RydPal

Terms of Service

Last updated 11 October 2026.

These terms are an agreement between you and Smart Coders LLC ("RydPal", "we"), 17 Comiso, Irvine, California 92614. By using the RydPal apps or websites you accept them.

1. What RydPal is

RydPal is a booking platform that connects riders with independently licensed transportation carriers and their drivers. We do not own vehicles, we do not employ drivers, and we do not provide transportation ourselves. Each carrier holds its own state licence, decides its own prices, and decides whether to accept any request. Your contract for the ride itself is with the carrier.

2. Who may use it

You must be 18 or older to ride. Children may travel only with an adult rider. One account per person; accounts may not be shared, sold or transferred.

To drive you must be 21 or older and work for, or be, a licensed carrier: in California a holder of a charter-party carrier (TCP) permit issued by the California Public Utilities Commission, and in New Jersey a licensed limousine operator. You must provide a valid driver's licence, the carrier's permit, a certificate of commercial insurance, the vehicle's registration and a profile photo, and keep them current. California carriers must also be enrolled in a drug and alcohol testing programme and the DMV pull-notice programme. All drivers must clear a background check and complete RydPal's training before taking rides.

3. Rides and prices

• Each carrier sets its own rates: a base fare, a per-mile rate, a per-minute rate and a minimum fare. RydPal does not set fares.
• Before you request, you see one offer per available driver with the full price: the carrier's fare for the estimated route, RydPal's booking fee, and any fee a state requires. Every part is itemised. The booking fee is a percentage of the fare with a small minimum and is shown in the app for your state.
• The price shown is the price you pay, unless the trip changes: a new destination, extra stops or a materially different route will change the fare.
• You may book a specific driver's offer, or choose "ride now" and take the nearest available driver at that driver's rates.
• Cancelling after a driver has accepted and set off may incur a cancellation fee. There is no fee if you cancel within two minutes of the driver accepting, or before the driver has started moving towards you. If your driver arrives at the pickup point and you do not appear, a no-show fee may apply. Most of any cancellation or no-show fee goes to the driver.
• Scheduled rides must be booked at least 30 minutes ahead and are confirmed by the driver you chose. If the driver does not confirm, the booking is cancelled and you are not charged. Cancelling a scheduled ride less than 30 minutes before pickup incurs the cancellation fee.
• Tips are optional, between $1 and $100, can be given within a week of the ride, and go to the driver in full.
• Where a state's area has the rider PIN switched on, your driver will ask you for the four-digit code shown in your app before starting the trip. It confirms you are in the right car.

4. Payment

You may pay by a card saved in the app, with RydPal ride credit, or in cash to the driver where the state's area allows it. Card payments are processed by Stripe; RydPal never sees your full card number. When you request a ride by card, we place a hold for the estimated price and charge the final price when the ride ends. By saving a card you authorise us to charge it for fares, booking fees, tips and any fee described in these terms.

Ride credit is a balance held in your RydPal account. It can be spent on rides, sent to another RydPal account by phone number within the limits shown in the app, and earned through referrals. It cannot be withdrawn as cash, has no expiry date, and is not a bank account. The booking fee applies to rides paid with credit as it does to any other ride.

Referrals: when someone you refer signs up with your code and completes their first ride, you both receive ride credit in the amount shown in the app. We may withhold or reverse referral credit obtained through fake accounts or abuse.

5. Conduct

Do not use RydPal to break the law, harass or endanger anyone, or carry anything illegal. Drivers and riders may refuse or end a trip if they feel unsafe. RydPal has a zero-tolerance policy for drugs and alcohol: report a driver you believe is impaired and we will investigate and may remove them from the platform. Riders and drivers rate each other after a ride; we may suspend or close an account that breaks these rules or that is rated consistently poorly.

6. Carriers and drivers

Carriers are responsible for their own vehicles, licences, permits, registrations, inspections, taxes, and for keeping insurance that meets their state's requirements. Documents must stay current; we may deactivate an account whose documents or permit expire, and we may verify permit details with the issuing regulator at any time.

The carrier keeps the whole fare it set and the whole of any tip. RydPal's booking fee is paid by the rider on top of the fare and is not deducted from the carrier. Card fares are paid out to the carrier's Stripe account, or, if the carrier chooses, kept as RydPal ride credit; cash fares are collected by the driver directly. A carrier's share of cancellation and no-show fees is shown in the driver app.

7. Insurance

Transportation is provided by the carrier under its own licence and its own commercial insurance, which the carrier must hold at the level its state requires and must show us before taking rides. RydPal is a booking platform and is not the carrier. Drivers: your personal auto policy may not cover driving for hire; check with your insurer.

8. Availability

We provide the service as it is. We do not promise it will always be available, that a driver will always be found, or that estimated times and prices will be exact. Maps and estimates come from OpenStreetMap data and may be imperfect.

9. Liability

To the extent the law allows, RydPal is not liable for indirect, incidental or consequential damages, and our total liability for any claim relating to a trip is limited to the amount you paid for that trip. Nothing here limits liability that cannot be limited by law, including for death or personal injury caused by negligence.

10. Disputes

Contact support@rydpal.com first; most issues are settled quickly. These terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of law rules.

11. Changes

We may update these terms. If a change is significant we will tell you in the app before it takes effect. Continuing to use RydPal after that means you accept the new terms.

12. Contact

Smart Coders LLC, 17 Comiso, Irvine, CA 92614, United States
support@rydpal.com