frequently asked questions
  

The Basics
Listing Your Items Initiating and Completing Trades Shipping Items Printing Mailing Labels and Postage Labels Trusting and Rating Other Swap.com Users Credit Card Charges General Account Information and Site Questions

Swap.com is a site where you can trade books, music, movies and video games that you don't want, for the books, CDs, movies, video games that you do want, for free.

Unlike auction sites or other used item sites where you can sell or purchase items, on swap.com your items will only cost you the price of shipping.  So if you don't really see the point in selling a book online for $3, just so you can then go out and buy a new book for $15, then swap.com is for you!

The best part is that once you get an item from someone and you finish reading, listening or viewing it, you can just list it on swap.com and get something else for it!
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Swap.com is free. You only pay for shipping.

So that means you can get any CD or movie or video game for about $2.20.  And with Media Mail, most books cost only around $2.50!
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You list the books, CDs, movies, and video games that you want to get rid of and the books, CDs, movies and video games that you want and swap.com does the rest.

Swap.com will show you all of the items that you can receive for your items.  Clicking on a "GET NOW" link next to an item will show more information about both the item and the trader you will be receiving the item from.

If you decide that you want to initiate a trade for an item, then an e-mail will automatically be sent to the other parties in the transaction.  If the other traders accept, the trade is completed and you will then be provided the shipping address where you need to ship your item.

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First, tell us what items you have by entering the UPC codes or ISBNs for the items you are trading.  You can do this on the left menu - look for the headline "add to your have list".

The next thing you need to do is tell us what you want.  The ONLY way that other users can initiate trades with you is if you have items on your want list.  The easiest way to get things on your want list is to do search for the item that you want in the search field in the upper-right corner of your screen.  Once you find the item you want, just click "want it" and that item will be placed onto your want list.
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You are responsible of paying shipping for the item that you are trading.  If you use our automatic shipping label feature, you will have to provide us with your credit card so that we can bill your account accordingly for the postage that you print.

If you don't want to use our label printing feature, then we recommend that you ship all of your CDs, movies and video games first class (regular mail rates) since that will be the fastest way to have your item delivered.  However, because books are significantly heavier, we recommend that you ship all books using Media Mail, which is a special class of service the USPS provides which is significantly less expensive than first class.

When you are ready to ship your item, swap.com will automatically provide you with the shipping amounts and class information based on the particular item that you are shipping.
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Yes, that's one of the best things about swap.com.  You can take the CDs that you never listen to and trade them for a slug of movies you have been dying to see.  Or take the book that you read in three days during your last vacation and turn it into a video game that you can tackle next weekend.

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All trades on swap.com are one-for-one, meaning that you will trade one item and receive one item in return, and therefore all items have the same value.  Therefore, make sure when you list the items on your "have list" that you are willing to trade any one of those items for any item on your "want list".

Swap.com does NOT facilitate two-for-one trades where a user trades multiple items for a single item.
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A three-way trade is when user A sends an item to user B, User B sends their item to User C, and User C sends their item to User A.

Swap.com's ability to automatically calculate and create three-way trades is what enables you to receive so many items in trade.  Therefore, in a particular trade, don't be surprised if you are shipping your item to one user and receiving your item from a different user.  Of course in three-way trades, you are still shown the user rating of the user that is sending you your item, so you can still feel confident that you will receive your item.
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Completely.  Using swap.com is no different then selling your used CD on eBay, or taking that book you just finished and selling it to the used bookstore in your neighborhood.  However on swap.com, instead of receiving a dollar or two, you get another great book, CD, movie or video game that you want instead.
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No, never.  To read the full privacy policy, please click here.
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We use U.S. Eastern Standard Time (-0400 GMT).
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At this time swap.com is only available to residents of the United States.  However, everyone else, please stay tuned!  We are growing quickly and we'll probably be coming to your country soon!
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To add an item your "have list", just enter the UPC code or ISBN of the item you have to trade, in the "add to your have list" section of the left menu.  We will show you an image of the item you are adding so you can verify that the correct item will be added.  Then just simply choose the condition of the item and if you want you can also provide a brief description of the item's condition.  Click on the "add item to my have list" button and swap.com will add the item to your have list and show all of the items that you can receive in trade for that item.
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The easiest way to add an item your want list is by searching for the item that you want in the search box in the upper-right corner of the screen.  Once you have found the right item, click on the "want it" link next to the item, and it will be added to your want list.

If you don't see "want it" next to an item, simply click on the title or image of the item, and on the following page, you will see a "want it" link that will add that item to your want list.
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Think of the swap.com as your own personal shopper that is always trying to get you the items you want.  If swap.com doesn't know what items that you want, how are we supposed to find any trades for you?  So make sure you have items on your want list as well as your have list.
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A Universal Product Code (UPC code) is the unique number underneath the barcode found on the back of CDs, movies and video games.

ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number.  These numbers are usually printed on the back of a book above the barcode, and they also appear on the back of the book's title page.

Swap.com requires that the UPC code be entered for when you are adding CDs, movies, or video games to your want list, and that the ISBN be entered when adding books to your have list.
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Entering a UPC code or ISBN, helps tell us exactly what item you own.  Because we require a UPC code or ISBN, we do not have to ask you whether the item is a hardcover or paperback book, whether it is a widescreen movie, an import CD, etc.  The ISBN/UPC tells us all of this information so you don't have to.  Furthermore entering the UPC/ISBN helps assure us that you physically have the item in your possession.
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Unfortunately, at this time you cannot, although we are currently working on supporting the non-standard UPC codes that club items have.  In the meantime, if you can find the standard UPC code of the item on another e-commerce site, you could enter that code into swap.com instead.  BUT PLEASE MAKE SURE that the code that you enter is for the IDENTICAL version of your item (same number of discs, same format, etc.).  Also, to help the user who receives that item to eventually relist the item for trade, we recommend also putting that UPC code into the description of the item.
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We are sorry you are having problems with entering ISBNs/UPCs. While our a database of millions of books, CDs, movies, and video games is updated weekly, there are still numerous reasons why we might not be able to recognize the UPC/ISBN for your item. For example, the item was a foreign release, part of a multi-item set, was obtained through a CD/movie/book club, was published by a smaller independent publisher/record label, etc.

If you have an item which you are unable to add to your have list, please report it to us using the Contact Us feature for ISBN/UPC issues. Simply complete the required fields to send us the ISBN/UPC code, the title of the item, the author/artist/publisher, and the media type (book, CD, movie or video game). With the help of customers like yourself, we are constantly adding previously unsupported items to our database.

Your inquiry will be automatically routed to our database administrator who will then research the item and if possible, get it added to our database. When it is available on the site, we will then contact you via email.

The process is handled on a case-by-case basis, and as you can imagine, it does take some time. We appreciate your patience as we continue to update our database.

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You should describe the condition of the item there as best you can.  Add details like "There is a small stain on cover" since the more people know EXACTLY what they are getting the greater the chance they will be satisfied with the transaction and give you a positive rating for the transaction.  Make sure you let other users know what they are getting and not getting.  Is there a dust jacket on the book?  Is there an original jewel case for the CD?  Is there an instruction booklet with the video game?
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For now, you are allowed to list CDs where you only have the disc and not the cover or artwork. (However in this situation, you MUST list the items as only being in "acceptable" condition and the missing artwork and case MUST be noted in the item description field.)

However, for movies and video games, you can ONLY list items which INCLUDE THE CASE AND ALL ART WORK. We find that many of our users want to re-trade movies and video games after they are finished with them, so it is essential that you only list movies and video games which are "complete" with case and all artwork.
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If the condition of your item is below "acceptable", then you cannot list it on swap.com.  We know you don't want to receive any items which are not in "acceptable" condition, so that means you shouldn't be shipping any items in poor condition either!  Remember, your trader rating is at stake, so be accurate in your descriptions!
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Unfortunately, swap.com will not support the trading of VHS video tapes.  However, we are excited about the idea of allowing users to trade audio books and we hope to have that feature added soon.
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Swap.com also allows you to add items to your have list that you don't want to currently trade.  Think of this as your "own list" in that it's a list of items that you own that you don't want to trade.

There are two ways that items get onto your "own list".  The first is when you are adding an item to your have list, there is a checkbox that says "i am offering this item for trade".  If you uncheck this box, that item will be placed on your "own list".

The second way items get placed on your "own list" is after you receive an item in trade, the item that you received will automatically be placed on your "own list" after you rate the user that sent the item to you.
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When a trade is rejected on swap.com because the other user was not satisfied with the condition of the item that they were receiving, that item is temporarily "frozen" so that the condition of the item can be reviewed by swap.com.  This way we can make sure that the condition of the item meets our item condition guidelines.  This allows us to quickly remove items in poor condition from the system and prevent them from being involved in future trades.
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No. Swap.com wants to make sure that high value items such as new video games, multi-disc movie sets and multi-CD sets, will be traded fairly with other items of high value status.

Therefore, if you list a new video game we won't allow people to initiate trades with you unless you are receiving a high value item from your want list in return. However, if you want to initiate a trade where you get, say a book for your new video game, you are free to do so.
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You are not allowed to trade burned, copied, or electronic items on swap.com. This includes e-books, CD's containing purchased and/or downloaded albums or songs from any online site, unauthorized movie reproductions, and video games that have been purchased on through "Steam" or other video game download sites and/or servers.

You can trade CD's that are missing their original artwork and case, however those CDs MUST be listed as in acceptable condition, and the missing artwork and case MUST be noted in the item description field.

All movies and video games MUST contain original artwork and case. In addition, items that were downloaded and accessed on the internet with any purchased and/or private access or registration code are prohibited.

For more information view our item condition guidelines.

Trading counterfeit items is prohibited by law and offenders will be reported to the appropriate authorities. If you receive a counterfeit movie, CD, or video game in trade with another swap.com user, please let us know by emailing us: support@swap.com.
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You don't.  Swap.com does all of that for you.  You simply tell us what books, CDs, movies and video games you want and what items you are willing to trade, and we go out and find matching trades for you.  When we find you a trade, we will send you an e-mail which allows you to accept or reject the trade.
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There are two ways to get involved in a trade.

The first happens when you have added items to your have list that other users want.  At that time, in the upper-left corner of the screen you will see counts of all the items that you can currently receive in trade.  To browse through all of those items, simply click on the count numbers.

You will then notice that all of the items you are seeing have a "GET NOW" link next to them.  To initiate a trade for any of those items, simply click on the "GET NOW" link and you will then be shown the condition of the item as well as information about the user who has the item.  A couple clicks later and the item will be on its way to you.

The other way to get involved in a trade, is to make sure that you have both items on your have list AND your want list.  Now as other users initiate trades, swap.com will see if it can include you in those trades so that you get an item on your want list in trade for something on your trade list.  When this happens, we will notify you via an email that a trade is available and you can then login to review and accept that trade.
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To increase the number of trades that you are involved in, again put lots of items on BOTH your have and want lists.  With lots of items, swap.com can match you up with a large number of other users and therefore include you in many more trades.

Also, if you have recent items or items that you know are popular, adding those your have list can often allow you to choose from thousands of items in return.  Buying a best-selling book or a recent CD, movie or game release is a lot easier knowing that after you are finished with the item, you'll be able to trade it for other best-sellers or recently released items on swap.com!

Finally, if you are looking for items that you might be interested, you might start your search by browsing through items that other users have recently added to their have list.  Anything you see on those pages are items which someone is trading, so if you add any of those items to your want list by clicking on "want it", there's a good chance that you'll be able to get that item soon.
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That's fine.  Simply enter the items that you are willing to trade, and swap.com will show you all the items that you can receive in trade for those items.  At that point you can decide if any of the items interest you.

Because swap.com is a dynamic community, people are constantly adding items, so the number and variety of items that you can receive will change every day!
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Sure.  Swap.com will show you all of the books, CDs, movies, and video games that your can receive, regardless of whether or not it is on your want list.  Then if you see an item you want, simply initiate a trade for it by clicking on the "GET NOW" link.
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Trade requests will be e-mailed directly to you.  You can also visit swap.com, where we will notify you of any pending trades in the upper-right part of the screen, and if you click on that message, we'll immediately show you those trades to review.
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Pick the item that you think looks best based the condition and description of the item, the user ratings of the traders, as well as how close the items are to you geographically, so you can minimize shipping time.
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While you don't HAVE to accept a trade, you really SHOULD accept a trades offered to you, unless there is an unavoidable reason not to.

Because trades are only presented to you when you will be receiving an item on your want list in return for an item on your have list, rejecting a trade should be rare occurrence.

Minimizing the number of rejected trades is important to swap.com, because when you reject a trade, that trade may be canceled for multiple users.  Because of this, ALL rejected trades are automatically reviewed by swap.com, and users who reject trades may have their account flagged so they will not receive future trades.
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After a trade is initiated, you have 48 hours to accept the trade.  If you do not accept an offer within that timeframe, the trade will expire and be canceled so that the other members can initiate other trades with their items.

Like rejecting trades, letting trades expire also has a negative impact on other users.  Therefore, if you let a trade expire, we will automatically pause your account so that you will not receive any more trades.  In order to start receiving trades again, you simply need to login and un-pause your account on the account info tab of your profile page.
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Your trade limit is the number of concurrent trades that you can participate in at one time.  Each user's trade limit is based on a number of factors including the number of total trades that user has participated in and the number of positive user ratings that user has received.
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We are sorry that you have not yet received your item, and greatly appreciate your patience.

It is important to remember that sometimes packages take longer than expected as we are all at the mercy of the mail. Most books are shipping as "Media Mail" and can take up to three weeks for delivery, depending on the distance the item has to travel. CDs, movies, and video games are shipped "First Class", unless there are multiple discs, in which it may be shipped "Media Mail". Please allow up to 10 days for delivery of these items.

If after this time you still have not received your item, we ask that you follow the steps of our resolution procedure:

1) First please contact the sender. You can do this by going to your "my trades" page, and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "contact this user".

Most problems can be resolved through honest communication between the trading parties. Verify that the item was in fact shipped, the date it was shipped, any tracking or confirmation information, and the carrier. If your tracking information says the item has been delivered, please contact the carrier for more information.

2) Allow the sender a grace period of two business days to respond to your inquiry.

3) If the sender indicates that the item was shipped (and has no tracking information) you will need to formally report your "Item Not Received". To do this go to the "my trades" section of swap.com, and under the image of the item you have not yet received, below where we show you your trade partner's user name and rating, click on the link "contact this user".

On the next page you will see the link "formally report this missing item to swap.com". Click on this link and fill in the appropriate information.

PLEASE NOTE: If you do NOT see the link on that page, then you have not yet allowed enough time for the item to be shipped through the mail. Remember, many items in swap.com trades are sent by media mail, which in some cases may take more time than items shipped first class. After an appropriate length of time that should allow you to receive the item, the link to formally report the item as missing will be made available.

We take a user's inability to send an item very seriously and will of course assist you in attempting to complete the trade. We will contact the user both through email and other means to see that this trade is completed.

Once you have formally reported an item to swap.com, the item is placed in an "Item Not Received" status and the other user's account will be suspended until the issue is resolved.

If you do receive the item from the user, please login to your account go to your "my trades" page and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "report item received".

On the next page, verify that you in fact received your item by clicking "Yes – I received my item, and swap.com can therefore close my Item Not Received complaint." You will then be asked to rate your trade partner. Your item not received complaint will then be closed, and we will look into reinstating your trade partner's account.

Lastly, if you had been in contact with the user via swap.com, you might also want to let them know it arrived. You DO NOT need to contact Swap.com Support, if you followed the steps mentioned above, as your item not received complained will automatically be closed, and when applicable, your trade partners account reinstated.

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At this point the trade is placed in an "Item Not Received" status. We take a user's inability to send an item very seriously and will of course assist you in attempting to complete the trade.

The other users account will be suspended and we will contact the user both through email, the phone and other means to see that this trade is completed.

To follow every action we take on your behalf, go to your "my trades" page, and beneath the image of the item you have not received click on the link "item not received status". Here we will show you what action we are currently taking, any response we have received from your trade partner, as well as the next steps we will take on your behalf.

If you do receive the item from the user, please login to your account go to your "my trades" page and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "report item received".

On the next page, verify that you in fact received your item by clicking "Yes – I received my item, and swap.com can therefore close my Item Not Received complaint." You will then be asked to rate your trade partner. Your item not received complaint will then be closed, and we will look into reinstating your trade partner's account

Lastly, if you had been in contact with the user via swap.com, you might also want to let them know it arrived. You DO NOT need to contact Swap.com Support, if you followed the steps mentioned above, as your item not received complained will automatically be closed, and when applicable, your trade partners account reinstated.

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There are several reasons why you may not be able to initiate a trade. When ever possible we try to let you know why this may be the case in the upper left corner of the site.

The most common reason is that you are over your trade limit. Your trade limit is the number of concurrent trades that you can participate in at one time. We set a trade limit for all our users, to protect everyone on the site from new traders that we simply do not know much about. Each user's trade limit is based on a number of factors including the number of total trades that user has participated in and the number of positive user ratings that user has received. As we learn more about you this trade limit will increase.

If you try to initiate a trade and get the message "this item is no longer available" this may be occurring for various reasons. For example, maybe your potential trade partner paused their account, or someone else has traded for the item that you wanted, or your potential trade partners no longer want what you have.

Regardless of the reason, if you are experiencing any difficulty with initiating trades, please email swap.com directly (support@swap.com) and we will gladly look into any issues that you are experiencing.

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We understand the disappointment in receiving a damaged or broken item. We have carefully outlined the appropriate steps to resolve such an issue.

1) First verify that the item was shipped in the appropriate condition as stated under the item description and try to ascertain whether the damage most likely happened in transit and if so, if the user packaged the item correctly.

2) If the item was not as described, and it looks like the item was damaged before it was sent, or was poorly packaged, contact the user to indicate you are disappointed with the item. You can do this by going to your "my trades" page, and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "contact this user".

Most issues can be resolved through simply communicating with the other user.

If the item was a CD, movie, or video game and is unplayable in its current condition, discuss this with the sender. More often than not your trade partner will remedy the situation.

While we ask that all users give honest ratings to help preserve the integrity of the swap.com rating system, it is important to keep in mind that the condition of an item is typically subjective, and therefore reasonable people can have differing view points. Therefore, we ask that you please follow our guidelines before giving your trade partner a neutral or negative rating due to an item's condition.

3) We always recommend following the USPS guidelines for preparing packages, but on rare occasions an item might get damaged during shipping. If this is the case, please contact the shipping carrier for more assistance. The most commonly used carriers are:

USPS
UPS
FedEx


In some instances when a user has received am item damaged by the carrier, the sender has offered to send another item on their "Have" list to that user. This goes above and beyond our expectations and swap.com is happy to recognize these great people. Feel free to suggest this to the sender as an option, creative solutions can always be found!

Please feel free to forward any specific issues you are experiencing with a trade to support@swap.com.

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We are glad this trade was resolved. When you receive an item that you reported as missing please login to your account and find that trade on your "my trades" page.

Find the applicable trade and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "report item received".

On the next page, verify that you in fact received your item by clicking "Yes – I received my item, and swap.com can therefore close my Item Not Received complaint." You will then be asked to rate your trade partner. Your item not received complaint will then be closed, and we will look into reinstating your trade partner's account.

If you already rated your trade partner, and now in light of receiving your item, would like to change your rating, you can follow the same steps above. In this case you will only be able to rate your trade partner higher than your previous rating.

Lastly, if you had been in contact with the user via swap.com, you might also want to let them know it arrived. You DO NOT need to contact Swap.com Support, if you followed the steps mentioned above, as your item not received complained will automatically be closed, and when applicable, your trade partners account reinstated.

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A printer icon next to a user's name indicates that they use swap.com's shipping labels to ship their items. Using swap.com's shipping labels makes it very quick and easy to ship items and also gives other traders the benefit of being able to track their item during the shipping process.

Swap.com encourages all users to use our shipping labels for convenience and added security.
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Each user involved in a trade should send their item by the end of the next business day.  Failure to ship your items in a timely manner will have a negative affect your user rating and may result in you receiving fewer trades than other users.
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Because swap.com sets up multi-way trades, it is highly likely that you may be shipping your item to a different person than you are receiving your item from.  Therefore, you should ALWAYS send your item to the address that swap.com provides to you in your email and on your "My Trades" page.  You should NEVER ask another user for their address, since if you have to ask for their address, then we guarantee you are about to send your items to the wrong user.  Instead, sit back, relax, and use the name and address that we give you!
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First of all, we recommend that you use our postage label system which will allow you to quickly print out a mailing label that includes the proper amount of postage on your regular printer using regular paper!  If you haven't tried it yet, you really should - you'll never go back to licking and sticking stamps again!

If you don't want to use our label printing feature, then we recommend that you ship all of your CDs, movies and video games first class (regular mail rates) since that will be the fastest way to have your item delivered.  However, because books are significantly heavier, we recommend that you ship them using Media Mail, which is a special class of service the USPS provides which is significantly less expensive than first class for books.

When you are ready to ship your item, swap.com will automatically provide you with the shipping amounts and postage class information based on the particular item that you are shipping.
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You are allowed to ship ALL books directly from a blue USPS Collection Box IF you use a swap.com prepaid postage label.  If you use your own stamps, you are NOT allowed to put items in a blue USPS Collection Box if they weigh over 13 ounces.  Because packages containing CDs, movies and video games are generally only six or seven ounces and below the 13 ounce limit, you can always place them in Collection Boxes regardless of whether you use a swap.com prepaid postage label or your own stamps.

This information comes directly from the USPS Website: Preparing Packagestop

Certainly, bubble envelopes offer a lot of protection for items, but we can also recommend that you ship items using large manila envelopes.  At Staples or OfficeMax, you can get 100 of the 9x12" envelopes for around $6.  The large size is great, because you can put any item inside of the envelope and then fold the envelope around the item a couple of times. It makes a really sturdy package and the doubled up envelope material cushions the item nicely.

Also we HIGHLY recommend that EVERYONE recycle their packaging material.  If you receive a movie in a bubble envelope from another trader, you know that in a week you may be sending out that movie again, so therefore, be careful opening the envelope so that you can reuse it.  Since swap.com is all about reusing and recycling, let's make sure that we apply those same guidelines to packaging!
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The number provided along with all swap.com mailing labels is a delivery confirmation number and not a tracking code. This means that once your item is delivered, and possibly at one or more stops between drop off and delivery, your status will update. The USPS states that the "status of your Delivery Confirmation mail piece will be available on the evening of the date of delivery or attempted delivery." NOTE: USPS can take 24-48 hours, and sometimes longer, to update the delivery status information for delivery confirmation numbers. Please remember that USPS does not always provide en route status.
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Packages are occasionally left with neighbors, a building manager, or are placed somewhere relatively safe such as your porch, garage, or even behind bushes. Please, first, check with your neighbors and other family members and around the perimeter of your home. If you still can not locate the package, please contact your local mail carrier. That local carrier will be the one with the knowledge of where, how and to whom the package was delivered and will be the fastest path to locating your item.
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If an item that you shipped using either a swap.com mailing label or your own postage was returned to you for any reason, please Contact Us, choosing the subject: "I have another question or comment" and remember to include the item and trade # in your message. We will then contact the intended recipient to determine if their address has changed. (Do not list the returned item back onto your "have" list unless instructed by swap.com.)
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If you have received an item in the mail and think it came from a swap.com user, please Contact Us. Newer members have occasionally sent their items to the wrong address, despite our efforts to prevent these errors. Please remember to include as much information as possible about the item to help us to determine the correct recipient.
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Yes that's true!  We allow you to print accurate postage and perfect mailing labels directly from swap.com.  So don't worry about going to the post office or even calculating the weight, or entering the correct shipping or return address – we do that all for you.

When you are done with a trade, you will see a link that says "print shipping label" - click on it and we will create a perfect mailing label for you.  You don't need a special printer or special paper which makes it really easy!

Obviously to use this optional feature you will have to provide us with your credit card, so that we can bill your account for the amount of postage at the end of the month.
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No, no and no.  You can use your regular printer and your regular paper, and no software is required.  It doesn't get any easier that that!
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If you printed a mailing label that includes postage from swap.com, then that means that the item should be shipped using the good 'ol U.S. Postal Service (USPS).  Your printed label cannot be used with any other delivery service (i.e. UPS or FedEx), and will result in your item not being delivered.
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Yes.  Once you have printed a shipping label for a trade, you will NOT be charged if you need to print that label again.  Just go to the "My Trades" page and under that trade click on "reprint mailing label".
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Yes they did.

We were recently contacted by the USPS and informed that they had not only increased their rates, but they had changed the requirements for what they would allow to be shipped First Class Flat and First Class Parcel.  In addition, they informed us that as of November 9th, 2007 they would no longer provide delivery confirmation for items that were shipped First Class Regular or First Class Flat.  For more information, vist the USPS site:

http://pe.usps.gov/text/dmm300/ratesandfees.htm
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Unfortunately, swap.com was charged immediately upon clicking the "print a postage label" button. We are not able to get a refund from the USPS for the label and therefore will not be able to pass along any refund to your user account.

Please take note that by pressing the button, you agree to swap.com's conditions of use and you are giving swap.com the permission to charge your credit card on your specified billing date each month for the total of all of your postage charges plus a $1 per month label and tracking fee. (This fee will NOT be charged if you don't have any postage transactions in a month.) All sales are final once a shipping label is generated; there are no refunds of any kind.
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Similar to eBay and other used item selling sites, after every transaction the users involved provide feedback on each other.  Factors that are considered when rating another member include how fast they shipped the item, the quality of the item shipped and whether the condition of the item was as they described.

When we notify you that a trade is available, we show you the other user's rating before you accept the trade.  If a user has a lot of trades under their belt and has lots of good feedback, that's a good sign.

If you ever don't receive an item that you were promised, swap.com provides the ability to report the missing item, and we will follow up with the other user to figure out what happened.
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Each time a transaction is complete, you will give the user that sent their item to you either a positive, neutral, or negative rating.  We also encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity to leave a short written comment about the transaction as well.
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Basically, that's up to you, but if the transaction went smoothly, everything was shipped on time and the other person responded to any questions that you had, that sounds like a positive transaction.  However, if the item came, but was a little late that might be a neutral.  If it was very late, or wasn't even close to being in the condition the other person said it was, that might deserve a negative rating.  It's up to you, but if you give a neutral or negative rating, make sure that provide a comment explaining why you gave the rating you did.
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Please give that user a negative rating and contact us at support@swap.com with more information.  We will look into the matter and take the necessary action including immediately suspending that user's account.

We have a zero tolerance policy for users who trade pirated copies of ANY item.
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If you don't feel comfortable with a user's rating then you certainly can decline a trade.  Please remember, however, that all rejected trades are automatically reviewed by swap.com.
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We are sorry that you have not yet received your item, and greatly appreciate your patience.

It is important to remember that sometimes packages take longer than expected as we are all at the mercy of the mail. Most books are shipping as "Media Mail" and can take up to three weeks for delivery, depending on the distance the item has to travel. CDs, movies, and video games are shipped "First Class", unless there are multiple discs, in which it may be shipped "Media Mail". Please allow up to 10 days for delivery of these items.

If after this time you still have not received your item, we ask that you follow the steps of our resolution procedure:

1) First please contact the sender. You can do this by going to your "my trades" page, and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "contact this user".

Most problems can be resolved through honest communication between the trading parties. Verify that the item was in fact shipped, the date it was shipped, any tracking or confirmation information, and the carrier. If your tracking information says the item has been delivered, please contact the carrier for more information.

2) Allow the sender a grace period of two business days to respond to your inquiry.

3) If the sender indicates that the item was shipped (and has no tracking information) you will need to formally report your "Item Not Received". To do this go to the "my trades" section of swap.com, and under the image of the item you have not yet received, below where we show you your trade partner's user name and rating, click on the link "contact this user".

On the next page you will see the link "formally report this missing item to swap.com". Click on this link and fill in the appropriate information.

PLEASE NOTE: If you do NOT see the link on that page, then you have not yet allowed enough time for the item to be shipped through the mail. Remember, many items in swap.com trades are sent by media mail, which in some cases may take more time than items shipped first class. After an appropriate length of time that should allow you to receive the item, the link to formally report the item as missing will be made available.

We take a user's inability to send an item very seriously and will of course assist you in attempting to complete the trade. We will contact the user both through email and other means to see that this trade is completed.

Once you have formally reported an item to swap.com, the item is placed in an "Item Not Received" status and the other user's account will be suspended until the issue is resolved.

If you do receive the item from the user, please login to your account go to your "my trades" page and under the image of the item you have not received, click on the link "report item received".

On the next page, verify that you in fact received your item by clicking "Yes – I received my item, and swap.com can therefore close my Item Not Received complaint." You will then be asked to rate your trade partner. Your item not received complaint will then be closed, and we will look into reinstating your trade partner's account.

Lastly, if you had been in contact with the user via swap.com, you might also want to let them know it arrived. You DO NOT need to contact Swap.com Support, if you followed the steps mentioned above, as your item not received complained will automatically be closed, and when applicable, your trade partners account reinstated.
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We will charge your credit card at the end of the month for all of the postage that you printed during the month.  At that time, we will also charge your card a $1.00 fee which covers all of the additional label and tracking fees we get charged by our third party vendor.  Don't worry, you will only be charged a total of $1.00 regardless if you mailed one item or a hundred items that month.  And if you didn't use the postage label printing service at all during the month - there will be no charge at all.

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Included in your postage amount is the small charge that our third-party postage provider charges us for creating the label, as well as the additional charge that the United States Postal Service charges us for the ability to track items when they are delivered.

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If you printed any labels during a month, we will include in your credit card charge at the end of the month, a $1.00 fee which covers all of the additional label and tracking fees we get charged by our third party vendor.   Don't worry, the processing fee is only a $1.00 regardless if you mailed one item or a hundred items that month.  And if you didn't use the postage label printing service at all during the month - there will be no charge at all.
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If you don't print any labels in a given month, then your credit card will NOT be charged.

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For some trades swap.com requires that users use our mailing label system, which allow us to better track the shipping and delivery of your item. To use our labels you must first enter a valid credit card.
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You may notice what appears to be a $1.05 charge. The $1.05 represents an authorization tool used to verify that the credit card was valid and to match the address that you provided. It's not a charge, just an authorization request. When enter your credit card or update your credit card we contact your credit card's issuing bank to confirm that your credit card is valid, and has not been reported as lost or stolen. This is communicated via a $1.05 authorization. However, we do not actually proceed with the charge. This is simply one of the security measures we use to protect our customers. No money is actually charged, and the authorization is automatically released by your credit card company after a short time.

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How do I view all the charges that have been made to my credit card?

You may view your account transaction history at any time.

On this page you will see your billing date along with any pending account transactions. Please refer to the additional FAQ's for more questions regarding credit cards.
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To change your email address, log on to the site.  Once logged in click here to change your email address.   Enter your new email address and click on "change email" button and follow the instructions from there.

We will then send you an email confirming the change.
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Yes, you may select which swap.com emails you receive.

To do this log on to the site.  Once logged in, click here to set your email preferences.  Towards the bottom of this page, you will see "my email preferences".  You can uncheck the emails that you don't want to receive. Note that you cannot opt out of "I wish to receive emails from swap.com letting me know when I have trades available" since those are trade-related emails that require your action.
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If you are going to be unavailable to accept trades, you can pause your account so that swap.com will not find or propose any trades for you until you are available for trading again.

Once logged into swap.com, click here to pause your account.  On this page, you will then be able to choose when the site will send you an email reminder to unpause your account.

When you are ready to resume trading, simply follow the same steps and you will see the link to un-pause your account.
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The discussion forum is not really a good way to contact us, since we do not monitor it every day.  You may email us at support@swap.com or use the Contact Us feature.  Be sure to include your swap.com user name and if it is a question about a trade do include the trade number.  If you email us, the subject line is a good place for this information.

We take customer support very seriously and do try to respond immediatley to all customer support issues.  However, depening on the volume, we can not always guarantee such a response.  If you do not hear from us after a few days, feel free to contact us again.  We assure you, we will respond to all emails.
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If you are not receiving the confirmation emails it is likely the emails have been caught up in your spam filter. Emails can be filtered as spam directly by your computer as well as your Internet Provider (ISP) by default or selected settings.

You may want to double check to see if your emails are in fact being filtered and trapped by a spam filter. If so, you will need to follow the filter instructions to add "donotreply@swap.com" to the safe or trusted list.

After checking that you have added the correct email addresses please click on the RESEND EMAIL button. You should then receive our confirmation email. Please confirm that you received this email by clicking on the link in the email. In most e-mail readers, this link will be active (clickable) but may not be working correctly. If this is the case, please copy the entire link listed in the email and paste it into the URL address section of your web browser.

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You may have logged into your swap.com account to find the message "Your account has been suspended. Please contact swap.com." Your account may be temporarily suspended for a variety of reasons, including problems with your credit card, or your failure to ship your items. Obviously we take both issues seriously.

When this occurs, we like to speak directly with specific user involved, therefore please email us at support@swap.com.

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Thank you for trying swap.com. We do appreciate you joining, however we understand that swap.com may not be right for everyone.

You may close your account at any time provided there are NO outstanding trades and your account does NOT have an outstanding balance for any pre-paid swap.com mailing labels.

Once logged in, click here to permanently close your account. Please choose the most appropriate reason for closing your account.

Remember that once your account has been closed, you can no longer access swap.com with your username nor can you open another account with your registered email address.
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