BitGoods OpenBazaar Moderator Policies

OpenBazaar Peer ID: QmQfbCEUEfmBr59ZvBDVek7rs71AywrcMkX2APEDwJWGDo

Summary

Moderators play a critical role in the OpenBazaar ecosystem in alleviating risk to both the buyer and seller. Not only do they facilitate the resolution of disputes, but they also allow funds to be transferred when a resolution between the two parties is not possible.

In choosing me as a moderator, you can be assured that any dispute will be resolved based on the terms of the contract. If the dispute lies outside of the agreed upon terms, the original terms of contract will be supplemented (but not replaced) by my own policies, which are summarized below.

Scenario Result
Buyer agrees to shipping with no tracking It’s not the vendor’s fault if the package doesn’t arrive.
Tracking status doesn’t change for 7 days (unless it is crossing border and a specific communication happened before about custom’s rules and regulations on holding or delaying an item) days or the package is listed as lost The buyer is refunded.
The vendor doesn’t ship the item on time The vendor has three days to prove shipment, or the buyer is refunded.
Cancelations and returns The terms must be agreed upon in advance, not after the sale.
Damaged goods The person who shipped the item is responsible.
Vendor ships the wrong item Upon supplying adequate proof the buyer would be refunded and is not responsible for returning the incorrect item.
No contact in 3 days Your position in the dispute is voided.
Privacy concerns I will never divulge information to a third party.
Illegal transactions A contract is a contract. I don’t verify legality.

General Policies

Shipping

The buyer and vendor should agree in advance as to how the order will be delivered and tracked. Any notes and specific requirement on shipping needs to be communicated properly and keep as evidence in case of a dispute.

Cancelations and returns

The terms for cancelling an order or returning an item (including shipping costs) should be agreed upon before sale. Lacking an agreement, all sales are final, and any return shipping costs will be at the expense of the buyer.

Damaged items

The party who ships the item (whether the vendor or the buyer for a return) should assure proper packaging so that the item is not damaged during transport. Proper insurance should be acquired, and damaged goods will be considered the fault of the person shipping the item.

Digital goods and services

Transactions that involve services or the delivery of digital goods should provide a means of verifying that the service or content was in fact rendered or delivered. All information required to prove contract fulfilment must be included within the transaction. If no such verification process was agreed upon, the vendor will not be responsible if there is a dispute.

The Arbitration Process

Disputed transactions

Funds will be released only at the end of a thorough investigation and a decision is finalized. Both the buyer and vendor will be contacted separately twice, allowing ample opportunity to determine the details of the dispute.

A reasonable effort will be made towards finding a mutually agreed upon resolution. If no such resolution is possible, I will return funds based on my assessment of the facts. In most cases, as the result of a breach of contract, one party will be sided with and all funds will be returned to that party. When it is not possible to determine with certainty the factual basis of the dispute, the funds will be split between the two parties in proportion to my assessment of the likelihood of each party’s case.

Buyer fails to release funds

If the buyer fails to release funds 48 hours following delivery of the item, I will contact the buyer using all available forms of communication. If a response is not received within 3 additional days, funds will be released to the vendor.

No contact from buyer or vendor

If the buyer or vendor does not respond to the moderator within 3 days, their position in the dispute will be considered void. Most disputes should be resolved within a maximum of three days, but it is acknowledged that personal commitments may sometimes interfere with either the buyer or seller responding in a timely manner. If asked, and if provided a reasonable explanation, under rare circumstances I will extend all deadlines by up to one week.

Moderator Timeliness

The buyer and seller should be aware that I might not reside in their time zone. I will strive to respond to all inquiries within 8 hours, but you should allow up to 12 hours to receive a response. In rare cases, such as when I am traveling internationally, it may take me 24 hours to respond.

Privacy and Legality

The moderator will under no circumstance divulge the private information in an OpenBazaar contract to a third party. If, for debugging reasons, it is necessary to contact the developers (or another form of support group) and provide technical details concerning the transaction, this will be done only with the consent of both the buyer and vendor.

No attempt will be made to determine the legality of any transaction. All transactions will be treated as a contract between two responsible individuals. If contacted by law enforcement, no private information will be divulged.

Unethical Transactions

If I find a transaction to be unethical, I will take no action in the arbitration of the dispute. If you find this policy ambiguous, please contact me before choosing me as a moderator and I would be happy to clarify.