TERMS &
CONDITIONS.

About these Terms

These Website Terms and Conditions (the “Terms”) govern your access to and use of hichweb.com and the pages, content, interactive previews, project-planning tools and other features made available through it (together, the “Website”). The Website is operated by Hich Web Development, also referred to in these Terms as “HICH”, “we”, “us” or “our”. Our contact address for notices and questions is info@hichweb.com.

By accessing, browsing or using the Website, you confirm that you have read, understood and agreed to these Terms. If you do not agree, you must not use the Website. These Terms concern the public Website only. They do not, by themselves, appoint HICH to perform services, reserve our availability, create a client relationship or replace a proposal, statement of work, service agreement, licence, maintenance agreement or other written contract accepted by HICH. Sections describing client projects, payments, ownership, modifications and support apply to an engagement only when the applicable quotation, proposal, invoice or project agreement incorporates them or makes them available for acceptance.

Eligibility and authority

You may use the Website only if you can lawfully enter into these Terms. If you use it for a company, partnership, charity, public body or other organisation, you represent that you have authority to act for that organisation and that both you and the organisation will comply with these Terms. References to “you” include that organisation where the context permits.

The Website is directed principally to businesses and adults exploring professional digital services. It is not designed for unsupervised use by children. You must not submit a project enquiry or provide personal information through a linked communication service if you are not legally able to do so. A parent, guardian or authorised representative remains responsible for any permitted use on behalf of another person.

Changes to these Terms

We may revise these Terms to reflect changes to the Website, our practices, technology, security requirements or applicable law. The “Last updated” date identifies the version displayed. A revised version applies from the date it is published unless the revision states a later date. Your continued use after that date constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

A change to these Website Terms will not retrospectively alter a separately accepted project agreement. If a change is material, we may also place a notice on the Website. You should save or print the version that applies when you use the Website or make a project payment. If you do not accept a revised version, your remedy for Website use is to stop using the Website and, for a proposed project transaction, not to sign, approve or pay until the terms are resolved in writing.

Website information is not an offer

The Website describes HICH’s capabilities, approach, selected work and general areas of service. That material is provided for general information and evaluation. It is not a binding offer, professional opinion, warranty, promise of availability, quotation or commitment to deliver any particular feature, result, time frame or price. Headings, labels, illustrations and interactive demonstrations may simplify a more complex service for presentation purposes.

We try to keep published information useful and accurate, but business, technical and market circumstances change. You should verify information that is important to a decision and must not rely on a sample, estimate, article, case study, prototype or visual concept as a substitute for a project-specific assessment. References to possible outcomes, performance, growth, conversion, security, search visibility or accessibility are not guarantees.

Enquiries and electronic communications

The project planner prepares a draft brief in your browser. You may copy or download it, or open it in your own email or WhatsApp application. Preparing a draft, selecting an option, opening another application or clicking a contact link does not prove that a message reached HICH. An enquiry is received only when it reaches an inbox or account we control in a readable form.

An acknowledgement, automated response, discussion, meeting or request for more information does not amount to HICH accepting work. We may accept or decline an enquiry at our discretion, subject to applicable law. An electronic communication can, however, record a client’s acceptance when it clearly identifies the project or document and communicates agreement through an authorised person. You consent to receiving communications relating to your enquiry by the channels you use or provide. You are responsible for checking recipients, attachments and message contents before sending and for keeping your own copies.

Project agreements and order of precedence

Every engagement is subject to separate written commercial terms. Those terms should identify the parties, deliverables, assumptions, dependencies, exclusions, fees, taxes, payment schedule, review rounds, acceptance process, timing, client responsibilities, third-party costs, intellectual-property treatment, deployment, support and termination rights. No Website statement adds a deliverable to an agreed project scope.

If an accepted project agreement conflicts with these Terms in relation to the contracted services, the project agreement prevails for that conflict. These Terms continue to govern use of the public Website. A proposal expires on the date it states and may be withdrawn before acceptance unless the proposal expressly says otherwise. Work does not begin, and dates are not held, until the required acceptance, deposit or other conditions stated in the applicable project agreement have been satisfied.

Electronic signatures, physical signatures and acceptance

HICH may accept an agreement signed by hand on paper (a physical or wet-ink signature) or accepted electronically. Electronic acceptance may include a recognised electronic-signature service, a scanned or photographed signed copy, a typed name or signature applied with the signer’s intention to approve, selecting an “accept” control, or an email, WhatsApp message or other electronic communication that clearly identifies the agreement and records the authorised person’s approval. HICH may require a particular method, identity check or original document where reasonably necessary or required by law.

An electronic signature, electronic copy or separately signed counterpart is intended to have the same contractual effect between the parties as a physical signature to the extent permitted by applicable law. The parties may sign counterparts, each of which forms part of the same agreement. A readable electronic copy may be retained and relied upon as evidence of acceptance, subject to any mandatory requirement concerning form, witnessing, notarisation or originals.

Where a quotation, proposal, invoice or project agreement identifies these Terms or provides a link or copy before payment, the client’s payment of a deposit, booking fee, instalment, milestone or invoice confirms that the client had the opportunity to read these Terms and accepts the payment, ownership, scope, delivery and other provisions incorporated into that transaction. Payment is an additional method of acceptance; it does not replace any signature or approval that the relevant document expressly requires.

The person signing, approving or arranging payment represents that they are authorised to bind the named client. A payment made by a third party on a client’s behalf is treated as the client’s payment only where the client authorised it or later ratifies it. HICH’s acceptance of a signature or payment does not waive unpaid balances, scope limits, intellectual-property rights or any other agreed right. Nothing in this section removes a mandatory cancellation, refund, consumer or other right that applicable law does not allow the parties to exclude.

Client projects, source code and ownership

Unless a project agreement signed or expressly accepted by HICH specifically states otherwise, HICH retains all right, title and interest in its source code, software systems, reusable components, libraries, frameworks, architecture, development tools, design systems, interface components, working files, methods, processes, know-how, documentation and other materials created, developed or used by HICH (together, “HICH Materials”). HICH Materials remain HICH property whether they existed before a client project or were developed while providing services. Open-source software and third-party materials remain subject to their own licences and ownership terms.

A client retains ownership of the names, logos, text, photographs, data and other materials that the client lawfully supplies for a project (“Client Materials”). After full payment of all applicable fees, the client receives only the licence or other usage rights expressly stated in the applicable project agreement for the final deliverables. Paying for services, receiving a deployed website, controlling a domain or hosting account, or receiving administrative access, exports, copies or build files does not by itself transfer ownership of HICH Materials or any source code.

A client purchases the agreed design, development or related services and the right to use the final deliverables within the agreed scope; the client does not become the author, publisher, reseller or owner of HICH Materials. Any assignment or broader licence must be expressly identified in a written project agreement accepted by HICH. No ownership or source-code rights arise by implication.

Copying, handover and third-party developers

Except where a project agreement or applicable law expressly permits it, a client, visitor, publisher, contractor or other person must not copy, reproduce, extract, clone, adapt, translate, modify, sell, sublicense, publish, distribute, rebrand, create derivative works from, or use HICH Materials to build another website, product, template or system. Website layouts, interface designs, prototypes, source files, repositories, credentials and technical documentation must not be supplied or made available to another developer, agency or service provider for those purposes without HICH’s prior written permission.

Permission to operate a delivered website or update ordinary client-controlled content is not permission to access, reuse or modify HICH-owned source code or systems. If a client needs a handover, migration, source-code licence or permission for another developer to work on a project, the parties must first agree the permitted materials, scope, fees, security requirements, attribution, support consequences and licence terms in writing.

Modifications, maintenance and responsibility

HICH is responsible only for modifications, maintenance and support that HICH performs or expressly approves in writing under an active project or support agreement. No client or third party may alter HICH-owned code, systems, security controls, integrations, infrastructure or design files outside the rights granted in the applicable project agreement.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, HICH is not responsible for defects, downtime, data loss, security incidents, incompatibility, performance changes, legal non-compliance or other loss caused or contributed to by an unauthorised modification, access, transfer, deployment or other act by a client or third party. Any HICH warranty or support commitment does not apply to the affected part until HICH has inspected and, where possible, restored it. Investigation, restoration or rework may require a new written scope and additional fees.

These restrictions do not prevent a client from exercising a right expressly granted in a project agreement or a right that applicable law does not allow the parties to exclude. HICH remains responsible for its own agreed work to the extent stated in the applicable project agreement and required by law.

Permitted use

Subject to these Terms, HICH grants you a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable permission to access the Website using an ordinary web browser for lawful purposes such as learning about HICH, considering our services, viewing public work and preparing a genuine enquiry. This permission is a licence, not a transfer of ownership.

You may print or save a reasonable number of Website pages for your internal evaluation, provided you retain copyright and ownership notices and do not alter or commercially redistribute the material. No other right is granted by implication, estoppel or otherwise. Any use not expressly permitted is reserved by HICH and the relevant rights owners.

Prohibited conduct

You must use the Website responsibly and must not use it, attempt to use it, or help another person use it in a way that is unlawful, fraudulent, deceptive, abusive or harmful. Without limiting that obligation, you must not:

• copy, scrape, harvest, republish, sell, frame or systematically extract Website content, project information or contact details except as allowed by law or with written permission;
• impersonate HICH, a client, another user or any other person, or misrepresent an affiliation, endorsement, authorship or the origin of a communication;
• upload, transmit or introduce malware, destructive code, automated requests, denial-of-service traffic or material designed to interfere with the Website or another system;
• probe, scan, test, bypass or defeat security, rate limits, access controls, robots directives or technical measures without prior written authorisation;
• reverse engineer, decompile or attempt to derive source code from Website software except to the limited extent that applicable law expressly permits and does not allow that right to be excluded;
• use the Website to infringe intellectual property, privacy, confidentiality, publicity or other rights, or to send unlawful, threatening, defamatory, obscene or unsolicited material; or
• use Website content, visual designs, text, project presentations or brand elements to train or populate a competing commercial service, template library or generative model without our written permission.

Security and responsible disclosure

You must not seek unauthorised access to the Website, its hosting environment, source systems or related accounts. If you discover a suspected vulnerability, report it privately to info@hichweb.com with enough detail for us to investigate. Do not exploit the issue, access unrelated data, degrade service, publish the vulnerability before we have had a reasonable opportunity to address it, or demand payment as a condition of non-disclosure.

A report does not create a contract, reward entitlement or permission to conduct further testing. We may preserve relevant records and cooperate with hosting providers, affected parties and lawful authorities. HICH reserves all rights and remedies in relation to unauthorised access, interference, data misuse and conduct prohibited by the Computer Crime Act, No. 24 of 2007 or other applicable law.

HICH intellectual property

The Website and its original content—including its arrangement, selection, copy, graphics, interfaces, motion, code, design system, HICH name, wordmark, symbols and other brand features—are owned by or licensed to HICH and are protected by intellectual-property and unfair-competition laws. The Website may also contain open-source software, fonts and third-party material governed by their own notices or licences.

Except for the limited permission in these Terms, you may not reproduce, adapt, translate, modify, distribute, publicly display, communicate, make derivative works from, remove notices from or commercially exploit any protected Website material without advance written permission from the relevant owner. Nothing on the Website grants a licence to use the HICH name, logo, trade dress, domain name or confusingly similar identifier in advertising, metadata, domains, accounts or business names.

Portfolio work and third-party rights

Portfolio pages may include names, marks, screenshots, content or other materials belonging to clients, collaborators or technology providers. Those materials remain the property of their respective owners. Their appearance identifies or describes work and does not grant you permission to use them or imply that an owner endorses you, HICH, every HICH service or every statement on the Website.

Some presentations are identified as concepts, experiments or illustrative previews. They must not be interpreted as commissioned work, a live service, an available product or evidence of a relationship with a depicted organisation. You may not present any HICH or client work as your own, remove attribution, create a misleading case study, or use project material in a way that harms an owner or suggests a false association.

Material you send

You retain ownership of material you submit in an enquiry or otherwise send to HICH. You grant HICH a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to receive, copy, store, review and use that material only as reasonably necessary to respond, evaluate the opportunity, prepare a proposal, protect our legitimate interests, comply with law and perform any agreement you later enter into with us. This licence lasts for as long as those purposes reasonably require.

You represent that you have the rights and permissions needed to send the material and permit this use. Do not send passwords, production credentials, payment-card data, confidential source code, health information, government identifiers or other unnecessary sensitive information in an initial enquiry. You are responsible for the legality, accuracy and completeness of what you send. We may delete or decline material that is unsafe, unlawful, irrelevant or technically burdensome.

Confidentiality and unsolicited ideas

The public Website and ordinary enquiry channels are not secure data rooms. Unless HICH has signed a separate confidentiality agreement covering the material, an enquiry does not create a duty to treat unsolicited ideas, concepts, pitch materials or business information as confidential. We will nevertheless handle personal information as described in our Privacy Policy and comply with confidentiality duties that applicable law imposes.

HICH works with many businesses and may already be developing, or later develop, ideas, designs, techniques or services similar to something you send. Sending an unsolicited idea does not prevent HICH from using independently developed or lawfully obtained material and does not entitle you to payment, credit or ownership. If confidentiality is essential, ask us to agree suitable written terms before disclosing the sensitive details.

Feedback

If you voluntarily provide suggestions about the Website or HICH services, you grant HICH a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, transferable, sublicensable, royalty-free right to use, reproduce, adapt and incorporate that feedback without restriction or compensation. This clause concerns feedback about HICH, not your confidential project assets or personal information.

You should provide feedback only if you are entitled to do so. HICH is not required to implement, acknowledge or keep feedback. To the extent applicable law does not permit a complete waiver of moral or similar rights in feedback, you agree not to assert those rights against uses authorised by this section.

Privacy and local device storage

Our Privacy Policy explains how the current Website handles information and is incorporated into these Terms by reference. The project planner keeps entered information in the current browser page while you prepare a brief. If you actively choose to remember project preferences, the Website stores the stated non-personal selections in local browser storage. The current build does not independently submit the brief to a HICH form server.

Your email provider, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, hosting provider and linked websites operate under their own terms and privacy practices. Opening a WhatsApp draft passes the prepared text to WhatsApp through the link before you choose whether to send it. You are responsible for deciding whether those channels are appropriate. Do not assume that Internet communications are completely secure, immediate or error-free.

Third-party websites and services

The Website may link to or refer to websites, platforms, products, libraries, payment providers, social networks, communication services and other resources supplied by independent third parties. Links are offered for convenience or context. Unless expressly stated, HICH does not control, operate, sponsor or endorse those resources and is not a party to transactions between you and their providers.

Third-party availability, security, accuracy, accessibility, pricing, functionality and terms may change without notice. You use them at your own risk and should review their applicable terms and privacy notices. HICH is not responsible for third-party content, acts, omissions, outages, data handling, purchases or losses. A reference to a technology indicates possible compatibility or experience, not certification, partnership or a guarantee that it is appropriate for your project.

Fees, deposits, invoices and taxes

Fees, deposits, instalments, milestones, currencies and payment dates for HICH services are stated in the applicable quotation, proposal, invoice or project agreement. Before making a payment, the client must review that document, these Terms where incorporated, and any linked project conditions. By paying, the client confirms the transaction details and acceptance described in the “Electronic signatures, physical signatures and acceptance” section. Unless the applicable document says otherwise, invoices are payable by the stated due date without deduction or set-off. The client is responsible for applicable bank charges, payment-provider fees, taxes, duties and government charges, except taxes imposed on HICH’s own net income.

A booking fee or deposit reserves capacity and may compensate HICH for discovery, planning, administration and opportunities declined in reliance on the booking. It is refundable only where the applicable project agreement expressly allows a refund, HICH materially fails to provide the agreed service, or applicable law requires one. Payments for completed work, approved milestones, purchased third-party services and committed costs are not refundable to the maximum extent permitted by law.

HICH may keep reasonable payment and acceptance records, including the applicable document version, transaction reference, amount, date, payer information supplied through the approved payment channel and related approval communications. A receipt confirms funds received; it does not alter scope, transfer source-code ownership or prove that every project obligation has been completed.

If an undisputed amount is overdue, HICH may pause work, withhold deployment, delivery, source access, licences, support or transfer of project materials after giving reasonable notice. Timelines will move to reflect the pause and HICH’s next reasonable availability. Suspension does not cancel amounts already due or transfer intellectual-property rights. HICH will not exercise this right where a payment is withheld under a mandatory legal right that cannot be excluded.

Payment gateways and online transactions

The current public Website does not take card payments or operate a payment gateway. If HICH later integrates a gateway, bank, wallet, payment link, checkout or other payment service for a client project, HICH acts only as the technical designer or integrator within the written project scope. HICH is not a bank, payment-system operator, payment-service provider, merchant of record, escrow agent or custodian of customer funds, and does not independently approve, decline, process, settle, reverse or refund a transaction.

The client must contract directly with an appropriately authorised payment provider and comply with that provider’s merchant agreement, onboarding, identity verification, security, prohibited-business, settlement, reserve, refund and chargeback requirements. The client is responsible for the legality and accurate description of its products and services; prices, taxes and currencies; customer-facing sale, delivery, cancellation and refund terms; fulfilment; customer support; transaction records; and every regulatory approval or licence required for its business.

A gateway integration depends on third-party software, credentials, networks, banks and provider decisions outside HICH’s control. HICH does not guarantee uninterrupted gateway availability, transaction authorisation, fraud detection, settlement time, exchange rate, payout, dispute outcome or compatibility after a third party changes its API, policy or service. HICH is not responsible for a provider outage, declined or delayed payment, duplicate transaction, funding hold, reserve, reversal, chargeback, conversion, provider fee or account restriction unless and only to the extent directly caused by HICH’s failure to perform an expressly agreed integration task with the standard required by the project agreement or mandatory law.

The client must keep production credentials confidential, give each user the minimum necessary access, enable available security controls and immediately report suspected compromise to the provider and HICH. Payment-card numbers, security codes, online-banking credentials and other authentication data must never be sent to HICH by email, WhatsApp, the project planner or another unapproved channel. Unless a written agreement expressly states otherwise, HICH will design integrations so sensitive payment credentials are entered into and handled by the selected payment provider rather than stored on HICH systems.

Fraud, refunds, chargebacks and payment compliance

The client and its payment provider are responsible for transaction monitoring, fraud screening, customer authentication, anti-money-laundering checks, sanctions screening, suspicious-transaction handling and payment-data security to the extent applicable to their roles. HICH may refuse or suspend integration work that appears unlawful, insecure, misleading, outside the approved provider flow or inconsistent with the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, No. 28 of 2005, the Payment Devices Frauds Act, No. 30 of 2006, the Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, provider rules or other applicable requirements.

The client decides and funds customer refunds and is responsible for responding to retrieval requests, disputes and chargebacks through its payment provider. A chargeback, reversal or payment-provider dispute concerning a payment made to HICH does not by itself rescind an accepted agreement, cancel a valid invoice, reverse acceptance of completed work or remove the client’s obligation to pay an undisputed amount. HICH may provide the applicable agreement, invoice, acceptance communication and reasonable transaction records concerning its own invoice, but is not required to mischaracterise a transaction or surrender rights because a payment dispute has been opened.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the client is responsible for losses, provider assessments, penalties, refund costs and third-party claims arising from the client’s products, descriptions, pricing, fulfilment, refund decisions, credentials, account configuration, unlawful conduct or breach of provider rules. This allocation does not make the client responsible for loss directly caused by HICH’s fraud, wilful misconduct, breach of an expressly agreed obligation, or any liability that applicable law does not permit HICH to exclude.

Downloads, demonstrations and examples

Any checklist, template, sample brief, code example, calculator, prototype, interactive lab, planning output or downloadable material is provided as a general illustration. Sample records are fictional or demonstrative unless clearly stated otherwise. Outputs may be incomplete and should be reviewed by a qualified person before they are used for a business, legal, financial, security, accessibility or technical decision.

Interactive choices are not a quote, specification, audit, acceptance test or representation that HICH recommends a particular architecture. Downloading or adapting material does not create a support obligation. You are responsible for checking files, maintaining backups, testing in an appropriate environment and obtaining any licences or approvals required for your use.

Guidance for your project

Our Website articles and explanations help you explore design, technology, digital operations and project planning. They provide general guidance and a starting point for discussion; services and recommendations for your particular project depend on its agreed scope and requirements. General Website content does not replace tailored legal, tax, accounting, investment, medical, cybersecurity or other regulated professional advice, or create an advisory or fiduciary relationship with HICH.

Every business has its own needs, and relevant rules and technical standards can vary by organisation, sector, audience and location. Where a decision needs specialist legal, financial, security or regulatory input, an appropriately qualified professional can help you assess those requirements. You remain responsible for decisions made using general Website information, while HICH’s project responsibilities are set out in the applicable written agreement.

Availability, maintenance and change

We may add, remove, correct, redesign, suspend, restrict or discontinue any part of the Website at any time. We do not promise uninterrupted access, a particular response time, permanent storage, compatibility with every browser or device, or continued availability of any URL, feature or piece of content. Maintenance, hosting incidents, network conditions, security events and circumstances outside our control may affect access.

You are responsible for the equipment, software, connectivity and charges needed to use the Website. We may apply technical limits, block traffic or restrict access where reasonably necessary to protect the Website, HICH, providers or users. We are not required to preserve a submitted draft, browser state or previously published Website version.

SEO and search-engine results

Where SEO work is included in a written project scope, HICH will perform the specific technical or content tasks stated in that scope. Search engines, directories, browsers, hosting providers, competitors and user behaviour are outside HICH’s control, and their systems, algorithms, policies and indexing decisions may change without notice.

HICH does not guarantee that a website or page will be crawled, indexed, displayed, retained in an index or ranked in any position, or that SEO work will produce any particular level of traffic, enquiries, sales, revenue, conversion or business growth. Temporary or permanent ranking changes, indexing delays, search-result errors and loss of visibility can occur even where recommended practices have been followed.

The client is responsible for timely approvals, lawful and accurate content, access to relevant accounts, business information, third-party fees and any continuing content, reputation, advertising or SEO activity not included in the agreed scope. To the maximum extent permitted by law, HICH is not liable for a search platform’s acts or omissions or for indirect or consequential loss arising from search visibility. Nothing in this section excludes HICH’s responsibility to perform expressly agreed SEO tasks with the standard required by the project agreement or mandatory law.

Disclaimer of warranties

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the Website and all content, tools and materials made available through it are provided “as is” and “as available”. HICH disclaims all express, implied and statutory warranties and conditions not expressly stated in these Terms, including warranties of accuracy, completeness, merchantability, satisfactory quality, fitness for a particular purpose, title, non-infringement, compatibility, security and freedom from harmful components.

HICH does not warrant that the Website will meet your requirements; that access will be continuous, timely, secure or error-free; that defects will be corrected; that search engines or automated systems will index, rank or describe content in any particular way; or that any information or outcome will be reliable. Nothing in this section excludes a warranty or condition that cannot lawfully be excluded.

Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, HICH and its owners, personnel, contractors and suppliers will not be liable in connection with the Website for any indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, punitive or consequential loss, or for any loss of profit, revenue, business, opportunity, anticipated saving, goodwill, reputation, data or use, whether arising in contract, tort (including negligence), statute, misrepresentation, restitution or otherwise, even if the possibility was known.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the total aggregate liability of HICH and those persons for all claims arising from or relating to the public Website or these Terms will not exceed the greater of LKR 10,000 and the amount you paid HICH specifically for access to the Website during the six months before the event giving rise to the claim. Access to the public Website is currently free.

The exclusions and cap allocate risk and apply to the fullest lawful extent, including where a remedy fails of its essential purpose. They do not limit liability that cannot legally be limited or excluded, including liability for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any non-excludable rights under applicable consumer law. Liability relating to paid project services is governed by the applicable project agreement.

Your responsibility and indemnity

You are responsible for your use of the Website, your communications, material you submit and anyone using the Website through systems or devices you control. To the maximum extent permitted by law, you agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless HICH and its owners, personnel, contractors and suppliers from third-party claims, losses, liabilities, damages, judgments, costs and reasonable legal fees arising from your unlawful use of the Website, your material, your infringement of another person’s rights or your material breach of these Terms.

HICH will give reasonably prompt notice of an indemnified claim and may control its defence and settlement. You must provide reasonable cooperation. You may not settle a claim in a manner that admits fault by, imposes an obligation on, or restricts HICH without our prior written consent. This section does not require a consumer to indemnify HICH to the extent such an obligation is prohibited or unenforceable under applicable law.

Suspension and termination

We may suspend, block or terminate your access to all or part of the Website without prior notice if we reasonably believe you have breached these Terms, created security or legal risk, interfered with others, exposed HICH or a third party to liability, or if suspension is required by a provider or lawful authority. We may also discontinue the Website for business or operational reasons.

You may end this agreement at any time by stopping use of the Website. Provisions that by their nature should continue—including those concerning ownership, submitted material, feedback, disclaimers, liability, indemnity, disputes and interpretation—survive termination. Termination of Website access does not automatically terminate a separate project agreement, and termination of a project agreement does not grant a right to misuse the Website.

Copyright and rights complaints

If you believe Website material infringes your copyright, trademark, privacy or other rights, email info@hichweb.com with your name and contact information, identification of the protected work or right, the exact URL and material concerned, the basis of your claim, and a statement that the information supplied is accurate and that you are the rights owner or authorised to act for that owner.

We may request supporting evidence, share the complaint with the person who supplied the material, restrict access while reviewing it, or decline an incomplete or abusive notice. A complaint must be made in good faith. Knowingly false allegations may cause loss and legal liability. This process does not constitute an admission, waive any defence or prevent HICH from taking any action available under law.

Compliance with law

You must comply with all laws and binding rules that apply to your location and use of the Website, including laws concerning intellectual property, privacy, electronic communications, computer misuse, sanctions, export controls and consumer protection. You must not use the Website where use is prohibited or would require HICH to obtain a licence or registration solely because of your circumstances.

The Website is operated from Sri Lanka and may be accessible elsewhere. Accessibility does not represent that the Website or its content is lawful, appropriate or available in every jurisdiction. You are responsible for local compliance. HICH may limit geographic access or decline an enquiry where legal, regulatory, sanctions, payment, security or operational considerations make the engagement inappropriate.

Events outside reasonable control

HICH is not responsible for delay, interruption or failure relating to the Website caused by circumstances beyond its reasonable control. These may include power or telecommunications failure, Internet routing issues, hosting or cloud incidents, cyberattack, malicious code, labour dispute, supplier failure, natural disaster, extreme weather, fire, flood, epidemic, public emergency, war, terrorism, civil disturbance, government action or a change in law.

This section does not excuse an obligation that cannot lawfully be excused. Project-specific force-majeure rights and responsibilities are governed by the applicable project agreement.

Governing law and disputes

These Terms and any non-contractual obligations connected with them are governed by the laws of Sri Lanka, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Before starting formal proceedings, you and HICH agree to make a good-faith attempt to resolve the dispute by written notice and direct discussion for at least thirty days. A notice to HICH must be sent to info@hichweb.com and clearly describe the issue and requested resolution.

Subject to any mandatory right that applies to you, the courts of competent jurisdiction in Sri Lanka will have exclusive jurisdiction over disputes arising from the Website or these Terms. Nothing prevents either party from seeking urgent interim relief to protect intellectual property, confidential information, systems or data, or from using a legally available small-claims or consumer process. A separate project agreement may provide a different dispute procedure for that project.

General legal terms

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any provisions expressly incorporated by reference, form the entire agreement about use of the public Website. They replace earlier discussions or statements about that subject, but do not replace a separate project agreement accepted by physical signature, electronic acceptance or another method permitted by these Terms and that agreement. You may not assign or transfer your rights under these Terms without HICH’s prior written consent. HICH may assign these Terms as part of a reorganisation, transfer of the Website or business, or transaction involving its assets, subject to applicable law.

If a provision is held invalid or unenforceable, it will be enforced to the greatest lawful extent and the remaining provisions will continue. A failure or delay in enforcing a right is not a waiver. A waiver must be in writing and applies only to the stated circumstances. Section headings are for convenience. “Including” means “including without limitation”. These Terms do not create a partnership, joint venture, employment, fiduciary or agency relationship, and no third party receives enforcement rights unless applicable law requires otherwise.

Mandatory rights

Nothing in these Terms excludes, restricts or modifies a right, remedy, guarantee, duty or liability that applicable law does not permit the parties to exclude, restrict or modify. If you qualify as a consumer, protections under the Consumer Affairs Authority Act, No. 9 of 2003 or other applicable consumer law may apply. Any disclaimer, limitation, indemnity, governing-law or jurisdiction provision must be read subject to those protections.

If the Website is used from another jurisdiction with mandatory protections, those protections continue to apply to the extent required by law. The fact that a protection is acknowledged here does not mean every Website user is a consumer or that HICH submits to a foreign jurisdiction beyond what applicable law requires.

Contact

Questions, formal notices and rights complaints concerning the Website may be sent to info@hichweb.com. Please include a clear subject line and enough information for us to identify and respond to the matter. Do not send passwords, payment-card details or unrelated sensitive information.

These Terms are written for the current Website. Additional or different terms may apply if HICH changes its legal structure, begins taking online payments, adds user accounts or uploads, expands data collection, introduces subscriptions, or materially changes its services or operating countries. Any such terms will be presented through the relevant service or published with an updated effective date.