Website Terms of Use

 

                
These Website Terms of Use (“Terms”) form an agreement between you (“you” or “your”) and Ameris Bank and all of its divisions, including, but not limited to, Ameris Bank Equipment Finance and U.S. Premium Finance (collectively, “Ameris,” or “we,” “us,” or “our”) and govern your use of (1) our websites https://www.amerisbank.com/, https://equipmentfinance.amerisbank.com/, https://uspremiumfinance.com, and any other website owned or operated by Ameris that links to these terms (the “Site” ), (2) our vendor and customer portals that you may access (each a “Portal” and collectively, “Portals”), (3) communications between us and you, and (4) all features, content, functionality, and tools made available on or through the Site or any Portal (collectively with the Site and the Portals, the “Services”). 

READ THESE TERMS CAREFULLY, AS THEY CONTAIN TERMS AND CONDITIONS THAT IMPACT YOUR RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS, AND REMEDIES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SERVICES, INCLUDING AN AGREEMENT TO ARBITRATE FOR ANY DISPUTE RESOLUTION UNDER SECTION 14 BELOW. 

1. ACCEPTANCE 

Please read these Terms carefully before you access and use the Services. BY ACCESSING AND USING THE SERVICES YOU ACCEPT AND AGREE TO BE BOUND AND ABIDE BY THESE TERMS. If you do not agree to these Terms, you must (i) not access or use the Services, or (ii) discontinue any access or use of the Services. Your failure to comply with the Terms may result in the suspension or termination of access to the Site and Portals and may subject you to civil and criminal penalties.  

2. CHANGES TO THE TERMS 

Ameris reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to amend the Terms, at any time and without prior notice. All changes are effective immediately when we post them unless we expressly specify otherwise. In any event, no changes will apply retroactively as to any claims existing prior to the “last updated” date. If we choose to amend the Terms, we will update the “Last Updated Date” at the top of the Terms and post the updated version. By continuing to use the Site or any Portal after we have posted an updated version of the Terms, you are affirming that you agree to be bound by the amended Terms. You are expected to check this page, so you are aware of any changes, as they are binding on you. If there are material changes to these Terms, we may also reserve the right to provide notice of such changes in other alternative manners, such as posting such changes to the Site and Portals, or communicating such changes via e-mail or other communication channel. 

3. CUSTOMER AND THIRD PARTY PROVIDER AGREEMENTS 

We may have separate agreements in place with you or your company if you are a customer or third party provider of Ameris. These Terms apply solely to your use of the Services and do not modify, supersede, or replace any written agreement you may have separately entered into with Ameris or any of its affiliates (“Separate Agreement(s)”). In the event of a conflict between these Terms and any Separate Agreement, the terms of the Separate Agreement shall control. Nothing in these Terms shall be construed to amend or waive any rights or obligations under any Separate Agreement unless expressly stated in writing and signed by the parties to the Separate Agreement.  

4. ACCESS AND CHANGES TO THE SITE AND PORTALS 

4.1. Access.  

Subject to your compliance with the Terms, Ameris grants you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-assignable, and non-sublicensable right to access and use the Site and respective Portals for which Ameris grants you access, in each case, for your own personal or internal business use only, and not for resale or third-party distribution. In order to use the Site and respective Portals, you must have internet access. Ameris reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify or discontinue offering the Site and any respective Portals, or to impose limits on your use of the Site and Portals, or any features, functionality, or tools thereof, in whole or in part, at any time, for any reason or no reason, with or without notice to you. You agree that Ameris has no obligation to provide any updates or to continue to provide or enable any particular Site or Portal features, functionality, tools, or content and, to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, will not be liable with respect to any such modifications, discontinuance, or deletions. The Site and Portals are controlled and operated within the United States and are not intended for use outside of the United States.   

4.2. Account. To access a respective Portal or some of the resources it offers, you are required to use a registered account (“Account”). It is a condition of your use of the Portals that all the Account information about you remains correct, current, and complete. It is your responsibility to update any Account information when it becomes out-of-date. Any personal data processed by us with respect to your Account will be done so in accordance with our hyperlinked Online Privacy Notice (“Privacy Notice”). You agree that your access credentials with respect to your Account must be treated as confidential information, and you must not disclose Account access credentials to any other person or entity. 

4.3. Third-Party Services. The Services, including the Site and Portals, may be provided through, incorporate, or otherwise rely on certain software, software services, banking services, lending services, and other services, content, information, data, and other materials that are:  (x) incorporated within, displayed on, or offered through or in connection with the Services; and (y) owned, operated, offered or provided by third parties other than Ameris (“Third-Party Services”). We do not control and shall not be liable to you for any Third-Party Services you may engage with on, through, or in connection with the Services. Certain Third-Party Services or components thereof may be subject to related third-party terms and conditions that apply to your access to and use of the Services, as presented to you from time to time in connection therewith (“Third-Party Terms”). In the event of a conflict between any Third-Party Terms and these Terms, the Third-Party Terms shall prevail solely in connection with the related Third-Party Services (or components thereof). 

4.4. Submitted Content. Your use of a Portal may allow you to submit certain information including personal information (collectively “Submitted Content”). We provide a separate privacy policy to customer and consumer applicable to Ameris with respect to how we process their personal data in connection with our Services, as required under applicable law. Nothing herein shall limit any responsibility or obligation of you or the business you are accessing a Portal on behalf of, to provide any required privacy notices based on your collection, processing, or sharing of Submitted Content.  

4.5. Prohibited Uses. You are not authorized to access or use the Site or any Portal if you are under 18; if you are a person barred from receiving services under the laws of the United States or other applicable jurisdiction; or for any other purposes that are not expressly permitted by the Terms or which violate applicable law. 

Further, you may not: 

• copy, distribute, share, publish, use, store, or prepare derivative works from any content on the Site or any Portal covered by any copyrights, trademark, patent, or other intellectual property right belonging to Ameris or any third party, except with prior express permission of the rights holder; 

• distribute, publicly perform, or publicly display any material from the Site or any Portal (including Ameris IP) without authorization; 

• infringe upon, misappropriate, or violate intellectual property rights or any other rights of any person or entity (including Ameris); 

• access, copy, or store any of the Site or any Portal source code or a significant portion of content without authorization; 

• access, search, collect information from, or otherwise interact with the Site or any Portal by “scraping,” “crawling,” or “spidering;” 

• use, display, mirror, or frame the Site or any Portal, or any feature, functionality, tool, or content, including Ameris’s name, trademark, logo, or other proprietary information, without permission; 

• upload or otherwise provide any Submitted Content to the Portals or the Site that includes personal information that the individual whom such Submitted Content relates to has not properly consented to or otherwise authorized to have processed by Ameris, as necessary to provide you with the access and use of the Site and respective Portal; 

• share, lease, rent, use, or otherwise provide access to a Portal or the Site on behalf of any third party; 

• use a Portal or the Site in connection with the performance of any service performed for any third party; 

• interfere with, disrupt, damage, overburden, disable, or impair the Site, Portal, or related systems, or the access of any user, host, or network in any way; 

• attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage, or disrupt any parts of the Site, Portal, or any server, computer, or database connected to the Site, Portals, or any related Services; 

• violate the security of any computer network, or crack any password or security encryption code related to the Site or any Portal; 

• circumvent, remove, alter, deactivate, degrade, or thwart any technological measure or content protections of the Site, Portals, or any related Services; 

• use any device, software, bot, or routine that interferes with the proper working of the Site, Portal, or any related Services; 

• introduce any viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful to Ameris, the Site, Portals, any Services, or any users; 

• attempt to decipher, decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, or otherwise attempt to obtain source code or underlying ideas or information of or in connection with the Site or any Portal; 

• behave in a harmful, fraudulent, deceptive, threatening, harassing, defamatory, obscene, discriminatory, or otherwise objectionable manner on the Site or any Portal; 

• impersonate or attempt to impersonate another individual or entity, including Ameris or an Ameris employee or agent, or another Site or Portal user; 

• violate any law, regulation, or governmental policy in any applicable jurisdiction, including paying for, supporting, or otherwise engaging in any illegal activities such as prohibited trade, illegal gambling, fraud, money laundering, or terrorist activities; 

• otherwise abuse the Site or any Portal or breach the applicable Terms; 

• attempt to do any of the foregoing, or advocate, encourage, or assist any third party in doing any of the foregoing; and 

• attack Ameris’s information technology systems (or those providing information technology systems on their behalf) via a denial-of-service attack, distributed denial-of-service attack, or otherwise. 

Ameris reserves the right to investigate and prosecute violations of any and all reports, complaints, and claims, or otherwise suspected misconduct or violations of the law to the fullest extent of the law, and to monitor or disable access to or use of the Site or any Portal by any user. 

5. COOKIES 

Our Site incorporates the use of third-party technologies, including cookies, pixels, and other online technologies to enhance user experiences, security and fraud prevention,  to analyze performance and traffic on our Site and Portals, and for targeted advertising (“Cookies”). Cookies and related information collected about your use of our Site and Portals may be shared with unaffiliated third parties, such as security vendors, advertising platforms, and analytics providers. You may manage your preferences for certain non-essential Cookies through our Management Preference Center. For more information about our use of Cookies and how we may share information with third parties, please see our Privacy Notice.  

6. SMS/TEXT MESSAGES AND MARKETING COMMUNICATION CONSENT 

By providing your phone number and opting in to receive marketing messages from us, including via SMS or text messages, you expressly consent to receive marketing and non-marketing calls and text messages from or on behalf of Ameris and its related entities, including those made using an automatic telephone dialing system (auto-dialer), prerecorded or artificial voice messages, or other automated technology, at the phone number you provide. Your consent to receive such messages is not a condition of any purchase. Message and data rates may apply. The frequency of messages may vary. You may opt out of receiving SMS or text messages at any time by replying STOP to any message you receive from us, or by following the instructions provided in the message. For help or more information, reply HELP or contact our customer service at 866-616-6020. For more information about how we use your telephone number and your rights and choices, please refer to our Privacy Notice. 

7. PRIVACY AND SECURITY OBLIGATIONS 

7.1. Applicability. If you are a user or business accessing a Portal and uploading or otherwise providing any Submitted Content that may contain personal information, then this Section 7 applies to you.  

7.2. Privacy Laws and Policies. For the purposes of these Terms, “Privacy Laws” means all privacy, security, data protection, and workplace privacy laws, rules, and regulations of any applicable jurisdiction (including the United States and each state of the United States), and all then-current industry standards, guidelines, and practices with respect to privacy, security, data protection, direct marketing, consumer protection, and workplace privacy, including the collection, processing, storage, protection, and disclosure of personal information. 

7.3. Your Data Obligations. The parties agree to process any applicable personal information contained in Submitted Content in compliance with all Privacy Laws. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, including any other provision contained in these Terms, you shall not circumvent any technological measures or settings that are locked by Ameris, or any provider of Third-Party Services, and shall not provide Ameris with any data that contains any personal information obtained from children under 13 years of age.  

8. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OWNERSHIP 

8.1. AMERIS IP. The Services, including the Site and Portals, and all respective features, functionality, tools and content thereof, are protected by copyright, trademark, patent and other laws of the United States. You acknowledge and agree that as between you and Ameris, the Services, all associated documentation, and all intellectual property rights therein, and all trade names, logos, and other trademarks and service marks associated with Ameris (whether or not registered, the “Ameris Marks”) are the exclusive property of Ameris or its licensors (collectively, the “Ameris IP”). You shall not remove, alter or obscure any Ameris Marks, patent marking, or other proprietary rights notices incorporated in or accompanying the Services, or use the Ameris Marks without our prior written consent. No licenses or rights are granted to you by implication or otherwise in or to any Ameris IP or any other intellectual property rights owned or controlled by Ameris or its licensors, except the limited rights of use and access as expressly provided in the Terms. All rights not expressly granted to you by the Terms are hereby reserved by Ameris.  

8.2. Submitted Content. Except with respect to any Feedback (as defined below), by uploading, sharing or storing any Submitted Content on or through the Portals, you hereby grant Ameris a worldwide, non-exclusive, transferable, sublicensable, royalty-free right and license under your intellectual property rights to use, copy, reproduce, process, adapt, modify, distribute, post, and display Submitted Content in any and all media as necessary to provide the respective Services and applicable functionality to you, and as otherwise necessary to operate the Portals, including for Portal-related product development and de-bugging purposes. You represent and warrant that you have all the rights, permissions, consent, power, and authority as necessary to grant Ameris the rights granted herein to Submitted Content, and that neither Submitted Content, nor Ameris’s use of Submitted Content as contemplated by these Terms, will infringe, misappropriate or violate the rights of any person or entity or otherwise result in the violation of any applicable law or regulation. You acknowledge and agree that as between you and Ameris, you are solely responsible for and liable to Ameris and any third parties in connection with your Submitted Content, and for any consequences stemming from use of such Submitted Content as intended under these Terms.  

8.3. Feedback. You may from time to time provide us with suggestions, comments, evaluations, assessments, opinions, critiques, questions, and other feedback and information regarding the Services, including the Site and Portals, or otherwise in connection with the Services, including:  (i) information related to your experience with the Services; (ii) the operation, implementation, integration, interface, specifications, configurations, and utility of the Site or any Portal; or (iii) any other comments or questions regarding, or suggestions or recommendations for changes or new features or functionality to, any Ameris IP (collectively, “Feedback”). You hereby assign to Ameris all right, title, and interest in the Feedback, and Ameris is free to use, without any attribution or compensation to any party, any ideas, know-how, concepts, techniques, or other intellectual property rights contained in the Feedback, for any purpose whatsoever, although Ameris is not required to use any Feedback. For the avoidance of doubt, Feedback shall not include Submitted Content. 

9. Account Termination, Suspension, and Cancellation  

If you wish to terminate your Account, you may simply discontinue using the Site and respective Portals. 

We may, in our discretion, without liability to you and without limiting our other remedies, with or without prior notice and at any time, decide to limit, suspend, deactivate, or cancel your Account and take technical and legal steps to prevent you from using the Site or any Portal at any time for any reason, including your failure to comply with the Terms, a breach of a Separate Agreement with us, or for any other reason not prohibited by applicable law. If Ameris has suspended your Account due to your actual or suspected breach of the Terms or a breach a Separate Agreement, such suspension will continue until the suspected breach is cured or otherwise resolved to Ameris’s reasonable satisfaction. When an issue arises, we reserve the right to consider such user’s performance history and the specific circumstances in applying our policies and making related determinations. 

If you terminate your Account for any reason, or if we terminate your Account due to your breach of the Terms or a Separate Agreement, such termination will be effective immediately.   

Notwithstanding the termination or expiration of these Terms, any provision which, by its nature, is intended to survive shall survive such termination or expiration, including Sections 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15.  

10. DOWNTIME 

Ameris uses commercially reasonable efforts to provide access to the Portals in a reliable and secure manner. From time to time, interruptions, errors, delays, or other deficiencies in providing access to a respective Portal or a Third-Party Service may occur due to a variety of factors, some of which are outside of Ameris’s control, and some which may require or result in scheduled maintenance or unscheduled downtime of such Portal (collectively, “Downtime”). Part or all of the Portals may be unavailable during any such period of Downtime, which may include an inability to access related Services.  

11. INDEMNIFICATION.  

You shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Ameris and our officers, directors, managers, members, shareholders, employees, agents, representatives, successors, and permitted assigns from any and all losses, liabilities, damages (including attorneys’ fees), causes of action, or any other claims by any third party regarding:  (a) any actual or alleged violation of any applicable law, regulation, or third-party agreement, or any actual or alleged violation, infringement, or misappropriation of any third-party proprietary right, arising out of or related to Submitted Content; (b) any actual or alleged unauthorized or illegal use or operation of the Site or a respective Portal, or other violation of applicable law, by you; or (c) any actual or alleged breach of these Terms by you. 

12. DISCLAIMERS, LIMITATION OF LIABILITY & INDEMNIFICATION 

12.1. Disclaimer of Warranties. Your use of the Site and respective Portals are at your own risk. The Site and respective Portals are provided “as is,” “as available”, and “with all faults,” and we make no express or implied representations or warranties of any kind related to the Site and respective Portals, including any warranties of merchantability, title, non-infringement, and fitness for particular purpose, or any representations or warranties that the Site and respective Portals, including any text, data, records, information and other content that may be stored, shared or otherwise made available or caused to be made available by Ameris or by other users on or through the site and respective portals, will be accurate, complete, reliable, error-free, or uninterrupted, that defects will be corrected, that the Site and respective Portals or the server that makes them available are free of viruses or other harmful components, or that the Site and respective Portals will otherwise meet your needs or expectations. We do not make any representations or guarantees regarding uptime or availability of the Site and respective Portals. Without limiting the foregoing, Ameris disclaims any and all liability related to (i) your use of or inability to use the Site and respective Portals, (ii) the acts or omissions of any other user or any other persons with whom you communicate or interact as a result of your use of the Site and respective Portals, and (iii) any content accessed, viewed or downloaded in connection with the use of the Site and respective Portals and the use thereof by you or any third party. The foregoing does not affect any warranties that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law. 

12.2. Limitation of Compliance Obligations; no legal advice. You expressly acknowledge and agree that the Site and respective Portals are not intended to be or to include, and do not constitute, financial, accounting, legal, investment, insurance or compliance advice or counsel, and as between the parties, you are solely responsible for your own compliance with laws in the ordinary course of your business operations and for determining, obtaining and maintaining any licenses, permits or other regulatory approvals in connection therewith. 

12.3. Third-Party Services. All third-party services are provided “as is”. any representation or warranty of or concerning any third-party services is strictly between you and the third-party owner or distributor of the third-party services. Ameris (x) makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees regarding, and (y) shall not have, and hereby disclaims, any responsibility or liability to you or any other third party for the availability, functioning or performance of, all third-party services. Ameris shall not have, and hereby disclaims, any responsibility or liability to you or any other third party for (and you acknowledge and assume sole responsibility for and assume all risk arising from):  (i) your use of any third-party services, or the goods, content, products, items, services, offerings or assets available on or through any third-party services; (ii) your decision to purchase any offering or engage in any transaction from or through any third-party services; and (iii) your decision to contract or otherwise engage or transact with any provider of third-party services. 

12.4. Submitted Content Disclaimer. You understand, acknowledge, and agree that:  (a) Ameris is not and shall not be responsible for submitted content or the modification, use, or publication of submitted content by you or any other user of a respective Portal; and (b) Ameris is not and shall not be responsible for the accuracy, nature, content, or completeness of information obtained by you from a respective Portal (including any submitted content). Each user has sole responsibility for the submitted content it provides to a respective Portal, and Ameris shall not have, and hereby disclaims, any responsibility or liability to you or any third party as a result of or in connection with the accuracy, quality, legality, integrity, or appropriateness of any submitted content as made available on, through, or in connection with the Portals.  

12.5. Data Loss and Downtime. The Portals should only be used as a conduit for information, not as primary information storage, and do not replace the need for you to maintain regular data backups or redundant data archives. Ameris does not guarantee that any data, including submitted content, will always be available. Ameris:  (i) makes no representation or warranty with respect to the availability of any data in connection with the use of the Site or any Portal; and (ii) has no obligation or liability for any loss, alteration, destruction, damage, corruption or recovery of submitted content. Ameris shall not be liable or responsible to you for any inconvenience, losses or other damages as a result of downtime, including your inability to access the Portals as a result of such downtime. You hereby waive any claim against Ameris in connection with downtime.  

13. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY  

NOTWITHSTANDING ANY CONTRARY PROVISION OF THESE TERMS OR FAILURE OF THE ESSENTIAL PURPOSE OF ANY REMEDY, AND TO THE FULLEST EXTENT NOT PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW, YOU AGREE THAT IN NO EVENT WILL AMERIS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, OR DAMAGES FOR LOST REVENUES OR PROFITS, LOSS OF DATA OR LOSS OF GOODWILL, SERVICE INTERRUPTION, COMPUTER DAMAGE OR SYSTEM FAILURE, OR FOR ANY DAMAGES FOR PERSONAL OR BODILY INJURY OR EMOTIONAL DISTRESS ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS, WHETHER BASED IN WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE) OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, AND WHETHER OR NOT AMERIS HAS BEEN INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. IN THE EVENT THAT THE FOREGOING LIMITATION OF LIABILITY IS DETERMINED BY A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION TO BE UNENFORCEABLE, AMERIS’S AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS SHALL BE LIMITED TO FIFTY U.S. DOLLARS (US$50). CERTAIN STATE LAWS DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES AS SET FORTH IN THIS SECTION, SO THESE LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS APPLY TO YOU ONLY TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW.   

SOME JURISDICTIONS FURTHER DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES OR OTHER DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. 

14. DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND GOVERNING LAW.  

14.1. Mutual Mandatory Arbitration Agreement.  Sections 14.1 through 14.11 contain a mandatory arbitration agreement (“Arbitration Agreement”).  READ THIS ARBITRATION AGREEMENT CAREFULLY - IT SUBSTANTIALLY IMPACTS THE MANNER IN WHICH “CLAIMS” ARE RESOLVED.  For purposes of this Arbitration Agreement, references to “Ameris”, and “we” and “us” include Ameris Bank and Ameris Bancorp, as well as their respective affiliates within the Ameris Bancorp organization.  

14.2. Claims. All Claims are subject to arbitration in accordance with this Arbitration Agreement.  A “Claim” is any claim, cause of action, dispute, or controversy between you and Ameris (except as described in the “Exclusions” section below), whether preexisting, present, or future, which arises out of or relates to this Agreement or the Services, and includes, without limitation, initial claims, counterclaims, crossclaims, third-party claims, and federal, state, local, and administrative claims.  “Claim” includes disputes based upon contract, warranty, tort, fraud, and other intentional torts, constitution, statute, regulation, ordinance or common law, and claims in equity; and includes claims for money damages and injunctive or declaratory relief.  “Claim” also includes disputes concerning your use of Services involving telephones, cell phones and other Mobile Devices, automatic dialing systems, artificial or prerecorded voice messages, text messages, emails, or facsimile machines, and alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and any and all other laws, rule or regulations involving telemarketing. Upon demand by you or us, any and all Claims will be resolved by individual (as opposed to class, collective, or representative) binding arbitration in accordance with the terms specified in this Arbitration Agreement.   

14.3. Exclusions. Notwithstanding the foregoing, “Claim” excludes any dispute regarding (i) any individual action that you bring against Bank in small claims court or your state’s equivalent court, unless such action is transferred, removed, or appealed to a different court, (ii) an action to prevent the infringement or misappropriation of either party’s respective intellectual property rights, (iii) the exercise of any self-help rights, including set-off, or (iv) any individual action in court by you or us that is limited to preventing the other from using a self-help remedy and that does not involve a request for damages or monetary relief of any kind.  The institution and/or maintenance of any such right, action, or litigation (that is not a Claim) will not waive any right of you or Ameris to compel arbitration regarding any other dispute that is a Claim, pursuant to this Arbitration Agreement. 

14.4. Mandatory Initial Dispute Resolution. Either party may initiate the dispute resolution process by providing the other party with written notice in English, of the Claim, as specified in this Section 14.4 (“Claim Notice”) by certified U.S. mail or recognized overnight courier (signature required) or, only if that other party has not provided a current physical address or has consented to the receipt of account communications by email, then by e-mail.  Our address for a Claim Notice is: Ameris Bank, Attention: Legal Department, 300 South Main Street, Moultrie, Georgia 31768. The Claim Notice must (i) describe the nature and basis of the Claim; (ii) include the account number for the account(s) relevant to each Claim; and (iii) set forth the specific relief sought. You and we will attempt to resolve the dispute through informal negotiation within sixty (60) days from the date that the Notice of Dispute is received.  Any applicable limitations period shall be tolled during this sixty (60)-day initial dispute resolution period. Neither you nor we may initiate an arbitration proceeding before the conclusion of the sixty (60)-day period from the time the Notice of Dispute is received, or otherwise absent full compliance with the process described in this Section 14.4 (collectively, the “Mandatory Initial Dispute Resolution Process”). You agree that you or we may seek any interim or preliminary relief from a court of competent jurisdiction, as necessary to protect your or our rights or property (including intellectual property rights) pending completion of the Mandatory Initial Dispute Resolution Process. If the Parties do not reach an agreed upon resolution within the Mandatory Initial Dispute Resolution Process set forth above, then either party may initiate binding arbitration in accordance with this Arbitration Agreement as the sole means to resolve Claims. 

14.5. Location of Arbitration; Rules. You and Ameris agree that all Claims with respect to which you or we initiate arbitration under this Arbitration Agreement must be submitted to mandatory, binding arbitration in the State of Georgia before one neutral arbitrator who is licensed to practice law in the State of Georgia.  This Arbitration Agreement and the arbitration will be governed by the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. Section 1 et seq., as amended, and administered by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), in accordance with its then-current Consumer Arbitration Rules, including, as applicable, its Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules (“AAA Rules”).  The AAA Rules are available online at: https://www.adr.org/Rules.  If the AAA Rules are inconsistent with the terms of this Arbitration Agreement, the terms of this Arbitration Agreement govern.   The arbitrator may consider but will not be bound by rulings in other arbitrations where you and we were not both parties.  The arbitrator shall rule on all issues, except that a court has exclusive authority: (i) to decide arbitrability issues, as well as disputes relating to the formation, existence, scope, validity, and enforceability of this Arbitration Agreement; (ii) to decide whether the parties have complied with the Mandatory Initial Dispute Resolution Process; (iii) to enforce the prohibition on class, representative, or private attorney-general actions or proceedings, or public injunctive relief; and (iv) to enjoin an arbitration from proceeding if it does not comply with this the terms of this Arbitration Agreement. 

14.6. Arbitral Process. Given that Claims will be arbitrated, you understand that neither you nor Ameris will have the right to: (i) have a court or a jury decide a Claim; (ii) engage in information-gathering (discovery) regarding a Claim, to the same extent as in court; or (iii) participate in a class or other representative action in court or in arbitration regarding the Claim.  The right to appeal is more limited in arbitration than in court and other rights in court may be unavailable or limited in arbitration. A demand for arbitration must be personally signed by the party initiating arbitration (and their counsel, if represented). By signing the demand for arbitration, a party (and their counsel, if represented) certifies that they have complied with (i) the Mandatory Initial Dispute Resolution Process in Section 14.4 and (ii) all of the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b). The arbitrator is authorized to award any relief or impose any sanctions available under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 or applicable federal or state law against all appropriate persons (including counsel) as a court would. To promote efficient handling of arbitration demands, if 25 or more similar demands are filed against Ameris where representation of all parties is consistent or coordinated across cases, the AAA will promptly take steps to: (i) administer the demands in batches of 25 (plus a final batch consisting of any remaining demands); (ii) appoint one arbitrator for each batch; (iii) consider each batch as a single consolidated arbitration with one set of filing and administrative fees per side, one procedural calendar, one hearing (if any), and one final award (taken together, the “Batch Arbitration Process”); and (iv) take other steps as necessary for a speedy and efficient resolution of the demands. If the parties disagree on whether the Batch Arbitration Process in this Section 14.6 applies, or the AAA declines to implement this Batch Arbitration Process as set forth herein, the AAA will appoint a process arbitrator to decide that issue, who may prescribe procedures or revisions only to the extent necessary to resolve the disagreement or permit AAA to otherwise implement the Batch Arbitration Process. The Batch Arbitration Process does not authorize a consolidated, joint, or mass arbitration or action other than as set forth in this Section 14.6. 

14.7. Waiver of Trial by Jury. You agree that by entering into this Arbitration Agreement, you and Ameris are giving up your and our respective constitutional rights to have a trial by jury and are giving up normal rights of appeal following the rendering of a decision, except as the federal arbitration act and applicable law allow for judicial review of arbitration proceedings. 

14.8. Class Action Waiver. You agree that you and Ameris will not commence against the other a class action, class arbitration, other representative action, or any action pursuant to any statute that allows recovery on behalf of, for the benefit of, or of amounts lost or spent by other individuals (including in a private attorney general capacity) or that seeks public injunctive relief. 

14.9. Severability. If any provision in this Section 14 is found to be unenforceable, that provision shall be severed with the remainder of this Agreement remaining in full force and effect. The foregoing shall not apply to the prohibition against class or representative actions; if the prohibition against class or representative actions is found to be unenforceable, this entire Section 14 shall be null and void. The terms of this Section 14.9 shall otherwise survive any termination of this Agreement.  

14.10. Exclusive Venue for Other Controversies. You and Ameris agree that any controversy excluded from the mandatory dispute resolution procedure and class action waiver provisions in this Section 14 (other than an individual action filed in small claims court) shall be filed only in the courts located within the State of Georgia, and each party hereby irrevocably and unconditionally consents and submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such courts for any such controversy. 

15. MISCELLANEOUS 

15.1. Governing Law.  Subject to the Arbitration Agreement, this Agreement is governed by and will be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Georgia, without regard to its conflicts of laws principles.  

15.2. Entire Agreement. These Terms constitute the sole and entire agreement of the parties to these Terms with respect to the subject matter contained herein, and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings and agreements, both written and oral, with respect to such subject matter.  

15.3. Assignment. These Terms may not be assigned or otherwise transferred by you, in whole or in part, by operation of law or otherwise, without the prior written consent of Ameris, and any attempted assignment or transfer without such consent shall be null and void. Ameris may assign these Terms in connection with the sale of all or substantially all of its assets, merger, sale of equity or similar transaction, or other change in control. These Terms shall bind and inure to the benefit of the parties, their respective successors, and permitted assigns. 

15.4. Force Majeure. In no event shall Ameris be liable or responsible to you, or be deemed to have breached or defaulted under these Terms, for any failure or delay in fulfilling or performing any obligations or requirements of these Terms when and to the extent such failure or delay is caused by any circumstances beyond Ameris’s reasonable control.  

15.5. No Waiver. No waiver by any party of any term or provision in these Terms is effective unless explicitly set forth in writing and signed by the party so waiving. Except as otherwise set forth in these Terms, no failure to exercise or delay in exercising any right, remedy, power, or privilege arising from these Terms shall operate or be construed as a waiver thereof, and no single or partial exercise of any right, remedy, power, or privilege hereunder shall preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right, remedy, power, or privilege. 

15.6. Severability. Subject to Section 14.9, every provision of these Terms shall, to the extent possible, be construed so as to be valid and enforceable. If any provision of these Terms is determined to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable in any jurisdiction, such invalidity, illegality, or unenforceability shall not affect any other term or provision of these Terms, or invalidate or render unenforceable such term or provision in any other jurisdiction. Upon a determination that any term or provision is invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, Ameris shall modify these Terms in good faith and in a manner which will effect the original purpose as closely as and to the greatest extent possible. If Ameris fails to so modify or amend these Terms, the invalid term, condition, or provision shall be severed from the remaining terms, conditions, and provisions of these Terms, and such remaining terms, conditions, and provisions shall continue to be valid and enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law. 

15.7. Notices – Contact Us.  All notices must be written in the English language. Notices may be sent to us by email at:  [email protected], except for Claim Notices (as defined in Section 14.4) which must be delivered in accordance with Section 14.4. 

15.8. Interpretation. The headings of the sections and subsections contained in these Terms are included for reference purposes only, solely for the convenience of the parties, and shall not in any way be deemed to affect the meaning, interpretation, or applicability of these Terms or any provision hereof. When the context requires, the plural shall include the singular and the singular the plural, and any gender shall include any other gender. All references to “including” or “includes” or any variation thereof shall be deemed to include the terms “without limitation.” The words “hereunder,” “hereof,” “hereto,” and words of similar import shall be deemed references to these Terms as a whole. To the extent not prohibited by applicable law, these Terms shall not be construed against the party who drafted these Terms. 

Copyright ©2026 Ameris Bank. All rights reserved.