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Buyer Policies

Buyer Policy

This policy is a part of our Terms & Condition. By using any of our Services, you agree to this policy and our Terms & Condition.

1. Understanding Hmong Road’s Limitations as a Venue

Hmong Road provides a venue for buyers to discover and purchase from sellers around the world. It is important to note that Hmong Road is not a part of that transaction. By shopping on Hmong Road, you understand that:

  1. You are not buying directly from Hmong Road, but from one of the many talented sellers on Hmong Road;
  2. Hmong Road does not pre-screen sellers and therefore does not guarantee or endorse any items sold on Hmong Road or any content posted by sellers (such as photographs or language used in listings or shop policies);
  3. Each seller on Hmong Road has their own processing times, shipping methods, and shop policies; and
  4. You assume responsibility if you provide your own materials for a custom order.

As a member of the community, you have the opportunity to flag an item or a shop that violates any of Hmong Road’s policies.
Flagging
is confidential.

2. Communicating with Other Hmong Road Members

Messages

You can use Hmong Road’s
Messages
(“Messages”) tool to communicate directly with sellers or other Hmong Road members. Messages are a great way to ask sellers any questions you have about an item or an order. Messages may not be used for the following activities:

  1. Sending unsolicited advertising or promotions, requests for donations, or spam;
  2. Harassing or abusing another member or otherwise violating our
    Anti-Discrimination Policy
    ;
  3. Contacting someone after they have explicitly asked you not to; or
  4. Interfering with a transaction or the business of another member.

Interference

Interference occurs when a member intentionally interferes with another member’s shop in order to drive away their business. Interference is strictly prohibited on Hmong Road. Examples of interference include:

  1. Contacting another member via Hmong Road Messages to warn them away from a particular member, shop, or item;
  2. Posting in public areas to demonstrate or discuss a dispute with another member;
  3. Purchasing from a seller for the sole purpose of leaving a negative review;
  4. Maliciously clicking on a competitor’s Promoted Listings ads in order to drain that member’s advertising budget, also known as “click fraud.”

Harassment

Any use of Hmong Road Messages to harass other members is strictly prohibited. Similarly, Messages may not be used to support or glorify hatred or otherwise violate our
Anti-Discrimination Policy
. If you receive a Message that violates this policy, please
let us know
right away.

3. Purchasing an Item on Hmong Road

When you buy from a shop on Hmong Road, you’re directly supporting an independent business, each with its unique listings, policies, processing times, and payment systems. By making a purchase from a seller on Hmong Road, you agree that you have:

  1. Read the item description and shop policies before making a purchase;
  2. Submitted appropriate payment for item(s) purchased; and
  3. Provided accurate shipping information to the seller.

You also agree to comply with our
Hmong Road Payments Policy
when you use Hmong Road Payments, and our
Hmong Road Gift Card, Credits & Coupons Policy
when you purchase or redeem Hmong Road Gift Cards or Hmong Road Credits.

4. Leaving a Review of an Item

Reviews are a great way to learn about a seller’s items, help good sellers build a strong reputation, or help warn other buyers about a poor experience.

You can leave a
review
, including a one to five star rating and a photograph of your purchase, for 100 days after your item’s estimated delivery date. If an estimated delivery date is not available, the review window opens after the order’s
processing time
and shipping time have elapsed. You can
edit
your review, including the photograph, any number of times during that 100 day period. Your review and/or photograph and
profile information
will be publicly displayed on the seller’s listing and review pages.

By leaving a review or photograph, you acknowledge that your content may not:

  1. Contain private information;
  2. Contain obscene, racist, or harassing language or imagery;
  3. Violate our
    Anti-Discrimination Policy
    ;
  4. Contain prohibited medical drug claims;
  5. Contain advertising or spam;
  6. Be about things outside the seller’s control, such as a shipping carrier, Hmong Road, or a third party;
  7. Contain threats or
    extortion
    ;
  8. Include
    shilling
    or otherwise falsely inflate a shop’s review score; or
  9. Undermine the integrity of the Reviews system.

By uploading a photograph to one of Hmong Road’s websites or Hmong Road’s mobile app, you warrant that:

  1. You own the photograph or you have the rights or permission to use the photograph; and
  2. You understand that, as stated in Hmong Road’s
    Terms of Use
    , Hmong Road has license to use any content you provide to Hmong Road.

Sellers may
respond
to reviews of three or fewer stars. Sellers’ responses to reviews must also comply with this policy. Sellers may hide photographs that they do not feel accurately represent their brand, or they may
report
reviews that violate our
Terms of Use
.

We reserve the right to remove reviews or photographs that violate our policies or Terms of Use.

5. Creating and Uploading Content

As a member of Hmong Road, you have the opportunity to create and upload a variety of content, like Messages, text, photos, and videos. In order to keep our community safe and respectful, you agree that you will not upload content that is:

  1. Abusive, threatening, defamatory, harassing, or otherwise in violation of our
    Anti-Discrimination Policy
    ;
  2. Obscene or vulgar;
  3. In violation of someone else’s privacy or
    intellectual property rights
    ; or
  4. False, deceptive, or misleading.

6. Reporting a Problem with an Order or Returning an Item

Hmong Road’s Case System

Although Hmong Road is not directly involved in a transaction between a buyer and a seller, we provide a case system in the unlikely event that your order does not go as expected. By using Hmong Road’s case system, you understand that Hmong Road may use your personal information for the purpose of resolving disputes with other members. You can use Hmong Road’s case system to come to a resolution with the seller in the event of a non-delivery or if an item you receive is not as described in the listing. (Click
here
to learn more about cases, including your eligibility for opening a case, and how to escalate a case to Hmong Road.) If you choose a refund as your preferred resolution, keep in mind that Hmong Road only allows on-platform refunds for a period of 180 days post-transaction. After this 180 window has elapsed, Hmong Road cannot support on-platform refunds for your order. However, you may still communicate directly with the seller to come to an off-platform resolution. Refunds issued by Hmong Road will be in your original form of payment, and if such payment is not available, an Hmong Road credit will be issued.

Non-Delivery

A non-delivery occurs when a buyer places an order but does not receive the item. The following are examples of non-delivery cases:

  1. There is no proof that the item was
    shipped to the buyer
    .
  2. An item was not sent to the address provided on Hmong Road.

Not as Described

An item is not as described if the buyer can demonstrate that it is significantly different from the seller’s listing description or photos. Here are a few examples of not as described cases:

  1. The item received is a different color, model, version, or size.
  2. The item has a different design or material.
  3. The seller failed to disclose that an item is damaged or is missing parts.
  4. The buyer received the incorrect quantity of items (e.g., the buyer purchased three items but only received two).
  5. The item was advertised as authentic but is not authentic.
  6. The condition of the item is misrepresented (e.g., the item is described as new but is used).

Not as described cases can also be filed for late delivery. In order to qualify as late delivery, the buyer must provide proof that all of these conditions have been met:

  1. The item(s) were ordered for a specific date or event.
  2. The item(s) are rendered useless after that date.
  3. The seller did not ship the item(s) according to their processing time or the date agreed upon in Messages.

If Hmong Road determines that an item is not as described, the seller will be required to refund the order, including original shipping and return shipping. In the event that Hmong Road needs to refund the return shipping cost on behalf of the seller, that refund may come in the form of an Hmong Road Credit. For more information about Hmong Road Credits, please
click here
.

Ineligible Transactions

Some disputes don’t qualify for Hmong Road’s case system. These include:

  1. Items that are damaged by shipping carrier (if properly packaged by the seller).
  2. Items that have been altered, used, worn, washed, or discarded after receipt.
  3. Items that are received after the agreed-upon delivery date due to shipping delays.
  4. Items that are returned without a return agreement.
  5. Items that are accurately described but don’t meet a buyer’s expectations.
  6. Cost of shipping disputes.
  7. Items that are purchased in person.
  8. Items
    prohibited from sale on Hmong Road
    , including services and intangible goods.
  9. Transactions where payment is not made via Hmong Road’s checkout system.
Requesting a Cancellation

Only sellers may cancel transactions. Buyers may request that a seller cancel an order via Hmong Road Messages. Note that all cancellations must comply with our
Anti-Discrimination Policy
.

Returning an Item

Each seller has his or her own return policies, which should be outlined in their Shop Policies. Not all sellers accept returns. If you reside in the European Union, you may be entitled to a 14-day “cooling off period,” or a “right of withdrawal,” during which you may return an item for any reason. Read more about the EU right of withdrawal in
this Help article
.

Last updated on August 16, 2021

Sanctions Policy

((Hmong Road provides a direct connection between buyers and sellers around the world. When you use Hmong Road’s services (we’ll refer to hmongroad.com, our mobile apps, and other services as our “Services”), you are responsible for complying with this policy, regardless of your location.))
This policy is a part of our Terms & Condition. By using any of our Services, you agree to this policy and our Terms & Condition.

As a global company based in the US with operations in other countries, Hmong Road must comply with economic sanctions and trade restrictions, including those implemented by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) of the US Department of the Treasury. This means that Hmong Road or anyone using our Services cannot take part in transactions that involve designated people, places, or items that originate from those places, as determined by agencies like OFAC.

This policy applies to anyone that uses our Services, regardless of their location. It is up to you to familiarize yourself with these restrictions.

For example, these restrictions generally prohibit, but are not limited to, transactions involving:

  1. Certain geographic areas, such as Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria, or any individual or entity operating or residing in those places;
  2. Individuals or entities identified on sanctions lists such as OFAC’s
    Specially Designated Nationals (“SDN”) List or Foreign Sanctions Evaders (“FSE”) List;
  3. Nationals of Cuba, regardless of location, unless citizenship or permanent residency outside of Cuba has been established; and
  4. Items originating from areas including Cuba, North Korea, Iran, or Crimea, with the exception of informational materials such as publications, films, posters, phonograph records, photographs, tapes, compact disks, and certain artworks.

In order to protect our community and marketplace, Hmong Road takes steps to ensure compliance with sanctions programs. For example, Hmong Road prohibits members from using their accounts while in certain geographic locations. If we have reason to believe you are operating your account from a sanctioned location, such as any of the places listed above, or are otherwise in violation of any economic sanction or trade restriction, we may suspend or terminate your use of our Services. Members are generally not permitted to list, buy, or sell items that originate from sanctioned areas. This includes items that pre-date sanctions, since we have no way to verify when they were actually removed from the restricted location. Hmong Road reserves the right to request that sellers provide additional information, disclose an item’s country of origin in a listing, or take other steps to meet compliance obligations. We may disable listings or cancel transactions that present a risk of violating this policy.

In addition to complying with OFAC and applicable local laws, Hmong Road members should be aware that other countries may have their own trade restrictions and that certain items may not be allowed for export or import under international laws. You should consult the laws of any jurisdiction when a transaction involves international parties.

Finally, Hmong Road members should be aware that third-party payment processors, such as PayPal, may independently monitor transactions for sanctions compliance and may block transactions as part of their own compliance programs. Hmong Road has no authority or control over the independent decision-making of these providers.

The economic sanctions and trade restrictions that apply to your use of the Services are subject to change, so members should check sanctions resources regularly. For legal advice, please consult a qualified professional.

Resources:
US Department of the Treasury;
Bureau of Industry and Security at the US Department of Commerce;
US Department of State;
European Commission

Last updated on August 16, 2021

Anti-Discrimination Policy

This policy is a part of our Terms & Condition. By using any of our Services, you agree to this policy and our Terms & Condition.

Hmong Road prohibits the use of our Services to discriminate against people based on the following personal attributes (collectively, “protected groups”):

  • Race
  • Color
  • Ethnicity
  • National origin
  • Religion
  • Gender
  • Gender identity
  • Sexual orientation
  • Disability
  • Any other characteristic protected under applicable law

It is your responsibility to know your local laws and any other legal regulations on discrimination that might apply to you. Additionally, Hmong Road does not allow hate speech. Hate speech occurs when violent, offensive, derogatory or demeaning language is directed at a person or group based on their one or more protected group attributes.

Whether you’re engaging with public features on Hmong Road, such as listing items, using community spaces, and writing reviews, or having direct communication with other members of the Hmong Road community, such as via Messages, discrimination and hate speech are not allowed. As a seller on Hmong Road, your shop content, including shop announcements and shop policies, cannot display discriminatory behavior toward protected groups. Examples of prohibited behavior include, but are not limited to:

  • Refusal of service based on membership in one or more protected group
  • Expressing intolerance or a lack of respect for another member on the basis of protected group attributes
  • Having a shop policy that excludes sales to members of one or more protected groups listed above
  • Directly or indirectly making derogatory or demeaning remarks against protected groups listed above
  • Racial slurs
  • Posts that support or glorify hate groups and their members

If you think discrimination or hate speech has occurred on Hmong Road, please report it by emailing trust-and-safety@Hmong Road.com, and we will investigate. If you see a listing on Hmong Road which you believe violates our Prohibited Items Policy, including prohibited
hate items, we encourage you to flag the item by using the Report this item to Hmong Road
link at the bottom of each listing page. We have a timely review process for all reports.

Last updated on August 16, 2021