Terms of use

Draft — pending review by counsel. These terms have not yet been reviewed by a lawyer and may change before SkipperCast offers paid accounts.

Draft dated September 28, 2026.

These terms apply when you use the SkipperCast website, app, feeds and downloads (“SkipperCast”). By using SkipperCast you agree to them. If you do not agree, do not use it.

1. Who may use SkipperCast

You must be at least 18 years old to use SkipperCast or create an account. SkipperCast is not directed to children.

2. A planning aid, not a navigation aid

SkipperCast is a trip-planning aid. It is not a navigation aid or a nautical chart and must not be used for navigation, collision avoidance, anchoring, or to decide whether a harbor entrance, bar or passage is safe. Maps, depths, habitat outlines, drift lines, bearings and exported waypoints can be incomplete, out of date, offset or wrong. Use current official charts, your vessel’s instruments and your own observation.

3. Forecasts and model output carry no guarantee

Wind, wave, current, temperature, comfort scores, habitat grades, search plans and alerts are estimates produced by computer models and automated processing of third-party data. They can be late, missing, stale or wrong, and actual conditions can differ sharply from any forecast. A good score or a “within your limits” alert is not a promise that conditions will be safe or that fish will be present. Check the official National Weather Service marine forecast and current observations before and during every trip.

4. Verify regulations with the authorities

Fishing regulations, seasons, bag and size limits, depth limits, marine protected areas and emergency closures change, sometimes with little notice. SkipperCast summarizes and links official sources but is not legal advice and is not an official source. Before you fish, verify the current rules with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and, for federal waters and groundfish areas, NOAA Fisheries. You are responsible for complying with all laws that apply to you.

5. You assume the risks of boating and fishing

Boating and fishing at sea are dangerous and can cause injury, death and loss of property. You alone decide whether, when and where to go, and you are responsible for your vessel, its equipment, its crew and passengers, and for following the rules of the road. You voluntarily assume all risks of any trip you plan or take, whether or not you used SkipperCast.

6. Accounts and subscriptions

Placeholder — to be completed before paid accounts launch. This section will describe account sign-up and security, subscription price and billing period, automatic renewal and how to cancel, free trials, refunds, price changes, and what happens to your data when an account or subscription ends. Today SkipperCast has no paid plans. Where optional sign-in is available, it only enables private trip alerts and comfort feedback.

7. Acceptable use

Do not misuse SkipperCast: do not attempt to access other people’s data, interfere with or overload the service, bypass rate limits or security controls, or use it for anything unlawful. We may suspend access that harms the service or other users.

8. Third-party data and software

SkipperCast relies on data and software from government agencies, research institutions and other providers, each under its own terms. See licences and attributions and sources & methods. No provider endorses SkipperCast. SkipperCast’s own code is covered by its licence.

9. No warranty

SkipperCast is provided “as is” and “as available”, without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including warranties of accuracy, completeness, timeliness, availability, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement, to the fullest extent permitted by law.

10. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, SkipperCast and its owner, contributors and suppliers are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for any injury, death, loss of property, fines, lost catch or lost profits, arising from your use of or reliance on SkipperCast. Their total liability for any claim relating to SkipperCast is limited to the greater of the amount you paid for SkipperCast in the 12 months before the claim or US$50 (placeholder amount; counsel to confirm). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so some of these may not apply to you.

11. Changes

We may change SkipperCast or these terms. The date at the top shows the current version. Material changes will be announced in the app before they take effect for existing accounts.

12. Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Placeholder: venue and dispute resolution (courts or arbitration) to be decided with counsel.

13. Contact

Placeholder: operator name and contact address to be added. Until then, report problems through the project issue tracker.

Privacy notice · Licences & attributions · Sources & methods