Terms & conditions

1.The agreement

These Terms & Conditions (the “Terms”) govern your access to and use of the Akara platform, website, dashboard, APIs, and related services (together, the “Service”), operated from the United Arab Emirates. By creating an account, approving a deposit request, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms and by our Privacy Policy.

If you use the Service on behalf of a company, you confirm that you are authorized to bind that company, and “you” refers to the company.

2.Key definitions

• Merchant — a business (property manager, rental operator, clinic, or similar) that uses Akara to request and manage security deposits.
• Guest — the tenant, renter, patient, or customer who approves a deposit request sent by a Merchant.
• Deposit — a refundable security amount agreed between Merchant and Guest for a booking, tenancy, rental, or appointment.
• Hold — a pre-authorization placed on the Guest's payment card for the Deposit amount. A Hold reserves funds; it does not charge them.
• Claim — a Merchant's documented request to capture some or all of a held Deposit, for example for damage or unpaid fees.
• Release — the cancellation of a Hold, returning full control of the reserved funds to the Guest.

3.How deposits work

Akara secures Deposits as card pre-authorizations processed by our payment services provider, Stripe. When a Guest approves a deposit request, a Hold is placed on their card. No money leaves the Guest's account at that point.

• A Hold is only ever converted into a charge (captured) when a Claim is approved under these Terms, and only up to the approved Claim amount.
• If no Claim is made within the agreed hold period, the Hold is released and the Guest is notified.
• Card networks limit how long a single authorization can remain open. Where a hold period is longer, the authorization may be refreshed automatically; this does not charge the Guest.
• Akara does not hold client money. Funds remain with the Guest's card issuer until a Claim is captured, at which point settlement flows to the Merchant through Stripe.

4.Claims and disputes

Merchants may submit a Claim against an active Deposit with an itemized reason and amount. Guests are notified of every Claim and may dispute it before funds are captured.

• Claims must be supported by reasonable documentation (for example photos, invoices, inspection reports, or signed agreements).
• When a Guest disputes a Claim, Akara reviews the evidence from both sides and mediates an outcome: release to the Guest, capture for the Merchant, or a partial split.
• Akara's mediation decision is made in good faith on the evidence provided. It does not limit either party's statutory rights, including chargeback rights through the Guest's card issuer or recourse to UAE courts.
• Fraudulent or bad-faith Claims are grounds for immediate account suspension.

5.Merchant obligations

• Obtain the Guest's informed consent before sending a deposit request, and describe the deposit terms accurately in the underlying booking or tenancy agreement.
• Provide accurate business, contact, and payout information, and keep it current. We may ask for verification documents to meet our own and Stripe's compliance obligations.
• Use Deposits only as genuine security for an underlying transaction — never as advance payment, hidden fees, or a financing mechanism.
• Comply with all laws that apply to your business, including UAE consumer protection, tenancy, and data protection law.

6.Guest terms

Guests approve deposit requests through a secure link. By approving, you authorize a Hold on your card for the stated amount and period, and you authorize capture of an approved Claim amount if a valid Claim is upheld.

You are entitled to: see the deposit amount, hold period, and merchant identity before approving; be notified when your Deposit is held, claimed, released, or captured; and dispute any Claim before capture. Using someone else's card without authority is prohibited and will be treated as fraud.

7.Fees and billing

Merchant fees are charged per secured deposit as published on our pricing page or as agreed in a signed order form. Fees are exclusive of VAT unless stated otherwise. Guests are never charged a fee by Akara for approving, holding, or receiving back a Deposit.

We may change published pricing with at least 30 days' notice; changes apply to deposits created after the notice period ends.

8.Acceptable use

You must not use the Service to:

• process deposits for illegal goods, services, or transactions;
• launder money, evade sanctions, or finance terrorism;
• harass, deceive, or discriminate against Guests;
• probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of the Service, or access data belonging to another account;
• resell or white-label the Service without a written agreement.

9.Data protection

Our collection and use of personal data is described in the Privacy Policy. For Guest personal data submitted by a Merchant, the Merchant is the data controller and Akara processes that data on the Merchant's instructions under these Terms. Card details are collected directly by Stripe and never touch Akara's servers.

10.Service availability and changes

We work to keep the Service available at all times, but access may be interrupted for maintenance, upgrades, or events outside our control. We may improve or modify features of the Service, and will give reasonable notice of changes that materially reduce core functionality. Webhooks, APIs, and integrations are provided as described in our documentation and may evolve with versioned notice.

11.Liability

Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot be excluded under UAE law, including liability for fraud. Subject to that:

• the Service is provided “as is”, and we do not guarantee that every Claim outcome, hold, or release will meet your expectations;
• Akara is not a party to the underlying tenancy, rental, or service agreement between Merchant and Guest, and is not responsible for either party's performance of it;
• our total aggregate liability arising out of the Service in any 12-month period is limited to the fees paid by you to Akara in that period, or AED 1,000 for Guests;
• we are not liable for indirect or consequential losses, including lost profits or loss of business.

12.Suspension and termination

Merchants may close their account at any time; Deposits already held will be run to completion (released or resolved) unless the law requires otherwise. We may suspend or terminate access for breach of these Terms, suspected fraud, legal or compliance risk, or extended non-payment — with prior notice where reasonably possible. Sections that by their nature should survive termination (including fees owed, liability, and data protection) survive.

13.Governing law and contact

These Terms are governed by the laws of the United Arab Emirates as applied in the Emirate of Dubai. Disputes that cannot be resolved amicably are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Dubai courts.

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be notified by email or in-product at least 14 days before they take effect. Questions about these Terms: contact@akara.ae.