# TAuto — Plain-English Legal Notes

> Not legal advice. A starting checklist for a **tool provider** (you host free tools; you don't
> execute car deals). Have an attorney confirm before you rely on any of it.

## Your situation
You publish free calculators, a VIN decoder, document templates, and TAuto Quick Deals on a
website. **You are not a party to anyone's car purchase, loan, lease, or trade.** Visitors enter
their own numbers; any real deal happens between them and a licensed dealer/lender using that
dealer's official paperwork.

That means the heavy compliance — **dealer e-contracting, retail-installment-contract rules,
lender requirements, DMV e-title, Truth-in-Lending disclosures** — is the **dealer's / lender's**
responsibility, **not yours**. Your tools are worksheets and estimates.

## What you DO want in place
1. **Terms of Use** (`terms.html`) — the most important one. It says the tools are estimates only,
   "as is," no warranty, you're not liable for reliance on outputs, and the real contract happens
   elsewhere. This is your main shield.
2. **Privacy Policy** (`privacy.html`) — needed because the site *can* store data (especially once
   cloud sync is on). It explains what's collected, that it lives on-device or in Supabase, that you
   don't sell data, and how someone deletes their info.
3. **"Estimates only — not advice" disclaimers** — already on every tool. Keep them.
4. **Link both docs in your footer** and (recommended) require agreement before account sign-up.

## Electronic signatures (context only)
E-signatures are valid in the U.S. under the federal **ESIGN Act** and each state's **UETA**
(adopted by 49 states + DC; **New York** uses its own ESRA but still validates e-signatures). They
hinge on four things: intent to sign, consent to do business electronically, attribution, and record
retention.

**For you:** the signature feature in Quick Deals is a convenience for the user's own records. It is
**not** a substitute for the dealer's/lender's certified e-contracting system, which is what actually
binds a financed contract. Your Terms (section 3) already say this. You don't need to take on e-sign
compliance yourself.

## If your situation changes
If you ever start **operating as a dealer** or **handling customer financial data on customers'
behalf**, the picture changes a lot — GLBA / FTC Safeguards Rule, state dealer e-contracting, and more
would apply. Get counsel before that step.

## Quick to-do
- [ ] Fill the brackets in `privacy.html` and `terms.html` (name, email, state, effective date).
- [ ] Add footer links to both on every page (the hub already links them after this update).
- [ ] Have an attorney skim both (usually quick/inexpensive for template review).
- [ ] Optional: add an "I agree to the Terms & Privacy Policy" checkbox to account sign-up.

## Sources (e-signature framework)
- ESIGN/UETA overview — Ironclad: https://ironcladapp.com/journal/contract-management/electronic-signature-law
- ESIGN vs UETA — Docusign: https://www.docusign.com/products/electronic-signature/learn/esign-act-ueta
- State adoption / NY exception — Signaturely: https://signaturely.com/electronic-signature-laws-by-state/