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The agreement caps PlanetScale's total aggregate liability to the amount of fees paid in the six months preceding a claim, further limiting liability to $5,000 for claims arising from free-tier or Beta Feature use, and restricts recoverable damages to direct damages only.
This analysis describes what PlanetScale's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
This provision establishes a liability ceiling tied to recent fee payments, which for low-spend or new customers may represent a materially limited recovery amount relative to potential data loss or service disruption damages. The $5,000 cap for free-tier and Beta Feature use is a fixed ceiling regardless of the scale of harm attributable to those product categories.
Under this clause, customers' ability to recover damages from PlanetScale is limited to direct damages not exceeding fees paid in the prior six months, or $5,000 for free or Beta Feature use. Indirect, consequential, and lost profits damages are excluded from recovery under the companion disclaimer provision.
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"PLANETSCALE AND ITS AFFILIATES' AGGREGATE AND CUMULATIVE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ON ACCOUNT OF PERFORMANCE OR NON-PERFORMANCE OF OBLIGATIONS, REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE CAUSE OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE), STATUTE OR OTHERWISE, WILL BE LIMITED TO DIRECT DAMAGES AND WILL NOT EXCEED THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF FEES PAID TO PLANETSCALE DURING THE SIX (6) MONTHS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE TIME THE CLAIM AROSE. NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING, PLANETSCALE'S TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO PRODUCT PROVIDED (I) FREE OF CHARGE; OR (II) BETA FEATURES IS LIMITED TO FIVE THOUSAND US DOLLARS ($5000).Excerpt from PlanetScale's Terms of Service
(1) REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: Liability limitation clauses of this type are standard in commercial SaaS agreements and are generally enforceable under U.S. contract law in B2B contexts, subject to applicable state law carve-outs for gross negligence, willful misconduct, or fraud. The agreement preserves unlimited liability for fraud and fraudulent misrepresentation. For EU/EEA customers, certain mandatory liability regimes under national law may limit the enforceability of liability caps for specific categories of harm, including data protection violations under GDPR where supervisory authority fines are separate from contractual liability. (2) GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Medium. Enterprise customers with significant production workloads should evaluate whether the six-month fee cap represents adequate coverage relative to potential business interruption losses. The $5,000 cap for Beta Features is particularly relevant for organizations that may deploy Beta Features in production or near-production environments. (3) JURISDICTION FLAGS: California law governs, and California courts generally enforce commercial liability caps in B2B agreements. EU/EEA customers should note that GDPR Article 82 establishes a separate damages regime for data protection violations that operates independently of contractual liability limitations. Customers in jurisdictions with mandatory minimum liability standards for data processors should evaluate whether this cap is consistent with applicable law. (4) CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Procurement teams should assess whether the six-month rolling cap is consistent with internal vendor risk management requirements, particularly for critical infrastructure dependencies. The exclusion of Beta Features from the standard liability framework (capped at $5,000) warrants separate vendor risk assessment if Beta Features are used in production workloads. Cyber insurance programs should be evaluated against this cap structure. (5) COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Legal teams should document the applicable liability exposure under this clause relative to the organization's fee level and database dependency. Organizations considering deployment of Beta Features in production should formally assess the $5,000 liability ceiling against potential business continuity risk. The interaction of this cap with the DPA's data protection provisions should be reviewed, as data processing agreements may establish separate liability frameworks for GDPR-related claims.
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This provision establishes a liability ceiling tied to recent fee payments, which for low-spend or new customers may represent a materially limited recovery amount relative to potential data loss or service disruption damages. The $5,000 cap for free-tier and Beta Feature use is a fixed ceiling regardless of the scale of harm attributable to those product categories.
Under this clause, customers' ability to recover damages from PlanetScale is limited to direct damages not exceeding fees paid in the prior six months, or $5,000 for free or Beta Feature use. Indirect, consequential, and lost profits damages are excluded from recovery under the companion disclaimer provision.
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