Recently we touched on trading gift cards for bitcoin; with that, a topic that deserved its own article is handling disputes when trading gift cards. If you are a genuine seller of gift cards, there are things you can do to significantly minimize the chances of you having to deal with disputed trades and perhaps even avoid them in the first place.
Trade Dispute Basics
If you’re new to P2P trading, you may not as yet have encountered a disputed trade, especially if you are only trading with established vendors and keeping up your end of things. However, disputed trades are essentially what they sound like, disputes.
When there is an issue during the trade, sometimes it can’t get amicably resolved between you and your trading partner, so on P2P marketplaces like LocalCoinSwap, a moderator steps in to help determine the issue and then release the cryptocurrency held in escrow to one party or the other.
Actual Ownership Matters
While gift cards can be a massive tool for those that are underbanked or that struggle to access financial instruments outside their region, it’s essential to recognize the risks when trading gift cards. Understanding what some of the primary dangers are and how they can affect you if you don’t consider the history of any cards you accept yourself or are trying to trade with others can help you trade with fewer hassles.
Having a code to a gift card is a bit like relying on someone else to keep a promise, and the problem further compounds when multiple people are all relying on someone else to do the same. While this sounds a bit convoluted (and it can be), this problem commonly occurs as gift cards are traded and exchanged in various ways by brokers and third parties.
Disputes Can Be Slow
Unfortunately, some popular marketplaces to trade gift cards for crypto have become less capable of handling the load of gift card exchange. Thankfully, at LocalCoinSwap, support times are low, and staff will go the extra mile to ensure that it will be achieved if there’s an excellent potential outcome.
If you are looking for a place to become a vendor, LocalCoinSwap is an excellent option. However, suppose your area isn’t heavily saturated yet with gift card traders. In that case, it’s even easier for you to become an established and well-regarded gift card trader in your community and beyond.
Gift card disputes can be complicated. Try and avoid them where possible, as there can be delays in waiting for evidence that both sides may need to provide during the process. Also, trading gift cards can be more complicated, taking more time to resolve than more common trade types.
Protecting Yourself as a Seller
Ensure that you can prove ownership of the card; this is first and foremost the best way to protect yourself if a dispute arises. Having your receipt for the card is also helpful and something that many buyers will expect to accept a request and be willing to trade with you.
Another thing you can do is to choose your trading partners carefully. Sometimes the absolute best deal price-wise won’t result in the smoothest trade. Choosing an established vendor with a generous amount of completed trades is often a good idea. These traders are less likely to want to tarnish their reputation or risk their account by trying to scam you is an excellent way to reduce the risk of running into any problems during a gift card trade.
Trading Crypto for Gift Cards
It can be a little more complicated when exchanging your crypto for gift cards, but you can do a few things to help protect yourself with creative thinking. For example, one approach you could take when selling bitcoin or other cryptos for gift cards to help ensure you are protected is to film the trade screen showing yourself receiving the card and then quickly checking the balance. This approach ensures that the whole process of receiving and checking the card is recorded, leaving far less doubt about your actions.
When you are selling crypto for gift cards, you will find disputes can be a little easier to deal with, but you should still ensure you are prepared and take any precautions you deem necessary to reduce potential issues, as well as take care in the trades you do choose to accept.
It doesn’t matter what side of the trade you are on. Keeping a clean history and only trading cards you own (and can prove ownership of) is the best way to ensure that you have a smooth and fast trade resulting in you either getting the gift card or the bitcoin you wanted.
Tips for Safer Gift Card Trading
- Keep track of your receipt, even if it is digital, by keeping the email confirmation.
- If you are new, consider exchanging with established traders to build your history.
- Avoid brokers that are reselling cards of unknown origin.
- Take care in crafting your trade terms, be thorough, clear, and transparent.
- If something seems off, opt out of the trade.
- Report suspected fraud or other suspicious behavior.
If you’re looking for the best place to trade gift cards for bitcoin, start with the most popular non-custodial P2P marketplace and turn your unwanted gift cards into profitable trades.