Terms and conditions

Amber Road is an online marketplace: it connects sellers and buyers of collectible cards and provides the services described in these Terms (payment collection, shipping price calculation, Amber Road Hub, verification of collection cards, handling of reports).

The sale of a card is concluded directly between the seller and the buyer. Amber Road is not a party to that contract and does not own the cards offered for sale.

A seller can be a private individual, occasionally selling their own collection, or a professional (a shop, sole trader or company with a VAT number). The seller type is set in the billing details, in Settings. The protections of the Italian Consumer Code (Legislative Decree 206/2005), including the right of withdrawal, apply only to purchases from professional sellers: see the “Withdrawal and returns” page.

[TO VERIFY: the Site does not currently show buyers whether a seller is a private individual or a professional; assess the information duty of online marketplaces (art. 49-bis Consumer Code) and the Digital Services Act obligations for marketplaces.]

An account is required to buy, sell, use the chat, propose trades or manage a collection. You sign up with email and password or, where available, with Google sign-in. By signing up you declare that you are at least [ETÀ MINIMA] years old and that the data you provide is true and up to date.

The username is chosen once; afterwards it can only be changed through a request approved by staff. Offensive names, or names imitating official Amber Road accounts, are not allowed.

You are responsible for keeping your credentials confidential and for the activity carried out with your account. If you suspect unauthorised access, write to [EMAIL] immediately.

Your public profile shows your username, display name, picture, country, reviews and rating, active listings and, if you keep it public, your collection (cards offered for trade are always visible).

You can ask for your account to be closed by writing to [EMAIL]. [TO VERIFY: the Site currently has no account deletion feature; define what is kept to meet legal obligations.]

To receive payments, sellers must complete verification with Stripe (identity and the bank account to be paid into). Amber Road does not see the documents or the bank details. Until payments are active, the seller's listings cannot be bought.

Each listing states the catalog card, language, version (for example reverse or first edition), condition, price and quantity, with at least real photos of the front and back of the card for sale. Description and photos must match exactly the card that will be shipped.

By publishing a listing you declare that the card is genuine, that you own it and that you are free to sell it.

Buyers can propose a different price through the chat: if the seller accepts, the agreed price stays valid for 48 hours.

The “Trusted seller” badge is assigned automatically to sellers with active Stripe payments, an account in good standing, at least 20 completed sales (seller paid) and less than 2% of sales lost in a report. It is removed when any of these conditions is no longer met.

Amber Road may remove listings that breach these Terms or the law.

The condition is chosen from this scale, with the descriptions shown when listing: Mint (MT), Near Mint (NM), Excellent (EX), Good (GD), Light Played (LP), Played (PL), Poor (PO). Sellers must state it honestly: a card in worse condition than declared entitles the buyer to a refund (see “Reports and disputes”).

For graded (slabbed) cards the grading company (PSA, BGS, CGC or SGC), grade and certificate number are stated. The grade is given by the grading company: Amber Road does not review it.

The cart can hold cards from several sellers: you pay once and one order is created for each seller. Before paying you see the total: price of the cards plus shipping, in euro.

When you go to checkout the cards stay reserved for 30 minutes. You can have at most 3 pending checkouts at the same time.

Payment is made through Stripe. Amber Road neither sees nor stores your payment card details. The order is confirmed when Stripe confirms the payment.

Amber Road collects the amount and holds it until the order is completed (see “Reports and disputes”); it then transfers the seller's share to the connected Stripe account. [TO VERIFY: legal framework for collecting payments on behalf of sellers with Stripe Connect.]

Signing up and publishing listings is free.

Sellers pay a 5% [TO CONFIRM] fee on the price of the cards sold (shipping excluded), deducted from the payment. On a partial refund the fee is calculated only on the part the seller keeps; on a full refund no fee is due.

The shipping price paid by the buyer includes the postage of the chosen method plus a small service margin kept by Amber Road (currently €0.30 for untracked letters and €0.50 for the other methods [TO CONFIRM]). The seller receives the postage.

Buyers pay no other fees to Amber Road. Stripe's payment fees are borne by Amber Road.

[TO VERIFY: VAT treatment and invoicing of fees and of the shipping margin.]

Shipping methods and prices are set by Amber Road based on postal rates and on the zone (same country, European Union, international). Buyers choose between:

• untracked letter: only up to a maximum card value and a maximum number of cards;
• tracked letter;
• tracked parcel (courier or locker);
• insured mail: tracked and insured up to a cover chosen based on the value of the cards (not available above €3,000).

The seller buys the label from the carrier of their choice, ships with the method the buyer paid for, protects the cards adequately and, for tracked methods, enters the tracking number. The seller must ship within [TERMINE DI SPEDIZIONE PER GLI ORDINI DIRETTI]; before shipping they can cancel the order and the buyer is refunded in full.

The insurance of insured mail is that of the postal service, under its conditions. [TO VERIFY: who bears the risk of loss or damage, in particular for untracked letters and for sales by private sellers; for professional sellers art. 63 of the Consumer Code applies.]

The buyer confirms receipt from their order (possible only after shipping and, for tracked methods, after the tracking number has been entered). If they don't, the order is considered received 14 days after shipping.

If the cart holds cards from at least two sellers located in the enabled countries (currently the European Union countries), the buyer can choose to receive a single parcel from the Amber Road Hub, at [INDIRIZZO HUB], instead of separate shipments.

With the Hub each seller ships to the Hub at their own expense, by tracked letter and with the order code; the buyer only pays shipping from the Hub to their home (tracked letter or parcel).

• The seller must ship within 5 days of payment. If they don't ship in time, the order is cancelled automatically, the buyer is refunded for that order and the cards go back on sale; the rest of the parcel goes ahead as normal.
• If an envelope marked as shipped does not reach the Hub within 12 days of payment, Amber Road may cancel the order and refund the buyer.
• Staff check each card against the listing (card, version, condition, authenticity). If everything is in order the order is completed and the seller is paid immediately: the check replaces the 48-hour window for reports. If there is a problem, staff open a report handled as described below.
• Once all orders in the parcel are settled, the Hub ships the single parcel with tracking and the buyer confirms receipt. If nothing is left to ship, the Hub shipping is refunded.
• Staff never check orders in which they are the buyer or the seller.

[TO VERIFY: Amber Road's liability while the cards are held at the Hub and insurance of the single parcel.]

Verification concerns the cards in the profile collection and assigns the “Verified” badge. The reference value is the market value shown in the catalog.

• Up to €20: no verification.
• Between €20 and €200: optional verification with an automatic camera check. Only the live camera is used, with a random challenge (which side to photograph first) to complete within 2 minutes. The system compares the front with the catalog image, checks the back and discards photos already used; if the result is doubtful, the request goes to staff. The automatic check never rejects a request on its own.
• From €200: verification is required to add the card to the collection. You write a one-time code on a sheet of paper and upload photos of the front and back with the sheet visible; a staff member approves.
• From €1,000: approvals from two different staff members are required.

Cards bought on Amber Road enter the buyer's collection already verified, once the sale is completed.

Verification photos stay private: only the owner and staff can see them.

Verification is based on comparing photographs: it is not an expert appraisal nor a guarantee of authenticity towards third parties. [TO VERIFY: wording of this limitation.]

Buyers can report a problem with an order that has been paid or shipped, and up to 48 hours after receipt, for these reasons: card never arrived, card never shipped, wrong card, wrong version or language, condition worse than described, card damaged in transit, suspected counterfeit, other.

While a report is open the order is frozen and the payment to the seller is on hold. The seller can give their side; attached photos are visible only to the parties and staff. The buyer can withdraw the report if the problem is solved.

The seller is paid when the buyer confirms “All good” or when 48 hours pass after receipt without reports.

Staff decide one of these outcomes:

• full refund to the buyer;
• payment to the seller;
• partial refund for condition: staff state the actual condition (only worse than declared) and refund the difference in value;
• return and refund: the buyer sends the card back to the seller's return address with tracking and the refund is issued when the seller or staff confirm the return. [TO VERIFY: who pays for return shipping.]

Staff never decide on orders in which they are a party. Decisions on orders of €100 or more must be approved by a second senior staff member, other than the one proposing them.

Amber Road's decisions do not limit the rights the law grants the parties, including the right to go to court. [TO VERIFY: any alternative dispute resolution (ADR) body.]

On Amber Road it is forbidden to:

• sell or offer for trade counterfeit cards, replicas, proxies or altered cards presented as original;
• sell cards you don't own or use other people's photos;
• publish misleading listings, offensive content or spam;
• defraud or attempt to defraud other users (for example not shipping, shipping a different card or falsely claiming not to have received it);
• leave fake reviews or manipulate ratings;
• create other accounts to get around a suspension or a ban;
• [TO VERIFY: ban on completing off-Site sales that started on the Site.]

Account holders can report a listing or a profile (at most 3 times for the same user). Staff can dismiss the report, remove the listing and sanction the account.

Sanctions for sellers who lose reports are automatic and visible on the “Account status” page:

• first and second lost report: warning;
• three reports lost since the last sanction: 60-day suspension; a second suspension within 24 months leads to a ban;
• three reports lost for fraud (card never arrived, never shipped, counterfeit or swapped): permanent ban and block of the IP addresses used by the account for 12 months.

Staff can also sanction an account after a report on a listing or profile. A suspended or banned account cannot start new activity (purchases, sales, chat), but orders already in progress can be completed.

To contest a sanction write to [EMAIL]. [TO VERIFY: statement of reasons and internal complaint system required by the Digital Services Act.]

The Trades section shows collection cards offered for trade, wanted cards and matches between users; proposing a trade opens a chat. Trades agreed in chat take place directly between users: they currently do not go through Amber Road's payments, shipping, Hub or reports, which apply only to orders.

[TO VERIFY: the home page presents a “Middleman” service for trades that the Site does not offer yet; align the text before launch.]

Catalog prices and charts are indicative estimates based on aggregated market data. They are not an appraisal nor an offer to buy and may contain errors; each seller freely sets their own price.

Pokémon and character names are trademarks of Nintendo, Creatures Inc., GAME FREAK inc. and The Pokémon Company. Yu-Gi-Oh! is a registered trademark of Konami Digital Entertainment; card and character names belong to Konami and Studio Dice.

Amber Road is an independent marketplace: it is not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by these rights holders. Card names and images are shown only to identify the cards users sell and trade. [TO VERIFY: use of official card images.]

Amber Road is not a party to contracts between users and is not liable for the obligations of sellers or buyers, except for the services it provides directly (collection and transfer of payments, Hub, handling of reports).

We do our best to keep the Site running without interruption, but cannot guarantee it; we may suspend it for maintenance or security reasons.

To the extent permitted by law, Amber Road is not liable for indirect damages. These limitations do not apply in case of wilful misconduct or gross negligence (art. 1229 of the Italian Civil Code) and do not reduce consumers' mandatory rights. [TO VERIFY: any liability cap.]

We may change these Terms. Material changes are notified to registered users at least [PREAVVISO] days before they take effect; if you don't accept them you can close your account. Orders already paid remain governed by the Terms in force at the time of purchase.

These Terms are governed by Italian law. For consumers, the court of the consumer's place of residence or domicile has jurisdiction; consumers resident in another European Union country keep the mandatory protections of their own country's law.

In all other cases the courts of [FORO COMPETENTE] have exclusive jurisdiction.