Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using deductmax.com ("Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.

deductmax.com is operated by DeductMax ("Company", "we", "us", or "our"). These Terms apply to all users of the Service.

2. Service Description and Scope

What DeductMax Does:

• Provides an automated tax calculation tool for IRS Schedule C Line 9 (Car and Truck Expenses)
• Uses AI and machine learning for OCR (Optical Character Recognition) and receipt categorization
• Calculates deductions using both the Standard Mileage Method and Actual Expenses Method
• Generates PDF reports with calculation details and audit risk assessments
• Provides calculation estimates based on IRS mileage rates and user-provided data

What DeductMax Does NOT Do:

• Does not provide tax, legal, or financial advice
• Does not guarantee IRS acceptance of calculated deductions
• Does not replace the services of a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Enrolled Agent, or tax professional
• Does not prepare or file tax returns on your behalf
• Does not represent you in IRS audits or inquiries

3. Calculation Accuracy and AI Limitations

AI and Automation Limitations:

DeductMax uses artificial intelligence and machine learning models (including Mistral AI for OCR and Anthropic Claude for receipt analysis) to extract and categorize data from receipts and documents. You acknowledge and understand that:

• OCR technology has inherent error rates. Text extraction may contain errors, especially with poor-quality images, handwriting, faded ink, or damaged receipts.
• AI categorization is probabilistic, not perfect. Expense categories may be misclassified (e.g., parking classified as fuel).
• Confidence scores indicate likelihood, not certainty. Even high-confidence extractions should be manually verified.
• "98%+ accuracy" refers to text extraction under ideal conditions (clear images, standard fonts, good lighting), not to final tax calculation correctness.
• Final accuracy depends entirely on your data quality. If you provide incorrect mileage logs or receipts, calculations will be incorrect.
• AI models can hallucinate data. In rare cases, the AI may extract information that does not appear on the receipt.

Your Responsibility for Verification:

You are solely responsible for verifying all data. Before using DeductMax's calculations for tax filing, you MUST:

• Verify all OCR-extracted receipt data against your original receipts
• Review and correct all flagged items requiring manual review
• Confirm that mileage logs are accurate and complete
• Ensure your business use percentage is accurate and supportable
• Maintain original receipts, mileage logs, and supporting documentation separate from DeductMax

Using DeductMax's calculations without verification violates these Terms and may result in IRS penalties.

4. Not Tax Advice

DeductMax is a calculation tool, not a tax advisor. We:

• Do not provide personalized tax planning or strategy advice
• Do not advise on tax positions or IRS compliance
• Cannot determine what deductions you are legally entitled to claim
• Cannot predict whether the IRS will accept your deductions
• Cannot represent you in an IRS audit, examination, or appeal

You should consult a licensed CPA, Enrolled Agent, or tax attorney before filing tax returns using DeductMax's calculations. Tax laws are complex and vary based on your specific situation. Only a qualified tax professional can provide advice tailored to your circumstances.

5. Audit Risk Assessment Disclaimer

The "Audit Risk" assessment (Low/Medium/High) provided in your calculation results is a statistical heuristic based on industry averages and IRS publications. It:

• Is NOT a prediction of whether you will be audited
• Is NOT legal advice about IRS compliance
• Does NOT guarantee audit protection or IRS acceptance
• Should not be relied upon as the sole factor in tax decision-making

The IRS audits tax returns based on many factors beyond DeductMax's analysis. An audit risk assessment of "Low" does not prevent an audit, and "High" does not guarantee one.

6. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW:

1. No Liability for Tax Consequences. DeductMax and its operators are not liable for:
   • Errors in OCR, categorization, or calculations
   • IRS audits, examinations, penalties, or interest
   • Disallowed deductions or adjustments to your tax return
   • Tax underpayments, overpayments, or refund delays
   • Financial losses related to tax filing or IRS disputes
2. Maximum Liability Cap. Our total liability to you for any claim related to the Service shall not exceed the amount you paid for the Service (currently $49 per Schedule C line, per tax year).
3. "AS IS" Service. We provide the Service "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE" without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to:
   • No warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose
   • No warranty of accuracy, completeness, or reliability
   • No warranty that the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free
   • No warranty that defects will be corrected
4. Third-Party Services. We are not responsible for errors, outages, or failures of third-party services we rely on, including but not limited to: Mistral AI, Anthropic Claude, AWS S3, Stripe, or Mailgun.

7. Your Indemnification Obligations

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless DeductMax, its operators, employees, contractors, and service providers from any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from or related to:

• Your use of calculated deductions on tax returns
• Misrepresentation or falsification of data provided to DeductMax
• IRS disputes, audits, or penalties related to deductions
• Violations of tax laws, regulations, or IRS rules
• Your violation of these Terms of Service

8. Payment Terms and Refunds

Pricing:

• $49.00 one-time payment per Schedule C line, per tax year
• Payment is required before accessing final calculation results and downloading PDF reports
• Prices are subject to change with notice on our website

Refund Policy:

NO REFUNDS are available after you:

• Download the PDF report
• View the final calculation results
• Decide you disagree with the calculated amounts
• Make data entry errors (wrong mileage, incorrect dates, etc.)
• Upload poor-quality receipts that OCR cannot read
• Change your mind about using the Service
• Have your deductions disallowed by the IRS

Refunds ARE available only if:

• Technical failure prevents calculation from completing due to our system error
• Service downtime prevents access for more than 48 hours
• OCR processes fewer than 50% of uploaded receipts due to technical errors (not user error such as poor image quality)

Refund requests must be submitted within 30 days of payment to support@deductmax.com. We will investigate and respond within 5 business days. Approved refunds are processed within 10 business days.

For complete refund details, see our Refund Policy.

9. Data Retention and Deletion

Data Storage:

• Receipt images are stored in AWS S3 cloud storage
• OCR text, mileage data, and calculations are stored in our PostgreSQL database
• Data is retained for 7 years (the IRS audit statute of limitations period) unless you request earlier deletion
• Presigned URLs for receipt images expire after 7 days for security

Your Right to Deletion:

You may request deletion of your data at any time by emailing support@deductmax.com with the subject line "Delete My Data". We will:

• Verify your identity (match email to your account)
• Process deletion within 30 days
• Delete all receipt images from S3
• Delete all OCR text, trip logs, calculations, and personal data from our database
• Send confirmation when deletion is complete

Data Retained After Deletion:

• Stripe payment records (required by law for 7 years for tax purposes)
• Aggregated analytics data (anonymized, with no personal information)

Deletion is permanent and cannot be undone. You will need to start over if you want to use DeductMax again after deletion.

10. Your Obligations and Responsibilities

By using DeductMax, you agree to:

1. Provide Accurate Data. You will upload accurate receipts, mileage logs, and vehicle information.
2. Verify All Calculations. You will review and verify all OCR-extracted data and calculations before filing your tax return.
3. Maintain Original Records. You will retain original receipts, mileage logs, and supporting documentation in case of IRS audit.
4. Consult a Tax Professional. You will consult a CPA or tax professional before filing your tax return.
5. Comply with Laws. You will use the Service only for lawful purposes and in compliance with all applicable tax laws.
6. Not Misuse the Service. You will not:
   • Upload fraudulent receipts or falsified mileage data
   • Attempt to bypass payment or access restrictions
   • Reverse engineer, decompile, or attempt to extract source code
   • Use automated scripts or bots to access the Service
   • Share your account credentials with others

11. Account Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without notice, if:

• You violate these Terms of Service
• You engage in fraudulent activity or upload falsified data
• Your payment is declined or disputed
• We are required to do so by law or court order

Upon termination, you will lose access to the Service and any data stored in your account. No refunds will be provided for terminated accounts.

12. Privacy Policy

Your use of the Service is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which describes how we collect, use, and protect your personal information. By using the Service, you consent to the practices described in the Privacy Policy.

13. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will:

• Update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page
• Increment the version number
• Notify you via email if changes are material

Your continued use of the Service after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the new Terms. If you do not agree to the updated Terms, you must stop using the Service.

14. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, United States, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Service shall be resolved through binding arbitration in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association, except that either party may seek injunctive relief in court.

You waive any right to participate in class action lawsuits or class-wide arbitration against DeductMax.

15. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid by a court of law, that provision will be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, or if that is not possible, it will be severed from these Terms. The remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.

16. Contact Information

If you have questions about these Terms of Service, please contact us:

Email: support@deductmax.com
Website: https://deductmax.com