Terms of Service
Scope; Accepting This Policy
What Our Services Are and Are Not
Prohibited Uses; When We May Terminate Your Access
Other Legal Details
Contact Us
Last Updated: June 26, 2024 12:45 PM EST
- For our privacy policy, click here.
- For our terms of service in Spanish, click here.
- For our commitment to protecting digital rights, click here.
- If you are in danger or need emergency help, call 911 or your local emergency services number.
Crisis Text Line (CTL) does not offer crisis counseling services outside of the U.S. If you are in crisis in the UK, Canada, or Ireland:
- For the U.K. terms / privacy policy (Mental Health Innovations / Shout), click here.
- For the Canada terms / privacy policy (Kids Help Phone), click here.
- For the Ireland terms / privacy policy (Community Creations CLG / SpunOut / Text About It), click here.
By using or accessing our website or our crisis support services (the “Services”), regardless of whether you reach out via text message/SMS, WhatsApp, or webchat, you agree to these Terms of Service (“Terms”) described below, and our privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”).
Any changes to these Terms will be effective immediately upon our posting them to our website at crisistextline.org. Continuing to use the Services after we’ve changed these Terms will mean that you accept the revised Terms.
You can opt out of any conversation with CTL by texting or messaging the word STOP to us during that conversation. You can opt back in by texting or messaging us through our crisis support services again.
WHAT OUR SERVICES ARE AND ARE NOT
Our Services try to empower you to stay safe and healthy during a crisis. Your use of our Services does not create or imply an attorney-client relationship, a doctor-patient relationship, or a therapist-client relationship. Our Services are not, and are not intended to be, a substitute for professional health care, mental health treatment, psychiatric care, therapy, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of any kind.
If you believe you are experiencing a medical emergency, you should immediately call your doctor or 911. And, if you are experiencing a clinical or long-term issue, you should consult a medical professional. CTL disclaims all warranties of any kind, whether express or implied.
PROHIBITED USES; WHEN WE MAY TERMINATE YOUR ACCESS
You agree to use our Services only for lawful and legitimate purposes and according to these Terms. You agree not to use the Services:
- to violate any applicable federal, state, local, or international law or regulation;
- to exploit, harm, or attempt to exploit or harm others;
- to threaten, harass, “spam,” or otherwise inappropriately abuse CTL, its Services, employees, partners, agents, contractors, volunteers, or others;
- to send, obtain, share, use, or re-use any content which does not comply with these Terms;
- to gather or attempt to gather personal information belonging to others in order to share, market, exploit, or sell it to third parties, or for any other purpose prohibited by these Terms;
- to impersonate or attempt to impersonate another person or entity;
- to engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone’s use or enjoyment of the Services, or which, as determined by us, may harm CTL or users of the Services, or expose them to liability;
- to violate CTL’s intellectual property rights, including but not limited to seeking to copy, reverse engineer, or make derivative works of the Services or any portion of the Services without express written authorization from CTL; or
- to otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper working of CTL or the Services.
CTL reserves the right to terminate your access to its Services if you violate these Terms, including doing anything on the list above. CTL reserves the right to terminate its Services or your access to them for any reason. We may adjust your access to the Services if we determine that you’d be better served by a different kind of support.
These Terms, our Privacy Policy, and our Services are governed solely by and will be interpreted according to, the laws of the State of New York without giving effect to New York’s conflicts of law rules. CTL and you both consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the county of New York for any disputes arising out of or concerning these Terms, our Privacy Policy, or our Services.
If a court finds any provision of these Terms (or our Privacy Policy) invalid or unenforceable, that provision will be enforced to the maximum extent possible, and the remaining Terms (and Privacy Policy) shall remain in full force and effect. These Terms and our Privacy Policy constitute the entire agreement between you and CTL, superseding any other written or oral agreements or understandings.
You assume all risks for the use of CTL’s services. Neither CTL, nor any of our employees, volunteers, agents, service providers, contractors, or partners will have any liability in connection with acts or omissions by you or a third party during or after your use of the Services, or CTL’s services being unavailable to you.
You agree to indemnify us and hold us harmless for damages (including speculative, indirect, or consequential damages) arising out of (A) your use of CTL’s services, (B) your breach of these Terms, (C) your violation of the law, (D) claims by third parties that you are in breach of these Terms.
We can’t promise that our Services will always meet your needs or expectations, or that they will always work as we intend them to work. In other words, CTL’s services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. CTL and its service providers expressly disclaim all warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including, without limitation, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. Without limiting the above, CTL and its service providers make no warranty that CTL will (A) meet your requirements; (B) be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free; or (C) meet your expectations. These disclaimers of liability apply to all damages or injury, including those caused by any failure of performance, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, or delay in operation or transmission, whether for breach of contract, tortious behavior, including negligence, or any other cause of action.
If you are in crisis anywhere in the U.S. and want to reach one of our trained volunteers, please text us at 741741, contact us via WhatsApp at (443) SUP-PORT for English or (442) AYU-DAME for Spanish, or reach out to us via webchat. Message frequency varies. Message & data rates may apply.
CTL does not offer crisis counseling services outside of the U.S. If you are in crisis in the UK, Canada, or Ireland:
- For the U.K. terms / privacy policy (Mental Health Innovations / Shout), click here.
- For the Canada terms / privacy policy (Kids Help Phone), click here.
- For the Ireland terms / privacy policy (Community Creations CLG / SpunOut / Text About It), click here.
If you have any questions or concerns about these Terms or our Privacy Policy, please contact: info@crisistextline.org. You may also mail a request to us at Crisis Text Line, 225 West 34th Street, Floor 9 — PMB# 9135, New York, NY 10122.
You can email our customer service team at info@crisistextline.org if you have questions about these Terms. If you are in crisis and want support from one of our trained volunteer crisis counselors, please reach out to us through text, webchat, or WhatsApp. We don’t provide crisis counseling via email. You can find a list of other crisis lines, hotlines, and other support resources at CrisisTextLine.org/referrals.
For media inquiries, please email press@crisistextline.org.
