Cyclesite mediates disputes for purchases made under Buyer Protection. Direct-collection sales are private contracts, Cyclesite can support both parties with evidence and messaging history but cannot rule on the contract itself.
When you can open a dispute
You have 48 hours from delivery to open a dispute if the bike does not match the listing. Common grounds:
- Bike does not match the photos or description
- Undisclosed damage discovered on delivery
- Frame number does not match the listing
- Listing claimed a feature (e.g. a groupset, a battery) the bike does not have
- Bike never arrived, despite courier confirmation
How to open a dispute
From your orders page, click "Open a dispute" on the relevant order. You'll be asked to:
- Pick a reason from the list above
- Describe the issue in your own words (max 1,000 chars)
- Upload photos or video of the problem (up to 10 files)
- State your preferred outcome (full refund, partial refund, return-and-refund)
Funds remain held in escrow while the dispute is open. The seller is notified within 1 hour and given 72 hours to respond.
Mediation timeline
- Day 0: buyer opens dispute, seller notified.
- Day 1-3: seller responds with their account of the situation and any counter-evidence.
- Day 3-5: Cyclesite dispute team reviews both parties' evidence and the listing snapshot.
- Day 5-7: ruling issued. If buyer wins, return-shipping label issued and funds released after the bike is scanned at the courier depot. If seller wins, escrow releases to them.
Possible outcomes
- Full refund: buyer returns the bike at our cost; full purchase price refunded once courier confirms scan.
- Partial refund: buyer keeps the bike; an agreed sum is refunded for the disclosed defect.
- Dispute denied: escrow releases to seller, no refund. The 48-hour Buyer Protection inspection window ends.
- Borderline: packing-related transit damage. When the dispute is borderline (typically minor cosmetic damage in transit) and the seller completed the photo-checkpoint packing flow correctly, Cyclesite will cover the seller's return shipping for up to one incident per calendar quarter, per seller. The seller is also exempt from the £75 cancellation fee in these cases. See the Seller policy for full details.
Evidence we use
- The listing as it appeared at the time of purchase
- All in-platform messages between buyer and seller
- Stolen-bike check result + frame number history
- Courier scan and tracking history
- Photos / video uploaded with the dispute
What this policy does not cover
- Direct-collection sales: these are private contracts. Use the small-claims process if you cannot resolve directly.
- Subjective preferences (e.g. "I changed my mind"): use the seller's own returns process if any, otherwise the sale is final.
- Wear consistent with the listed condition (e.g. minor scuffs on a bike listed as "Good").
Seller appeal: your rights when a ruling goes against you
Cyclesite guarantees a structured appeal route for sellers when a dispute is closed against them. The process is the same whether the buyer claimed undisclosed damage, a description mismatch, or you were asked to cover a partial refund you didn't agree to.
How to appeal
- Open the closed dispute from your orders page and click "Appeal this ruling". The button is available for 5 business days after the original ruling lands; after that, the route is the formal complaints procedure (still open for 14 days).
- State why you believe the ruling was wrong. Reasonable grounds include: photo or video evidence not considered, the listing wording at sale time was different to what the dispute team quoted, the buyer's claim contains a factual error, or the ruling forced a refund larger than you agreed to during self-mediation.
- Upload any evidence not already in the file. The appeal is a full re-review, not a top-up, you can submit anything that wasn't available the first time.
What happens next
- Day 0-5 business days: a different reviewer (not the one who issued the original ruling) re-reads the file, including the new evidence. Cyclesite commits to a written outcome within 5 business days.
- Possible outcomes: appeal upheld (original ruling reversed and any forced discount is refunded to you); appeal partly upheld (the compensation amount changes but the outcome stands); appeal denied (original ruling stands, written reasoning provided).
- Right to refuse a forced discount: if you disagree with a partial-refund amount imposed during the original ruling, you can require the full bike to be returned to you instead, at Cyclesite's cost (subject to the Return-Shipping Commitment in the Seller policy). The appeal must request this explicitly.
- Funds are not released to either party while the appeal is open.
Escalation beyond appeal
If you disagree with the appeal outcome, you can escalate via our complaints procedure within 14 days of the appeal closing. Disputes involving regulated payments are also covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service.