Plain 5-line summary (full terms below)
- Version 2026-10-18: where.care is operated by Luis Diaz-Sendel (New York, NY) as a software registry and introduction service.
- Not an agency or employer: you hire the independent caregiver directly; where.care is not a licensed home-care agency and does not employ caregivers.
- 10% platform fee: booked shifts include a 10% where.care fee (0% on tips); where.care does not hold funds in escrow.
- Point-in-time checks: Checkr background badges and staff license reviews are point-in-time checks, not live board monitoring.
- Contact, liability cap & venue: notices go to hello@where.care and privacy requests to privacy@where.care. Disputes are resolved by arbitration in Delaware, and liability is limited to the fees paid to where.care (zero if no fee was paid).
Terms of Service
Last updated October 18, 2026. Document version 2026-10-18.
Key Takeaways & Summary
- Platform software only: where.care provides direct introduction and scheduling software for families and independent caregivers; we do not employ caregivers, supervise care, or provide medical advice.
- Direct hiring relationship: When you book a shift, you hire the caregiver directly as an independent professional or household employee under state law.
- Transparent 10% platform fee: Booked shifts include a 10% where.care software fee deducted from total caregiver billings. Caregiver gratuities/tips are 0% commission.
- Point-in-time screening: Background checks are conducted through Checkr, and license numbers submitted by caregivers are verified point-in-time by staff without real-time board guarantees.
- Privacy-first messaging: Personal contact details are protected behind mutual consent gating to prevent off-platform disintermediation and preserve family privacy.
What where.care does
where.care introduces families and independent caregivers and provides software for messages, scheduling, and visit logs. We do not employ caregivers, supervise care, set a clinical care plan, or guarantee that a shift will be filled. We do not provide medical care, and we do not decide whether a benefit program will pay.
The family and the caregiver agree to the shift. where.care does not assign clinical duties.
Hiring
A family that books a caregiver is hiring that person. You may be a household employer. where.care does not withhold taxes and does not provide workers’ compensation. Read the hiring notice before you send a quote, book a shift, or open a visit log. IRS Publication 926 describes household-employer tax rules; that pointer is not tax advice.
Practical Experience & Household Employer Guidelines
In real-world independent caregiving, families frequently transition from unfamiliarity with household employment to confident, structured hiring. Experienced family caregivers recommend establishing a written weekly schedule, maintaining clear communication on shift expectations, and consulting IRS Publication 926 for payroll tax thresholds ($2,700 for 2024–2026). where.care provides direct introductions and visit logging software to simplify this relationship without acting as an employer or agency intermediary.
Checks on caregivers
Checks are point-in-time. A Checkr badge appears only when a Checkr report is on file. A review by where.care staff is not a Checkr report. A license review is a staff review of the number the caregiver submitted. It is not a live query of a state board or of Nursys. None of these checks is a promise that a person is safe or suitable.
Payments
When Stripe is enabled, a booked shift uses a card authorization that where.care captures after the visit. A booked shift includes a 10% where.care platform fee. The caregiver is paid the posted total minus that fee. Tips are not charged the platform fee. where.care does not hold payment in an escrow account. If Stripe is not enabled, no card is charged and nothing is held.
where.care does not charge families or caregivers lead fees or featured placement fees. When Checkr background checks are used without a launch subsidy code, the background-check fee covers the report processing cost. Those charges are not a wage and they are not a benefit approval.
Health tools and messages
where.care does not store medication lists, vitals, assessments, incident narratives, or code status. An emergency SOS stores the visit, the time, and whether 911 was called. These tools are not medical advice and not a substitute for calling 911.
Text messages are transactional. Rates may apply. Read the SMS notice. where.care does not send a text to a number that has no stored SMS consent.
Messaging, contact gating, and safety
Families and caregivers communicate through an in-platform messaging system. Direct contact information (phone number, email address) is never exposed until both parties explicitly agree to share it via mutual consent.
Users may not circumvent contact gating by transmitting phone numbers, email addresses, external messaging handles, or off-platform payment links in chat messages. Automated scanners hold violating messages for safety review. Repeated attempts to share contact details outside the platform trigger temporary messaging suspension, loss of badge visibility for caregivers, and may result in account termination.
Either party may block or report another user at any time. Messages and access logs are stored encrypted and retained for 7 years for safety review, dispute resolution, and legal compliance.
Accounts and videos
The service is for people 18 and older. You are responsible for the accuracy of what you submit. A caregiver who posts an introduction video needs the right to post it.
Questions: hello@where.care.