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You pay when you confirm the scope. The money is held by Needsey until the job is confirmed done, then released to the provider. Providers can see it's paid before they start.

It's the list of what's included, what isn't and the timing that you both saw before paying. You tick "I've read what's included" before you pay, and it sits at the top of the chat. If the job changes, Add to job updates it, and you can always see the earlier version.

For jobs over $1,000, a provider can split the price into up to 4 stages in their quote. You pay the full amount once. It stays held, and each stage is released 24 hours after you confirm it's done. A first stage can be a materials deposit of up to 30%, released 24 hours after you confirm work has started. The last stage is at least 20% of the price and is released when the whole job is confirmed done.

Message the other person first. If that doesn't sort it, tap "Something's not right?" while the money is still held. You can propose a fix, suggest a split of the held money, or ask Needsey to step in. It can be about any part of the job, even a stage that's already been paid, but we can only adjust money that's still held.

They have 3 days to accept, counter or ask Needsey to step in. If they don't reply, Needsey steps in. Nothing is ever accepted on your behalf.

You both add your side. We look at the agreed scope, photos and messages from both of you, and we aim to decide within 5 working days of the evidence being in. We can release all, refund all, or split the money held, and we tell you both why.

3 days after the decision, unless one of you tells us you're taking it to the Disputes Tribunal. If you both say OK, it moves straight away. Refunds usually show on the card in 5 to 10 working days.

You can take it to the Disputes Tribunal. Tell us in the chat and we'll keep the money held for 14 days while you file. Show us proof of filing (the confirmation or the reference number) and we'll keep it held until you both agree or the Tribunal decides. If we don't see proof in 14 days, the decision stands. Your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act still apply.

The service fee on the refunded part is refunded with it, and the provider only pays Needsey's fee on the part released to them.

Only the two of you and Needsey. Each photo keeps the date and time it was added. Once an issue is raised, nothing added before it can be deleted, so the record stays fair for both of you.

Find a provider in Browse Services, choose how many hours you need and send a booking request at their hourly rate, or suggest your own price for the whole job. The provider accepts or declines, and you only pay once they accept. You can also post a Need with your budget, and nearby providers can offer to do it.

Yes. Tap Ask a question on their listing or profile. It doesn't commit you to anything and nothing is charged. When you're ready, book from the same chat. Keep contact details out of the chat. Only bookings paid through Needsey are covered by the payment hold and our dispute process.

Yes. Once a job is completed, open its chat and choose "Book again" from the menu. Pick "Just once" to send the same request straight away, or weekly, fortnightly or monthly to repeat it. On a schedule, each time it comes round we send the provider the same booking request. They accept each one and you pay per job, so nothing is ever charged automatically. Either of you can stop it any time from Repeat Jobs in your dashboard. If two requests in a row are declined, go unanswered or go unpaid, the repeat stops and we let you know.

Yes. Needsey is for people aged 18 and over, both clients and providers.

For most work it isn't required, but we recommend it for every provider because it can help clients feel confident choosing you. For work with children, older people or people needing care, it's required before you take jobs. You can request your own record from the Ministry of Justice for free, and it can take up to 20 working days. Upload it in Settings. Once we've checked it, your profile shows a "Criminal record check (Ministry of Justice)" badge with the month it was issued. It stays on your profile for 12 months from the date it was issued. We keep the file for those 12 months, so we can refer back to it if there's a problem with a job, then delete it. Only you and our verification team can see it.

Yes. On their listing or profile, tap "Ask for a criminal record check". We let them know a client asked, without saying who, and we tell you when a check is on their profile. It's free for them and can take up to 20 working days.

Start from "Start Offering Services" in your account menu or the homepage banner. You'll add a service listing with a category and price, then complete an ID check and the documents your line of work needs (for example a licence or insurance for some trades). Clients can send you requests while your checks are being done, and you can reply once they're approved. You set up how you get paid when your first booking request comes in.

When your first booking request comes in. Accepting it opens payout setup, which takes about 5 minutes, then brings you back to accept. You only do it once. If you're on the Founding Provider waitlist and places are still open, set up payouts before they close to keep your place.

It's required before booking a service or posting a need. It's only ever shared with the other party once a job becomes active, so you can coordinate directly. It's never shown publicly on your profile.

Posting a job is free. If you book at a provider's listed price, there's nothing extra to pay. If you post a job or agree a different price, a 10% service fee is added. Your first paid job over $100 has no service fee. Your payment is held until the job is confirmed done. For providers: Free to list. When a client books you at your listed price, a 10% commission comes out of your payment. On jobs clients post, and prices you agree in the chat, the client pays a 10% service fee and you get your full price.

A booking request at the provider's listed rate costs the hours you choose times their rate, with nothing extra on top: Needsey's 10% commission comes out of the provider's side. If you suggest your own price for the whole job instead, a 10% service fee is added to what you pay and the provider gets the full agreed amount. Either way, nothing is charged until the provider accepts, and a request they don't answer within 48 hours is cancelled. Your first paid job over $100 has no service fee.

You pay once the provider has accepted. The money is held by Needsey until the job is confirmed done, then released to the provider. Once it's confirmed there's a 24-hour window, in case either side needs to raise a dispute, and then the payout is sent automatically.

When a provider marks a job as finished, the client is asked to confirm it in the chat, and we remind them by email after 1, 3 and 4 days. If the client hasn't confirmed or pressed "Not done yet" within 5 days, the job is treated as done. The payment is released to the provider after a further 24 hours, and the client can still raise a dispute in that time. Treating a job as done only decides when the payment is released; it doesn't take away your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act. A client who presses "Not done yet" says briefly what's missing (photos in the chat help); the provider can fix it and mark the job finished again, which restarts the 5 days. If the same job is marked "Not done yet" a second time, Needsey support steps in and the payment stays on hold until a real person has looked at it.

Only if you approve it. If the provider needs to add work or the measurement is different, they send an Add to job in the chat. You see each item and the new total, and you can approve and pay, or decline and keep the original job. If the price goes down, we refund the difference to your card.

Some amounts can only be confirmed on the day, like a window measured on site. The provider marks those lines as estimates. If the real amount is different, they send an Add to job for you to approve. You're never charged more without approving it, and if it comes out lower you get the difference back.

Open the chat for the paid job and choose Add to job. Add a line for each extra (labour, parts, a different measurement, or anything else), with a photo and a short reason if it helps. The client approves and pays it in the chat, and it's paid out with the rest of the job. You can't change the price without the client approving it, and a change that takes the job over 1.5 times the original price needs a short reason (a photo helps too).

If something's not right, tap "Something's not right?" in the chat while the money is still held. You can propose a fix or a partial refund, or ask Needsey to step in. See How payments and disputes work above. Your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act aren't affected.

Only pay through Needsey's booking flow. That's what keeps your payment held safely until the job is done and covers it under our dispute process. Any amount paid directly to a provider (cash, bank transfer, or any other method off-platform) is entirely between you and them. It isn't Needsey's responsibility. If a dispute arises, our resolution process can only review and refund the amount actually paid through the platform; anything paid off-platform carries no protection and can't be recovered through us.

Yes. Your basic listing is free, with no membership or lead fees. A Featured listing is an optional extra for providers who'd like more clients to see them.

An optional paid extra, $10 a month including GST, for providers who can take bookings. Your chosen listing shows near the top of its category with a Featured label. Founding Provider listings stay above Featured listings in category and search results until 1 November 2027, and your Featured listing shows above all other listings. It can also appear in the Featured section on our homepage, and you get a Featured badge and monthly stats. See the Featured page in your dashboard for the full details. Spots are limited per category in each area.

No. It helps more clients see your listing. Clients still choose who they book.

Open Featured listing from your dashboard and choose Manage billing. Featured stays on until the end of the month you've paid for, and you won't be charged again.

The provider pays a monthly fee to show near the top. It isn't a review or a recommendation from Needsey. Check their ID and other badges, reviews and prices as you would for anyone else.

The provider passed an identity check run by our secure verification partner. ID photos go straight to that partner. Needsey never receives or stores your ID documents, only whether the check succeeded.

After a job is marked completed, both the client and the provider can rate and leave a comment about each other. Each side gets one review per booking, and reviews can't be edited or removed once posted.

For a behaviour concern (harassment, a scam attempt, a no-show), use "Report User" from the chat's overflow menu. It goes to an administrator for manual review, and no automatic action is taken against the account. For a payment or quality problem on a paid job, use "Something's not right?" in the chat while the payment is still held.

Go to Account Settings from your account menu. You can update your photo, phone number, bio, and (for providers) your availability and identity verification from there.

Yes. Use "Delete My Account" in the Danger Zone section of Settings, or email us and we'll do it for you. We delete your personal details: your name, email address, phone number, date of birth, location, photos and the files you uploaded (including documents for checks), and what you wrote in your jobs and listings. You can sign up again later with the same email as a new account. Bookings, messages, reviews and any disputes stay for the other person's history, showing "Deleted user" instead of your name, and payment and tax records are kept for 7 years because the law requires it. If you have a paid job that hasn't been paid out yet, you can delete your account once it has been.

See our full Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions, linked below and in the footer of every page.