SLA clause review checklist

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Sales pitches often promise 99.9% uptime, but the contract may apply that figure only under narrow conditions, backed by modest credits. Conversely, a provider accepting strict service levels to close a deal risks assuming contractual liability for outages entirely outside its control.

Legal force, metrics, and operational scope

More important than the percentage itself is whether the figure is an aspiration or a binding obligation: does a failure simply prompt discussions, or generate service credits, termination rights, or damages? Scope also matters, including whether commitments cover only the production system or extend to admin consoles, APIs, mobile apps, and support desks. The calculation formula requires equal care, including whether planned maintenance, user errors, third-party outages, or force majeure are excluded from uptime metrics.

Incident response targets and remedy mechanics

Severity levels, initial-response times, and recovery targets should be defined separately, together with who determines severity and how progress is reported. Continuous inquiry receipt and round-the-clock technical troubleshooting are distinct commitments; contracts should state whether tickets are merely logged or actively handled by engineers. Service credit terms should specify triggers, caps, invoice deduction or refund mechanisms, and whether credits are an exclusive remedy or coexist with damages claims. Reporting provisions should fix firm deadlines for root-cause analyses and remediation plans.