Vendor Commission, Payment and Refund Policy

1. Shop Loco Commission

Shop Loco charges vendors a marketplace commission of 10% on each completed sale.

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, the commission is calculated on the product selling price after vendor-funded discounts and before applicable taxes.

Shipping charges and taxes are excluded from the Shop Loco commission calculation unless the Vendor Agreement or marketplace configuration expressly states otherwise.

The 10% Shop Loco commission is separate from Stripe processing fees and other third-party payment charges.

2. Platform-Level Payments

Shop Loco processes all customer payments through its own Stripe account. Customers may pay by card through Stripe or through PayPal.

Under this model:

• The customer's payment is processed by Shop Loco's Stripe account
• Shop Loco receives the full payment, including the product price and taxes
• Shop Loco records the vendor's earnings in its internal ledger
• Shop Loco deducts its 10% commission from the vendor's earnings
• Stripe processing fees are also deducted from the vendor's earnings
• The vendor receives payouts from Shop Loco according to the agreed payout schedule

Vendors are responsible for Stripe processing fees, which are deducted from their earnings along with the 10% Shop Loco commission.

3. Payment Processing Fees

Stripe processing fees are deducted from the vendor's earnings. Vendors are responsible for Stripe processing fees.

For Canadian transactions using Stripe's standard pricing, the processing fee is generally:

• 2.9% of the order total (product price plus taxes) plus CA$0.30
• The fee is deducted from the vendor's payout
• The processing fee is non-refundable, even when a product refund is approved

The vendor's payout is calculated as the product price minus Shop Loco's 10% commission and minus Stripe's processing fees.

4. Example Vendor Payment

For a CA$100 transaction with no separately stated taxes or shipping:

• Customer payment: CA$100.00
• Shop Loco commission at 10%: CA$10.00
• Estimated Stripe domestic-card fee: CA$3.20
• Estimated vendor earnings: CA$86.80

This example is for illustration only. Actual Stripe fees may vary.

5. Processing Fee Deducted from Vendor Earnings

Shop Loco's 10% commission and Stripe's processing fees are both deducted from the vendor's earnings.

The vendor's payout is calculated as:

• Product selling price minus 10% Shop Loco commission minus Stripe processing fees

6. Vendor Responsibility for Returns and Refunds

Vendors are responsible for refunds and related costs when the refund results from:

• Vendor cancellation
• Unavailable or incorrectly managed inventory
• Failure to fulfill the order
• Shipping the wrong product
• An inaccurate or misleading listing
• Undisclosed damage or defects
• Counterfeit or inauthentic products
• Missing components
• Inadequate packaging
• A product that is materially different from its listing
• Another issue within the vendor's reasonable control

The vendor may also be responsible for reasonable return-shipping costs in these situations.

7. Processing Fees on Refunded Transactions

The Stripe processing fee is non-refundable, even when a product refund is approved.

Therefore:

• The customer's refund covers the product price and applicable taxes
• Shop Loco retains the processing fee to cover Stripe's non-refundable processing cost
• The vendor's earnings are reversed on the refunded product amount
• The vendor only loses the earnings on the refunded product amount

8. Shop Loco Commission on Full Refunds

When a full customer refund is approved and completed:

• The customer receives the product price and applicable taxes as a refund
• The processing fee is not refunded to the customer
• The vendor's earnings from the sale are reversed
• Shop Loco returns the applicable 10% commission to the vendor
• The vendor does not lose any money beyond the reversed earnings

The commission return is processed internally by Shop Loco. No Stripe application-fee refund function is involved.

9. Shop Loco Commission on Partial Refunds

When a partial refund is approved:

• The customer receives the approved partial amount
• The applicable portion of the vendor's earnings is reversed
• Shop Loco returns the corresponding proportion of its commission
• The processing fee is not refunded to the customer and does not affect the vendor

For example, if 50% of the product amount is refunded, 50% of the applicable Shop Loco commission should also be returned.

10. Full-Refund Example

For a CA$100 product with CA$13 tax (CA$113 order total):

• Customer originally paid: CA$113.00
• Shop Loco originally received: CA$11.30 (10% commission on CA$113)
• Estimated Stripe fee: CA$3.58 (2.9% + CA$0.30 on CA$113)
• Vendor originally received approximately: CA$98.12 (CA$113 minus 10% commission minus Stripe fee)

After a full refund:

• Customer receives: CA$113.00 (product price plus taxes)
• Shop Loco returns its CA$11.30 commission
• The Stripe processing fee is non-refundable
• Vendor's earnings are reversed (CA$98.12), but the vendor loses nothing beyond the reversed sale

Actual amounts depend on Stripe's fee calculation for the original payment.

11. Insufficient Vendor Balance

Refunds are processed through Shop Loco's Stripe account and tracked in the vendor's internal Shop Loco ledger.

If the vendor does not have enough pending earnings to cover a refund, the refund may:

• Create a negative balance in the vendor's Shop Loco account
• Be recovered from future vendor earnings
• Be deducted from a pending Shop Loco payout
• Require repayment by the vendor

Shop Loco may delay vendor payouts while refunds, disputes, chargebacks or negative balances remain unresolved.

12. Processing Refunds Through Shop Loco

Vendors must process refunds through the original Shop Loco order and approved marketplace refund process.

Vendors must not:

• Refund a customer using cash or an unrelated payment method
• Send money directly to a customer outside Shop Loco
• Mark an order refunded without processing the corresponding payment refund through Shop Loco
• Promise a refund without following Shop Loco's authorization process

Using the original order ensures that the following are correctly adjusted:

• Customer payment
• Vendor earnings
• Shop Loco commission
• Stripe records
• Taxes
• Inventory
• Order status
• Transaction history

13. Customer Change-of-Mind Returns

For an approved customer change-of-mind return:

• The vendor must accept the return if the product qualifies under the published return policy
• The customer is normally responsible for return shipping
• Original shipping is normally non-refundable
• The product must be returned and inspected before the refund is completed
• The processing fee is non-refundable and does not affect the vendor beyond the reversed sale
• Shop Loco's commission is returned in proportion to the refund

14. Vendor-Caused Cancellations

If a vendor cancels an order because the product is unavailable or cannot be fulfilled:

• The customer must receive a full refund of the product price and applicable taxes
• The processing fee is non-refundable to the customer
• Shop Loco will return its applicable commission
• The vendor does not bear any additional Stripe processing fee cost beyond the reversed sale

Repeated vendor cancellations may result in account review, delayed payouts, restrictions, suspension or termination.

15. Chargebacks and Payment Disputes

Because Shop Loco processes payments through its own Stripe account, chargebacks and payment disputes are received by Shop Loco. Shop Loco passes the cost of disputes relating to a vendor's products to that vendor.

The vendor may be responsible for:

• The disputed payment amount
• Stripe's applicable dispute fee
• Return or delivery evidence
• Proof of fulfillment
• Communications with the customer
• Other costs resulting from the dispute

Vendors must provide requested evidence within Shop Loco's or Stripe's stated deadline. Failure to respond may result in the dispute being decided in the customer's favour. Dispute costs may be deducted from the vendor's pending payouts or future earnings.

16. Vendor Recordkeeping

Vendors must retain appropriate records for each sale, including:

• Product listing information
• Product condition photographs
• Shipping and tracking information
• Proof of delivery
• Customer communications
• Return and refund records
• Authenticity documents, where applicable

17. Excessive Refunds or Payment Risk

Shop Loco may review, delay payouts, restrict, suspend or terminate a vendor account because of:

• Excessive cancellations or refunds
• Repeated inaccurate listings
• Unresolved negative balances
• Counterfeit or prohibited products
• Excessive chargebacks
• Repeated fulfillment failures
• Failure to respond to customer concerns
• Abuse of payment or refund systems

18. Changes to Stripe Fees

Stripe controls its payment-processing rates and may change them without Shop Loco's control.

Shop Loco may update this policy to reflect Stripe's pricing, payment methods or Connect requirements. The actual Stripe fee recorded for each transaction will prevail over any illustrative calculation in this policy.