Terms of use

1. What TradeMe is

TradeMe is a free website that helps people find neighbours to swap services with. We introduce members to each other, help them agree a trade, and provide safety tools. We are not a party to any trade. The people who trade are responsible for the work they agree to do.

2. Who can use it

• You must be at least 18 years old.
• You must give your real name, a working email address and your ZIP code, and keep them up to date.
• One account per person. Your account is personal: don't let anyone else use it.
• You must agree to and follow the community rules.

3. TradeMe is free

We don't charge members, and no money changes hands through TradeMe. The dollar values on listings are only a way to compare two sides of a swap. They are not prices, and nobody owes anyone money because of them.

4. We don't vet the work

TradeMe checks some things about members (a confirmed email, a verified phone, and for some kinds of work an ID check), but we do not check anyone's skills, qualifications, insurance or the quality of their work. Badges and reviews help, but they are not a guarantee. You decide who to trade with, and you trade at your own risk.

Work that needs a licence, permit or certification where you live (for example electrical, plumbing, HVAC, roofing, hair, driving for hire, or notary services) may only be offered by people who hold it. If you offer that kind of work, you confirm that you are properly licensed.

5. Taxes

In the United States, the fair value of services you receive through a barter can be taxable income, and it may need to be reported. TradeMe doesn't give tax advice and does not issue tax forms for swaps. If you're unsure, talk to a tax professional. Your trade agreements and receipts, filed in your MeCentral vault, can help you keep records.

6. Trades between members

• A trade is an agreement between the members involved. Do what you agreed, or cancel in TradeMe with a reason before the trade starts.
• Follow every safety step your trade requires. Don't use TradeMe to arrange meetings that skip them.
• If something goes wrong, you can mark the trade as disputed and our team will look at it. We can help you talk it through, but we cannot force anyone to do work, pay damages or compensate you.

7. Safety tools have limits

Check-ins, buddies, reminders and alerts are there to help, but they can fail (a phone can be off, a message can be delayed). TradeMe cannot send emergency help. If you are in danger, call 911.

8. Your content

You keep ownership of what you write and upload (listings, messages, photos, reviews). You give TradeMe permission to show it on the site and use it to run the service, for example to match you and to show your public profile. We may remove content that breaks the rules, and we screen listings and messages automatically for contact details, payment requests and banned services.

9. Pausing or closing accounts

You can close your account at any time from your settings once you have no live trades. We may hide listings, pause or close accounts that break these terms or the community rules, or that put other members at risk. Records of past trades are kept as described in our privacy notice.

10. Our responsibility

We provide TradeMe as it is, and we try hard to keep it working and safe. To the extent the law allows, TradeMe is not responsible for what members do, for the quality of any work, or for loss, injury or damage that happens during a trade. Nothing here limits rights you have under consumer law that can't be limited.

11. Changes

If we change these terms in a way that matters, we'll tell you by email or on the site before the change applies. Continuing to use TradeMe after that means you accept the new terms.

12. Questions

If you have questions about these terms, use the contact options in your account, or report a problem from any trade page.