Dispute resolution
Last updated: 2026-04-30
Every wausernames trade that reaches dispute is reviewed against a structured evidence packet under one of two tiers, picked by trade size. Both tiers produce a binding written decision; outcomes route directly to refund / payout / insurance fund without further user action.
Tier 1 — in-house (≤£25,000)
- SLA: 48 hours from raise to first decision. Most disputes resolve in under 24 hours.
- Reviewer: wausernames operations. Reviewer is rotated against parties they've interacted with in the past 30 days to avoid bias.
- Cost: free to both parties.
- Appeal: escalation to external panel only on procedural grounds (evidence ignored, conflict of interest, identity error). Loser-pays panel fee applies on escalation.
Tier 2 — external arbitrator panel (>£25,000)
- SLA: 14 days from raise to written decision.
- Panel: 3 arbitrators selected from a pre-vetted pool of digital-asset escrow specialists. Both parties may strike one panellist. Panel decisions require majority.
- Cost: typically £1,500-£3,000 total panel fee (see Panel fee schedule below). Loser pays. Buyer make-whole still flows from the insurance fund regardless of panel fee allocation.
- Appeal: binding under standard commercial arbitration rules, enforceable through UK courts and equivalent EEA jurisdictions.
Decision tree (summary)
The decision tree is the same at both tiers; the panel applies it with greater scrutiny on high-value trades. Inputs:
- Verification log: nonce-read attempts, timestamps, partner API responses, WhatsApp Web automation responses, agreement / disagreement flags.
- About-field history: snapshots of the handle's public About field at NONCE_ISSUED, VERIFYING, CAPTURED, and at the moment of the dispute.
- Handle resolution log: who WhatsApp resolves the handle to, across the trade lifecycle.
- KYC tier and reputation: both parties' tier, prior trades, dispute history, response times.
- Chat thread: all messages between buyer and seller during the trade.
Outcomes:
- RESOLVED_BUYER: handle was not transferred or was reclaimed. Buyer made whole; insurance fund pays out.
- RESOLVED_SELLER: transfer was verified and clean; payout confirmed.
- RESOLVED_SHARED_FAULT: both parties contributed to the failure (e.g. buyer delayed claim by >48h, seller's About field was ambiguous). Refund 50/50; insurance fund covers the buyer's share.
- ESCALATED_TO_PANEL: in-house reviewer cannot reach a clear conclusion or trade size exceeds £25k.
Evidence packet shape
Each dispute carries a structured JSON evidence packet that is shared in full with the arbitrator(s) and in redacted form (KYC details masked) with the opposing party. The shape is fixed in our schema (model Dispute.evidencePacket) so reviewers can compare across cases.
Panel fee schedule
| Trade size | Panel fee |
|---|---|
| £25,001 – £100,000 | £1,500 |
| £100,001 – £500,000 | £2,250 |
| £500,001+ | £3,000 + 0.5% of trade size |
The losing party is invoiced for the panel fee. Wausernames advances the fee on their behalf at panel formation; failure to settle within 14 days of the decision triggers commercial recovery.
Raising a dispute
Open the trade detail page from your account, click “Raise dispute”, supply a written summary and any supporting screenshots. The trade state moves to DISPUTE and the evidence packet is auto- assembled by the platform.
Contact
Disputes: [email protected]
Panel registry / arbitration questions: [email protected]