Terms & Conditions

Pale Green Earth • palegreenearth.com • Last updated: 15 July 2026

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These Terms & Conditions ("Terms") govern your access to and use of Pale Green Earth ("PGE", "we", "us", "our"), an Australian online marketplace connecting customers with tradespeople, equipment buyers with sellers, and job seekers with employers. By creating an account or using the platform, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the platform.

 

Please also read our Privacy Policy and Refund Policy, which form part of these Terms.

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1. Definitions

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• "Platform" means the Pale Green Earth website, applications, and services.

• "Customer" means a member who posts jobs seeking trade services.

• "Tradesperson" (or "tradie") means a member offering trade services who bids on jobs.

• "Job" means a listing posted by a customer on the Job Marketplace.

• "Offer" or "quote" means a binding proposal by a tradesperson to complete a job for a stated total price, or a proposal by a buyer to purchase or hire equipment.

• "Quote total" means the full price for the job. A quote on PGE is always the TOTAL price for the work described, not an hourly rate, call-out fee, or estimate.

• "Job Credit" means the $25 credit created when a customer cancels an accepted job, applied toward the next tradesperson engaged on that job (see section 9).

• "Equipment Marketplace" means the discovery service for buying, selling, and hiring equipment.

• "Career Hub" means the job-listing service for trade careers and apprenticeships.

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2. Eligibility and accounts

 

2.1 You must be at least 18 years old and capable of forming a binding contract to use PGE.

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2.2 You may hold one account. Your account is personal to you and may not be sold, transferred, or shared. You are responsible for all activity under your account and for keeping your login credentials secure.

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2.3 You must provide accurate information at signup and keep it current, including your name, email address, and phone number. Usernames must comply with our username rules; we may reclaim usernames that are reserved, misleading, offensive, or impersonate others.

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2.4 Accounts have a type: customer or tradesperson. You may switch your account type at any time in your settings. Certain features are available only to a given account type (for example, bidding is available only to tradesperson accounts).

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2.5 We may require verification of your identity, credentials, or business details before enabling certain features, including bidding, posting career listings, and receiving payouts.

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3. Our role

 

3.1 PGE is a marketplace. We provide the venue, tools, payment handling, and dispute assistance that let members find and transact with each other. We are not a party to the contract for services formed between a customer and a tradesperson, the sale or hire agreement formed between equipment buyers and sellers, or any employment arrangement formed through the Career Hub.

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3.2 Tradespeople are independent contractors. They are not employees, agents, partners, or representatives of PGE. We do not supervise, direct, or control their work.

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3.3 We do not guarantee the quality, safety, legality, or completion of any job, item, or role listed on the platform, or the accuracy of any listing, profile, rating, or review. Verification badges indicate checks we have performed as described in section 12; they are not a warranty.

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4. The Job Marketplace

 

4.1 Posting a job is free. Job posts must accurately describe the work, be lawful, and comply with section 16 (Acceptable use). All budgets start from $25 AUD, the platform minimum.

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4.2 You must not include personal contact information (phone numbers, email addresses, social media handles, or website links) in job posts, offers, questions, or messages, except where a platform feature expressly collects it. See section 15.

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4.3 Jobs may expire, be closed by the poster, or be removed by us if they breach these Terms.

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5. Offers, quotes, and acceptance

 

5.1 A quote submitted on PGE is the total price for the job as described. By submitting an offer, a tradesperson commits to completing the work for that price if the customer accepts.

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5.2 Offers must be between $25 and $25,000 AUD. Customers and tradespeople may negotiate through counter-offers; each party may counter as many times as needed until an offer is accepted, declined, or withdrawn.

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5.3 Offers cannot be edited after submission. A tradesperson may withdraw a pending offer from their dashboard and submit a new one.

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5.4 Before submitting a first bid, a tradesperson must provide a current mobile number and accept the Tradesperson Terms in these Terms. The mobile number is used by PGE to contact the tradesperson about their jobs and is never shared with customers.

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5.5 When a customer accepts an offer, a contract for the work is formed directly between the customer and the tradesperson on the terms of the job post, the offer, and these Terms.

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5.6 We may apply bidding restrictions, including temporary cooldowns that prevent a tradesperson from bidding on jobs posted by a member whose accepted job they recently cancelled.

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6. Payments, fees, and holding of funds

 

6.1 When a customer accepts an offer, the customer pays through the platform: the quote total plus a processing fee of 2.5% of the quote.

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6.2 Payment is held securely by PGE and its payment provider until the job is completed and confirmed under section 8. Funds held in this way are not available to the tradesperson until release.

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6.3 On release, the tradesperson receives the quote total minus the PGE platform fee of 10% of the quote. PGE Pro, a membership for tradespeople that removes the platform fee, is coming soon; separate terms will apply.

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6.4 All payments are processed by Stripe. Card details are entered directly with Stripe and never touch PGE systems. Bank account details for payouts are stored in a private vault accessible only to the account owner and PGE administrators, and are used solely to pay you.

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6.5 Fees are stated in Australian dollars and, where applicable, are inclusive of GST. We may change our fees on notice; changes apply to jobs accepted after the change takes effect.

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6.6 You must not make or accept payment for platform-originated jobs outside the platform. Off-platform payment defeats the protections both parties rely on, earns no trust credit (section 12), and is a serious breach of these Terms.

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7. The AI Price Estimator

 

The AI Price Estimator provides indicative price guidance generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on the information you enter. Estimates are general guidance only. They are not quotes, valuations, or advice, and actual prices depend on the job, the site, and the tradesperson. Always compare real quotes, profiles, and ratings before deciding.

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8. Completion and confirmation

 

8.1 When work is finished, either party may mark the job complete. The job is completed when both parties confirm.

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8.2 If one party marks the job complete and the other does not respond within 72 hours, the job is automatically confirmed complete and funds are released, unless a dispute has been raised. We send reminders before auto-confirmation.

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8.3 Once a job is completed, both parties may leave a review (section 11).

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9. Cancellations and the $25 Job Credit

 

9.1 Before acceptance. A customer may close a job at any time before accepting an offer. Nothing has been paid, so nothing is owed; pending offers are declined automatically.

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9.2 After acceptance, by the customer. A customer may request cancellation of an accepted job at any time before completion. When a cancellation is finalised, the customer is refunded everything they paid except $25. That $25 becomes a Job Credit attached to the job: when the customer engages the next tradesperson on that job, the $25 is deducted from the amount payable for that tradesperson's quote. The Job Credit is not a fee; it is value the customer retains and applies to getting the job done.

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9.3 Job Credit expiry. If the job is not reassigned to another tradesperson within 6 months of the cancellation, the Job Credit expires and is forfeited to PGE.

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9.4 After acceptance, by the tradesperson, or by mutual agreement. A tradesperson may request cancellation. Cancellation of an accepted job takes effect when the other party accepts the request or PGE resolves it. If a job is cancelled by the tradesperson or with PGE determining the customer was not at fault, the customer receives a full refund of everything paid, and no Job Credit is withheld.

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9.5 Cancellation requests may be disputed. While a cancellation request is pending, messaging on that job may be paused and completion actions unavailable.

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9.6 Repeated or bad-faith cancellations may result in bidding cooldowns, loss of badges, suspension, or termination.

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10. Disputes

 

10.1 If something goes wrong with a job, either party may raise a dispute through the platform before or after completion confirmation. Raising a dispute pauses fund release for that job.

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10.2 A member may raise no more than one dispute in any 30-day period. A party who raises a dispute may withdraw it within 24 hours.

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10.3 PGE will review the information provided by both parties and any platform records, and will resolve the dispute with one of the following outcomes: customer wins, tradesperson wins, split decision, mutually resolved, or inconclusive. The outcome determines how held funds for that job are released or refunded.

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10.4 PGE's resolution is final as to the handling of funds held on the platform. It does not limit any rights either party has against the other at law, including under the Australian Consumer Law.

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10.5 We may suspend accounts, withhold funds, or take other protective action while investigating suspected fraud or serious breaches.

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10.6 We also allow users to raise disputes regarding equipment agreements from the Equipment Marketplace.

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10.7 PGE will review all information provided and mediate the dispute between the users. PGE does not process payments, hold funds, or charge fees on equipment transactions, thus dispute resolutions are merely a guide to help two parties reach an autonomous mutual agreement. 

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11. Reviews and ratings

 

11.1 After a completed job or completed equipment transaction, each party may leave one review of the other. Reviews must be honest, relevant, and based on genuine experience.

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11.2 You may edit your review within 48 hours of submitting it. After that window it becomes fixed and viewable.

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11.3 You must not offer, solicit, or exchange anything of value for reviews, review your own account, coordinate ratings, or use reviews to threaten or extort. We may remove reviews that breach these Terms and may adjust ratings affected by manipulation.

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12. Trust, verification, and badges

 

12.1 Tradespeople may upload licences, insurance, and qualifications for verification. Approved credentials are marked on their profile. Employers must complete verification before posting to the Career Hub.

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12.2 Badges are earned only through work completed on the platform: PGE-Verified after 3 completed jobs and PGE-Trusted after 10 completed jobs. Work taken off-platform earns nothing.

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12.3 We may re-verify, suspend, or remove badges and verifications at any time, including where credentials expire or information proves inaccurate.

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13. The Equipment Marketplace

 

13.1 The Equipment Marketplace is a discovery service. PGE does not process payments, hold funds, or charge fees on equipment transactions. Listing is free.

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13.2 Offers on equipment must be at least the greater of $25 or 50% of the listed price. A buyer may have at most 5 pending equipment offers at a time. Sellers may accept, decline, or counter offers without limit.

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13.3 Before an offer is accepted, communication is limited to public questions and answers on the listing. When an offer is accepted, direct messaging unlocks between the buyer and seller so they can arrange payment and handover directly. When the transaction is marked complete, the conversation becomes read-only.

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13.4 The accepted offer price is the full price. Payment, delivery, inspection, and transfer of ownership are arranged directly between buyer and seller. We strongly recommend inspecting equipment in person and paying only on pickup or delivery.

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13.5 PGE is not a party to equipment transactions and does not guarantee items, payment, or delivery. Sellers must have the right to sell or hire what they list, describe items accurately, and comply with all applicable laws, including any consumer guarantees that apply to sellers in trade or commerce.

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13.6 Where a buyer and a seller also have an active job offer between them on the Job Marketplace, direct messaging between them on equipment may be blocked and flagged for review, to protect the integrity of job payments.

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14. The Career Hub

 

14.1 Employers must be verified before posting career listings. Listings must be for genuine roles and comply with all applicable employment and anti-discrimination laws.

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14.2 Applications are sent directly to the employer by email, and the employer contacts applicants directly. Applying is free. PGE is not a recruitment agency, is not a party to any employment formed, and does not verify applicants.

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15. Communications and anti-circumvention

 

15.1 Until a platform feature expressly permits it, all communication between members must occur on the platform. You must not include or solicit phone numbers, email addresses, social media handles, website links, or other off-platform contact details in job posts, listings, offers, questions, reviews, or messages. Automated filters enforce this and content may be blocked.

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15.2 PGE never shares your full name or phone number with other members. Members interact by username.

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15.3 Attempting to move platform-originated work, negotiations, or payments off the platform to avoid fees or protections is a serious breach and may result in immediate suspension.

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16. Acceptable use

 

You must not: (a) break any law or infringe anyone's rights; (b) post false, misleading, or deceptive content; (c) harass, threaten, or discriminate; (d) list stolen, counterfeit, dangerous, or prohibited items; (e) undertake work you are not licensed or qualified to perform where a licence or qualification is required; (f) circumvent fees, filters, or security measures; (g) scrape, copy, or reverse-engineer the platform; (h) upload malware or interfere with the platform's operation; (i) create accounts by automated means or impersonate any person; (j) use the platform to build a competing service.

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17. Your content

 

17.1 You retain ownership of the content you post (listings, photos, messages, reviews). You grant PGE a worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, display, reproduce, and adapt that content for operating, promoting, and improving the platform.

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17.2 You warrant that you have the rights to everything you post and that it does not infringe anyone else's rights.

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17.3 The platform, its design, software, branding, and content (other than member content) are owned by PGE or its licensors. You may not use them except as needed to use the platform.

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18. Suspension and termination

 

18.1 You may close your account at any time. Obligations arising from accepted jobs, held funds, disputes, and these Terms survive closure.

 

18.2 We may warn, restrict, suspend, or terminate accounts, and remove content, where we reasonably believe these Terms have been breached, the law requires it, or the safety or integrity of the platform is at risk. Where fair and practical, we will give notice and a chance to respond.

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19. Disclaimers and liability

 

19.1 Nothing in these Terms excludes, restricts, or modifies any consumer guarantee, right, or remedy under the Australian Consumer Law or other law that cannot lawfully be excluded.

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19.2 Subject to 19.1, the platform is provided "as is" and we exclude all other warranties. To the extent our liability can be limited, our total liability to you for all claims arising out of the platform is limited, at our election, to resupplying the relevant service or paying the total fees you paid to PGE in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim.

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19.3 Subject to 19.1, we are not liable for the acts or omissions of members, for the quality or safety of work or items, for loss of profits, or for indirect or consequential loss.

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20. Indemnity

 

You indemnify PGE against loss, damage, and costs (including reasonable legal costs) arising from your breach of these Terms, your content, your dealings with other members, or your violation of law, except to the extent caused by our negligence.

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21. Changes to these Terms

 

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be notified on the platform or by email, and take effect on the date stated. Continued use after that date is acceptance of the updated Terms.

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22. General

 

These Terms are governed by the laws of New South Wales, Australia, and the parties submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of its courts. If any provision is invalid, the rest remain in force. You may not assign your rights under these Terms without our consent; we may assign ours as part of a restructure or sale. These Terms, the Privacy Policy, and the Refund Policy are the entire agreement between you and PGE about the platform.

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23. Contact

 

Pale Green Earth · Sydney, Australia · info@palegreenearth.com