Community Contributions Terms of Service

These Community Contributions Terms of Service ("Contribution Terms") govern your participation in paid contribution programs on eVehicleMatch that route funds to a community's (squad, race/organization, or store) own payment account through Stripe Connect. By enabling paid contributions as an organizer, or by making a contribution as a supporter, you agree to these Contribution Terms in addition to our general Terms of Service (including dispute procedures where applicable). If you do not agree, do not enable or use paid contribution features.

1. Definitions

• "Community" means the squad, race/organization, or store entity on the platform that has been approved to receive paid contributions.
• "Organizer" means the authorized community administrator who applies for and operates paid contribution programs on behalf of the Community.
• "Contributor" or "Supporter" means a person who pays a contribution (for example, a raffle entry fee or event registration fee) to the Community through the platform.
• "Contribution" means any payment made through the platform for a paid raffle entry, paid event registration, or other paid community program we offer that settles funds to the Community's connected account.
• "Connected Account" means the Community's Stripe Connect Express account to which charges are directed.
• "Application Fee" means the platform fee retained by eVehicleMatch on each qualifying charge, calculated from the commission rate approved for that Community and applied when the payment session is created.
• "eVehicleMatch," "we," "us," refers to the operator of the eVehicleMatch platform.

2. Roles and merchant of record

2.1 Community as seller. For Contributions, the Community is the seller and the merchant of record for the underlying transaction (raffle participation, registration, or similar). Funds settle to the Community's Connected Account, not to eVehicleMatch as the recipient of the sale proceeds.

2.2 Platform role. eVehicleMatch provides technology that facilitates Contributions: we route payments using Stripe Connect destination charges and retain the Application Fee as documented at the time each payment session is created. Stripe and its applicable terms govern payment processing. We are not a party to the bargain between the Community and the Contributor regarding prizes, event access, or fulfillment.

2.3 Not charitable advice. References to "contributions" or "donations" in product copy do not, by themselves, establish tax-deductibility or charitable status. Organizers are solely responsible for determining whether a program constitutes charitable fundraising and for complying with solicitation, raffle, sweepstakes, and gaming laws.

3. Organizer obligations

If you are an Organizer, you agree that:

• You will fulfill prizes, registrations, and any benefits described in your programs in accordance with your posted rules and applicable law.
• You are responsible for refunds and payment disputes with Contributors to the extent required by law and your policies. Because charges land on the Connected Account, refunds are initiated from the Community's Stripe tools or with platform support acting on your documented instructions.
• You will determine and meet your tax obligations on amounts settled to the Community, including sales and income taxes where applicable. eVehicleMatch does not act as a marketplace facilitator for collection of sales tax on Community Contributions in the same manner as our vendor marketplace tax program described in the general Terms of Service for North Carolina vendor sales.
• You will maintain accurate descriptions of programs, fees, odds or drawing rules (for raffles), registration terms, and eligibility.
• You will retain records reasonably necessary to demonstrate compliance and to respond to disputes, chargebacks, and regulatory inquiries affecting your programs.

4. Program legality and eligibility

You represent and warrant that each paid program you operate is lawful in every jurisdiction where you solicit or accept Contributions. Many jurisdictions regulate paid raffles, sweepstakes, and charitable solicitations; some prohibit certain activities outright. eVehicleMatch does not review or approve the legality of your programs. You must obtain your own legal advice. We may suspend paid features if we reasonably believe a program violates law or creates unacceptable risk to users or the platform.

5. Contributor acknowledgements

If you are a Contributor, you acknowledge and agree that:

• Your payment is made to the Community (via its Connected Account), not to eVehicleMatch as the seller of the prize or registration.
• Delivery of prizes, race numbers, event access, or other benefits is the Community's responsibility according to its posted terms and the nature of the program.
• Refund requests are directed to the Community (organizer) according to its policies and applicable law; eVehicleMatch may assist with technical or support inquiries but does not guarantee any particular refund outcome.
• Payment card disputes (chargebacks) are typically resolved against the Connected Account that received the original charge; platform fees may not automatically reverse when an underlying charge is refunded—see Section 7.
• You must confirm each Contribution before it is submitted; continued use of checkout constitutes acceptance of the Community's program terms as presented at the time of payment.

6. Application Fee

eVehicleMatch retains an Application Fee on eligible Contributions. The fee percentage is set when your Community is approved for commerce and is applied when the payment session is created; future sessions use the then-current configured rate. The Application Fee is separate from Stripe's processing fees. Your acceptance of these Contribution Terms (and associated onboarding) may be logged with the commission rate in effect for audit purposes.

7. Refunds, disputes, and chargebacks

Refund tooling may be available through the platform or Stripe Dashboard depending on product configuration. Refunds are not automated in every scenario; organizers should plan for manual processing where required. When a payment is refunded, the Application Fee may not automatically be returned to the Community; reversing application fees may require a separate business decision and support involvement.

Chargebacks and payment disputes generally attach to the Connected Account that received the funds. The Community bears the financial and evidentiary burden of defending those disputes except where applicable law or card network rules provide otherwise.

8. Tax

Organizers are responsible for tax treatment of Contributions received by the Community. Contributors should consult a tax professional regarding deductibility of payments; most raffle and event payments are not tax-deductible charitable donations unless the Community is a qualified organization and the payment qualifies under IRS rules.

9. Prohibited uses

You may not use paid contribution features to:

• Conduct illegal lotteries, raffles, or gambling where prohibited.
• Solicit charitable donations without required registrations or disclosures, where applicable.
• Launder money, defraud Contributors, or misrepresent prizes or event benefits.
• Circumvent payment limits, identity verification, or Stripe's terms of use.

10. Suspension and termination

We may suspend or terminate access to paid contribution features, disconnect Stripe onboarding, or remove programs that violate these Contribution Terms, the general Terms of Service, law, or payment partner rules. Suspension does not excuse obligations already incurred between Contributors and Communities.

11. Indemnification

Organizers agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless eVehicleMatch and its affiliates, officers, directors, employees, and agents from claims, losses, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to the Community's programs, Contributions, tax filings, prize fulfillment, and disputes with Contributors, except to the extent caused by our gross negligence or willful misconduct.

Nothing in this Section limits any rights Contributors may have directly against the Community under applicable consumer protection law.

12. Limitation of liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, EVEHICLEMATCH SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTIONS, INCLUDING LOSS RELATING TO PROGRAM LEGALITY, PRIZE DELIVERY, OR EVENT CANCELLATION. OUR AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF THESE CONTRIBUTION TERMS SHALL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE APPLICATION FEES WE RETAINED FROM YOUR COMMUNITY IN THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM OR (B) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100), EXCEPT WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations; in those jurisdictions our liability is limited to the fullest extent permitted.

13. Governing law and venue

These Contribution Terms are governed by the laws of the State of North Carolina, excluding conflict-of-law rules. You consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of state and federal courts located in North Carolina for disputes arising out of these Contribution Terms, subject to any arbitration provision in the general Terms of Service where applicable.

14. Changes

We may update these Contribution Terms. Material changes will be reflected by new version metadata and an updated effective date in our agreement records. Continued use of paid contribution features after changes constitutes acceptance where permitted by law. Organizers may be required to re-accept updated terms before continuing to receive Contributions.

15. Contact

Questions about these Contribution Terms: support@eVehicleMatch.com
Legal inquiries: legal@eVehicleMatch.com