The WordPress Maintenance Company — Terms of Service
Version 1.3 · Effective 26 October 2026

1. About these terms

1.1 These Terms of Service (“Terms”) apply to every WordPress maintenance plan provided by The WordPress Maintenance Company (“we”, “us”, “our”). The WordPress Maintenance Company is a trading name of Melted House Digital Ltd, a company registered in Scotland (company number SC521020), registered office 4 Main Road, Condorrat, Cumbernauld G67 4BS.

1.2 Business customers only. We supply our services to business customers only. By accepting these Terms, you confirm that you are acting for purposes relating to your trade, business, craft or profession, and not as a consumer. We do not contract with consumers.

1.3 Acceptance. These Terms are published on our website and supplied with every order or invoice. By paying for a Plan, whether by setting up a Direct Debit or paying an invoice, you accept these Terms, which form part of our contract from that point. The version in force when you pay applies, subject to 1.4.

1.4 Changes to these Terms. We may update these Terms by giving at least 30 days’ written notice. If a change materially disadvantages you, you may end your Plan without penalty by telling us before the change takes effect, even during a minimum term. Otherwise, the updated Terms apply from the date stated in the notice.

Definitions

2. Services and plans

2.1 We provide three Plans. Your Plan sets how often each service is carried out and how much Development Time is included. Plan details below are taken from our plans page as of the date of these Terms.

2.2 Onboarding. Every new Website goes through a Maintenance Acceptance Test before the Plan starts. If the Website cannot be supported safely because of its theme, plugins or code, we will tell you. We may offer a rebuild at a discounted rate, quoted separately.

2.3 Backups. Backups are taken at the frequency of your Plan and stored off the Website’s server. We keep backups on a rolling 30-day basis. Restoring a backup after a fault we caused is free. Restoring after a fault caused by you, your hosting provider or a third party uses Development Time, or is charged at our hourly rate.

2.4 Updates. We update WordPress core, plugins and themes at the frequency of your Plan. We may delay an update that is known to cause problems. We do not update premium plugins or themes unless you hold a valid licence and give us the licence key. We are not responsible for changes a third-party developer makes in an update, but we will roll back an update that breaks the Website.

2.5 Uptime monitoring. We check that the Website responds at regular intervals and alert ourselves when it does not. Monitoring tells us about downtime; it does not guarantee uptime. Downtime caused by Client Hosting is handled under section 3.

2.6 Malware scanning and removal. We scan the Website for known malware. If we find an infection while the Website is on a Plan, we will use reasonable efforts to clean it or restore a clean backup, at no extra cost for up to 3 hours per incident. If removal needs more time, we will tell you before continuing, and further time is charged at £60 per hour. Malware found during the Maintenance Acceptance Test is chargeable. We will quote for its removal, and the Plan starts once the Website is clean. Infections caused by a server-level compromise on Client Hosting fall under section 3.

2.7 Development Time. Development Time covers small tasks such as content edits, minor layout changes and plugin configuration. It is used in 15-minute blocks. Unused time does not roll over and has no cash value. Work beyond your included time is quoted or charged at our hourly rate of £60 before we start.

2.8 Not included. Unless agreed in writing, Plans do not include new features, redesigns, copywriting, SEO, content creation, third-party licence costs, or fixing problems caused by changes you or others make to the Website.

3. Hosting

3.1 Your order or invoice states whether the Website is on Managed Hosting or Client Hosting. Our responsibilities differ for each.

3.2 Client Hosting. Where we do not provide hosting, we have no responsibility for the server, its operating system, PHP version, database server, security patching, performance, capacity, backups taken by the host, or its uptime. Those remain the responsibility of you and your hosting provider.

3.3 If a server-level problem stops us carrying out a Plan service, we will tell you. Our obligation for that service is suspended until the problem is fixed. Time we spend diagnosing or working around server issues on Client Hosting uses Development Time, or is charged at our hourly rate.

3.4 If your host needs to change the PHP version or server software, we will check the Website for compatibility on request. That check uses Development Time.

3.5 You must give us the access we need to perform the Plan, including WordPress administrator, SFTP/SSH and database access. If access is removed or changed without notice, we are not liable for missed services.

3.6 Managed Hosting. Managed Hosting is supplied through a third-party data centre. We will use reasonable efforts to keep it available, but we do not guarantee uninterrupted service. Planned maintenance will be notified in advance where possible. Hosting fees, resource limits and any uptime commitments are as set out in your order.

3.7 If you leave Managed Hosting, we will provide a full backup of the Website on request so you can move it. A migration carried out by us is charged separately.

4. Your obligations, fees and term

Your obligations

4.1 You must:

• keep us informed of who can authorise work on the Website;
• not install, remove or update plugins or themes without telling us;
• hold valid licences for any premium plugins and themes;
• keep your own copies of content and data you cannot afford to lose;
• make sure the Website’s content complies with the law.

4.2 If you or another party make changes that cause a fault, the fix uses Development Time or is charged at our hourly rate.

Fees and payment

4.3 Plan fees are shown in section 2. We are not VAT registered, so no VAT is added.

4.4 Monthly Plans are paid in advance by Direct Debit. Annual Plans are paid in advance, either by Direct Debit or by invoice payable within 14 days.

4.5 If a payment fails or is more than 14 days late, we will give you 7 days’ written notice. If it is still unpaid after that, we may pause the Plan, and suspend Managed Hosting, until it is paid. We may charge interest and compensation on late payments under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.

4.6 We may review prices once a year. We will give at least 30 days’ written notice of any increase. If an increase would take effect during your minimum term, you may end your Plan without penalty by telling us before it takes effect.

Term and cancellation

4.7 Monthly Plans have a minimum term of 12 months. After that, they continue month to month until cancelled.

4.8 Annual Plans run for 12 months and renew automatically for a further 12 months unless you cancel in writing at least 30 days before the renewal date. We will send a renewal reminder before that deadline.

4.9 After the minimum term, either party may cancel with 30 days’ written notice. You agree to pay the Plan fees for the full minimum term. If you cancel during the minimum term, the fees for the remaining months become due straight away. We will keep providing the Plan until the end of that term unless you ask us to stop.

4.10 We may end the Plan by written notice if fees remain unpaid 14 days after the notice in 4.5. We may end it with immediate effect if you seriously breach these Terms or use the Website for unlawful purposes.

4.11 When a Plan ends, we will remove our monitoring and maintenance tools and supply your latest backup on request within 30 days. After 30 days, we will delete our backups of the Website and any login details we hold, unless the law requires us to keep them. Annual fees are not refunded for unused months, except where we end the Plan for reasons not caused by you.

5. Liability, data and general terms

Liability

5.1 We will carry out the services with reasonable skill and care. No website can be made completely secure or free of downtime, and we do not guarantee that.

5.2 We are not liable for loss of profit, revenue, sales, goodwill, or any indirect or consequential loss.

5.3 Data loss. If Website data is lost or corrupted because we failed to take or keep a backup as your Plan requires, we will restore the most recent available backup at no charge. Any further liability for that loss is subject to the cap in 5.5. You remain responsible for keeping your own copies of data you cannot afford to lose.

5.4 We are not liable for failures caused by Client Hosting, third-party plugins, themes or services, changes made by you or others, or events under 5.7.

5.5 Our total liability in any 12-month period is limited to the greater of the Plan fees you paid us in that period or £100,000.

5.6 Nothing in these Terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that cannot be limited by law.

Force majeure

5.7 Neither party is liable for delay or failure caused by events outside its reasonable control. These include failures of data centres, networks, power or third-party services, cyber attacks we could not reasonably prevent, and acts of government. The affected party will tell the other promptly and resume performance as soon as it can. If the event lasts more than 30 days, either party may end the Plan by written notice.

Ownership and your content

5.8 You own the Website, its content and its data, including backups of it. We own our own tools, scripts and know-how used to provide the services. You give us permission to copy, store and change the Website as needed to provide the services.

5.9 You are responsible for the Website’s content. You will reimburse us for any losses, costs and reasonable legal fees arising from a claim that its content infringes someone else’s rights or breaks the law.

Data protection

5.10 Each party will comply with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. You are the data controller for personal data held on the Website, and we act as your data processor. Schedule 1 sets out how we process that data and forms part of these Terms.

5.11 We will tell you without undue delay, and within 48 hours of becoming aware, of any personal data breach affecting the Website.

Confidentiality and access

5.12 We will keep your login details and business information confidential and store credentials securely. We will only use them to provide the services. When the Plan ends, we will delete them as set out in 4.11, and you should change your passwords.

General

5.13 We may use subcontractors to deliver parts of the service, as set out in Schedule 1. We remain responsible for their work.

5.14 Notices. Any notice under these Terms must be in writing. Email counts as writing. Notices to us go to support@wordpressmaintenanceco.com, and notices to you go to the email address on your account. An email notice is treated as received on the next Business Day after it is sent.

5.15 Third-party rights. No one other than you and us has any right to enforce these Terms, including under the Contract (Third Party Rights) (Scotland) Act 2017.

5.16 If any part of these Terms is found unenforceable, the rest stays in force.

5.17 These Terms, Schedule 1 and your order or invoice are the whole agreement between us. They replace any earlier statements, including descriptions on our website.

5.18 These Terms are governed by the law of Scotland, and the Scottish courts have exclusive jurisdiction.

5.19 Contact: support@wordpressmaintenanceco.com · 0333 050 4410 · 4 Main Road, Condorrat, Cumbernauld G67 4BS.

Schedule 1 — Data processing

This Schedule sets out the terms required by Article 28 of UK GDPR. It applies whenever we process personal data held on the Website.

S1.1 Instructions. We will process personal data only on your documented instructions, which include these Terms, unless the law requires otherwise. We will tell you if we believe an instruction breaks data protection law.

S1.2 Confidentiality. Everyone we authorise to process the data is bound by a duty of confidentiality.

S1.3 Security. We will take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect the data. These include encrypted backups, secure storage of credentials, restricted access and up-to-date software.

S1.4 Sub-processors. You give general authorisation for us to use the sub-processors below. We will give you at least 30 days’ notice of any change, and you may object on reasonable grounds. We will put equivalent data protection terms in place with each sub-processor, and we remain liable for their work.

S1.5 International transfers. Backups and monitoring data are transferred to the United States, as shown in S1.4. We rely on the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework where the provider is certified under it, or otherwise on the ICO’s International Data Transfer Addendum or International Data Transfer Agreement. We will not transfer personal data to any other country outside the UK without equivalent safeguards.

S1.6 Assistance. Taking into account the nature of the processing, we will help you respond to data subject requests and meet your obligations on security, breach notification, impact assessments and consultation with the ICO. Help beyond what the Plan normally covers uses Development Time or is charged at £60 per hour.

S1.7 Breaches. We will notify personal data breaches as set out in 5.11. We will give you the information you reasonably need to report the breach.

S1.8 Deletion or return. When the Plan ends, we will return the data on request and then delete it, as set out in 4.11, unless the law requires us to keep it.

S1.9 Audits. We will make available the information you reasonably need to show compliance with this Schedule. We will allow audits on reasonable notice, at your cost, no more than once a year unless there has been a breach.