Effective Date: October 15, 2026 Version: 1.0 Applies to: All Sellers who offer Products through the Platform.
Article 1: Introduction and Scope
1.1 This Policy states a Seller's obligations in relation to product reviews: the prohibitions on manipulating, incentivising, and suppressing reviews, the standard for legitimate solicitation, and the standard for a Seller's response to a review. This Policy incorporates the platform rule stated in the User Content and Reviews Policy and applies that rule to Sellers. The regulatory standard stated in FTC Fake Review Rule, which addresses the Federal Trade Commission's Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 CFR Part 465), controls over this Policy where the rule imposes a stricter standard.
1.2 Products sold by the Company are "Sold by Pawz Shop." Products sold by a Seller are "Sold by {Seller name}." Reviews attach to the Product and the Detail Page, not to the Seller, in accordance with the Product Detail Page Policy.
1.3 This Policy states compliance duties; this Policy is not legal advice. If a provision of this Policy conflicts with the Terms of Use, this Policy controls for the subject it governs. If a provision of this Policy conflicts with the terms of a program in which the Seller participates, the program terms control for that program.
Article 2: Definitions
2.1 The definitions in the Selling Terms of Service apply to this Policy. The following additional terms apply to this Policy only.
2.2 Fake Review: a review not written by a genuine Buyer describing that Buyer's genuine experience, including a review the Seller wrote, paid for, or arranged, and a review posted to attack a competitor.
2.3 Incentivized Review: a review connected to compensation of any kind, including a discount, a refund, free or discounted product, a gift card, a contest entry, loyalty points, or a future favour, offered or given in exchange for a review or for a positive review.
2.4 Retaliation: an adverse action against a reviewer by reason of the review, including denial of a legitimate return, delay of a refund, a threatening message, or degradation of service.
2.5 Review Gating: steering only satisfied Buyers toward a review while diverting dissatisfied Buyers elsewhere, including pre-screening by rating and a solicitation flow that directs a Buyer to contact the Seller before reviewing where the flow is applied by sentiment.
Article 3: Prohibited Conduct
3.1 Fake Reviews. A Seller shall not post a Fake Review of the Seller's own Products or of any other Product. The prohibition covers a review posted by the Seller, by the Seller's employees, family, or friends at the Seller's direction, by a paid review service, and by a review group in which the Seller participates. A Fake Review the Seller arranged is the Seller's Fake Review whether or not the Seller composed the text.
3.2 Incentives. A Seller shall not pay for, incentivise, or condition a review. A Seller shall not offer a discount, a refund, free product, a contest entry, or any other consideration in exchange for a review. The prohibition covers compensation for a review of any rating: an offer of consideration for an "honest review, whatever the stars" produces an Incentivized Review and is prohibited. No program of the Company authorizes a Seller to offer an incentive for a positive review, and a Seller shall not present a Seller-created incentive as authorized by the Company.
3.3 Review Gating. A Seller shall not gate reviews. Solicitation is addressed to all Buyers equally or is not made. Pre-screening, a sentiment-filtered follow-up, and a package insert that directs a Buyer to contact the Seller before reviewing, where the direction is applied by sentiment, are Review Gating.
3.4 Self-review. A Seller shall not review the Seller's own Products through any Account, including a personal Buyer Account, an Account of a member of the Seller's household, or a test Account.
3.5 Competitor attacks. A Seller shall not post a Fake Review of a competitor's Product, pay another person to do so, or organise a review attack. Competitor sabotage through reviews is a serious violation for which termination is available on first finding.
3.6 Retaliation. A Seller shall not retaliate against a reviewer. A review does not alter a Buyer's return rights, refund timing, or entitlement to a response to a message. An adverse action traceable to a review is Retaliation, and Retaliation is a serious violation on first finding.
3.7 Suppression. A Seller shall not suppress a review by any means within the Seller's control, including by conditioning assistance on removal of the review, by reporting a genuine review as abusive without a factual basis, or by arranging for the removal of a review the Seller did not write.
Article 4: Legitimate Solicitation and Responses
4.1 Authorised solicitation. The Company provides an authorized review-request process: neutral language, addressed to all Buyers equally, with no incentive and no rating pre-screening. A Seller shall use that process where the Company provides the process. Seller-created solicitation outside that process: including an email sequence, a package insert, and a message follow-up: shall meet the same neutrality standard: the same message to every Buyer, a request for an honest review, no consideration offered, and no filtering by sentiment. Seller-created solicitation is subject to Company review.
4.2 Timing. A solicitation shall be sent after delivery and after a reasonable period for the Buyer to use the Product. A request sent at checkout, in a shipping confirmation, or before the Buyer has had an opportunity to evaluate the Product does not satisfy this Article.
4.3 Responses. A Seller may respond publicly to a review. A response shall be factual and professional. A response may correct the record and may offer assistance through the proper channel. A response shall not: (a) disclose a Buyer's personal data, including a name, an address, or Order detail beyond what the Buyer made public; (b) threaten the reviewer, expressly or by implication; (c) offer consideration for a review to be changed or removed; or (d) argue with the reviewer at length.
4.4 No consideration for a change. A Seller shall not offer a refund, a replacement, a discount, or a gift conditioned on a review being changed or removed. A refund or replacement offered without a condition relating to the review is customer service; the same offer made with a request for an update to the review attached is review manipulation under Article 3.
4.5 Testimonials in listings. A Buyer testimonial a Seller quotes in a listing: in a description, in an image, or in enhanced content: is the Seller's advertising claim, subject to the Product Claims Policy in full. A testimonial that states an atypical result requires Substantiation that the result is representative or a clear disclosure that the result is not typical, in accordance with FTC Fake Review Rule. A review containing a Disease Claim does not become quotable in a listing by reason of the review's existence.
Article 5: Reports and the Company's Role
5.1 A Seller may report a suspected Fake Review or abusive review to support@aapawz.com or through Seller Center, stating the evidence relied on, including a pattern of reviews from Accounts with no purchase history, identical phrasing across reviews, or a cluster timed to a competitor event. The Company investigates a report under Article 8.
5.2 A Seller shall not take private action against a suspected Fake Review or its author, including by a confronting message, a retaliatory review, or a public accusation. A Seller shall not attempt to identify a reviewer by correlating Order data or by any other means.
5.3 The Company's review-integrity measures: authenticity screening, review publication review, and verified-purchase marking: protect Buyers and honest Sellers alike. A Seller whose listing is the target of Fake Reviews is entitled to the reporting channel in Article 5.1 and to the correction of the record under Article 8.4, and acquires no right of self-help by reason of the attack.
Article 6: Liability
6.1 Exclusion of certain damages. To the fullest extent permitted by law, neither party is liable to the other for indirect, incidental, special, punitive, or consequential damages, or for lost profits, lost revenue, or loss of goodwill, arising out of or relating to this Policy, even if the party has been advised of the possibility of those damages.
6.2 Cap. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company's total liability arising out of or relating to this Policy shall not exceed the greater of (a) the amounts the Seller paid to the Company under this Policy in the twelve months before the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) one hundred dollars ($100).
6.3 Carve-outs. This Article does not limit (a) a party's indemnification obligations under this Policy; (b) liability for fraud or willful misconduct; (c) amounts the Seller owes for Orders, fees, chargebacks, or refunds under the Company's documents; or (d) liability that cannot be limited under applicable law.
6.4 Essential purpose. The parties agree that this Article allocates risk between them, that it is an essential part of the basis of their bargain, and that it applies even if a limited remedy fails of its essential purpose.
Article 7: Indemnification
7.1 Duty. The Seller shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Company and its members, managers, employees, and agents from and against every claim, demand, action, loss, liability, judgment, settlement, cost, and expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) the Seller's breach of this Policy; (b) the Seller's Products, Services, listings, or content, including product liability claims, intellectual property infringement claims, and product recall costs; (c) the Seller's violation of any law or of the rights of any person; and (d) taxes for which the Seller is responsible under the Company's documents.
7.2 Procedure. The Company shall give prompt written notice of a claim under this Article. The Seller shall control the defense with counsel reasonably acceptable to the Company. The Company may participate in the defense at its own expense. The Seller shall not settle a claim in a manner that imposes any obligation or restriction on the Company, or that does not release the Company fully, without the Company's prior written consent.
7.3 Survival. This Article survives the termination of this Policy.
Article 8: Enforcement and Appeals
8.1 Investigation. The Company may investigate any suspected violation of this Policy. The Seller shall cooperate with an investigation and shall produce the records this Policy requires the Seller to keep, including solicitation copy and records of consideration offered to Buyers.
8.2 Notice. If the Company determines that the Seller has violated this Policy, the Company shall give written notice stating the provision violated and the facts relied on, except where notice would compromise an investigation of fraud, a safety risk, or a legal obligation.
8.3 Opportunity to cure. Where a violation is capable of cure, the Seller has ten (10) business days from notice to cure it and to confirm the cure in writing. No cure period applies to fraud, including a Fake Review and a paid-review scheme, counterfeiting, a risk to the safety of a person or an animal, unlawful conduct, Retaliation, or a violation that by its nature cannot be cured. Review manipulation is a serious violation on first finding.
8.4 Measures. If a violation is established and is not cured within the period allowed, the Company may, proportionate to the violation: (a) issue a written warning; (b) remove the reviews obtained in violation of this Policy, recalculate the affected rating, and remove or suppress a listing or content, with suppression pending investigation available for review manipulation; (c) cancel an Order; (d) suspend the Account or a program participation, in whole or in part, including an account-level restriction; (e) terminate this Policy and the Account, available for a paid-review scheme, a review attack on a competitor, and a second review-manipulation finding within one hundred eighty (180) days; and (f) exercise any other right or remedy available under the Company's documents or at law.
8.5 Regulatory liability. Liability under the Federal Trade Commission's Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 CFR Part 465), as addressed in FTC Fake Review Rule, rests with the Seller for the Seller's conduct. Enforcement by the Company does not shield the Seller from a regulator, and action by a regulator does not preclude enforcement by the Company.
8.6 Disbursement hold. The Company may hold disbursements to the Seller while an investigation under this Article is pending, and shall release amounts not required to satisfy the Seller's obligations when the investigation closes.
8.7 Appeal. The Seller may appeal a measure under this Article by written notice to legal@aapawz.com within thirty (30) days of the measure, stating the grounds and attaching the records relied on. The appeal is decided by a person who did not make the original decision. The Company's decision on appeal is final. A measure remains in effect during an appeal unless the Company directs otherwise in writing.
8.8 No waiver by delay. The Company's delay in acting on a violation is not a waiver of the violation or of any later violation of the same kind.
Article 9: Term and Termination
9.1 Term. This Policy takes effect when the Seller is accepted to offer Products through the Platform and continues until terminated under this Article.
9.2 Termination by the Company. The Company may terminate this Policy and the Account on thirty (30) days' written notice for any reason, and immediately on written notice if the Seller materially breaches this Policy, engages in fraud, or becomes ineligible to participate.
9.3 Termination by the Seller. The Seller may terminate this Policy on thirty (30) days' written notice to support@aapawz.com, provided the Seller has no Order or investigation outstanding.
9.4 Effect of termination. On termination: (a) the rights granted under this Policy end; (b) obligations that arose before termination: including payment, refund, chargeback, record-keeping, and indemnification obligations: survive until satisfied; and (c) the Company shall disburse amounts owed, less amounts the Company may set off under the Company's documents, within thirty (30) days, except amounts held in connection with an open investigation or dispute.
9.5 Survival. The Definitions, Liability, Indemnification, Enforcement and Appeals (for measures taken before termination), Dispute Resolution, and General Provisions Articles survive termination.
Article 10: Dispute Resolution
10.1 Any dispute arising out of or relating to this Policy, or to the relationship it governs, is governed by the Dispute Resolution Policy, which is incorporated into this Policy by reference.
Article 11: General Provisions
11.1 Amendments. The Company may amend this Policy by posting the amended Policy in the Document Center and giving notice to the Seller at the email address in the Account. An amendment that materially increases the Seller's fees or obligations takes effect thirty (30) days after notice; other amendments take effect on posting. Continued use of the Platform after the effective date of an amendment is acceptance of it. A Seller that does not accept an amendment may terminate under Article 9 before the amendment takes effect.
11.2 Notices. Legal notices under this Policy shall be sent to legal@aapawz.com. Operational notices and all other communications shall be sent to support@aapawz.com. A notice to the Company is effective when the Company acknowledges receipt or, for email, one business day after sending, whichever is earlier. Notices to the Seller are effective when sent to the email address in the Account or posted to the Account's notice facility in the portal, whichever occurs first. The Seller shall keep the email address in the Account current.
11.3 Governing law. This Policy is governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Subject to the Dispute Resolution Policy, any proceeding arising out of this Policy shall be brought in the state or federal courts located in Shelby County, Tennessee, and the parties consent to personal jurisdiction there.
11.4 Severability. If any provision of this Policy is held unenforceable, the provision shall be enforced to the fullest extent permitted, and the remaining provisions continue in full effect.
11.5 Entire agreement. This Policy, together with the documents it incorporates by reference, is the entire agreement between the Company and the Seller for the subject it governs and supersedes every prior or contemporaneous statement, communication, or agreement on that subject, whether written or oral.
11.6 Assignment. The Seller shall not assign this Policy or any right or obligation under it without the Company's prior written consent, and an assignment without consent is void. The Company may assign this Policy to an affiliate or in connection with a sale of all or part of its business, on notice to the Seller.
11.7 Waiver. A waiver of any provision of this Policy is effective only in writing and only for the instance stated. No waiver is a waiver of any other provision or instance.
11.8 Interpretation. Headings are for convenience only. "Including" means "including without limitation." This Policy shall not be construed against a party as its drafter. The English-language text controls over any translation.
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