TERMS OF SERVICE

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Data Recovery Basic Terms

Due to the large number of variables involved in data recovery, SALVAGEDATA Recovery and its authorized agents (“us”, “we”, or “SALVAGEDATA Recovery”) cannot make any advance guarantees about what files will be possible to recover from a device, if anything. A list of recoverable files to be expected (“file list”) will be provided to the person or agent responsible for the project (“you”, “customer”, or “client”) before the project is completed to be approved by said client. Unrecoverable devices will be returned or securely disposed of. By sending media to us, you agree to operate on good faith intentions of using our recovery services and resources for the purpose of having us recover data from such media.

LEGAL RIGHTS

The client is the legal owner or representative or otherwise has a legitimate right to the property and all data contained therein sent to SALVAGEDATA Recovery.

Any property left with SALVAGEDATA Recovery and unclaimed for 14 calendar days, will be securely disposed of. At which time, SALVAGEDATA Recovery shall have no liability to the client or any third party. SALVAGEDATA Recovery will make reasonable attempts to contact the client via phone and e-mail on file, prior to the destruction of the media.

In the case that a customer’s credit card declines a charge for SALVAGEDATA Recovery services, SALVAGEDATA Recovery reserves the right to engage a third-party collections agency to collect the balance if the amount due is not settled within thirty (30) days of the initial declined charge.

Liability

SALVAGEDATA Recovery assumes no liability for any claims regarding the physical functional of media and or equipment nor the condition or existence of data on storage media supplied before, during or after service. In no event will SALVAGEDATA Recovery be liable for any loss of data, revenue, or profits, or any special, incidental, contingent, or consequential damages, however caused, before, during or after service even if SALVAGEDATA Recovery has been advised of the possibility of damages or loss to persons or property. Our liability of any kind with respect to the services, including any negligence on its part, shall be limited to the contract price for the services. Client and SALVAGEDATA Recovery agree that the sole and exclusive remedy for unsatisfactory work or data shall be, at our option, additional attempts by us to recover satisfactory data. Client is fully aware of the inherent risks of injury and property damage involved in data recovery, including without limitation, risks due to destruction or damage to the media or data and inability to recover data, or inaccurate or incomplete data recovery, including those that may result from the negligence of SALVAGEDATA Recovery, and assumes any and all known risks of injury and property damage that may result reward.

Although best efforts are made, customer will not hold SALVAGEDATA Recovery responsible for damage in transit, either to or from our facility.

TRANSPORTATION AND STORAGE MEDIA LIABILITY

SALVAGEDATA Recovery will take every precaution to ensure the customer’s storage media arrives, is safely processed and serviced to the best of industry standards, however SALVAGEDATA Recovery will not assume liability for loss, damage, theft or otherwise due to the actions of SALVAGEDATA Recovery, its employees, partners, affiliates or contractors. The customer acknowledges that the storage media and associated equipment being sent to SALVAGEDATA Recovery for service are by definition - damaged or inoperable and thus any claims against SALVAGEDATA Recovery in attempts to recover monetary compensation due to handling or servicing will not be entertained. Customer reserves the right to request their storage devices and/or equipment be insured by the shipping courier for additional cost and in the unlikely event of damage/loss of said equipment, an insurance claim can be made against the courier. The courier will then open an investigation into the incident and the customer may be subject to a compensation upon the claim completion. SALVAGEDATA Recovery will not be held responsible for any claims denied by the courier.

Disclaimer of Consequential Damages and Damages Cap

Except for a breach of confidentiality, in no event will either Party be liable to the other Party for any consequential, incidental or like damages, however caused and on any theory of liability, whether or not such Party knew or should have known of the possibility of such damage.

Other than as set forth below, in no event shall SALVAGEDATA Recovery liability exceed the monies paid by the client to SALVAGEDATA Recovery for the applicable services, excluding shipping charges or other third-party fees (“damages cap”). In the event of an unauthorized transaction by a SALVAGEDATA Recovery employee or agent, SALVAGEDATA Recovery is liable for no amount exceeding the damages cap. SALVAGEDATA Recovery must be notified within five (5) days of an unauthorized transaction or the client waives all rights to damages.

By agreeing to this service agreement, you are stating that you understand that the media/data/equipment you are making available to SALVAGEDATA Recovery is already damaged, that data recovery efforts can result in further damage and that we will not be held responsible for this or any other type of damage caused to this media.

Disclaimer of Implied Warranties

All implied warranties and similar obligations are disclaimed, including but not limited to those of fitness for a particular purpose, and merchantability, whether otherwise arising by custom, usage, law, or trade practice. There are no warranties which extend beyond those expressly contained in the service agreement. SALVAGEDATA Recovery does not warrant that returned media, serviced or not serviced, will comply with the requirements of any safety or environmental code or regulation of any federal, state, municipality or other jurisdiction.

Emergency Services Terms

Emergency data recovery services provide the fastest possible turnaround time by prioritizing the case ahead of all other jobs. This premium service utilizes SALVAGEDATA's most senior expert engineers working around the clock in our ISO-5 cleanroom environments. It includes expedited inbound/outbound shipping, 24/7 direct support access, instant online case monitoring, data restore assistance, and a 100% data quality guarantee. For reference, Expedited services offer slightly quicker turnarounds than standard services but do not take complete priority like emergency cases; and Standard services are performed on a normal first-come, first-served schedule without rush handling.

Emergency evaluations are non-refundable under any circumstances. This includes circumstances where the evaluation determines that data recovery is not possible or if the client refuses to proceed with the data recovery process. Clients requesting an emergency evaluation acknowledge and accept this no-refund policy during checkout.

Cancellation Fee

A client may request to cancel the service project at any point before the file list is posted. If the customer has already approved service based on the quote provided by SALVAGEDATA Recovery, a cancellation fee equal or the greater of either $200 or 20% of the quoted service fee will apply.

Media Enclosures and Accessories

If you provide SALVAGEDATA Recovery with your drive in a server, laptop, or other enclosure, the drive in question will be removed in order to service it. SALVAGEDATA Recovery will not reassemble a RAID array or server or reinsert the drive in a laptop or other enclosure.

If any cables, cords, or other accessories are sent along with the storage media, SALVAGEDATA Recovery is not responsible for these accessories. SALVAGEDATA Recovery will not be held liable for lost or missing cables or other accessories. Furthermore, customers should not presume that storage media will be returned to them in the same packaging as they used to send it to SALVAGEDATA Recovery.

Access Credentials

A full amount will be due by the customer for services rendered by SALVAGEDATA, even if the customer does not have access to their PIN or has lost it. SALVAGEDATA is not responsible if a device's PIN, password, or other security credentials entered by the client are invalid or incorrect. Payment will still be required for services rendered in good faith by SALVAGEDATA. If a device's security credentials prove incorrect or invalid during the recovery process, SALVAGEDATA may, at its discretion, return the device restored to a functional state to allow the client a chance to enter correct credentials and gain access to their recovered data. If the client is uncertain of the correct credentials to access a damaged or encrypted device prior to initiating recovery services, SALVAGEDATA highly recommends first utilizing its separate Device Unlocking services to remove or reset security. However, this service will only be provided if explicitly arranged in advance.

Encryption

If during the course of data recovery services, SALVAGEDATA Recovery encounters full disk or partial folder encryption, this will require additional work in order to recover the data, and there will be a US$200 surcharge on successful data recoveries, excluding cases of hardware encryption by the manufacturer. If your recovery is not successful due to encryption, a service fee equaling $200 or 20% of the data recovery cost will be due.

File List Approval and Data Retrieval

The client must review the file list within five (5) days of the project being completed. The file list includes the entirety of the data that will be provided to the client upon approval. If the client does not decline the file list within that five-day period with a valid reason, SALVAGEDATA Recovery will consider the file list as approved and charge the default payment on file in the full amount quoted plus any applicable shipping fees, and recovered data will be returned to the customer’s shipping address on file at that time. If we are unable to process a payment, we will add a storage fee of $1.00 per day after the declined payment until the customer makes alternate payment arrangements. The balance may be sent to a third-party collections agency if not rectified within 30 days (see “Late or Declined Payments” below); in that case, these storage fees will also be included.

Approving the File List

The client must approve the file list, per the aforementioned terms, before receiving the recovered data or any portion of it, even for expedited and emergency services. This indicates that the customer understands that the file list is the entirety of data that will be provided to them. Data within the “damaged” folder (if any) on the file list, is not guaranteed to be intact or functional. No files will be supplied to the client—including “sample files”—on any case prior to the approval of the file list. Nor will SALVAGEDATA Recovery provide screenshots of folder structures or files (except in the case of RAW recoveries), and approvals must be made based on the supplied file list.

Declining the File List

If the customer wishes to decline service based on the file list, the customer must provide SALVAGEDATA Recovery with a detailed written account of the reason for decline, including any files sought that were not on the file list and the possible location of these files. If this information is provided, SALVAGEDATA Recovery will make every possible effort to locate these files and update the file list accordingly. If this information is not provided, SALVAGEDATA Recovery will attempt to contact the customer, and, if no response is received within 30 days, the full quoted amount will be charged to the card on file and the recovered media will be returned.

Once the file list is updated with the requested files that have been located, the customer is again responsible to review and approve or decline this list. If there is no response within five (5) days, SALVAGEDATA Recovery will consider the revised list approved and charge the full amount due.

If this data exists, but is not recoverable, the customer will not be charged for the service and will be offered the option to either have the storage media disposed of or to have it shipped back. (The customer will be due for the amount of return shipping.)

SALVAGEDATA Recovery does not take responsibility for client error. If the client has sent an incorrect media to SALVAGEDATA Recovery and authorized recovery services, and SALVAGEDATA Recovery has completed a recovery, the client will be responsible for the cost of the authorized services.

Data Recovery Success Criteria

We define a successful data recovery case as one in which a minimum of 75% of the client’s data is successfully recovered. However, in cases where the client has specified critical data or critical files during the initial engagement, and a previous arrangement with the client, requiring a full 100% recovery of said files, has been made, our success criteria will be adjusted accordingly. It is crucial to note that any specifics regarding critical data must be arranged prior to the quotation process, as this information directly impacts the risks involved and the state of the recovery. Our team will make every effort and utilize advanced recovery techniques to meet the agreed-upon requirements for critical data retrieval, ensuring transparency and clear communication throughout the process. By availing our data recovery services, the client acknowledges and accepts the significance of these arrangements on the recovery process and any subsequent quotations.

Attempt Fee

On certain difficult data recovery jobs, we charge an upfront non-refundable attempt fee. This fee covers the potential costs of specialized equipment, replacement components, and extensive labor required to comprehensively work on your failed device. The attempt fee ensures we can allocate all necessary resources to thoroughly diagnose the issue and make our best effort to recover your data. If an attempt fee applies to your case, you will be informed during the quote process, and the non-refundable fee is due before work begins. Our goal is to provide transparent pricing so you understand the full potential costs for these challenging data recovery situations.

File Retrieval

Once the file list is approved and the payment is finalized, the files will be supplied to the client either on a another storage device or via FTP. To ensure the utmost data security, FTP uploads will be limited to 50GB per case.

Transfer Media

If the client’s recovered data exceeds the limits in the previous paragraph, the data will be placed on a transfer drive. Devices provided by SALVAGEDATA Recovery will be of sufficient capacity to store all the recovered data, but we do not guarantee any particular brand, model, or part number.

Service Satisfaction Policy

SALVAGEDATA offers a 14-day review period from when the client receives the recovered data files for inspection - whether via digital transfer or physical media - to ensure satisfaction with our data recovery services. Should any issues arise during this window regarding defects, incomplete results, or general accessibility problems with the recovered data, the client is required to promptly notify SALVAGEDATA in order to attempt to resolve any recovery quality concerns. This may include redoing aspects of the recovery process if necessary. If no client contact is received within 14 days, the original media (e.g., hard drive, memory card, etc.) will be disposed of by SALVAGEDATA.

Selecting the option to have original media returned during checkout waives the 14-day review period upon SALVAGEDATA shipping back said media to the client. Refund eligibility will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis - refunds are not automatically guaranteed and remain at the sole discretion of our technical staff based on the service issues claimed. If 14 days lapse after receiving recovery results without client contact to report concerns over quality or request refund assessment, we unfortunately cannot offer subsequent repairs, do-overs, refund consideration, or further assistance for that specific recovery case.

Declined Services

In the event that the client declines to have service completed, or a device is found to be unrecoverable, there will be an option to have the device securely disposed of or returned by mail. The client will be responsible for the cost of return shipping.

Monolithic Devices

When a monolithic device (SD card, Micro SD Card, or Flash Drive) is approved for recovery, SALVAGEDATA Recovery will not return the device after completion no matter the outcome. SALVAGEDATA Recovery reserves the right to securely dispose of or keep the original media for further research and development and to protect proprietary recovery methods.