1. Acceptance of these Terms
These Terms and Conditions (the “Terms”) govern your access to and use of the Second Home website, mobile application, application programming interfaces, and related services (together, the “Services”).
By creating an account, browsing a listing, publishing a property, making or accepting a booking, or otherwise using the Services, you agree to these Terms and any policies or rules presented to you through the Services. If you do not agree, you must not use the Services.
If you use the Services for a company or another legal entity, you represent that you have authority to bind that entity to these Terms.
2. Eligibility, accounts, and verification
You must be at least 18 years old and legally capable of entering into binding contracts to create an account or make a booking. You must provide accurate, complete, and current information and keep it updated.
You are responsible for protecting your password, verification codes, and account credentials, and for activity performed through your account. Notify Second Home through the official support channel immediately if you believe your account has been accessed without permission.
Second Home may ask guests or property owners to complete identity, contact, ownership, or other verification checks. Verification helps reduce risk but is not an endorsement, certification, or guarantee of any user, property, or document.
3. The Second Home platform
Second Home provides a marketplace where property owners or their authorized representatives (“Owners”) can publish short-stay property listings and where users seeking accommodation (“Guests”) can discover and book those properties.
Unless a listing expressly states otherwise, Second Home does not own, operate, manage, inspect, or control listed properties and is not a party to the rental or occupancy agreement between an Owner and a Guest. Owners are responsible for their properties and listings; Guests are responsible for selecting a suitable property and complying with the confirmed booking.
Second Home may add, change, suspend, or discontinue features where reasonably necessary, subject to applicable law.
4. Listings and Owner responsibilities
By publishing or managing a listing, an Owner represents and warrants that the Owner:
- owns the property or has all authority and permissions needed to list and rent it;
- will provide accurate descriptions, photos, locations, availability, prices, amenities, capacity limits, and property rules;
- will keep listing information and availability current and honor confirmed bookings;
- will maintain the property in a safe, clean, habitable condition consistent with the listing;
- will comply with applicable licensing, registration, tax, safety, building, community, and short-term rental requirements; and
- will not discriminate against Guests in violation of applicable law.
Second Home may review, request evidence for, reject, pause, or remove a listing if information is incomplete, inaccurate, unlawful, unsafe, or inconsistent with these Terms. Owners remain responsible for deciding whether a Guest is suitable, to the extent permitted by law.
5. Bookings, availability, and pricing
A booking becomes confirmed when the Services display a confirmation and any required payment or authorization has been completed. A temporary hold or draft booking does not guarantee availability and may expire.
Before confirming, review the property description, dates, number of Guests, total price, taxes, fees, deposit, house rules, and cancellation policy. The booking details and policy displayed at confirmation are incorporated into these Terms for that booking.
Prices and availability can change before confirmation. If an obvious pricing, availability, or technical error occurs, Second Home or the Owner may cancel the affected booking and refund amounts collected for it, as permitted by law.
Guests may not exceed the confirmed occupancy or transfer, resell, or assign a booking without authorization.
6. Payments, fees, taxes, and security deposits
You authorize Second Home and its payment service providers to charge the payment method you select for amounts disclosed during checkout or otherwise approved by you, including booking charges, service fees, taxes, deposits, extensions, and properly documented damage or other charges.
Payment processing may be performed by third parties under their own terms. A payment may be subject to authorization checks, currency conversion, bank charges, or processing delays.
A listing may require a refundable security deposit. Subject to the applicable booking terms and law, all or part of the deposit may be retained for damage beyond ordinary wear, missing items, excessive cleaning, unpaid extensions, rule violations, or other amounts owed. The Guest may be asked to provide information relating to a claim.
Users are responsible for taxes that apply to their activity, except taxes imposed on Second Home’s own income. Second Home may collect, withhold, report, or remit taxes where required.
7. Cancellations, changes, and refunds
The cancellation and refund policy shown before confirmation applies to the booking. Refund eligibility and any cancellation charge may depend on the property, timing, payment status, reason for cancellation, and applicable law.
A request to reschedule is not effective until accepted and confirmed through the Services. A price difference or additional terms may apply.
If an Owner cancels, cannot provide the booked property, or the property materially differs from the listing, Second Home may assist the Guest with a refund or alternative property. Alternative accommodation is subject to availability and is not guaranteed.
Approved refunds are generally returned to the original payment method. Banks and payment processors may require additional time to post the funds.
8. Guest responsibilities and property rules
Guests must use a property only for the lawful accommodation purpose and dates stated in the booking. Guests must follow the listing’s house rules, occupancy limits, check-in and check-out instructions, smoking and pet rules, community requirements, and reasonable safety directions.
The booking Guest is responsible for the conduct of invited occupants and visitors. Guests must take reasonable care of the property, promptly report damage or unsafe conditions, avoid nuisance or unlawful activity, and leave the property in the condition required by the booking terms.
Owners may deny entry or end a stay when reasonably necessary to address fraud, danger, unlawful conduct, material rule violations, or unauthorized occupancy, subject to applicable law and any refund rights.
9. Prohibited conduct
When using the Services, you must not:
- provide false or misleading information, impersonate another person, or submit fraudulent documents;
- use the Services for unlawful, dangerous, abusive, discriminatory, harassing, or exploitative activity;
- bypass the platform to avoid disclosed fees or misuse contact information obtained through a booking;
- interfere with the operation or security of the Services or another user’s account;
- use bots, scrapers, crawlers, or other automated tools without prior written permission;
- upload malware or content that violates privacy, confidentiality, intellectual property, or other rights; or
- collect or use another person’s data for an unauthorized purpose.
Second Home may investigate suspected violations and cooperate with payment providers, regulators, or law enforcement where legally required or reasonably necessary to protect users and the Services.
10. User content and reviews
You retain ownership of information, listings, images, reviews, messages, and other content you submit (“User Content”). You grant Second Home a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable license to host, store, reproduce, adapt, display, translate, and distribute User Content as reasonably needed to operate, secure, promote, and improve the Services.
You represent that you own or have permission to use your User Content and that it is accurate and lawful. Reviews must reflect genuine experiences and must not be manipulated, defamatory, threatening, or exchanged for undisclosed compensation.
Second Home may remove or restrict User Content that violates these Terms, a third party’s rights, or applicable law.
11. Privacy and communications
Second Home processes personal information to provide and secure the Services, administer bookings, verify users and properties, process payments, communicate with users, comply with legal obligations, and improve the platform. Additional details may be provided in the Second Home Privacy Policy and in notices shown when information is collected.
You agree to receive transactional communications relating to your account, verification, security, bookings, payments, and support. Marketing communications may be managed using the unsubscribe or preference controls provided, where applicable.
12. Intellectual property
The Services, including their software, design, text, graphics, logos, interfaces, and compilation, are owned by or licensed to Second Home and are protected by intellectual property laws.
Subject to these Terms, Second Home grants you a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Services for their intended purpose. You may not copy, sell, sublicense, reverse engineer, alter, or create derivative works from the Services except where applicable law expressly permits it.
13. Third-party services and links
The Services may integrate maps, identity verification, messaging, analytics, social login, payment processing, or other services provided by third parties. Those services may be governed by separate terms and privacy policies. Second Home does not control and is not responsible for third-party services, except to the extent required by law.
14. Suspension, termination, and account deletion
Second Home may restrict, suspend, or terminate access, remove a listing, cancel an affected booking, or withhold a payout where reasonably necessary to investigate or address a violation, fraud, safety risk, legal requirement, chargeback, or harm to users, third parties, or the platform.
You may stop using the Services or request account deletion through the available account or support options. Some information may be retained when required for bookings, payments, fraud prevention, disputes, tax, accounting, or other legal obligations.
Terms that by their nature should continue after termination—including ownership, payment obligations, disclaimers, liability limits, indemnity, and dispute provisions—will survive.
15. Disclaimers
To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. Second Home does not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation, that every user or property is as represented, or that a property will meet every personal preference.
Information and verification tools reduce risk but cannot eliminate it. Users must exercise reasonable judgment, review booking details, protect personal property, and comply with safety guidance and applicable law.
Nothing in these Terms excludes warranties or consumer rights that cannot lawfully be excluded.
16. Limitation of liability
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Second Home and its officers, directors, employees, and agents will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, punitive, or consequential loss, including lost profits, lost data, loss of goodwill, or loss of opportunity arising from or connected with the Services.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, Second Home’s total aggregate liability for a claim relating to the Services or these Terms will not exceed the amount of service fees paid to Second Home by you for the booking giving rise to the claim or, if the claim does not concern a booking, the service fees paid by you in the six months before the event giving rise to the claim.
Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot legally be limited, including liability for fraud or for death or personal injury caused by negligence where such limitation is prohibited.
17. Indemnity
To the extent permitted by law, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless Second Home and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from claims, losses, liabilities, damages, and reasonable legal expenses arising from your unlawful use of the Services, your User Content, your property or stay, your breach of these Terms, or your violation of another person’s rights.
18. Governing law and disputes
These Terms are governed by the laws of the jurisdiction in which the operator of Second Home is established, without regard to conflict-of-law principles, except where mandatory consumer law requires otherwise.
Before filing a formal claim, you agree to contact Second Home and make a good-faith effort to resolve the dispute informally. If it cannot be resolved, the dispute will be submitted to the competent courts in the jurisdiction where the operator of Second Home is established, unless applicable law gives you the right to bring the claim elsewhere.
19. Changes to these Terms
Second Home may update these Terms to reflect changes to the Services, business practices, or law. Updated Terms will be posted with a revised effective date. Where required, Second Home will provide additional notice of material changes.
Changes apply from their stated effective date. Your continued use of the Services after that date means you accept the updated Terms, except where applicable law requires another form of consent.
20. Contact us
If you have questions, complaints, or legal notices concerning these Terms or the Services, contact the Second Home support team using the official support options available in the mobile application or website. Please include enough information for the team to identify your account or booking and understand your request.