Customer Terms and Conditions

Carata Limited (Kenya)

Effective Date: 12 August 2026

Last Updated: 7 August 2026

INTRODUCTION

This Privacy Policy has been prepared to reflect Carata Limited’s business operations as a technology marketplace and delivery platform connecting Customers with Businesses for the fulfilment of food, groceries, retail items, prescribed medicines, and errand or task requests through https://carata.co, https://app.carata.co, and the Carata mobile Application

The Policy is intended to align with the applicable data protection and privacy laws of Kenya, including the Data Protection Act, 2019 (No. 24 of 2019) and the Data Protection (General) Regulations, 2021. It should be read together with Carata’s Privacy Notice, Refund and Returns Policy, Prohibited Products Rules, Delivery Rules, and any applicable promotion-specific terms.

This Policy is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Carata recommends that users obtain independent legal advice where appropriate. The Policy should be interpreted and applied in accordance with applicable Kenyan law and any other laws applicable to Carata’s processing of personal data.

1. PARTIES AND ACCEPTANCE

These Customer Terms & Conditions (the “Terms”) form an agreement between Carata Limited, a company incorporated under the Companies Act, 2015 (Cap. 486, Laws of Kenya), with company registration number PVT-LRUM637Z, registered office at Kodi Estate House B Two, Kodi II, Nairobi West, Nairobi, P.O. Box 00000 – 00509, Langata, Kenya, and KRA PIN P052332127Q (“Carata”, “we”, “us” or “our”), and the person using the Carata application, website or related services (“Customer”, “you” or “your”).

By creating an account, placing an Order, accepting these Terms electronically, or using the Carata Platform, you confirm that you have read and accepted these Terms and are legally permitted to use the service. If you do not agree, do not use Carata.

Age eligibility: You must be at least eighteen (18) years old to create an account or place an Order on Carata. By using the Platform, you confirm that you are at least 18 years of age and legally capable of entering into a binding contract under Kenyan law. Carata assumes no responsibility for losses arising from a misrepresentation of age.

2. DEFINITIONS

“App” or “Platform”: Carata’s applications, websites (including carata.co and app.carata.co), systems and related technology.
“Business”: a merchant, retailer, restaurant, shop, pharmacy or other supplier whose Products are made available through Carata.
“Product”: an item, food, beverage, grocery item, medicine or other offering made available for purchase through the Platform.
“Order”: a request submitted by you through the Platform to purchase Products and/or to request an Errand.
“Errand”: a task-based request submitted by you for the collection, purchase, drop-off and/or delivery of items, or performance of a specified task, which may not involve the purchase of a listed Product.
“Delivery Partner”: a delivery person or third-party delivery provider operating through or in connection with Carata.
“Customer Charge”: any commission, markup, service charge or other amount payable by you in addition to the applicable Product price.
“Base Price”: the underlying price supplied or configured by the Business before applicable Carata/customer charges and Tax.
“Tax”: value added tax and any other tax, duty or levy that Kenyan law requires to be charged on a Product, Service, Customer Charge or Order.

3. CARATA’S ROLE

Carata operates a technology-enabled marketplace and ordering/delivery service connecting Customers with Businesses for food, groceries, retail items, prescribed medicines and Errands. Unless expressly stated otherwise, Carata is not the manufacturer, producer, restaurant, retailer, pharmacist or original supplier of the Products.

The Business is generally responsible for the Product, including its description, preparation, packaging, ingredients, quality, safety, availability, licensing and legal compliance.
Carata may facilitate ordering, payment, customer support, delivery coordination, refunds and dispute handling.
Carata may verify certain information about Businesses or Products, but verification is limited by the information, technology and circumstances reasonably available to Carata. Carata does not itself hold food-handling, pharmacy or other Product-specific regulatory licences, and relies on each Business to hold and comply with its own licences.

4. PRODUCT INFORMATION AND VERIFICATION

Carata aims to provide useful and accurate Product information, but Product information may originate from Businesses, suppliers, catalogue data, AI-assisted tools, Customer submissions or other sources.

A Product being displayed on Carata does not mean Carata has independently inspected, tested, tasted, certified or guaranteed that Product.
Carata may be able to verify objective information in some circumstances, such as a visible expiry date on packaged goods, but it cannot independently verify every characteristic of a Product.
For prepared food, Carata cannot taste, consume or laboratory-test the food and therefore cannot independently verify matters such as taste, internal preparation, nutritional composition, contamination or whether food is suitable for a particular person.
Customers should consider relevant allergies, dietary requirements and health considerations before ordering and should contact the Business where additional information is needed.
Nothing in these Terms removes any mandatory rights you may have under the Consumer Protection Act, 2012 or other applicable Kenyan law.

5. PRICING, COMMISSION AND TAX

Prices displayed on Carata may differ from prices displayed in a physical shop or through another sales channel. Businesses may change their prices over time, and a Business may not immediately update every listing.

For eligible purchases below KES 150, Carata may apply a Customer Charge or commission to the Customer while the Business receives the applicable full Product amount, subject to the pricing shown at checkout.

For purchases at or above KES 150, the applicable Customer Charge and Business-side Commission may be allocated according to the Business’s commercial settings with Carata. This may cause the Customer-facing price to differ from the Business’s in-store or base price.

The total amount payable should be reviewed at checkout before you confirm the Order.
Delivery charges, applicable fees, promotions or other charges may be displayed separately or incorporated into the final amount.
Carata does not guarantee that its price for a Product will always match the Business’s physical-store price.

5.4 Taxes

Where Kenyan law requires a Tax (such as value added tax under the Value Added Tax Act, 2013) to be charged on a Product, Customer Charge, delivery fee or other amount payable by you, Carata or the relevant Business (as applicable) will apply that Tax at the rate legally required at the time of your Order. Any applicable Tax will be itemised and clearly shown on the checkout screen before you confirm and pay for your Order, so that the total amount payable, inclusive of applicable Tax, is clear before you commit to the purchase. Where a Product or Service is exempt or zero-rated, no Tax will be added in respect of that item.

6. PRICE CHANGES AFTER AN ORDER

Because Business prices can change and listings may not update instantaneously, the price shown at the time of ordering may differ from the Business’s current price.

Carata may use the purchase of an item as a trigger to reconcile or update the relevant Product price. Where the current price differs materially from the amount already paid, Carata may, depending on the circumstances and applicable law, either refund the difference or request additional payment before completing the affected purchase.

Any request for additional payment must be made through an authorised Carata payment flow and must transparently show any applicable Tax on the additional amount.
A Delivery Partner is not authorised to keep, divert or privately receive an additional price payment intended for Carata.
If a Delivery Partner requests payment outside the Carata system, asks you to send money to a personal account, or otherwise behaves suspiciously, do not make the payment and contact Carata Support.
If the price cannot be agreed or additional payment is not completed through the authorised process, Carata may cancel the affected Product or Order and process any applicable refund.

7. ORDER ACCEPTANCE AND AVAILABILITY

Submitting an Order is a request to purchase; an Order may remain subject to Business acceptance, Product availability, price confirmation and other operational conditions.
A Business may reject or be unable to fulfil an Order because of stock shortages, closure, preparation limitations, inaccurate inventory, safety concerns or other legitimate reasons.
Carata may cancel an Order where necessary because of system errors, suspected fraud, safety concerns, availability, payment issues, price discrepancies or other operational reasons.
Where an Order is cancelled after payment, Carata will process an applicable refund (including any Tax charged on the cancelled amount) in accordance with these Terms, its refund procedures and applicable law.

8. CUSTOMER-REQUESTED PRODUCTS

Carata may allow Customers to describe or request Products that are not already listed, or to submit Errands. Such requests must comply with applicable law and Carata’s prohibited-product rules.

You must not request illegal, stolen, counterfeit, unsafe, prohibited or restricted goods.
You must not request sexually explicit or nude-content products, exploitative material, or other prohibited content.
You must not use the service to order products whose sale, possession, distribution or delivery is unlawful in Kenya or in the relevant location.
Examples of prohibited categories include: narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances controlled under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act (Cap. 245); counterfeit goods under the Anti-Counterfeit Act, 2008; unlawful firearms and ammunition under the Firearms Act (Cap. 114); tobacco and nicotine products supplied in breach of the Tobacco Control Act, 2007; and other products prohibited by Kenyan law or Carata policy.
Prescription-only medicines may only be requested and supplied where you hold a valid prescription and the fulfilling Business is a duly licensed pharmacy. You are responsible for providing accurate prescription information; the pharmacy Business remains responsible for verifying the prescription and your entitlement to receive the medicine under the Pharmacy and Poisons Act (Cap. 244).
Carata may reject, cancel or remove a requested Product without liability where the request is prohibited, unsafe, unlawful or outside the Platform’s permitted scope.

9. DELIVERY

Carata may use Delivery Partners to collect Products from Businesses and deliver them to Customers, or to fulfil Errands. Delivery estimates are estimates and may be affected by traffic, weather, Business preparation times, technical issues, availability and other circumstances.

Customers must provide accurate delivery information and remain reasonably available to receive an Order.
You must treat Delivery Partners respectfully and must not threaten, harass, discriminate against, assault or otherwise abuse them.
Delivery Partners may be required to verify delivery, collect an authorised additional payment through the Carata system, or report issues concerning an Order.
A Delivery Partner does not have authority to change Carata’s contractual terms, promise refunds outside authorised procedures, or collect money into a personal account on Carata’s behalf.
If you have concerns about a Delivery Partner’s conduct, contact Carata Support promptly.

10. ORDER CHANGES AND SUBSTITUTIONS

Once an Order is submitted, the Platform may not permit you to edit it directly.

You may communicate a requested substitution to the Delivery Partner where the operational workflow allows it. A substitution is not guaranteed and may depend on Business approval and Product availability.

If the replacement Product costs more, you are responsible for the difference (inclusive of any applicable Tax on that difference).
Any additional amount payable to Carata must be paid through an authorised Carata payment mechanism.
If the replacement costs less, Carata may apply the difference in accordance with its adjustment/refund process.
A requested substitution does not automatically create a right to a refund if the originally ordered Product was correctly supplied and available.

11. REFUNDS, RETURNS AND CANCELLATIONS

Carata will maintain a refund and returns process appropriate to the type of Product and the circumstances of the Order. Statutory consumer rights under the Consumer Protection Act, 2012 remain applicable where they cannot lawfully be excluded.

Where Carata cancels an Order after payment, Carata will process an applicable refund of the amount paid for the cancelled portion, including any Tax charged on that portion, subject to payment-provider processing and applicable law.
Where the Business supplied the wrong, missing, materially defective or unsafe Product, Carata may investigate and, where appropriate, facilitate a refund, replacement or other remedy.
For perishable, prepared or customised Products, return/refund rights may differ because of their nature, safety and the circumstances of the complaint.
A Customer may be required to provide reasonable evidence, such as photographs, Order details or other information, when making a disputed-product claim.
Carata may reject fraudulent, abusive, repetitive or unsupported refund claims, subject to applicable consumer rights.
Where a refund is approved, the timing of receipt may depend on the payment provider, bank, mobile-money network or other financial institution.

12. FOOD, HEALTH, ALLERGIES AND SAFETY

Food and beverages can involve risks that Carata cannot independently inspect or eliminate. Carata is a platform and cannot taste, consume, laboratory-test or otherwise independently assess every prepared food item.

Businesses are responsible for preparing and handling food in accordance with the Public Health Act (Cap. 242), the Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act (Cap. 254) and other applicable health, safety and hygiene laws.
Customers are responsible for communicating material allergy or dietary requirements where the ordering process allows it and for making appropriate decisions about Products they consume.
If you believe a Product caused illness or presents an immediate safety risk, stop using the Product and seek appropriate medical or emergency assistance as necessary, and notify Carata so that the matter can be investigated.
Carata may request information from the Business and Customer and may take appropriate platform action based on the available evidence.

13. OVERPAYMENTS AND DUPLICATE PAYMENTS

If you believe you have paid more than required (including in respect of Tax), contact Carata Support with the Order details and evidence of payment.
Where Carata confirms an overpayment attributable to Carata’s system, an authorised pricing adjustment or another qualifying event, Carata will process an appropriate refund or credit.
Carata is not responsible for payment-provider errors outside its reasonable control, but will reasonably assist with investigation where appropriate.
Customers must not intentionally exploit pricing or payment errors or seek multiple refunds for the same transaction.

14. PAYMENTS AND AUTHORISED COLLECTIONS

Payments must be made through the payment methods made available by Carata, which may include Safaricom M-Pesa and other mobile-money channels, cards or bank transfer. Mobile-money payments remain subject to the terms and privacy practices of the relevant network operator (e.g., Safaricom) and, where applicable, the National Payment System Act, 2011.
You must not provide your payment credentials, PIN, password or authentication codes to a Delivery Partner or Business.
Carata will not require you to send an additional Product-price payment to a Delivery Partner’s personal account.
If a person claiming to represent Carata requests an unusual payment, contact Carata Support before paying.
You are responsible for ensuring that payment information you provide is accurate and that you have authority to use the selected payment method.

15. CUSTOMER ACCOUNT AND SECURITY

You must keep your login credentials secure and must not share access in a way that compromises your account.
You must promptly notify Carata of suspected unauthorised access or fraudulent activity.
You must not create accounts using false identities or information for fraudulent purposes.
You must not use Carata to commit fraud, impersonation, harassment, deception or other unlawful conduct.

16. CYBERSECURITY AND PROHIBITED TECHNICAL CONDUCT

You must not interfere with the security, integrity or availability of the Carata Platform. Some of the conduct described below may also constitute an offence under the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, 2018.

Unauthorised access, hacking, credential attacks, exploitation of vulnerabilities, bypassing authentication or access controls, reverse engineering, malicious scraping, denial-of-service activity and deployment of malware are prohibited.
You must not attempt to access another Customer’s account, Business systems, Carata infrastructure or data without authorisation.
You must not probe or test Carata’s security systems without Carata’s prior written authorisation.
If you discover a security vulnerability, report it to Carata rather than exploiting it.
Carata may suspend or terminate accounts involved in prohibited technical or security activity and may refer serious matters to competent authorities.

17. CUSTOMER DATA AND PRIVACY

Carata treats Customer personal data as confidential and processes it in accordance with the Data Protection Act, 2019, the Data Protection (General) Regulations, 2021, and Carata’s Privacy Notice.

Carata may process information necessary to create and secure your account, process Orders and payments, coordinate delivery, provide support, prevent fraud, improve services, comply with legal obligations and carry out other lawful purposes.
Where an Order involves prescribed medicines or other health-related Products, any prescription or health information you provide is Sensitive Personal Data under the Data Protection Act, 2019 and will be processed only for fulfilling that Order, with heightened confidentiality and on an appropriate lawful basis (such as your explicit consent).
Customer information may be shared with Businesses or Delivery Partners only to the extent reasonably necessary to fulfil an Order, provide a service, comply with law or otherwise operate the Platform.
Carata will implement reasonable technical and organisational safeguards appropriate to the data it processes, but no internet-connected system can be guaranteed completely secure.
You have rights under the Data Protection Act, 2019 concerning access, correction, objection, deletion and other forms of control over your personal data, and may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC). The exact rights and procedures are described in the Privacy Notice.
You should not enter unnecessary sensitive information into free-text fields or Customer Product requests.

18. CUSTOMER CONTENT

You may submit reviews, photographs, Product requests and other content through the Platform.
You must have the right to submit that content and it must not be unlawful, defamatory, fraudulent, discriminatory, infringing, sexually explicit, threatening or otherwise prohibited.
You grant Carata a non-exclusive licence to use submitted content as reasonably necessary to operate, moderate, improve and promote the Platform, subject to applicable law (including the Copyright Act, 2001) and the Privacy Notice.
Carata may remove content that violates these Terms, applicable law or reasonable platform standards.

19. PROMOTIONS, DISCOUNTS AND CREDITS

Promotions, discounts, referral benefits, credits and vouchers may have additional terms, eligibility requirements, limits and expiry dates.
Carata may correct obvious pricing or promotional errors and may cancel transactions arising from fraud or deliberate exploitation of an error.
Unless expressly stated otherwise, promotional benefits have no cash value and are not transferable, and any applicable Tax is calculated on the discounted amount actually payable.

20. RATINGS AND REVIEWS

Customers may provide honest ratings and reviews based on genuine experiences.
You must not create fake accounts, submit fabricated reviews, manipulate ratings, threaten Businesses or Delivery Partners over reviews, or accept compensation for dishonest reviews.
Carata may moderate or remove reviews that violate its policies or applicable law.

21. BUSINESS PERFORMANCE AND AVAILABILITY

Carata does not guarantee that any particular Business or Product will remain available, that a Product will always be in stock, or that an Order will always be accepted.

Carata is not responsible for a Business’s failure to maintain inventory, prepare Products, maintain quality or comply with its own legal obligations, except to the extent Carata is independently responsible under applicable law or its own express commitments.

22. LIMITATION OF CARATA’S VERIFICATION AND LIABILITY

Carata may use reasonable verification procedures, but verification is not the same as a warranty that every Business, Product, description, ingredient, expiry date, preparation method, nutritional claim, health claim or other attribute is accurate in every circumstance.

To the fullest extent permitted by Kenyan law, Carata will not be liable for losses caused solely by information or conduct originating with a Business, Customer or third party, or for circumstances beyond Carata’s reasonable control.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, or removes mandatory consumer rights under the Consumer Protection Act, 2012 or other applicable Kenyan law, including any prohibition on unfair contract terms.

23. INDEMNITY BY CUSTOMER

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you agree to compensate Carata for reasonable losses, claims, costs or expenses arising from your unlawful conduct, fraud, misuse of the Platform, infringement of third-party rights, or material breach of these Terms, except to the extent caused by Carata’s own unlawful conduct or negligence.

24. SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION

Carata may suspend or terminate an account where reasonably necessary because of fraud, abuse, security concerns, unlawful activity, repeated misuse, non-payment or material breach of these Terms.
Carata may restrict access to specific features while investigating suspected abuse or security incidents.
Termination does not remove rights or obligations that accrued before termination.

25. PLATFORM AVAILABILITY AND FORCE MAJEURE

Carata aims to keep the Platform available but does not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation.

Carata will not be responsible for delays or failures caused by events beyond its reasonable control, including telecommunications failures, power outages, natural disasters, government action, civil unrest, strikes, payment-network failures, major cyber incidents affecting third-party infrastructure or other force-majeure events.

26. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Carata and its licensors retain rights in the Platform, software, branding, designs, databases, content and technology except for materials owned by third parties, consistent with the Copyright Act, 2001 and the Trade Marks Act (Cap. 506). You may use the Platform only for its intended lawful purpose.

You must not copy, modify, distribute, sell, lease, reverse engineer or commercially exploit Carata’s technology or branding without authorisation.

27. CHANGES TO THESE TERMS

Carata may update these Terms, Platform features, fees or policies from time to time. Where a change is material, Carata will provide reasonable notice (for example, by in-app notice or email at least [7] days beforehand, where practicable) before the change takes effect.

The version in effect at the time of an Order will generally govern that Order, subject to mandatory law.

28. DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND GOVERNING LAW

These Terms are governed by the laws of Kenya, subject to any mandatory rights and protections applicable to Customers under the Consumer Protection Act, 2012 and other applicable law.

The parties should first attempt to resolve disputes through Carata Support or another reasonable customer-service process. If a dispute cannot be resolved, it may be referred to mediation, to the relevant Kenyan consumer protection authority, or to a competent court in Kenya, subject to applicable law.

29. GENERAL TERMS

If a provision is found invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain effective to the extent permitted by law.
Failure by Carata to enforce a provision immediately does not constitute a waiver of that provision.
These Terms, together with applicable policies and Order-specific terms, form the agreement concerning your use of Carata.
Electronic acceptance and electronic records may be used as evidence of your agreement and transactions, consistent with the recognition of electronic records and signatures under the Kenya Information and Communications Act (Cap. 411A) and the Business Laws (Amendment) Act, 2020.

30. CUSTOMER SAFETY AND FRAUD REPORTING

If you suspect fraud, unauthorised payment collection, account compromise, counterfeit goods, prohibited products, unsafe products or misconduct by a Business or Delivery Partner, report it to Carata through the official support channel.

Do not share passwords, PINs, authentication codes or other security credentials with a person claiming to be a Carata representative.

Carata may investigate reports and take appropriate action, but the outcome of an investigation may depend on the evidence available and the rights of the parties involved.

31. KEY CUSTOMER ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

By using Carata, you acknowledge that: (1) Carata is a technology marketplace and delivery facilitator rather than the producer of most Products; (2) you must be at least 18 years old to use the Platform; (3) Product information may not always be current; (4) prices on Carata may differ from physical-store prices; (5) applicable Customer Charges and Business-side Commissions may affect the Customer-facing price; (6) any applicable Tax will be itemised and shown at checkout before you pay; (7) price differences may be reconciled when an item is purchased; (8) additional payments must be made only through authorised Carata channels; (9) Carata cannot independently taste, consume or laboratory-test prepared food; (10) you must not order prohibited or unlawful Products, including prescription medicines without a valid prescription; and (11) you must not attempt to compromise or misuse Carata’s systems.