NM-013: Dispute submission procedure

1. Trigger conditions

Open a dispute when the stated dispatch window has clearly passed without dispatch, when goods have not arrived within a reasonable period after dispatch, or when what arrived does not match the order. Do not open one while a stated window is still running.

2. Prior action

Send one clear message with the order reference and a specific question before escalating. A single precise message is more likely to produce a response than several vague ones, and its presence in the record helps the submission afterwards.

3. Submission contents

1. Order reference and the relevant dates, stated first
2. What was ordered, what arrived, and when
3. Any listing terms that bear on the outcome, quoted accurately
4. The outcome being requested, stated plainly

4. What to omit

Characterisation of the other party, restatement of the same point, and description of how the situation feels. Arbitration compares two accounts of one order against whatever the market recorded. Material that cannot be checked adds length without adding weight, and length reads as uncertainty.

5. Evidence boundary

Only what happened inside the market message system is available to arbitration. A conversation moved to an outside channel is effectively invisible to the process, which is the operational reason to refuse such moves rather than a matter of preference.

6. During the dispute

Funds remain in escrow while the dispute is open, so delay costs time rather than money. Do not confirm receipt to close a dispute that appears to be going badly, since that action releases the payment and ends the process in the counterparty favour.