Terms and Conditions

1. Agreement and operator

The Ditch Dating is a service operated by The Ditch. You can contact us at news@theditch.co.uk or by writing to The Ditch, 132A High Street, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire.

By creating an account or using member features, you agree to these terms and confirm that the information you provide is accurate. Our Privacy Policy explains how we use personal information, and our Cookie Policy explains how the website uses cookies.

2. Who may use The Ditch Dating

You may create an account only if:

• You are aged 18 or over.
• You have legal capacity to enter this agreement.
• You are using the service for genuine personal dating or relationship purposes.
• You are not prohibited by law from using the service.
• We have not previously removed you for serious or repeated misuse, unless we have agreed in writing that you may return.

You must not allow a child to access the service through your account. Businesses, agencies and people seeking to advertise or recruit may not create ordinary member profiles.

3. Your account and profile

• Provide information that is truthful, current and about you.
• Use recent photographs that show you and that you have the right to publish.
• Keep your password secure and do not share or transfer your account.
• Tell us promptly if you believe somebody else has accessed your account.
• Keep contact details up to date so we can send important service messages.

You are responsible for activity through your account unless it results from something we have failed to do. We may ask you to verify information or identity where reasonably necessary for security, safety or fraud prevention.

Matching and profile suggestions are discovery tools only. They do not guarantee compatibility, identity, availability or that another member will respond.

4. How members must behave

Treat other members with respect. You must not:

• Harass, threaten, stalk, bully, shame or discriminate against another person.
• Send sexual content without clear consent or pressure anybody for sexual activity.
• Impersonate another person, create a fake profile or misrepresent your age, identity or relationship status.
• Request money, bank details, passwords, identity documents or investments from another member.
• Use the service for scams, prostitution, trafficking, commercial promotion, recruitment or unlawful activity.
• Publish private information about another person without permission.
• Upload unlawful, hateful, violent, exploitative or rights infringing material.
• Scrape profiles, send automated messages, disrupt security or attempt to access another account.
• Create a new account to avoid a block, suspension or investigation.

Consent can be withdrawn at any time. A match, conversation or previous meeting does not create continuing consent to contact or sexual activity.

5. Safety, blocking and reports

You decide whether and when to communicate with or meet another member. Take reasonable precautions, keep early conversations within the service, never send money and arrange first meetings in a public place. Tell somebody you trust where you are going and arrange your own transport.

You can block or report a member who causes concern. We may review relevant account information and messages when reasonably needed to investigate a report, protect members or comply with law. We decide what action is appropriate, which may include a warning, feature restriction, suspension, removal or referral to the police.

6. Your profile, photographs and messages

You retain ownership of content you create. You give us a limited, worldwide, non exclusive and royalty free permission to host, copy, display, format and process that content only as needed to operate, secure and improve The Ditch Dating. This permission ends when the content is deleted from active systems, subject to reasonable backup, legal and safety retention.

You confirm that you have the rights and permissions needed to publish your content. Do not upload photographs of children, former partners or other people unless publication is lawful and properly authorised.

Private member content must not be copied, recorded, published or shared outside the service without the person’s permission, except where sharing is reasonably necessary to report abuse, seek help or comply with law.

The Ditch name, logos, page design and original website material belong to us or our licensors. You may not use them commercially without written permission.

7. Free access, paid features and subscriptions

Creating a basic profile and any features described as free will not attract a charge. If we introduce a paid feature or subscription, we will show the price, billing period, included features, renewal arrangements and how to cancel before you buy.

Payments must be made through the payment options offered on the website. You authorise the stated charge when you confirm a purchase. We will provide confirmation in a form you can retain.

Cancellation rights

Where UK consumer law provides a 14 day cancellation period for an online service, you may cancel within that period without giving a reason. If you ask us to start a paid service during the cancellation period, you may have to pay a proportionate amount for service already provided. Your cancellation right may end once a service has been fully performed where the law allows and you gave the required agreement and acknowledgement.

This section does not affect your rights if a paid service is not provided with reasonable care and skill, does not match its description, or otherwise fails to meet legal requirements.

Unless a purchase screen expressly says otherwise, closing your dating profile does not by itself cancel a separate subscription. Use the stated subscription cancellation method or contact us for help.

8. Closing, suspending or ending an account

You may stop using the service and request account closure at any time. We may restrict, suspend or close an account where we reasonably believe these terms have been broken, safety is at risk, fraud or unlawful activity may be involved, payment is overdue, or action is needed to protect the service.

Where appropriate, we will explain the decision and provide a way to ask for review. We may act without advance notice where urgent action is reasonably necessary. Serious or repeated misuse may prevent a person from opening another account.

Sections that by their nature should continue after closure, including payment obligations, intellectual property, liability, disputes and permitted safety records, remain effective.

9. Availability, responsibility and liability

We will provide the service with reasonable care and skill. We may change, maintain, suspend or withdraw features where reasonably necessary, and we will give notice of material changes where practical.

Members control their own profiles and conduct. Although we may use moderation and verification measures, we cannot guarantee that every statement, photograph or identity is accurate. We are not a party to meetings, relationships, transactions or arrangements between members.

We are not responsible for loss that was not reasonably foreseeable when this agreement was made, or for business loss arising from personal use of the service. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits responsibility where it would be unlawful to do so, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or your statutory consumer rights.

10. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms to reflect changes to the service, safety requirements or law. We will publish the new terms and effective date. If a material change affects existing members, we will provide reasonable notice and explain any choice available to you.

If part of these terms is found unenforceable, the remaining terms continue. A delay in enforcing a term does not waive our right to enforce it later.