1. Acceptance of these Terms
These Terms & Conditions ("Terms") form a legally binding agreement between you and Istaree Technologies Private Limited, the company that owns and operates the Istaree platform ("Istaree", "we", "us" or "our"). By downloading the Istaree mobile application, visiting www.istaree.com, creating an account, or placing an order with us, you confirm that you have read, understood and agreed to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Istaree platform.
These Terms are published in accordance with the provisions of Rule 3(1) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 read with the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020. This is an electronic record generated by a computer system and does not require any physical or digital signature.
2. About Istaree
Istaree is a technology platform that connects customers who wish to have their clothes and household linen laundered, dry-cleaned or ironed with independent laundry service providers ("Partner Laundries") who fulfil those requests. Delivery is carried out by delivery partners engaged by us. Istaree curates, coordinates and quality-assures the end-to-end experience, but the underlying laundering, cleaning and ironing services are performed by Partner Laundries.
The Istaree platform currently operates in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. We will expand to additional pin codes and cities over time; availability at your address is confirmed inside the app before you place an order.
3. Eligibility & account
You must be at least 18 years of age and competent to contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872 to use Istaree. By using the platform you represent that you are legally capable of entering into these Terms. If you use Istaree on behalf of a family member, household or organisation, you confirm you have authority to bind them to these Terms.
You are responsible for keeping your account credentials (phone number, one-time passwords, in-app PIN and any linked payment instruments) safe. You must notify us at service@istaree.com immediately if you suspect unauthorised access. Istaree is not liable for losses caused by your failure to protect your credentials.
You agree to provide accurate, current and complete information at sign-up and to keep your address, phone number and payment details up to date.
4. Definitions
- Order means a request placed through the Istaree app for laundry, dry-cleaning, ironing or a combination of these services.
- Quick Order means an Order placed by handing over an unsorted bag to a delivery partner; the item count and total are determined by the Partner Laundry after receipt.
- Exact Price Order means an Order placed by declaring item categories and counts inside the app so that the total is calculated before pickup.
- Delivery Partner means a rider engaged by Istaree who picks up and delivers your bag.
- Partner Laundry means the independent laundry service provider that processes your Order.
- QR Tag means the unique identifier printed on a tag or sticker affixed to your bag at pickup for tracking.
- Service Charge means the amount payable for laundering, ironing or dry-cleaning any single item, as displayed inside the app.
5. Placing an order
5.1 Order placement
You may place an Order through the Istaree mobile application. Each Order is subject to acceptance by Istaree and confirmation of pickup by a Delivery Partner. An Order is treated as accepted when the app assigns a Delivery Partner and displays a confirmed pickup ETA.
5.2 Quick Order and item verification
For Quick Orders, a small handling fee applies, disclosed inside the app before you confirm your Order. The Partner Laundry will count and categorise your items on receipt and share an itemised bill through the app and, where enabled, WhatsApp. You are required to review the itemised bill and either accept it or request removal of specific items within the response window shown in the app (currently four hours from the time the bill is shared). If you do not respond within this window, we may seek confirmation over a phone call or, in its absence, escalate to our customer support team for resolution.
5.3 Exact Price Orders
For Exact Price Orders, the Partner Laundry will verify the items delivered against the categories and counts you declared. If the actual items exceed what you declared, Istaree will share an updated bill for the additional items and seek your approval before proceeding. If the actual items are fewer, the total will be adjusted downwards and the difference will be refunded or credited automatically.
5.4 Order combination and separation
If your bag contains items that require different services (for example wash-and-fold plus dry-clean), we may physically separate them at the pickup point and tag each part with its own QR Tag. Each such part is treated as its own Order for tracking and pricing.
6. Pricing, fees and payment
Prices for individual items and services are shown inside the app before you confirm an Order. All prices are quoted in Indian Rupees (INR) and are inclusive of applicable Goods and Services Tax (GST) unless expressly stated otherwise. Prices may change from time to time; the price in effect at the time you place your Order is the price you pay.
We accept the following modes of payment through our payment gateway partner, Razorpay Software Private Limited: UPI (Unified Payments Interface), credit and debit cards, netbanking and select digital wallets. Istaree does not store your full card number, CVV or netbanking credentials; these are handled directly by our payment gateway partner in accordance with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) norms.
Fee summary. Standard service charges as displayed in the app; a Quick Order handling fee where applicable; a delivery fee only if your Order value is below the free-delivery threshold shown at checkout. All fees are visible before you confirm the Order. There are no hidden charges.
7. Pickup & delivery
You are responsible for handing over the bag to the Delivery Partner at the address and slot chosen at checkout. Delivery Partners will make one attempt at pickup and one at delivery. If no one is available at the address during the chosen slot, we will contact you through the phone number registered on your account. A second attempt may attract a re-attempt fee, disclosed in the app before it is charged.
Estimated turnaround times shown in the app are indicative. Actual delivery is scheduled by you after items are verified at the Partner Laundry, from the slots then available for your address.
The Delivery Partner will confirm the delivery in-app upon handover to you or an authorised representative present at your address. Your acceptance of the bag at the door is treated as satisfactory delivery unless you flag a concern within twenty-four hours of the delivery timestamp.
8. Cancellation & rescheduling
You may cancel or reschedule an Order free of charge until the Delivery Partner is dispatched for pickup. Once the Delivery Partner is en route, a cancellation fee may apply to cover the trip, as disclosed in the app before you confirm the cancellation. Once your bag has been picked up, you cannot cancel the Order; you may however request removal of individual items, subject to the Partner Laundry's ability to separate them at that stage of processing.
Istaree may cancel an Order at any stage if we determine that fulfilment is not feasible due to reasons including but not limited to unserviceable location, prohibited items in the bag, incorrect address, or force majeure. Where we cancel a paid Order, we will refund the amount paid to the original payment method within seven working days.
9. Items we cannot accept
You agree not to hand over, and Istaree may refuse to accept or process, any of the following items:
- Cash, currency notes, cheques, drafts, credit or debit cards or any negotiable instruments.
- Jewellery, watches, precious metals or precious stones.
- Personal identity documents, passports, share certificates or original legal documents.
- Electronic devices including mobile phones, tablets, laptops, cameras, chargers and batteries.
- Firearms, ammunition, explosives or any weapons whether legal or not.
- Illegal substances, narcotics or drugs.
- Biological samples, hazardous chemicals, oils, paints or corrosive material.
- Perishable food items, contaminated garments, or items soiled with bio-hazardous material such as blood, faeces or vomit.
- Items that are wet, soaked in oil or fuel, or that emit an odour that cannot be safely cleaned.
- Fur, real leather (jackets, coats, shoes), heavily beaded or embroidered couture unless the Partner Laundry offers a specialist finish accepted at checkout.
You are responsible for checking your bag before handover. Istaree is not liable for the loss of, or damage to, any prohibited items that you nonetheless include in the bag.
10. Damage, loss & discrepancy
We take reasonable and industry-standard care of your clothes. Every bag is tagged with a QR Tag, verified at the Partner Laundry, and verified again on delivery. Despite this, laundry is by nature a delicate service and rare incidents do happen. Our approach:
10.1 Reporting a claim
You must report any damage, loss or discrepancy within twenty-four (24) hours of delivery, through the "Report an issue" option on the Order details screen in the app or by writing to service@istaree.com. Please include photographs where possible.
10.2 Assessment
We will acknowledge your claim within one working day and complete our assessment within seven working days. Our assessment considers the QR Tag audit trail, photographs taken at pickup and delivery, the Partner Laundry's processing log, and any pre-existing wear or defect flagged at pickup.
10.3 Compensation
Where a valid claim is established, we will compensate you as follows:
| Situation | Resolution |
|---|
| Damage that materially affects wearability of the item | Fair compensation assessed against our claims policy, considering the type, age and value of the item. |
| Loss of an item | Fair compensation assessed against our claims policy, considering the type, age and value of the item. |
| Minor colour transfer or shrinkage within normal tolerances | Refund of the Service Charge for that item. |
| Discrepancy in count identified before delivery | The bill is corrected before you pay; no adjustment required after delivery. |
The compensation set out above represents the maximum aggregate liability of Istaree in respect of any single item, whether under contract, tort, statute or otherwise. We do not compensate for items that were prohibited under clause 9 or for wear and tear consistent with the age and use of the garment.
11. Refunds
Where a refund is due to you — because of a cancellation initiated by us, a valid damage or loss claim, or an item that could not be processed — we will issue the refund to your original payment method within seven working days of confirming the refund.
12. Communication
By placing an Order, you consent to receive service communications from us — including Order confirmations, status updates, itemised bills, delivery notifications and, where you opt in, WhatsApp messages — on the phone number and email address you registered with us. These communications are transactional and cannot be turned off while an Order is active. Promotional communications are only sent where you have opted in and can be turned off at any time from your app settings.
13. Acceptable use
You agree not to (i) use the Istaree platform for any purpose that is unlawful under Indian law; (ii) misrepresent your identity, address or the contents of your bag; (iii) attempt to reverse-engineer, decompile or interfere with the operation of the Istaree app or website; (iv) upload viruses or malicious code; (v) abuse, threaten, harass or harm Delivery Partners, Partner Laundry staff or Istaree employees; or (vi) misuse promotional codes, referral schemes or wallet credits.
We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that engage in the above conduct, and to report offenders to the appropriate authorities.
14. Intellectual property
The Istaree name, logo, mark, wordmark, app icon, product illustrations, copy, imagery, taxonomy, workflows and all associated intellectual property are owned by Istaree Technologies Private Limited. You are granted a limited, personal, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Istaree app and website solely for placing and managing your Orders. You may not copy, modify, reproduce, publish, distribute, licence or sell any part of the Istaree platform without our prior written consent.
15. Disclaimers & limitation of liability
The Istaree platform is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. While we take reasonable care to ensure the app is available and accurate, we do not guarantee uninterrupted availability, freedom from bugs, or that the platform will meet every specific requirement you may have.
To the maximum extent permitted by Indian law, our total aggregate liability to you in respect of any Order shall not exceed the higher of (a) the total amount paid by you for that Order, or (b) the compensation limits set out in clause 10. In no event shall Istaree, its directors, officers or employees be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, punitive or special damages, or for loss of profit, business, goodwill, data or opportunity.
Nothing in these Terms limits any liability that cannot be limited by law, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or liability for fraud.
16. Indemnity
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Istaree, its Partner Laundries and its Delivery Partners against any loss, claim, damage or expense (including reasonable legal fees) that arises out of (i) your breach of these Terms; (ii) your violation of any law; (iii) items you handed over in breach of clause 9; or (iv) your misuse of the Istaree platform.
17. Force majeure
Istaree is not liable for any delay, non-performance or interruption in service caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, floods, fires, earthquakes, pandemics, strikes, riots, war, terror, government orders, curfews, internet outages, power failures or failures of upstream service providers. In such cases we will resume service as soon as reasonably practicable.
18. Suspension & termination
You may close your Istaree account at any time by writing to service@istaree.com. We will process your closure request within seven working days and retain your data only for the period, and for the purposes, set out in our Privacy Policy.
We may suspend or terminate your account, refuse to fulfil an Order, or restrict access to the platform if we reasonably believe you have breached these Terms, provided false information, engaged in fraudulent or abusive behaviour, or where required by law.
19. Grievance redressal
In accordance with the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 and the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, we have appointed a Grievance Officer to address any concerns you may have.
Grievance Officer
Teja Chilukuri
Istaree Technologies Private Limited
Correspondence address: The Executive Centre, Sattva Knowledge City, Hyderabad, Telangana 500032, India
Phone: +91 99894 33327
Email: service@istaree.com
The Grievance Officer will acknowledge your complaint within twenty-four (24) hours and resolve it within fifteen (15) days of receipt, subject to cooperation from you.
20. Governing law & jurisdiction
These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of India. Any dispute arising out of or in connection with these Terms will first be attempted to be resolved amicably between the parties. If not resolved within thirty (30) days of first notice, the dispute will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
21. Changes to these Terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top and, for material changes, notify you inside the app or by email at least seven (7) days before the change takes effect. Your continued use of the Istaree platform after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.
22. Contact us
For any query relating to these Terms:
- Email: service@istaree.com
- Phone: +91 99894 33327
- Correspondence address: Istaree Technologies Private Limited, The Executive Centre, Sattva Knowledge City, Hyderabad, Telangana 500032, India
- CIN: U96010TS2026PTC211692