Tools Marketplace Terms

These Tools Marketplace Terms are an addendum to the Platform Terms of Service and the Platform Privacy Policy. They apply whenever you use the Tools Marketplace inside the ChefSphere apps or the ChefSphere website — as a Buyer, Renter, Seller, or any combination. Where this addendum is silent, the Platform documents control. Where this addendum conflicts with the Platform Terms on a tool-specific matter, this addendum controls for that matter.

1. Who the parties are

• ChefSphere means ChefSphere OÜ, Estonian registry code 17470129 (Tartu County Court Registration Department, business register card No. 1), with service address c/o E-Residency Hub OÜ, Ahtri tn 12, 10151 Tallinn, Harju maakond, Estonia. ChefSphere operates the Marketplace, the Stripe-processed payment flow for worldwide orders, the shipping-label wallet, and the apps that host listings.
• A Seller is a user who lists a tool for sale. Sellers offering worldwide shipping must complete the full onboarding in the Seller Agreement, including Stripe Express / Connect and KYC. Sellers offering in-person sales only or rent-only use a lite profile: no Stripe account is required because no money flows through the platform for those methods.
• A Buyer is a user who purchases a tool for personal use under the Buyer Terms.
• A Renter is a user who rents a tool under the Rental Terms.
• An Owner is a user who lists a tool for rent.

A single user can be Buyer, Renter, Seller, and Owner at the same time. Each role creates its own set of obligations.

2. What the Marketplace is — and what it is not

The Tools Marketplace is a peer-to-peer platform. Its role depends on the selling method of the listing:

• For worldwide-shipped sales, ChefSphere is an intermediary and the technical operator of the payment flow. Payment is processed through Stripe (or, for certain in-app purchases, Apple App Store / Google Play). Platform fees, reserves, hold periods, chargeback defence, and the Shipping Policy all apply.
• For in-person sales and rentals, ChefSphere is only an information-society intermediary. Money moves directly between Buyer/Renter and Seller/Owner in cash (or any other method the parties agree to, outside the platform). ChefSphere does not process, hold, escrow, guarantee, or insure those payments. The platform fee, Stripe reserves, chargeback defence, and shipping wallet do not apply.

ChefSphere is never the merchant of record for the underlying sale or rental. It does not manufacture, inspect, certify, or warrant the tools. The condition, fitness for purpose, accuracy of the listing, and safety of any meet-up are the responsibility of the Seller and the counterparty, subject to the Platform Disclaimer and the limited liability in the Platform Terms.

3. The four selling methods

A Seller chooses one method per listing:

Method	Meaning	Payment rail	Platform fee
Worldwide	Tool is shipped nationally or internationally	Stripe (card, wallets, Apple/Google Pay)	15 % (Fee Schedule)
In-person	Tool is only available for local handoff	Cash between parties at the meet-up	None
Both	Tool is available for shipping AND local handoff	Stripe on shipping checkout; cash on in-person handoff	15 % on the shipping path; none on the in-person path
Rent-only	Tool is only rentable, not for sale	Cash between parties at the pickup	None

The Shipping Policy describes carriers, label wallet, insurance, customs, and delivery windows for worldwide orders. The In-Person Safety addendum describes meet-up rules, documentation, and counterfeit-cash checks for in-person and rental flows. The Rental Terms apply on top of these Marketplace Terms for any rental.

4. Eligibility

ChefSphere operates a four-tier age policy fully set out in the Children & Age Policy; the thresholds that apply on this Marketplace are:

• To hold a free ChefSphere account you must be at least 13 years old (and, in the EEA or UK, under 16 only with verifiable parental consent).
• To buy a shipped order online or to post a paid rental request online you must be at least 16 years old. Below that age you do not have the contractual capacity to conclude distance-contract purchases or rentals under the applicable consumer contract law, and our Terms require the purchase to be concluded by a parent or legal guardian.
• To attend an in-person tool handover — buyer, seller, renter, or owner — you must be at least 18 years old. This is a safety and liability rule that applies independently of the online thresholds above. Minors aged 16–18 minus one may attend only with a parent or legal guardian physically present and holding the account, per the In-Person Safety rules.
• To sell online (worldwide shipping) you must be at least 18, legally able to contract, and complete the full onboarding in the Seller Agreement: identity verification, tax onboarding, Stripe Express, and the five required legal documents.
• To sell in-person only or to list for rent only you must be at least 18 and accept the lite seller terms — the platform does not process your money, so no Stripe onboarding is required, but all listing, trust-and-safety, and content rules still apply.

5. Orders, currency, and pricing

• Prices are displayed in the apps and on the website when you open the listing. For worldwide-shipped consumer Buyers in jurisdictions where ChefSphere collects VAT, the tax is included in the displayed price; see Tax Information. For in-person or rental listings, any VAT or income-tax treatment is the Seller's/Owner's direct responsibility — ChefSphere does not invoice the underlying sale.
• The reference currency is EUR.
• Shipping price (worldwide) is calculated at checkout based on the Seller's regional rates and destination.
• Rental price is a function of duration (hour / day / week / month) and may include a deposit, which is also paid in cash at pickup (see Rental Terms).
• Checkout caps during the launch phase (worldwide-shipped orders only). The cart is capped at €3,000 total, at most 10 items, and at most 5 units of any single product. Per-order and daily limits also apply to the Seller side — see the Fee Schedule.
• High-value worldwide orders (≥ €500) require signature on delivery and additional buyer verification; this is non-negotiable and is enforced by our safety-limits service.
• For a worldwide order, a contract is formed when the payment is authorised by Stripe. For an in-person or rental contract, the parties form it between themselves at the meet-up or pickup; the platform records the agreement but is not a party to it.

6. Order lifecycle

6.1 Worldwide-shipped sales

1. Placed — payment authorised by Stripe, order created, Seller notified.
2. Confirmed — Seller acknowledges, generates a label from the Label Wallet.
3. Shipped — tracking updates recorded.
4. Delivered — carrier confirms delivery.
5. Settled — earnings move through the Seller's ledger (pending → hold → reserve + available) as in the Fee Schedule. Chargebacks and returns reverse settlement per the Chargeback Policy and the Return & Refund Policy.

6.2 In-person sales

1. Listing reserved — Buyer indicates intent, Seller confirms.
2. Meet-up arranged — through the in-app chat; both parties follow the In-Person Safety rules.
3. Cash exchange at the meet-up — Buyer pays the Seller in cash (or another method the parties agree to, outside the platform); both sides confirm handover in the app.
4. Closed — the order is marked complete. No platform-side settlement because no money flowed through ChefSphere.

6.3 Rentals

1. Request — Renter submits the rental request with dates and duration unit.
2. Decision — Owner approves or rejects through the in-app flow.
3. Pickup — on approval, the parties meet (default method MEET). The rental price and the refundable deposit are paid in cash to the Owner at pickup, per the Rental Terms.
4. Active → Completed — at the return, the Owner inspects the tool and hands the deposit back (minus any documented damage deduction agreed with the Renter). Disputes are resolved between the parties; the platform keeps the conversation, photos, and timestamps for evidence.

7. Moderation, reviews, and reports

• Listings and Seller profiles are subject to automated and human moderation, as described in the Seller Agreement and the Platform Acceptable Use Policy.
• Users can leave reviews and comments on listings and on Sellers. Reviews must be honest, based on actual experience, and comply with the Acceptable Use Policy. Fake reviews and coordinated voting rings are prohibited and enforced against.
• Any user can report a listing, a Seller, a Buyer, a review, or a message via the in-app "Report" action or to [email protected]. Reports are handled under the EU DSA Notice.

8. Prohibited uses

In addition to the Platform Acceptable Use Policy you must not:

• list counterfeit, unsafe, recalled, stolen, or illegally imported tools;
• list regulated items without the disclosures required by the Seller Agreement;
• misrepresent the condition, age, origin, brand, ownership, or warranty status of a tool;
• for worldwide orders, bypass Stripe and insist on off-platform payment — transactions outside Stripe for a worldwide listing lose all platform protections and may trigger account suspension;
• for in-person and rental flows, pressure a counterparty into unusual payment methods (wire transfers, cryptocurrency, gift cards, foreign cash) — such demands are a red flag for fraud and can be reported;
• circumvent fees, limits, Stripe Express onboarding, identity checks, or the Label Wallet where they apply;
• harass, stalk, or coerce a counterparty during a transaction, a return, or a rental;
• misuse the messaging, review, or return systems to pressure, blackmail, or defraud anyone.

9. Platform protections — where they apply

Platform protections described in the Fee Schedule, Return & Refund Policy, and Chargeback Policy apply to worldwide-shipped orders only, because only those orders flow through Stripe and the platform's ledger. For in-person and rental flows, ChefSphere provides the tools of an information-society intermediary — messaging, listing, photos, timestamps, reviews, reports — and enforces trust-and-safety rules, but does not guarantee the payment, does not operate an escrow, and does not defend a cash dispute before a bank or card network.

10. Liability allocation

• ChefSphere is not a party to the underlying sale or rental contract between Buyer/Renter and Seller/Owner; its liability as intermediary is limited as set out in the Platform Terms and the Platform Disclaimer.
• Sellers/Owners are liable to Buyers and Renters for listings they publish, for the condition and description of the tool, for damage caused by the tool during normal use, and for the completion of the transaction.
• Buyers and Renters are liable for the payment, for any damage they cause during a rental beyond normal wear, and for their conduct during any in-person meet-up.
• Nothing in this addendum limits liability that cannot be limited under mandatory consumer law (for example, death or personal injury caused by negligence, gross negligence, wilful misconduct, or fraud).

11. Taxes

For worldwide-shipped consumer orders, ChefSphere collects VAT at checkout where required and issues an invoice for its platform fee. For in-person and rental flows, ChefSphere does not act as merchant of record: the Seller/Owner is responsible for any VAT, sales tax, or income tax in their country. Annual DAC7 seller reporting in the EU applies where ChefSphere mediated the payment (worldwide), not to purely cash-settled in-person/rental activity — see the Tax Information.

12. Governing law, courts, and out-of-court dispute resolution

• These Marketplace Terms are governed by the law of Estonia, without prejudice to mandatory consumer-protection rules of your country of residence.
• Business-to-business disputes are referred to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Harju County Court (Harju Maakohus), Tallinn. Consumer Buyers, Renters, and individual Sellers may also sue in the courts of their country of residence.
• The European Commission's Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) platform was discontinued on 20 July 2025 by Regulation (EU) 2024/3228. EU consumers may instead contact an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) entity notified under Directive 2013/11/EU in their country; the competent authority of each Member State maintains the list. EU users may also use an out-of-court dispute-settlement body certified under Article 21 of the Digital Services Act; see the EU DSA Notice. For French residents, contact ChefSphere support at [email protected] first, then, if unresolved, the DGCCRF or an accredited consumer mediator.

13. Intellectual property and content licence

• Your rights. You keep all copyright and other intellectual-property rights in the listings, photos, descriptions, logos, videos, reviews, and messages you upload ("User Content").
• Your warranty. You represent that you own, or have the valid licence to upload and display, every element of User Content you submit, that the content does not infringe any third-party copyright, trademark, design, personality right, or database right, and that it complies with the Acceptable Use Policy.
• Licence to ChefSphere. You grant ChefSphere a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sub-licensable licence to host, store, index, cache, compress, re-format, resize, translate, and display your User Content for the purpose of operating the Marketplace, delivering the service, providing search and recommendations, preventing fraud, enforcing these terms, and complying with law. The licence lasts for as long as the content is visible on the Marketplace and for the statutory retention period for transaction and moderation evidence. You can delete your listings and reviews at any time, subject to the retention of aggregated and anonymised records required by law.
• Brand and trademark use. You may use third-party brand names in a listing only to the extent needed to describe the tool accurately (nominative fair use). You may not use a brand in a way that implies a partnership, authorisation, or endorsement that does not exist.
• Manufacturer imagery. Stock photos from the manufacturer are only allowed where the manufacturer has licensed such use or where fair-use rules clearly permit it. When in doubt, use your own photos of the actual unit.
• Infringement notice. Rights-holders can submit a takedown notice under the procedures in the EU DSA Notice and, where applicable, the DMCA / IP Policy. ChefSphere may remove content and suspend a repeat infringer's account.

14. Messaging, reviews, and location features

• In-app messaging. The app hosts conversations between Buyers/Renters and Sellers/Owners. Conversations are used for trust-and-safety review, chargeback defence, and dispute resolution, and are retained for the statutory period. Do not share payment credentials, government-ID numbers, medical information, or other sensitive data in chat beyond what the app explicitly requests in dedicated fields. Attachments are limited by size and file type; attachments that contain malware, sexual content, or illegal material are automatically removed and reported.
• Off-platform solicitation. Offering or accepting off-platform payment for a worldwide listing, circumventing the Return & Refund Policy, or directing a counterparty to an external site to complete a listed transaction are prohibited and are grounds for account suspension and forfeiture of platform protections.
• Archive and block. Either party may archive a conversation or block the other participant. Blocking stops further messages and, where possible, hides listings between the parties. It does not remove evidence already retained.
• Reviews. A Buyer or Renter may leave a review after an order or rental reaches a terminal state. Reviews must be honest, based on actual experience, proportionate, and in compliance with the Acceptable Use Policy. Sellers/Owners may respond once per review. Either party can report a review under the EU DSA Notice; ChefSphere may remove reviews that are defamatory, fake, off-topic, or manipulated (coordinated voting rings, review-for-trade, extortion). Reviews are not edited for content by ChefSphere.
• Review verification (CRD Art 6a(1)(c)). Only a Buyer or Renter whose order or rental has reached a terminal state on the Marketplace can publish a review; every published review is linked to the underlying transaction in our database. ChefSphere does not accept anonymous, paid, or otherwise unverified reviews, and removes any review that we later find does not correspond to a genuine transaction.
• Ranking of listings (CRD Art 6a(1)(a) and DSA Art 27). ChefSphere does not operate a blended relevance score. Each sort option the Buyer or Renter selects corresponds to a single authoritative signal: newest / oldest (by Tool.createdAt), rating (by ToolStatistics.averageRating), price_asc / price_desc (by Tool.salePrice), popularity (by ToolStatistics.viewCount), distance (by geographic distance from the user's declared location), and title (alphabetical by Tool.name). The default sort when no preference is expressed is newest. Category and text filters restrict the result set but do not alter the sort order. The machine-readable disclosure of every sort option is published at /api/v1/legal/tools/ranking (backend API) and kept in lockstep with the runtime. Paid placement is not used and, if ever introduced, would be clearly labelled as Ad or Sponsored.
• Location data. Listings show an approximate location (city/region) to protect your privacy. The precise location is disclosed to a counterparty only after a rental is approved or a meet-up is arranged through in-app messaging. Coordinates and address fields in our database are encrypted at rest. See the Privacy Policy for the full detail.

15. Sanctions, export controls, and restricted parties

You warrant that you are not a person or entity on any list of sanctioned or restricted parties maintained by the European Union, the United Nations, the United States (OFAC), the United Kingdom, or the Republic of Estonia, and that you are not located in or a resident of a country or territory subject to a comprehensive EU embargo. You will not use the Marketplace to sell, rent, ship, buy, or receive tools in a way that violates applicable export-control or sanctions law. ChefSphere may refuse, suspend, or cancel any transaction that we reasonably believe breaches these rules.

16. General provisions

• Force majeure. Neither party is liable for failure or delay in performing obligations under these Terms when the failure is caused by an event outside its reasonable control (acts of God, war, armed conflict, civil unrest, strikes, lockouts, pandemic, quarantine, national emergency, power outage, major carrier failure, regulator order). During such an event, deadlines for non-money obligations are suspended for the duration of the event. The money obligations that have already fallen due remain due.
• Service modifications. We may modify, improve, discontinue, or restrict specific features of the Marketplace for operational, regulatory, or safety reasons. Where a modification materially reduces your rights, we give 30 days' notice in-app or by email, except where a shorter notice is required by law or for an urgent safety issue.
• Beta features. Some features may be labelled "beta", "preview", or "experimental". They are offered without any warranty, can be withdrawn at any time, and may be subject to additional terms shown at activation.
• Assignment. ChefSphere may assign these Terms to an affiliate or to a successor in a merger, reorganisation, or sale of all or substantially all of its assets, with notice. You may not assign your rights or obligations without our prior written consent, except that a consumer right to the remedy for a defective good may be assigned to the extent consumer law allows.
• Severability. If any provision of these Terms is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions stay in force. The unenforceable provision is replaced with the closest enforceable provision that reflects the original intent.
• Waiver. A delay or failure to enforce a right under these Terms is not a waiver of that right.
• Entire agreement. These Marketplace Terms, together with the documents they cross-reference, the Platform Terms, and the Privacy Policy, are the complete agreement between you and ChefSphere about the Marketplace. They supersede any prior or contemporaneous understanding on the same subject.
• Notices. We send notices to the email address or phone number on your account. You send notices to us at the email addresses listed in section 18 or by registered post to ChefSphere OÜ, c/o E-Residency Hub OÜ, Ahtri tn 12, 10151 Tallinn, Harju maakond, Estonia. Notices are effective on receipt.
• Third-party services. Stripe, Shippo, Apple App Store, Google Play, Cloudflare, map providers, and other third-party services used by ChefSphere are subject to their own terms; ChefSphere is not responsible for their performance.
• Trader vs. non-trader disclosure (CRD Art 6a(1)(b)). Every listing displays whether the Seller declared themselves professional (acting in the context of a trade, craft, or profession) or private during onboarding. Mandatory consumer rights under Directive 2011/83/EU and Directive (EU) 2019/771 apply where the Seller is professional; between two private parties those protections do not apply in the same form.
• EU accessibility (EAA). ChefSphere commits to aligning the Marketplace with the European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882, applicable since 28 June 2025) and WCAG 2.2 AA (EN 301 549 V3.2.1). Accessibility issues or feedback may be reported to [email protected].
• General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR — Reg. (EU) 2023/988, applicable since 13 December 2024). ChefSphere is an online marketplace within the meaning of Art. 3(14) GPSR. We operate a compliance programme across the full GPSR lifecycle:
  • Trader traceability (Art. 30 DSA ↔ Art. 22 GPSR). Full Sellers submit the traceability data required by Art. 22 GPSR (economic-operator identity, contact, and — for products in scope of the New Legislative Framework — CE marking and responsible person in the Union) as part of Stripe Express onboarding.
  • Accompanying documentation retention (Art. 9(2) GPSR). Sellers keep the technical documentation, instructions, and safety warnings that accompany each tool for 10 years from the date the product was placed on the market, and ChefSphere preserves the listing record, listing photos, and any safety information provided at listing time for the same 10-year minimum. The record is released to a competent authority on reasoned request.
  • Safety Gate cooperation (Art. 20 GPSR). ChefSphere monitors the EU Safety Gate / RAPEX database daily and removes any matching listing without undue delay. Removed listings are recorded in the compliance log with the Safety Gate reference.
  • Recall cooperation (Art. 33 GPSR). Where a Seller or a competent authority initiates a recall, ChefSphere (i) informs every Buyer whose purchase record identifies the recalled batch or unit, (ii) publishes the recall notice on the affected listing(s) and on /legal/safety-recalls, (iii) suspends the listing until the Seller demonstrates corrective action, and (iv) provides Buyers with the remedies in Art. 37 GPSR (repair, replacement, or adequate reimbursement).
  • Accident reports (Art. 20(2) and Art. 35 GPSR). Buyers, Sellers, and third parties can report a dangerous product, near-miss, or injury through the in-app "Report an accident" action and through [email protected]. ChefSphere notifies the Safety Gate and competent authorities where the incident meets the statutory reporting threshold and preserves evidence (photographs, chat, order metadata) for the duration of the investigation.
  • Single point of contact (Art. 22(2) GPSR). Our single point of contact with national market-surveillance authorities is [email protected].
• Trader traceability (DSA Art 30). Before a worldwide listing can go live, ChefSphere collects and verifies trader information (identity document, bank or payment account, VAT or registration number where required) through Stripe Express onboarding, and keeps that information available for the duration required by Article 30 of the Digital Services Act. Sellers that fail to provide or renew this information are suspended.
• Compliance by design (DSA Art 31). Seller onboarding, listing creation, and checkout are designed so that Sellers can comply with Articles 30 and 31 of the Digital Services Act and with Article 6a of Directive 2011/83/EU. Where a Seller has not completed a required disclosure, the listing cannot be published.
• Product Liability Directive (EU) 2024/2853. Where a Seller places a tool on the EU market, the new Product Liability Directive — to be transposed in Member States by 9 December 2026 and applicable to products placed on the market after that date — may apply to that Seller. ChefSphere, as an information-society intermediary that does not take possession or title of the tool and does not present itself as the producer, is not a producer under that Directive, without prejudice to any residual marketplace liability expressly provided by national transposition.
• Platform-to-Business Regulation (Reg. (EU) 2019/1150 — "P2B"). The Tools Marketplace is an "online intermediation service" within the meaning of Art. 2(2) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1150. Accordingly:
  • Terms (Art. 3). These Marketplace Terms, the Seller Agreement, and the Fee Schedule together constitute the "terms and conditions" for Sellers. They are drafted in plain, intelligible language, are freely accessible at all stages of the contractual relationship, and set out the grounds for suspension, termination, or restriction of a Seller account.
  • Changes (Art. 3(2)). Material changes follow a two-tier schedule aligned with Art. 3(2)/(4) P2B: (i) 15 days default for textual changes to these Terms or the Seller Agreement that do not require the Seller to adapt its operations; (ii) 30 days for changes to the Fee Schedule, reserve/hold mechanics, or any change that is prejudicial to Sellers and requires implementation effort (see Fee Schedule §12); (iii) shorter than 15 days only where Art. 3(4) P2B permits (security/fraud/safety/regulatory obligation); (iv) favourable changes (lower fees, higher limits) can take effect immediately. Affected Sellers may terminate the commercial relationship before a prejudicial change takes effect under Art. 3(2)(b) P2B without exit fee.
  • Suspension and termination (Art. 4). Any suspension, restriction, or termination of a Seller account is accompanied by a statement of reasons on a durable medium, unless disclosure would defeat a legal obligation.
  • Ranking (Art. 5). Main ranking parameters and their relative importance are disclosed both in plain language on the Marketplace (under the "How this list is ranked" control near every sort menu) and in machine-readable form at /api/v1/legal/tools/ranking.
  • Ancillary services, differentiated treatment, data access, MFN, internal complaints, mediation (Arts. 6–12). Our standing positions on each are published in the Seller Agreement; in particular, Sellers have access to an internal complaints-handling system accessible from the seller dashboard and at [email protected], and we name mediators willing to engage on the same page.
• No class action / mass action. Consumer-protection rules of the consumer's country of residence are not affected by this section. To the extent permitted by law between non-consumer parties, each party agrees to pursue claims against the other individually and not as part of a class, collective, or representative action.
• Languages. The English version of this document is the controlling original. Translations are provided for convenience.

17. Changes to this document

We will post a new version of this addendum when the Marketplace, the payment flow, the shipping partners, or applicable law changes materially. Material changes take effect no sooner than 30 days after we have notified you in-app or by email, unless law or an immediate safety concern requires a shorter notice period. The version and effective date at the top of this page control.

18. Contact

• Marketplace questions: [email protected]
• Billing / refunds / payouts (worldwide orders): [email protected]
• Trust & safety / listing reports: [email protected]
• IP / copyright / trademark: [email protected]
• Legal notices: [email protected]
• DSA single point of contact: [email protected]
• DPO / data protection: [email protected]