Listing an item
When you list an authenticated item for sale, its proof certificate is placed into escrow — it's locked up on-chain so it can't be transferred or sold elsewhere until the sale completes or the listing is cancelled.
Buying an item
Payments are processed securely by Stripe. Once your payment succeeds, your purchase is recorded — but the certificate isn't released to you immediately. It stays in escrow until the sale is confirmed as complete, which happens when:
- you confirm you've received the item, or
- the seller confirms shipment/handoff and the pickup or shipping flow completes, or
- 7 days pass after dispatch — or 3 days after the carrier reports delivery, whichever comes first — with no problem reported (an automatic confirmation).
This delay is intentional: it keeps the item "unsettled" for the length of the return/dispute window, so there's no point where you could resell an item you might still end up returning.
Fees
Marketplace fees are shown up front at checkout before you confirm a purchase. Every fee we charge is published in full at fees and charges: buyers pay 5% of the item price plus A$0.50, sellers pay 5%, and Collauth takes no percentage of postage.
Disputes and refunds
If something's wrong with an order, you can report a problem any time before the sale is confirmed as complete. A member of the Collauth team reviews it, and there are three outcomes — described in full at cancellations, refunds and disputes:
- Full refund — the item price, postage and service fee are returned to you and the certificate goes back to the seller.
- Partial refund — you keep the item and part of what you paid is returned, out of the seller's payout.
- No refund — the sale completes normally, releasing payment to the seller and the certificate to you.
Because the certificate only leaves escrow at final settlement, a dispute can always be resolved cleanly in any direction.