Terms & Conditions

Welcome to The Missing Word! These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") outline the rules and regulations for the use of our mobile application (the "App"). By accessing or using the App, you agree to comply with these Terms. Please also read our separate Privacy Policy, which explains how we collect and use your data, and our Complaints Procedure, both accessible via the App menu.

1. General Usage and Account Registration

• Themed Packs: General gameplay (Themed Packs) is available without creating an account. Themed Pack names are: Nature, Science, Food, Music and Arts. These names and the puzzles the packs contain may change without prior notice.
• Prize Packs: To access "Prize Packs" and participate in the monthly prize draw, you must register an account using a valid email address, and accept these Terms and our Privacy Policy.
• Geographic eligibility: Prize Packs and the prize draw are available to registered users residing in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
• Age confirmation at registration: When registering, you will be asked to confirm your date of birth via a pop-up window (left blank by default, not pre-filled). This confirmation is a self-declaration and does not itself verify your age or restrict your access to Prize Packs. To be eligible to claim the £100 prize, you must in fact be 18 years of age or over, and we may request proof of age before paying out. Providing a false or inaccurate date of birth will result in disqualification and forfeiture of any prize.
• You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or exhibit suspicious activity.

2. Prize Draw Rules

• Eligibility: The £100 prize draw is open to registered users, resident in the UK, who have successfully completed a designated "Prize Pack" (e.g., Aha-Lanche, Linkstinct, Sparklink) and who are 18 years of age or over. You must provide accurate and truthful information throughout registration, gameplay, and the prize-claiming process.
• No purchase necessary.
• How to participate: See the User Instructions section, accessible via the Menu button.
• Changes to Prize Packs: Prize Pack names and/or their contents may change from time to time. Where this happens, we will display a pop-up notice on the App's main screen in advance, stating the date the change will take effect. You may dismiss this notice and continue playing.
• Entry mechanic: After completing a Prize Pack, you must email us to confirm your completion and enter that month's draw, using the email address registered with your account. Your entry will be verified against our internal completion records before being counted as valid — an email claiming completion does not by itself guarantee entry; only entries confirmed against our records are included in the draw. One entry per registered account, regardless of how many Prize Packs you complete in a given month.
• Prize value: The current prize value is displayed on the main screen of the App. The value applicable to your entry is whichever value was displayed at the time we receive your qualifying entry email. If the prize value increases before the draw takes place, entries already submitted will benefit from the increased amount. If the prize value decreases, entries already submitted before the change will still receive the original value they entered under.
• Draw frequency: The draw takes place once a month. Results are announced on the first working day of the following month. If you complete a Prize Pack and submit a valid entry after that month's announcement date, your entry will be included in the following month's draw.
• Number of prizes: One prize is awarded per month, regardless of how many valid entries are received. Some months may have no winner.
• Winner selection: Where there is more than one valid entry in a given month, the winner will be selected at random from the pool of valid entries. The winner will be notified via the email address associated with their account.
• Unclaimed prize: If there is no winner in a given month, the prize does not roll over — the following month's prize remains at its current value.
• Right to amend or cancel: We reserve the right to amend or cancel future prize draws without prior notice. This does not affect the entitlement of a winner already validated under these Terms, or entries already submitted for the current month's draw at the time of any such change.
• Conditions: Prizes are non-transferable. We reserve the right to verify the legitimacy of any winning entry. Exploiting the App's backend API, or using automated scripts or bots to generate entries, will result in immediate disqualification and account termination.
• Tax: Winners are solely responsible for any tax liability arising from receipt of the prize.

3. Prize Eligibility: Right to Disqualify or Cancel

By participating in our £100 Prize Pack draw, you agree to provide accurate, complete, and truthful information. We reserve the right to disqualify any user, cancel any entry, and withhold or reclaim the £100 prize under the following circumstances:

• Account Integrity: Use of multiple accounts, automated bots, scripts, or any unauthorised software to manipulate gameplay or puzzle completion.
• Age Verification: Providing a false or inaccurate date of birth at registration, failing to provide valid proof of age upon request (e.g. passport, driving licence), or it otherwise being discovered that you do not meet the minimum age requirement to claim the prize. Being truthfully under 18 is not itself misconduct — it simply means you are not eligible to claim the prize; providing false information about your age is.
• False Information: Providing any false, misleading, inaccurate, or stolen information during account creation, gameplay, or the prize-claiming process.
• Authentication Manipulation: User authentication is managed via Firebase (Google). Any attempt to exploit, bypass, or tamper with Firebase authentication protocols will result in immediate account termination and forfeiture of any prize.

For queries and how to submit a complaint, please see our Complaints Procedure.

4. Data Protection and Third-Party Services

Account registration and authentication are processed via Firebase, a service provided by Google. Details of how your data is collected, stored, and used are set out in our separate Privacy Policy, which forms part of these Terms.

5. Intellectual Property

All content within The Missing Word, including but not limited to puzzles, text, graphics, logos, and software code, is the intellectual property of Chris Holt and is protected by applicable copyright laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works without explicit permission.

6. Limitation of Liability

The App is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. We do not warrant that the App will be uninterrupted or error-free. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, or consequential damages arising from your use of the App or participation in the prize draw.

7. Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. Any disputes relating to these Terms will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.