This Addendum governs card acceptance and the movement of money through the Service. Capitalized terms not defined here have the meanings in the Merchant Agreement.
1. Stripe Connected Account Agreement
1.1 Payment processing services for merchants on Ridge are provided by Stripe and are subject to the Stripe Connected Account Agreement (stripe.com/connect-account/legal), which includes the Stripe Services Agreement (stripe.com/legal) (collectively, the "Stripe Services Agreement"). By agreeing to this Addendum or continuing to operate as a merchant on Ridge, Merchant agrees to be bound by the Stripe Services Agreement, as the same may be modified by Stripe from time to time.
1.2 As a condition of Ridge enabling payment processing services through Stripe, Merchant agrees to provide Ridge accurate and complete information about Merchant and its business, and authorizes Ridge to share it and transaction information related to Merchant's use of the payment processing services provided by Stripe.
1.3 Ridge is a platform on Stripe. Stripe, not Ridge, holds Merchant's funds, settles to Merchant's bank account and issues Form 1099-K. Ridge is not a bank, money transmitter or card network member.
2. Your connected account
2.1 Merchant of record. Merchant is the merchant of record for every sale and the party to each transaction with its Customers.
2.2 Verification. Before and after activation, Stripe and Ridge may verify Merchant's identity, business, owners and bank account under the Authorizations & Consents. Payouts may be held until verification is complete.
2.3 Information. Merchant will keep its business, owner, address, bank and category information current with Ridge and Stripe and respond within five business days to any request for information or documents.
3. Payouts
3.1 Stripe settles card sales to Merchant's bank account on a daily schedule, typically the next business day after the sale, less refunds, chargebacks, the Program Amount under the Card Pricing Program Addendum, and any amounts owed to Ridge.
3.2 Instant payouts, where enabled, are an add-on priced at ridgeapp.app/pricing and subject to Stripe's availability and limits.
3.3 Stripe or Ridge may delay, hold or reverse a payout, or require a reserve, where reasonably needed to address suspected fraud, unusual activity, elevated disputes, a change in Merchant's business, a legal or card-network requirement, or a negative balance.
4. Refunds, chargebacks and disputes
4.1 Refunds. Merchant issues refunds through the Service. The refunded amount, including the Program Amount on the refunded portion, is debited from Merchant's connected account.
4.2 Chargebacks. Merchant is responsible for the full amount of any chargeback, reversal or dispute on its sales, plus any fee the card network or Stripe assesses. Merchant authorizes Ridge and Stripe to recover these amounts from Merchant's connected account balance, future payouts, any reserve, and the billing method on file, in that order, and to invoice any remainder, due on receipt.
4.3 Evidence. Merchant will respond to a dispute inside the Service within the deadline shown (usually seven days) with receipts, proof of delivery or service, and any Customer communication. Ridge may submit the evidence to Stripe on Merchant's behalf but does not guarantee the outcome.
4.4 Excessive disputes. If Merchant's dispute rate exceeds card-network thresholds, Ridge may require a reserve, limit volume, require changes to Merchant's practices, or terminate.
5. Reserves and negative balances
5.1 Ridge or Stripe may establish a reserve of up to [10]% of Merchant's trailing 30-day volume, or a fixed amount, when Section 3.3 applies, and will tell Merchant the amount and reason. Reserves are released within 90 days after the risk ends unless needed to cover amounts owed.
5.2 If Merchant's connected account balance is negative, Merchant will pay the shortfall within five business days of notice. Unpaid amounts bear interest at the lesser of 1.5% per month or the maximum lawful rate and may be collected from the guarantor under the Owner Guaranty.
6. Card network rules and prohibited transactions
6.1 Merchant will comply with the operating rules of Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover as they apply to merchants, including rules on receipts, refunds, disputes and the honoring of cards.
6.2 Merchant will not: process a transaction for anyone other than Merchant; process a transaction that does not result from a sale to a Customer; use the Service to give itself a cash advance; split a sale into multiple transactions to avoid limits; re-present a transaction that was charged back; process a sale for a Prohibited Business; or process a transaction the Customer did not authorize.
6.3 Merchant will not set a minimum or maximum purchase amount for card payments, except as the card network rules permit.
7. Tap to Pay and devices
7.1 Tap to Pay on iPhone is provided by Apple under Apple's terms, which Apple presents on the device for Merchant's acceptance. Tap to Pay on Android is provided through Stripe and Google under their terms. Ridge may disable contactless acceptance on a device that fails a security or integrity check.
7.2 Merchant will use only devices that meet the requirements published at ridgeapp.app/requirements, keep them updated and passcode-locked, and not use rooted or jailbroken devices for payments.
7.3 Contactless acceptance requires an internet connection. Payments are not accepted offline.
8. Security and card data
8.1 Card data is captured by Stripe's and Apple's or Google's certified components and never enters Merchant's or Ridge's systems. Merchant will not write down, photograph, store or transmit full card numbers, security codes or PINs by any means outside the Service.
8.2 Merchant will complete any PCI DSS self-assessment Stripe or Ridge requires, report suspected compromise of a device or account within 24 hours, and cooperate with any investigation.
9. Manual card entry and online payments
Payments entered manually or taken through Merchant's online ordering page are card-not-present transactions. They carry higher dispute risk, and Merchant is responsible for verifying the Customer and keeping records sufficient to answer a dispute.
10. Suspension and termination of payments
Ridge may suspend or end payment processing, separately from the Service, if Stripe closes or restricts the connected account, if Merchant breaches this Addendum, or under Section 12.3 of the Merchant Agreement. After termination, Stripe may hold funds for up to 180 days to cover refunds, chargebacks and amounts owed, after which the remaining balance is paid to Merchant.