DISPUTES

CASES POLICY

1. Opening a Case

When a buyer is looking to return an item, get a refund, or otherwise notify a seller of a problem with their order on Bioplace, the first thing they must do is contact the seller directly via the Help with Order link within Purchases and Reviews and let the seller know the issue. It is important for sellers to fill out their shop policies to address returns and refunds, and for buyers to read and understand those policies before ordering.

Sellers are expected to regularly respond to Messages, including Help with Order messages, from buyers. If a buyer has reached out to the seller by selecting Help with Order within the Purchases and Reviews section of their account, and hasn’t heard back within 48 hours, or if the seller is unable to resolve the issue within 48 hours, buyers can open what’s known as a “case”. With Bioplace’s case system, a buyer alerts Bioplace that there is an issue with their order that they were unable to resolve with the seller within 48 hours, and Bioplace will assist in the resolution of the case between the buyer and seller. This may include, but is not limited to, automatically closing the case and issuing a refund, or reviewing the case further to help both parties work together to resolve the issue.

Here are a couple of things to keep in mind:

A buyer must have a Bioplace account to open a case. If a buyer purchases an item using guest checkout, they'll have to register for an account on Bioplace before opening a case. Click here for more information.
A buyer can only use one method of dispute resolution against sellers on Bioplace. If a buyer has filed a chargeback with their credit card company, they cannot also open a case. If a buyer files a chargeback after opening a case on Bioplace, that Bioplace case will be closed.

Additional information about opening a case can be found in this Help article. To get help with an order, please take a look at this Help article.

2. Case Eligibility

In order for a case to be opened with Bioplace, an order must meet the following criteria:

The order is within the eligible time frame to open a case, based on an order's estimated delivery date (if applicable) or processing time and “dispatch by" date. This Help article explains case time eligibility.
The buyer has reported the order issue to the seller by selecting Help with Order within the Purchases and Reviews section, and has given the seller 48 hours to resolve the issue.
The buyer wants to open a case because the item never arrived, arrived after the estimated delivery date window, arrived damaged, or does not match the listing description, as described below.

Bioplace’s Purchase Protection Programme for Buyers

In many cases, order issues can be resolved directly with the seller, or items can be returned according to the seller’s return policy. However, we believe that you should always get the item you ordered, or get your money back, so when those expectations aren’t met, Bioplace will step in to support you. Buyers will receive a full refund for purchases that never arrive, arrive after the estimated delivery date window, arrive damaged, or do not match the listing description.

If an order does not meet the expectations in our programme, the buyer is entitled to a full refund, including all taxes and postage costs:

Items are delivered on time. They should be dispatched within the seller’s stated processing times, and delivered to the address provided by the buyer at the time of purchase on Bioplace. Updates to processing times or delivery address through Messages or other informal channels will not qualify. Please note that if an item was dispatched and has a tracking number, you may be able to open a delivery company claim by directly contacting the delivery company. Items that arrive late due to forces outside the seller’s reasonable control, such as a carrier strike, natural disaster, war, civil unrest or similar force majeure event, as determined by Bioplace in its sole discretion, do not qualify for Bioplace’s Purchase Protection Programme.
Items arrive undamaged, and are packaged to withstand handling in transit.
Items match the listing description. Items received should not be significantly different from the listing description or photos. We may ask the buyer to provide us with documentation to demonstrate that the item is significantly different. Here are a few examples of qualifying scenarios:

The item received is a different colour, model, version, or size.
The item received provides different performance.
The item has a different design or material.
The seller failed to disclose that an item is damaged or is missing parts.
The buyer received the incorrect quantity of items (e.g., the buyer purchased three products but only received two, however this may not apply to consumables when invoiced accordingly).
The item was advertised as authentic but is not authentic.
The condition of the item is misrepresented (e.g., the item is described as new but is used).
The item was dispatched from a different location than advertised.

Some exclusions apply, subject to review by Bioplace’s case system. Eligible buyers must have a registered account on Bioplace in good standing (that means not violating any of Bioplace’s policies). Abuse of this programme could result in programme exclusion at Bioplace’s discretion.

Bioplace’s Purchase Protection Programme for Sellers

Bioplace’s Purchase Protection Programme for Sellers helps qualified sellers to resolve eligible non-delivery, damaged, and not-as-described cases. We understand that things can still go wrong, even if a seller has taken all of the necessary steps to ensure a good buyer experience. In these cases, where an order meets all of our requirements, Bioplace will refund buyers for orders up to 250 EUR (including postage & taxes) and sellers will not be held responsible.

3. Ineligible Disputes and Transactions

Unless required by law, some disputes and transactions are ineligible for the case system, including:

Items that have been altered, used, worn, washed, or discarded after receipt.
Items that are returned without a return agreement.
Items that are accurately described but don’t meet a buyer's expectations.
Cost of postage disputes.
Items that are purchased in person.
Transactions where payment is not processed by Bioplace Payments, for example in an offsite transaction.
Disputes covered by local warranty or return laws applicable to a seller or their product.

Wherever a qualifying case is escalated for Bioplace’s review, we will evaluate the claim to the best of our ability. Please be aware that our case mediation capabilities may be limited for certain types of items, which may result in a refund. Bioplace reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to change its original decision based on information obtained after the case was originally evaluated.

4. Case Resolution

Once a case is opened, Bioplace will usually resolve and close the case automatically on behalf of the buyer and seller. Bioplace reserves the right to resolve the case on a seller’s behalf, including, but not limited to, by issuing a refund to the buyer.

In some cases, Bioplace may need to investigate further in order to resolve the case. Each case must remain open until a resolution has been reached. Bioplace may reach out to you to provide more information on the case, and you should promptly respond. Sellers must respond within 2 working days.

Bioplace reserves the right to resolve an order issue before the 48-hour window for circumstances including, but not limited to, seller inactivity, harassment, refusal of service, manipulation, and undermining the integrity of the case system. Bioplace may close or resolve a case due to lack of participation from either party, or reopen a previously closed case to further investigate tracking issues or other aspects of the dispute. To maintain the integrity of the case system, a seller cannot encourage or require a buyer to close a case as a condition of resolving the dispute.

In the unlikely event that a case remains unresolved for more than 183 days, it is considered to be a late delivery, and the only acceptable resolution is a full refund.