Payments, Payouts & Collections

1.How payments work#

Payments are processed by Stripe. Fireville never stores your full card number; Stripe does. All amounts are in US dollars.

When you add a card you confirm you're allowed to use it, and you authorize Fireville and Stripe to charge it for purchases, wins and other amounts these Terms allow. We may place temporary authorization holds. Fireflies you choose to use are applied before your card is charged.

2.Fireville collects for sellers#

Fireville collects each buyer's payment on the seller's behalf as the seller's limited payment collection agent. When the buyer pays Fireville, the buyer has paid the seller. Fireville then pays the seller what they've earned, minus fees and other amounts allowed by these policies. [LAWYER: confirm with the Stripe Connect setup.]

3.Getting set up for payouts#

To be paid, sellers connect a Stripe account and complete Stripe's identity, bank and tax checks. Stripe or Fireville may ask for more information at any time. Payouts can't be sent until checks are complete, and the bank account must be in your name or your business's name.

4.When seller money becomes available#

Money from an order moves through these stages:

• Paid: the buyer has paid. Money is pending.
• Shipped: the carrier has scanned the box.
• Delivered: tracking shows delivery, or the buyer marked it delivered.
• Hold period: 72 hours after delivery for tracked boxes; for envelopes, a set number of days after the drop-off photo (currently 10).
• Available: you can request a payout.

You choose when to request a payout of your available balance. Fireville reviews payout requests and may take a few business days to approve them. After Stripe sends a payout, banks usually take 2–5 business days to show it. [OWNER: confirm the payout schedule.]

5.Holds#

Fireville may hold money longer than usual, or pause payouts, when:

• a case, return, cancellation request or chargeback is open on the order;
• tracking is missing, wrong or hasn't updated;
• you're a new seller, or your sales are much larger or different than usual;
• your rates of late shipping, cancellations, cases or chargebacks are high;
• we're reviewing your account for a possible rule break, fraud or risk;
• your identity, bank or tax information is incomplete or doesn't match;
• your account is limited, suspended or closed;
• the law, a court order or a government request requires it.

We'll tell you when a hold is placed and, where we can, why and what will release it. Most holds end when the order is delivered and the case closes. For a suspended or closed account, we may keep money for up to 180 days after the last sale, or longer if claims are still open or the law requires it. [LAWYER: confirm the 180-day period.]

6.Reserves#

If we see risk (for example, a high rate of cases, a sudden jump in sales, selling items not yet in hand, or signs of fraud), we may require a reserve: a share of your sales or a fixed amount kept back for a set time or on a rolling basis to cover future refunds, chargebacks and amounts owed. We'll tell you the amount and terms. We may change or end a reserve as risk changes, and you can ask us to review it.

7.What we take out of your balance#

You authorize Fireville to deduct these from your available balance, pending sales, reserve and future sales on any Fireville account you control:

• Fireville's fees;
• refunds (full or partial) you agree to or that Fireville decides;
• chargebacks, the bank's chargeback fee and reversed payments;
• shipping you chose to cover, label upgrades, replacement labels and carrier adjustments (plus 1% of the label cost);
• labels for giveaway-only boxes;
• return labels when you're at fault;
• amounts paid to you by mistake;
• taxes we must withhold;
• any other amount you owe under these policies.

8.Negative balances#

If deductions are more than your balance, your balance goes negative. You must pay it back. We'll tell you the amount and how to pay. Until it's paid we may limit selling, buying and payouts.

If it isn't paid within 14 days of our notice (or right away if we believe there's fraud), you authorize us to recover it from future sales or payouts, to charge any card saved on any of your Fireville accounts, and to debit your connected bank account through Stripe.

9.Collections#

If a negative balance or other debt is still unpaid 30 days after our notice, we may send it to a collection agency. The agency may contact you and, as the law allows, report the debt to credit bureaus. We may also take legal action.

To the extent the law allows, you agree to pay the reasonable costs of collection, including agency fees, attorneys' fees and court costs, and interest as stated in the Terms. Closing your account doesn't cancel the debt. [LAWYER: confirm notice periods and collection practices by state.]

10.When a buyer's payment fails#

If a charge for a win or purchase fails, we may retry it, ask for another card, and pause your bidding and chat until it's paid. Unpaid orders may be cancelled. Repeated unpaid wins lead to suspension, and amounts owed may be collected as described above.

11.Mistakes#

If you receive money by mistake (for example, a double payout or a refund you weren't owed), you must return it, and we may take it from your balance or charge your card on file. If you think we made a mistake, tell us within 60 days of the statement or charge so we can fix it.

12.Taxes and tax forms#

Fireville collects and pays sales tax as a marketplace facilitator where the law requires it. Sellers are responsible for income tax on their sales.

Fireville (through Stripe) may send sellers a Form 1099-K and report sales to the IRS and states when federal or state reporting thresholds are met. We may ask for your tax ID; if you don't provide it, we may hold payouts or apply backup withholding as the law requires. Giveaway winners may get a Form 1099-MISC for prizes worth $600 or more. [LAWYER: confirm current 1099-K thresholds and state rules.]

13.Unclaimed money#

If we can't pay you for a long time (for example, your bank account is closed and you don't respond), state unclaimed-property laws may require us to send the money to the state. We'll try to contact you first.