Read the policy for the exact product and seller
Find the terms linked to the purchase flow and save a dated copy before paying. Check whether the policy applies to the platform, the individual seller, the specific product, or a combination of those parties. A marketplace’s general help page may not establish the terms for every listing.
Record the product, service configuration, region, payment currency, order stage, and the company named in the policy. If the checkout and help pages conflict, ask the provider to clarify which terms apply to your order. Keep the answer with the original policy capture.
Separate cancellation before work from a dispute after work
A provider may distinguish an order that has not been assigned, work that has started, partial fulfillment, and a completed deliverable. Record the policy for each relevant stage. Do not assume that the word refundable applies equally to all of them.
Ask how the seller defines work started and how it calculates any deduction for partial work. Check what happens if the provider changes the deliverable, misses the agreed deadline, or cannot complete the route. A policy that does not address those cases leaves a limitation to record.
- Cancellation before assignment or first action
- Partial work and how deductions are calculated
- Missed deadline or changed deliverable
- Unavailable service or incomplete order
- The form and destination of any remedy
Confirm the request channel and required records
Find the order-specific channel for a request and any stated time limits. Record the documents the seller asks for, such as an order reference, description of the mismatch, or supporting captures. Keep the original quote, receipt, timestamps, and relevant messages together.
Ask whether a proposed remedy is a return to the original payment method, store credit, a replacement, or another arrangement. These outcomes are different. Record the seller’s actual proposal rather than describing every resolution as a cash refund.
A support reply can explain the process without establishing that a request has been completed. Retain the request time, useful reply time, decision, and any payment or replacement evidence. If the outcome remains open, describe it as unresolved.
Do not confuse clear terms with proven refund performance
A dated policy can support a conclusion about the clarity of the written conditions. It cannot support a conclusion that a seller consistently honors those conditions. Public customer accounts and a tested dispute each need their own source and scope.
LootGrade’s terms criterion can assess saved policies in the empirical file. Refund performance remains unmeasured when no refund was exercised. The separate public-evidence component can describe corroborated dispute reports, without claiming that we handled the customer’s purchase or inspected private records we have not seen.
Make unresolved limitations visible before choosing
When the responsible party, cancellation stage, remedy, or request process is unclear, ask for clarification before treating two offers as comparable. A lower quote with unresolved terms leaves a different decision from a fully specified offer. Record the gap rather than awarding points for a reassuring phrase.
This checklist evaluates the provider’s stated process; it does not determine every right that may apply to a buyer under local law. When a dispute arises, the applicable rules and the payment provider’s procedures require their own current check.
Use the buyer guides and the published scoring methodology alongside the relevant company file. A composite score needs both empirical and public evidence. A research listing or a written guarantee does not establish a completed test, a recommendation, or a future outcome.
Sources & further reading
The external sources below establish their own policies or definitions. This article is a purchase-assessment guide, not a record of a LootGrade test.
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