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ESCROW SERVICES FAQ
The Escrow Process:
Payment:
Transaction and Terms:
Shipment:
Returns:
Security and Privacy:
ESCROW SERVICES FAQ
The Escrow Process:
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Do the services offered through Escrow.com favor either the buyer or the seller?
No. Escrow.com is a neutral, third party
intermediary that assures a secure and smooth transaction process
for both buyers and sellers.
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How long does the escrow process take?
It depends upon three factors:
- the inspection
period agreed upon by both parties;
- method of shipment;
- the
method of payment selected.
For instance, credit card payments are
secured fastest, whereas a paper check from the buyer can take
several days in order to allow time for the mail and fund
verification by the buyer's bank. Generally, most escrow purchases
can take from 5 to 14 days.
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How is Escrow.com different than PayPal?
PayPal is a person-to-person payment service: it
does not offer any formal protections for fraud against either the
buyer or seller, so there is no guarantee for recourse if the
merchandise isn't as advertised, or the payment wasn’t made with
good funds. Escrow.com is accredited to offer protections as
prescribed by the law to both the buyer and seller.
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Can I use the services offered though
Escrow.com if I am not a member?
No, however registering yourself as a user is safe,
fast, and free. We guarantee that your private contact information
will never be shared with any person or organization, for marketing
or any other purposes, without your permission.
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If I have any questions about the
product, do I contact Escrow.com?
No. Escrow.com is a neutral third-party that
protects both the buyer and seller to ensure the transaction is
processed. We have no knowledge about what is actually being sold.
In most cases, Escrow.com has a very limited relationship with
either party. If the buyer has any questions, they should contact
the seller directly.
Payment:
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How much does using the services of
Escrow.com cost?
To secure your transaction, the fee is calculated
on the purchase price and the method of payment (for this purpose
use escrow fee calculator).
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Who is responsible for paying the escrow
fees to Escrow.com?
During the Agreement Phase of the transaction, the
buyer and seller would normally negotiate who will pay the escrow
fees. Either the buyer can pay the fees, the seller pays, or the
buyer and seller each pay half of the escrow fee. In the event of a
rejection of the merchandise or cancellation of the transaction, the
buyer is responsible for escrow fees, return shipping fees, and
original shipping fee if the buyer agreed to pay. The escrow fee and
any original shipping fees will be taken out of the original payment
made to Escrow.com.
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Who is responsible for taxes, customs,
and import fees?
Taxes, customs and import fees are typically the
responsibility of the seller, but the seller is free to negotiate
any additional fees as part of the purchase price.
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What forms of payment does Escrow.com
accept?
Escrow.com accepts Visa, Mastercard, American
Express, wire transfers, money orders, personal or company checks,
or cashiers checks. Credit cards are accepted only for Premier
Service level and only for transactions up to $5000.
Remember that each form of payment takes a
different length of time to process. Checks require 7 to 10 business
days, while payments with a credit card are processed within five
business days. Note that certain payment types are limited to
transactions in specific countries and currencies, and international
buyers are advised that the fastest method of payment is wire
transfer. International checks, international money orders, or any
currency other than that specified for a transaction is not
accepted. Escrow.com, at its sole discretion, reserves the right to
refuse a payment type (such as a credit card) for any transaction.
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Can I use my credit card as payment for
a transaction?
Escrow.com only accepts credit card payments for
Premier Service transactions. Please note that Premier Service
transactions are limited to $5000 USD. In addition, Escrow.com has
strict policies governing the acceptance of credit card payments.
Below are the some of the more common reasons a credit card payment
may not accepted for your transaction:
- - The transaction involves time sensitive goods (i.e. tickets).
- - The transaction is for certain types of merchandise, including software and services.
- - The transaction does not involve shipping.
- - The buyer or seller is located in certain countries.
- - The name and address on the card do not match the name and address used when registering with Escrow.com.
- - Information provided to Escrow.com is determined
to be incorrect, or, in certain situations, when we can not reach
you at the phone number you provided.
- - A card security code is not present on a card or
is not provided to Escrow.com correctly.
- - Our transaction security team detects certain
fraud indicators for a transaction.
- - The card has been reported as stolen or missing,
or the card fails a screening process set up with our merchant
processor.
- - You, or the other party to a transaction, have
been involved in a previous dispute or chargeback in connection with
an Escrow.com transaction.
- - The transaction is in a currency other than
United States Dollars.
By special arrangement with certain sellers, the
use of credit cards for purchases may be further limited. Escrow.com
may refuse to allow a credit card as payment for any reason in our
sole discretion. Any rejection of credit card as a form of payment
is not necessarilly determined by information provided by the
cardholder. We apologize if we are unable to accept a credit card
for your transaction. In addition, when paying by credit card, you
will generally be required to sign a credit card authorization form
and FAX it to Escrow.com.
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What is the verification of "good funds"
or "secured funds"?
When you buy an item at a store with a check or
credit card, you are promising that the money is available in your
account. The store doesn't receive the money for another 3 to 7
days. Sending a check to Escrow.com works exactly the same way. To
ensure payment, Escrow.com waits until the money is deposited into
our trust account, which is then considered "good funds." This takes
longer, but gives buyers and sellers an extra level of security.
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Are credit card transactions treated as
cash advances or purchases?
Your credit card transactions are treated as
purchases, thereby avoiding the typical cash advance fees assessed
by most credit cards.
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When is my credit card charged?
Before the seller sends the buyer any item,
Escrow.com must have the purchase funds in its escrow trust account.
Therefore, your credit card is charged the purchase amount plus any
escrow fees you have agreed to pay immediately after you and the
seller conclude the agreement phase of the transaction. Note that
this charge is a payment to IES's escrow trust account, not to the
seller.
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How quickly are all payments processed?
- Wire Transfers:
- It depends upon your
financial institution; some require a few hours or even a few days
before they can wire funds. We process wire transfers each business
day.
- Credit Cards:
- Payments with credit cards
are processed within 5 business days.
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As the buyer, what happens to my money
when I send it to Escrow.com?
Your funds remain in our secured escrow
non-interest bearing trust account until the transaction concludes.
All of our escrow trust accounts are maintained by Internet Escrow
Services, a licensed and accredited operating subsidiary of
Escrow.com.
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How does Escrow.com protect against
fraud?
Escrow.com takes several steps to protect both the
buyer and seller against fraud:
- all payments by the buyer are
verified as "good funds" before the seller is instructed to ship
- all shipments are tracked to ensure the seller shipped and the buyer
received the merchandise, and
- if the merchandise is fraudulent,
it gives the buyer the chance to return the merchandise before
payment is released to the seller.
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What is Internet Escrow Services (IES)?
Online escrow services provided by Escrow.com are
provided independently and exclusively by Internet Escrow Services,
(IES), one of its operating subsidiaries. IES is fully licensed and
accredited as an escrow company and is subject to compliance with
all applicable escrow regulations, including the California
Financial and Business Code.
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If I live outside of the United
States, are there any forms of payment that you do not accept?
Escrow.com accepts most forms of payment from
international parties, but we only accept amounts in US Dollars.
Also certain countries may be prohibited from using certain forms of
payment.
Credit Cards - Credit Cards as a form of payment
are not available in Indonesia and Romania.
Checks - Checks and money orders are only accepted
when drawn on U.S. Banks.
International wire transfers - Wire transfers from
non-U.S. Banks are sent through an international clearinghouse, and
require a separate transaction fee. This fee should be added to the
buyer's payment.
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What currencies does Escrow.com support?
Escrow.com supports the foilowing currencies:
- - USD - United States dollars
- - Great Britain pounds
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Who do I make the check or money order
out to?
All payments for online payment services need to
be made out to Internet Escrow Services.
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Are there any limits to how much I can
charge on a credit card?
The limit on any transaction paid by credit card
is $5,000, plus resulting escrow and transaction fees.
Transaction and Terms:
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What is an inspection period, when does
it start, and how long does it last?
The inspection period is the amount of time agreed
to by both parties in which the buyer may examine the items. The
amount of time selected can be from 1 to 30 days. The inspection
period begins when Escrow.com confirms the shipment has been
received, and the buyer must accept or reject the goods within this
period. When the buyer rejects the items, the seller has 5 days to
examine the merchandise after it is returned. buyers and sellers
should make sure the inspection period provides adequate time for
any authentication and/or appraisal process that may be necessary to
complete the transaction.
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How do I change transaction details and
terms?
During the Agreement Phase only, either the buyer
or seller may change transaction details by logging into Escrow.com
and making changes in the Online Agreement Form. Once both parties
have agreed to the details, they must email their change requests to
ies@Escrow.com. Changes after the terms have been agreed to must
have the consent of both the buyer and the seller.
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How do buyers or sellers cancel
transactions?
Prior to agreement of terms by both parties, the
buyer or seller can cancel the transaction. Once both parties have
confirmed transaction details in the Agreement phase, either party
may cancel the transaction only if buyer has not delivered payment.
The buyer may reject the transaction during the
inspection period after receiving the items, but the buyer is still
responsible for shipping the merchandise back to the seller, and for
paying any escrow fees.
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What if the seller does not ship the
items?
Your funds will not be released to the seller
until you have received and approved the items you are purchasing.
This eliminates the concern for non-shipment of goods.
Shipment:
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Who pays for shipping?
During the agreement of terms, the buyer and
seller agree who's paying for shipping, but the seller will
initially pay at the time of shipment. If the buyer is responsible
for the shipping charges, the shipping amount is specified by the
seller and added to the total purchase price. In this case, the
buyer is responsible for the shipping costs even if they reject the
merchandise.
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How do I have to ship items?
For most major shipping companies, Escrow.com
provides the tracking of merchandise from the seller to the buyer as
a service. This facilitates the escrow process. In the case where
the seller or buyer uses a shipping company outside of our list, the
receiving party will have to notify Escrow.com if the merchandise
has arrived.
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What if the items are damaged during
shipping?
If the shipment was insured, the shipping company
is responsible for damages. If the shipment was not insured and the
buyer and seller cannot come to a resolution, the transaction will
likely enter into dispute resolution. In most cases, whoever shipped
the items will be responsible for any damages to the merchandise.
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When does the seller ship the items?
The seller is notified by Escrow.com to ship the
items once IES verifies the payment from the buyer is secured in the
escrow account.
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What if the buyer refuses to receive the
shipped items?
Buyers who refuse to receive the shipment will be
responsible for paying both the initial and return shipping fees.
The buyer's funds will be returned after the seller's shipping costs
and the escrow fees have been deducted. The seller will then be
reimbursed for their shipping costs.
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If the buyer returns an item, who pays
for shipping?
As specified in the escrow terms, if the buyer
rejects the merchandise, they pay for return shipping fees.
Returns:
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How long does the buyer have to inspect
the items?
When the buyer and seller agree to terms, the
inspection period is the time the buyer has to inspect the
merchandise. If the inspection period has expired, Escrow.com
assumes that the buyer has approved the merchandise, and the seller
is paid.
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How does the buyer decline or reject
items sent by the seller?
In the online inspection period, the buyer would
click on "Reject". At that point, the buyer is responsible for
arranging return shipment with an approved shipper. The buyer
receives returned funds only after the seller confirms receipt of
the returned items in the same condition it was sent.
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How does the buyer decline only some of
the items sent by the seller?
If the seller allows partial rejection, upon
declining the merchandise the buyer can reject certain items. In
that case, the buyer is still responsible for return shipping and
the escrow fees.
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What if the buyer forgets to accept or
decline the items online at Escrow.com?
Escrow.com will release funds automatically to the
seller at the end of the inspection period, as long as the buyer has
not declined the items.
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What if the buyer does not like the
items?
The buyer has the inspection period (a length of
time agreed to by both parties) to approve the items. If
dissatisfied, the buyer must return the items to the seller. Once
the seller has received the items and confirmed that they are in
satisfactory condition, Escrow.com will release the funds back to
the buyer. In any case, on return, the buyer is responsible for
escrow fees, return shipping fees, and original shipping fee if the
buyer agreed to pay. The escrow fee and any original shipping fees
will be taken out of the original payment made to Escrow.com.
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What if there is a disagreement during
the transaction? What is dispute resolution?
If the buyer and seller haven't resolved the
dispute within 60 days, the matter is sent to dispute resolution -
an arbitration process administered by the American Arbitration
Association in accordance with the provisions of its Commercial
Arbitration Rules.
Security and Privacy:
Escrow Licenses:
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