If you are buying
- Find a Make to buy now, or message a fabricator to ask for a custom quote.
- Pay at checkout by card. PrintCommons holds the money; the fabricator is not paid yet. Any service fee is shown before you pay.
- The fabricator has 3 days to start your order. If nobody does, it is cancelled and you are refunded automatically.
- The fabricator ships with a carrier and tracking number, or hands the order over in person. You can follow it on the order page.
- When it arrives, approve it if you are happy. That releases the payment to the fabricator.
- If you do not approve, it is released automatically after the review period (see below).
- If something is wrong, message the fabricator first. If that does not work, open a dispute before the order is completed.
If you are a fabricator
- Register your machine and accept the Fabricator Agreement, then finish payout setup under Business Center, then Payouts. Until you do, money from your orders waits for you.
- When an order is paid you are notified. Start it within 3 days.
- Make it and ship it with a carrier and tracking number. On an order over $250, buy signature confirmation too; tracking alone does not protect you on a high-value order.
- The buyer approves, or the review period passes, and the payment is released to your connected Stripe account.
A custom quote can include a deposit. A deposit is paid to the fabricator when the buyer pays rather than after delivery, and it is capped, because it reduces how much of the buyer's money is still protected.
When the money is released
The money is released after delivery, once a review period has passed. How long depends on how well the delivery is recorded, because that is what decides a not-received claim.
| Delivery record | Released after |
|---|---|
| Signed for | 7 days |
| Carrier-confirmed tracking | 14 days |
| No tracking, or over $250 without a signature | 30 days |
| Custom work the buyer must approve | Approved when the buyer approves, or automatically after 7 days (14 days without carrier tracking) |
| Design licence (a digital file) | 7 days |
A buyer who approves an order releases it straight away. That also ends their chance to open a dispute on it.
Cancellations and refunds
A buyer can cancel until the fabricator starts work, and the order is refunded in full. After work has started, only the fabricator or PrintCommons can cancel. A refund is also what happens when a fabricator does not start an order in time, or when a dispute is decided in the buyer's favour.