Terms and Conditions

1. About EyeCareDirect

EyeCareDirect is a marketplace where verified eye care professionals buy and sell new and used optical equipment and supplies. Each seller runs their own store and sells their own items; the contract of sale is between the buyer and the seller. EyeCareDirect is not the seller of items listed by members, does not take possession of them and does not inspect them. We provide the Marketplace, review listings before they go live, process payments through Stripe on the seller's behalf, and help resolve problems as these Terms describe.

2. Who can join

• EyeCareDirect is for eye care professionals and businesses in the United States: optometrists, ophthalmologists, opticians, practices, optical labs and suppliers. It is not for consumers.
• Every member confirms their email address and mobile number, and we verify professional status (for example by NPI or a license or business document) before a member can buy, sell or message.
• We screen members against U.S. sanctions lists. We may refuse, limit or close any account, including one already approved, if we can't verify it or if it doesn't meet these Terms.
• Purchases are for professional or business use. Orders ship to business addresses only.

3. Your account

• Keep your account details accurate and your password secret. You are responsible for activity on your account, including by staff you let use it.
• One person or business, one account, and one store per seller.
• Tell us right away at support (in your EyeCareDirect messages) if you think your account has been used without permission.

4. Listing items

• You may only list items you own or are authorized to sell, that are in your possession or available to ship within your stated handling time, and that you can lawfully sell to the buyer.
• Describe each item accurately and completely: manufacturer, model, year, condition, defects, what is included, service history, software and license status where relevant, and lot and expiry for consumables. Photos must show the actual item (or, for new stock, the exact product). A short video, up to 30 seconds, is encouraged for equipment.
• State the price in U.S. dollars, the shipping price or local pickup, and how many business days you need to ship (your handling time).
• Every new listing, and every change to a live listing's title, category, condition, manufacturer, model, year or description, is reviewed before it goes live, usually within one business day. We may decline, edit the category of, or remove any listing.
• Bulk uploads, the listing assistant and price guidance are tools to help you. Suggested categories, descriptions and price ranges are estimates; you are responsible for what you publish and the price you set.
• You give EyeCareDirect a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to display, reformat and promote your listing content (including photos and video) on the Marketplace and in marketing for it, for as long as it is listed and a reasonable time after.

5. Prohibited and restricted items

You may not list or sell:

• prescription products, including contact lenses and any item that may be dispensed only on a prescription;
• drugs and medications, including diagnostic and therapeutic eye drops;
• counterfeit, replica or "inspired by" items, stolen goods, or items that infringe anyone's rights;
• devices or software you aren't allowed to transfer (for example, where the manufacturer's license doesn't permit resale), or equipment that still holds patient information;
• recalled items, unless the recall remedy has been completed and is disclosed;
• anything whose sale is illegal, or that you are not permitted to sell to the buyer.

Some categories are restricted and get closer review: gloves, masks and swabs; fluorescein strips; punctal plugs; contact lens cases; occluders and patches; and lens chemicals and dyes. Listings in these must be sealed, in date and show lot and expiry. Equipment that stored patient data must be wiped before it ships.

6. Fees and payments

• Listing is free. When an item sells, EyeCareDirect's commission is 10% of each item's price up to $2,500 and 4% of any amount above $2,500, after any sale price, quantity pricing or discount code, plus Stripe's processing fee, which Stripe takes directly from the seller's Stripe account (currently 2.9% + 30¢ for cards, and 0.8% capped at $5 for bank transfers). No commission is charged on shipping. A different rate applies only if we have agreed it with you in writing.
• Orders of $2,500 or more are paid by bank transfer (ACH) through Stripe, not by card. A bank payment takes several business days to clear; the order is placed, and the seller ships, once it has.
• Sellers must connect a Stripe account and accept Stripe's terms for connected accounts. Buyers pay by card, or by bank transfer for orders of $2,500 or more, on Stripe's secure checkout; the payment goes directly to the seller's Stripe account, and our commission is deducted from it as an application fee. Stripe pays sellers out on their Stripe schedule. EyeCareDirect never sees card numbers.
• When an order is refunded in full or in part, our commission is returned in proportion. Refunds come from the seller's Stripe balance.
• We may hold, delay or reverse amounts where the law requires, where we reasonably suspect fraud, counterfeit or a sanctions issue, or where an order is subject to a claim or card dispute, to the extent Stripe allows.

7. Buying, offers and discounts

• The price, shipping and terms on a listing at checkout are the offer to sell. An order is placed when payment succeeds. Each store is checked out separately.
• Units are held for you for up to 30 minutes while you complete checkout.
• Offers. On listings that accept offers, you can offer below the current price. The seller has 48 hours to accept, decline or counter. An accepted offer holds the item at that price for you for 48 hours; if you don't check out in that time, the hold ends. An accepted offer is a commitment to buy, and a seller who accepts commits to sell at that price.
• Sale prices, quantity pricing and discount codes are set and paid for by the seller. A discount code applies to items from that seller's store only, under the conditions the seller sets (minimum order, last day, number of uses, once per buyer), and doesn't apply to agreed-price offers. Codes have no cash value.

8. Shipping and pickup

• Sellers ship with their own carrier account to the business address the buyer gives, within the handling time on the listing (in business days, Monday to Friday, from payment; the order's ship-by date is shown on the order page), and add the tracking number on EyeCareDirect.
• Sellers must pack items to arrive safely, including crating or freight where the item needs it, and should insure high-value shipments. Risk of loss in transit is the seller's until delivery.
• Delivery is confirmed by the carrier's tracking, by the buyer, or by EyeCareDirect. For local pickup, the seller marks the order picked up when the buyer collects it.

9. Orders that don't ship

• We remind the seller the day before the ship-by date, when it passes, and before the order is cancelled.
• If an order has no tracking 1 business day after its ship-by date, the buyer may cancel it from the order page for a full refund, shipping included.
• If it still has no tracking 5 business days after the ship-by date, EyeCareDirect cancels it and refunds the buyer in full.
• A seller who can't fulfil an order may cancel it at any time before it ships; the buyer is refunded in full. Cancellations and late shipments count against a seller's record and may lead to limits on the account.

10. The 72-hour problem window

Once delivery is confirmed, the buyer has 72 hours to inspect the item and report a problem from the order page. Each new message between buyer and seller on EyeCareDirect during that time moves the deadline to 72 hours after the latest message, so there is time to talk it through. A window that has closed is not reopened by later messages. If the window closes with no problem open, the order is final and no claim can be made through EyeCareDirect, except as the law requires. A problem that hasn't arrived can be reported before delivery is confirmed.

11. Reporting a problem

• What qualifies: the item didn't arrive; it arrived damaged; parts or accessories are missing; or it is materially not as described. A change of mind isn't a problem under these Terms; any return for another reason is up to the seller's own returns policy.
• Evidence: reports of damage, missing parts or "not as described" must include photos (up to 6), including the packaging if damaged in transit. Photos are seen only by the buyer, the seller and EyeCareDirect. The buyer must keep the item and all packaging until the problem is settled.
• The seller's response: within 2 business days the seller must (a) refund the item, (b) accept a return by uploading a prepaid return label, or (c) decline with an explanation. A partial refund the buyer accepts also settles it.
• Returns: the buyer must send the item back with the seller's label within 5 business days, packed as it arrived, and add the return tracking number. If it isn't sent in time, the problem is closed. The buyer is refunded when the seller confirms the return arrived, or automatically 7 business days after it was sent if the seller hasn't confirmed or raised a problem with it.
• What is refunded: an approved claim refunds the price paid for the items, after any discount. Shipping is refunded if the seller chooses to, and always when an order is cancelled before it ships. Return shipping is paid by the seller through the prepaid label.
• EyeCareDirect review: if the seller declines, or doesn't respond in time, EyeCareDirect reviews the order, the photos, tracking and messages from both sides, usually within two business days, and may refund the buyer from the seller's Stripe balance, require a return, or close the problem. Both parties agree to provide information we reasonably request and to accept our decision as the outcome of the Marketplace process; it doesn't take away any rights either party has by law.

12. Card disputes

Buyers agree to use the problem process first. A buyer may still dispute a charge with their card issuer; if they do, Stripe handles the dispute on the seller's account and the seller responds in their Stripe dashboard. Dispute fees and amounts lost in a dispute are the seller's, except where a dispute results from EyeCareDirect's error.

13. Reviews

After an order is delivered, the buyer and the seller can each review the other, for up to 60 days. Reviews must be honest, about the transaction, and free of personal information, abuse and anything offered in exchange for a review. We may hide reviews that break these rules; we don't remove reviews just because they are negative.

14. Messages and staying on EyeCareDirect

• Arrange and pay for every purchase of an item you found on EyeCareDirect through EyeCareDirect. Taking a sale, or a negotiation, off the Marketplace to avoid fees is not allowed, and transactions made elsewhere aren't protected by these Terms.
• Don't share email addresses, phone numbers or payment details in listings, messages or reviews; we hide them automatically. Never pay by wire, Zelle, Venmo, Cash App, PayPal, crypto or cash for an item listed here.
• Messages may be reviewed by EyeCareDirect to resolve problems, investigate reports and keep the Marketplace safe.

15. Conduct, suspension and sanctions

You agree not to misrepresent yourself or an item, manipulate prices, offers or reviews, harass anyone, interfere with the Marketplace, scrape it, or use it for anything unlawful. We may, at our discretion and with notice where practical:

• remove listings or reviews, limit selling, buying or messaging, or suspend or close an account;
• do so for breaches of these Terms, failed verification, sanctions matches, repeated late shipments, cancellations or upheld claims, suspected fraud or counterfeits, or risk to other members;
• keep records of transactions and decisions as the law allows. Suspended sellers' listings are hidden, and their open orders must still be fulfilled or refunded.

You can close your account at any time once your open orders, claims and refunds are settled.

16. Taxes and compliance

Sellers are responsible for the taxes on their sales and income, and for complying with the laws that apply to what they sell, including those for medical devices, recalls, export controls and the disposal of patient data, except where the law requires EyeCareDirect to collect or report a tax, in which case we will. Buyers are responsible for using equipment lawfully and for any installation, calibration and service it needs.

17. Disclaimers and liability

• The Marketplace is provided "as is". We don't guarantee that listings are accurate, that items are fit for a particular clinical use, or that the Marketplace will be uninterrupted. Any warranty on an item is the seller's, as stated on the listing.
• To the extent the law allows, EyeCareDirect is not liable for indirect, incidental or consequential losses, lost profits or lost data, and our total liability for any claim relating to an order is limited to the commission we received on that order, or $100 for claims not related to an order.
• You agree to indemnify EyeCareDirect against claims arising from your listings, your sales or purchases, or your breach of these Terms.
• Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law.

18. Changes and contact

We may update these Terms. We'll post the new version here with its effective date and, for significant changes, tell members by email or on the site before they apply. Continuing to use EyeCareDirect after that means you accept them; orders placed before a change follow the Terms that applied when they were placed. If any part of these Terms is unenforceable, the rest still applies. Our Privacy Notice explains how we handle personal information.

Questions: message EyeCareDirect support from your messages. See also How EyeCareDirect works.