in full, we'll provide a complete copy of your website files and content on request, at no charge. We keep that copy available for at least 90 days after your subscription ends — ask any time in that window and we'll deliver within 14 days. We'll also cooperate reasonably with your new host or developer during handoff. Hosting on our infrastructure ends at the close of your final paid period.

Your domain name is yours, always — regardless of who hosts the site and regardless of any outstanding balance. If we registered it for you, we'll transfer it to you on request; registrar transfer fees and future renewals are yours after handoff.

You're responsible for the content you provide — text, images, logos, and business information — and you confirm you have the right to use it. You agree not to use the site for anything unlawful.

If a third party claims content you supplied infringes their rights, that claim is your responsibility, and we may take the disputed content down while it's resolved. Keeping your business details accurate — hours, prices, legal disclosures — is on you, though we're happy to make the edits.

Your site depends on services we don't control: hosting infrastructure, domain registrars, email providers, plugins, and payment processors. Each has its own terms and its own outages. We choose reputable providers and respond promptly when something upstream breaks, but we can't guarantee their uptime and aren't liable for their failures or price changes.

Fees are billed in advance and are non-refundable once a billing period starts — instead, your service simply continues through the end of the period you paid for.

Third-party costs already incurred on your behalf — domains, licenses, stock assets — are non-refundable.

Build-fee refunds, where applicable, follow your build agreement and are reviewed case-by-case.

If the offer you signed up under carries its own refund promise — for example, a money-back guarantee — that promise governs everything in this section.

We work hard to deliver services that perform, but we don't guarantee specific outcomes — search rankings, traffic, leads, or revenue. Search engines, ad platforms, and data providers change without notice, and we don't control them. Any projections we share are good-faith estimates, not promises.

Our services are provided as-is. To the fullest extent the law allows, our total liability for any claim related to services under these terms is capped at the amount you paid us in the three months before the claim arose.

We're not liable for indirect damages — lost profits, lost data, lost business, or business interruption — however they arise, including from downtime, suspension, or termination under these terms. Nothing in this section limits liability that can't legally be limited.

We may show the work we build for you — screenshots, links, and a general description of the engagement — in our portfolio and marketing. We never share confidential information. If you'd rather not be featured, just tell us and we'll leave you out.

We may update these terms from time to time. The current version always lives at this page, with the last-updated date shown at the top. We'll email you about material changes at least 30 days before they take effect — and price changes always follow the notice process in the Fees & Billing section. Paying an invoice after a change takes effect means you accept the updated terms; if a change isn't right for you, you can cancel before it applies.

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of New Hampshire, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. If we ever have a dispute, we both agree to try to resolve it directly and in good faith first. If that fails, disputes will be handled in the state or federal courts of New Hampshire, and both of us consent to that venue. Small-claims court remains available to either of us where it applies.

Questions about these terms or your invoice? Contact us: