Placeholder page
The final wording is being drafted by the Passenga team. Each section below is a TODO and should not be relied on as legal advice.
1. Everything sits in escrow first
No money is paid to a host, provider or Passenga operating account when you contribute. Every payment is recorded in an append-only ledger and held in a segregated escrow wallet in your name until the platform's release rules run. This is why refunds are possible in every scenario below.
2. Pool did not reach its goal by the deadline
Full automatic refund. When a pool expires below 100% funding, every contribution — including host deposit — is returned to each backer's Passenga wallet in the pool currency. No action needed. Notification is sent to all backers.
3. Staff-approved cancellation
Full automatic refund to wallet. If staff approve a cancellation request from the host, from a majority of backers, or as the outcome of a report, all contributions are returned to backers' wallets. Where the cancellation is host-fault (host caused the failure), the host's deposit is forfeited to the affected backers on a pro-rata basis and the host receives a reputation penalty.
4. Backer exit before funding
Available on request. You can exit a pool and receive your contribution back to your wallet at any time before the pool is funded, except when: (a) the pool has crossed the exit-lock threshold (default 80% funded), or (b) the pool is within the exit-lock window before the deadline (default 7 days). Both values are visible on the pool page and controlled by platform settings. A small flat fee may apply — see section 9.
5. Provider no-show or major change after fulfilment
Manual review. A backer may raise a dispute within the dispute window that opens when the host marks the pool completed (default 72 hours). Staff review the ledger, chat, updates and any evidence. Outcomes may be: full refund from escrow (if provider hadn't been paid), partial refund from the host's or provider's balance, or a decision that the pool was fulfilled. Provider payouts are held until any open dispute is closed.
6. Wallet refunds vs original-method refunds
The default and fastest option is a wallet refund — funds land in your Passenga wallet immediately and you can reuse them, or withdraw them via the Money Out flow. A refund to the original card/bank is available for certain scenarios (typically full-scope pool failures and staff-approved cancellations) and follows the payment gateway's own timeline (usually 5–10 business days). Withdrawals from wallet to bank are subject to KYC and the standard payout queue.
7. Refunds in USD-denominated pools paid from LKR cards
The payment gateway converts LKR to USD at authorisation using its own reference rate. Refunds are issued in the pool currency (USD) into your USD wallet. If you elect a refund to the original payment method, the gateway performs a reverse conversion at the rate at the time of refund — the LKR amount you receive back may differ from the LKR amount you were originally charged because of FX movement between the two dates. Passenga does not set or subsidise the FX rate.
8. Availability fee (public pools)
Public pools that require Passenga to confirm a provider's availability charge an availability fee at checkout, routed to the platform fees wallet. This fee is non-refundable once staff have made contact with the provider, because it covers the work done. If staff have not yet contacted the provider, the fee is refunded to your wallet.
9. Processing and platform fees
The 5% platform success fee (see Terms §6) is only charged on successful pools and is refunded automatically when the pool fails or is cancelled. Payment gateway processing fees follow the gateway's rules: they are refunded on a full reversal but may be retained on partial or delayed refunds — this is a gateway policy that Passenga cannot override. A backer-exit flat fee may apply as configured for the pool currency; the exact amount is shown before you confirm the exit.
10. Host deposit refunds
The host deposit follows the pool: released back to the host's wallet on successful completion; refunded on failed-goal or staff-approved non-host-fault cancellations; forfeited to backers pro-rata on host-fault cancellations.
11. How long refunds take
Wallet refunds: instant. Original-method refunds: initiated same day, gateway then takes 5–10 business days to appear on your statement. Bank withdrawals (Money Out): typically 1–3 business days after staff approval, subject to your bank.
12. How to request a refund or dispute
Backer exits, extension refunds and wallet-to-bank withdrawals are self-serve from the pool page or Wallet. Disputes and staff-approved cancellations are raised from the pool page (Report / Request cancellation). Support handles refunds that fall outside these buttons — response times are shown in-app.