Spare Seat

Terms of use

Last updated: April 2026

1. Notice board only

Spare Seat is a free community notice board that connects neighbours who wish to share journeys. It is not a transport provider, taxi service, private hire operator, or commercial ridesharing platform. Spare Seat does not arrange, guarantee, or take any responsibility for any journey made through this site.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old to use this service. By registering, you confirm that you meet this requirement.

Drivers must not offer seats to, or carry, anyone under the age of 18 unless they have the prior written or verbal consent of that person's parent or guardian, and already know the minor personally. Passengers must not request seats on behalf of, or for, anyone under the age of 18 without equivalent consent.

3. User responsibilities and warranties

By using Spare Seat, you warrant that:

• all information you provide is accurate and not misleading;
• you will comply with all applicable road traffic, licensing, and insurance law;
• as a driver, you hold a valid driving licence and appropriate motor insurance for every journey you offer;
• you will not use the platform for any unlawful, abusive, or fraudulent purpose.

4. Insurance & the no-profit rule

Many UK standard car insurance policies may permit drivers to share journeys and accept contributions towards fuel costs, but this varies by insurer and policy. You must check with your own insurer before offering a ride — do not assume cover exists. Common conditions that insurers may apply include:

• The driver does not profit from the journey.
• Any contribution does not exceed the HMRC Approved Mileage Payment allowance (currently 45p/mile for the first 10,000 miles in a tax year).
• The vehicle is not being used as a hire or reward vehicle.

Exceeding these limits may invalidate your motor insurance. Drivers are solely responsible for verifying their own cover. Spare Seat makes no representation that any particular policy permits car sharing.

5. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Spare Seat accepts no liability for any loss or damage arising from use of this platform, except where liability cannot legally be excluded (including liability for death or personal injury caused by our own negligence). In particular, Spare Seat accepts no responsibility for:

• the conduct, driving standard, or identity of any driver or passenger;
• the condition or roadworthiness of any vehicle;
• journey cancellations or no-shows;
• missed appointments or consequential losses;
• loss of or damage to property during a journey.

Participation is entirely at your own risk.

6. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Spare Seat and its operators from any claims, damages, or expenses (including legal costs) arising from your use of the platform or breach of these terms.

7. Suspension and removal

Spare Seat may suspend or remove any user account at any time, without notice, where we reasonably believe a user has breached these terms, posed a risk to others, or used the platform unlawfully. We aim to maintain a safe and welcoming community and will act promptly on complaints.

8. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms at any time. Continued use of the platform after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised terms. The date at the top of this page indicates when the terms were last updated.

9. Governing law

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. Any disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

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Privacy policy

Last updated: April 2026

Who we are

Spare Seat is operated as a community service. The data controller is the site administrator, contactable at annoyingmouse+spareseat@drmsite.com.

What data we collect

• Account data: your name, email address, and optionally a profile photo and phone number.
• Ride data: departure and destination locations, date and time, seat count, contact details, and any notes you add when posting a ride.
• Request data: your name, contact details, and any message you send when requesting a seat.
• Usage data: anonymised analytics events (page views, feature usage) via Google Analytics. No personally identifiable data is sent to Google Analytics.

Lawful basis for processing

We process your personal data on the basis of legitimate interests — specifically, operating a community car-sharing notice board for the benefit of local residents. Where we rely on legitimate interests, you have the right to object (see below).

Who can see your data

• Your name and profile photo are visible to other members of your local community when you post a ride.
• Your contact details are visible only to passengers whose seat request you have accepted, and to you.
• A passenger's name and message are visible only to the driver of the ride they request.
• We do not sell or share personal data with any third party, other than Firebase (Google) for hosting and storage, and SendGrid for email notifications.

How long we keep your data

• Ride and request records are automatically deleted 48 hours after the scheduled journey time.
• Your account data is kept until you delete your account.
• Archived journey summaries stored in your account are deleted when you delete your account.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you.
• Rectify inaccurate data — you can update your name, photo, and phone number from the My Rides page.
• Erasure — you can delete your account and all associated data from the My Rides page at any time.
• Restriction of processing in certain circumstances.
• Data portability — to request a copy of your data in a machine-readable format.
• Object to processing based on legitimate interests.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at annoyingmouse+spareseat@drmsite.com. We will respond within one calendar month.

Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we handle your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

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My alerts

Get an email when a ride matching your route is posted. Alerts fire for every matching ride until the window expires or you remove the alert.