YOUR MARKET PLACE POSTING POLICY

Background

Before you list your item for sale, you need to find out if your item is allowed/appropriate on Your Market Place and if the type of item is subject to certain restrictions. While our policies about listing items are based upon Australian laws, many restrictions concern the sale of dangerous or sensitive items which may not be prohibited by law.

Your Market Place is community oriented and reserves the right to withdraw any item or advertisement from the site deemed by Your Market Place to be inappropriate or potentially offensive to the general community. Your Market Place is primarily aimed at families and the greater school community, so it is important to us that this website is kept appropriate for our families. Please take the time to read through our policies so you know what Your Market Place considers clean, friendly and appropriate (our policies are not designed to be exhaustive, but provide guidance on what is considered inappropriate). If you are not sure, please do not hesitate to contact us through our ‘contact us’ link. You can also email us on info@yourmarketplace.com.au

The Your local buy and sell section of Your Market Place is for the sale of second hand goods only. Businesses looking to advertise and sell their goods are able to do so through our advertising and Your local businesses section. This posting policy relates to both people looking to list second hand goods for sale as well as businesses wishing to advertise their products and services.

As a Your Market Place seller, you are ultimately responsible for ensuring that your upload complies with the law as well as our posting guidelines. Breaches of these policies may result in cancelling your listing as well as referral to the appropriate authorities. When policy violations occur, Your Market Place will email the seller or advertiser that a listing cancellation has occurred. You may contact Your Market Place to report any listings you feel violate our posting policy by using the ‘Contact Us’ link.

Any items uploaded which are regarded by Your Market Place as being potentially illegal, fraudulent, stolen or potentially contravening any Australian laws, will be referred to the appropriate authorities.

 

Items subject to restricted sale or prohibition on Your Market Place:

• Adult material
• Alcohol
• Art
• Clothing, used
• Coins
• Cosmetics, used
• Counterfeit currency and stamps
• Credit cards
• Digital downloads
• Drugs & drug paraphernalia
• Electronics equipment
• Electronic surveillance equipment
• Emergency services uniforms and associated equipment
• Embargoed goods and prohibited countries
• Event tickets
• Frequent Flyer Points
• Food
• Gaming devices
• Government and transit documents
• Hazardous, restricted and perishable items
• Human parts and remains
• Encouraging illegal activity
• Lock picking devices
• Lottery tickets
• Medical devices
• Offensive material
• Pets
• Recalled items
• School Uniforms
• Stocks and other securities
• Tobacco
• Travel
• Weapons & knives

Adult Material

Your Market Place does not permit the uploading of sexually explicit or pornographic materials, including material which may be regarded as offensive by the wider community. Material which may be permitted by law will not automatically be allowed for uploading on Your Market Place.

Alcohol

All forms of alcohol and alcohol related items are forbidden on the Your local buy and sell section of Your Market Place. This includes, for example, beer and wine making kits. Licenced premises may advertise on Your local businesses.

Art Work

Any original art work being uploaded to Your Market Place needs to identify the artist, while any reproduction or replica needs to be clearly marked as such. All art works need to abide by copyright laws.

Clothing, used

Used clothing (except underwear) may be listed on Your Market Place as long as the clothing has been thoroughly cleaned according to the manufacturer's instructions. Used underwear and swimwear is not permitted for sale on Your Market Place.

Selling coins

Your Market Place does not permit the sale of coins or paper money that is fraudulent or improperly described.

Used cosmetics

Used cosmetics are not permitted for sale on Your Market Place.

Counterfeit currency & stamps

The sale of counterfeit currency and stamps, and equipment for the manufacture of such items is not permitted on Your Market Place.

Credit cards

Your Market Place does not permit the listing of credit or debit cards, including inactive cards.

Digitally delivered goods

All goods that can be digitally downloaded or transferred electronically are not permitted on Your Market Place. This includes, but is not restricted to, MP3 files, eBooks, and recipes in an electronic format.

Drugs & drug paraphernalia

Narcotics, steroids, other controlled substances, and the paraphernalia for their use or manufacture, may not be listed on Your Market Place.

Your Market Place does not permit the uploading of substances which suggest or imply they deliver the same effect as an illegal drug or unproven health benefits.

Electronics equipment

Electronic equipment deemed unlawful by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is not permitted on Your Market Place. Any seller looking to upload electronic items should check with the Australian Communications Authority website: www.aca.gov.au and ensure that any items offered for sale comply with ACMA regulations and standards.

Electronic surveillance

Your Market Place does not permit the sale of products that are designed primarily to record the private oral, wire, or electronic conversations of others without their knowledge or permission, such as telephone "bugs" or "wiretap" devices.

Emergency services uniforms and associated equipment

Your Market Place does not permit the listing of law enforcement or emergency services uniforms, badges or equipment from any public entity, including badges issued by the government of any country. This prohibition extends to police badges and official equipment from federal, state or local law enforcement agencies of Australia and New Zealand.

Embargoed goods & countries

Your Market Place does not allow items to be posted, either second hand or new goods being advertised by businesses, which contravene Australian trade restrictions. If you have any questions, you should seek advice from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Event tickets

Before uploading tickets for sale on Your local buy and sell, the seller needs to ensure that they are not violating any applicable state or national law in which the event is being run, or terms of the ticket itself.

Frequent flyer points

Your Market Place does not permit frequent flyer points or guest passes to airline lounges to be listed for sale.

Food

Any business selling food and food related products on Your Market Place needs to ensure it complies with all relevant Federal and State regulation. This includes but is not restricted to regulatory requirements for the safe handling and preparation of food as well as food labelling regulations.

Gaming devices

Items which may be used for gaming or an amusement device that is designed for the playing of a game of chance, and/or capable of paying out of money or tokens, such as poker or bingo pinball machines are not permitted for sale on Your Market Place.

Government & transit documents

Any article of clothing, identification or documents relating to transport security, including port or airport security, or employment with the transport industry is not permitted on Your Market Place.

Hazardous, restricted & perishable goods

Hazardous goods which pose a danger to health, safety or property are not permitted for sale on Your Market Place. This includes but is not limited to substances such as explosives, radioactive materials, fireworks, mercury batteries, flammable gases and solids, and toxic substances.

Human parts and remains

Human remains, tissue or any other by product of the human body is not permitted for sale on Your Market Place.

Encouraging illegal activity

Your Market Place prohibits the sale of items or links to items that encourage, promote, facilitate or instruct others to engage in illegal activity.

Lock Picking

Your Market Place does not permit the listing of any lock picking or lock smithing device.

Lottery tickets

Your Market Place does not allow the sale of lottery tickets.

Medical devices

Your Market Place requires sellers of used medical devices (for example, thermometers and breast pumps) to ensure the device is cleaned in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions before posting.

Sellers may not list any medical device that has been altered in any way that significantly changes the product's performance or safety specifications. Sellers must clearly state in the product description, if the device has been opened or used.

Offensive material

Sellers may not list items that promote or glorify hatred, violence, racial or religious intolerance, or items that promote organisations with such views.

Pets

All pet ads, other than for registered businesses, need to be placed in the Pet section of Your Market Place. The Pets section aims to help the community find good, safe, caring homes for pets. It is strongly recommended that people looking to rehome their pet include in their notice, information on the animal’s vaccination history and whether the animal has been microchipped and desexed.

People looking to adopt a pet should be aware that, in Tasmania, from 1 July 2011, all dogs over the age of six months need to be microchipped. Dogs declared dangerous or a restricted breed dog are also required to be de-sexed. For more information please go to http://www.dpac.tas.gov/divisions/lgd/dog_control.

People looking to rehome cats should also be aware that the Cat Management Act 2009 is expected to be proclaimed by July 2011. Under the legislation, only registered breeders will be able to breed cats. All cats that are sold or given away need to be at least eight weeks of age, microchipped and desexed, unless a care agreement has been entered into.

Once the legislation has commenced, a person breeding cats who is not a registered breeder, or who sells or gives away a cat that does not meet the sale requirements, could face a fine. Information for this section has been taken from the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment website. For more information, see: http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/HBAW-7HE28G?open.

Please be aware that Your Market Place will not accept the following advertisements:

• ‘Free to a good home’ advertisements for all animals;
• Listing of restricted breeds or dogs who have been classified as dangerous by their local Council;
• Any advertisement suspected of facilitating uncontrolled breeding, irresponsible commercial pet trading, trade of dogs or any other animal for the purpose of fighting or stud services.

While we appreciate the vast majority of people offering pets free of charge have only good intentions and love their pets, ‘free’ pets can sometimes be exploited by unscrupulous people, who do not value the life of an animal. As a result, Your Market Place has taken the decision to not accept ‘free to a good home’ advertisements.

For more information on the responsible rehoming of pets, please refer to Appendix 1 Responsible rehoming of pets. Your Market Place acknowledges the Dogs’ Homes of Tasmania for their essential contribution in developing this policy.

Recalled items

Prior to uploading an item for sale it is the to sellers’ responsibility to check with Product Recalls Australia (website: www.recalls.gov.au) to ensure that the item(s) has not been the subject of recall. If you're a buyer, you can check the site to get information about recalled products in areas of interest.

School Uniforms

When listing school uniforms it is the seller’s and buyer’s responsibility to ensure the uniform is current and conforms to the individual school uniform policy. The uniforms must be cleaned to the manufacturer’s instructions, must be free from stains or tears with buttons and compulsory badges intact.

Your Market Place recommends that the buyer personally inspects the uniform prior to purchase.

Stocks and Securities

The sale of stock or other securities is not permitted on www.recalls.gov.au.

Tobacco

www.recalls.gov.au does not permit the sale of cigarettes, cigars, and smokeless tobacco.

Travel

Individuals wishing to offer travel services for sale need to comply with the appropriate regulations in their state of residence. It is the responsibility of the individual to comply with relevant licensing and regulatory requirements.

Weapons & knives

Weapons and knives of any description are not permitted on www.recalls.gov.au.

Appendix 1

RESPONSIBLE REHOMING OF PETS

Getting a pet can present many questions, concerns, and risks. It is important to make sure you have the knowledge to make the best decisions for you and your new companion. The information below provides some tips for acquiring or rehoming a pet. While the information largely relates to cats and dogs, its principles may be applied to all pets.

As a potential new owner, you should make sure that the breeder or seller you have contacted is reputable and responsible. This means meeting each other face to face and we encourage the buyer and seller to meet locally. If you are buying a pet, go to the breeder’s home or kennel to see the animal’s parents (if you’re looking at a puppy or kitten) or at least the mother animal; the conditions under which the animal is raised (which can affect the health and socialisation of your new pet); and to be sure you aren’t buying from a puppy or kitten mill or backyard breeder with poor practices and animals bred solely for profit.

As a breeder or seller, it is important that you know the new pet owner will be responsible and caring. Equally important is to be sure that the new pet will fit into the owner’s life and create a rewarding relationship for both. This requires care, preparation, and time.

Buyers

While pet sellers can be reputable individuals or breeders who treat their animals well, the ease of selling pets over the Internet also makes it attractive to careless breeders and scammers. To protect yourself you must be careful and believe only what you see, not what you’re told. When looking for a pet online, it is important to meet the seller before agreeing to anything. Never buy a pet from someone who is unwilling to let you see how and where the animal is living!

If you are searching for a pet here are some tips and guidelines:

Make sure you are not supporting a backyard breeder (someone who breeds animals indiscriminately without any appreciation or concern for breed standards, genetics, the animal’s health or socialisation. Animals are typically sold through classified sites, the internet and pet shops).

Classic signs of a backyard breeder are:

o Parents of puppy are related.

o Several undesexed adults of different breeds are on the property.

o Parents of puppies are not purebred and have not been screened for genetic abnormalities (breeder cannot supply written proof).

o Puppies are poorly socialised (this includes timidity or overt aggression to people or each other), or have not been raised inside with family members.

o Puppies appear lethargic or unwell.

o Puppies have had no vet check or have swollen bellies usually indicating worms.

o Seller is not able to provide specific information about the personality of each puppy and does not enquire about the prospective home to ensure suitable match.

Visit the pet seller’s home or business and see how they raise and care for their animals. If the seller is a breeder and will not make the parents of a puppy or kitten animal available for inspection, there may be a problem.

 

Ask for as much information as possible about the animal’s history in terms of source, health records, and behavioural information, such as:

o Is he up to date on vaccinations (sight certificate)
o Is he microchipped? This is compulsory in Tasmania for dogs and likely to enacted for cats from July 2011.
o Is he desexed?
o When was his last vet visit and who is his vet?
o Is the puppy/kitten over 8 weeks old? Animals under this age should be with their mother and litter mates to maximize socialization opportunities

Get references, including other customers (if a breeder) and the seller's veterinarian. Check them out.

 

Get all health guarantees and other promises in writing.

 

If you are needing to find a new home for an animal, here are some tips and guidelines:

• Advertise through friends, neighbours, and local veterinarians first; then try classifieds, if all else fails. Your chances of finding a good home are increased when you check references with someone you know.

• Visit the prospective new home in order to get a feel for the environment in which your pet will be living. Explain that the pet is part of your family and that you want to make sure he or she will be cared for. Screen potential homes carefully.

• Don't be fooled. If anyone refuses to allow you to visit their home, do not place your pet with them.

• Always be mindful of your own safety when you go to interview potential buyers or if you allow a prospective buyer to enter your home.

• Carefully consider all the elements of the new home: Will your pet get along with small children? Is the family planning to keep the dog chained outside as a watch dog? Will the cat be kept only as a mouser? Does the family have a veterinary reference? Do not be shy about asking questions. Your pet's life and happiness may depend on it.

• Ask for a valid form of identification (preferably a driver's license). Record the number for your records and require the new owner to sign a contract stating the requirements of sale upon which both parties agree. As part of the contract, require the new owner to contact you if he or she decides at some point that they must give up the pet.

• Have your pet neutered or spayed before he/she goes to the new home. This will make the animal more adoptable and help stop irresponsible breeding.

• Have your pet up to date on vaccinations and pass on all vet records to the buyer.

• Have your pet microchipped and discuss the transfer of details with the buyer.

• If your pet is chronically ill or has behavioural problems, it may be difficult to find him a suitable home. It is important to disclose all information about your pet as a new owner may not be willing or able to deal with these issues, and it may also be difficult for the pet to adjust to a new home. If this is the case you may want to consider surrendering your pet to a shelter that is willing to work with the particular issue/s (depending on what they are) or alternatively consider humane euthanasia at your veterinarian. This is a tough decision but as a responsible pet owner it may be the best one for your pet.

For more information on responsible rehoming of pets, visit: http://www.petrescue.com.au/rehoming_your_pet/getting_ready_to_rehome_your_pet

Your Market Place acknowledges the Dogs’ Homes of Tasmania in developing this policy.