Terms of Use for Carolado

Last updated: 11 November 2026

1. Scope and provider

These terms apply to the Carolado app for iPhone and Android, to its use with CarPlay and Android Auto and to the web version of Carolado (together “Carolado”).

The provider is KernelHost GmbH, Krottenbachstraße 277, 1190 Vienna, Austria, FN 646015 y, Commercial Court of Vienna (“we”). You can reach us at info@kernelhost.com and +43 650 8209883. All details are in the legal notice.

By using Carolado, you accept these terms. We ask you explicitly before your first report. How we process your data is described in our privacy policy. For purchases through the App Store or Google Play, the terms of Apple or Google also apply.

2. Minimum age

You must be at least 16 years old to use Carolado and to create an account.

3. What Carolado offers

Free of charge: map, search, routes and navigation with voice guidance, live traffic, community reports, fixed speed cameras, average speed checks and police reports in countries where this is permitted, speed limits, information on borders, tolls and vignettes, charging planning for electric cars, truck mode with break suggestions and the friends function.

Carolado Premium (section 15) adds colour themes and a custom route colour, the traffic forecast, offline maps and navigation without network.

We develop Carolado continuously and may change, add or discontinue functions, as far as this is reasonable for you. We strive for smooth operation but cannot guarantee it. Maintenance, disruptions or exhausted quotas of our data sources may restrict functions, for example live traffic. Section 15 applies to Premium.

4. Use with and without an account

You can use Carolado as a guest without an account. We then only recognise your device by a random device ID, and you get a guest name such as “Guest48213”.

An account is optional. You register with username, email address and password or with Apple or Google. The following applies:

Use an email address that belongs to you and that you read.
Keep your password secret. If you notice that someone is using your account, write to us immediately.
Do not create accounts in the name of others or accounts to increase your influence in the community.
Usernames and display names must not insult, contain web addresses or imitate other persons, brands, authorities or Carolado. Names of well-known persons, brands and authorities are reserved. If a reserved name belongs to you, write to us.
We may change or block names that violate these rules.

5. Road safety

Traffic rules, traffic signs and police instructions take precedence over every display and announcement of Carolado.
Maps, routes, speed limits and notices may be wrong, outdated or incomplete. Check yourself whether a route is permitted and safe for you and your vehicle. Navigation is provided without warranty.
Only operate Carolado while driving as far as the law of the country you are driving in permits. In Austria and Germany, you must not hold a phone in your hand while driving. Plan your route before you set off, let a passenger operate the app or stop.
Mount your device in a holder that does not obstruct your view.
This also applies to CarPlay and Android Auto.
Truck mode: Carolado only takes weight, dimension and dangerous goods restrictions into account as far as they are contained in the map data. Carolado does not fully know time-based driving bans. Prohibition signs, clearance heights and weight limits on site always apply. Break suggestions replace neither the tachograph nor your obligations under Regulation (EC) No 561/2006.
Electric car: Range, state of charge on arrival and charging times are estimates. Cold, speed, gradients and the charging station itself can change them considerably.

6. Speed cameras and police reports

Carolado only shows fixed speed cameras, average speed checks and police reports in countries where this is permitted according to our assessment, for example not in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. The location of your device is decisive. If the country is unknown or you are close to the border of a country where it is not permitted, the function stays off. You can only submit police reports in permitted countries.
The legal situation changes. We may switch countries on or off at any time.
You are responsible for complying with the rules of the country you are driving in.
Germany: As a driver, you must not use warnings of speed checks while driving (§ 23(1c) StVO). According to case law, this also applies if the warning comes from a passenger’s device. Switch off “Fixed speed cameras” and “Police” in the settings while you are driving a vehicle in Germany.
Carolado is not meant to encourage you to drive too fast. Keep to the speed limits. For average speed checks, Carolado shows your average speed and the speed at which you stay below the limit until the end.
We give no warranty that speed cameras, checks and reports are complete and correct. You bear fines and other consequences of breaking traffic rules yourself, unless we are responsible for them under section 16.

7. Rules for your contributions

These rules apply to reports, votes, map suggestions including free text, flags, display names and friend requests.

Only report and confirm what you see on site yourself, and only truthfully. The following are not allowed:

false, invented or outdated reports and reports from a distance;
reports about alcohol or drug checkpoints;
contributions with a faked location, from emulators, via scripts or modified apps;
confirmations without your own observation, arranged mutual confirmations and multiple devices or accounts to influence trust or visibility;
content that insults, threatens, disparages, discriminates, incites violence or crimes, infringes the rights of others or is otherwise illegal;
personal data of others in texts, such as names or licence plates;
advertising, spam and web addresses;
sharing the location of another device without the knowledge of the person using it, and using the friends function to track or monitor others.

8. Automated checks, trust score and moderation

To keep reports reliable, automated checks and a trust score decide how much contributions count and how visible they are.

Automated checks

You can only report at your own location with sufficiently accurate GPS, and only vote near the report.
The server rejects impossible changes of location between two contributions.
A confirmation only counts fully if the server saw you nearby shortly before based on your trip points. The app only sends trip points with your consent.
Limits restrict reports, votes and requests per device and per network. Duplicate reports are merged. Every report expires on its own.
Contributions with a simulated location are only visible to their author.
Carolado only accepts police reports and new speed cameras in countries where they are permitted.
We clean texts automatically, and a word filter rejects offensive names and texts. We check names against a list of reserved and blocked names.
A map suggestion with free text is hidden automatically after two flags.

Trust score

Every device and every account has a trust score with the levels “blocked”, “on probation”, “active”, “experienced” and “trusted”. It grows with reports and suggestions that others confirm and with driving days measured by the server itself. It decreases when contributions are refuted or rejected.
New devices start on probation. Their reports appear unconfirmed to others and do not trigger an announcement until someone confirms them.
The trust score determines how much your votes count, whether your reports trigger an announcement and whether you may review map suggestions. Only experienced reviewers see free-text suggestions.
Without an account, you can reach the “active” level at most.
If the same devices confirm each other again and again, this adds hardly any trust.
Anyone who submits a very large number of reports in a short time is muted for 24 hours: their reports appear unconfirmed until the first confirmation. If they are refuted, trust decreases significantly. If this happens repeatedly, the device or account is blocked.
Reports from blocked devices and accounts are only visible to their author.
Your profile shows your score from the previous day. We do not publish the exact calculation and thresholds so that they cannot be deliberately circumvented.

Moderation

Moderation is carried out by KernelHost GmbH. It reviews flags, notices of illegal content and map suggestions with free text. It can remove contributions, accept or reject suggestions and restrict or block devices or accounts. We review notices of offensive, objectionable or illegal content within 24 hours and remove such content. There is no right to have a contribution displayed or announced.

If you no longer want to see other users, you can hide them in the app or block them in the friends function.

9. Notices of illegal content (Art. 16 DSA)

Anyone, even without using Carolado, can notify us of contributions they consider illegal: in the app with “Flag” or by email to info@kernelhost.com. A notice by email should contain:

an explanation of why the content is illegal,
where the content can be found (location, time and type of contribution or the name concerned),
your name and email address, unless the notice concerns offences against the sexual integrity of children,
a statement that your information is accurate and complete to the best of your knowledge.

We confirm receipt, decide promptly, diligently, objectively and without arbitrariness, and inform you of our decision. If we use automated means, we tell you. You can challenge our decision as described in section 11.

10. Restrictions and statement of reasons (Art. 17 DSA)

If a contribution violates these terms or the law, we may remove or hide it, reduce its visibility (for example as unconfirmed or muted), lower your trust score, temporarily restrict or block your device or account and, in the case of serious or repeated violations, terminate your account. We act proportionately and take into account the severity, frequency and consequences of the violation and the rights of everyone involved.

Statement of reasons: If we restrict you because a contribution is illegal or violates these terms and we know your email address from your account, we inform you no later than when the restriction begins. The statement names what we restricted and for how long, the facts and circumstances, whether we used automated means, the rule or provision we rely on and your options for redress. We do not disclose the signals we use to detect abuse. Without an account, we have no contact details and cannot inform you individually; you can, however, contact us at any time and ask for the reason.

Misuse of the reporting channel: If someone repeatedly posts manifestly illegal content or repeatedly sends manifestly unfounded notices or complaints, we may, after a prior warning, suspend their account or stop processing their notices for a reasonable period.

11. Complaints and out-of-court dispute settlement

Complaint to us: If you think a decision about a contribution, device or account is wrong, write to us within six months at info@kernelhost.com. This is free of charge. We review the decision again, not only by automated means, and reply with reasons. If it was wrong, we reverse it without undue delay.

Out-of-court dispute settlement: You can also turn to an out-of-court dispute settlement body certified under Art. 21 DSA. As a small enterprise, we are not obliged to take part; we decide on participation case by case. We do not take part in proceedings before a consumer arbitration board.

Courts and authorities: You can always go to court. You can lodge complaints about infringements of the Digital Services Act with KommAustria (Kommunikationsbehörde Austria), the Digital Services Coordinator in Austria, or with the Digital Services Coordinator of your country of residence (Art. 53 DSA).

12. Points of contact (Art. 11 and 12 DSA)

Our single point of contact for authorities of the Member States, the European Commission, the European Board for Digital Services and for users can be reached by email at info@kernelhost.com and by phone at +43 650 8209883, in German and English. You will deal with people there, not only with automated systems.

13. No automated access, no scraping, no copies

Carolado is intended for use through our apps and the web version. Without our prior written consent, the following is not permitted:

Automated access: bots, scripts, crawlers, scrapers, AI agents or other programs that query Carolado, our servers or our interfaces.
Third-party clients: using our interfaces outside the Carolado apps and the web version, for example with your own or third-party programs or copied apps, by imitating requests or by generating or passing on device IDs.
Extraction: systematically extracting, copying, downloading or reusing content and databases, for example speed cameras, reports, map tiles, offline packages, routes, traffic forecasts, rest areas, border and toll information or search results.
Copies: copying, mirroring, relaying through your own server, embedding in other services or offering as your own service Carolado or substantial parts of it.
Circumvention: circumventing limits, access checks, download tickets, country switches or Premium locks, for example with many devices, networks or IDs or with faked locations.
Tampering with the apps: reverse engineering, decrypting, decompiling or modifying the apps, except as far as mandatory law permits, for example to achieve interoperability.
Attacks: load and penetration tests, exploiting security vulnerabilities and introducing malicious code.

Text and data mining: For content and data in the apps and via our interfaces, we expressly reserve reproduction for text and data mining (Art. 4(3) of Directive (EU) 2019/790; in Austria § 42h UrhG, in Germany § 44b UrhG). This also applies to training AI models.

Open data: We provide data that we offer under the Open Database License (ODbL) (section 17) separately on request. Your rights under the ODbL in this data remain unaffected. This section only governs access through our servers and apps.

Security vulnerabilities: If you find a security vulnerability, report it to info@kernelhost.com instead of exploiting it.

In the event of violations, we may block devices, networks and accounts, take legal action and claim damages.

14. Rights to content

Our content: Apps, design, program code, map styles and our own databases are protected, for example by copyright and the database right. We grant you a simple, non-transferable and revocable right to use Carolado in accordance with these terms for your own journeys, including for work. Reselling and building your own services are not permitted.

Your contributions: For your reports, votes and map suggestions, you grant us a simple, unlimited in time and space, free of charge, transferable and sublicensable right to store, use, edit, combine with other data, publish and make them available, in Carolado and in our map data, including under the ODbL. For accepted map data, this right continues after your data is deleted, then without any link to you. You confirm that your contributions do not infringe the rights of others.

15. Carolado Premium

Content: all colour themes and a custom colour for your route, the traffic forecast for routes and as a map layer with “When to leave?”, offline maps for cities, regions and countries (map, speed cameras in permitted countries, speed limits, search, traffic forecast) and navigation without network for downloaded areas in the iPhone and Android apps.
Traffic forecast: It is an estimate based on the community’s trips. It develops area by area and is initially only available where enough trips exist. There is no right to a forecast for a particular area.
Offline data: We usually update the maps, speed cameras and speed limits in the packages weekly. Speed cameras in offline packages follow the same country rules as online. Without network, there is no live traffic, no reports and no notices from the server.
Subscription and price: Premium is an annual subscription. The App Store or Google Play shows you the price before you buy, in the local currency of your country and including VAT.
Purchase and billing: You buy through the App Store from Apple or through Google Play from Google; Apple or Google handle billing. The terms of the respective store apply, including for any right of withdrawal and for refunds. The subscription renews automatically for one year unless you cancel it at least 24 hours before it expires.
Cancellation: You cancel in the subscription settings of your Apple or Google account or in the app under “Manage subscription”. Deleting the app, your data or your account does not end the subscription.
Price changes: We only change the price for future periods through the procedures of the App Store or Google Play. You will be informed in advance and can cancel before the change takes effect. If the store or the law requires your consent, the new price only applies once you have given it.
Activation: Premium is available through a purchase in the App Store or on Google Play. There is no right to a free activation.
Devices and account: Premium applies to your device or your account, for at most 5 devices or accounts per subscription. With an account, it applies on all devices you are signed in on.
The core of Carolado remains free.

16. Liability

We are liable without limitation for intent and gross negligence, for damage resulting from injury to life, body or health and under product liability law.
In the case of slight negligence, we are only liable if we breach an essential obligation whose fulfilment makes the use of Carolado possible in the first place and on whose compliance you may rely. Liability is then limited to the foreseeable, typical damage. Otherwise, we are not liable for slight negligence.
Map data comes mainly from OpenStreetMap and is maintained by volunteers. Reports come from users, traffic data from a partner, and the traffic forecast is an estimate. We do not check this data individually. As far as legally permissible, we give no warranty for its correctness, completeness and timeliness. Navigation does not replace your own attention; traffic rules and traffic signs always take precedence.
Statutory rights in the event of defects in Premium remain unaffected.

17. OpenStreetMap and other sources

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) 1.0, see openstreetmap.org/copyright. The OpenStreetMap Foundation does not endorse Carolado.
We offer databases that we derive from OpenStreetMap, such as fixed speed cameras and speed limits including the community’s corrections, under the ODbL. We will send you a machine-readable copy on request to info@kernelhost.com.
Information on temporary border controls comes from the public list of the European Commission.
Further licences are listed in the app under “Open-source licences”.

18. Termination, blocking and deletion

You can stop using Carolado at any time and delete your data or your account in the app; how this works is described on the page Delete account and data. You cancel a Premium subscription in the store (section 15).
In the case of serious or repeated violations, we may block or terminate your device or account (section 10). For a paid subscription, we only do this for good cause.
If we discontinue Carolado or Premium entirely, we will announce this at least three months in advance. For a Premium period already paid for that can no longer be used afterwards, we refund the proportionate price.

19. Changes to these terms

We may change these terms for the future if this is necessary for objective reasons, for example new functions, a changed legal situation or security reasons. We inform you at least four weeks before they take effect in the app and, if you have an account, by email. Before your next report, we ask whether you agree to the new terms. If you do not agree, you can stop using Carolado at any time and cancel a Premium subscription. The price and essential content of a running Premium subscription do not change as a result.

20. Applicable law and place of jurisdiction

Austrian law applies, excluding its conflict-of-law rules and the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. If you are a consumer with your habitual residence in another country, you keep the protection of the mandatory consumer protection rules of that country. As a consumer, you can sue us at your place of residence or in Vienna; we can only sue you at your place of residence. For businesses, the place of jurisdiction is the competent court in Vienna.

21. Additional information for the App Store

If you download Carolado from the App Store, Apple’s standard Licensed Application End User License Agreement also applies to the right to use the app. We alone, not Apple, are responsible for Carolado, its content, maintenance and support. Please direct questions, complaints and claims about Carolado to us (section 22).

22. Contact

KernelHost GmbH
Registered office: Krottenbachstraße 277, 1190 Vienna, Austria
Mailing address: Schußwallgasse 5/9, 1050 Vienna, Austria
Email: info@kernelhost.com
Phone: +43 650 8209883