These terms apply when you use LearningwithBelle.com, app.learningwithbelle.com and our online English lessons (together, the "Service"). The Service is operated by Learning with Belle, New Zealand ("we", "us"). By creating an account or buying lessons you agree to these terms, our Privacy Policy and our Refund and Cancellation Policy.
1. The Service
We offer one-to-one online English lessons with independent teachers. After you sign up, we meet you for a free introduction, agree your learning goals and match you with a teacher. Your first lesson with a new teacher is a free demo lesson. Your teacher then schedules your 50-minute lessons and shares materials and homework with you in the app. Lessons take place by video, in the app's own video room or, for some lessons, through a Jitsi meeting link.
We aim to give you the same teacher throughout, but we may change your teacher if they become unavailable, if you ask, or if we think another teacher would suit you better. We do not guarantee any particular result, such as an exam score.
2. Your account
- You must give accurate information and keep your sign-in details safe. You are responsible for what happens in your account.
- One account is for one learner.
- Learners under 18: a parent or legal guardian must create the account, or agree to these terms on the learner's behalf, and is responsible for payments and for supervising the learner's use of the Service as appropriate.
- You can close your account at any time from your profile. See section 13.
3. Prices and payment
- No subscriptions. You buy lessons one at a time or in bundles and pay in advance. Nothing renews automatically, and you are never charged again unless you choose to buy more lessons.
- Prices are shown on our Courses page and in the app before you pay, in the currency you pay in. If your bank converts the amount into another currency, it may charge a conversion fee; we are not responsible for that fee or the exchange rate.
- Payments are processed by our payment providers, Stripe and Airwallex, by card or Alipay. We never see or store your full card details.
- Prices include any taxes we are required to charge.
- Each lesson your teacher schedules uses one lesson from your balance. Lessons do not expire.
- The free introduction and free demo lessons have no cash value and cannot be exchanged or refunded.
- We may change our prices. A change never affects lessons you have already paid for.
4. Lessons
- Your teacher schedules each lesson. You can see the date and time, shown in your own time zone, on your dashboard and lesson page, and you are notified in the app when a lesson is scheduled, moved or cancelled.
- You join from the lesson page in the app, or through the meeting link shown there. A lesson starts and ends at its scheduled time and lasts 50 minutes.
- Please join on time, somewhere quiet, with a working internet connection, camera and microphone, and have any homework and materials ready.
- The learner must attend in person. For younger learners, we recommend that a parent or guardian is nearby, especially for the first few lessons.
5. Moving, cancelling and late lessons
- Moving a lesson. If you need a different time, message your teacher in the chat. If your teacher agrees, they move the lesson in the app and it costs nothing. Please ask at least 5 hours before the lesson starts, as a request made later may not be possible.
- Cancelling a lesson. You can cancel free of charge from the lesson page at least 5 hours before it starts, and the lesson goes back to your balance. Inside the last 5 hours, or if you do not attend, the lesson counts as taken. See our Refund and Cancellation Policy.
- Joining late. The lesson still ends at its scheduled time, so lateness is not made up. If you have not joined within 15 minutes of the start, your teacher may close the lesson, and it counts as taken.
- Technical problems on your side. A lesson missed because of your own device or internet connection counts as taken. If you know of a problem in advance, cancel or ask to move the lesson at least 5 hours ahead.
- Technical problems on our side. If a lesson cannot happen, or is cut seriously short, because of a problem with our platform, we return the lesson to your balance or arrange a free replacement lesson.
- Changes by your teacher. Your teacher may move or cancel a lesson for a good reason. They aim to tell you at least 24 hours ahead, except in emergencies or illness. A lesson cancelled by your teacher or by us always goes back to your balance, and a moved lesson keeps its own 5-hour free cancellation window.
- If your teacher does not arrive. If your teacher has not joined within 10 minutes of the start, message them in the chat and email us at hello@learningwithbelle.com. If the lesson does not go ahead, we return it to your balance or arrange a free replacement lesson.
Please tell us about any problem with a lesson within 14 days.
6. Refunds
You can ask for a refund of unused lessons at any time, from your profile, without giving a reason. Lessons already taken are charged at the single-lesson price, and the rest is refunded to your original payment method. The full rules are in our Refund and Cancellation Policy.
7. Behaviour
When you use the Service, including lessons and chat, you agree not to:
- harass, abuse or threaten anyone, or share anything unlawful, offensive or sexual;
- record a lesson without the agreement of everyone in it;
- arrange lessons or payments with a teacher you met through us outside the Service;
- share your account, or try to interfere with or get unauthorised access to the Service.
If you break these rules, we may suspend or close your account (see section 13).
8. Teachers
Teachers work with us as independent contractors under a separate agreement. Their profiles are written by them; we review them but cannot check every detail.
9. Materials and content
Lesson materials, homework, the website and the app belong to us, our teachers or our licensors. You may use them for your own learning only, and must not copy, sell or publish them. Anything you upload, such as homework, stays yours; you allow us and your teacher to use it to provide the Service.
10. Links to other websites
The Service contains links to, and materials embedded from, websites and services we do not own or control, such as YouTube, Vimeo, Canva, Nearpod, Google Drive and Jitsi. Those services have their own terms and privacy policies, which we recommend you read. We are not responsible for their content, privacy practices or availability, or for any loss caused by using them.
11. Availability
We work to keep the Service available, but it may sometimes be interrupted for maintenance or by problems outside our control, such as internet or video-provider outages. When an interruption on our side affects a lesson, section 5 applies.
12. Limitation of liability
To the extent the law allows:
- we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, such as lost opportunities or income, arising from your use of, or inability to use, the Service;
- we are not liable for content posted by other users or third parties, or for the content of other websites (section 10);
- we are not liable for unauthorised access to your account or information, unless it was caused by our failure to take reasonable security measures; and
- our total liability to you for all claims is limited to the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the event that gave rise to the claim.
Nothing in these terms limits your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993, the Fair Trading Act 1986 or any other law that cannot be excluded, or our liability where it cannot lawfully be limited. If you are buying for a business, you agree the Consumer Guarantees Act does not apply.
13. Term and termination
- These terms apply from the first time you use the Service and continue for as long as you use it or have an account.
- Closing your account. You can close your account at any time from your profile. Your future lessons are cancelled and your unused lessons are refunded as set out in our Refund and Cancellation Policy. We anonymise your personal information as described in our Privacy Policy.
- Suspension or closure by us. We may suspend or close your account if you seriously or repeatedly break these terms, if we reasonably suspect fraud or misuse, or if we stop offering the Service. Where it is reasonable, we will warn you first and give you a chance to fix the problem. If we close your account, your unused lessons are refunded as set out in our Refund and Cancellation Policy.
- Sections that by their nature should continue after your account is closed, including sections 9, 12 and 15, continue to apply.
14. Changes to these terms
We may update these terms. We will post the new version here with a new date, and tell you in the app or by email before any important change takes effect. If you do not agree, you can close your account and get your unused lessons refunded.
15. Law and disputes
These terms are governed by the laws of New Zealand. If something goes wrong, please contact us first and we will try to resolve it. Otherwise, the courts of New Zealand have jurisdiction, without affecting any right you have to bring a claim where you live.
16. Contact
Learning with Belle. Email: hello@learningwithbelle.com.