Selling a piece of equipment worth five or six figures to someone you found online, in another state, who you've never met and will likely never meet in person — that's the reality of most transactions on a B2B marketplace. It's also exactly the situation where most deals fall apart, not because the equipment or the buyer is a problem, but because neither side wants to be the one who sends money or ships product first.
That's the problem escrow-style payment protection solves. Here's exactly how it works, step by step, from the moment a buyer checks out to the moment a seller gets paid.
What "Escrow-Style" Actually Means
Petro-Exchange uses Trustap's escrow-style transaction management service to hold buyer funds securely until a transaction is completed. In plain terms: when a buyer pays, that money doesn't go straight to the seller. It sits with Trustap first. The seller only gets paid once the transaction has actually been completed according to an agreed timeline — which protects the buyer from paying for something that never shows up, and protects the seller from a buyer who received the goods and simply won't pay.
The Transaction Timeline, Step by Step
- Payment. For a standard checkout, buyer payment happens immediately. For an accepted offer or a negotiated transaction, the buyer has up to 5 days to remit payment.
- Funds are held. Once payment is made, Trustap holds those funds securely. The seller has not been paid yet — and doesn't need to worry the buyer will back out after receiving the goods, since the money is already committed.
- Delivery or pickup. The seller has 14 days after payment is secured to ensure delivery, or the buyer has 14 days to complete pickup, depending on how the listing was arranged.
- Inspection window. Once the item arrives at its destination, the buyer has 7 days to inspect it and confirm it matches the listing.
- Payout. If the buyer marks the transaction complete — or if the 7-day inspection window simply expires with no dispute filed — funds are released to the seller.
What Happens If Something's Wrong With the Item
If a buyer inspects the item during the 7-day window and something doesn't match what was listed, that's what the inspection period exists for — disputes are handled directly through Trustap's resolution process, rather than leaving buyer and seller to sort it out with no structure or recourse.
What This Costs
- Buyers pay a 4.4% Trustap secure transaction fee.
- Sellers pay a 15% final value commission on completed transactions.
Why This Matters More for High-Value B2B Deals
A structured process like this matters more, not less, as the dollar amount goes up. A $200 sale gone wrong is frustrating. A six-figure tank farm equipment sale gone wrong is a real financial problem for either side. Escrow-style protection, a defined inspection period, and identity verification through Trustap exist specifically to make that level of transaction workable between two businesses that have never dealt with each other before — without either side needing to just trust a stranger on the internet.
Ready to Buy or Sell With That Protection Built In?
Every transaction on Petro-Exchange runs through this same process, automatically. Listings are free, and you only pay when something sells.
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