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Terms of Service

Version 1.2.0 · Last updated May 18, 2026

Authored and maintained by Josh Owens, Founder of Rookie.

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you ("you," "User") and Rookie, together with its founder Josh Owens, its operators, affiliates, contractors, officers, and employees (collectively "Rookie," "we," "us," "the Service"). Read them carefully — by checking the acknowledgment box on signup, creating an account, or using the Service in any way you agree to be bound by them, including the binding individual arbitration, class-action waiver, jury-trial waiver, and limitation of liability sections below. If you do not agree, do not create an account and do not use the Service.

1. Acceptance of Terms

By checking the "I agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy" box during signup, creating an account, or otherwise using Rookie, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. Acceptance is a condition of creating a username and password — accounts cannot be created without it. We record your acceptance with a version number, timestamp, IP address, and user-agent string as durable evidence of your consent and may rely on that record in any dispute.

2. Eligibility & Children's Privacy (COPPA)

  • You must be at least 8 years old to use Rookie.
  • Users under 13 ("Children") are not permitted to create their own account. A parent or legal guardian must create and supervise the account in compliance with the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
  • Users aged 13–17 must provide a parent or legal guardian email. The parent accepts financial and legal responsibility for the minor's purchases, sales, trades, and posted content.
  • You represent that all information you provide (including age) is accurate.

3. Account Responsibility & Security

You are responsible for keeping your credentials confidential and for all activity under your account. Notify us immediately at Support of any unauthorized use. We may require identity verification (KYC) before enabling payouts or higher-value transactions.

4. Marketplace, Trades & User-to-User Transactions

  • All sales and trades are directly between users. Rookie acts as a venue and payment facilitator and is not a party to any transaction between users.
  • Sellers are solely responsible for the accuracy of listings, including grade, authenticity, condition, and ownership. Rookie does not authenticate or guarantee items.
  • Sellers must have legal right to sell the item and must ship promptly after a sale is marked Paid.
  • Buyers must confirm delivery or open a dispute within the window shown in-app. Once a transaction is finalized, it is final unless both parties agree to a refund or a dispute is upheld.
  • Trades use our credit system; trade-related credit fees are non-refundable once a trade is accepted.
  • Rookie fees and credits are non-refundable. When a buyer refund is issued (including auto-cancellation for missed ship deadlines or upheld disputes), the refund covers the item price only. Rookie platform fees, listing fees, boost fees, trade acceptance fees, offer acceptance fees, and any previously purchased credit packs are not refunded.

5. Payments, Fees & Payouts

  • Payments are processed by Stripe, Inc. and Stripe Connect. By transacting on Rookie you agree to the Stripe Connected Account Agreement and Stripe Services Agreement.
  • Sellers receiving payouts may be required to complete identity verification (KYC) and provide tax information (W-9 / W-8) before payouts are released.
  • Platform fees, listing fees, and boost fees are disclosed in-app and are non-refundable once charged unless required by law.
  • You are responsible for any taxes owed on your sales. Where required, Rookie or Stripe will issue an IRS Form 1099-K or equivalent tax document.

6. Recordkeeping & 7-Year Transaction Retention

You acknowledge and agree that, to comply with U.S. tax law (including IRS recordkeeping requirements), state sales-tax retention rules, anti-money-laundering (AML) obligations, payment-network rules, and our partner agreements with Stripe, Rookie will retain the following records for a minimum of seven (7) years after the transaction date — and longer where required by law:

  • Order, listing, purchase, trade, refund, and dispute records.
  • Amounts, currency, fees, payouts, Stripe identifiers, and timestamps.
  • Buyer and seller user IDs, shipping addresses associated with an order, and the description of the item sold.
  • Tax documents (e.g., 1099-K) and KYC information provided to Stripe.

If you delete your account, these transaction records will be retained for the period above as an audit trail, but they will be disassociated from your active profile where practical and not used for marketing.

7. Prohibited Conduct

  • No counterfeit, stolen, reproduction, or misrepresented merchandise.
  • No money laundering, structuring, or use of the Service to disguise the source of funds.
  • No harassment, hate speech, sexual content involving minors, threats, or other illegal activity.
  • No off-platform payment, no circumventing fees, no scraping, no reverse engineering, no automated abuse.
  • No items prohibited by law or by Stripe's restricted-business list.

8. Content License

You retain ownership of the photos and content you upload. You grant Rookie a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, display, resize, and use that content solely to operate and promote the Service. You represent that you have the rights to everything you upload.

9. Account Deletion & Data Retention

You may request account deletion from the Settings page or via Support. We will delete your profile, listings, photos, and personal data within 30 days, subject to the Section 6 retention obligations for transaction records and to ongoing legal holds.

10. Disclaimers & Limitation of Liability

The Service is provided "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE," with all faults and without warranty of any kind. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Rookie, its founder Josh Owens, its co-founders, officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, and affiliates (the "Rookie Parties") disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, non-infringement, accuracy of card identification, AI-estimated grades or prices, authenticity of items listed by users, and uninterrupted or error-free operation. Card values, scan results, market estimates, and DNA-match suggestions are informational only and are not appraisals, investment advice, or guarantees.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Rookie Parties shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for any loss of cards, profits, revenue, goodwill, value, use, or data, even if advised of the possibility. The aggregate liability of all Rookie Parties to you for any and all claims arising out of or relating to the Service is limited to the greater of (a) the fees you paid Rookie in the 12 months preceding the claim or (b) USD $100. You agree this limitation is a fundamental basis of the bargain and would apply even if a remedy fails of its essential purpose.

11. Indemnification & Founder Protection

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Rookie Parties — including Josh Owens personally in his capacity as founder — from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, investigations, losses, damages, liabilities, judgments, settlements, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees and expert fees) arising out of or related to: (a) your use or misuse of the Service; (b) any content you upload, post, or transmit; (c) any transaction, trade, listing, payment, or shipment between you and another user; (d) your breach of these Terms, our Privacy Policy, or any law; (e) your violation of any third-party right, including intellectual property, publicity, or privacy rights; or (f) any claim that an item you listed is counterfeit, stolen, misrepresented, or infringes another party's rights. Rookie reserves the right to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you, in which case you agree to cooperate fully.

12. Suspension & Termination

We may suspend, restrict, or terminate any account at our sole discretion, with or without notice, for any reason — including suspected violation of these Terms, fraud, chargebacks, harassment, risk to other users or to the Service, requests from Stripe or law enforcement, or compliance with applicable law. We may withhold pending payouts during investigation of fraud, disputes, or compliance issues. Termination does not relieve you of obligations accrued before termination, including fees owed and indemnification.

13. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be announced in-app, by email, or by requiring re-acceptance on next sign-in. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance. Your prior acceptances are retained with version, timestamp, IP, and user-agent.

14. Governing Law, Arbitration, Jury & Class-Action Waiver

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Texas, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles. Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms, the Service, or any interaction with the Rookie Parties (including Josh Owens) — whether based in contract, tort, statute, fraud, misrepresentation, or any other legal theory — shall be resolved exclusively by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, seated in Travis County, Texas. You and Rookie expressly waive any right to a jury trial and any right to participate in a class action, class arbitration, or representative proceeding. The arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person's claims. You may opt out of this arbitration agreement within 30 days of first acceptance by emailing Support; opting out does not affect any other provision of these Terms.

15. Contact

Questions? Reach us via the Support page.