1. Who we are and what these terms cover
Shefa is a healthcare marketplace operated in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by ⟨registered legal name⟩, commercial registration ⟨commercial registration number⟩, registered at ⟨national address of the registered office⟩. In these terms, "we", "us" and "the platform" mean Shefa, and "you" means the person using the platform.
These terms apply to the Shefa website and mobile applications, whether you browse as a guest or hold an account. By using the platform you agree to them. If you do not agree, please do not use the platform.
Some activities are governed by the additional policies listed at the end of this document. Those policies form part of these terms.
2. What Shefa is, and what it is not
Shefa lets you search for hospitals, clinics and practitioners, compare their published services, prices and availability, book an appointment, pay for it where the provider accepts online payment, and manage the appointment afterwards.
Shefa is not a healthcare provider. We do not practise medicine, employ the practitioners listed on the platform, or take part in any clinical decision. Care is provided by the hospital, clinic or practitioner you book with, under their own licences and professional responsibility.
3. Eligibility and your account
- You must be at least 18 years old to hold an account. Younger patients are booked for by a parent or guardian through a dependent profile.
- Registration and sign-in use a verified mobile number and a one-time password sent by SMS. You are responsible for the security of the device and number you use to receive it.
- The information you give us — names, date of birth, contact details — must be accurate and kept up to date. Providers rely on it to identify you at the facility.
- One person holds one account. Do not share your account, and tell us promptly if you believe someone else has used it.
- You can review and revoke your active sessions and devices from your account at any time.
4. Booking for someone else
You may add dependents — for example your children or a family member in your care — and book on their behalf. When you do, you confirm that you have the authority to act for that person and to share their information with the provider for the purpose of the appointment.
Access to an adult dependent's record requires their consent or another lawful basis. We may ask for evidence of authority, and we may suspend a dependent link where that authority is unclear or disputed.
You are responsible for appointments you book for a dependent, including cancellation terms and any fees that apply.
5. Booking an appointment
When you select a time, we hold that slot for you for a limited period shown as a countdown during checkout. The hold protects the slot while you complete the booking; if it expires, the slot is released and returns to general availability.
Immediately before confirmation, we re-check the price, the slot, and the provider's status. An appointment is confirmed only when the booking and any required payment result are durably recorded — not when a payment page closes. On confirmation you receive a booking reference and a confirmation notice.
6. Prices, payment and invoices
- Prices are set by the provider and shown in Saudi riyals (SAR). The full amount payable, including any tax and any fee that applies, is displayed before you confirm.
- Depending on the provider and the service, you either pay online through a hosted payment page or pay at the facility. We never ask for or store your card details.
- The service price does not cover anything the provider may charge separately at the visit — for example tests, procedures or medicines that are not part of the booked service.
- A payment receipt from the payment provider is not a tax invoice. Where a tax invoice is due, it is issued separately in compliance with the applicable e-invoicing rules.
7. Changing, cancelling and missing an appointment
Each service carries the provider's own rescheduling and cancellation terms. The terms that apply to your booking, including any fee and the refund you would receive, are shown before you confirm the booking and again before you confirm a cancellation.
If a provider cancels, you are notified promptly, any amount you paid for that appointment is refunded in full, and we help you rebook.
8. Your relationship with the provider
The agreement to provide care is between you and the provider. The provider is responsible for the care itself, for holding the licences and privileges the service requires, and for the accuracy of the profile, service and price information it publishes on the platform.
We verify the documentation providers submit before they can appear in search and accept bookings, and we remove providers whose critical credentials expire or are withdrawn. Verification of documents is not a clinical endorsement, a guarantee of outcome, or a substitute for your own judgement about who should treat you.
9. Acceptable use
When using the platform you must not:
- make a booking you do not intend to attend, or book under another person's identity without authority;
- post another person's personal or health information, or anything unlawful, abusive, misleading or infringing;
- extract, scrape or copy platform content in bulk, or use automated means to access it, except as we expressly permit;
- interfere with the platform's security or availability, probe it, or attempt to reach data that is not yours;
- resell or commercialise access to the platform or its listings;
- use the platform to obtain medical advice, a diagnosis, a prescription, or emergency assistance.
If you believe you have found a security vulnerability, please report it to us rather than exploiting it.
10. Reviews and content you submit
You may review a provider after a completed appointment. Reviews must be your own honest experience and must follow our reviews and content policy. You keep ownership of what you write; you give us a licence to publish, display and distribute it on the platform, including in translated form, and to retain it as described in our privacy policy.
11. Intellectual property
The platform, its software, design, text, and the Shefa name and logo are owned by us or our licensors and are protected by law. Provider names, logos and content belong to those providers. Nothing in these terms transfers any of those rights to you.
12. Availability of the platform
We work to keep the platform available and accurate, but we do not promise that it will be uninterrupted or error-free. We may change, suspend or withdraw features, and we carry out planned maintenance. Availability, prices and provider information come from providers and can change at any time until a booking is confirmed.
13. Suspension and closing your account
You may close your account at any time from your account settings or by contacting support. Closing an account does not cancel a confirmed appointment, and we retain records we are required to keep — financial records in particular — as described in our privacy policy.
We may suspend or restrict an account where we reasonably believe there has been a breach of these terms, fraud or abuse, a risk to another user or to a provider, or where we are required to do so by law. Where we can, we tell you why and how to respond.
14. Our responsibility to you
We are responsible for operating the platform with reasonable care and skill. We are not responsible for the clinical care you receive, for a provider's acts or omissions, for the accuracy of information a provider publishes, or for a decision you make about your health.
To the extent permitted by the laws of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, and our total liability in connection with a booking is limited to the amount you paid through the platform for that booking. Nothing in these terms limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited, including liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, or for fraud.
15. Messages we send you
We send transactional messages you cannot opt out of while you hold an account or an active booking — verification codes, booking confirmations, payment results, reminders, changes, cancellations and support replies. Marketing messages are separate, require your consent, and can be switched off at any time without affecting transactional messages.
We keep the health-related detail in notifications to a minimum, particularly in SMS and on lock screens.
16. Privacy
Our privacy policy explains what personal data we collect, why, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and the rights you have under the Saudi Personal Data Protection Law. Health-related data receives additional protection.
17. Support and complaints
Contact support for anything to do with a booking, a payment or your account. Complaints about the quality or safety of clinical care follow a separate escalation route and are not handled as ordinary marketplace support; where appropriate we refer them to the provider and to the competent health authority.
Support: support@shefa.sa
18. Governing law
These terms are governed by the laws of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and any dispute is subject to the jurisdiction of the competent Saudi courts and committees. Where these terms exist in Arabic and English and the two differ, the Arabic text prevails.
19. Changes to these terms
These terms are versioned. The version and date at the top of this page identify the text in force. When we make a material change we tell you in advance and, where required, ask you to accept the new version before you continue to book. We record which version you accepted, when, in which language, and through which channel.
Questions about these terms: support@shefa.sa