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LegalEffective date: 1 July 2026. Plain-language summary up top, full terms below.
Velvet Ocean Crew's Terms & Privacy Policy covers free crew profiles with no commission, the 30-day employer free trial, how AI-assisted matching, search and document review are used, certificate verification, data protection rights, and cookies. Effective 1 July 2026.
Crew profiles on Velvet Ocean Crew are free, forever, with no commission taken from your salary. Agencies, charter companies and owners get 30 days of free access, then a flat monthly subscription. We use AI to help match candidates, power search and pre-check uploaded certificates — a human still reviews verification, and AI assistance is never a substitute for your own due diligence on any person or opportunity. We collect only the personal data needed to run the platform, never sell it to third parties, and you can request a copy or deletion of your data at any time by emailing info@velvetocean.com. Full legal terms are below.
In these Terms, the following words have the meaning set out below:
By creating an account, registering interest, or otherwise using the Platform, you agree to be bound by these Terms & Privacy Policy (together, the “Terms”). If you do not agree, you should not use the Platform. These Terms apply to all Users, whether Crew or Employer.
You must be at least 18 years old to create an account on the Platform. You agree to provide accurate, current and complete information during registration and to keep your login credentials confidential. You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately at info@velvetocean.com if you believe your account has been accessed without authorisation.
Creating and maintaining a crew profile is free of charge, and will remain free of charge for as long as you wish to use the Platform as Crew. We do not charge a subscription fee to Crew and we do not take any commission, fee or percentage from any salary, daywork rate or placement arising from contact made through the Platform.
Crew are responsible for the accuracy of the information on their profile, including rank, experience, qualifications and availability status. You agree to update your availability status promptly so that Employers see current information when searching.
Note: creating a profile does not guarantee you will be contacted or placed in any role. The Platform is a discovery and communication tool; hiring decisions are made entirely by Employers.
Employers (agencies, charter companies, owners, owners’ representatives and yacht management companies) receive 30 days of full platform access free of charge from the date of registration, with no credit card required to start the trial.
At the end of the 30-day trial, continued access requires a paid subscription at the then-current published price. We will notify you before the trial ends. There is no automatic billing at the end of a free trial — you must actively choose a subscription plan to continue using Employer features after the trial period.
Subscription fees are billed monthly in advance and are non-refundable except as required by applicable law. We may change subscription pricing with at least 30 days’ notice to active subscribers.
The Platform uses artificial intelligence to power certain features, including: matching crew profiles to open positions (“AI Matching”), interpreting natural-language search queries (“AI Search”), and providing an initial read of uploaded certificates ahead of human review (“AI Document Review”).
These AI features are provided as a convenience to help Users navigate the Platform more efficiently. They are not a guarantee of accuracy, suitability, or fitness for any particular role or hiring decision. AI-generated match scores, search results and document pre-checks should not be relied upon as a substitute for your own due diligence, reference checks, or for the human certificate verification described in Section 9.
In short: AI helps you find and filter faster. It does not replace human judgement, and it does not verify a person’s identity, character or suitability for a role.
When using the Platform, you agree that you will not:
We may remove Content or suspend accounts that we reasonably believe violate this section, at our discretion.
You retain ownership of the Content you upload to your profile. By uploading Content, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, display and process that Content solely for the purpose of operating and improving the Platform, including for the AI features described in Section 6.
The Platform itself — including its design, code, branding and underlying technology — is owned by Velvet Ocean Crew and protected by intellectual property law. You may not copy, modify or create derivative works from the Platform without our prior written consent.
Certificates uploaded by Crew are reviewed using a combination of AI Document Review and human checks by our team, typically within 24–48 hours, as described in detail on our Verify Profiles page. A “verified” badge confirms that a document has passed this review process; it does not constitute a representation by us that the underlying qualification remains valid, unexpired, or that the holder is fit for any specific role. Employers remain responsible for confirming certificate validity directly with the relevant issuing authority where this matters to a hiring decision.
The Platform is provided “as is” without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including as to uninterrupted availability, error-free operation, or the accuracy of information uploaded by Users. We do not vet the character, suitability or conduct of any User beyond the certificate verification process described in Section 9, and we make no representation as to the outcome of any engagement arising from contact made through the Platform.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, our total liability to you arising out of or in connection with your use of the Platform shall not exceed the greater of (a) the amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) €100. We are not liable for indirect, consequential or special losses, including loss of profit, loss of opportunity or loss of data.
Nothing in these Terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded.
You may close your account at any time by emailing info@velvetocean.com. We may suspend or terminate any account that we reasonably believe breaches these Terms, with notice where practicable. Termination does not affect any rights or obligations that accrued before the termination date.
We collect the information you provide directly: name, email address, role/rank, certificates and supporting documents, work history, availability status, company name (for Employers), and any messages sent through the Platform. We also collect limited technical data automatically, such as device type, browser, and general usage analytics, to operate and improve the Platform.
We do not sell personal data to third parties. We share data with: (a) other Users, as necessary for the Platform to function — for example, an Employer can see a Crew profile when searching, and a Crew member can see an Employer’s company name and message when contacted; (b) service providers who process data on our behalf under contract, such as cloud hosting, email delivery (including our use of EmailJS for contact-form submissions) and analytics providers; and (c) authorities where required by law.
Personal data may be stored and processed on servers located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or other jurisdictions where our service providers operate, always under contractual safeguards consistent with applicable data protection law.
We retain profile data for as long as your account remains active. If you delete your account, we will delete or anonymise your personal data within 30 days, except where we are required to retain certain records by law.
The Platform uses essential cookies required for the site to function (such as keeping you logged in) and, where you consent, analytics cookies that help us understand how the Platform is used so we can improve it. You can control or delete cookies through your browser settings; disabling essential cookies may affect Platform functionality.
If you are located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or another jurisdiction with similar data protection law, you have the right to: access the personal data we hold about you; request correction of inaccurate data; request deletion of your data; object to or restrict certain processing; and request a portable copy of your data. To exercise any of these rights, email info@velvetocean.com — we will respond within 30 days.
We may update these Terms from time to time, for example to reflect new features or changes in applicable law. We will post the updated Terms on this page with a revised effective date, and where changes are material, we will make reasonable efforts to notify active Users by email. Continued use of the Platform after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.
These Terms are governed by the laws of Italy, without regard to conflict of law principles, save that nothing in this section deprives a consumer User of the protection afforded by mandatory provisions of the law of their country of residence.
Questions about these Terms or how we handle your data can be sent to info@velvetocean.com. We aim to respond to all enquiries within two business days.
