PalmHost Fair Usage Policy
Effective Date: 28 March 2025
1. Introduction
This Fair Usage Policy (“Policy”) supplements our Terms of Service and governs the acceptable use of PalmHost’s (“Company,” “we,” “our”) infrastructure, services, and platforms — including, but not limited to, our primary website as well as subdomains such as the billing portal at clientzone.palmhost.co.za and the hosting control panel at panel.palmhost.co.za.
The objective of this Policy is to ensure that all customers (“you” or “Customer”) enjoy consistent and reliable service while protecting our network and systems against excessive or abusive usage. By using any of our services or platforms, you agree to comply with this Policy.
2. Email Usage Limits
Each email account provided by PalmHost is subject to a maximum limit of 2,000 outbound emails per month. This limit is imposed to maintain service quality and to prevent abuse or the dissemination of unsolicited communications. If an email account exceeds this limit, PalmHost may, at its sole discretion, temporarily suspend outbound email privileges until the beginning of the next billing cycle, or until corrective measures are taken.
3. Bandwidth Usage Guidelines
While certain hosting packages advertise “unlimited bandwidth,” such offerings are subject to this Fair Usage Policy. In practice:
Reasonable Usage: The provision of unlimited bandwidth is intended for normal business or personal website traffic and must not be used in a manner that adversely affects system performance.
Threshold: A monthly bandwidth usage level up to 500 Gigabyte (500GB) is considered within reasonable limits for most customers. Continuous usage in excess of this threshold, or usage that is deemed disproportionate relative to the hosted content, may trigger remedial actions, including:
Throttling or temporary suspension of bandwidth-intensive activities.
Notification and, if necessary, imposition of additional terms, fees, or service modifications.
PalmHost reserves the right to monitor bandwidth usage and to determine, in its sole discretion, if any account’s usage is excessive under this Policy.
4. Storage Utilisation
Each hosting package offers a fixed storage allocation based on the tier selected by the Customer. To promote optimal system performance and to ensure fair access to resources:
Advisory Limitation: Customers are advised to utilise no more than 80% of the allocated storage capacity. Usage exceeding this advisory threshold on a consistent basis may result in:
Performance degradation or an increase in the risk of data errors.
A recommendation or requirement to upgrade to a higher-tier hosting package.
Customers are responsible for monitoring their storage usage and ensuring that it remains within acceptable limits.
5. Prohibited and Abusive Activities
To protect all users of our services, the following practices are expressly prohibited:
Circumvention: Attempts to circumvent, bypass, or otherwise defeat any of the limits imposed by this Policy, including the creation of multiple accounts to exceed defined limits.
Resource Abuse: Activities that impose an unreasonable load on our systems, such as excessive consumption of CPU cycles, memory, or disk I/O, outside of normal website operations.
Malicious Use: Use of PalmHost’s services for spamming, botnet activities, Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks, or any other activity that may be classified as malicious or illegal under applicable law.
Any violation of these prohibitions may result in suspension or termination of services without prior notice.
6. Enforcement and Remedies
PalmHost reserves the right to take appropriate measures, including but not limited to:
Service Modification: Adjusting, suspending, or terminating access to services that are deemed to be in violation of this Policy.
Account Review: Conducting periodic reviews of usage patterns to ensure compliance.
Additional Charges or Upgrades: Imposing additional charges or requiring an upgrade to a higher-tier service when excessive usage is identified.
No refunds or credits will be provided as a result of any action taken under this Policy.
7. Modifications to the Policy
PalmHost reserves the right to amend or modify this Fair Usage Policy at any time. Any material changes will be communicated via our website and/or the Customer’s registered email. Continued use of our services constitutes acceptance of any revised terms.
8. Governing Law
This Policy shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of South Africa. Any disputes arising out of or in connection with this Policy shall be resolved pursuant to our Terms of Service and the legal mechanisms provided therein.
By using PalmHost’s services, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to comply with this Fair Usage Policy.
Additional Considerations
Monitoring: Customers are encouraged to review usage statistics available through the client control panel and contact support with any questions regarding their usage patterns.
Notifications: In cases where usage approaches or exceeds the limits defined herein, PalmHost will attempt to notify the affected Customer and provide guidance on remedial actions.
No Guarantee: Nothing in this Policy constitutes a guarantee of performance or uninterrupted service under conditions of excessive usage.
If you have further questions or require clarification regarding any aspect of this Policy, please do not hesitate to contact us by emailing [email protected].
