Terms Of Service

Hostworld Internet Limited (“Hostworld”) offers you a wide variety of products and services on the following terms. By utilising the service in any way, you are agreeing to comply with these terms, which we may update without notice and encourage you to examine here at any time. These terms incorporate and supersede any other terms associated with the files and applications which are available on Hostworld.

We reserve the right to modify and amend these terms at any time without notice. It is your responsibility to remain informed of current policies. If you have any questions or concerns regarding our terms of service, please contact us before purchase and we’ll be happy to help.

Your Liability for Content & Conduct

You are responsible for any content that you make public or transmit on or through our service. You will also obey all applicable laws and regulations regarding online conduct and content. You will not copy, distribute, or commercially exploit any part of the service.

You agree you will not use our service to distribute, link to, or request content that:

Is unlawful, harmful to minors, vulgar, harassing, abusive, defamatory, threatening, gratuitously violent, obscene, invasive of others’ privacy, or racially, ethnically, or otherwise offensive.
Includes personally identifiable information about children.
Infringes someone else’s intellectual property or other rights.
Advocates or solicits violence or other criminal conduct.
Violates any contract, regulation, copyright, or law.
Constitutes illegal gambling.
Specifically advertises pornography or any product or service that is illegal.
Contains software viruses or any other code designed to disrupt, damage or limit the functioning of software, hardware, or telecommunications equipment.
Executes mass mailing, SPAM, or unsolicited email.

You agree you will not install any of the following on your account if your account is hosted in a shared hosting environment such as web hosting, reseller hosting, and premium hosting:

Any Proxy Servers/Proxy Scripts or alternatives.
Any chat or webcam scripts.
Any Cast Control or SHOUTcast scripts.
Shell, SSH, Telnet scripts or alternatives.

These scripts can cause serious performance and security risks in our shared environment. Any account with these scripts will be subject to immediate suspension. Repeated offences are liable to account termination without refund.

Certain scripts above are accepted on our SSD VPS and dedicated server packages. If you’re unsure about what you can host on your account, please contact us prior to purchase.

Anti-Spam & Bulk Email

You understand that unsolicited mass emailing (spam, unsolicited bulk email, and unsolicited commercial email) or the use of automated scripts to post comments or links to multiple, non-client owned blogs, forums, guestbooks, messengers, or other media is strictly forbidden. The client agrees to pay for any fees or damages resulting from spam within their account. We reserve the right to suspend or cancel any or all accounts without notice, due to violation of this policy.

The service you are receiving may include the ability to send and receive electronic mail. Use of your electronic mail account to send unsolicited commercial messages is prohibited. Mass electronic messages or “mail-bombing” (sending mass unsolicited mail or deliberately sending very large attachments to one recipient) are prohibited. Forging electronic mail headers is strictly prohibited regardless of content. Use of electronic mail to harass or intimidate other users is prohibited.

Spamming, sending unsolicited commercial email messages, or unsolicited bulk messaging to advertise, offer, sell or buy any goods or services for any business or individual is strictly prohibited (this also includes opt-out emails). In response to a complaint, Hostworld has the discretion to determine from all evidence whether the intended recipients were from an “opt-in” email list.

Shared server accounts are prohibited from sending solicited (opt-in) email via mailing lists (or combinations of mailing lists or other programmatic methods) that include more than 250 total accounts, unless special arrangements have been made in writing with Hostworld. If these cause server performance problems, Hostworld may, at its sole discretion, remove or demand the removal of the mailing list at any time.

Account Auditing

Hostworld may regularly audit server accounts for abuse. If any of the abuse policies in these terms of service are violated, you may be required to pay a fine to Hostworld for unintended or deliberate violations as compensation for damages. Hostworld may also take legal action in response to any acts of abuse which may result in additional financial penalties. Hostworld reserves the right to transfer any content that is perceived (at the sole discretion of Hostworld) to be in violation of these terms of service to the appropriate authorities for prosecution, enforcement, and/or legal action.

In addition, we use fraud prevention software to screen new orders for previous fraudulent activity and report existing clients who violate our Terms of Service. In case of a violation, your details may be reported to fraud screening services using one-way hashed information.

Account Information

You are required to provide accurate and up-to-date information on all registration forms associated with our services. You must not impersonate any individual or entity, misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity, or falsify the origin of any materials distributed through our service.

Registering multiple accounts without prior permission and sufficient justification is strictly prohibited. Accounts found to be “linked” may be subject to review, during which some or all services may be suspended until the review process is completed. If Hostworld deems the information provided unsatisfactory or considers the account a risk to business operations, services may be terminated without notice.

You must provide a valid residential or business address where the service is consumed. The use of forwarding addresses, PO boxes, virtual offices, or any other address that does not accurately represent the location of service consumption is prohibited. This requirement applies irrespective of the company’s country of registration and is necessary for compliance with tax regulations and verification procedures.

Refund Policy & Money Back Guarantee

Hostworld offers refunds on selected web hosting services at our discretion. Refunds are typically issued as account credits, though they may be processed via the original payment method depending on the reason for cancellation. Refunds requested within 30 days of the initial purchase will be processed, less any applicable setup, handling, or transaction fees. Cryptocurrency refunds, including Bitcoin and other types, will be calculated based on the GBP value at the time of processing.

Our 30-day money-back guarantee applies exclusively to the first purchase of eligible services, provided there is no violation of our terms of service. This guarantee does not extend to subsequent renewals. Once payment is received, resources are allocated and reserved for your use, whether or not they are utilised.

Please note that dedicated servers, domain registrations, third-party control panel licensing fees (e.g., cPanel/WHM), and any elements of services that we procure from third-party suppliers—where we are unable to recover our costs—are non-refundable and excluded from the 30-day money-back guarantee.

Refunds are only processed upon request via a support ticket through our control panel. Submitting a cancellation request alone does not guarantee a refund.

Refusal of Service

We reserve the right to refuse or cancel any service at our sole discretion. All clients are expected to pay their invoices promptly. Accounts that are overdue by 3 days will be subject to a temporary suspension of their service. Accounts past due by more than 5 days will be cancelled (terminated). Any accounts that violate our terms of service will not be eligible for a refund, even if the service is within the money-back guarantee period.

IP Addressing

If the service includes the allocation of an IP address, the customer has no claim to a specific IP address. We reserve the right to change the allocated IP address when necessary with prior written notice.
Customers accept that we do not directly control the geographic location of any IP addresses. Although we make every effort to submit corrections to major geo-IP databases, we provide no guarantees regarding the perceived geo-IP location by third parties.
Requests for an IP address change due to incorrect geo-IP location must be made within 24 hours of the service welcome email being sent. Requests received after this period will be rejected unless the customer specifies the exact geo-IP database reflecting the incorrect location along with a URL.

Resource Abuse

Any attempts to undermine or cause harm to a server are strictly prohibited and may result in account suspension or termination without a refund.

For shared hosting packages: if an activity causes excessive server load, and this load is deemed by technical support staff to be at risk of crashing the server, the account may be temporarily suspended or scripts disabled/removed to stop the excessive load. This action may be taken without notice, although we will make our best effort to contact the customer. We do not allow our shared hosting plans to be used as backup storage and reserve the right to delete any archive files beginning with “backup-“.

For VPS hosting packages: resources purchased are available for use, and we work to ensure all VPS packages have fair access to bandwidth. If a VPS is consistently consuming excessive resources beyond fair use, we may limit network speeds until a permanent solution is agreed, which may involve a chargeable upgrade. Hostworld will never suspend or terminate a VPS for excessive use unless the client is believed to have circumvented limits we have applied.

We have a specific VPS CPU utilisation policy as part of our terms of service. You can read more here: VPS CPU Utilisation Policy

Domain Name Registration & Renewals

Whilst renewal notices are sent these should only be considered as reminders, these reminders are not part of the service. It is the client’s ultimate responsibility for domain renewal. Due to the third-party nature of domain renewals, Hostworld will take no responsibility for technical errors that delay or fail to renew domains. The client must ensure their domain has renewed correctly. The client has 30 days to notice errors with domain renewals. The client accepts that whether or not Hostworld has successfully contacted the client, Hostworld cannot be held liable if the client fails to renew the domain prior to the expiry date.

The company shall notify the client of renewal notifications as they are received by the company from the relevant registration authority. These notifications will be delivered to the email address provided by the client on their initial order unless an updated email address has been provided and this update has been confirmed by the company. The company shall not be liable for losses whether financial or otherwise caused by the client’s failure to notify us of changes to the email address or other details relating to the specific order that caused the loss.

Unless this Refund Policy specifically provides for a refund, all fees for domain name registrations and related domain name services are non-refundable, in whole or in part, even if your domain name registration is suspended, cancelled or transferred prior to the end of your then-current registration term.

To ensure uninterrupted operation of the domain, renewals should be placed with the company at least 7 working days prior to the expiry date. Due to the distributed nature of the domain name system it can take up to this long for a renewal to be fully processed and accepted.

All domains are renewed on an annual basis. We will send out reminder emails 30 days, 14 days, 7 days and 1 day before expiry. We will send the emails to the email address on the account. It is the registrant’s responsibility to make sure their contact details are up to date. Hostworld takes no responsibility if your domain renewal fails due to your contact details being incorrect. If you do not wish to renew a domain, please make sure you contact us a minimum of 14 days before your domain expires by emailing us at [email protected]. Alternatively, you can set your domain to auto renew, this can be managed through the client portal area. All domains will be auto renewed 14 days in advance of the domain name expiring and will be billed 28 days in advance.

If you are ordering a domain ending “.uk” such as co.uk, org.uk, ltd.uk, or plc.uk domain name then your order is also subject to Nominet’s Terms and Conditions. A full copy of these can be viewed at: https://www.nominet.uk/go/terms

VPS Reseller Packages

We want to ensure our VPS reseller package resources are used by those that purchase them in a responsible manner. Therefore, any VPS reseller packages will be bound by the following additional terms of service.

Hostworld may make available third-party provisioning modules for the popular web hosting management system “WHMCS” however it makes no guarantee as to the quality of service or functionality of such modules or any constituent parts of them. Hostworld does not accept any damages in any form for the performance of such third-party modules or any errors that may arise from their use. The customer should only use these modules once an appraisal has been conducted by them in line with the instructions and support material or services available directly with the third-party module maintainer. Any support required on these modules should be sought from the maintainer and their performance does not reflect on the VPS reseller services provided by Hostworld.

Our 30-day money-back guarantee policy no longer applies once the customer creates more than one virtual machine.
Resource (additional) upgrades (such as additional IPs) cannot be refunded once purchased (one-off charge and recurring) and are not eligible for a refund unless for a technical reason that we cannot resolve. Customers can request via the billing department to reduce resource allocations (over and above the base package) for the next billing period. If at the time of renewal you are still using the resources that you have asked to be removed, we will continue to bill you for these for the entirety of your next billing period.
You are responsible for all content hosted on our server for services billed to you, therefore any abuse reports will be sent to you for action and a response should be sent back to us within the timeframes we set. If an abuse report relates to a mail blacklist, you must continue to pay for your VPS reseller package until the blacklist entries are removed in full by you.
IP address justification – each VM needs 1 x IPv4 or IPv6 address allocated to it. Where more than 1x IPv4 address is assigned by you to a VM, we expect you to do this responsibly to ensure this allocation is justified and that it is not intended to be used for mass mailing (which we prohibit without us confirming first in writing that it is fine). We do not require you to send us details of your justification, however you should ensure you build this into your process as we may request justification regarding IPv4 usage and if there is no valid justification we reserve the right to deallocate any IPv4 or IPv6 addresses from your virtual machines.
Hostworld reserves the right to exercise ultimate control over the VMs that are assigned to you; and where justified we may suspend a service if we have no choice or are not receiving a response from yourself. A key example would be paedophilic material being hosted on your server(s) — we would need to take immediate action to suspend the service. If we intervene and exercise control over a virtual machine, you must not under any circumstances interfere or perform any actions on the VM without express written permission from Hostworld beforehand, for legal reasons.
We may notify you that a service needs to be relocated to a different VPS node, and we will provide you with as much notice as we can so you can manage your own user expectations if applicable. We may do this if a VM is consuming a significant amount of resources and would be better hosted on a different VPS node with less utilisation. Essentially, we reserve the right to redistribute our resources.
PTR/rDNS updates need a ticket submitted to us so we can apply these with the data centre manually. Please ensure an A record is set to the PTR value, otherwise we will not be able to apply this.
All technical support is delivered directly to you and we will never contact your customers directly. You also do not have permission to direct any of your customers or other third parties to us for support, no matter how small the issue may be (we will refuse to support them for GDPR reasons) unless a prior agreement in writing is provided by Hostworld.
All downgrades must be manually handled, so you need to raise a ticket with the billing department for this to be reviewed and actioned regardless of whether our portal allows you to place a downgrade order.

Forex VPS Packages

Our line of Forex VPS packages come preinstalled with either MT4 or MT5 depending on the selection made during the order process.

Clients purchasing these packages also agree to the following terms:

Hostworld preinstalls terminals in such a way to guarantee performance of the terminals.
Installing your own terminals or replacing the existing preinstalled terminals without authorisation voids our 30-day money-back guarantee policy and we provide absolutely no assurances or guarantees with respect to the performance of the terminals or the VPS in this scenario.
Installing your own terminals in addition to the ones which are preinstalled without authorisation voids our 30-day money-back guarantee policy and we provide absolutely no assurances or guarantees with respect to the performance of the terminals or the VPS in this scenario.
If the client requires custom terminals from their own broker they should raise a support ticket requesting the preinstalled terminals be replaced. The client should provide a download URL for the terminal from their chosen broker.
Due to the nature of Expert Advisors, Hostworld provides absolutely no guarantees regarding terminal or VPS performance when Expert Advisors are used.

Service Level Agreement

The client should note that the service level agreement (SLA) can change at any time and service credit refunds are at Hostworld’s discretion. You can see our SLA agreement here: https://hostworld.uk/sla.

Data Storage & Account Backups

Clients must be aware that it is their responsibility to frequently back up any information that they host on our servers. We are not responsible for any files, scripts, coding or data that may be lost, corrupted, or abused in a server-related issue. Hostworld is not responsible for recovering any damaged or lost files, regardless of the plan and options purchased. Clients are responsible for making back-up files in connection with their use of the services they have purchased.

Hostworld may offer complimentary backup services with a hosting package; however, these are provided on a best endeavours basis and we make no guarantee of their availability if a backup is required. You are solely responsible for independent backup and safekeeping of any client data stored on Hostworld resources. We are not to be relied upon for the guarantee of website backups.

Support

You shall be solely responsible for providing, updating, uploading and maintaining your website and any and all files, pages, data, works, information and/or materials on, within, displayed, linked or transmitted to, from or through your website, including, without limitation, trade or service marks, images, photographs, illustrations, graphics, audio clips, video clips, email or other messages, meta tags, domain names, software and text.

Your website content shall also include any registered domain names provided by you or registered on behalf of you in connection with the hosting services.

Although our technical support team will try their best to resolve any technical issues you have, we are not responsible for correcting system software and/or server faults caused by your website or software installations (including, but not limited to, incompatible upgrades), but may offer to correct these faults at current labour rates.

Microsoft Windows Licensing

Hostworld provides Windows VPS services under two distinct licensing models:

1. Microsoft SPLA Licensed Windows VPS

Production Windows VPS instances are supplied under the Microsoft Service Provider License Agreement (SPLA).
All license fees are included in the VPS price. Customers are not required to provide their own Microsoft licenses unless agreed in writing.
These VPS instances are fully licensed for production usage in line with Microsoft’s SPLA program.

2. Evaluation Windows VPS

Some VPS packages are provisioned with a Microsoft Windows Server Evaluation license.
The evaluation license is valid for up to 180 days from the date of VPS creation. After this period, the license will expire, and the VPS may cease to function correctly.
Evaluation VPS are intended solely for testing, evaluation, and temporary workloads. They are not licensed or intended for long-term production usage.
No Microsoft license fees are included in the cost of an Evaluation VPS.
Hostworld does not provide activation keys, license upgrades, or extensions beyond the 180-day evaluation period.
At the end of the evaluation period, customers must order a new licensed VPS if they require continued usage.
Hostworld makes no warranty, express or implied, that an Evaluation VPS is fit for long-term or production use. By using this service, you accept that it is temporary and provided on an as-is basis.

Complaints

At Hostworld, we are committed to providing excellent service and support to all our customers. However, we recognise that occasionally issues may arise that do not meet your expectations. To ensure that your concerns are addressed promptly and effectively, we have established the following complaints process.

How to Make a Complaint: If you wish to make a formal complaint, you may do so by raising a support ticket through our customer portal at https://portal.hostworld.uk.

To ensure your complaint is handled with the appropriate level of attention, please prefix the subject of your ticket with the words “Formal Complaint” and select the support department most applicable to your issue.

This will help us direct your complaint to the right team for a swift resolution.

What to Include in Your Complaint: To help us understand and resolve your complaint effectively, please include:

Your full name and contact information.
A detailed description of the issue, including any relevant dates, times, and communications.
Your desired outcome or resolution for the complaint.
Any supporting documentation or evidence related to your complaint.

Our Complaints Handling Process:

Acknowledgment: Upon receiving your complaint, we will acknowledge it within 24 hours.
Investigation: Our team will investigate your complaint thoroughly, reviewing all relevant information and documentation. We may contact you for additional details or clarification if necessary.
Resolution: We aim to resolve all complaints within 5 business days of acknowledgment. However, if your complaint requires more time to investigate, we will keep you informed of the progress and provide an estimated resolution time.
Outcome: Once we have reached a decision, we will notify you of the outcome in writing, including any actions we have taken or intend to take to resolve the issue.
Escalation: If you are not satisfied with the initial outcome, you may request escalation to a senior manager. We will review the case and respond within 5 business days of the escalation request.
Continuous Improvement: We take all complaints seriously and use them as an opportunity to improve our services. Your feedback is invaluable in helping us enhance our processes and customer experience.

Payment & Renewal

Full payment is required in advance before services are established. By providing your payment information through our order form or when paying any invoice, you grant Hostworld the right to automatically charge the specified payment method (where the payment method supports this) for the recurring fees until the service is cancelled.

To cancel a service, you must submit a written cancellation request using the designated cancellation form provided in the client area. Upon receiving your cancellation request, Hostworld will process the cancellation and cease any future automatic charges to your payment method for that service. Please note that individual services need to be cancelled separately (e.g., cancelling web hosting does not automatically cancel a domain name registration).

Invoices for the renewal of a product are generated automatically 7 days before your next payment is due. If you have a valid and chargeable Credit/Debit card on your account at the time the invoice is generated, our automated systems will attempt to charge the default card and/or any other cards you have associated with your account. If payment is not received 3 days after the renewal date (after the renewal invoice becomes overdue), the service will enter a suspended state. After 5 days of your renewal invoice becoming overdue, your account will be terminated.

PayPal Subscriptions are the responsibility of the client. If you have instructed PayPal to send Hostworld regular payments via their subscription service, this will continue until you cancel it. If you have cancelled your service, you must ensure any associated PayPal subscription(s) are also cancelled. Refunds of funds received via an active PayPal subscription that was not cancelled due to client error will be refunded back to the client account balance only.

All services automatically renew unless stated otherwise. You accept that in the case of web hosting, VPS, or cloud products you are reserving an allocation of resources on our infrastructure. On this basis the resources are available for your usage irrespective of whether you choose to utilise them. If a service is renewed, it is taken that this is a desire to retain the aforementioned resources for a term not less than the dates stated on the invoice which was paid.

Discounts

Hostworld offers various different discounts to its customers. Discounts (also known as coupon/promo codes) are offered at Hostworld’s discretion and can be withdrawn at any time. Recurring offers will remain recurring at the discounted price until one of the following occurs: (A) the product expires and is not renewed by you, (B) you cancel the product, or (C) Hostworld licensing costs (such as cPanel) increase outside of our control.

When utilising promotional or discount codes on certain products, any additional offerings labelled as “Free X” (e.g., free domain, free WHMCS license, or free dedicated IP address) will not be included as part of the discounted package. If a discount code has been applied during the sign-up process and you later request items such as WHMCS or a dedicated IP, these may be provided at Hostworld’s discretion and may incur an additional, albeit discounted, fee.

Disclaimer of Warranty

The internet is a complex network of services, equipment, and providers of information. Thus the service may not be available to you at all times. Hostworld will pursue all resources and channels available to maintain availability to you; however, Hostworld is not responsible for any interruption in service or downtime that may occur, whether or not due to the act of Hostworld.

Hostworld makes no express or implied warranties (including but not limited to warranties of non-infringement, merchantability or fitness for a particular use) with respect to the services it provides. Neither Hostworld nor anyone else involved in the provision of the service is liable to you or any third-party for direct or indirect damages resulting from the use, non-use, or non-availability of services provided herein, whether or not such damages resulted from the negligence of Hostworld, even if Hostworld has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

.gov.uk Domains

1. Eligibility and Application

Only UK public sector organizations are eligible to register a .gov.uk domain.
The organization must obtain approval from the Cabinet Office to apply.
Applications must be submitted to the CDDO. Upon approval, the CDDO issues a membership token, which must be provided to us, the registrar, for domain registration.

2. Responsibilities of the Registrant

Registrants must adhere to the policies and guidelines set by the Cabinet Office, CDDO, and Nominet.
The registrant is responsible for maintaining accurate and up-to-date contact information.
The domain must be used in a manner that complies with UK government standards and public sector regulations.

3. Security and Management

The registrant must ensure the security of the domain name, implementing appropriate measures to prevent unauthorized access and misuse.
Any security breaches or misuse of the domain must be promptly reported to the Cabinet Office and Nominet.
Regular renewal of the domain is required, following the procedures outlined by Nominet.

4. Transition and Compliance

As the registration authority transitions from JISC to Nominet and CDDO, all registrants must comply with the new processes and requirements.
Registrants must acknowledge and accept any updates to the terms of service as mandated by Nominet and CDDO.
Non-compliance with the updated terms of service or failure to adhere to guidelines may result in suspension or cancellation of the domain registration.

5. Fees and Payments

Registrants are responsible for paying all applicable fees associated with the registration, renewal, and management of the .gov.uk domain, as set by our pricing structure.
Fees are determined by our company and are not based on CDDO’s pricing.

6. Termination and Dispute Resolution

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate the domain registration in cases of non-compliance, misuse, or security breaches.
Any disputes arising from the registration or use of the .gov.uk domain will be handled in accordance with our dispute resolution policies and Nominet’s procedures.

7. Additional Terms

You also accept the additional terms for .gov.uk domains which can be found at https://hostworld.uk/additional-terms-of-service-for-gov-uk-domains

8. Amendments to Terms of Service

These terms of service may be amended periodically to reflect changes in regulations, policies, or operational procedures.
Registrants will be notified of any significant changes to the terms of service and are expected to review and accept the updated terms.

For more information, please refer to the following resources:

Modification

Hostworld terms of service may be modified at any time by Hostworld without prior notice. Your continued use of the service will be deemed consent and agreement to any such amended terms of service.

Last Updated: 08/10/2024