Buyer protection
What Exportain does to protect buyers
Document review for suppliers who apply for verification, a quotation history both sides can see, private document storage, and a way to report problems. Nothing on this page is a guarantee we do not operate.
Supplier verification
- Suppliers submit separate checks: identity, phone and email, business registration, export registration, and factory or office photos.
- Each submission is reviewed by the Exportain verification team and approved, returned for changes, or rejected.
- Approved checks earn trust badges (Exportain Verified, Export Verified, Factory or Trading Company Verified, Trusted Trader), shown on supplier profiles and product listings.
- A badge is a record of checks reviewed. It is not a capacity, quality or delivery guarantee, and it cannot be purchased.
A recorded quotation trail
- Your RFQ, every quotation version, every counter-offer and the accepted terms are stored server-side.
- Both parties see the same history — unit price, MOQ, lead time, Incoterm, payment terms and validity date.
- Accepting a quotation creates an order record with those terms attached.
- Messages with a supplier are kept in your conversation history.
Payments
- Payment for goods is settled directly between you and the supplier on the terms in the accepted quotation, unless you both agree to a funds hold.
- A supplier can ask you to place a funds hold of up to the order value. You choose whether to pay it by card or decline it.
- Exportain keeps a paid hold until the supplier has filed an export clearance document and you have confirmed the trade complete, then releases it to the supplier. If either of you disputes it, the money is frozen and Exportain staff decide whether to release it or refund it to your card.
- Exportain does hold payment for a trade service you order and pay for through the platform, until that order is released, refunded or cancelled.
- Before paying, agree the Incoterm, payment schedule, inspection and shipment terms in writing — the quotation record is the place to do it.
- Exportain does not guarantee refunds.
Documents and account security
- Documents uploaded to Exportain are stored privately and served only through short-lived signed links after an authorisation check.
- Accounts are verified by one-time code at registration and password reset.
- Administrative actions on supplier verification are permission-gated and written to an audit log.
Disputes
If a supplier does not honour accepted terms, contact us with the order reference. We review the recorded RFQ, quotation and message history, and may suspend or remove accounts that breach the terms of use. Exportain does not arbitrate commercial disputes and does not act as a party to the contract between you and the supplier.
Read the Trust CenterReport a supplier
Counterfeit certificates, misrepresented products, or someone claiming to act for a factory they do not represent — report it. Reports go to the Exportain trust and safety team and are reviewed by a person.
Submit a report