This service, Phone 'n' Moan, is operated by [YOUR LEGAL NAME OR TRADING NAME] ("we", "us", "our"), contactable at [YOUR EMAIL].
We provide four related services:
We are not a counselling, therapy, mental health, medical, legal, financial, or crisis service, and nothing said or written during any of these services constitutes professional advice of any kind. Our Listeners are ordinary people, not trained counsellors or therapists.
If you are in distress or crisis, please contact the Samaritans on 116 123 (free, 24/7 in the UK) or text SHOUT to 85258.
Prices for each product are shown on the website at the moment you commit to the transaction, in pounds sterling, and are the total price you pay, including any applicable taxes. Instant calls and scheduled calls are each individually priced; gifts are priced by the underlying call type. Payments are processed by Stripe (for scheduled calls, through our booking provider, Cal.com); we do not store your card details. Leaving a recording on the Public Answering Machine is free.
From time to time we may offer introductory or promotional prices. The price that applies is the one shown when you pay. A promotional price may end at any time, but this does not affect calls, bookings or gifts you have already paid for.
By using any part of the service — making a call, buying a gift, or leaving a recording — you confirm that you are at least 18 years old and have legal capacity to enter into a contract. We may decline service at our discretion.
The mechanics vary by product:
Instant calls. You pay via Stripe. The amount is held on your card but not charged. You're connected to a Listener through your browser. Your card is charged once the call counts: a Listener has answered and the call has reached the minimum length. If the call drops, you can rejoin from the call page for the rest of your call time. If the call never counts, the hold is released and you are not charged. Calls have a fixed maximum length; an on-screen countdown and a warning tone let you know when it is nearly over.
Scheduled calls. You pay upfront when booking a slot through Cal.com. You receive a confirmation email with a join link. Click that link at your scheduled time to be connected to a Listener through your browser. The call ends automatically at the end of your booked slot, even if you join late. If the call drops, you can rejoin using the same link until the slot ends.
Gifts. You pay upfront via Stripe checkout. You receive a shareable link to send to the giftee. The giftee uses the link within the expiry period to either make an instant call or book a scheduled slot, depending on the gift type. An instant gift is only used up once its call counts (as for instant calls above), so unsuccessful attempts (for example, if no Listener is available or the call doesn't connect) leave the gift redeemable. A scheduled gift is used once the giftee books their slot; they can still reschedule from their booking confirmation email.
Public Answering Machine. With your recorded consent, you record a message of up to one minute in your browser. We may then publish a short edited highlight on our public answering-machine page and in our social media adverts. Publication is covered by the consent you give before recording, and you can request removal at any time. Full detail is in Section 6.
Recording. When you record a message you consent to our processing that recording for the purposes described in our Privacy Policy, including publishing a short edited clip on our Public Answering Machine page and using it in our social media adverts. You confirm you are 18 or over.
Publication. We may publish a short edited highlight of your recording on our public answering-machine page and in adverts on social media platforms. These are publicly accessible and may be indexed by search engines. We do not attach your name, contact details, or any identifying metadata to a published clip.
Content. You are responsible for what you say. You must not record content that would breach our Acceptable Use policy (Section 8) — for example threats, harassment, defamation of an identifiable person, sexual content, or material that identifies a third party without their consent. We reserve the right to refuse to publish or to delete any recording at our discretion, without notice.
Removal. You may ask us to remove a published clip at any time by emailing [YOUR EMAIL]. We will remove it within a reasonable period, typically 7 days. We will take down clips on our website and stop running adverts that use them, but we can't recall copies that others have already shared or downloaded.
Retention. Unpublished recordings that we choose not to publish are deleted periodically. Published recordings remain online until you or we delete them.
Rate limit. To keep the service usable for everyone, we limit the number of recordings that can be left from one browser or IP address in each 24-hour period.
Instant calls. Because the service is delivered immediately on payment, you agree that performance begins as soon as you click Call Now and complete payment, and you acknowledge that by doing so you waive your statutory 14-day right to cancel under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013.
We automatically release the hold (so you are not charged) if any of the following happen:
Scheduled calls. You may reschedule or cancel a booked slot up to 2 hours before the slot starts, using the link in your confirmation email. Cancellations made in time are refunded to your original payment method, typically within 5–10 business days. Missed slots (where the caller does not join), and slots ended early by the Listener under Section 8, are not refundable.
Gifts. Gifts are refundable until they are used: an instant gift once its call counts, a scheduled gift once the giftee books their slot. Once a gift is used, no refund is due. Unused gifts that expire (365 days from purchase) are not refundable. If a giftee cancels a gifted booking, contact us and we can send them a fresh booking link. If you would like to change the giftee before the gift is used, contact us.
Goodwill refunds. If you believe you have been charged in error, or something has gone wrong that isn't covered above, contact [YOUR EMAIL] within 30 days and we will investigate. Decisions on goodwill refunds outside the automatic cases are at our discretion.
You agree not to use any part of the service — call, gift, or recording — to:
We may end any call, or refuse to publish (or delete) any recording, at any time, with or without notice, if we believe this clause is being breached. In such cases the call still counts as delivered and no refund is due.
Our Listeners may also end a call at their own discretion if a caller makes them feel uncomfortable, unsafe, or unable to continue the conversation in good faith. No refund will be given where a call is ended for this reason.
Instant calls only connect when a Listener is online. When no Listener is available, the homepage shows this and an instant call cannot be started or charged for.
Scheduled bookings, gift purchases, and recorded rants are available regardless of whether a Listener is currently online, and may take payment upfront (for example when booking a slot or buying a gift). A scheduled call will only be connected during its booked slot; a gift can be redeemed by the giftee at any time within its expiry window (an instant gift only when a Listener is available).
We make no guarantee of availability at any specific time and may reduce, pause, or withdraw any part of the service without prior notice.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, our total liability to you arising from your use of the service is limited to the amount you paid for the call, gift, or booking in question. This limit does not apply to things the law says we can never opt out of — for example, harm caused by our negligence, fraud on our part, or anything else we are not legally allowed to exclude.
We are not liable for indirect or consequential losses, including (but not limited to) emotional, psychological, or financial harm arising from the content of a call or a recording.
Please read our Privacy Policy, which explains what information we and our suppliers (Stripe, Twilio, Cal.com, Netlify, Resend) collect and how it is used.
We may update these terms from time to time. The version that applies to a particular transaction is the one in force at the moment that transaction begins — for an instant call, when you click Call Now and pay; for a scheduled call, when you pay for your booking; for a gift, when you begin the Stripe checkout; for a recorded rant, when you click Start Recording. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.
These terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any dispute will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales, save where consumer law gives you additional rights.
Questions about these terms: [YOUR EMAIL].