Escrow Policy

1. What is Escrow?

Escrow is a financial arrangement in which a neutral third party — in this case, Defixerhub Ltd — holds funds on behalf of two parties engaged in a transaction, releasing those funds only when specified conditions have been met.

On the Defixerhub Platform, escrow means that when a Customer accepts an Artisan's quote, their payment is immediately debited and held safely by Defixerhub — not held by the Artisan — until the job is confirmed as completed to the Customer's satisfaction.

2. Why Defixerhub Uses Escrow

We designed our platform around escrow because trust is the foundation of any service marketplace. Without escrow:

• Customers risk paying for poor-quality or incomplete work
• Artisans risk completing work and not being paid
• Neither party has a neutral mechanism for resolving disagreements

Our escrow system eliminates these risks, giving both Customers and Artisans the confidence to transact on the Platform.

3. When Payment is Debited

Payment is debited from the Customer's account at the exact moment they confirm acceptance of an Artisan's quote (or their counter-offer is accepted by the Artisan). This triggers:

1. Immediate debit from Customer's mobile money wallet or card
2. Funds transferred to Defixerhub's ring-fenced Escrow account
3. Artisan notified that the job is confirmed and funds are secured
4. Job status updated to "In Progress" in the app

4. How Funds Are Held

Defixerhub holds all escrow funds in a dedicated, ring-fenced account that is separate from Defixerhub's operational bank accounts. This means:

• Escrow funds are never used to pay Defixerhub's operating expenses
• Funds are held on behalf of the Customer and earmarked for the specific Artisan
• No interest is paid to either party on held funds
• Defixerhub acts purely as an intermediary — not as a bank
• In the unlikely event of Defixerhub's insolvency, escrow funds are protected as client money

5. Releasing Payment to the Artisan

Funds are released from Escrow to the Artisan when:

• Customer Confirms: The Customer marks the job as "Completed" in the app, triggering instant payment release to the Artisan.
• Auto-Release: If the Customer does not confirm completion or raise a dispute within 7 calendar days of the Artisan marking the job done, funds are automatically released to the Artisan.
• Dispute Resolution: If a dispute is raised and resolved in the Artisan's favour by Defixerhub's support team, funds are released accordingly.

6. Artisan Withdrawals

Once funds are released from Escrow to an Artisan's Defixerhub wallet, the Artisan can withdraw at any time. Withdrawals are processed instantly to the Artisan's registered payout method.

Supported Withdrawal Methods (Rwanda Launch)

• MTN Mobile Money (MoMo)
• Airtel Money
• Bank Transfer (to registered Rwandan bank account)

Withdrawal Processing

• Mobile Money: Processed within seconds, 24/7
• Bank Transfer: Processed within 1–2 business days
• No minimum withdrawal amount during the Rwanda launch phase
• Artisans can set up automatic withdrawal to receive funds immediately upon release

7. Disputes & Escrow Holds

If a Customer is not satisfied with the work, they should raise a dispute within the app before the 7-day auto-release window expires.

How to Raise a Dispute

1. Navigate to the job in your app
2. Tap "Report an Issue" or "Raise Dispute"
3. Describe the problem and upload photos if applicable
4. Submit — funds will be held pending resolution

Dispute Resolution Timeline

• 24 hours: Defixerhub Support responds and assigns a case handler
• 72 hours: Target resolution with full decision communicated to both parties
• Complex cases: May take up to 14 days for full investigation

Defixerhub's decision on disputes is final, though Users may appeal in writing within 14 days of the decision.

8. Partial Payment Releases

For larger or multi-stage jobs, Defixerhub may support milestone-based partial releases where the total agreed price is split into stages, each released upon completion of that stage.

Both parties must agree to a milestone payment structure before the job begins. This feature is available for jobs over RWF 50,000.

9. Refund Policy

A full refund to the Customer will be issued when:

• The Artisan fails to show up without notice and the Customer cancels
• A dispute is resolved in the Customer's favour
• The job is cancelled by mutual agreement before work begins
• A technical error caused a double payment

Refund Processing Time

• Mobile Money refunds: Within 1–3 business days
• Card refunds: Within 5–10 business days (depending on card issuer)

10. Escrow & Platform Fees

Future fee structures will be announced with at least 60 days' notice via email and in-app notification. Any fees will be transparently displayed before acceptance of a quote.

11. Supported Payment Methods — Rwanda

12. Expansion to Other Countries

As Defixerhub expands into Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, and Nigeria, each country will have country-specific escrow rules, payment methods, and currency support. Users in each country will be presented with local policies that comply with that country's financial regulations.

Key planned additions:

• Uganda: MTN Uganda MoMo, Airtel Uganda
• Kenya: M-Pesa, Airtel Kenya
• Tanzania: M-Pesa Tanzania, Tigo Pesa, Airtel Money
• Nigeria: Bank transfers, Opay, Paystack-supported cards

13. Fraud Prevention & Security

• Identity Verification: All Artisans are verified via national ID before accepting their first job
• Transaction Monitoring: Automated systems flag unusual transaction patterns 24/7
• Encrypted Payments: All payment data is encrypted using TLS 1.3 and stored with AES-256 encryption
• No Cash Outside Platform: Attempting to pay or receive payment outside of Defixerhub is a Terms violation and removes escrow protection
• Two-Factor Authentication: Users can enable 2FA for additional account security

14. Contact the Escrow Team

For escrow-specific queries, payment issues, or disputes, contact our dedicated Escrow Support Team: