Platform Terms of Service.

1.Acceptance

By creating an account or using the PlanePaws platform you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to these terms. If you do not agree, do not use the platform.

2.What the platform does

PlanePaws is operated by PlanePaws (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) under licence from the ESTCA Association. The platform supports assessor approval, dog assessment workflows, and the issuance of ESTCA certificates and digital travel passes against the ESTCA cabin-readiness standard. The normative standard text is owned by the ESTCA Association and published separately at estca.eu.

3.Who can use

You must be at least 18 years old and legally able to enter into a contract under the law of your country of residence. Training providers must be lawfully able to operate dog-training services in their jurisdiction. Misrepresentation of identity, credentials, or eligibility is a material breach of these terms.

4.Accounts

You are responsible for the confidentiality of your sign-in credentials and for all activity that takes place under your account. Notify us promptly if you believe your credentials have been compromised. Sharing accounts between persons is not permitted; each trainer must have their own.

5.Fees

Platform fees are listed on the For Trainers page and may change with reasonable notice. Training providers pay an annual platform licence after their first certification and a per-dog fee when a certificate is issued. Owner digital pass fees are payable when the pass is claimed after certification. Course or programme fees charged by trainers to dog owners are entirely between them — neither PlanePaws nor ESTCA sets, collects, or decides those fees.

• Per certified dog (provider): €35.
• Owner digital travel pass: €25.
• Annual platform licence (provider): €99 per year, starting after the first certification (€0 until then).

6.Acceptable use

When using the platform you agree not to do any of the following:

• Misrepresent the readiness of a dog, back-date a certification, or submit evidence that does not match the dog being certified.
• Use the platform to harass, threaten, or otherwise harm any person or animal.
• Attempt to access another user's account, the underlying systems, or data you have not been granted access to.
• Scrape the trainer directory or registry data for purposes other than personal use.
• Upload content that infringes third-party rights, contains malware, or violates applicable law.

7.Welfare-first delivery

ESTCA-approved assessors undertake to deliver the programme in a way that prioritises animal welfare at every step. Certification may only be issued where the dog has demonstrated readiness across every assessment area defined in the ESTCA standard. The Code of Conduct sets out the welfare-related conduct expected of ESTCA-approved assessors in detail.

8.Intellectual property

You retain ownership of any content you upload (assessment videos, profile photos, written notes). By uploading you grant PlanePaws a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to store, process, and display that content as necessary to operate the platform and to perform the quality-assurance obligations described in the standard. The ESTCA name, marks, and standard belong to the ESTCA Association and are used by PlanePaws under licence; the PlanePaws name and marks belong to PlanePaws. Neither may be used to imply endorsement that has not been granted.

9.Suspension & termination

We may suspend or terminate access to the platform where we reasonably believe a user is in material breach of these terms, the Code of Conduct, or the ESTCA standard. Trainers in breach may have their ESTCA-approved listing withdrawn. You may close your account at any time by contacting us. Certificates already issued remain valid unless withdrawn through the formal compliance process.

10.Liability

The platform is provided on an "as is" basis. To the maximum extent permitted by Dutch law, PlanePaws's aggregate liability arising out of or in connection with your use of the platform is limited to the platform fees paid by you to PlanePaws in the twelve months immediately preceding the event giving rise to the liability. Nothing in these terms excludes liability that cannot be excluded under applicable law (including liability for gross negligence or wilful misconduct).

11.Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the Netherlands. Any dispute that cannot be resolved amicably will be submitted to the competent courts of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

12.Changes

We may update these terms over time. The current version and its effective date are shown at the top of this page. Material changes will be announced via the platform or by email; continued use after such an announcement constitutes acceptance of the updated terms.