Cancellations, refunds and how risk is shared
Last updated: 14 June 2026
This policy forms part of our Terms of Service.
Because Portare acts as your buying agent, much of what you pay is spent irreversibly on your behalf - paying sellers, collecting items and shipping them. What can be refunded depends on how far we have progressed with your order.
If you cancel an order before we have purchased the item, you receive a full refund of any amounts paid for that order, except any third-party costs already incurred at your request (for example a non-refundable deposit to a seller). Our service fee for a not-yet-started order is refundable.
Once we have purchased an item on your behalf, the item is yours and the purchase price is generally non-refundable, because private and marketplace sellers typically do not accept returns. We will still inspect, pack and ship the item to you. Where a seller does offer returns and a return is feasible, we will help you pursue it; any refund then depends on the seller, and handling/return-shipping costs may apply.
Auction purchases made within your maximum bid are binding and non-refundable. If we do not win an auction, no item price is charged; any service fee for an unsuccessful auction attempt is handled as stated in your quote.
We inspect each item after purchase against the seller's listing and document it with photos. If our inspection finds the item materially differs from the listing, we will tell you before shipping and discuss options (e.g. attempting a return to the seller, or shipping anyway). Latent defects or misrepresentations not reasonably detectable on inspection are a matter between you and the seller; we will assist you in pursuing the seller where possible but cannot guarantee a remedy.
Our role. Portare acts as your buying agent; we purchase items from third-party sellers on your instruction. We are not the seller and do not guarantee a seller's honesty, performance, or that an item will be delivered. The contract for the goods is between you and the seller.
Who bears the risk. Because we buy using funds you provide, the risk that a seller fails to deliver, delivers a counterfeit or not-as-described item, or acts fraudulently is, in principle, yours - as it would be if you had bought directly. We do not reimburse the item price, the shipping paid to the seller, or other third-party costs lost to seller fraud, except to the extent we actually recover them.
What we do. We select and pay sellers with reasonable care. If a seller fails to deliver or appears to have acted fraudulently, we will pursue reasonable recovery on your behalf - for example marketplace buyer protection, payment reversal where the payment method allows, and reporting to the platform or authorities - and pass any recovered amount on to you. We make reasonable recovery efforts at no extra charge.
Service-fee refund (goodwill). If a seller fails to deliver and recovery is unsuccessful, we will refund our service fee for that order as a goodwill gesture. This applies to genuine non-delivery or seller fraud only - not where the item was delivered but you changed your mind, or where the issue concerns the item's quality or condition (see "Item not as described" above).
Our checks, and their limits. Before purchasing, we carry out a reasonable, proportionate check on the seller and listing (such as account standing, ratings, price plausibility and available payment method). This is a basic commercial check, not a guarantee - fraud can be sophisticated and is not always detectable. We do not exhaustively vet every seller, and the absence of a risk warning does not mean a seller has been verified or is safe.
Risk warnings and your choice. Where a seller or listing shows elevated risk indicators, we may notify you and ask whether to proceed. If you choose to proceed after such a warning, you do so at your own risk and the goodwill service-fee refund above does not apply to that order. If you prefer, we will instead decline the order or attempt to source the item elsewhere.
Good faith and marketplace rules. We act in good faith and within each marketplace's rules. We cannot pursue recovery for losses arising where you instructed us, against our advice, to bypass a marketplace's protections or to pay a seller outside its system.
Risk passes to you when the item is handed to the carrier. Where transit insurance was arranged and paid for, we will help you file and pursue a claim with the carrier/insurer for loss or damage in transit. Uninsured shipments are sent at your risk. Keep all packaging and notify us promptly of any damage.
Import duties, taxes and customs clearance are your responsibility as importer. Charges levied by authorities, customs delays, and any seizure or refusal of entry are not grounds for a refund of our service fee or shipping already performed.
Any unused, confirmed balance you hold with us can be refunded on request to the original payment method where possible, less any amounts already committed to orders and any unavoidable transfer fees.
Email hello@portare.org with your order reference as early as possible. The sooner you contact us, the more likely we can stop costs being incurred. We aim to respond within 24 hours.
Nothing in this policy removes mandatory consumer rights you may have under the law of your country of residence. Where such rights apply, they take precedence over this policy.