Privacy Policy
Pilot version · Effective November 3, 2026
VessBooks is in a free pilot with a small group of users. This policy may be updated before general release; if it changes, you'll be asked to agree again in the app.
1. Who we are and what this policy covers
VessBooks is operated by VessBooks LLC, a South Carolina limited liability company ("VessBooks," "we," "us"). This policy explains what information we collect when you use the VessBooks app and website, how we use it, who can see it, and the choices you have.
VessBooks keeps a shared written record for each vessel: items found, quotes, approvals, change orders, work, invoices, payments, logs, maintenance and documents. People are invited to a vessel in a role (owner, captain, manager, crew, service provider or technician), and each role sees what it needs.
This policy applies to everyone who uses VessBooks, including people who receive a VessBooks invite, quote request or invoice by email or text. It does not cover the websites or payment services of service providers or others that you reach through VessBooks.
2. Information we collect
You give us:
- Account: name, email address and password (the password is handled by our sign-in provider; we never see it).
- Profile: an optional photo and an optional mobile number. Your name and photo are shown to people on the vessels you are on. Your mobile number is kept private unless you choose to share it.
- Vessel records: vessel details (name, length, builder, hull ID, registration and similar), jobs, quotes, approvals, change orders, notes, parts, messages on jobs, cruising log entries, engine hours, maintenance plans, equipment and spares, crew reports and supply requests.
- Photos and files: photos taken aboard (before and after work, findings, equipment), receipts, and vessel documents such as registration, documentation, insurance policies and surveys.
- Business details: for service providers, captains and managers who send invoices: business name, logo, address, phone, email, license number, payment link and payment instructions (for example Zelle or check details).
- Payment records: the method and reference you enter when you record that a payment was sent or received. We do not collect or store card or bank account numbers.
- Contacts: names and contact details of other people a vessel keeps on file (for example a broker, insurance agent or surveyor), entered by people on that vessel.
- Location, only when you tap for it: when you tap "Use my location" in the cruising log, or "I'm on board" on a job, your phone is asked for its position once and it is saved with that log entry or job. Your phone asks your permission first, and you can say no. VessBooks does not track your location in the background.
Collected automatically:
- Device and app data: device type, browser, language, time zone, and the time of actions you take in the app.
- Notification tokens: if you turn on phone alerts, a token that lets us send alerts to that device.
- Basic logs: our hosting and database providers keep technical logs (such as IP address and errors) to run and protect the service.
We do not use advertising trackers, and we do not sell your information.
3. How we use information
We use information to:
- Run VessBooks: keep each vessel's record, show it to the right people, and move jobs, approvals, invoices and payments through their steps.
- Send alerts, reminders and emails you ask for or need: something waiting on you, invoices due, documents expiring, maintenance due, and a weekly summary. You can change these in Settings.
- Send a quote request or invite on behalf of someone on a vessel, to a service provider or person they name.
- Put your business details on the invoices you send.
- Read photos you choose to scan. When you tap Upload or scan, Scan the receipt, or drop a photo or PDF on a vessel page, the image is sent to Google's AI service to read it and fill in a form (a document, a piece of equipment, a past invoice or a receipt). Nothing is saved until you check the form and tap Save. Google processes the image for us only and, under its terms for business customers, does not use it to train its AI models.
- Keep VessBooks secure, prevent fraud and misuse, and fix problems.
- Improve VessBooks, using information in ways that do not identify you where we can.
- Meet legal obligations and enforce our Terms of Service.
We do not sell personal information, and we do not use it for advertising.
4. Who can see your information
People on the same vessel, by role. VessBooks is built for sharing a vessel's record. What each role sees:
| Role | Sees |
|---|---|
| Owner | Everything on the vessel, including all prices, invoices, receipts and the log |
| Captain, manager | Jobs, prices, service providers, documents, log and maintenance; invoices they sent themselves |
| Crew | Their own reports, the crew report list and equipment; no prices, invoices, jobs or log |
| Service provider | Only jobs sent to their company, with their own prices and messages |
| Technician | Only jobs assigned to them; no prices, invoices or job messages |
Your name and profile photo are your public card: any signed-in VessBooks user can see them, and they appear next to what you do on shared vessels. Nothing else about you is on that card.
Outside services we use to run VessBooks. These process information only on our behalf:
- Google Firebase and Google Cloud (Google LLC): sign-in, database, file storage, background processing, phone alerts, and AI reading of photos you scan (Vertex AI), hosted in the United States.
- Netlify: hosting of the app and website.
- Resend: sending emails.
Documents you share by link. When someone on a vessel shares a document with a person outside VessBooks (for example a marina office or a broker), VessBooks makes a link to that copy. Anyone who has the link can open that copy. The vessel's record notes who shared it, with whom and when.
Payment links. When you tap Pay invoice, you leave VessBooks for the service provider's own payment page (for example Square, Stripe, QuickBooks or PayPal). That company's privacy policy applies there.
Legal reasons. We may share information if the law requires it, to respond to valid legal process, to protect the rights and safety of users or others, or as part of a merger or sale of VessBooks (in which case this policy continues to apply).
5. Records that are kept, leaving a vessel, and sale of a vessel
Vessel records are kept. VessBooks exists to keep a reliable history, so some records are never deleted or rewritten: the paper trail of each job (who did what and when), sent quotes, change-order prices and invoices, and cruising log entries. When an entry is corrected, the earlier version stays visible. Your name stays on the entries you made, even after you leave a vessel or close your account.
The owner controls the vessel's records. The owner decides who is invited and can remove people (except other owners).
If you leave a vessel or are removed, you can no longer see that vessel's records. What you did stays in the vessel's history.
If a vessel is sold, the owner may hand the vessel and its full history to the new owner. The new owner will be able to see the vessel's past records, including jobs, prices, invoices, messages on jobs, logs and documents.
Other information (your account, profile, notification settings, business profile) is kept while your account is open and for a reasonable period after you close it, unless the law requires us to keep it longer.
6. Your choices and rights
Your account and profile. You can change your name, photo, mobile number and language in the app at any time.
Notifications. In Settings → Notifications you can turn phone alerts and emails on or off by type, and set quiet hours. Some messages about your account or legal changes may still be sent.
Access, correction and deletion. You can ask for a copy of your information, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete your account by emailing info@vessbooks.com. We will delete or anonymize your account information, but entries you made in a vessel's record stay in that vessel's history (see section 5), because the owner and others on the vessel rely on them. Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under local law; we will honor them as required.
People who are not VessBooks users. If someone on a vessel added your name or contact details (for example as a contact or a service provider), you can ask us to remove them at info@vessbooks.com.
Security. We use our providers' security controls, encrypted connections, and access rules that limit each person to what their role allows. No system is perfectly secure; if a breach affects you, we will notify you as the law requires.
Children. VessBooks is for adults. It is not directed to anyone under 18, and we do not knowingly collect their information.
International users. VessBooks is operated from the United States and your information is stored there. Vessels and users may be outside the U.S.; by using VessBooks you understand your information will be processed in the U.S.
7. Changes and contact
We may update this policy. If a change is significant, we will tell you in the app or by email before it takes effect. The date at the top shows the latest version.
Questions or requests: VessBooks LLC, info@vessbooks.com.