Terms of Service

Throughout these Terms of Service, the following words have the meanings set out below:

• "Platform" — The Makay mobile and web application, including all features, tools, and services made available through it.
• "Makay," "we," "us," "our" — The operator of the Makay Platform and its authorised representatives.
• "User," "you," "your" — Any person who accesses, browses, registers for, or uses the Platform in any capacity.
• "Buyer" — A User who browses listings and initiates contact with a Seller with the intention of purchasing goods.
• "Seller" — A User who creates one or more listings on the Platform offering goods for sale.
• "Listing" — A product post created by a Seller, including its title, description, images, price, and condition details.
• "Transaction" — Any agreement, exchange, or sale of goods between a Buyer and a Seller facilitated through the Platform.
• "Content" — Any text, images, videos, links, or other materials uploaded to or shared on the Platform by Users.
• "Account" — A registered profile on Makay linked to a User's identity and activity history.
• "Community Guidelines" — The separate behavioural standards governing how Users interact on the Platform.
• "Plastay" — The saved items feature that allows Users to bookmark listings for later reference.

By accessing, downloading, installing, or using the Makay Platform — in whole or in part — you confirm that you have read, understood, and agree to be legally bound by these Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and Community Guidelines, each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Your acceptance occurs at the earliest of the following:

• The moment you create a Makay account;
• The moment you browse product listings, even without registering;
• The moment you contact a Seller or Buyer through the Platform;
• The moment you post any listing or Content to the Platform.

If you are using Makay on behalf of a business, organisation, or other legal entity, you represent that you have the authority to bind that entity to these Terms, and references to "you" shall include both you and that entity.

Continued use of Makay following notification of any amendment constitutes your acceptance of the amended Terms.

Makay is intended for use by individuals who meet all of the following requirements:

Age Requirements

• You must be at least 18 years of age, or the age of legal majority under Liberian law, whichever is greater.
• Minors may only use the Platform under the direct supervision of a parent or legal guardian who accepts full responsibility for all activity under the account.
• If you are a parent or guardian permitting a minor to use Makay, you accept these Terms on their behalf and are fully liable for their conduct on the Platform.

Legal Capacity

• You must have the legal capacity under Liberian law to enter into a binding contract.
• You must not be under any court order, guardianship order, or other restriction that limits your ability to transact commercially.
• You must not be the subject of any legal proceeding that would impair your ability to fulfil obligations arising from transactions on the Platform.

Accurate Registration

• You must provide your real name, a valid phone number or email address, and accurate location information during registration.
• Creating an account using false, misleading, or borrowed identity information is a material violation of these Terms.
• You must promptly update your account information to keep it current and accurate.

Creating Your Account

When you register for Makay, you agree to provide truthful, current, and complete information. You may register using a valid email address, phone number, or a supported third-party sign-in provider. Your account is personal to you and may not be transferred to another person.

Account Security

• You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials, including your password and any verification codes sent to your phone or email.
• You must not share your login credentials with any other person under any circumstances.
• You must notify Makay immediately at makayapp@gmail.com if you suspect unauthorised access to your account.
• Makay will never contact you to request your password, one-time PIN, or authentication code. Any such request is fraudulent — do not comply.

Account Responsibility

You accept full responsibility for all activity that occurs under your account. This includes listings created, messages sent, transactions entered into, and any Content posted — whether carried out by you personally or by any person who gains access through your credentials.

One Account Per Person

Each person may hold only one active personal account on Makay. Creating multiple accounts to evade a suspension, circumvent limits, manipulate search rankings, or deceive other users is prohibited and may result in all associated accounts being permanently terminated.

Account Verification

Makay may offer optional or mandatory verification steps (such as phone number or national ID verification) to increase trust on the Platform. A verified badge does not guarantee a user's trustworthiness and does not transfer any additional liability to Makay for the conduct of verified users.

Brand Accounts

In addition to a personal account, Makay offers an optional Brand Profile for businesses selling under a business identity, as part of our Brand Partner Program. Applying for a Brand Profile is a separate step from creating a personal account and requires additional information, including a business name, logo, category, description, phone number, and location.

• Brand applications are reviewed manually by the Makay team before approval. Submitting an application does not guarantee approval. See our Community Guidelines for the requirements we apply.
• We may reject an application that does not meet those requirements — including, without limitation, a missing or non-genuine logo, an inaccurate or impersonating business name, or an inadequate description.
• If an application is rejected, the information you submitted — including your logo — is deleted rather than retained, and you will be notified with the reason. You may correct the issue and reapply at any time.
• Approved Brand Profiles may be featured in the app's Top Brands section or other promotional placements at Makay's sole discretion. Such placement is not guaranteed, may change or be removed at any time, and is not a term of any agreement between you and Makay.
• Makay may remove, suspend, or revoke an approved Brand Profile at any time for violating these Terms or our Community Guidelines, following the same process described in Section 15 (Termination).

Who May List

Any registered Makay user may create listings to offer goods for sale. By posting a listing, you represent and warrant the following:

• You are the rightful owner of the item, or you have the owner's explicit authorisation to sell it on their behalf.
• The item is legally permitted to be sold in the Republic of Liberia.
• The item is in your possession and available for sale at the time the listing is published.
• All photographs are genuine images of the actual item — not stock photos, screenshots, or images of a different item.
• All listing details are accurate and not intentionally misleading.

Listing Content Standards

• Title: Must clearly identify the item. May not contain prices, phone numbers, or purely promotional language.
• Description: Must accurately describe the item's state, including any faults, missing parts, repairs, or cosmetic damage that a buyer would reasonably want to know about.
• Condition: Must be selected honestly — Brand New, New, Fairly Used, Old, or Very Old — as defined in the app.
• Price: Must be stated in Liberian Dollars (LD) or US Dollars (USD). Artificially inflated "original" prices designed to fake a discount are prohibited.
• Category & Subcategory: Listings must be placed in the most accurate category available. Miscategorising a listing to increase visibility is a violation of these Terms.
• Images: Up to five photographs may be uploaded per listing. Images must not include watermarks promoting third-party websites or services.

Keeping Listings Current

Sellers must keep their listings up to date. You must mark an item as Sold or remove its listing promptly once a sale is completed. Deliberately leaving a sold item listed to continue receiving enquiries, or re-listing an item moments after marking it sold to manipulate visibility, is prohibited.

Duplicate Listings

Posting multiple identical or near-identical listings for the same item is prohibited. Sellers with multiple units of the same item should indicate quantity in a single listing rather than creating duplicate posts.

Makay's Right to Remove Listings

Makay reserves the right to remove, delist, or modify any listing at any time without prior notice if it violates these Terms, our Community Guidelines, or applicable Liberian law. Repeated violations may result in suspension of your posting privileges or full account termination.

Makay operates as a peer-to-peer marketplace. Makay does not process, hold, or facilitate any financial payments between Buyers and Sellers. All monetary transactions are conducted directly between users outside of the Platform.

Payment Methods

Buyers and Sellers are free to agree on any mutually acceptable payment method. The following are commonly used within Liberia:

• Cash (LD or USD): The most common method for in-person exchanges. Both Liberian Dollars and US Dollars circulate widely in Liberia.
• Orange Money: Mobile money service operated by Orange Liberia. Dial *144# or use the Orange Money app.
• Lonestar MTN Mobile Money (MoMo): Mobile money service by Lonestar Cell MTN. Accessible via *156# or the MTN MoMo app.
• Bank transfers: Available through Liberian commercial banks including LBDI, Access Bank Liberia, Ecobank Liberia, and others.

Safe Transaction Practices

Makay strongly recommends the following practices for all transactions:

• Agree on the final price, currency, payment method, and meeting location in writing via the Makay chat before arranging to meet.
• Meet in well-lit, busy, public locations — such as shopping centres on Randall Street, Broad Street, or other visible public spaces in Monrovia and other cities.
• Inspect the item thoroughly and test it where applicable before handing over payment.
• Request a mobile money transaction receipt or screenshot for all electronic transfers.
• Do not proceed with a transaction if the Seller changes the price, location, or conditions at the last minute — this is a common sign of fraud.
• Bring a trusted person with you when meeting a stranger for a high-value transaction.

Currency Clarity

Prices are displayed in either LD or USD as set by the Seller. Exchange rates fluctuate, and Makay does not provide or guarantee currency conversions. Both parties must agree on and confirm the currency of any transaction before payment is made.

As a Buyer on Makay, you acknowledge and accept the following responsibilities:

Doing Your Research

• You are responsible for evaluating listings carefully, including reading all descriptions, reviewing all photographs, and asking questions about the item's condition before committing to a purchase.
• You should request additional photos or a live video call with the Seller for high-value items before agreeing to meet.
• Makay does not verify the accuracy of listings. Sellers bear sole responsibility for the content they post.

Making Offers in Good Faith

• Initiating contact or making an offer does not create a binding contract. A transaction is agreed upon only when both parties have confirmed the price, condition, and handover arrangements.
• Making offers with no genuine intention to follow through is a violation of these Terms and our Community Guidelines.
• Repeatedly backing out of agreed transactions may result in restrictions being applied to your account.

Inspection and Acceptance

Makay strongly advises all Buyers to physically inspect goods before completing payment. Once you take possession of an item and make payment, the transaction is considered complete. Makay's ability to assist in any subsequent dispute is limited — see our Returns & Disputes policy for details.

Communication Standards

You must communicate with Sellers respectfully and in good faith. Using the messaging feature to harass, threaten, or intimidate Sellers — including sending repeated messages after a Seller has declined to proceed — is a violation of these Terms.

As a Seller on Makay, you take on specific obligations to Buyers and to the wider Makay community:

Honest Representation

• You must describe every item accurately, disclosing all known faults, damage, missing parts, or signs of wear that a reasonable buyer would consider important to their decision.
• Deliberately concealing defects, misrepresenting condition, or using photographs that do not reflect the item's current state may constitute fraud under Liberian law — and is a serious violation of these Terms.
• If a defect is discovered after listing but before the sale is completed, you must update the listing or inform the Buyer promptly.

Responsiveness

• You should respond to Buyer enquiries within a reasonable timeframe. Prolonged non-responsiveness may result in your listings being deprioritised in search results.
• If an item is sold or no longer available, you must update or remove its listing within 24 hours.

Honouring Agreements

Once a Seller confirms a sale and agrees on a meeting time, location, and price with a Buyer, backing out without reasonable cause — particularly close to the agreed meeting time — is a violation of these Terms. Repeated last-minute cancellations may result in account restrictions or suspension.

After the Sale

After a transaction is complete, Sellers should mark the item as Sold and be willing to answer reasonable follow-up questions from the Buyer about the item they purchased. Sellers are not required by Makay to provide refunds, but acting in good faith after a sale builds trust and reputation on the Platform.

Tax & Legal Compliance

Sellers are solely responsible for complying with all applicable Liberian tax laws, business registration requirements, and any sector-specific regulations. Makay does not provide tax or legal advice and is not responsible for any Seller's compliance obligations.

Prohibited Items

The following categories of goods may not be listed, offered, advertised, or referenced on Makay under any circumstances:

Prohibited Conduct

The following behaviours are strictly prohibited on the Makay Platform:

• Harassment, intimidation, threats of violence, or abusive language directed at any User, Makay staff, or third party.
• Posting false, misleading, or fraudulent listings with the intent to deceive Buyers or obtain payment without delivering goods.
• Operating as a fraudulent Seller — collecting payments and not delivering goods.
• Sending unsolicited messages, spam, or off-platform contact details to other users.
• Pressuring users to complete transactions outside of the Platform's messaging system to avoid accountability.
• Creating fake reviews, fake accounts, or engaging in any form of reputation manipulation.
• Impersonating another person, company, public figure, or Makay itself.
• Attempting to hack, reverse-engineer, scrape, or interfere with the Platform's technical infrastructure.
• Using automated bots or scripts to access the Platform without Makay's written permission.
• Publishing another User's personal information — name, address, phone number, or photos — without their explicit consent.
• Making or facilitating any transaction on Makay that knowingly enables harm to another person.

It is essential that all Users understand the nature and limits of Makay's role in the marketplace:

Makay is a technology platform — not a retailer, broker, or financial institution. Every transaction you enter into on Makay is a direct, private agreement between you and the other party. Makay facilitates the introduction but is not present at the transaction, does not inspect goods, and cannot guarantee that either party will honour their commitments.

To the maximum extent permitted under the laws of the Republic of Liberia, Makay, its founders, directors, employees, contractors, agents, and affiliates shall not be liable for:

• Any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive loss arising from your use of or inability to use the Platform.
• Financial losses arising from transactions between Users, including fraud, non-delivery, misrepresentation of goods, or payment disputes.
• Loss of data, business opportunity, goodwill, or reputation resulting from use of the Platform.
• Any interruption, suspension, error, virus, or security breach affecting the Platform's availability or integrity.
• Unauthorised access to your account resulting from your failure to safeguard your credentials.
• The conduct, actions, or omissions of any User, whether online or during any in-person exchange arranged through the Platform.
• Physical harm, robbery, assault, theft, or any other crime committed in connection with a transaction arranged on the Platform.
• The accuracy, legality, safety, or condition of any goods listed or sold on the Platform.

The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available" without any warranty — express, implied, or statutory — including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or uninterrupted availability.

Where Liberian law does not permit complete exclusion of liability, Makay's total aggregate liability to you for all claims shall not exceed the greater of USD 50 or the total amount paid by you to Makay in the twelve months preceding the claim.

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Makay and its founders, directors, employees, contractors, agents, and affiliates from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or related to:

• Your use of the Platform or any transaction you enter into through it;
• Your violation of these Terms, our Privacy Policy, or our Community Guidelines;
• Any Content you post, including any claim that your Content infringes a third party's rights;
• Your violation of any applicable Liberian law, regulation, or court order;
• Any fraudulent, deceptive, or unlawful conduct on your part in connection with the Platform.

Makay reserves the right to assume exclusive control of the defence of any claim for which you are required to indemnify us. You agree to cooperate fully with Makay's defence and not to settle any matter without Makay's prior written consent.

Makay's Intellectual Property

All elements of the Makay Platform — including the name "Makay," the logo, app design, colour scheme, icons, code, architecture, text, and all other original materials — are the exclusive intellectual property of Makay or its licensors. They are protected by copyright, trademark, and other applicable Liberian and international laws.

You may not copy, reproduce, modify, create derivative works from, reverse-engineer, or distribute any part of the Platform without Makay's prior written consent.

Licence to Your Content

By uploading photographs, descriptions, or any other Content to the Platform, you grant Makay a non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable, worldwide licence to store, display, reproduce, and use that Content solely for the purpose of operating, improving, and promoting the Makay Platform.

This licence continues for as long as your Content remains on the Platform and terminates when you delete it, subject to any applicable backup or caching periods.

Your Warranties

By posting Content to the Platform, you warrant that:

• You own the Content or have all necessary rights and permissions to post it;
• Your Content does not infringe any copyright, trademark, trade secret, privacy, or other rights of any third party;
• Your Content does not constitute defamation, libel, fraud, or any unlawful communication under Liberian law.

Reporting IP Infringement

If you believe that Content on Makay infringes your intellectual property rights, please contact us at makayapp@gmail.com with a description of the work, the URL of the infringing content, and your contact details. We will review your report and take appropriate action.

Makay collects and processes personal data in connection with your use of the Platform. Our full Privacy Policy explains in detail what data we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and your rights in relation to it.

Key points to be aware of:

• Makay uses Google Firebase to store user accounts, listings, chat messages, notifications, and saved items. Data may be processed on Google servers outside of Liberia.
• Your public profile and active listings are visible to all users of the Platform, including non-registered guests.
• Messages sent through the Platform are stored on Makay's servers and may be accessed by Makay staff in the context of a formal dispute investigation or in response to a lawful law enforcement request.
• Makay does not sell your personal data to third parties for advertising or marketing purposes.
• You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your personal data by contacting makayapp@gmail.com.

By using the Platform, you consent to the collection and processing of your personal data as described in our Privacy Policy.

Termination by Makay

Makay reserves the right to suspend, restrict, or permanently terminate your account, with or without prior notice, in the following circumstances:

• Violation of any part of these Terms, our Privacy Policy, or our Community Guidelines;
• Engaging in fraudulent, abusive, deceptive, or illegal activity on or through the Platform;
• Providing false or misleading information during registration or in any listing;
• Actions that we reasonably believe endanger the safety, rights, or interests of other Users or third parties;
• Non-compliance with a formal request from Makay, a law enforcement agency, or a court of competent jurisdiction;
• Any conduct that damages the reputation, operations, or technical integrity of the Platform.

Termination by You

You may close your Makay account at any time by navigating to your Account Settings and selecting "Delete Account." Upon deletion, your profile, listings, and personal data will be removed in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable data retention obligations.

Effect of Termination

Upon termination of your account, whether initiated by you or by Makay:

• Your right to access and use the Platform ceases immediately;
• All active listings associated with your account will be removed from public view;
• You may not create a new account without Makay's written consent if your account was terminated by Makay for a policy violation;
• Provisions of these Terms that by their nature survive termination — including liability, indemnification, intellectual property, and governing law — shall remain in full force.

Governing Law

These Terms of Service are governed by, and shall be construed in accordance with, the laws of the Republic of Liberia, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles.

Jurisdiction

Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising from or relating to these Terms or your use of the Platform shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent courts of Montserrado County, Republic of Liberia. You irrevocably consent to the jurisdiction and venue of such courts.

Dispute Resolution Process

Before commencing any formal legal proceedings, the parties agree to attempt resolution through the following process:

Nothing in this clause prevents either party from seeking urgent injunctive or interim relief from a court of competent jurisdiction.

Makay may update these Terms of Service at any time to reflect changes in our services, applicable Liberian law, industry standards, or operational practices.

How We Notify You

• We will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page whenever the Terms change.
• For material changes, we will send a notification to your registered email address or display a prominent in-app notice before the changes take effect.
• Where required by applicable law, we will provide adequate advance notice before changes take effect.

Your Options

If you do not agree with any amended Terms, you must stop using the Platform and delete your account before the effective date of the changes. Continued use of Makay after the effective date of any amended Terms constitutes your acceptance of those Terms.

Version History

We maintain a record of previous versions of these Terms. If you would like to review prior versions, please contact us at makayapp@gmail.com and we will provide them upon request.

If you have any questions, concerns, or formal notices regarding these Terms of Service, please contact us using the appropriate channel below. We aim to respond to all legal enquiries within 5 Liberian business days.