AI Readiness Index — Terms and Conditions

1. About the AI Readiness Index

The AI Readiness Index (“the Index”) is operated by Business Services Online Limited, trading as Code Inclusive (“Code Inclusive”, “we”, “us” or “our”).

The Index provides independent assessments of publicly accessible business websites and other relevant publicly available information for the purpose of evaluating aspects of a business’s readiness for AI-driven search, discovery and digital visibility.

The Index may include business profiles, reports, website assessments, AI Readiness Scores, technical findings, business classifications, sector information, geographic information, extracted website information, recommendations, historical assessments, benchmarking data and other related information.

Inclusion within the Index does not imply that a business has requested, commissioned, approved, endorsed or participated in an assessment unless expressly stated.

2. How businesses are selected

Code Inclusive may identify businesses for assessment from publicly available sources including, but not limited to:

• business websites
• search engines
• public business directories
• local authority and council directories
• trade and professional directories
• publicly accessible corporate information
• publicly available social or professional profiles
• businesses submitted to the Index
• other legitimate public sources.

A business does not need to register with Code Inclusive or give prior permission for its publicly accessible website to be technically assessed.

Inclusion within the Index does not create a contractual relationship between Code Inclusive and the business.

3. Website assessments

Assessments are produced using Code Inclusive’s proprietary methodology and may incorporate automated website analysis, software tools, artificial intelligence, structured-data analysis and other technical processes.

Assessments represent the condition of the website and information available to the assessment system at the time the assessment was undertaken.

Websites change continuously. Code Inclusive therefore does not warrant that an assessment will continue to represent a website after the assessment date.

The assessment date should be considered an integral part of every report.

4. AI Readiness Scores

An AI Readiness Score is a measurement produced according to the Code Inclusive assessment methodology applicable at the date of assessment.

Scores are intended to provide a consistent basis for comparison and research. They are not a certification by a search engine, artificial intelligence provider, government organisation, standards body or other third party.

A score does not guarantee:

• inclusion within AI-generated answers
• search-engine rankings
• traffic or enquiries
• commercial performance
• recommendations by AI systems
• indexing by search engines
• visibility within particular AI platforms

Code Inclusive may develop and amend its assessment methodology as AI search technology, search engines and industry practices develop.

Where appropriate, assessments may identify the methodology version used.

5. Independence of scoring

Payment, claiming a profile, purchasing a report, purchasing a subscription or purchasing professional services from Code Inclusive will not directly increase or otherwise alter an AI Readiness Score.

Scores should change only where a new assessment identifies measurable changes relevant to the applicable methodology.

A business purchasing remedial or consultancy services from Code Inclusive receives no guarantee that its subsequent score will increase by any particular amount.

This provision is important to the independence and credibility of the Index.

6. Information contained within business profiles

The Index may reproduce, summarise, classify or analyse information made publicly available by a business or obtained from other legitimate public sources.

This may include business name, website address, location, sector, products, services, specialisms, geographic coverage and other business information.

Automated systems, including artificial intelligence, may assist with extraction and classification.

Despite reasonable efforts to maintain accuracy, Code Inclusive cannot guarantee that automatically extracted or third-party information will always be complete, current or error-free.

Businesses are encouraged to notify Code Inclusive of material factual inaccuracies.

7. Claimed or added business profiles

Code Inclusive may allow an authorised representative of a business to claim an existing profile or submit a business for inclusion within the AI Readiness Index.

Where a business is added by its owner, employee, agent or other representative, the person submitting the information confirms that they have the authority to act on behalf of, or provide information concerning, that business.

Code Inclusive may require reasonable evidence of identity, authority or association with the business before approving a claim, accepting amendments or providing access to profile-management facilities.

Claiming or adding a business may provide access to facilities allowing an authorised representative to correct, confirm, update or supplement certain business information. Information supplied by the business may be distinguished from information independently identified, measured or generated by the AI Readiness assessment system.

The person submitting or updating information is responsible for ensuring that the information provided is accurate, lawful, current and not misleading. Code Inclusive reserves the right to reject, amend or remove submitted information where there are reasonable grounds to question its accuracy, relevance, authenticity or legality.

Claiming or adding a business does not give the business or its representative ownership of the Index entry, AI Readiness assessment, scoring methodology, assessment results, historical assessment data, research data or other Code Inclusive intellectual property.

Claiming, adding or updating a profile does not provide the business with the ability to directly alter its independently calculated AI Readiness Score or assessment findings. Changes to a score may only result from a new assessment or reassessment conducted using the applicable Code Inclusive methodology.

A business may challenge information that it reasonably believes is factually inaccurate and request that Code Inclusive review it. However, disagreement with an assessment result, score, classification or legitimate technical finding does not in itself require Code Inclusive to amend or remove that finding.

Payment for claiming, enhancing, reassessing or otherwise managing a business profile does not influence the independent calculation of the AI Readiness Score.

8. Business-supplied information

Information supplied by a business following a claim, or by adding a business to the Index, may be distinguished from information independently identified by the assessment system.

A business submitting information warrants that:

• the information provided is accurate
• the submitter is authorised to provide it
• publication does not infringe another person’s rights
• it is not misleading
• it is not defamatory, unlawful or fraudulent
• claims, accreditations, awards or qualifications supplied can be substantiated

Code Inclusive reserves the right to reject, amend, suspend or remove submitted information where reasonable grounds exist to question its accuracy, legality or relevance.

9. Corrections

Businesses and individuals may contact Code Inclusive where they believe factual information contained within an Index entry is inaccurate.

Code Inclusive will consider reasonable correction requests and may request supporting evidence.

A correction request is different from disagreement with an independently calculated assessment.

For example, an incorrect business address can ordinarily be corrected.

A request that an accurately calculated AI Readiness Score be increased simply because a business considers it undesirable would not constitute a factual correction.

10. Removal from the AI Readiness Index

A business may request that its public business profile be reviewed for removal.

Requests should identify:

• the business concerned
• the relevant Index URL
• the person making the request
• their authority or relationship to the business
• the reason for requesting removal

Code Inclusive will consider removal requests reasonably and may require evidence of authority before acting.

Removal of a public profile does not necessarily require deletion of all underlying information held by Code Inclusive where retention is lawful and reasonably necessary, including for legal compliance, record keeping, fraud prevention, dispute resolution, suppression of future republication, statistical purposes or preservation of historical research datasets.

11. Personal data and data protection

Code Inclusive processes personal data in accordance with applicable UK data-protection legislation, including the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 as amended.

12. Individual data-protection rights

Individuals whose personal data is processed may have rights including rights of access, rectification, restriction, erasure and objection, depending upon the circumstances and lawful basis involved.

These rights are not absolute in every situation.

Requests concerning personal data should be submitted using the contact details provided in the Code Inclusive Privacy Notice.

13. External websites

The Index assesses websites and information controlled by third parties.

Code Inclusive has no control over third-party websites and accepts no responsibility for their continued availability, security, accuracy, legality or content.

A link from the Index to an external website does not constitute endorsement of that website, its operator, products, services, statements or business practices.

Likewise, inclusion of information derived from an external website does not mean that the external website or business endorses Code Inclusive or the AI Readiness Index.

14. Information published on external websites

Code Inclusive may identify, extract, analyse, classify, summarise or reference information made publicly available on business websites and other external online sources for the purposes of compiling business profiles, conducting AI Readiness assessments and producing related directory information, research and reports.

Any such information is processed on the basis that it was publicly accessible at the time it was identified or assessed. Code Inclusive will take reasonable steps to ensure that information is represented accurately and in appropriate context. However, Code Inclusive does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, authenticity, currency, legality or reliability of information originally published by a third party.

Responsibility for statements, claims, descriptions, representations and other material originally published on an external website remains with the person, business or organisation responsible for that publication. This includes, without limitation, information concerning products, services, geographical coverage, business experience, qualifications, accreditations, awards, memberships, testimonials, performance claims and other commercial representations.

The inclusion, extraction, classification, summarisation or reference of third-party information within the AI Readiness Index does not constitute independent verification, endorsement or adoption by Code Inclusive of the underlying statement or claim, unless Code Inclusive expressly states otherwise.

Where an external source contains promotional, comparative, subjective or otherwise unverified claims, Code Inclusive may omit such claims or, where relevant to the business profile or assessment, attribute them clearly to the original publisher. For example, a business describing itself on its own website as “Yorkshire’s leading commercial insurer” does not entitle that statement to be presented by Code Inclusive as an independently established fact. Where such information is referenced, it may instead be identified as a claim or description made by the business itself.

Automated systems, including artificial intelligence, may assist Code Inclusive in extracting, interpreting, categorising and summarising publicly available information. Code Inclusive takes reasonable measures to reduce the risk of automated systems converting third-party claims into statements of independently verified fact, but automated processing may occasionally produce errors or misinterpretations.

Businesses and other affected parties are encouraged to notify Code Inclusive where they believe publicly displayed information has been incorrectly attributed, materially misrepresented or is no longer accurate. Code Inclusive may review and, where appropriate, correct or clarify such information in accordance with its correction procedures.

For the avoidance of doubt, Code Inclusive is responsible for its own original assessments, scoring methodology and conclusions, but does not assume responsibility for the truth or accuracy of factual or promotional claims originally made and published by third parties merely because those claims have been identified, referenced or analysed by the AI Readiness Index.

15. External links

External links are provided for convenience and reference.

Code Inclusive is not responsible for content appearing on external websites or changes made to them after an assessment.

Users accessing external websites do so subject to the terms, privacy policies and practices of those websites.

16. Intellectual property

The AI Readiness Index, assessment methodology, scoring methodology, database structure, reports, analysis, original written content, graphics, classifications, research, software and other original materials produced by Code Inclusive are protected by applicable intellectual-property and database rights.

Nothing within these Terms transfers ownership of those rights to an assessed business, claimant or purchaser.

Businesses retain their own rights in their names, trademarks, logos and original materials.

17. Use of Index data

Users may view publicly available Index information for legitimate personal and business purposes.

Systematic scraping, extraction, republication, resale, creation of competing datasets, automated harvesting or substantial reproduction of the Index without written permission is prohibited to the extent permitted by law.

Code Inclusive may provide separate licences for commercial access to datasets, reports, research or APIs in the future.

18. Research and aggregated information

Code Inclusive may use assessment information to produce statistical analysis, benchmarking, research and reports concerning sectors, locations, business populations and changes over time.

Such research may be made available free of charge or commercially.

Where personal data is involved, its processing will remain subject to applicable data-protection law.

Publication of an individual business assessment does not prevent the underlying assessment measurements from contributing to legitimate aggregated statistical analysis where lawful.

19. Free reports

Some assessments, profiles, reports, research and information may be provided without charge.

Code Inclusive reserves the right to change the features included within free products, provided this does not retrospectively create a payment obligation.

A business will never become liable for payment merely because Code Inclusive independently assessed or listed it.

20. Paid products and services

Code Inclusive may charge for products or services including:

• enhanced reports
• reassessments
• subscriptions
• premium profiles
• benchmarking
• research reports
• implementation work
• consultancy
• other optional products

The applicable price and principal features will be displayed before purchase.

Payment for an optional product does not guarantee a particular AI Readiness Score, search ranking, AI citation, traffic level or commercial outcome.

21. Payments

All payments for paid products and services provided through the AI Readiness Index will be made using the payment methods made available through the Code Inclusive checkout process.

Payments are securely processed by Stripe, an independent third-party payment services provider. Code Inclusive does not normally receive, process or store customers’ complete payment-card details where those details are entered directly into Stripe’s payment infrastructure. Stripe’s own terms, privacy practices and security arrangements apply to payment information processed by Stripe. Stripe states that its Checkout system is designed to simplify PCI compliance and supports applicable payment authentication requirements.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, all prices displayed by Code Inclusive are quoted in pounds sterling (GBP). Where VAT or another tax is applicable, the total amount payable will be displayed in accordance with applicable requirements. For consumer transactions, mandatory charges and applicable taxes must generally be included in the total price presented to the customer rather than introduced later in the purchasing process.

Before completing a purchase, the customer will be provided with information concerning the product or service being purchased, the applicable price, any recurring payment obligation where relevant, and the available method of payment.

The checkout process will clearly indicate when submission of an order creates an obligation to make payment.

A payment will not be regarded as successfully completed until Code Inclusive or its payment processor has received confirmation that the transaction has been authorised. Where a payment is declined, cancelled or otherwise unsuccessful, Code Inclusive is under no obligation to provide the associated paid product, report, reassessment, subscription or service until valid payment has been received.

Where a payment is subsequently reversed, disputed, refunded or subject to a chargeback, Code Inclusive reserves the right, where lawful and appropriate, to suspend access to the corresponding paid features while the matter is investigated.

Any entitlement to a refund, cancellation or cooling-off period will be determined by the nature of the product or service purchased, whether the purchaser is acting as a consumer or for business purposes, the stage at which performance or digital supply has commenced, these Terms and Conditions, and applicable UK law. Nothing in these Terms is intended to exclude or restrict statutory consumer rights that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.

Where Code Inclusive introduces recurring subscriptions, the applicable price, billing frequency, renewal arrangements and cancellation provisions will be presented to the customer before the subscription is entered into. Any recurring payment will be processed using the payment method authorised by the customer, subject to the applicable Stripe payment arrangements and these Terms and Conditions.

22. Reassessments

Where a customer purchases a reassessment, Code Inclusive will perform a new assessment against the applicable methodology.

A reassessment does not guarantee that the score will increase.

A score may increase, remain unchanged or decrease depending upon the website condition and methodology applicable at the time.

23. Subscriptions and renewals

Where Code Inclusive offers Premium, Pro or any future product or service on a subscription basis, the applicable subscription terms will be clearly presented to the customer before the subscription is purchased.

Before entering into a subscription, the customer will be provided with clear information concerning the subscription price, billing frequency, subscription or minimum contractual period (where applicable), whether the subscription renews automatically, the basis and frequency of renewal, and the arrangements for cancelling or terminating the subscription.

Where a subscription automatically renews, this will be clearly disclosed before payment is authorised. The customer will also be informed of when recurring payments will become due and, where applicable, the amount or basis upon which those payments will be calculated.

Material information concerning automatic renewal, recurring payments and cancellation will not be contained solely within these Terms and Conditions. Relevant subscription information will also be displayed prominently at the point of purchase, enabling the customer to understand the financial commitment before completing the transaction.

Where a customer is entitled to cancel a subscription, Code Inclusive will provide an appropriate method of cancellation and will explain when cancellation becomes effective and whether access to paid features continues until the end of an existing paid period. Where required by applicable law, customers who enter into a subscription online will be provided with an accessible online method of ending that subscription.

Code Inclusive may send renewal, payment, expiry or cancellation communications where required by law or reasonably necessary for the administration of a subscription.

Cancellation of a subscription will prevent future charges in accordance with the applicable subscription terms but will not automatically entitle the customer to a refund of amounts already properly charged, except where a refund or cancellation right arises under applicable law or the specific terms of the product.

Nothing in these Terms is intended to exclude, restrict or replace any statutory rights available to a consumer.

Code Inclusive will operate its subscription arrangements in accordance with applicable UK consumer law.

Code Inclusive may amend its subscription procedures and these Terms where reasonably necessary to comply with changes in applicable legislation or regulatory requirements. Material changes affecting existing customers will be communicated where required by law.

24. Refunds and cancellation

Nothing contained within these Terms and Conditions is intended to exclude, restrict or otherwise affect any statutory rights available to consumers under applicable UK law.

Refund and cancellation rights may vary according to the nature of the transaction, including whether the purchaser is acting as a consumer or in the course of a business, and whether the product purchased constitutes a service, digital content, subscription, report, reassessment or other paid product.

Where a statutory cancellation or cooling-off period applies, Code Inclusive will provide the customer with the information required by law before the purchase is completed. For many distance contracts, consumers generally have a 14-day cancellation period, although exceptions and different rules may apply depending upon the nature of the product or service and when supply or performance begins.

Where a consumer requests that Code Inclusive begin providing a service during an applicable cancellation period, Code Inclusive may obtain the consumer’s express request or consent before commencing performance. Where permitted by law, the consumer may be required to pay a proportionate amount for services properly supplied before cancellation.

Where digital content is supplied immediately, Code Inclusive may require the consumer to provide the express consent and acknowledgement required by applicable law before access to, or supply of, that digital content begins. Where the relevant statutory requirements are satisfied, commencing the immediate supply of digital content may affect or result in the loss of the consumer’s statutory right to cancel.

Where a purchased report, assessment, reassessment or other service has already been completed or supplied, any entitlement to cancellation or refund will be determined in accordance with the applicable statutory requirements, the nature of the purchase and any consent or request given by the customer for performance to commence.

Code Inclusive does not operate a general provision that all payments are non-refundable. Where no statutory or contractual right to a refund exists, payments for products or services that have been properly supplied may be non-refundable. This does not affect any rights a customer may have where a product or service is faulty, materially misdescribed, not supplied as agreed or where a refund is otherwise required by law.

Any refund approved by Code Inclusive will normally be returned using the original payment method, subject to the payment arrangements operated through Stripe and any applicable legal requirements.

Nothing in Code Inclusive’s refund, cancellation or subscription arrangements will override consumer rights that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted by contract. UK consumer protection rules provide that unfair contractual terms are not binding on consumers merely because they have been incorporated into a business’s terms and conditions.

25. Availability

Code Inclusive does not guarantee uninterrupted availability of the Index, reports, dashboards or associated systems.

Access may occasionally be interrupted for maintenance, security, technical failure or circumstances outside our reasonable control.

26. Errors and corrections

Code Inclusive may correct technical errors, extraction errors, calculation errors, duplicated records and other mistakes identified within the Index.

Where an assessment score was affected by a genuine system or calculation error, Code Inclusive may correct the assessment and should maintain appropriate internal records of the correction.

A technical correction should not be treated as manipulation of the independent scoring methodology.

27. Limitation of liability

The AI Readiness Index, including all business profiles, assessments, scores, findings, benchmarking information, research, comparisons and associated content, is provided primarily for informational, analytical, benchmarking and research purposes.

While Code Inclusive takes reasonable steps to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the Index and its assessment methodology, information contained within the Index should not be regarded as professional, legal, financial or other specialist advice, nor as a guarantee of any particular technical, search, AI visibility or commercial outcome.

Users are responsible for evaluating information contained within the Index and for any decisions, actions or omissions arising from their use of, or reliance upon, that information. Where appropriate, users should obtain relevant professional or specialist advice before making material business decisions.

Code Inclusive does not guarantee that information contained within the Index will be complete, error-free or continuously current. Assessments reflect information and website conditions identified at the relevant assessment date and may subsequently become outdated as websites, businesses, search technologies, artificial intelligence systems, technical standards and other relevant circumstances change.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, Code Inclusive shall not be liable for any indirect, consequential or special loss or damage arising from or connected with the use of, inability to use, or reliance upon information contained within the Index. This includes, without limitation and where legally permissible, loss of revenue, profits, business opportunity, anticipated savings, contracts, goodwill, search-engine visibility, AI visibility, website traffic or reputation.

Code Inclusive does not accept liability merely because an assessment, score, classification, finding, benchmark or other information contained within the Index differs from the opinion, expectation or assessment of a business, website owner, third-party provider, search engine, artificial intelligence platform or other organisation.

Nothing within these Terms and Conditions shall exclude or restrict liability where such exclusion or restriction would be unlawful. In particular, nothing is intended to exclude or limit liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

Nothing within this section shall exclude, restrict or adversely affect any statutory rights or remedies available to consumers that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted by contractual terms.

Any limitation or exclusion of liability contained within these Terms shall apply only to the extent that it is lawful, reasonable and enforceable under applicable law. If any particular limitation or exclusion is found to be unenforceable, this shall not, so far as legally permissible, affect the validity of the remaining provisions of these Terms.

28. Complaints and disputes

Questions, correction requests or complaints concerning the Index should initially be submitted to Code Inclusive using the contact information published on the website.

Code Inclusive will endeavour to investigate legitimate concerns reasonably and proportionately.

Data-protection complaints may also be raised with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office where applicable.

29. Changes to these Terms

Code Inclusive may update these Terms where necessary to reflect changes to the Index, its commercial products, assessment methodology, legislation or business operations.

The current version and revision date will be published on the Code Inclusive website.

Material contractual changes affecting an existing paid subscription should be handled in accordance with the applicable contract and law rather than relying solely upon publication of revised website Terms.

30. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales.

The courts of England and Wales will have jurisdiction, subject to any mandatory rights available to consumers or other parties under applicable law.