Terms of Service

Agreement to These Terms

Welcome to IllinoisBusinessesNearMe.com. These Terms of Service (the “Terms”) are an agreement between you and Illinois Businesses Near Me, the operator of this website (the “Operator”). Using the Site — browsing it, reading it, or interacting with anything on it — means you accept these Terms in full. If any part of them is unacceptable to you, your remedy is simple: do not use the Site.

Anyone using the Site for an organization warrants that they can bind that organization to these Terms.

Opinion, Not Fact

The Site publishes listings, rankings, ratings, profiles, articles, and related commentary concerning local businesses and service professionals (collectively, “Site Content”). Rankings, ranking positions, ratings, “pros and cons,” and similar evaluative content are statements of opinion reflecting the Operator’s editorial judgment. They are not statements of verifiable fact, are not guarantees of any business’s performance or results, and are not endorsements or recommendations of any business, notwithstanding any award, badge, label, ranking position, or similar designation appearing on the Site. Inclusion on, prominence within, or omission from the Site does not indicate that any business is or is not qualified, licensed, or suitable for any particular purpose or engagement.

How Rankings Are Made

How are the rankings produced? Through a blend of collected data and the Operator’s own editorial evaluation. The Operator alone decides what factors count, how much they count, and when judgment should depart from them; it may add, remove, revise, re-rank, or decline to publish anything on the Site at any time and without notice. No business is guaranteed inclusion, any particular placement, or continued appearance.

Advertising and Compensation Disclosure

The Operator may accept compensation from businesses listed or eligible to be listed on the Site, or related businesses, including for advertising, sponsorship, promotion, or enhanced placement on the Site. Profiles or listings labeled “Featured” or bearing a similar designation may reflect a paid, sponsored, or client relationship with the Operator or its affiliates. Featured and similar designations denote prominence or promotional placement on the Site; they are not a representation that the designated business ranks highest under the Site’s evaluation criteria. Compensation does not guarantee inclusion, placement, ranking position, or favorable commentary, and the absence of compensation does not preclude inclusion.

Submissions

If you submit any content or information to the Site or the Operator — including profile information, corrections, dispute submissions, reviews, or feedback — you grant the Operator a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, transferable, sublicensable, worldwide license to host, use, reproduce, modify, publish, display, and distribute that submission in connection with the Site and the Operator’s business, and you represent that you have all rights necessary to grant this license and that the submission is accurate. Submissions are non-confidential, and the Operator has no obligation to publish, retain, or return them.

Third-Party Content

The Site displays, incorporates, and links to content originating with third parties, including business profile information, photographs, reviews, ratings, data feeds, and websites operated by businesses or data providers (“Third-Party Content”). Third-Party Content is the sole responsibility of the person or entity that provided it. The Operator hosts and displays Third-Party Content as an interactive computer service; it does not author, adopt, verify, or endorse Third-Party Content and is not responsible for its accuracy, completeness, or legality. Statements made by or attributed to a business — including claims regarding experience, credentials, awards, or results — are that business’s alone. Links to third-party websites are provided for convenience only and do not imply endorsement or association.

Your Dealings With Listed Businesses

The Operator is not a provider of, and does not perform, participate in, or facilitate, any of the services offered by businesses listed on the Site; is not a licensed contractor, attorney, medical or dental provider, real estate broker, or other professional; and is not a party to any engagement between you and any business identified on the Site. Any engagement, communication, negotiation, or transaction between you and a business is solely between you and that business and is undertaken at your own risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, you release the Operator and its affiliates, officers, directors, employees, and agents from any and all claims, demands, damages, and liabilities of every kind arising out of or relating to your dealings with any business, including that business’s acts, omissions, representations, services, or performance.

Errors and Corrections

Mistakes happen — in listings, rankings, metrics, and articles. The Operator may fix, amend, or remove content whenever it chooses, without notice, and is never obligated to. Spotted a factual error, like a wrong phone number or address? Email hello@illinoisbusinessesnearme.com with documentation and it will be considered in good faith; the final call rests with the Operator. Any correction, update, annotation, or removal is undertaken for accuracy and goodwill purposes only and is not, and shall not be construed as, an admission of error, fault, wrongdoing, or liability by the Operator. No liability arises from any error, inaccuracy, or omission, including for the period before a fix.

Information Disputes; Exclusive Remedy

Businesses that disagree with something published about them have one route: a written submission to hello@illinoisbusinessesnearme.com that names the exact content at issue, explains the basis, and documents any factual claims. The Operator reviews such submissions in good faith and resolves them at its sole discretion, consistent with the sections on the nature of the Site and the corrections process. Opinion content — including rankings and evaluative commentary — need not be changed in response to any dispute. If the Site dissatisfies you, your exclusive remedy is to discontinue use.

No Professional Advice

Treat everything on the Site as general information, never as professional advice. No attorney-client, provider-patient, contractor-client, or advisory relationship is created by reading it, and responsibility for decisions made in reliance on the Site rests entirely with you.

Using the Site

Lawful use only. Do not interfere with the Site’s operation, seek unauthorized access, introduce malicious code, impersonate anyone, or turn Site Content into raw material for a rival directory or ranking service.

Automated access: good-faith automated indexing and retrieval of publicly available pages by search engines and artificial intelligence systems is permitted, consistent with the Site’s robots.txt (and llms.txt where published). All other automated collection, scraping, or bulk downloading of Site Content is prohibited without the Operator’s prior written consent.

Citation: the Operator grants a limited, revocable license to quote or cite Site rankings and brief excerpts of Site Content, with attribution to IllinoisBusinessesNearMe.com and, where practicable, a link to the Site, provided the quotation is accurate and not misleading. This license does not permit republication of substantial portions of the Site.

Intellectual Property; Limited License

The Site and Site Content — including text, graphics, images, data compilations, software, and their selection and arrangement — are owned by the Operator or its licensors and protected by United States and international intellectual property laws. You receive a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and view the Site for lawful purposes. Except as allowed under the the citation license sections of these Terms, Site Content may not be copied, republished, distributed, sold, or commercially exploited without the Operator’s prior written consent.

About the Information on This Site

Information here comes from many places — public records, licensing data, review platforms, data providers, and the businesses themselves — and portions of Site Content are assembled or generated using automated and AI-assisted tools, and displayed figures — ratings, review counts, and similar metrics — may be estimates derived from third-party data as of an earlier date. It can be wrong, incomplete, or out of date, and the Operator does not warrant otherwise or promise to keep any of it refreshed.

You use this free Site at your own risk. Check a business’s license, credentials, and fit for your job yourself before hiring anyone.

Disclaimer of Warranties

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE SITE AND ALL SITE CONTENT ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE,” WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, TIMELINESS, AND UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE OPERATION. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED FROM THE OPERATOR OR THROUGH THE SITE CREATES ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THESE TERMS.

Limitation of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE OPERATOR AND ITS AFFILIATES, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, GOODWILL, OR DATA, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SITE OR ANY SITE CONTENT — INCLUDING ANY ERROR, INACCURACY, OMISSION, RANKING, EVALUATIVE COMMENTARY, OR THIRD-PARTY CONTENT, AND INCLUDING ANY RELIANCE THEREON — UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THE OPERATOR’S AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SITE SHALL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF THE AMOUNTS YOU PAID THE OPERATOR IN THE TWELVE MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM OR ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS (US $100). SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN EXCLUSIONS OR LIMITATIONS, IN WHICH CASE THEY APPLY TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED.

Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Operator and its affiliates, officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to your breach of these Terms, your submissions, your violation of any law or the rights of any third party, or your use of the Site or Site Content other than as expressly authorized in these Terms.

Governing Law; Dispute Resolution; Jury Waiver

These Terms and any dispute arising out of or relating to them or the Site are governed by the laws of the State of New Hampshire, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Site, including any claim based on alleged tort, shall be resolved exclusively by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Commercial Arbitration Rules, held in Concord or Manchester, New Hampshire. The proceedings shall be confidential to the extent permissible, and judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AND THE OPERATOR EACH IRREVOCABLY WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE SITE.

Changes to These Terms

Revised Terms become effective when posted to this page with a new effective date, and your continued use is your acceptance of them. The Operator may also modify, suspend, or retire any part of the Site whenever it chooses, without notice or liability.

General Terms

If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable, it will be modified to the minimum extent necessary or severed, and the rest remain in force. No waiver of any term is a continuing waiver. These Terms are the entire agreement between you and the Operator concerning the Site and supersede prior communications on that subject. You may not assign your rights or obligations without the Operator’s consent; the Operator may assign freely. No third party gains rights under these Terms, except that the Operator’s affiliates are express third-party beneficiaries of the parts of these Terms addressing dealings with businesses, the warranty disclaimer, liability limits, and the indemnification provisions. The the warranty disclaimer, liability limits, the indemnification provisions, dealings with businesses, and governing law sections of these terms survive any termination of your use of the Site.

Contact

Reach us about anything in these Terms — including error reports and content disputes — at hello@illinoisbusinessesnearme.com.