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Store Policy

Customer Care

Welcome to the UnibookConnect Customer Care section! We're dedicated to making your experience with buying and selling pre-loved textbooks as smooth, trustworthy, and hassle free as possible.

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UnibookConnect is more than just a marketplace; we're a community built by and for South African university students. We understand the financial pressures of higher education and the struggle to find affordable textbooks. Our platform directly addresses this by facilitating the easy, secure, and affordable selling and buying of secondhand university textbooks. We connect students across South Africa, ensuring that good books find new hands and that you save money while pursuing your education.

 

We believe in sustainability, student to student support, and providing fair prices both for the seller looking to recoup costs and the buyer looking to save. Your trust is our top priority, and that’s why we’ve outlined our policies below to give you complete confidence in every transaction.

Wholesale Inquiries

Welcome to our Wholesale and Partnership Inquiries section! While UnibookConnect is primarily a peer to peer marketplace for second-hand textbooks, we recognize the massive opportunity to collaborate with other retailers, bookstores, and educational institutions to further our mission. If you are a small independent bookstore, a campus shop, a charitable organization, or a retailer looking to ethically source and sell affordable, pre-used university textbooks to South African students, you've come to the right place.

 

Partnering with UnibookConnect allows you to tap into our robust community of sellers and buyers, giving you access to a steady, verified supply of textbooks across all major South African university syllabi. This collaboration is a fantastic way to increase your inventory, offer your customers affordable pricing, and contribute directly to making tertiary education more accessible.

Privacy & Safety

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Your privacy and security are paramount to the UnibookConnect mission. As a community platform built on trust and student-to-student transactions, we are deeply committed to protecting your personal information. This policy details how we use, store, and safeguard your data, ensuring you can buy and sell second-hand textbooks with complete confidence across South Africa.

 

1. The Information We Collect

 

We collect information necessary to facilitate the secure operation of our marketplace and provide you with excellent service.

  • Account Information: When you register, we collect your name, university affiliation (for verification), email address, and a secure password.

  • Transaction Information: When you buy or sell, we collect details related to the transaction, including listing information, purchase price, and communication history between buyer and seller.

  • Payment Information: We do not store sensitive payment card details directly on our servers. All financial transactions are handled by secure, third-party payment processing partners who are fully compliant with relevant security standards. We receive only a tokenized ID from them to confirm payment verification and status.

  • Location/Delivery Information: For delivery purposes, we collect the street address provided by the buyer and the collection/shipping address provided by the seller.

  • Usage Data: We collect non-personal data on how you use the site (e.g., pages visited, search terms) to improve our platform and user experience.

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2. How We Use and Share Your Information

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We use your data strictly to operate and improve the UnibookConnect service:

  • Facilitating Transactions: We share necessary information (like the delivery address and contact name) between the buyer and seller only when a purchase is made to facilitate the safe and successful exchange of the textbook.

  • Communication: We use your email to send essential service messages (transaction confirmations, password resets, policy updates) and, if opted-in, marketing communications.

  • Verification & Safety: Your information, especially university affiliation, may be used to verify the legitimacy of accounts, reduce fraud, and maintain a trustworthy student community.

  • Legal Compliance: We will disclose information when required by South African law or to protect the rights, property, and safety of UnibookConnect, our users, or the public.

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3. Data Storage and Protection

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Your data is stored on secure servers, and we implement robust technical and organisational measures to protect it from unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. We use encryption (SSL/TLS) for data transmission and regularly review our security procedures.

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4. Communication After a Successful Purchase

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We believe in keeping you informed every step of the way:

  • Immediate Confirmation: Immediately after a successful purchase, you will receive an email confirmation detailing the transaction and contact information for the seller (for the buyer) or the buyer (for the seller).

  • Status Updates: You will receive notifications when the seller confirms shipping/dispatch and when the buyer confirms receipt of the textbook.

  • Feedback Request: A few days after a purchase is successfully completed and confirmed delivered, we may contact the buyer and the seller via email to request optional feedback on the transaction and the platform.

  • Customer Care Follow-Up: If you contact our Customer Care team, we will use your provided contact details to follow up and ensure your query has been resolved satisfactorily.

 

5. Your Rights and Choices

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You have the right to access, update, or delete your personal information stored on UnibookConnect. You can manage most of your data directly through your account settings. If you wish to close your account and have your data removed (subject to legal record keeping requirements), please contact our Customer Care team.

By using UnibookConnect, you acknowledge and agree to the terms outlined in this Privacy & Safety Policy.

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Terms and Conditions and Legal Frameworks

 

These terms define the relationship between UnibookConnect, student sellers, and student buyers, ensuring compliance with South African law.

 

1. The Legal Framework: South Africa

 

UnibookConnect operates within the South African legal environment, governed primarily by the following legislation:

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  • Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECTA): Governs the formation of electronic contracts (our terms of use and sale agreements), electronic signatures, and the overall validity of e-commerce in South Africa.1

  • Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA): Dictates how we collect, store, and process users' personal data, ensuring privacy and security (as detailed in our separate Privacy Policy).

  • Second Hand Goods Act (Act 6 of 2009): While this act primarily targets registered dealers and pawn brokers to combat trade in stolen goods, UnibookConnect promotes ethical and lawful trade and reserves the right to share transaction data with the South African Police Service (SAPS) if suspicion of illegal activity arises.

  • Consumer Protection Act (CPA): CRITICAL DISTINCTION: The CPA generally applies to transactions where the seller is operating in the ordinary course of business (a retailer/supplier).2 Since UnibookConnect facilitates private, student-to-student sales, the strict CPA provisions (like a general 6-month warranty against defects) do not automatically apply to the student seller.3 The transaction is primarily governed by the common law of sale, which holds that the seller is liable for latent defects (defects not visible upon inspection) unless the item is sold voetstoots (as is). Our policy of gross misrepresentation acts as an extension of this common law protection.

     

 

2. General Terms and Conditions (Key Clauses)

 

 

A. Role of UnibookConnect

 

UnibookConnect is purely an intermediary platform and payment facilitator. We do not own, stock, ship, or warranty any textbooks listed. The sale contract exists directly between the Buyer and the Seller.

 

B. Listing Accuracy and Integrity

 

  • Seller Responsibility: The seller warrants that they are the legal owner of the textbook and that all descriptions, including the book's condition and edition, are accurate and truthful. False or misleading information will result in the permanent suspension of the seller's account.

  • Voetstoots (As Is) Disclaimer: While we enforce honesty, all books are sold "as is" (voetstoots), meaning the buyer accepts all minor, non-disclosed defects that do not constitute gross misrepresentation.

 

C. Payment Terms

 

  • The buyer's payment is held in a secure Escrow Account by UnibookConnect's payment processor until the buyer confirms safe receipt of the book.

  • UnibookConnect retains a small commission fee (e.g., 5-10%) from the final sale price, which is automatically deducted before the balance is released to the seller.

 

D. Dispute Resolution

 

In the event of a dispute, users agree to first allow UnibookConnect to mediate based on the evidence and the terms of this policy. Should mediation fail, both parties retain their rights to pursue remedies under South African common law.

Payment Methods

- Credit / Debit Cards
- PAYPAL

- Offline Payments

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