March 11, 2024

Terms & Conditions

Last Modified: March 11, 2024

Acceptance of these Terms of Use

These terms and conditions (collectively, the “Terms of Use”) are agreed between you and Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation, d/b/a American Student Assistance® (“ASA”, “we”, or “us”). These Terms of Use govern your access to and use of our websites and services available at subdomains of asa.org, including Next Voice, Futurescape, and EvolveMe (the “Services”), whether you are a guest or registered or unregistered user. As used in these Terms of Use, the “Services” includes all of their pages, functionality and features, and all services, content, information, links and other materials (“Materials”) made available on or through the Services. As used in these Terms of Use, the “Services” do not include any services, videos, content, information, links, or other materials offered on or through third-party websites, such as YouTube, TikTok, Webz.io, and/or websites of our partners (“Third-Party Services”)

All personal information that we may collect on the Services, including information you provide to register with the Services and information collected by us through your use of any features on the Services, is subject to our Privacy Policy . By using the Services, you consent to all actions taken by us with respect to your personal information in compliance with the Privacy Policy.

Please read these Terms of Use carefully before you start to use the Services. By using the Services or by clicking to accept or agree to the Terms of Use when this option is made available to you, you accept and agree to be bound by and comply with these Terms of Use and acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to these Terms of Use, you must not access or use the Services.

The Services are directed to users who are 13 years of age or older and who reside in the United States (including its territories and possessions, “United States”). Certain functionality of the Services, including access to all or any part of the Services, may be limited or disabled for users under 13 years of age or over 20 years of age, and users under 13 years of age are not permitted to register an account on the Services. If you are under 18 years of age, you represent and warrant that a parent or legal guardian has reviewed and agreed to be bound by and comply with these Terms of Use on his or her behalf and on your behalf. If you are the parent or legal guardian of a user under 18 years of age, you agree to these Terms of Use on your own and your child’s behalf, specifically including the Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability, below. By using the Services, you represent and warrant that you meet all of the foregoing eligibility requirements. If you do not meet all of these requirements, you must not access or use the Services.

Our Services utilize certain third-party services and link to Third-Party Services. Except as otherwise disclosed in our Privacy Policy, your access to Third-Party Services, whether or not initiated through the Services, is subject to the terms of service, privacy policies, and other terms and conditions of such Third-Party Services, as applicable, and you should be sure that you (and, if you are under the age of 18, your parent or legal guardian) have read and understand such terms of service, privacy policies, and other terms and conditions.

As between you and us, these Terms of Use are effective from the first moment you access the Services and will remain effective thereafter in perpetuity, unless terminated earlier as provided hereinafter.

Changes to these Terms of Use

We may revise and/or update these Terms of Use from time to time in our sole discretion. All changes are effective immediately when we post them and apply to all of your access to and use of the Services thereafter. If you continue to use the Services after we post the revised and/or updated Terms of Use, it means that you accept and agree to the revisions and/or updates. When our revisions and/or updates to these Terms of Use would materially affect your rights, it is our practice to post a notice that we have made such revisions and/or updates to these Terms of Use on the applicable Services. You are expected to check this page from time to time so you are aware of any changes, as they are binding on you. The date these Terms of Use were last revised and/or updated is identified at the top of this page.

No Use or Access by Users not Located in the United States

The Services are made available from the United States and the Services are strictly for use by and solely directed to persons located in the United States. If you are not in the United States, YOU MAY NOT ACCESS OR USE THE SERVICES. We make no claims that the Services or any of their Materials are accessible or appropriate outside of the United States. The Services may not comply with laws of certain countries; if you are not in the United States, your access to and use of the Services may not be legal. If you access or use the Services from outside the United States, you do so at your own risk and are responsible for compliance with local laws.

Accessing the Services and Account Security

We reserve the right to withdraw or amend the Services, including the right to remove any links to Third-Party Services, in our sole discretion and without notice to you. We will not be liable if all or any part of the Services becomes unavailable for any reason, at any time, or for any period. From time to time, we may restrict access to some parts of the Services, or entire Services, to all users or particular users, without notice, in our sole discretion.

To access the Services or any of their Materials or any Third-Party Services made available on or through the Services, you may be asked to provide certain registration details or other information. It is a condition of your use of the Services that all the information you provide on the Services is correct, current, and complete.

You are responsible for both:

Making all arrangements (including obtaining any internet connection) necessary for you to have access to the Services; and
Ensuring that all persons who access or use the Services through your internet connection agree to these Terms of Use and comply with them.

You acknowledge that your account is personal to you. If you choose or are provided with a user name, a password, or any other information as part of our security procedures, you must keep that information confidential and not disclose it to any other person or entity. You may not provide any other person with access to the Services or portions of them using your user name, password, or other security information. You are responsible for all activity occurring under your account or with use of your user name and password.

You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to or use of your user name or password or any other breach of security. You may report unauthorized access by sending an email to support@accounts.asa.org.

We have the right to disable any user name, password, or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time in our sole discretion.

Trademarks

The ASA name, the ASA trademark, the ASA logo, and all related names, trademarks, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans, including those of our platforms (including, without limitation, Futurescape, Next Voice, and EvolveMe) are trademarks of ASA and its affiliates or licensors. You must not use such trademarks without the prior written permission of ASA. All other names, trademarks, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans on the Services are the trademarks of their respective owners.

Intellectual Property Rights

The Services and their Materials (including all information, software, text, displays, images, video, and audio, and the design, selection, and arrangement thereof) are owned by ASA, its licensors, or other providers of such Materials, and are protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property or proprietary rights laws. All rights not expressly granted to you in these Terms of Use are reserved by ASA. You do not acquire any interest, right, or title in or to the Services or any of their Materials.

These Terms of Use permit you to access and use the Services for your personal, non-commercial use only, and you must not access or use the Services for any commercial purpose. You must not reproduce, distribute, modify, create derivative works of, publicly display, publicly perform, republish, download, store, or transmit any part of the Services, including any of its Materials, except as follows:

Your computer may temporarily store copies of the Services’ Materials in its RAM, cache, or other transient, short-term memory incidental to your accessing and viewing those Materials;
You may store files that are automatically cached by your Web browser for purposes of using the Services in accordance with these Terms of Use;
You may print or download one copy of a reasonable number of pages of the Services for your own personal, non-commercial use and not for further reproduction, publication, or distribution; and
If we provide social media features with certain Materials, you may take such actions as are enabled by such features.

You must not:

Modify or make any changes to copies of any of the Services’ Materials;
Use any illustrations, photographs, video or audio sequences, or graphics separately from the accompanying text; or
Delete or alter any copyright, trademark, or other proprietary rights notices from copies of the Materials.

If you wish to make any use of any of the Services’ Materials other than as described in these Terms of Use, please contact us at: support@accounts.asa.org

Without limiting any other of our rights to suspend or terminate your access to the Services, if you print, copy, modify, download, or otherwise use or provide any other person with access to any part of the Services in breach of these Terms of Use, we may suspend your right to use the Services without notice, and you must, at our option, immediately return or destroy any copies of the Materials you have made. In addition, we reserve our right to seek any other applicable remedies, including our right to bring any claims related to infringement of intellectual property.

Prohibited Uses

You may use the Services only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Use. Any use of the Services or their Materials in a way not expressly permitted by these Terms of Use is a breach of these Terms of Use. In addition to any other prohibitions stated in these Terms of Use, you agree not to use the Services or any of their Materials:

In any way that violates applicable law (including, without limitation, any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the United States or other countries);
For the purpose of exploiting, harming, or attempting to exploit or harm minors in any way by exposing them to inappropriate content, asking for Personal Information, or otherwise;
To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use, or re-use any material that does not comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use;
To transmit, or procure the sending of, any advertising or promotional material, including any “junk mail,” “chain letter,” “spam,” or any other similar solicitation or material;
To impersonate or attempt to impersonate ASA (including any Services of ASA), an ASA employee, another user, or any other person or entity (including, without limitation, by using e-mail addresses, user names, trademarks, or other identifiers associated with any of the foregoing); or
To engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone’s use or enjoyment of the Services, or which, as determined by us in our sole discretion, may harm ASA or users of the Services, or expose us or them to liability.

Additionally, you agree not to:

Use the Services in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the Services or interfere with or otherwise inhibit any other person’s or entity’s access to or use of the Services, including their ability to engage in real-time activities through the Services;
Manipulate or otherwise engage with any Experience (as defined below) in a manner intended to accumulate Points (as defined below) without completing or otherwise properly engaging with such Experience, including, without limitation, by fast-forwarding through a video made available on or through an Experience or creating multiple accounts to engage with Experiences;
Use any robot, spider, or other automatic device, process, or means to access the Services for any purpose, including monitoring, scraping, or copying any of the Services’ Materials;
Use any manual process to monitor or copy any of the Services’ Materials, or for any other purpose not expressly authorized in these Terms of Use, without our prior written consent;
Use any device, software, or routine that interferes with or otherwise inhibits the proper working of the Services;
Introduce any viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other software code or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful;
Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage, or disrupt any parts of the Services, the servers on which the Services are stored, or any server, computer, database, or other website connected to the Services;
Attack the Services via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack; or
Otherwise attempt to interfere with or inhibit the proper working of the Services.

User Contributions

The Services may contain interactive features that allow users to post, submit, publish, display, or transmit (hereinafter, “post”) content (collectively, “User Contributions”) on or through the Services (collectively, “Interactive Services”).

All User Contributions must comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use. By providing any User Contribution on the Services, you grant us and our affiliates, partners, and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors, and assigns the right to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute, and otherwise disclose to third parties any such material for purposes of making the Services and their Materials and any Third-Party Services available to you and other users of the Services and improving the Services and our other products and services.

You represent and warrant that:

You own or control all rights in and to your User Contributions and have the right to grant the license granted above to us and our affiliates, partners, and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors, and assigns; and
All of your User Contributions do and will comply with these Terms of Use (including, without limitation, the Content Standards).

You understand and acknowledge that:

You are responsible for any User Contributions you post, submit, publish, display, or transmit, and you, not ASA, have full responsibility for such User Contributions, including the legality, reliability, accuracy, and appropriateness of such User Contributions;
We will not be responsible or liable to you or any third party for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Services or for any loss or unavailability of your User Contributions; and
Your User Contributions may not be treated as confidential.

Content Standards

The following content standards (the “Content Standards”) apply to any and all User Contributions and use of Interactive Services. User Contributions must in their entirety comply with all applicable law. Without limiting the foregoing, User Contributions must not:

Contain any material that is defamatory, obscene, indecent, abusive, offensive, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory, or otherwise objectionable;
Contain, exhibit, or promote sexually explicit or pornographic material, violence, or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age;
Infringe or misappropriate any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other intellectual property or other proprietary rights of any other person or entity;
Violate the legal rights (including the rights of publicity and privacy) of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable law or that otherwise may be in conflict with these Terms of Use or our Privacy Policy ;
Be likely to deceive any person;
Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote, or assist any unlawful act;
Cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety or be likely to upset, embarrass, alarm, or annoy any other person;
Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization;
Involve commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes, and other sales promotions, barter, or advertising; or
Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if that is not the case.

Monitoring and Enforcement; Termination

We have the right to:

Remove or refuse to post any User Contributions for any or no reason in our sole discretion;
Take any action with respect to any User Contribution that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Contribution violates the Terms of Use, including the Content Standards, infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Services or the public, or could create liability for ASA;
Disclose your identity or other information about you to any third party who claims that information, content or other material posted, submitted, published, displayed, or transmitted on or through the Services by you violates such third party’s rights, including such third party’s intellectual property rights or their right of publicity or privacy;
Take appropriate legal action, including referral to law enforcement, for any illegal or unauthorized use of the Services;
Terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Services for any or no reason, including any violation of these Terms of Use; or
Fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting, submitting, publishing, displaying, or transmitting any information, content or other material on or through the Services.
Links to and from the Services; Social Media Features

You may link to the Services, provided you do so in a way that is fair and legal and does not, as determined by us in our sole discretion, damage our reputation or take advantage of it, but you must not establish a link in such a way as to suggest any form of association, approval, or endorsement on our part without our express written consent.

If the Services contain links to other websites or to Third-Party Services or other Materials available from or provided by third parties (including, without limitation, our partners), these links are provided for your convenience only. This includes links contained in advertisements, including banner advertisements and sponsored links. We do not control the Third-Party Services and other Materials of those websites or of such third parties (including, without limitation, our partners) and accept no responsibility for them or for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them. If you decide to access any of the third-party websites linked to the Services, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to any terms of use, privacy policies, or other terms and conditions of use for such third-party websites.

The Services may provide certain social media features that enable you to:

Link from your own or certain third-party websites to certain Materials on the Services;
Send e-mails or other communications with certain of the Materials on the Services, or links thereto; or
Cause limited portions of the Materials on the Services to be displayed or appear to be displayed on your own or certain third-party websites.

You may use these features solely as they are provided by us, including with any citations or credits to third-party sources, solely with respect to the specific Materials that they are displayed with, and otherwise in accordance with any additional terms and conditions we provide with respect to such features. Subject to the foregoing, you must not:

Establish a link from any website that is not owned by you;
Cause the Services or any portions of them to be displayed, or appear to be displayed by, for example, framing, deep linking or in-line linking, on any other website; or
Otherwise take any action with respect to the Materials that is inconsistent with any other provision of these Terms of Use.

The website from which you are linking, or on which you make certain content accessible, must comply in all respects with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.

You agree to cooperate with us in causing any unauthorized framing or linking immediately to cease. We reserve the right to withdraw linking permission without notice.

We may disable all or any social media features and any links at any time without notice in our discretion.

Points and Rewards

You may be able to accumulate points (“Points”) by engaging with certain Materials and Third-Party Services made available on or through the Services (including on websites of our third-party partners) (such Materials and Third-Party Services, “Experiences”). When you access an Experience, we or the Experience will notify you of the amount of Points that you may accumulate by engaging with such Experience as well as what you must do to accumulate these Points. For example, to accumulate Points by engaging with an Experience, you may be required to watch a video or complete a quiz made available on or through such Experience. You may access and view the amount of Points that you have accumulated through your account; however, Points may not become available to access or view on your account immediately after you complete engagement with an Experience. Restrictions, such as age limitations, may apply to how you can accumulate Points, and our practice is to notify you of any such restrictions.

When we issue Points, you obtain a limited license to those Points, which do not (a) have an equivalent value in real currency; (b) act as a substitute for real currency; or (c) earn interest. Points are not redeemable or exchangeable for real or virtual currency, monetary value, or convertible for other credits or tokens from us or any other third party, except as expressly provided in these Terms of Use or otherwise required by applicable law. Your license to use Points will terminate upon termination of these Terms of Use or your account and as otherwise provided herein, except as otherwise required by applicable law. You may not transfer, assign, sell, gift, exchange, trade, convert, lease, sublicense, rent, or distribute Points except through the Services and as expressly permitted by us. Any disposition or attempted disposition of Points in violation of these Terms of Use will be void and may result in immediate termination of your account and your license to use Points. We, in our sole discretion, have the absolute right to manage, modify, suspend, revoke, and terminate your license to use Points without notice, refund, compensation, or liability to you, except as otherwise prohibited by applicable law.

We may, from time to time, provide ways for you to use your Points, such as to redeem them for gift cards or other rewards (“Rewards”). Gift cards are valid at participating merchants only, and are subject to the issuer’s terms and conditions, which, if permitted by applicable law, may address expiration policies and non-usage fees and may be changed at the sole discretion of the issuer. Redemption values for Rewards may vary, and the amount of time it takes for you to receive a Reward may vary. Restrictions, such as minimum or maximum amounts, may apply to how you use your Points, and our practice is to notify you of any such restrictions. Users who are or become 20 years of age or older may be subject to additional limitations on their ability to accumulate and redeem Points; for example, such users may not be able to redeem Points for Rewards, even if such Points were accumulated before the user reached 20 years of age.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, neither we nor any third party has any obligation to exchange Points for anything of value, including, but not limited to, gift cards or real currency, except as expressly provided in these Terms of use or otherwise required by applicable law. We make no guarantee as to the nature, quality, or value of Points or the availability or supply thereof.

You are responsible for how your Points are used. Once your Points have been used, the transaction in which your Points were used is considered final and may not be canceled unless otherwise noted. We are not responsible for how your redeemed Rewards are used.

We may, in our sole discretion, revise and/or update any features or functionalities related to Points, including, without limitation, how you accumulate Points, how you use Points, the amount of points associated with engaging with any Experience, the value of Points (including, without limitation, by increasing or decreasing the amount of your Points), and what Rewards may be redeemed for Points. We may also, in our sole discretion, for any or no reason (including for any violation by you of these Terms of Use), temporarily or permanently prohibit you from accumulating Points, using Points that you have already accumulated (including to redeem such Points for Rewards), or accessing or using any other features or functionalities related to Points.

We do not control the Experiences made available by third parties and/or the website on which you can redeem your Points for Rewards, and we accept no responsibility for such Experiences or website or for any loss or damage that may arise from your access to and engagement with them. If you decide to access or engage with any Experiences made available by third parties and/or the website on which you can redeem your Points for Rewards, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to the applicable third party’s terms of use, privacy policies, or other terms and conditions of use applicable to such Experiences or websites.

Contests and Sweepstakes

We may, from time to time, in our sole discretion, make available contests, sweepstakes, and other promotions on or through the Services, including on websites of our third-party partners (“Sweepstakes”). Any Sweepstakes will be subject to supplemental terms and conditions in addition to these Terms of Use (“Sweepstakes Terms”), which may include eligibility criteria and other participation requirements. If you wish to participate in any Sweepstakes, please first read the applicable Sweepstakes Terms carefully. If the terms and conditions of any Sweepstakes Terms conflict with these Terms of Use, then such conflicting terms and conditions of the Sweepstakes Terms will govern with respect to the applicable Sweepstakes. All content that you submit to the Services in connection with any Sweepstakes constitutes User Contributions and is subject to all provisions of these Terms of Use applicable to User Contributions.

SMS Messages for One-Time Passcodes

You may be asked to provide your phone number to enable ASA to send you a one-time passcode via SMS message to verify your account. If you consent and provide your phone number for this purpose, applicable message and data rates may apply. You will receive 1 message to verify your account. Contact your wireless provider for more information about your text plan or data plan. We are able to deliver messages to the following mobile phone carriers: [Major carriers: AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint, T-Mobile, MetroPCS, US Cellular, Alltel, Boost Mobile, Nextel, and Virgin Mobile. Minor carriers: Alaska Communications Systems (ACS), Appalachian Wireless (EKN), Bluegrass Cellular, Cellular One of East Central IL (ECIT), Cellular One of Northeast Pennsylvania, Cincinnati Bell Wireless, Cricket, Coral Wireless (Mobi PCS), COX, Cross, Element Mobile (Flat Wireless), Epic Touch (Elkhart Telephone), GCI, Golden State, Hawkeye (Chat Mobility), Hawkeye (NW Missouri), Illinois Valley Cellular, Inland Cellular, iWireless (Iowa Wireless), Keystone Wireless (Immix Wireless/PC Man), Mosaic (Consolidated or CTC Telecom), Nex-Tech Wireless, NTelos, Panhandle Communications, Pioneer, Plateau (Texas RSA 3 Ltd), Revol, RINA, Simmetry (TMP Corporation), Thumb Cellular, Union Wireless, United Wireless, Viaero Wireless, and West Central (WCC or 5 Star Wireless).] Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. Please refer to our Privacy Policy for more information about the collection and use of your personal information.

Changes to the Services

We may update the Materials made available on or through the Services from time to time, but the Services’ Materials are not necessarily complete or up-to-date. Any of the Materials may be out of date at any given time, and we are under no obligation to update such Materials.

Reliance on Information Posted

The information presented on or through the Services (including, without limitation, information presented on or through any Materials or Third-Party Services) is made available solely for general information purposes. We do not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of this information. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. We disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such information by you or any other visitor to the Services, or by anyone who may be informed of such information.

The Services may include Third-Party Services and other Materials from or provided by third parties, including third-party partners, licensors, syndicators, aggregators, and/or reporting services. All statements and/or opinions expressed in these Third-Party Services and/or Materials, other than the Materials expressly identified as being provided by ASA, are solely the opinions and the responsibility of the person or entity providing those Third-Party Services and/or Materials. These Third-Party Services and/or Materials do not necessarily reflect the opinions of ASA. We expressly disclaim all liability for, and we are not responsible, or liable to you or any third party, for the content or accuracy of any Third-Party Services and/or Materials provided by any third parties.

Disclaimer of Warranties

YOUR USE OF, AND YOUR RELIANCE ON OR ACTIONS OR INACTION BASED ON, THE SERVICES OR ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO OR FROM THEM, OR ANY OF THE THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR MATERIALS AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH, THE SERVICES OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE SERVICES AND THEIR MATERIALS AND ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES AND THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, STATUTORY OR OTHERWISE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NEITHER ASA NOR ANY PERSON ASSOCIATED WITH ASA MAKES ANY WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPLETENESS, SECURITY, RELIABILITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY, OR AVAILABILITY OF THE SERVICES, THEIR MATERIALS, OR ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, NEITHER ASA NOR ANYONE ASSOCIATED WITH ASA REPRESENTS OR WARRANTS THAT THE SERVICES OR ANY OF THEIR MATERIALS OR ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, ERROR-FREE, OR UNINTERRUPTED, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, THAT OUR SERVICES, MATERIALS, OR ANY THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY LINKS, OR THE SERVERS THAT MAKE THEM AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT THE THEY WILL OTHERWISE MEET YOUR NEEDS OR EXPECTATIONS.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY WARRANTIES WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

Limitation on Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL ASA, ITS AFFILIATES, OR ITS OR THEIR LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS, OR DIRECTORS BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, OR RELIANCE ON OR ACTIONS OR INACTION BASED ON, THE SERVICES, OR ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO OR FROM THEM, OR ANY OF THE THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR MATERIALS AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH, THE SERVICES OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, AND WHETHER CAUSED BY TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY A DISTRIBUTED DENIAL-OF-SERVICE ATTACK, VIRUSES, OR OTHER TECHNOLOGICALLY HARMFUL MATERIAL THAT MAY INFECT YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT, COMPUTER PROGRAMS, DATA, OR OTHER PROPRIETARY MATERIAL DUE TO YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES, ANY THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES LINKED TO OR FROM THE SERVICES, OR THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR MATERIALS AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SERVICES OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, OR DUE TO YOUR DOWNLOADING OF ANY MATERIALS.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY LIABILITY WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

Indemnification

You agree, to the maximum extent permissible under applicable law, to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless ASA, its affiliates, licensors, and service providers, and its and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns from and against all claims, demands, losses, damages, liabilities, demands, judgments, awards, settlements, costs and expenses of any kind (including legal fees and expenses) relating to or arising out of: (i) your access to, use, or misuse of the Services or any of their Materials (including relating to User Contributions) or Third-Party Services made available on or through the Services; (ii) your breach, alleged breach, or violation of these Terms of Use; (iii) your failure to comply with applicable law (including any failure to obtain or provide any necessary consent or notice); or (iv) the infringement by you or any third party using your account of any intellectual property, privacy, or other right of any person or entity.

Governing Law and Jurisdiction; Limitation on Time to File Claims

These Terms of Use shall be interpreted in accordance with the internal laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule, whether of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or any other jurisdiction.

You agree that any legal suit, action, or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Terms of Use or the Services that is not resolved by binding arbitration as set forth below will be instituted exclusively in the federal and state courts located in Suffolk County of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. However, subject to the arbitration provisions set forth below, we retain the right to bring any suit, action, or proceeding against you for breach of these Terms of Use in your state of residence or any other relevant state. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over you by such courts and to venue in such courts.

Arbitration

PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY BECAUSE IT AFFECTS YOUR RIGHTS. BY AGREEING TO BINDING ARBITRATION, YOU WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO LITIGATE DISPUTES THROUGH A COURT AND TO HAVE A JUDGE OR JURY DECIDE YOUR CASE.

In order to expedite and control the cost of disputes, ASA and you agree that any legal or equitable claim, dispute, action or proceeding arising from or related to your use of the Services or these Terms of Use (“Dispute”) will be resolved as follows to the fullest extent permitted by law:

Notice of Dispute. In the event of a Dispute, you or ASA must give the other a written statement that sets forth the name, address, and contact information of the party giving it, the facts giving rise to the Dispute, and a proposed solution (a “Notice of Dispute”). You must send any Notice of Dispute by first class U.S. Mail to ASA at 33 Arch Street Suite 2100, Boston, MA 02110, and also via e-mail to support@accounts.asa.org. ASA will send any Notice of Dispute to you by first class U.S. Mail to your address if ASA has it, or otherwise to your e-mail address. You and ASA will attempt to resolve any Dispute through informal negotiation within sixty (60) days from the date the Notice of Dispute is sent. After sixty (60) days, you and ASA shall endeavor to settle any Dispute by mediation. The place of mediation shall be Boston, Massachusetts. Any Dispute which has not been resolved by mediation as provided herein within thirty (30) days after appointment of a mediator or such time period as you or ASA may otherwise agree, shall be finally resolved by binding arbitration as described below. An arbitrator will decide any disputes over whether this subsection has been violated, and has the power to enjoin the filing or prosecution of arbitrations. Unless prohibited by applicable law, the arbitrator shall not administer any arbitration unless the requirements of this subsection have been met.
Binding Arbitration. You are giving up the right to litigate (or participate in as a party or class member) all Disputes in court before a judge or jury. Instead, all Disputes will be resolved before a neutral arbitrator, whose decision will be final except for a limited right of appeal under the Federal Arbitration Act. The arbitrator shall decide all issues pertaining to arbitrability, including his or her own jurisdictional validity and enforceability of these Terms of Use (e.g., unconscionability). For the avoidance of doubt, this is not meant to reduce any powers granted to the arbitrator under the applicable arbitration rules. The place of arbitration shall be Boston, Massachusetts. Any court with jurisdiction over the parties may enforce the arbitrator’s award.
Class Action Waiver. Any proceedings to resolve or litigate any Dispute in any forum will be conducted solely on an individual basis. Neither you nor ASA will seek to have any Dispute heard as a class action or in any other proceeding in which either party acts or proposes to act in a representative capacity. No arbitration or proceeding will be combined with another without the prior written consent of all parties to all affected arbitrations or proceedings. Class actions and class arbitrations are not permitted; for example, you may bring a claim only on your own behalf and cannot seek relief that would affect other guests or users. Nor may an arbitrator consolidate arbitrations unless all parties agree. If there is a final judicial determination that the limitations of this paragraph are unenforceable as to a particular claim or a particular request for relief (such as a request for injunctive relief), then the parties agree that such a claim or request for relief shall be decided by a court after all other claims and requests for relief are arbitrated.
Mass Arbitrations. If 25 or more claimants submit similar Notices of Dispute or file similar arbitrations and are represented by the same or coordinated counsel, all of the cases must be resolved in arbitration in stages using staged bellwether proceedings. You agree to do this even though the resolution of some claims might be delayed. In the first stage, the parties shall select up to 10 cases to be filed in arbitration and resolved by separate arbitrators. In the meantime, no other cases may be filed in arbitration. Nor may the arbitration provider accept, administer or demand payment for fees for other arbitrations. If the remaining cases are not settled after the first stage is done, the parties will repeat the process. These staged bellwether proceedings will continue until all cases are resolved. If this paragraph applies to a Notice of Dispute, any statute of limitations applicable to the listed claims will be tolled from the time the first cases are selected for bellwether proceedings until the claimant’s Notice of Dispute is selected for a bellwether proceeding or otherwise resolved. A court will have the authority to enforce this subsection, including the power to enjoin the filing or prosecution of arbitrations or assessment of related fees.
Arbitration Procedures. Any arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) under their Consumer Arbitration Rules (“AAA Rules”) in effect at the time the Dispute is filed. You may request a telephonic or in-person hearing by following the AAA Rules. In a dispute involving $10,000 or less, any hearing will be telephonic unless the arbitrator finds good cause to hold an in-person hearing instead. To the extent the forum provided by AAA is unavailable, ASA and you agree to select a mutually agreeable alternative dispute resolution service and that such alternative dispute resolution service shall apply the AAA Rules. The arbitrator may award the same damages to you individually as a court could. The arbitrator may award declaratory or injunctive relief only to you individually, and only to the extent required to satisfy your individual claim.
Arbitration Fees. Whoever files the arbitration pays the initial filing fee. If ASA files, then ASA will pay; if you file, then you will pay unless you get a fee waiver under the applicable arbitration rules. Each party will bear the expense of that party’s attorneys, experts, and witnesses, and other expenses, regardless of which party prevails, but a party may recover any or all expenses (including attorney’s fees) from another party if the arbitrator, applying applicable law, so determines.
Filing Period. To the extent permitted by law, any Dispute under these Terms of Use must be filed within one (1) year in an arbitration proceeding. The one-year period begins on the earliest date when any of the alleged claims first accrue, regardless of whether additional damages occur after such claims first accrue. If a Dispute is not filed within one year, it is permanently barred. This period can only be extended by the written consent of both you and ASA. No statutes or provisions of law that would toll or otherwise affect the time in which you may bring a claim shall operate to extend the period limited in this section, and you hereby waive any such statutes and provisions, to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Enforceability. If the waiver of class actions above is found unenforceable, or this entire section is found unenforceable, then this entire section will be null and void. If that happens, you and ASA agree that the section below on governing law and jurisdiction will govern any Dispute.
Opt-Out. You can opt out of arbitration within 30 days of the date that you first agreed to these Terms of Use (including any earlier version containing an arbitration provision). If you have previously agreed to arbitration, then you may opt out of any future revisions to the arbitration provision within 30 days of receiving notice of the updated arbitration provision, in which case the prior version of the arbitration shall apply. To opt out of arbitration (or revisions to this arbitration provision), you must send your name, residence address, username, email address or phone number you use for your Services account, and a clear statement that you want to opt out of this arbitration agreement (or of the revisions to it), and you must send them here: 33 Arch Street Suite 2100, Boston, MA 02110.
ASA AFFILIATES, AGENTS, EMPLOYEES, AND SUBCONTRACTORS ARE INTENDED AS THIRD-PARTY BENEFICIARIES OF THE ARBITRATION CLAUSES IN THIS SECTION.

Waiver, Interpretation and Severability

No waiver by ASA of any term or condition set forth in these Terms of Use shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition, or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of ASA to assert a right or provision under these Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.

For purposes of interpreting these Terms of Use, all references to “including” shall be understood to mean “including but not limited to”.

If any provision of these Terms of Use is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of these Terms of Use will continue in full force and effect.

Entire Agreement

These Terms of Use constitute the sole and entire agreement between you and ASA with respect to the Services and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations and warranties, both written and oral, with respect to the Services.

Copyright Infringement

ASA takes copyright infringement seriously and complies with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). If you believe that any of the Materials or User Contributions available through, or displayed on, the Services violates your copyright, please notify us at support@accounts.asa.org, and submit a notice to our authorized copyright agent, who will accept and review all claims submitted to it. In order for us to take action upon receiving such notice, the notice must contain the following:

A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted;
A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; or
A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized.

Please submit your notice to: American Student Assistance Legal Department 33 Arch Street Suite 2100 Boston, MA 02110

Upon receiving notice in accordance with 17 U.S.C.A. § 512(c)(3) that such Materials are infringing, we will expeditiously take down such Materials.

It is our policy to terminate the user accounts of repeat or intentional infringers.

Your Comments and Concerns

The Services are operated by Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation, d/b/a American Student Assistance, 33 Arch Street, Suite 2100, Boston, Massachusetts 02110.

All feedback, comments, requests for technical support, and other communications relating to the Services should be directed to: support@accounts.asa.org.