Independent Contractor Terms

Version 2026-10-20 · Last updated: October 2026

These Independent Contractor Terms ("Contractor Terms") form a binding agreement between you ("Contractor") and Helpman, operated by Mendoza Capital LLC ("Platform", "we", "us") when you accept a job offer through the Platform. Accepting a job in your portal records your agreement to the version in effect at that time.

1. Independent contractor relationship

• You are an independent contractor, not an employee, agent, or partner of the Platform. Nothing here creates an employment or joint-venture relationship.
• You are solely responsible for your own taxes, insurance, licenses, permits, employees, and subcontractors, and for compliance with all applicable laws.
• You must maintain, at your own cost, a valid trade license (where required), general liability insurance, and workers' compensation coverage (where required) for the entire time you accept jobs.

2. Job offers & acceptance

• Job offers are made by the Platform; each offer states the scope, customer budget allocated to you, address, and notes.
• You may accept or decline any offer. Accepting creates your commitment to perform the described work professionally and on the agreed schedule.
• Accepting a job through the portal constitutes your electronic signature on these Contractor Terms for that job.

3. Platform fee & payment

• The customer pays the Platform. Your compensation is the contractor budget stated in the job offer — the difference is the Platform's service fee for marketing, quoting, payments, scheduling, and support.
• Payment is released as customer-approved milestones complete, minus any agreed adjustments. Payout timing follows the schedule communicated in your portal.
• You will receive documentation of amounts paid for your tax records. You are responsible for reporting this income.

4. No direct contact / non-circumvention

• All communication with the customer is mediated by Platform support. Direct contact with the customer outside the Platform — during or for 12 months after a job — is prohibited.
• You will not solicit, divert, or service Platform customers directly to avoid the Platform fee. Breach may result in immediate removal and liability for lost fees.

5. Quality, safety & conduct

• Perform all work in a professional, workmanlike manner, to applicable codes, keeping the site reasonably clean and safe.
• Upload progress and completion photos as required. Mark milestones complete only when the work is actually done.
• Background checks and credential verifications may be repeated periodically. Providing false information is grounds for immediate removal.

6. Cancellations, rework & chargebacks

• If the customer reasonably rejects a milestone, you will correct the work at your cost within a reasonable time.
• If you abandon a job or fail to perform, the Platform may reassign it and deduct resulting costs from amounts owed to you.

7. Confidentiality

Customer contact details, addresses, and pricing are confidential Platform information. Do not disclose or misuse them.

8. Termination

Either party may stop working together at any time. Jobs already accepted must be completed or properly handed off. Sections 4, 6, 7, and 9 survive termination.

9. Limitation of liability & disputes

• To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Platform's liability to you is limited to amounts owed for work actually performed and approved.
• Disputes will be resolved first by good-faith negotiation with Platform support, then by binding arbitration in California under the rules of the American Arbitration Association, with each party bearing its own costs except as the arbitrator decides.

10. Changes & contact

We may update these Contractor Terms; the version you accept per job governs that job. Questions: generalhandymans@gmail.com.