Terms of Service
Last updated: [Date of launch]
These terms explain how TatNav works and the rules for everyone who uses it. Please read them carefully. By creating an account you agree to them.
1. Who we are and what TatNav does
TatNav is run by TatNav Limited, a company registered in England and Wales (company number 16822847), registered office 128 City Road, London, EC1V 2NX ("TatNav", "we", "us").
TatNav is an online booking platform (a marketplace) that lets clients find, message and book independent tattoo artists and pay deposits. We provide the app, artist profiles, search, messaging, booking tools and secure payment of deposits. TatNav is launching in London first.
TatNav is not a tattoo studio and does not provide tattoo services. We do not employ the artists listed, and we do not control how artists carry out their work. Each artist is an independent business. We are not the artist’s agent. We act only as an intermediary that introduces clients and artists, helps them arrange bookings and collects deposits through our payment provider, Stripe, to pass to the artist.
2. Who your tattoo contract is with
When a booking is confirmed, the contract for the tattoo is directly between you (the client) and the artist only. TatNav is not a party to that contract.
The artist alone is responsible for the tattoo and everything to do with it, including: the design and consultation; consent forms; checking your age and photo ID on the day; hygiene and infection control; their equipment, needles and inks; carrying out the tattoo; the quality and result of the work, including any mistakes; any injury, infection, allergic reaction, scarring or other harm; aftercare advice; and following their licence, local authority rules and the law at their studio.
Any claim about the tattoo, including a claim that the artist was negligent or made a mistake, is between you and the artist (and the artist’s insurer), not TatNav. Your rights as a consumer under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 apply to the artist’s service. If something goes wrong, we will still help where we can, as explained in section 15. [Solicitor to confirm.]
Our contract with you covers the use of the TatNav platform and the booking fee. Our contract with artists is set out in these terms and the Artist Terms in section 12.
3. Age and eligibility
You must be 18 or over to use TatNav. It is illegal in the UK to tattoo anyone under 18, and artists must check photo ID before tattooing.
You must give accurate information, including your date of birth and a real photo of yourself, and keep your sign-in details secure. You are responsible for activity on your account.
When you sign up, you confirm your date of birth. Your artist will check your photo ID (passport or driving licence) before tattooing you, and may refuse or cancel the appointment if you cannot show it.
When you pay a deposit, you confirm again that you are 18 or over and that you will bring valid photo ID (passport or driving licence) to your appointment.
If you are under 18, or you cannot show valid photo ID, the artist cannot tattoo you. This counts as you cancelling the booking: the artist keeps the deposit and the booking fee is not refunded. This also applies if the artist finds out before the appointment that you are under 18.
We may suspend or close the account of anyone who gives a false date of birth or is under 18. An account we close can’t be opened again with the same email address.
4. How booking works
Every artist you can book has had their tattoo licence or local authority registration checked by TatNav. Artists appear in search and can receive bookings once they have signed in, accepted the Artist Terms and had their licence checked. Some artists also hold the Verified badge described in section 7.
1) You send a booking request to an artist with your idea, preferred date and time. No money is taken at this stage.
2) The artist reviews your request and accepts or declines it.
3) If the artist accepts, you pay the deposit and the TatNav booking fee through the app to confirm the booking. The booking is only confirmed once payment succeeds.
4) On the day, you pay the remaining price directly to the artist. The deposit comes off the final price. Prices shown on profiles are "from" prices; the final price is agreed between you and the artist.
Some artists work at more than one tattoo studio or shop. Their profile shows each studio and the days they are there, and your booking shows the studio and address for your appointment date. Please check your booking before you go. If the location changes, the artist will tell you in TatNav messaging.
5. Fees, payments, referrals and offers
Deposits: the deposit is at least 20% of the price of your tattoo (the artist’s estimate, or the fixed price for flash), and never less than £60. An artist may ask for a higher deposit on a service; you’ll always see the amount before you pay. The deposit and the £2.99 booking fee are the only payments made through TatNav. They are collected by our payment provider, Stripe. TatNav holds the deposit until the day of your appointment, then passes it to the artist after TatNav’s commission is taken. If a refund is due before then (for example, the artist cancels and you choose a refund), it comes from the deposit TatNav is holding. The rest of the price is paid directly to the artist in person on the day and does not go through TatNav.
Booking fee: clients pay a TatNav booking fee for each confirmed booking, paid with the deposit. It is £2.99. From 4 months after TatNav launches in the app stores, it is £4.99 when the deposit is over £100 (and stays £2.99 up to £100). The exact fee is always shown before you pay. The booking fee is not refunded in any case, including if you cancel, if the artist cancels and you choose a refund, or if the artist does not turn up: refunds cover the deposit only.
Artist commission: TatNav takes commission once per client. On the first paid booking between an artist and a client TatNav introduced (a client who found the artist on TatNav), TatNav keeps 20% of the deposit. Every later booking between that artist and that client has no commission. Own clients: there is no commission on any booking from a client who came through the artist’s own TatNav link before contacting the artist on TatNav. TatNav never takes anything from the balance paid on the day, and there is no monthly subscription or monthly fee. TatNav decides how each booking is classed, may correct a booking that was classed wrongly, and may suspend own-client pricing for an account that misuses it. The client’s booking fee applies to every booking. We will give at least 3 months’ notice of any change to commission or fees.
Founding 100: the first 100 artists to go live on TatNav (once their tattoo licence or registration is approved) pay 0% commission on deposits for 3 months. The 3 months start on the day TatNav launches in the app stores, or on the day the artist goes live if that is after launch. They also get a numbered Founding 100 badge, which stays on their profile for good, and a featured spot in the app. After the 3 months the standard 20% applies (10% on a referral session).
Referral codes: each account has a referral code made of letters and numbers, for example TN-7K4Q-92XM. A code must be entered within 14 days of joining. Each account can use only one code, and you cannot use your own. You can enter up to 5 wrong codes a day.
Client referrals: when a new client joins with a referral code, they get one booking with no booking fee straight away. The person who invited them gets one booking with no booking fee once the new client’s first deposit has been paid.
Artist referrals: when a new artist joins with another artist’s referral code, both artists get one confirmed session at 10% commission instead of 20%, once the new artist goes live (their tattoo licence or registration is approved). After that the standard 20% applies.
Referral credits and offers have no cash value, cannot be exchanged for money and cannot be transferred to anyone else. We may cancel credits and offers, and close accounts, if we reasonably believe a referral or offer has been abused, for example through fake or duplicate accounts, self-referrals or false information.
We may change or end the referral programme, the Founding 100 or any other promotional offer for future sign-ups. We will give notice in the app or by email before a change applies. A change will not take away credits or offers you have already earned, unless they were earned through abuse.
Payments are processed by Stripe. TatNav does not store full card numbers.
6. Rescheduling, cancellations and refunds
Before the artist accepts your request, you can withdraw it at no cost, because nothing has been paid.
After the artist accepts, your slot is held for 48 hours. If the deposit isn’t paid in that time, the slot is released and nothing is charged.
If you change your mind after paying, there is no refund of the deposit or booking fee, because the artist has reserved the time and started preparing your design. Please make sure of your date before you pay.
Instead of cancelling, either you or the artist can move a confirmed booking to a new date and time, as long as it is at least 48 hours before the appointment. Your deposit moves to the new date.
Less than 48 hours before the appointment, the booking can’t be moved in the app. If you cancel or don’t turn up, the artist keeps the deposit.
If the artist cancels, you choose: pick a new date with the artist (your deposit moves to it, with no 48-hour limit), or get a refund of your deposit to your original payment method. The booking fee is not refunded, because TatNav has provided the booking service.
If the artist doesn’t turn up for the appointment, you get a full refund of your deposit. The booking fee is not refunded.
Flash designs are requested, confirmed by the artist and paid for in the same way, and follow the same rules. This policy does not affect your statutory rights as a consumer.
7. Who can join as an artist, verification and badges
Artists can only join TatNav if they work from a tattoo studio or shop registered with the local council. TatNav does not list home-based or mobile tattooists. An artist can list up to 3 studios or shops they work from, and each one must be registered.
Going live: an artist appears in search, on the map and on style pages, and can take bookings, once they have signed in, accepted the Artist Terms and TatNav has checked their tattoo licence or local authority registration. A separate studio premises licence is optional.
Verified badge: artists with the green "Verified" badge have also shown TatNav valid public liability insurance, that TatNav has checked each registered tattoo studio or shop they list, and at least 6 photos of their own healed work, which TatNav has reviewed. Clients can choose to see only Verified artists. We remove the badge if one of these documents lapses or the artist has fewer than 6 photos of their healed work, until it is put right.
Identity: our payment provider, Stripe, checks each artist’s identity when they set up payouts, so TatNav does not collect photo ID from artists.
Licence checks and verification are checks of the documents an artist gave us at a point in time. They are not a guarantee, endorsement or recommendation of an artist’s skill, work, hygiene, safety or conduct, or of the result of your tattoo, and they do not make TatNav responsible for the artist’s work. Please look at portfolios and reviews and ask the artist questions before you book. [Solicitor to confirm.]
Artists must keep their licence or registration and their insurance valid for as long as they use TatNav, and must tell us straight away if any of them expires, is suspended or is withdrawn.
8. Reviews and ratings
Only clients who completed a booking through TatNav can review that artist, and artists can rate clients after an appointment.
Reviews must be honest and about your own experience. Fake reviews, reviews written in exchange for a reward, and reviews by friends, family or the artist themselves are not allowed. We check reviews and may remove any that break these rules or the law.
We do not hide or reorder reviews to make an artist look better, and we do not accept payment to change reviews.
9. Messaging and behaviour
Use TatNav messaging to discuss your tattoo, share ideas and arrange bookings. Be respectful. Harassment, hate speech, threats, explicit content sent without consent and spam are not allowed.
Keep bookings and deposits on TatNav. Taking payment outside the app means there is no TatNav record of the booking or payment, so we can’t help if something goes wrong, and it may lead to an account being suspended.
We may review messages when they are reported to us, or to keep the platform safe and meet legal obligations.
10. Your content, designs and social media
You keep ownership of photos and images you upload. You give TatNav a licence to store and display them in the app so the service works (for example, showing your inspiration to the artist you message).
Only upload images you have the right to share. Inspiration from other artists’ work is for reference only; artists should create an original design for you.
Who owns a custom tattoo design is agreed between you and the artist.
Artist content: artists keep ownership of their photos and videos. By adding content to TatNav, or letting us add it for you, an artist gives TatNav a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, store, display, copy, resize, crop and otherwise use the photos, videos, name, studio name and profile details they provide. We may use them on TatNav and to promote TatNav, for example on our website, in app store listings and on social media (such as "new artist" posts).
This licence lasts for as long as the content is on TatNav, plus a reasonable period after it is taken down for us to remove promotional posts. An artist can ask us to stop using their content to promote TatNav at any time by emailing info@tatnav.com. We will stop new promotional use and remove existing posts within a reasonable time. This does not affect how the content is shown on their profile.
Artists confirm that they own, or have the right to use, every photo and video they provide; that the work shown is their own; and that any client who can be seen or identified in a photo has agreed to it being shared. Artists will compensate TatNav for any claims, losses and reasonable costs that arise from content they provide, including claims that it breaks someone else’s rights or privacy.
Style guide images: some example images in the style guide may be illustrations made with AI to show what a style looks like. They are not an artist’s work. Artist portfolios must always show the artist’s own real work.
Promotions and social media: from time to time we run promotions and events, such as the #TatNavigation sticker hunt on social media. Taking part is optional and no purchase is needed. Any promotion may have its own rules, which we will publish. When taking part, you must not trespass, damage property, or put up stickers or other materials anywhere you do not have permission to.
If you post content publicly and tag TatNav or use a TatNav hashtag (such as #TatNavigation), you agree that we may repost or share it on TatNav’s channels with credit to you. If you would like us to take a repost down, email info@tatnav.com.
11. Health and safety
Tell your artist about any medical conditions, allergies, medication or pregnancy before your appointment. The artist will ask you to complete their own consent form.
TatNav does not give medical advice. Follow your artist’s aftercare instructions and see a doctor if you have concerns.
12. Extra terms for artists
You use TatNav as an independent business. You are not TatNav’s employee, worker or agent, and TatNav is not your agent.
You must hold the licence or registration your local authority requires for tattooing at each studio or shop you work from, keep valid public liability insurance, follow health and safety and hygiene law, check every client’s age with photo ID, and handle clients’ personal data lawfully.
Never tattoo anyone under 18, or anyone who can’t show valid photo ID. If that happens with a paid booking, don’t cancel it in the app (cancelling offers the client a refund). Leave the booking as it is and tap Report a problem with this client on the booking: under the Terms this counts as the client cancelling, so you keep your share of the deposit, paid on the day of the appointment as usual. TatNav may close the client’s account.
When you join, and when you accept these terms in the app, you confirm by ticking that: you tattoo from a tattoo studio or shop registered with the local council (not from home or as a mobile artist); you hold the licence or registration needed for each studio or shop you work at; and you hold valid public liability insurance. You should also hold treatment risk or professional indemnity insurance suited to tattooing. You must keep all of these valid while you are on TatNav, and tell us straight away if any of them lapses, ends or is withdrawn.
By ticking, you accept that holding and keeping this licence, registration and insurance is your responsibility, not TatNav’s, and TatNav relies on your confirmation. Uploading your insurance certificate is optional for going live. It is needed for the Verified badge, and it is a good way to show clients you are covered. Unless you have the Verified badge, TatNav has not checked your insurance. We may ask to see your insurance certificate, licence or registration at any time, and you must show it to us.
Your studios: you can list up to 3 tattoo studios or shops you work from, and the days of the week you are at each one. Each one must be registered with the local council, and your licence or registration must cover tattooing there. Keep your studios and days up to date so clients go to the right place. If the location of a confirmed booking changes, you must tell the client in TatNav messaging in good time before the appointment. For the Verified badge, TatNav checks each studio or shop you list.
You alone are responsible for each tattoo you carry out and everything about it, as set out in section 2. This includes the design and consultation, consent, age and ID checks on the day, hygiene and infection control, your equipment and inks, the procedure, any injury or harm to a client, mistakes or poor workmanship, aftercare advice, and following your licence and the law.
You agree to indemnify TatNav. This means you will pay TatNav back for any losses, claims, damages, costs (including reasonable legal costs) and fines that arise from: your tattoo services; any injury or harm to a client; your breach of these terms or the law; or any confirmation you gave or document you provided that was untrue, including about your licence, registration, studios or insurance. [Solicitor to confirm.]
You may choose up to 3 specialist styles so clients see genuine specialists. Your portfolio must be your own work.
Profiles set up by TatNav: you can send us your details and photos (for example through the form at tatnav.com/join, by direct message or by email), and we will set up your profile for you. The person sending the details confirms that they are the artist, or that they have the artist’s permission to send them.
When we set up a profile for you, we use the information you give us. You are responsible for checking and correcting your profile, prices, services, styles, photos and hours once you sign in. TatNav is not responsible for errors in information supplied to us.
A profile we set up for you is not shown to clients until you have signed in yourself, accepted these terms and the Artist Terms yourself, and we have checked your tattoo licence or local authority registration. The Verified badge also needs your public liability insurance, a check of each registered tattoo studio or shop you list and at least 6 photos of your own healed work.
Artist accounts can use client mode to book other artists, but you cannot book, message or review your own profile.
You must honour confirmed bookings. If you can’t attend, reschedule with at least 48 hours’ notice where possible.
You are responsible for your own tax. TatNav holds each deposit until the day of the appointment, then pays your share (the deposit minus our commission) to your Stripe account. Stripe then pays it into your bank on your payout schedule. If a client cancels and forfeits their deposit, your share is paid straight away. If you cancel and the client chooses a refund, or you don’t turn up, you don’t receive that deposit.
If your licence or registration expires, lapses or is found to be false, or any document you give us is found to be false, we may hide your profile or suspend your account. If a document behind your Verified badge lapses, or your portfolio has fewer than 6 photos of your own healed work, we will remove the badge until it is put right.
13. Our responsibility to you
We provide the platform with reasonable care and skill.
TatNav is not liable for the acts or omissions of artists, the quality or result of a tattoo, the artist’s premises, or any injury, loss or damage caused by an artist, because the artist provides the tattoo service, not TatNav. Claims about these are with the artist, as explained in section 2.
We do our best to keep TatNav available and working, but we cannot promise it will always be available or free from errors. We are not responsible for information provided by artists or clients, including profiles, prices and photos.
Clients: for anything else, our total liability to you is limited to [the booking fees you paid TatNav in the 12 months before the claim, or £100, whichever is higher].
Artists and business users: we are not liable to you for loss of profit, income, bookings, business, goodwill or opportunity, or for any indirect loss. Our total liability to an artist is limited to [the commission TatNav took from that artist in the 12 months before the claim].
Nothing in these terms excludes or limits any liability that cannot be excluded or limited by law, including liability for death or personal injury caused by TatNav’s own negligence, or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation. Nothing in these terms affects your statutory rights as a consumer, including under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. [Solicitor to confirm.]
14. Suspending or closing accounts
You can close your account at any time in the app. We may suspend or close accounts that break these terms, put others at risk or misuse payments. We will tell you why unless the law or safety stops us.
We may also cancel referral credits or offers, and suspend or close accounts, where we reasonably believe someone has abused a referral or offer, for example by creating fake or duplicate accounts.
15. Problems and complaints
If something goes wrong, contact the artist first through TatNav messaging. If you cannot resolve it, contact us at info@tatnav.com and we will try to help.
16. Changes and the law
We may update these terms. We will tell you about important changes in the app before they apply.
These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. If you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you can also bring proceedings in your local courts.