Dispute Policy

Pending legal review. This is not a final legal document and must not be treated as approved.

This policy sets out how miidle handles issues and disputes between home improvers and tradespeople on funded projects. It should be read with the Payment Protection Terms, which govern how the money itself is held and released.

Raising an issue

Only the home improver can raise a quality dispute, and only on the stage they are reviewing. The tradesperson is notified. The stage payment stays held. It is not auto-released, and missing a date does not by itself refund or release it.

The tradesperson may agree to put the work right, up to 3 rectification opportunities, or refuse. Each opportunity has its own scope, target date, and completion evidence. The home improver reviews each one and approves it or confirms the issue remains. Rejecting the third opportunity opens card holds for desktop adjudication. A refusal, or a missed target left unresolved after notice, can refer earlier and does not move the stage payment. Any later timetable for an overdue target is to be confirmed.

Formal dispute and agreeing an outcome

A formal dispute is about that stage. Before RICS appoints the adjudicator, either party can propose a full release, a split, or a full return. The dispute stays open until the payment confirms. After appointment, one recorded discontinuance is allowed. An agreement is not available on a stage that is not in this dispute. Cancelling the project does not itself move any money. Joint settlement before the decision releases unused holds; fee treatment otherwise remains to be confirmed.

Holding deposits

The clock starts at the first successful card hold. Each party authorises a hold of £300.00 (interim fixed adjudication fee; VAT split to be confirmed with RICS). The button authorises a hold. It does not take a charge, and the hold is recorded only after the payment provider confirms it. RICS appoints the adjudicator once both holds are valid. miidle does not choose the person or the outcome. The fee is not due on appointment and it is not taken when the report is served. Each party has 5 working days from their own hold, in Europe/London, to submit one evidence statement. After Day 0, the other party has 7 calendar days to authorise their hold. The agreement window length after appointment remains 7 days where that rule still applies.

If the tradesperson's hold is Day 0 and the home improver has not held within 7 calendar days, the stage releases to the tradesperson. That release is a deadline outcome. It is not approval of the work. If the home improver's hold is Day 0, the tradesperson is reminded daily until they hold or day 21 from that Day 0. At day 21 with the tradesperson still missing, the stage returns to the home improver and there is no referral or appointment. If neither party has held, there is no clock and the stage stays held. The longstop for both-missing is to be confirmed and is not required while no clock runs.

The adjudicator

RICS appoints the adjudicator for a desktop review of the dispute history and the evidence statements. miidle does not choose the person. Clarifications are on the shared record and are visible to both parties. The adjudicator does not order a new rectification. The decision is one of three payment outcomes: the tradesperson receives the stage, the home improver receives the stage, or the stage is split. There is no second stage, site visit, or exceptional review. The fee, the appointment response time, and the other schedule items are to be confirmed.

When both evidence periods have closed and an adjudicator is appointed, miidle issues one indexed evidence report in the adjudicator portal. The adjudicator then has 5 UK working days from that issue time to complete the verdict summary. The decision is final and paid when it is issued. Consumer rights stay available, including the right to bring a claim in the courts of England & Wales. miidle does not decide the merits.

After the decision

Tradesperson wins: when the decision is issued, the stage payment is released to the tradesperson. Any adjudication fee is taken only from the scheduled liability on the home improver's existing authorisation. While that liability is to be confirmed, nothing is captured. There is no new checkout.

Home improver wins: when the decision is issued, the stage payment is returned to the home improver. Any adjudication fee is taken only from the scheduled liability on the tradesperson's existing authorisation. While that liability is to be confirmed, nothing is captured. There is no new checkout.

Split: the release plus the refund must equal the stage funds held. Both unused holds are released. The fixed fee, VAT, and each party's fee share are recorded separately from that reconciliation. While the fee is to be confirmed, nothing is captured.

Settlement costs on an agreed split or full return are shown before acceptance. Where that cost is still to be confirmed, it is not replaced with an illustration. The original project fee is not silently refunded on a deduction or a cancellation. Pending legal review, a decision is a payment instruction and is not a final statement of legal rights.

Either party can cancel the project. Cancelling stops future work. It does not pay, refund, or release money by itself. Completed stages stay complete. The value of an unfinished stage is agreed or assessed, and any remaining funded balance is reconciled afterwards.

Complaints about us

This policy covers disputes between the parties to a project. If your complaint is about miidle itself, contact support@miidle.co.uk - clause 7 of the Payment Protection Terms explains what happens next.