Pooly — Get there together.

Pooly Terms of Use

Effective date: 20 August 2026

Pooly Technologies Limited (NZBN 9429052654923) · Aotearoa New Zealand

These terms of use (terms) are an agreement between you and Pooly Technologies Limited (we, us, our) and govern your use of the Pooly carpooling app and website (the app). Please read them carefully. By creating an account or using the app, you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the app.

In short: Pooly connects people so they can share a trip and its costs. Drivers must hold a valid licence, stay within the cost-sharing cap, check that their insurance covers carpooling, and follow the road rules. Every trip is a private arrangement between the members on it — Pooly is not the carrier and does not vet, guarantee or insure any member, vehicle or trip. This summary is a guide only; the full terms below are what you are agreeing to.

1. About Pooly

Pooly is a platform that connects drivers who are already making a trip with passengers going the same way, so they can share the trip and its costs. Pooly is not a taxi or courier service and does not provide rides. We simply facilitate. Any trip is a private arrangement between the driver and the passengers. We are not a party to that arrangement and do not control how a trip is carried out. Drivers are not our employees, agents or contractors, and nothing in these terms creates an employment, agency, partnership or joint venture relationship between us and any member. We do not guarantee that any trip will be offered, will take place or will be completed.

2. Eligibility and your account

You must be at least 18 years old to use the app.
A child may only come on a trip with an accompanying adult. The accompanying adult is responsible for the child and their safety, and the driver may decline a booking if the vehicle cannot lawfully or safely carry the child.
You can browse and book trips with a verified email address. To post a trip as a driver, you must also verify a government-issued ID. ID verification is optional for passengers, but a driver may choose to accept only passengers who have verified theirs, and you will not be able to book those trips until you do.
You must provide accurate information and keep it up to date.
You are responsible for activity on your account and for keeping your sign-in secure.

3. Cost-sharing, not a commercial service

Pooly is for sharing the cost of a trip, not for making a profit. Drivers may set a price up to a cap per kilometre per passenger. The cap is set by Pooly and is intended to keep payments to a contribution towards fuel and running costs rather than a source of profit. Whatever the cap, it remains your responsibility as a driver to make sure the total you receive for a trip does not exceed the costs of that trip.

Staying within cost-sharing matters legally: carpooling is exempt from passenger service licensing under the Land Transport Act 1998 only while the payments a driver receives do not exceed the costs of the trip. A driver who charges more may be treated as operating a small passenger service, with its own licensing and driver requirements. You are responsible for making sure your use of the app stays within genuine cost-sharing.

4. Bookings

Drivers choose whether seats are "instant book", which confirms a seat immediately, or by request, which the driver can accept or decline. A request that is not actioned expires after 24 hours. Bookings can be cancelled in the app, and other affected members are notified of changes or cancellations.

5. Payments

Passengers pay for trips by card in the app. Payments are processed by Stripe; Pooly does not store your full card details.
Each passenger's payment is released to the driver once the passenger and the driver have both reviewed each other and the passenger has rated the driver 3 stars or more, or automatically 4 days after the trip if either of them has not reviewed by then.
If a passenger rates the driver under 3 stars, that payment is held while our support team follows up. This hold is intended for our support team to check with the passenger that the ride happened and they got to their destination, and to detect comfort or safety issues. If the driver failed to take the passenger to their destination, or if there are serious comfort or safety concerns, Pooly reserves the right to refund the passenger their payment and cancel payment to the driver. A decision to release, refund or hold a payment is a payment-handling decision only, and is not a determination of any wider dispute between members. We aim to resolve a held payment within 14 days.
Pooly charges passengers a service fee on each booking ($0.30 plus 10% of the ride cost), shown as a separate line before payment. Card payment fees are also passed on and shown before payment. The driver's contribution is never reduced by these fees.
Drivers receive payouts through Stripe and must provide accurate payout details. Stripe's own terms apply to payment processing.
You must keep payments within the app. Arranging payment outside the app is not permitted and removes the protections the app provides.

6. Refunds

If a passenger cancels their booking before the ride departure time stated on the app they are eligible for a full refund minus Stripe payment fees.
If a driver cancels a ride before the ride departure time stated on the app, or the driver fails to pick up at the agreed date and time, passengers are refunded in full.
Passengers are generally not eligible for refunds after a ride has departed. The decision will be made case by case at our support team's discretion. In deciding, our support team will consider whether the trip was completed, whether the passenger was taken to the agreed destination, and any safety concerns reported. We will decide and tell both members the outcome within 14 days.

7. Drivers' responsibilities

If you post a trip, you are responsible for ensuring that:

You hold a current and valid driver licence.
Your vehicle is roadworthy, registered and holds a current warrant of fitness.
You comply with all road rules and applicable laws.
Your vehicle details and trip information are accurate.
You hold appropriate insurance for your vehicle and your use of it (see clause 8).
You are fit to drive, and you never drive while tired or affected by alcohol or drugs.
You follow all speed limits and mobile phone rules, everyone in the vehicle wears a seatbelt, and any child travelling in your vehicle has an approved child restraint that is correctly fitted.

We do not inspect vehicles, and we do not check driver licences, warrants of fitness or insurance. Meeting these requirements is entirely your responsibility, and posting a trip is your confirmation that you meet them.

8. Vehicle insurance

Carpooling through Pooly is intended as personal, cost-sharing use of your own vehicle rather than a commercial activity. We make no representation or warranty that any insurer will treat carpooling as personal use, or that your policy will respond to any claim. Some insurers may not consider carpooling to be personal use, and cover can differ from policy to policy.

You are responsible for confirming with your own insurer that you are covered before you carpool. Pooly does not provide vehicle insurance and is not responsible for any lack of, or gap in, your insurance cover. Tell your insurer that you carpool if they ask, and if your insurer does not cover carpooling, you must update your insurance cover or not offer trips through the app.

9. Passengers' responsibilities

If you book a trip, you must provide accurate information, be ready at the agreed time and place, and treat the driver, the vehicle and other passengers with respect. You must wear a seatbelt at all times, follow the driver's reasonable instructions about the vehicle, and not distract the driver or pressure them to break any road rule. You make your own decision to travel: if you feel unsafe at any point, you can choose not to start the trip, or ask to end it at the nearest safe place.

10. Reviews and ratings

After a trip, drivers and passengers can review each other. Reviews are published to profiles 4 days after the trip. You can see your own overall star rating and the individual reviews and ratings others have left about you. Reviews must be honest and respectful. We may remove reviews or content that breach these terms.

11. Conduct and safety

You must treat other members with respect and must not harass, threaten, discriminate against or endanger anyone, or use the app for any unlawful purpose. Identity verification and reviews help build trust, but they are not a guarantee of any member's identity, conduct or safety. Every driver's ID is verified; a passenger's may not be, and profiles show which — restricting your trip to verified passengers is a choice available to you as a driver, not an assurance we give. You are responsible for your own decisions about who you travel with, and for your own safety. If something is not right, you can report a member or a trip, and contact our support team. Identity verification is not a criminal record, driving history or background check, and we do not vet members, inspect vehicles or supervise trips. Take the same care you would with any stranger: check profiles and reviews before you travel, share your trip details with someone you trust, and if you feel unsafe, do not get in — or ask to stop at a safe public place and end the trip. In an emergency, call 111 first, then report the incident to us.

12. Things you must not do

Use the app for a commercial transport service or to earn an income.
Arrange payment outside the app.
Provide false information or impersonate someone else.
Misuse, copy, disrupt or attempt to gain unauthorised access to the app.
Post unlawful, harmful, misleading or offensive content.

13. Content and intellectual property

You keep ownership of the content you submit, such as your profile and reviews, and you grant us a licence to use it as needed to operate the app. All rights in the Pooly app, branding and software remain ours or our licensors'.

14. Disclaimers and limitation of liability

The app is provided on an as-available basis. To the extent permitted by law, we are not liable for the conduct of any member, the condition or safety of any vehicle, what happens on any trip, or any loss or damage arising from your use of the app or any trip arranged through it. Nothing in these terms limits rights you have that cannot legally be excluded, including under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 where it applies.

Any dispute about a trip — including about conduct, payment or damage to a vehicle or property — is between the members involved; we may help, but we are not required to resolve it. To the extent our liability to you cannot be excluded, it is limited to the greater of NZ$100 or the amounts you paid through the app in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim.

We remain responsible for our own breaches of these terms and for anything that cannot lawfully be excluded. However, to the extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss (such as lost income or a missed appointment).

15. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify us against claims, losses and costs arising from your breach of these terms, your trips, or your misuse of the app, to the extent permitted by law.

16. Suspension and termination

You can stop using the app at any time. We may suspend or close an account that breaches these terms, poses a risk to other members, or where we are required to by law. We may also block a member from opening a new account in future if they pose a risk to other members.

17. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms from time to time. We will post the updated version in the app with a new effective date, and where changes are significant we will let you know. Continuing to use the app means you accept the updated terms. Significant changes will take effect no less than 14 days after we notify you, and if you do not agree with a change you can close your account before it takes effect.

18. Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of New Zealand, and the New Zealand courts have non-exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute.

19. General

The app is provided over the internet and may occasionally be unavailable, for example during maintenance or outages. We may change, suspend or withdraw features of the app.
If any part of these terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, that part is treated as removed and the rest of the terms continue to apply.
These terms, together with our privacy statement and any policies we link to in the app, are the entire agreement between you and us about the app.
We may transfer our rights and obligations under these terms to a related company, or as part of a sale or restructure of our business, as long as your rights are not reduced. Your account is personal to you, and you may not transfer it or these terms to anyone else.
If we do not enforce part of these terms straight away, we are not giving up the right to enforce it later.

20. Contact us

Questions about these terms can be sent to support@pooly.nz.