1. TAPA, how does it work ? 

 

TAPA is a peer-to-peer rental platform that connects people who need objects with other people owning them. 

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If you are ‘owner’ of objects, you should : 

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1. Register and create a profile ;

2. Create a listing for your object(s) ;

3. Approve or decline incoming rental requests ;

4. Arrange a time and location to exchange your item with the ‘borrower’ ;

5. Get paid through our secure payment system (powered by Stripe).

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If you are a ‘borrower’ of objects, you should :

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1. Register and create a profile ;

2. Get your credentials verified by us ;

3. Find the objects you are looking for ;

4. Book the objects for the dates you need them ;

5. Pay the rental fee ;

6. Arrange a time and location  to collect your item with the ‘owner’ ;

7. Return the object to the ‘owner’ and leave a review.

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2. How to register to TAPA for the first time ? 

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If you don't have a TAPA account yet:

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1. Click on "Sign Up" in the upper right corner of the home page at https://tapa.sharetribe.com/. You can choose to sign up via Google, Facebook or your email address.

2. Provide us with your postal address, we need it to better protect your objects.

3. You will receive a confirmation email to verify your email address.  

4. Complete your profile by uploading a photo and by adding a short biography, a few lines to help other users get to know you better.

5. The TAPA team will verify and validate your profile.

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Congratulations, you are now officially a member of our community.  You can now list your own items or start renting items from other users.

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Good to keep in mind, owner of objects, for your profile to be complete, you will have to register your bank details in order to receive the money from the rentals of your objects. Double-check your mailbox to finalize this step. 

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Go to the homepage via the link below to get started:

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https://web.try-tapa.com/en/

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3. How to optimize my listing ? 

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To make life easier for you - and your objects - we've put together four tips to help you generate as many rentals as possible :

 

1. Take great pictures of your items: 

 

The better the pictures, the more likely you are to get rentals. Borrowers like to be able to see what they are booking, so the more pictures, the happier they are. Pictures that are blurry, dark, and that do not show all the features of the objects generate less interest from borrowers and cause them to choose another, better-presented object. 

 

To stack the odds in your favor, make sure you take pictures that would push you to rent your own objects. 

 

2. Set a fair rental price for your object: 

 

The decision on how much money you request to rent your item is entirely up to you. Generally speaking, lower prices often mean a higher overall rental income because it encourages longer and more frequent rentals. 

 

We therefore advise you to look at the rental prices of other similar objects on the platform and to choose a rental price at the bottom of the scale.

 

3. Describe your items accurately:

 

Choose a title and write a description that both correspond to what borrowers are truly looking for, and above all, that makes them want to rent ! Describe the features and condition of your item as accurately as possible. Mention all the information that will distinguish your object from the ones of your neighbors. 

 

Do not be afraid of providing many details. For example, don't forget to mention the capacity of your tent, the model and year of purchase of your camera, drone or gopro camera, the power scale of your steam cleaner or the exact measurements of your costume.  

 

You can also notify the borrowers if you want to get your object back cleaned (for a mountain bike for example) or if the object needs precise instructions in order to use it at best. 

 

In short, the goal here is to avoid a borrower contacting you with a question like: 'Hello, does your video projector come with its power plug? Silly question, isn't it? At the same time, if you don't mention it, there's no way to tell.  

 

4. Fancy up your bio:

 

Upload a photo and a short bio to your profile to help the rest of the community learn more about yourself. Owners with profile pictures and a short bio receive more rental requests than those without. 

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4. How do we protect your items ? 

 

•  User Verification and Suspicious Behavior Identification :

 

TAPA has implemented a user verification process as well as a mechanism for identifying suspicious behavior on the platform. 

 

Verification is the step where we confirm your identity. It's a process that allows us to maintain a safe environment for owners and borrowers on TAPA. In most cases, your rental application is only forwarded to owners once we have verified your identity. So this is an important step that we try to keep as simple as possible!

 

Specifically, the TAPA team reserves the right to verify the validity of the email address, phone number, postal address and bank details of each user intending to engage in rental activities on the platform (owners and borrowers). 

 

In addition, the TAPA team has put mechanisms in place  to identify suspicious behaviors covering all activities taking place on the platform. For example, we systematically ask users to complete their biography and upload a photo of themselves. We also monitor suspicious behavior such as frequent changes of mailing address, phone number and banking information. Searching for a large number of different product categories could also be suspicious as well as sending messages from an iPhone one minute after sending one via an Android device.

 

We know how sensible it could feel to rent your belongings to strangers. But you should know that millions of people around the world trust AIRBNB to rent out their most valuable assets: their homes. We are working hard to provide you with an insurance service to insure all the objects put up for rent by the owners. Be patient, it will be real quite soon. In the meantime, you have to rely on the goodwill of TAPA’s users. There are only people here who want to share items with each other. And that's cool.  

 

•  Responsibility of 'owners' :

 

In general, we invite all owners to be respectful, clear and prompt in their communications with borrowers.

 

We also invite you to: 

 

• Provide the item as described in the ad’s description; 

• Take pictures and videos of your item, showing how it works within 24 hours before and after the rental;

• Confirm pick-up / return arrangements with borrowers in advance.  

 

Please note that failure to comply with certain requirements may result in an official warning, temporary suspension from the platform or permanent account deletion.

 

•  Responsibility of ‘borrowers’ :

 

Firstly, we invite borrowers to take time-stamped photos/videos of the rented item before and after use. For items whose primary function cannot be demonstrated by a photo, you must take a time-stamped video showing the item in perfect working condition (for example, a video of a power washer in action). This evidence could be used in the unlikely event of a dispute between you and the 'owner'. 

 

In general, we kindly ask borrowers to care for the items as if they were your own. Take reasonable precautions to avoid damages, using protective packaging if possible. If you are using an unfamiliar item, do reasonable research beforehand to make sure you know how to use it safely or ask the owner for help. If you use an item and get it dirty, wash it before returning it to the owner. If an item has many separate parts, make sure you have them all together before you return it. It’s common sense, but always good to keep in mind. 

 

•  Reviews and Ratings mechanisms & permanent exclusion of users :

 

After each rental, users, both owners and borrowers, will be able to leave a review and a rating on the rented object or on the user with whom he/she has been in contact. For instance, borrowers can rate and praise the quality of the rented object and the friendliness of the owner. Inversely, owners will be able to praise the way in which the borrower has taken care of the rented object. This will build trust as the TAPA family grows and will also reward the most respectful users.  

 

In the case of repeated abuses and non-compliance with the Terms and Conditions, TAPA reserves the right to remove any users from the platform and terminate their rights to use the service without any particular reason and without being liable for compensation. 

 

 

•  Dispute Resolution Mechanism : 

 

Each user has the right to oppose a transaction if he or she feels infringed. For example, a borrower can oppose a transaction whenever the object he or she has rented does not comply with the description given in the ad by the owner. In this case, the rental money will be returned to the borrower after verification. Inversely, an owner can block a transaction if he or she gets his or her object back with clear damages or if it has not been cleaned. This mechanism is simple and supervised by the TAPA resolution team. 

 

If an owner and a borrower cannot agree on a rental dispute, TAPA has a specialized resolution team whose role is to mediate between the parties and review all available evidence to best resolve any given issue. 

 

Our team will work with both parties to gather time-stamped photo/video evidence, written statements, and supporting documentation to move toward an informed decision on liability.  Users must report a dispute within 24 hours after the end of the rental period. 

 

In the event that no common solution can be found, the disappointed party (owner or borrower) may use the evidence gathered during the dispute mechanism to file a claim against another user with the police. 

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In addition, the TAPA resolution team has created a 'rental contract' that is available to all owners. This contract can be used for the rental of more expensive objects and can be leveraged as evidence in case of a dispute. In this contract, the identity card number of the borrower is also requested. If the borrower refuses to sign this contract, the owner can simply refuse the transaction and therefore prevent any potential dispute beforehand. The owners of objects can ask for the provision of a deposit if they deem it necessary.  Here is the link towards TAPA's rental contract.

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We insist on the fact that users entering into a relationship for the rental of objects via the TAPA platform are de facto aware of the main concepts of the sharing economy and are ready to take part in it. Thus, it is possible that scratches or scuffs appear on a screwdriver or a karcher.  We believe that there is a difference between an object that suffers damages that can alter its proper functioning and an object that suffers minor scratches. 

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5. How much does it cost to rent on TAPA ? 

 

Renting out on TAPA is free for owners of objects. Yes, you heard me right, the TAPA service is FREE for owners. 

 

Indeed, Owners receive 100% of the money resulting from the rental of their object. No hidden fees. 

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Borrowers, on the other hand, will have to pay the object’s rental price to the owner in addition to a 15% TAPA transaction fee (15% of the total rental amount). 

 

However, TAPA will become a paying service also for owners once a critical mass of transactions is reached and once an insurance service is in place for all rentals taking place on the platform. 

 

Users will be notified of TAPA 's new fee policy at the appropriate time and in a transparent manner. 

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6.  How are payments made on TAPA?

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We have chosen Stripe as our payment partner. The flexibility and safety of the tool charmed us!

 

Here's how the payment process at TAPA works:

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As an "owner":

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1. You receive a rental request for your object ;

2. The borrower proceeds to the payment ;

3. The money is blocked on Stripe ;

4. Once the object has been given back, you must specify if everything went well :

   • If so, the money is transferred to the owner ;

   • If not, the money is blocked until the conflict is resolved. In case of problem, it is possible to proceed to a refund ;

   • In case of non-specification, the money will be paid to the owner within 7 days after the rental.

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As a "borrower":

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1. You want to rent an object which is available on TAPA ;

2. You proceed to the payment ;

3. Money is blocked on Stripe ;

4. Once the object has been given back, you must specify if everything went well :

   • If so, the money is transferred to the owner ;

   • If not, the money is blocked until the conflict is resolved. In case of problem, it is possible to proceed to a refund ;

   • In case of non-specification, the money will be paid to the owner within 7 days after the rental.

 

And all this, in complete safety!