Paws Challenge 2026
Terms and Conditions
Last updated: 15 July 2026
1. Promoter
The promoter of the Buddy Run Portugal Paws Challenge 2026 is:
BR TECH LTD
Company number: 16303612
Registered in England and Wales
Registered office: 71–75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2H 9JQ, United Kingdom
Email: info@buddyrun.website
BR TECH LTD is referred to in these Terms as “Buddy Run”, “the Promoter”, “we”, “us” or “our”.
2. The Challenge
The Buddy Run Portugal Paws Challenge 2026, referred to as the “Challenge”, is a free team-based walking competition operated through the Buddy Run mobile application.
Participants earn points for their team by walking their dog and recording eligible activity through the Buddy Run app.
The winning teams will be determined primarily by the total number of verified points earned during the Challenge Period.
By entering or participating in the Challenge, participants agree to these Terms, the Buddy Run Terms of Service and the Buddy Run Privacy Policy.
3. Challenge Period
The Challenge opens at:
00:00 on 1 July 2026
and closes at:
00:00 on 1 October 2026.
This means the final full day for earning eligible points is 30 September 2026.
All dates and times are based on the time in Lisbon, Portugal.
Walks started, completed, uploaded or received after the closing time may not count towards the Challenge.
4. Eligibility
The Challenge is open only to registered Buddy Run users participating in Portugal.
Buddy Run users under the age of 16 must have the permission of a parent or legal guardian before participating.
Where a participant is under 16, their parent or legal guardian is responsible for ensuring that the participant complies with these Terms and uses Buddy Run safely.
Employees and members of the BR TECH LTD or Buddy Run team are not eligible to participate or win a prize.
Immediate family members and partners of BR TECH LTD or Buddy Run team members may participate, provided they are not themselves employees or involved in administering or verifying the Challenge.
The Promoter may request reasonable evidence of a participant’s:
Identity;
Age;
Residence or location;
Buddy Run account ownership;
Team membership; or
Compliance with these Terms.
5. Free Entry
Entry is free.
No purchase, entry fee or paid subscription is required.
To participate, a person must:
Download the Buddy Run app.
Create a valid Buddy Run account.
Create a team or join an existing team.
Walk their dog and record eligible activity through the app during the Challenge Period.
Participants are responsible for any ordinary mobile data, internet, device or network charges associated with using the app.
6. Teams
There is no maximum number of members permitted in a team.
Each participant may participate through only one team during the Challenge.
A participant may create or join a team at any point during the Challenge Period.
Only eligible points earned after the participant joins their team will contribute towards that team’s Challenge total.
Points earned before joining a team will not be added retrospectively to that team’s total.
Participants may not use multiple accounts or identities to contribute points to more than one team.
7. Earning Points
Teams earn points when their members walk their dogs and record eligible walks through the Buddy Run app.
The Buddy Run app records will be used to calculate each team’s Challenge total.
The Promoter may review, verify, correct or remove any recorded activity or points that appear to be:
Duplicated;
Incomplete;
Incorrectly recorded;
Technically invalid;
Artificially created;
Manipulated; or
Inconsistent with genuine dog-walking activity.
The precise operation of the Buddy Run points system may be updated as part of the ordinary operation of the app, provided that changes are not introduced for the purpose of unfairly favouring or disadvantaging a particular participant or team.
8. Leaderboard
The leaderboard displayed in the Buddy Run app will show participating teams and their recorded Challenge points.
Leaderboard positions displayed during the Challenge are provisional.
The Promoter may verify all relevant accounts, walks and point totals before confirming the final results.
The verified records held by Buddy Run at the end of the Challenge Period will determine the final rankings.
9. Winner Selection
Subject to eligibility and verification, the winners will be:
First place: the eligible team with the highest verified points total.
Second place: the eligible team with the second-highest verified points total.
Third place: the eligible team with the third-highest verified points total.
The winners are therefore determined by the amount of eligible dog-walking activity recorded by their team during the Challenge Period.
10. Tied Scores
Where two or more eligible teams have the same verified points total and the tie affects a prize position, the relevant tied teams will be entered into a random tie-break draw.
The tie-break draw will be conducted live through the official Buddy Run Instagram account:
@buddyrunteam
The live draw is scheduled for:
2 October 2026 at 3:00 p.m., Lisbon time.
A tied team does not need to watch or attend the live broadcast to remain eligible.
The Promoter may postpone the live draw where reasonably necessary because of technical failure, platform interruption or circumstances outside its control. Any replacement date or time will be announced through the Buddy Run Instagram account.
11. Prizes
The Challenge prizes are:
First place
One pet-store voucher with a value of €200.
Second place
One pet-store voucher with a value of €100.
Third place
One pet-store voucher with a value of €100.
The total prize value is €400.
Each prize is awarded to the winning team as a whole. It is not a separate voucher for each team member.
The voucher retailer will be selected by the Promoter closer to the prize-fulfilment date. The selected retailer will be a national pet-store retailer operating in Portugal.
Vouchers will be subject to the issuing retailer’s own terms, including any:
Expiry date;
Redemption rules;
Product exclusions;
Store restrictions; or
Online-use restrictions.
Prizes cannot be exchanged for cash.
The Promoter may substitute a prize with an alternative of equal or greater value where the advertised voucher becomes unavailable for reasons outside the Promoter’s reasonable control.
12. Team Prize Recipient
Each winning team must select one of its members to receive the voucher on behalf of the team.
The selected person must be authorised by the team to:
Communicate with the Promoter;
Provide the required delivery details;
Receive the voucher; and
Manage the voucher on behalf of the team.
The Promoter is not responsible for deciding how the voucher is shared or used between members of the winning team.
Any disagreement between team members concerning the prize must be resolved by the team.
Delivery to the person nominated by the team will constitute full delivery of the prize to the winning team.
13. Winner Notification
Winning teams will be contacted by email using an email address associated with the relevant Buddy Run team or its members.
The Promoter may contact more than one member of a winning team where reasonably necessary.
A winning team must respond within one month of the date on which the winner notification is sent.
The team must provide:
Confirmation that it accepts the prize.
The name of its nominated prize recipient.
A valid email address for that recipient.
A complete and valid delivery address in Portugal.
Any reasonable information needed to verify eligibility.
Participants are responsible for keeping the email address connected to their Buddy Run account accurate and accessible.
Participants should check their spam or junk-email folders after the Challenge closes.
14. Failure to Claim a Prize
A prize may be forfeited where a winning team:
Does not respond within one month;
Refuses the prize;
Cannot provide a valid delivery address in Portugal;
Cannot nominate a recipient;
Provides false or incomplete information;
Is found to be ineligible; or
Has breached these Terms.
Where a prize is forfeited, the Promoter may award it to the next highest-ranked eligible team.
Where the forfeiture affects teams that had equal verified scores, the Promoter may conduct a further tie-break draw.
15. Prize Delivery
The Promoter will arrange for the voucher to be delivered or issued to the nominated team member after eligibility and delivery information have been verified.
Delivery may be made electronically or physically, depending on the format offered by the selected retailer.
The Promoter is not responsible for delays caused by:
Incorrect delivery information;
A participant’s failure to respond;
Postal or courier disruption;
Retailer processing times; or
Circumstances outside the Promoter’s reasonable control.
The Promoter may share the nominated recipient’s name, email address and delivery information with the selected voucher provider or delivery service where reasonably necessary to fulfil the prize.
16. Public Announcements
Winning teams will be asked whether they would like their win to be announced publicly across Buddy Run’s social-media channels.
Consent to publicity is optional.
A winning team may decline optional publicity without losing its prize.
Where consent is given, Buddy Run may publish agreed information such as:
The team name;
The team’s finishing position;
Photographs supplied by the team;
The nominated representative’s first name; or
A short winner statement.
Buddy Run will not require a participant to take part in additional promotional activity as a condition of receiving a validly won prize.
17. Cheating and Disqualification
The Promoter may investigate suspected cheating, manipulation or misuse.
The Promoter may remove points, suspend accounts, disqualify a participant or team, or withhold a prize where it reasonably believes that a participant or team has engaged in:
False or fabricated walking activity;
GPS or location manipulation;
Device, software or technical manipulation;
Automated activity;
Use of scripts, bots or unauthorised software;
Duplicate or multiple accounts;
Account sharing;
False registration details;
Attempts to belong to or contribute to more than one team;
Interference with the leaderboard or app;
Collusion intended to produce an unfair result;
Abuse, harassment or threatening conduct;
Animal mistreatment;
Unlawful behaviour;
Breach of these Terms; or
Breach of the Buddy Run Terms of Service.
The Promoter may request information reasonably necessary to investigate suspicious activity.
Failure to cooperate with a reasonable investigation may result in the relevant points or entry being rejected.
18. Dog Welfare and Participant Safety
Participants are responsible for ensuring that their dog is healthy and able to complete each walk safely.
Participants must consider their dog’s:
Age;
Health;
Fitness;
Breed;
Size;
Veterinary needs;
Weather tolerance; and
Physical limitations.
No participant should over-exercise a dog for the purpose of earning Challenge points.
Participants must comply with applicable animal-welfare, public-space, identification, lead-control and road-safety rules.
The Challenge does not require participants to walk in unsafe weather, unsafe locations or other unsuitable conditions.
Participants should stop a walk where continuing could place a person or animal at risk.
Buddy Run does not provide veterinary, medical or fitness advice.
19. Technical Problems
The Promoter will take reasonable steps to operate the Challenge and leaderboard accurately.
However, uninterrupted access to the app cannot be guaranteed.
The Promoter is not responsible for activity that is not recorded or received because of:
Loss of mobile signal;
Loss of internet access;
Device failure;
Low battery;
Disabled permissions;
GPS failure;
Operating-system restrictions;
App-store interruption;
Third-party service failure; or
Failure to synchronise activity before the closing time.
Where a widespread technical issue materially affects the fairness of the Challenge, the Promoter may take reasonable corrective action. This may include restoring valid points, correcting totals, temporarily suspending the leaderboard or extending a deadline.
20. Changes, Suspension or Cancellation
The Promoter may amend, suspend or cancel the Challenge where reasonably necessary because of:
Fraud;
Security concerns;
Technical failure;
Safety concerns;
Legal or regulatory requirements;
Platform unavailability;
Events outside the Promoter’s reasonable control; or
Circumstances that prevent the Challenge from being operated fairly.
The Promoter will not make changes for the purpose of unfairly favouring or disadvantaging a particular participant or team.
Material changes will be communicated through the Buddy Run app, website, email or official social-media accounts where reasonably practical.
Where the Challenge is cancelled after valid activity has been recorded, the Promoter will determine a fair and reasonable outcome taking account of the circumstances and applicable law.
21. Personal Data
Personal data collected in connection with the Challenge may include:
Account information;
Names and email addresses;
Age confirmation;
Team information;
Dog-profile information;
Walking and activity records;
Leaderboard data;
Eligibility-verification information;
Delivery addresses; and
Optional publicity information.
This information may be used to:
Operate the Challenge;
Calculate and verify points;
Maintain the leaderboard;
Detect misuse or fraud;
Contact winning teams;
Verify eligibility;
Deliver prizes;
Handle complaints; and
Comply with legal obligations.
Personal data will be handled in accordance with the Buddy Run Privacy Policy. Buddy Run’s published policy identifies BR TECH LTD as the data controller and states that users under 16 require parental or legal-guardian consent.
Privacy and data-rights enquiries may be sent to:
22. Liability
Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability where doing so would be unlawful.
Subject to applicable law, the Promoter is not responsible for loss, damage or injury resulting from:
Unsafe participation;
A participant’s failure to follow these Terms;
Failure to follow veterinary or medical advice;
Disputes between team members;
Incorrect information supplied by a participant;
Loss or misuse of a voucher after delivery;
A retailer’s separate voucher conditions; or
Technical events outside the Promoter’s reasonable control.
Nothing in the Challenge creates an employment, partnership, agency or joint-venture relationship between the Promoter and any participant or team.
23. Complaints
Questions or complaints concerning the Challenge should be sent to:
The message should include:
The participant’s name;
Their Buddy Run account email address;
Their team name;
A description of the issue; and
Any relevant supporting information.
The Promoter will review complaints reasonably and in good faith.
24. Governing Law and Jurisdiction
These Terms and the Challenge are governed by the laws of England and Wales.
The courts of England and Wales will have non-exclusive jurisdiction over disputes relating to the Challenge.
Nothing in this section deprives a participant of any mandatory consumer or legal protections that apply to them under the laws of Portugal or another applicable jurisdiction.
25. General Provisions
If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid, unlawful or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue in effect.
A delay by the Promoter in enforcing any provision does not waive its right to enforce that provision later.
The Promoter may not transfer its obligations in a way that materially reduces participants’ rights.
These Terms contain the specific rules for the Challenge. Where they conflict with general promotional wording in an advertisement or social-media post, these Terms will take priority.
26. Contact
For campaign enquiries:
BR TECH LTD
Buddy Run Portugal Paws Challenge 2026
71–75 Shelton Street
Covent Garden
London
WC2H 9JQ
United Kingdom
Email: info@buddyrun.website