LEGAL

IN-PERSON, VIDEO REMOTE INTERPRETING AND AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE/ENGLISH TRANSLATION SERVICE AGREEMENT (“Service Agreement”)

You agree to this Service Agreement provided by Convo Communications Canada, Inc (“Convo Canada”) only for lawful purposes. You agree not to use interpreting services provided by Convo Canada for abusive, harassing, fraudulent or unlawful purposes. You agree not to infringe on any individual or entity's intellectual property rights, or other proprietary rights. You agree not to interfere with the ability of Convo Canada to provide interpreting services to other individuals.

This service agreement governs your use of interpreting and translation services provided by Convo Canada. Your continued usage of services provided by Convo Canada implies acceptance of this user agreement in its entirety.

Convo Canada is committed to ensuring that clients benefit equally from services offered to the general public and will make reasonable accommodations for the provision of interpreting services. The purpose of this agreement is to ensure reasonable steps are taken to provide services to clients in a fair and nondiscriminatory manner through the provision of interpreting services.

To ensure effective interpreting service, consideration will be given to factors such as:

  • the complexity and importance of the information to be communicated;

  • the context in which the communication takes place;

  • the delivery medium; and

  • the client’s choice of interpreter for compatibility.

THE PROCESS OF BOOKING AN INTERPRETER(S)

  1. Convo Canada provides American Sign Language (ASL) - English interpreting services across British Columbia, but arrangements can also be made for other locations in Canada.

  2. Interpreting services can be requested online (Convo Canada website) or via email, text or phone. Information about the appointment shall be provided along with the request. Request is to be made at least three (3) business days prior to the scheduled date, if possible.

    Interpreters are available during business hours, evenings, weekends and holidays. Anyone can request interpreting services.

  3. Convo Canada is to receive all relevant information needed to fully meet the interpreting service requirements prior to the assignment/appointment.

  4. Convo Canada will endeavor to book the client’s interpreter of choice. If the first choice is not available, Convo Canada will endeavor to book other interpreters of the client’s choosing. Whenever possible, adequate notice will be given to Convo Canada for booking interpreters.

  5. If an interpreter is not available, the appointment may be rescheduled if the client so wishes. It is recognized that demand for interpreting services may exceed the supply.

  6. Situations identified as emergencies will be given priority over other assignments.

  7. The client will have the right to consult with Convo Canada in regard to any concerns that arise in relation to the abilities or qualifications of the assigned interpreter.

STANDARDS FOR INTERPRETING SERVICES

  1. To the extent possible, all Convo Canada interpreters assigned shall be:

    a. members of the Canadian Association of Sign Language Interpreters (CASLI, formerly known as AVLIC) who adhere to CASLI’s Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Professional Conduct;

    b. scheduled for an assignment for which they have experience e.g. medical, legal, education, community, etc.;

    c. in good standing with Convo Canada.

INTERPRETING SERVICE BILLING POLICY

Minimum Charges

The minimum charge time for interpreting services is two (2) hours with subsequent hours being billed in hourly increments. Based on the nature of particular assignments it may be necessary to assign two interpreters to an assignment that is less than two hours in duration.


Co-interpreting

Interpreting is a cognitively demanding task and, as such, industry standards suggest that some assignments may require a co-interpreter. A co-interpreter may be required based on the following: complexity of content; number of participants; degree of interaction among participants; and length of assignment, to name a few. The need for a co-interpreter will be determined by Convo Canada and will be discussed and confirmed at the time a request is made.

Cancellation

Cancellation notice must be received by the office 48 hours prior to the scheduled appointment to avoid being charged the full rate for the interpreting service request. There is no fee for appointments canceled with more than 48 hours notice.


Overdue Accounts

Convo Canada will charge interest of two percent per month on invoices that are over 30 days due from the billing date.


No-Show

In the event the participant requiring sign language interpreting services does not show up, the interpreter(s) may leave after 30 minutes for a two hour appointment. The longer the appointment, the longer the interpreter will wait and during this time will make every effort to confirm that the participant is indeed not showing up.

Indemnification and Limitations on Liability

Convo Canada disclaims all responsibility and liability for any claims or causes of action that arise from your use, misuse or abuse of its communication services or its products. Further, you agree to indemnify and hold Convo Canada and all its agents harmless from and against all costs, fees, expenses, and damages of any nature whatsoever related to any such claims, including court and arbitration costs, attorneys' fees, and the costs of other professionals, unless such claims are solely based on willful misconduct on the part of Convo Canada.

Convo Canada disclaims liability for any cost, injury, or damage, arising directly or indirectly related to use of its communication services, use of Convo Canada products, from your failure to comply with this user agreement, from your misuse or abuse of its services, and from any action Convo Canada may deem appropriate, including the termination, suspension or restriction of your access to or use of its services.

All disclaimers of warranties and limitations on liability apply even if the damages are foreseeable or said to be possible, and apply to any negligence claim that does not involve willful misconduct or intentional misconduct no matter how that claim is styled or upon what legal grounds it is based. Convo Canada will be liable for no more than the amount of direct damages to your person or your property. Convo Canada disclaims any and all implied warranties, including without limitation warranties of merchantability and fitness for particular purpose. Convo Canada disclaims any and all warranties of performance and non-infringement. Convo Canada disclaims any warranty that states its interpreting services to be uninterruptible or error-free. Convo Canada shall not be liable for any consequential or incidental damages. Convo Canada does not authorize anyone, including employees, independent contractors, agents or representatives, to make a warranty of any kind on the behalf of Convo Canada.

This section shall survive the expiration of this user agreement. 

GOVERNING LAW

You and Convo Canada agree to resolution of any dispute through final and binding arbitration before a neutral arbitrator instead of in a court by a judge or jury or through a class action. You continue to retain certain rights to obtain relief from a federal or provincial regulatory agency. This Agreement will be governed by, and construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the Province of British Columbia and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein.

PRIVACY POLICY

Effective date: June 7, 2023

Convo Communications Canada, Inc. (“Convo Canada”) and its affiliates (collectively, “us”, “we”, or “our”) are committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy (“Policy”) explains how we collect, use, disclose and protect the Personal Information (as defined below) of our customers and users. It applies to all Personal Information collected by us: 

  1. on https://www.convo.ca and any other website or mobile application that links to this Policy (collectively, the “Convo Sites”); 

  2. when you engage with us via social media; 

  3. when you purchase or engage with our products or services, including but not limited to: Video Relay Services (as defined below), Video Remote Interpreting (as defined below), and In-Person Interpreting (as defined below);

  4. when we otherwise interact with you (by email, telephone or otherwise)

(collectively, our “Services”).

By using the Services, you agree to the collection, use, and disclosure of Personal Information in accordance with this Policy. 

Definitions

“Cookies” are small web files that a site or its provider transfers to your device’s hard drive through your web browser that enables the site’s or provider’s system to recognize your browser and remember certain information.

“In-Person Interpreting” (also known as on-site interpreting or face-to-face interpreting) are services provided to the deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing people to communicate with those who use spoken language through a signed language interpreter.

“Personal Information” means information about an identified or identifiable individual, and includes the personal information of our customers and Users of our Services.

“User” is the individual using our Services, including Video Relay Services, Video Remote Interpreting, and In-Person Interpreting. 

“Video Relay Services” or “VRS” are interpreting services Convo Canada provides to the Canadian Administrator of Video Relay Service, Inc. (“CAV”), facilitating telecommunications for Deaf and hard of hearing individuals using the CAV platform to connect to individuals and businesses who rely on telephone services.

“Video Remote Interpreting” or “VRI” is a service that allows people who are deaf or hard of hearing to communicate with a hearing person using an interpreter via video-telecommunications technology such as video conferencing platforms, video equipment, and a high speed Internet connection with sufficient bandwidth.

1. Collection of Personal Information

When you use our Services, we may collect or receive Personal Information about you to provide our Services and operate our business. The types of Personal Information that we may collect about you are:

a. Information You Provide to Us Directly

You may provide your Personal Information to us when you use our Services, including when you create an account through the Convo Sites (a “Convo Account”), use the Convo Sites, contact us with inquiries, or otherwise access our Services. This information may include: 

  • User Profile – We collect Personal Information associated with your Convo Account. This includes information such as your first and last name, email address, phone number, and billing address.

  • Appointment Information – When you schedule an appointment for one of our Services, we will collect information related to the appointment.  This may include information such as date and time of appointment, name of interpreter chosen, and any documents you want to share.

  • Payment Details – When you use one of Services (such as In-Person Interpreting and Video Remote Interpreting) where payment is required, we collect information related to that payment. This may include information such as date and time of purchase, and total price.

Specifically, if you are using Video Relay Services, we may collect information such as: time stamps, name of interpreter assigned, duration of the Services, and phone number. Convo Canada does not have access to your name.  Because Video Relay Services is administered by CAV, your personal information will be collected by CAV and will be subject to CAV’s privacy policy. 

If you are using Video Remote Interpreting, we may collect information such as: date and time of the appointment, video conferencing details, name of interpreter assigned, and documents related to the appointment. 

b. Information Received From You as Part of Your Communications

When you use our Services, complete electronic forms, communicate with us or contact us by online chat, email or phone, we may automatically collect and store certain information about you and the activity you engaged in, for example: your name and contact information; your purchase details; information that you voluntarily provide to us; the nature of your communication; the purpose of the interaction, and the action we took in response to your inquiry or request.

c. Information Collected Automatically

We may receive and store certain information about you and your device(s) automatically when you access or use our Services. This information may include:

  • Technical Information – We collect technical information associated with your activity on the Convo Sites and may include information related to your browser and operating system, IP address (the internet address of your computer) unique device identifiers, and other information such as your device type. We use such information for diagnostic and statistical purposes and to administer our Services.

  • Site Usage Information – We collect information to better understand customer traffic patterns and Convo Sites usage. This may include the webpage that you were visiting before accessing the Convo Sites or mobile application, the pages or features of the Convo Sites you browsed to inform us which part of the Convo Sites and Services you visit and how much time you spend there. This information is used to analyze and improve the Convo Sites and to provide our customers with a better user experience

  • Site Preferences – We collect information about your preferences to make your use of the Convo Sites more productive through the use of Cookies. 

    d. Personal Information from Publicly Available Sources and Third Parties

We may collect or receive Personal Information about you from publicly available sources, social network providers, marketing partners, and/or third parties. This may include:

  • Social Network Information – We may receive information about you from other services. For example, we receive certain information when you interact with our social media accounts. 

2. Use of Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies 

We use Cookies, web beacons, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information and personalize your experience with our Services. 

a. Cookies

How We Use Cookies – We use first-party and third-party Cookies for the following purposes:

  • to make our Services function properly;

  • to improve our Services;

  • to recognize you when you return to the Convo Sites or the Services and to remember information you have already provided and your preferences;

  • to collect information about your activities over time and across third party websites or other online services in order to deliver content and advertising tailored to your interests; and

  • to provide a secure browsing experience during your use of our Services.

How to Manage Cookies – You may disable the use of Cookies by modifying your browser settings. If you choose to disable Cookies you may not be able to fully experience the interactive features of our Services. 

b. Online Analytics and Advertising Technologies

We and our third-party vendors may use automated technologies (including Cookie identifiers on the Convo Sites and/or the Services), along with other collected information, to tailor ads or deliver content when you are on our Services or on other devices, apps or websites.

c. Interest-Based Advertising 

We (or our service providers) may use the information we collect, for example, IP addresses and unique mobile device identifiers, to locate or try to locate the same unique users across multiple browsers or devices (such as smartphones, tablets, or computers), or work with providers that do this, in order to better tailor content and features and provide you with a seamless experience across devices. If you wish to opt out of cross device tracking for purposes of interest-based advertising, you may do so through your device settings. We may also use cross-device targeting to help identify our users and serve advertising. This type of advertising is often called “interest-based” or “personalized” advertising—and when it occurs on mobile apps, “cross-app” advertising.

You can learn more about interest-based advertising and how to opt-out of receiving tailored advertising by visiting (i) the Network Advertising Initiative’s Consumer Opt-Out link or (ii) the Digital Advertising Alliance’s Consumer Opt-Out link. 

To opt out of Google Analytics for display advertising or customize Google display network ads, you can visit the Google Ads Settings page.

To opt out of Twitter’s interest-based ads, you can follow their instructions posted here. 

To opt out of Facebook’s interest based ads, you can follow their instructions posted here. 

Please note that even if you opt-out, you may still receive advertisements from us. However, the advertising will not be tailored to your interests. Also, we do not control any of the above opt-out links or whether any particular company chooses to participate in these opt-out programs.

d. Mobile Applications 

Depending on your permissions, we may receive your Personal Information from your Internet service and mobile device providers. Users of mobile devices who do not want to receive interest-based advertising may opt-out in several ways. You can learn more about your choices for mobile devices by visiting http://www.aboutads.info/appchoices. Each operating system, (iOS for Apple phones, Android for Android devices, and Windows for Microsoft devices) provides its own instructions on how to prevent the delivery of tailored in-application advertisements. You should view your device or system “Settings” to determine how you can opt out of use of your device ID for “cross-app” personalized advertising.

3. Use of Your Personal Information

We may use the information we collect or receive about you for various purposes.

a. To Provide You With Our Services

We use your information to provide you with our Services. For example, if you utilize video remote interpreting or any of our individual payer services, we use credit card information to complete a transaction or an address to fulfill your purchase order. If the applicable information is to be provided or Service is to be performed by a third party, then we will disclose the applicable Personal Information to the third party providing the information or performing applicable Services. Your information may be available or provided to third-party service providers (such as credit card companies, and payment processing companies) and that are contractually obligated to protect your information as disclosed in this Policy. 

b. To Maintain, Improve, and Personalize our Services

We use your information for our everyday business operations such as auditing, administration of the Services, forum management, fulfillment, and analytics. Your information may also be used to improve the content and/or functionality of the Services. For example, it may be used to help us improve our offerings. We also use your information to personalize your experience. We may personalize the content and features you see when visiting our Services. In addition, we may personalize advertisements, marketing communications, and recommendations to make them more tailored to your interests.

c. To Communicate with You

We use your information to communicate with you. We may contact you with promotional offerings or other communications that may be of interest to you. If we send you marketing emails about Services that may interest you, each email will contain instructions permitting you to “unsubscribe” from receiving future marketing or other communications within ten (10) days. 

In the event you contact us, we use certain information to respond to your questions and assist you with any issues that may arise in your use of the Services. 

d. For Account and Network Security Purposes

We care about keeping you secure and safe while using our Services. Keeping you safe requires us to process your Personal Information, such as your device information, activity information and other relevant information. We use such information to combat spam, malware, malicious activities or security risks; improve and enforce our security measures; and to monitor and verify your identity so that unauthorized users do not gain access to your information. 

e. To Maintain Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Our Services are subject to certain laws and regulations which may require us to process your Personal Information. For example, we process your information to fulfill our business obligations, or as necessary to manage risk as required under applicable law.

f. To Enforce Compliance with Our Terms of Use and Policies

When you access or use our Services, you are bound to the applicable Terms of Use for the Services and this Policy. To ensure you comply with them, we process your Personal Information by actively monitoring, investigating, preventing and mitigating any alleged or actual prohibited, illicit or illegal activities on our Services. We also process your Personal Information to: investigate, prevent or mitigate violations of our internal terms, agreements or policies; and enforce our agreements with third parties and business partners.

g. To Protect You, Others, and Our Business

We use your information to protect you, others, and our business, including, without limitation, using information for fraud prevention, for enforcement of our Terms of Use, to comply with the law, and to protect against security risks.

h. For Our Business Purposes

We may use your information for any other purpose disclosed to you at the time we collect or receive the information, or otherwise with your consent.

4. Sharing of Personal Information with Third Parties

Your Personal Information is not shared with third parties without your permission, except as described below.

a. Service Providers

We may share your information with our third-party service providers for certain business purposes. This information is provided in order for them to provide us services such as payment processing, advertising services, marketing partners, web analytics, data processing, IT services, customer support and other services. These third-party service providers have access to your Personal Information solely for the purpose of performing services on our behalf and are expressly obligated not to disclose or use your Personal Information for any other purpose.

Here is a list of some of the third-party service providers that we use: 

  • BoostLingo

  • NetSuite

  • HubSpot

  • PandaDoc

b. Partners 

We may share your information with our partners, such as CAV, for certain business purposes. CAV is the administrator of the Video Relay Services.  Convo Canada will need to share information with CAV to provide you with the Video Relay Services using the CAV platform.  Any information that Convo Canada share with CAV is subject to CAV’s terms and conditions and privacy policy which you can review here: https://srvcanadavrs.ca/en/privacy/. 

c. When Required by Law

We recognize that information related to your orders could contain private information. However, we may be required to disclose your information to third parties including law enforcement agencies when required to protect and defend our legal rights, protect the security of users of our Services, prevent fraud, comply with the law, respond to legal process, or a request for cooperation by a government entity. 

d. Corporate Transactions

In the event of a sale, transfer, amalgamation, merger, reorganization, dissolution, or similar event we may transfer your information to one or more third parties as part of that transaction.

e. With Your Consent

We also may share or disclose your information with your consent or at your direction. 

5. Security of Personal Information

We have implemented organizational, technological, and physical security controls that are designed to safeguard Personal Information. However, no online activity is ever fully secure or error-free. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee that your Personal Information is absolutely secure. Please keep this in mind when disclosing any information to us.

Please recognize that protecting your Personal Information is also your responsibility. We urge you to take every precaution to protect your information when you are on the Internet, or when you communicate with us and with others through the Internet. 

6. Retention

We will retain your Personal Information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with the Services and to maintain a record of your transactions. We will retain and use your Personal Information to the extent necessary to comply with our legal obligations (for example, if we are required to retain your data to comply with applicable laws), resolve disputes, and enforce our legal agreements and policies.

We will also retain platform traffic Usage Data for internal analysis purposes. Usage Data is generally retained for a shorter period of time, except when this data is used to strengthen the security or to improve the functionality of our Services, or we are legally obligated to retain this data for longer time periods.

7. Your Rights

Convo Canada aims to take reasonable steps to allow you to correct, amend, delete, or limit the use of your Personal Information.  Whenever possible, you can update your Personal Information directly by logging into your Convo Account. If you are unable to change your Personal Information, please contact us at contact@convo.ca to make the required changes. 

a. Your Rights

This section lists the privacy-related rights (“Rights”) we extend to all of our customers.  Your right to know and right to deletion are not absolute and are subject to certain exceptions. For example, we cannot disclose specific pieces of Personal Information if the disclosure would create a substantial, articulable, and unreasonable risk to the security of the Personal Information, your account with us or the security of our systems.

  • Right to Know – You have the right to know the Personal Information we collect, use, and disclose about you. 

  • Right to Deletion – You have the right to request that we delete any Personal Information we have collected from you or maintain about you. We may save Personal Information when permitted by applicable law including, without limitation, when the information is needed for a legal purpose. 

  • Right to Rectification – If you have a Convo Account, you may modify your Personal Information by contacting us at contact@convo.ca.  

You can also request that we provide you with a copy of your Personal Information in a commonly used electronic format so that you can manage and move it.

For deletion of Personal Information, if your Personal Information is part of a MasterFile Audit Trail record, it will be replaced with anonymous data so that the integrity of the audit trail remains.

Please note that we may ask you to verify your identity before responding to such requests.

b. Asserting Your Rights

You may exercise your right to know or your right to deletion by contacting us as set out in Section 15. We may ask you to verify your identity if you are contacting us through online chat, email, video phone, or other video conferencing mechanisms. You may also designate an authorized agent to make a request to know or a request to delete. In order to be able to act, authorized agents have to submit proof that they are authorized to act on your behalf, or have a power of attorney. We may deny requests from authorized agents who do not submit proof that they have been authorized by you to act on their behalf.

For Personal Information that we have collected that is not accessible through the Convo Account, you can request, in writing, that we correct an error or omission to your Personal Information or delete your Personal Information.  We will respond to written requests within thirty (30) days, or alternatively, the timeframe prescribed by the relevant legislation.

8. Transfer of Personal Information

While Convo Canada is based in Canada, we have operations in various countries. Regardless of where you use our Services, the information collected as part of that use will be transferred to and maintained on servers located in Canada and other countries (such as the United States, Canada, South Africa, United Kingdom, and Australia) in which the privacy laws may not be as comprehensive as or equivalent to those in the country where you reside and/or are a citizen.  By using our Services, you consent to this collection, transfer, storage, and processing of information to and in Canada.

Convo Canada will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy and no transfer of your Personal Information will take place to an organization or a country unless there are adequate controls in place including the security of your data and other Personal Information.

9. Payments 

We may provide paid products and/or services within the Services. In that case, we use third-party services for payment processing (e.g., payment processors).

We will not store or collect your payment card details. That information is provided directly to our third-party payments processor whose use of your personal information is governed by their privacy policy.

All payment processors adhere to the standards set by PCI-DSS as managed by the PCI Security Standards Council, which is a joint effort of brands like Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover PCI-DSS requirements help ensure the secure handling of payment information.

10. Third-Party Sites

Some of the functionality may be provided by third parties and the Services may link to other third-party websites that are not controlled by Convo Canada. These third parties are not under our control and Convo Canada is not responsible for their privacy policies or practices. If you provide any Personal Information to any third party or through any such third-party website, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the privacy policies and practices of that third party.

11. Children’s Privacy 

We do not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from anyone under the legal age of majority (a “Minor”). If you are a parent or guardian and you are aware that your Minor has provided us with Personal Information, please contact us. If we become aware that we have collected Personal Information from Minor without verification of parental or guardian consent, we take steps to remove that information from our servers.

For Video Relay Services, CAV is responsible for obtaining consent from parents or guardians.  Minor may use the Service, as long as CAV obtains parental or guardian consent to allow the Minor to use the Service.  The parental or guardian consent form (the “Consent Form”) can be found here: https://srvcanadavrs.ca/en/parental-consent-form/. The Consent Form must be signed and returned to CAV by email or regular mail prior to the Minor having access to the Service.

When a parent or guardian registers to use the Service on behalf of a Minor, CAV will collect the Minor’s month and year of birth to verify the Minor’s age and determine when the Minor will reach the age of majority.  

12. “Do Not Track” Signals

We do not support Do Not Track (“DNT”). DNT is a preference you can set in your web browser to inform websites that you do not want to be tracked.

You can enable or disable DNT by visiting the Preferences or Settings page of your web browser.

13. Changes To This Privacy Policy

We may update our Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Policy on this page.

We will let you know via email and/or a prominent notice on our Services, prior to the change becoming effective and update the “effective date” at the top of this Policy.

You are advised to review this Policy periodically for any changes. Changes to this Policy are effective when they are posted on this page.

14. Contact Us

If you have any questions or concerns relating to this Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at contact@convo.ca.