Terms of Service

1. Definitions

• "Maaxi" / "Platform" — the Maaxi Ride website (maaxiride.com), iOS app, and Android app operated by Maaxi Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
• "Driver" / "Ride Publisher" — a registered Member who publishes a ride on Maaxi, offering empty seats in their privately-owned vehicle to Passengers travelling in the same direction.
• "Passenger" / "Rider" — a registered Member who requests a seat on a ride published by a Driver.
• "Member" — any registered user of the Platform (Driver or Passenger).
• "Ride" — an intercity journey posted by a Driver on Maaxi, offering available seats to Passengers.
• "Booking" — a confirmed seat reservation on a Ride, accepted by the Driver.
• "Cost Contribution" — the seat price paid by a Passenger to a Driver to share fuel and toll costs. This is not a commercial fare or transport service fee.
• "JAM" — Maaxi's collaborative in-ride music playlist feature.
• "SOS" — the emergency safety feature that alerts Trusted Contacts and dials 112.
• "Women Preferred Ride" — a Ride where the Driver has been Tier-3 verified and has enabled the women-preferred flag, restricting bookings to women and non-binary passengers.
• "Green Credits" — a non-monetary reward system tracking estimated CO₂ saved through ridesharing.

2. Nature of the Platform

Maaxi acts as a technology intermediary that enables private individuals to share the cost of a journey they were already planning to take. The role of Maaxi is limited to:

• Providing a platform for Drivers to publish available seats and for Passengers to discover and request them.
• Facilitating communication between Members.
• Providing safety features (SOS, document verification, rating system).
• Processing Cost Contribution payments between Members (when the payment feature is live).

Maaxi does not own, operate, or insure the vehicles used for rides. It is the Driver's responsibility to maintain valid vehicle insurance, registration, and a valid driving licence. It is Maaxi's understanding that under applicable Indian transport regulations, a passenger who contributes only towards shared fuel and toll costs is treated as travelling without hire or reward, and is therefore not a commercial passenger under Indian motor vehicle law.

3. Eligibility & Registration

3.1 Eligibility

• You must be at least 18 years old to register on Maaxi.
• You must be a resident of or present in India to use the platform.
• You must provide a valid Indian mobile number for OTP-based identity verification.
• You must not have been previously banned or suspended from Maaxi.

3.2 Account creation

You may register only one personal account. Accounts are non-transferable. You are responsible for all activity under your account. You must notify us immediately if you suspect unauthorised access to your account at security@maaxiride.com.

3.3 Accurate information

You agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information during registration and to keep your profile updated. Providing false information — including fake identity, false vehicle details, or unverified driver documents — will result in immediate account suspension and may be reported to law enforcement.

3.4 Driver verification

To publish rides, you must complete Level 1 verification (DL + Vahan check). To be listed as a Women Preferred driver, you must complete Level 3 verification (DL + Vahan + video-call identity review by the Maaxi safety team). Verification decisions are at Maaxi's sole discretion.

4. Passenger Rules

• You may request only the number of seats you genuinely need for travel.
• You must arrive at the agreed pickup location on time. Drivers are not obligated to wait more than 15 minutes beyond the departure time.
• You must behave respectfully towards the Driver and other co-passengers at all times.
• You must not consume alcohol, smoke, or use illegal substances in the vehicle unless the Driver has expressly agreed.
• You must wear a seatbelt at all times in a moving vehicle, as required by Indian law.
• You must not carry prohibited or illegal items.
• You may cancel a booking in accordance with Section 6 (Cancellation Policy).
• You agree to pay the Cost Contribution agreed at the time of booking. Any disputes about payment should be raised through the in-app dispute system within 48 hours of the ride.

5. Driver Rules

• You must hold a valid Indian driving licence appropriate for the vehicle you are driving.
• Your vehicle must have valid registration, insurance (at minimum third-party), and PUC certificate as required under the Motor Vehicles Act 1988.
• You must only publish rides you genuinely intend to take. Creating fake rides to harvest passenger data or payments is prohibited.
• You may only offer seats that are actually available in your vehicle. You may not offer more seats than the legal seating capacity of your vehicle.
• You must drive safely, follow all traffic rules, and not use a mobile phone while driving.
• You must not deviate significantly from the agreed route without the consent of all passengers.
• You must not charge above the Cost Contribution you published on Maaxi or negotiate higher prices at pickup. Maaxi is not a commercial taxi service, and Cost Contributions must be reasonable and proportional to actual fuel and toll costs.
• You must not discriminate against Passengers on grounds of religion, caste, gender, or any other protected characteristic.
• If you enable the Women Preferred flag, your ride is restricted to women and non-binary passengers. You must respect this filter.
• You must respond to booking requests within 24 hours. Requests not responded to within 24 hours are automatically declined.

6. Booking & Cancellation

6.1 Booking process

A Booking is confirmed only when the Driver explicitly approves the Passenger's request. A pending request does not constitute a confirmed Booking. Phone numbers are revealed to confirmed co-travellers on the morning of ride day.

6.2 Cancellation by Passenger

• More than 24 hours before departure: Free cancellation. No charges apply.
• Between 1–24 hours before departure: The Passenger should notify the Driver immediately. The Driver may retain up to 25% of the Cost Contribution as a late cancellation fee.
• Less than 1 hour before departure or no-show: The Driver may retain up to 50% of the Cost Contribution.

6.3 Cancellation by Driver

Drivers who cancel within 24 hours of departure without good reason (emergency, illness, force majeure) may receive a temporary posting restriction. Repeated driver cancellations may result in account suspension. In such cases, Passengers are entitled to a full refund of any Cost Contribution paid.

6.4 Ride modifications

If a Driver materially changes the ride details (pickup location, departure time by more than 1 hour, or route) after a Booking is confirmed, Passengers may cancel and receive a full refund.

7. Cost-Sharing & Payments

Maaxi is a cost-sharing platform. The Cost Contribution set by a Driver is intended to cover a proportionate share of fuel, tolls, and highway charges — not to generate profit for the Driver. Maaxi charges zero platform commission on Cost Contributions (current policy; may change with 30 days' notice).

Payment processing (UPI, cards) will be integrated via Razorpay in Phase 2. Until then, Cost Contributions may be settled between Members directly at the time of the ride.

Maaxi does not handle cash and is not responsible for disputes over direct cash payments made outside the platform.

GST applicability on Cost Contributions (if any) is governed by Indian tax law and may be subject to change based on regulatory guidance.

8. Safety Obligations

Safety is the foundation of Maaxi. All Members agree to:

• Use the SOS feature in genuine emergencies only. Misuse of the SOS feature to harass other Members or emergency services is a serious violation and may result in immediate account termination and legal action.
• Provide accurate emergency contact information and keep it updated.
• Report safety incidents, harassment, or violations promptly through in-app reporting or at safety@maaxiride.com.
• Not share another Member's personal information (phone number, home address) outside the platform.

Women Preferred rides: Any Driver who misrepresents their identity or enables the Women Preferred flag fraudulently will be permanently banned and reported to law enforcement.

Maaxi cooperates fully with law enforcement investigations related to safety incidents on the platform. Ride records, including booking details and in-app communications, may be provided to law enforcement pursuant to a valid legal request.

9. JAM Feature

JAM is Maaxi's collaborative Spotify queue feature available to confirmed ride participants. By using JAM, you agree that:

• Songs you add to the JAM queue are visible to all ride participants.
• Maaxi's use of the Spotify API is subject to Spotify's Terms of Use. Maaxi is not responsible for Spotify service availability.
• You will not use JAM to share offensive, explicit, or harassing content.
• Connecting Spotify is optional. Rides function fully without Spotify.

10. Ratings & Reviews

After each completed ride, both Drivers and Passengers may rate each other on:

• Service rating (1–5 stars): comfort, punctuality, communication, vehicle condition.
• Safety rating (1–5 stars): driving behaviour, adherence to safety norms, respectful conduct.

Ratings are anonymous during the rating window. Both ratings become visible simultaneously after 48 hours or when both parties have rated, whichever is earlier.

You agree to provide honest, factual ratings. Ratings that are defamatory, retaliatory, or based on protected characteristics (gender, religion, caste) may be removed. You may flag a suspicious rating through in-app reporting. Maaxi's decision on rating removal is final.

A Member whose Safety Rating falls below 3.5 and has received 3+ safety complaints may be suspended pending review.

11. Prohibited Conduct

The following are strictly prohibited and may result in immediate account suspension, permanent ban, and/or legal action:

• Publishing rides you do not intend to operate ("ghost listings").
• Soliciting commercial transport (acting as an unlicensed taxi driver and using Maaxi as a dispatch platform).
• Sexual harassment, assault, or any form of physical violence against another Member.
• Threatening, intimidating, or stalking another Member.
• Sharing another Member's personal data without their consent.
• Creating multiple accounts or impersonating another person.
• Tampering with, circumventing, or reverse-engineering any part of the Maaxi platform.
• Using Maaxi to transport illegal goods or contraband.
• Using abusive, discriminatory, or hate-based language in any communication on the platform.
• Misusing the SOS feature for non-emergency purposes.
• Submitting false identity documents or forged driving licence details.

12. User-Generated Content

You retain ownership of content you post on Maaxi (profile photos, bio text, ride descriptions, reviews). By posting content on Maaxi, you grant Maaxi a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to use, display, and reproduce that content solely for the purpose of operating the platform.

You must not post content that is defamatory, obscene, harassing, or that infringes the intellectual property rights of any third party. We may remove any content that violates these Terms without prior notice.

13. Liability & Disclaimers

13.1 No transport liability

Rides on Maaxi are arranged between independent Members. Maaxi is not a party to any ridesharing agreement between a Driver and a Passenger. Maaxi is not responsible for:

• Accidents, injuries, or fatalities during any ride.
• Loss, theft, or damage to personal property during a ride.
• A Driver's failure to show up or fulfil the booking.
• A Passenger's failure to show up or pay the Cost Contribution.
• The accuracy of information provided by Members (identity, vehicle details, DL).

13.2 Platform liability cap

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Maaxi's total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of or in connection with your use of the platform is limited to INR 1,000 (Indian Rupees One Thousand only) per incident, or the amount of any Cost Contribution paid in relation to the relevant Booking, whichever is lower.

13.3 No warranty

The platform is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind, express or implied. Maaxi does not warrant that the platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free from viruses or malicious code.

13.4 Member responsibility

Each Member is personally responsible for their conduct on and off the platform. Drivers are responsible for their vehicle's roadworthiness, insurance, and compliance with all applicable motor vehicle laws. Passengers are responsible for their own safety, including exercising independent judgement before accepting a ride.

14. Termination & Suspension

Maaxi reserves the right to suspend or permanently terminate your account with or without notice if you:

• Violate any provision of these Terms.
• Engage in prohibited conduct (Section 11).
• Receive repeated low safety ratings or safety complaints.
• Provide false identity or vehicle documents.
• Are reported for criminal behaviour by law enforcement.

You may delete your own account at any time from within the app. Upon account deletion, your personal data will be handled as described in our Privacy Policy. Active bookings should be cancelled before account deletion.

Maaxi may also suspend the platform or any feature without notice for maintenance, legal compliance, or technical reasons. We are not liable for any loss resulting from such suspensions.

15. Intellectual Property

All content on the Maaxi platform — including the Maaxi name, logo, design system, source code, and editorial content — is the intellectual property of Maaxi Technologies Pvt. Ltd. or its licensors. Nothing in these Terms grants you any right to use our intellectual property.

You may not copy, reproduce, scrape, or redistribute any content from the Maaxi platform without our prior written consent. Automated scraping of ride listings is prohibited.

16. Governing Law & Disputes

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India, specifically the Indian Contract Act 1872, the Information Technology Act 2000, and other applicable Indian legislation.

Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or your use of Maaxi shall first be attempted to be resolved through informal negotiation by contacting us at legal@maaxiride.com. If not resolved within 30 days, disputes shall be submitted to binding arbitration under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996.

The seat of arbitration shall be Mumbai, Maharashtra. The language of arbitration shall be English. Courts in Mumbai, Maharashtra shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any matters not subject to arbitration.

Disputes must be filed within 3 months of the incident giving rise to the claim, failing which they shall be time-barred.

17. Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we make material changes, we will notify you via in-app notification and/or email at least 14 days before the change takes effect. Continued use of Maaxi after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

If you do not agree to the updated Terms, you must stop using Maaxi and delete your account.

18. Contact