Rental rules: verification, deposit and damage

1. Renter verification

1. Level 0: e-mail — you can message and buy, but not rent.
2. Level 1: a phone number and a card confirmed by your bank (3-D Secure; nothing is charged) — you can rent items worth up to 150 €.
3. Level 2: identity verified through Stripe (an ID document and a selfie) — you can rent any item.
4. Level 3: a verified identity and 3 or more finished rentals without a dispute.
5. An owner can rent only to verified renters (level 2); when the item is worth more than 300 €, this is on by default.
6. Stripe checks the ID document and the selfie. Soundium does not receive or keep copies of them — only the result and Stripe's check number. Other members see only the badges: "Identity verified", "Card" and the number of finished rentals.

2. Deposit

1. The deposit is counted from the item's value set by the owner: 20 % (level 1), 10 % (level 2) or 5 % (level 3), at least 20 € and at most 500 €, but never more than the item's value. The amount is fixed when the owner accepts the rental and is shown before payment.
2. After the rental is paid, the deposit is held on the same card as a separate payment. It is not charged.
3. A card hold is valid for a limited time, so every 6 days it is renewed automatically with a new hold and the old one is released.
4. If the bank does not allow the deposit to be held, the rental is cancelled and the hold of the rental amount is released — nothing is charged.
5. The deposit is released within 48 hours after the rental is paid out to the owner (after the return) unless the owner reports damage, or at once when the rental is cancelled.

3. Damage

1. The owner reports damage in the order within 48 hours after the return: photos or a video, an amount (no more than the deposit) and a description.
2. The renter gets an e-mail and can answer within 48 hours.
3. Soundium looks at both sides' words and files and decides: it approves the amount (up to the deposit) or rejects the claim. The decision with an explanation is sent to both.
4. The approved amount is taken from the deposit and transferred to the owner; the rest of the deposit is released. Soundium takes no fee from this amount.
5. After an approved claim, the renter goes back to level 1 until they finish 3 more rentals without a dispute.
6. An item not returned or damage larger than the deposit are handled under the Disputes rules: Soundium mediates but pays no compensation from its own funds.

4. Soundium guarantee

There is no Soundium guarantee (insurance) for rentals yet. When there is one, its terms will be in this section. Until then, the owner's protection is the deposit and these rules.