Terms of service

What OpenWay is - and is not

OpenWay is a marketplace that helps NDIS participants and their support coordinators discover suitable disability service providers. OpenWay does not deliver supports, does not bill the NDIS, does not handle plan funds, and is not part of the NDIS, NDIA or NDIS Commission.

A match made on OpenWay is a starting point for a conversation, not a contract. The final scope of work, pricing, travel, cancellation rules and non-face-to-face charges must be confirmed in a written service agreement between the participant (or their authorised support person) and the provider before any service is delivered.

Using OpenWay

You must be at least 18 to create an account. Younger participants can be represented by a parent, guardian or other authorised support person who agrees to these terms on their behalf.

Keep your sign-in email secure. Magic-link emails grant access to your account. If you share an inbox, treat OpenWay sign-in emails the same as you would a one-time password.

Don't impersonate another person or organisation. Don't use OpenWay to harass, defraud, or circumvent platform safety measures. Accounts engaging in this behaviour are suspended.

For participants and support coordinators

OpenWay is free for participants and free for support coordinators. We do not charge a fee for sending enquiries, building shortlists, or sharing a shortlist with a participant.

When you message a provider, that provider sees the conversation but never your account email. Identifying information about the participant is disclosed only at the privacy level you choose for each enquiry.

Reviews must reflect your own first-hand experience with a provider. Reviews containing identifying allegations we cannot verify, defamation, or content unrelated to the service experience may be rejected or removed by a moderator.

For providers

Subscription tiers are paid by the provider business, never by participant NDIS funds. Free, Pro and Premium are the available tiers. The 3-enquiries-per-month cap on Free applies at lead delivery (when an enquiry is sent to you), not at search visibility.

The 7-day trial of a paid plan starts when an OpenWay admin publishes your profile, not at signup, payment, or submission. You can cancel any time; access continues to the end of the billing period.

You must hold the registrations, insurances, and Worker Screening clearances you claim on your profile. Misrepresenting registration status (for example, claiming NDIS Registered when you are not) leads to suspension and forfeiture of paid subscription fees for the period in question.

NDIS Commission registration ("NDIS Registered") is conferred by the regulator, not by OpenWay. "OpenWay Verified" means we have sighted selected business and compliance documents and is never a substitute for the NDIS Registered badge.

Placement and ranking

Premium-tier "priority placement" is a small ranking boost applied after the matching engine has already applied every hard filter (safety, registration, plan compatibility, location, availability, service fit). It never overrides those hard filters. A Premium provider who is not suitable for a participant will not be shown to that participant.

OpenWay does not recommend a specific provider for a specific participant. Coordinators shortlist; participants choose. The ranking signals we use (match score, response time, review averages, registration status) are explained on each provider card.

Reviews policy

Reviews are submitted by participants who have messaged AND been replied-to by a provider on OpenWay. Reviews are append-only and moderated before they go live on the provider's public profile.

OpenWay does not edit a participant's review. A reviewer may request removal of their own review. A provider may flag a review for moderator re-review with a written reason.

Safety reporting

If you experience or witness conduct that breaches the NDIS Code of Conduct, contact the NDIS Commission directly at ndiscommission.gov.au. OpenWay is not the right channel for emergencies or formal complaints to the regulator. For OpenWay-specific concerns (suspicious profiles, suspected fraud on the platform, breaches of these terms), email us at [email protected].

In an emergency call 000.

Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by Australian law, OpenWay is not liable for losses arising out of the supports a provider delivers (or fails to deliver) to a participant. The contractual relationship for those supports is between the participant and the provider, not OpenWay.

Nothing in these terms attempts to exclude or modify any rights you have under the Australian Consumer Law that cannot be excluded.

Changes to these terms

We will update these terms as the service evolves. Material changes are flagged on this page and, for users with accounts, communicated by email. Continued use of OpenWay after a material change means you accept the updated terms.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of New South Wales, Australia. Disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New South Wales.