Terms of Service

1. Who this agreement is with

These terms are the agreement between you and HardmaxIndex ("we", "us"), an individual operator. For full identifying details — for a formal notice, complaint, or legal request — see our Legal Notice. By using the site you agree to these terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, please don't use HardmaxIndex.

2. Who can use HardmaxIndex

You must be 18 or older (or the age of majority where you live, if higher) to use HardmaxIndex. By using it you confirm you meet that requirement. This site discusses cosmetic and surgical procedures and is intended for adults only.

3. What HardmaxIndex is

HardmaxIndex is a community and directory site: a researched directory of surgeons and clinics, discussion threads under each surgeon, a general community forum, user-submitted case reports (with optional evidence photos), and direct messages between users. Some features (a Verified/VIP subscription) may involve payment, handled by our payment processor, Stripe — we never receive or store your card details.

Surgeon profiles are based on our own research of each surgeon's public practice website and are not independently verified or reviewed ratings, and not an endorsement. Comments, cases, and forum posts are the personal opinions and experiences of their authors, not statements made or verified by us.

4. Not medical advice

This matters most, so read it carefully. HardmaxIndex is not a doctor, clinic, or medical provider, and nothing on it is medical advice. Surgeon profiles, price comparisons, user comments, and case reports are provided for information and discussion only. They are not a diagnosis, a recommendation to undergo any procedure, or a substitute for an in-person consultation with a qualified professional.

• Cosmetic and surgical procedures carry real, serious risks.
• Do not decide to undergo any procedure based on content on this site.
• Always consult a licensed, qualified professional who has examined you in person before making any medical or surgical decision.
• You are solely responsible for any decision or action you take, and for any outcome, based on anything you read here.

5. Your account

Creating an account uses a magic-link sign-in to your email — there is no password to manage. You are responsible for activity under your account and for keeping access to your email secure. Accounts are free; a Verified/VIP subscription may unlock additional areas but is not required to read or use most of the site.

6. Your content and photos

You keep ownership of what you post — comments, forum posts, case reports, messages, and any photos or files you attach. By posting, you grant us the permission needed to host, store, and display that content to run the site. You agree that:

• You will only upload photos of yourself, or of someone who has given you explicit permission — and never a photo of anyone under 18.
• You have the rights needed for anything you post, and it does not infringe anyone's privacy, publicity, copyright, or other rights.
• Case reports go through manual review before they appear publicly on the Cases page.
• We may remove content and suspend accounts that break these terms or that we reasonably believe create risk or harm.

7. Subscriptions and payments

Where offered, paid plans are billed on a recurring basis through Stripe. By subscribing you authorize us to charge your payment method at the start of each billing period. Subscriptions renew automatically until you cancel. You can cancel any time; you keep access until the end of the period you've already paid for. If you are a consumer in the EU or UK, mandatory statutory withdrawal rights for digital services apply and are not limited by this section.

8. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use HardmaxIndex for anything illegal, or upload a photo of another person without their explicit consent, or of anyone under 18;
• use HardmaxIndex to harass, bully, dox, or harm anyone, including other users or people discussed on the site;
• present comments or case reports as professional medical opinion;
• scrape the site, use bots or automated access, or try to bypass security, access limits, or moderation;
• upload malware or interfere with the site or its infrastructure;
• create a new account, or use a different email address, to get around an account we have closed.

9. Our intellectual property

HardmaxIndex, including its software, design, and our own written content (surgeon research, assessments), is owned by us. You may not copy, resell, or scrape it for commercial use. You keep ownership of what you post, subject to the licence in section 6.

10. Disclaimers and limits on liability

HardmaxIndex is provided "as is", without warranties of any kind. We do not guarantee that surgeon information is accurate or current, or that the service is uninterrupted. To the fullest extent allowed by law, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, or for any decision, procedure, or outcome you pursue based on content on this site.

11. Suspension and account closure

We may suspend or close accounts that break these terms, post content without proper consent, or act in a way we reasonably consider harmful. Closing an account for cause means immediate loss of access; it does not by itself cancel a Stripe subscription, which must be cancelled separately.

12. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. We'll post the new version here and update the date above. Continuing to use HardmaxIndex after a change means you accept the update.