Effective date: August 2026
Overview
These Terms of Service explain the basic rules for using CMT Web’s website design, website development, hosting, maintenance, SEO, and support services.
Work begins from a written proposal. By approving a proposal, submitting a payment against it, approving work in progress, or continuing to use CMT Web services, the client agrees to these terms. Where a signed proposal or written agreement covers a point differently, that document controls and these terms fill in the rest.
If a person engages CMT Web on behalf of a business or organization, that person confirms they have authority to make decisions for that business or organization.
Services
CMT Web may provide services such as:
- Discovery, scoping, sitemaps and content models
- Custom website design
- Custom website development, including application work, portals and integrations
- Copywriting, unless the client prefers to supply it
- Content editing setup for the parts of a site that change
- Domain, DNS and SSL/HTTPS setup
- Migration, redirect mapping and launch support
- Managed hosting
- Technical and local SEO
- Ongoing support and small content updates
The exact scope of any engagement is whatever the written proposal says. CMT Web does not sell fixed packages or tiers, so nothing is included or excluded by virtue of a plan name.
Proposals, Scope and Pricing
Pricing is quoted per project and is not published. After a short conversation about the work, the client receives a written proposal stating a fixed price, a fixed timeline, the scope, and the exclusions.
The price is fixed for the scope described in that proposal. CMT Web does not bill hourly, and the final invoice for an agreed scope will not exceed the agreed figure.
Hosting and SEO are ongoing services priced separately from the build and quoted alongside it. The build itself is a one-off cost.
Changes to Scope
If the client asks for something outside the agreed scope, CMT Web will price it separately and tell the client what it costs before doing the work. The client decides whether to proceed.
Nothing is added to an invoice the client has not already agreed to.
Any modification to the scope, deliverables, or assumptions in a proposal must be documented in a written change order (including by email) describing the change, the added or reduced fees, and any timeline impact. Requests beyond the two rounds of design revisions included in the project price are treated in the same way. CMT Web has no obligation to begin changed scope until the change order is approved by the client and any required upfront payment is received, and the project dates move accordingly as described under Timelines.
Any upfront payment referred to here is a payment against the change order itself. It is not a deposit on the original project fee, which remains payable as set out under Payments.
What Is Not Included
Unless a proposal says otherwise, project fees do not cover paid advertising, photography, stock licences, or third-party software and platform fees. Where a project will require any of these, CMT Web will identify them before the client commits rather than after.
Payments
For a standard project, no payment is due before work begins. CMT Web does not take a deposit and does not split a standard project fee.
Completion and Delivery occur when CMT Web has completed the agreed scope stated in the proposal, deployed the site to a staging environment, and delivered the applicable files or access credentials.
Upon notice of Delivery, the client has seven (7) business days to review the deliverables and either (a) accept in writing, or (b) provide written notice of rejection describing in reasonable detail the specific non-conformities to the approved proposal. If the client authorizes launch or uses the deliverables in production, the deliverables are deemed accepted. Minor defects that do not materially impair use, and items addressed within the two (2) rounds of revisions included in the project price, do not delay Acceptance.
CMT Web invoices the full project fee upon Delivery, and payment is due before the site goes live.
Where a proposal for a larger platform build sets out a milestone schedule, that schedule applies to that project. Any such schedule is stated in the proposal before the client commits, and is the exception rather than the standard arrangement.
Hosting and SEO, where taken, are billed monthly. Clients are responsible for reviewing the scope, price and billing schedule in the proposal or invoice before submitting payment.
If any recurring payment remains unpaid for ten (10) days after written notice, CMT Web may suspend only the affected recurring service until the account is current, and will use reasonable efforts to minimize any interruption and restore service promptly after payment is received. CMT Web may suspend services immediately and without notice in the event of a chargeback, suspected fraud, or repeated payment reversals. Suspension does not waive the client’s obligation to pay all undisputed fees incurred prior to suspension.
Because the client owns the site and its domain, the client may move the site to another provider at any time, including while an invoice is outstanding; unpaid fees remain payable.
Clients are responsible for fees charged by banks, credit card providers, or payment processors.
Amounts not paid when due may accrue interest at the lesser of one and one-half percent (1.5%) per month or the maximum rate permitted by law, from the due date until paid, beginning after any grace period stated in the proposal or invoice. The client shall reimburse CMT Web for the reasonable costs of collection of overdue, undisputed amounts, including reasonable attorney fees. These remedies are in addition to, and not in lieu of, CMT Web’s suspension rights.
Interest and collection costs apply only to amounts that are genuinely overdue. They are not a change to the agreed price or scope of a proposal.
Timelines
A typical project runs three to four weeks from kickoff. A simple site may run closer to two to three, and custom platforms are scoped individually. The proposal names real dates before the client commits.
If a date is going to slip, CMT Web will say so as soon as it knows rather than at the deadline. Dates assume the client supplies content, feedback and approvals reasonably promptly; where they are delayed, the timeline moves accordingly.
Revisions and Approvals
Two rounds of design revisions are included in the project price. Further rounds, or changes that amount to a new design direction rather than a revision of the agreed one, are treated as a change of scope.
Clients are responsible for reviewing designs, website content and domain preferences for accuracy before and after launch.
Client Responsibilities
Clients are responsible for providing accurate information, content, approvals, requested access, images, logos, service descriptions, pricing, legal notices, domain preferences, business names, spelling, and any other materials needed for the website.
Clients are responsible for confirming that they have the right to use all submitted content, including text, photos, videos, logos, trademarks, fonts, and other materials.
A typical project asks for roughly three to four hours of the client’s time in total: a kickoff call, feedback on the design, and the materials only the client can provide.
Website Content
Clients may not use CMT Web services for unlawful, deceptive, harmful, abusive, infringing, malicious, or high-risk content.
Prohibited activity includes malware, phishing, scams, copyright infringement, harassment, spam, credential theft, illegal activity, or attempts to disrupt websites, servers, or third-party systems.
CMT Web may refuse, suspend, or terminate service if a website creates legal, security, performance, abuse, or reputational risk.
Domains
Domains are registered in the client’s name, in the client’s own registrar account. CMT Web sets this up with the client rather than on the client’s behalf, so the client holds the account credentials and controls the domain from the first day.
Because the domain is the client’s, no transfer, release or domain-handover fee is ever charged by CMT Web, and no transfer is required if the client leaves. There is nothing to transfer.
Clients are responsible for registrar fees, renewals, and keeping registrant contact details accurate. CMT Web is not responsible for a domain that lapses because a renewal went unpaid on the client’s registrar account. If CMT Web becomes aware that the domain is within thirty (30) days of expiration, CMT Web will use reasonable efforts to notify the client using the primary contact on file, without assuming responsibility for renewal.
If a domain lapses, any assistance by CMT Web to restore DNS, reconfigure SSL, or relaunch the website will be provided on a time-and-materials basis unless included in an active support plan.
Where a client already owns a domain, CMT Web may request the access or temporary permissions needed to update DNS records, configure SSL/HTTPS, and launch the website.
Clients who make their own DNS changes are responsible for making them carefully; incorrect DNS changes can affect the website, email, SSL, forms, and other domain-connected services. If repairing client-made changes falls outside the support included in an active hosting arrangement, CMT Web will quote it before starting billable work.
Ownership
The client owns the website. This is a deliberate term of business rather than a concession, and it applies whether or not the client hosts with CMT Web.
Source code. The full source for the client’s website is handed over at launch. It is built on standard, widely-used tools and documented so that any competent developer can pick it up. CMT Web retains no rights over that code that would restrict the client from using, modifying, hosting, relicensing or transferring it, and imposes no fee or condition on doing so.
Content. Copy, images and structure belong to the client, including copy and other material CMT Web wrote for the project, provided the client has the legal right to any materials they supplied.
Domain. The domain is registered in the client’s name and remains theirs, as described in the Domains section.
Two ordinary limits apply, neither of which restricts what the client can do with their site. Third-party and open-source components included in a build remain governed by their own licences, which CMT Web cannot alter or assign. And CMT Web remains free to reuse the general skills, methods and knowledge it applies across projects. This does not extend to the client’s code, content, designs, data or business information.
Project Deliverables. Upon full payment, the client owns the custom, project-specific website deliverables created for the client under the applicable proposal.
Background Materials. CMT Web retains all rights in its pre-existing and independently developed tools, templates, libraries, frameworks, processes, and know-how (including any portions incorporated into the deliverables). CMT Web grants the client a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free license to use any such background materials solely as incorporated into the client website. Third-party components remain subject to their applicable licenses. A proposal may specify ownership variations, which control over this section.
Hosting
Hosting is optional and separate from the build. The site is the client’s either way, and there is no fee to take it elsewhere.
Where a client takes managed hosting, it is billed monthly and includes:
- Deployment across a global network
- SSL, DDoS protection and daily backups
- Uptime monitoring
- Software updates and security patches
- Small content changes
Hosting runs month to month. Either party may end it with 30 days’ notice. There is no minimum term, no termination fee, and no charge for leaving.
On cancellation, CMT Web will provide the client with a standard export of the website files and database (if applicable) and up to two (2) hours of email-based transition support within thirty (30) days after termination. Any additional migration, troubleshooting, or development work will be quoted and billed at CMT Web’s then-current rates. CMT Web is not responsible for the configuration, security, or performance of third-party hosting environments, and any transition timelines are best-efforts only.
Hosting Service Limitations
CMT Web’s hosting is intended for business websites and for the custom applications it builds. Unless specifically agreed in writing, it does not include enterprise hosting, 24/7 emergency support, HIPAA-compliant hosting, financial compliance hosting, or a guaranteed uptime level.
Unless expressly stated in a signed proposal or order form, CMT Web does not provide any service level agreement (SLA) or uptime commitment. Any uptime monitoring is informational only and does not create a service-level commitment. The client’s sole remedy for a material service outage is a prorated credit of the monthly hosting fee for the affected hosting service.
Client acknowledges that it is responsible for determining whether the hosting services are suitable for its data, and Client will not store, transmit, or process HIPAA, PCI, GLBA, or other regulated data using the hosting services unless the parties have executed a separate written compliance addendum describing the required controls and pricing.
Uptime monitoring is not an uptime guarantee. No hosting provider can guarantee uninterrupted service at all times, and service may be affected by maintenance, updates, security issues, third-party outages, internet routing problems, client-side errors, or events outside CMT Web’s control.
Support and Ongoing Work
Small content changes are included with managed hosting: text edits, image replacements, business information and pricing updates, link and form corrections, and similar ordinary updates to an existing site.
Larger work is quoted first. That includes redesigns and rebuilds, substantial new pages or sections, new application functionality, e-commerce or booking systems, major copywriting or brand work, and third-party licences or subscriptions.
Where a request goes beyond what is included, CMT Web will say so and price it before starting, rather than invoicing for it afterwards.
SEO and Search Results
CMT Web may provide search-ready structure, metadata, indexing guidance, local SEO setup, Google Business Profile setup and management, and on-page SEO improvements depending on what has been agreed. Ongoing SEO engagements include monthly reporting in plain English.
CMT Web does not guarantee search engine rankings, traffic, leads, sales, or specific placement in Google or any other search engine. However, CMT Web will perform the agreed SEO services and provide the agreed reporting and deliverables (for example, timely monthly reports and the agreed technical tasks) described in the applicable proposal, and failure to provide those deliverables is the client’s sole basis for a service-level claim.
Cancellation
Monthly services (including hosting and SEO) are month to month and may be cancelled by either party upon thirty (30) days’ notice, with no termination fee. Cancellation requests can be sent to hello@cmtweb.com.
If a project is cancelled while in progress, the client will pay for the work completed as of the effective cancellation date, calculated as the sum of (a) the fixed-fee milestone amounts (or schedule-of-values line items) identified in the applicable proposal that have been completed and delivered, plus (b) any pre-approved out-of-pocket expenses, less amounts previously paid; where the applicable proposal does not assign milestone or schedule-of-values amounts, the work completed will be billed on a time-and-materials basis at CMT Web’s stated hourly rate of $75.00/hour plus approved expenses.
Within five (5) business days after cancellation, CMT Web will provide a written completion statement and supporting time records or work summaries; upon request the client may review reasonable documentation of the work performed, and the client may withhold only amounts reasonably disputed for up to fifteen (15) days while the parties attempt to resolve the dispute. Upon payment in full of the final invoice, CMT Web will deliver the then-existing project files and source code for the completed deliverables.
On cancellation the client keeps the site, the source code, the content and the domain, and receives a working export and reasonable migration assistance as described in the Hosting section. CMT Web will stop hosting the site and discontinue related managed services once the period ends or the site has moved, whichever is sooner.
If there is any conflict between this section and a signed proposal or written agreement, the proposal or written agreement controls.
Refunds
On a standard project nothing is paid before the site is delivered, so a client who cancels before delivery has no payment to reclaim. What they owe in that case is set out under Cancellation, and is limited to the work completed to that point.
For milestone-billed projects, amounts earned and non-refundable will be determined using the allocation schedule in the applicable proposal, under which each milestone or deliverable category is assigned a stated percentage of the total project fees. Upon cancellation, the earned amount equals the sum of (i) the percentage allocations for completed milestones and (ii) the applicable percentage completion for any in-progress milestone as reasonably documented by CMT Web. CMT Web will provide a written cancellation accounting listing the completed deliverables, the percent complete by category, and the resulting earned and unearned amounts, and any prepaid amount in excess of the earned amount will be refunded as the unearned portion within ten (10) business days.
For recurring monthly fees (including hosting, support, and SEO), fees are billed in advance and are fully earned on the first day of the applicable billing period, and are not prorated unless the proposal expressly states otherwise.
Indemnification
Client shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless CMT Web and its officers, directors, employees, and contractors from and against any third party claims, damages, liabilities, penalties, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorney fees) arising out of or relating to (a) content, data, or materials provided by Client, including the text, photos, videos, logos, trademarks, fonts, and other materials Client is responsible for confirming it has the right to use, (b) Client products or services, business practices, or instructions, (c) Client use of the deliverables or services in violation of law or third party rights, including the prohibited-content and unlawful-use restrictions in these Terms, or (d) any allegation that Client content infringes or misappropriates any intellectual property or proprietary right.
CMT Web shall promptly notify Client of any claim and reasonably cooperate. Client may control the defense and settlement, provided no settlement imposes any admission of liability or obligation on CMT Web without CMT Web’s prior written consent.
Backups and Data
For CMT Web managed hosting, CMT Web will maintain daily backups on a commercially reasonable basis and will use commercially reasonable efforts to restore the website from the most recent available backup upon the client’s request; however, backups are not guaranteed and the client remains responsible for maintaining its own current copies of critical content and credentials.
If the client hosts the website outside of CMT Web managed hosting, the client is solely responsible for backup, retention, and restoration of its data and website content, and CMT Web has no obligation to maintain or restore backups for that environment.
Clients should still keep their own copies of important content, images, documents, login information and business information. CMT Web is not responsible for loss of data caused by client actions, third-party integrations, malware introduced through client credentials, or force majeure.
Limitation of Liability
To the fullest extent allowed by law, CMT Web is not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including lost profits, lost revenue, lost data, lost business opportunities, reputational harm, or service interruptions.
CMT Web’s total aggregate liability for all claims arising out of or relating to the Services will not exceed the fees actually paid to CMT Web, and not refunded, credited, or subject to chargeback, for the Affected Service during the three (3) month period immediately preceding the Trigger Date. The Trigger Date is the earlier of (i) the date the client first provides written notice of the event giving rise to the claim or (ii) the date CMT Web first becomes aware of that event.
For this purpose, fees include one-time project fees, setup fees, and milestone payments, as well as recurring hosting, support, and SEO fees, but exclude taxes, credits, refunded amounts, chargebacks, and amounts invoiced but not yet paid. Affected Service means the specific service component (for example, design and development, hosting, support, or SEO) to which the claim relates, as identified by the applicable proposal, statement of work, or invoice line item; for bundled or fixed-fee projects, fees are allocated to components in accordance with the line-item pricing in the applicable statement of work or, if none, on a pro rata basis based on CMT Web’s then-current list prices for those components.
This limitation, and the exclusion of indirect, incidental, special, consequential, and punitive damages above, do not apply to damages resulting from CMT Web’s gross negligence or willful misconduct.
Changes to These Terms
CMT Web may update these Terms of Service from time to time. The updated version will be posted on this page with a revised effective date.
Changes do not alter the price, scope, or timeline of a proposal the client has already approved unless the parties agree in writing, and changes apply only prospectively. For clients on ongoing services, CMT Web will use commercially reasonable efforts to provide notice of material changes, for example by email or account notice, in addition to posting the updated Terms. A material change means a change that materially reduces the client’s rights or materially increases the client’s obligations under these Terms.
Continued use of ongoing CMT Web services after the effective date of an update constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.
Contact
Questions about these terms can be sent to: