What happens when a trade goes wrong

1What a dispute actually does

Opening a dispute freezes the deal. The money stays exactly where it is — it does not go to the seller, and it does not come back to the buyer. Neither side can confirm, cancel, or release while a deal is frozen, and neither can the other side’s impatience change that.

A dispute can only be opened once money is in escrow. Before that there is nothing to argue about: either side can simply walk away, and the deal expires on its own if nobody moves it.

2What we look at

Every action on a deal is written to an append-only record at the moment it happens, in the same database transaction as the change itself. That record cannot be edited afterwards by either party or by us. It is the primary evidence, and both sides can read all of it on the deal page.

It shows, with timestamps:

• the exact terms that were agreed, and when each side agreed to them;
• when payment arrived, the amount, and the transaction it arrived in;
• every note either side added, and every change to an address;
• which side confirmed the trade was done, and when.

Beyond that record we will read anything either party sends to disputes@haspmm.com — tracking numbers, delivery confirmations, screenshots of a conversation, photographs of what arrived. Attach it to the deal reference.

Evidence created after the dispute opened carries less weight than evidence that existed before it, for the obvious reason. Tracking numbers issued the day a dispute is opened are noticed.

3How long it takes

• A human responds within 24 hours of a dispute being opened.
• A ruling follows within 3 business days, unless we have asked one side for something and are waiting on it.
• If we are waiting on you, we will say so, and we will say what we are waiting for. Silence for a week is not a ruling and will not be treated as one.

A funded deal that neither side has confirmed for 5 days is flagged for us to look at whether or not anyone disputes it. Money sitting still is a problem even when nobody has complained.

4The three possible outcomes

There are exactly three, and the same three every time.

• Resume. The deal goes back to where it was and the two of you finish it normally. Used when the dispute turned out to be a misunderstanding, or when something was delivered late.
• Release. The money goes to the seller. Used when the seller delivered what was agreed.
• Refund. The money goes back to the buyer, to an address the buyer gave us and can see on the deal page before anything is sent. Used when the seller did not deliver what was agreed.

We do not split the difference, and we do not release part of the money. A partial outcome is a negotiation, and if the two of you can negotiate, you can resume the deal and settle it between yourselves on revised terms.

Every ruling is written down on the deal, with reasons, and both sides can read it.

5What we decide on

The question is narrow, deliberately: was what was agreed delivered? The agreed terms are on the deal, fixed at the moment both sides accepted them, and neither party can change them afterwards.

Which means, in practice:

• If the description was vague, that counts against whoever wrote it. Write the description as though it will be read by a stranger deciding an argument, because that is exactly what happens.
• Anything agreed somewhere else — in a chat, on a call — is not on the deal and we cannot see it. Put conditions in the deal terms before accepting.
• “I changed my mind” is not a dispute. Buyer’s remorse is not a ground for refund, and neither is a fall in the market price of what you bought.

6Appeals

Either party may ask for a ruling to be looked at again, once, within 7 days. Send it to disputes@haspmm.com with the deal reference and say what you think was got wrong.

An appeal is reviewed by someone who did not make the original ruling, where that is possible. Restating the same argument more forcefully will not change anything; new evidence, or a mistake about what the record actually shows, will.

After an appeal the ruling is final as far as Hasp is concerned. Nothing here stops either of you pursuing the other by any route otherwise available to you, and nothing here is a court.

7Where the money is meanwhile

Held, and not used for anything. Funds in escrow are not lent, invested, or moved while a deal is open. They sit at the address the deal names until the deal resolves, one way or the other.

Crypto is volatile and Hasp does not hedge it. A deal denominated in an asset is settled in that asset — if its value moves while a dispute is open, that movement belongs to whoever ends up with it. This is worth understanding before opening a dispute over a small sum.

8Fees on a disputed deal

If a deal is refunded, the Hasp fee is not charged. If it is released or resumed and then completed, it is charged normally.

Opening a dispute costs nothing. We would rather hear about a problem early than have someone sit on it because they were worried about a charge.

9Acting in bad faith

Repeatedly opening disputes that are then ruled against you, refusing to answer, or giving false evidence will get an account banned from opening deals. A ban is recorded with a reason, and can be appealed the same way a ruling can.

Someone who has plainly been defrauded and someone who has plainly defrauded another person are treated very differently, and the record usually makes it obvious which is which.

10What this page is not

Hasp is not a court, an arbitrator, or a regulator, and a ruling here does not stop you doing anything you could otherwise do. It is a service deciding where money it is holding should go, using rules it published in advance.

The terms of service govern the rest of the relationship, and the privacy notice covers what we hold about you. Questions about any of it: support@haspmm.com.

Operated by [TO BE SET], under the law of [TO BE SET].