The Bench...Sportscard Trading and Talk FAQ

Privacy Policy for www.thebenchtrading.com

If you require any more information or have any questions about our privacy policy, please feel free to contact us by email at webmaster@thebenchtrading.com.

At www.thebenchtrading.com, the privacy of our visitors is of extreme importance to us. This privacy policy document outlines the types of personal information is received and collected by www.thebenchtrading.com and how it is used.

Log Files
Like many other Web sites, www.thebenchtrading.com makes use of log files. The information inside the log files includes internet protocol ( IP ) addresses, type of browser, Internet Service Provider ( ISP ), date/time stamp, referring/exit pages, and number of clicks to analyze trends, administer the site, track user’s movement around the site, and gather demographic information. IP addresses, and other such information are not linked to any information that is personally identifiable.

Cookies and Web Beacons
www.thebenchtrading.com does use cookies to store information about visitors preferences, record user-specific information on which pages the user access or visit, customize Web page content based on visitors browser type or other information that the visitor sends via their browser.

DoubleClick DART Cookie

.:: Google, as a third party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on your site.
.:: Google's use of the DART cookie enables it to serve ads to your users based on their visit to your sites and other sites on the Internet.
.:: Users may opt out of the use of the DART cookie by visiting the Google ad and content network privacy policy at the following URL - http://www.google.com/privacy_ads.html

Some of our advertising partners may use cookies and web beacons on our site. Our advertising partners include .......
Google Adsense

These third-party ad servers or ad networks use technology to the advertisements and links that appear on www.thebenchtrading.com send directly to your browsers. They automatically receive your IP address when this occurs. Other technologies ( such as cookies, JavaScript, or Web Beacons ) may also be used by the third-party ad networks to measure the effectiveness of their advertisements and / or to personalize the advertising content that you see.

www.thebenchtrading.com has no access to or control over these cookies that are used by third-party advertisers.

You should consult the respective privacy policies of these third-party ad servers for more detailed information on their practices as well as for instructions about how to opt-out of certain practices. www.thebenchtrading.com's privacy policy does not apply to, and we cannot control the activities of, such other advertisers or web sites.

If you wish to disable cookies, you may do so through your individual browser options. More detailed information about cookie management with specific web browsers can be found at the browsers' respective websites.

Our Trade Manager is one of the best on any trading site. Using the Trade Manager correctly is how User reputation and ratings are determined. The following are specific guidelines as to what are acceptable trades and what are not.

1) A trade/sale is something where users exchange goods and/or money for other goods. Trading cards or items and/or money is an acceptable trade and allows users to gain a Bench point for that transaction.

Examples of Trades/Sales that warrant being posted as such and will be awarded a bench point upon completion:

• Trading Cards/Items for other cards/items
• Selling or Buying of cards with money(please see our policy on New members selling)
• basically something tangible needs to be exchanged

2) Free cards can be posted as such. If you are sending someone free cards, the Trade Manager can be used as a way to track and gain a users address for shipment, however Free cards do not gain you a Bench point.

Examples of Cards being sent for free that need to be posted as Free cards and not trades(No bench points are awarded for free cards):

• Sending someone a card via SASE
• Sending someone a card for a Thank You
• Sending someone a gift
• Sending someone a prize from a contest

3) Attempting to abuse the Trade Manager i.e. Posting trades where you send a card, and you receive a "Thank You" or are promised a "Post on a blog" is nonsense and DOES NOT qualify as a transaction. Trades must involve an exchange of goods/money of some sort. A Blog Comment, or Thank you, etc. are not goods or money.

ANY member caught violating our Trade Manager with things that fall under category 3) will be dealt with Swiftly and severely. We will not tolerate members inflating their bench points or Trader ratings this way.

Threads in the Auction Exposure forum are for the advertisement of auctions on eBay and other third party auction sites. All general Bench rules apply to this forum along with these specific guidelines.

A link to your auction(s) should appear in the first post of the thread. If you have more than one auction active at the same time, they should be combined into one thread. That one thread could be a "vendor thread" or a thread that points to more than one auction. A vendor thread is one that points to your eBay id rather than individual auctions. Vendor threads should be bumped instead of starting a new thread, unless it is more than a month old.

Auction Exposure threads should only be posted in the "Auction Exposure" Forums.

After creating a new thread, please allow 24 hours before bumping.

Replying to your own thread, when your own post is the last post in the thread, in order to have it appear at the top of the Forum, is considered bumping.

If you are caught abusing this policy you will be warned via PM and Email. If you choose to ignore the warning your account will be suspended 5 days.

For the sake of fairness, It is preferred you Bump as few threads as possible within a single Forum at one time, so as not to monopolize the top of any single Forum. That way, one trader does not have 3+ threads at the top of a particular Forum at any one time. We understand that this isn't always possible, but in consideration of your fellow traders it is a suggested guideline.(please see Consolidating Posts for more information)

Case busts are allowed with the permission of Champs96ws.

We have simple rules here at The Bench. Basically, don't act like a moron and you won't have any problems. We are all here to trade cards, make friends, and we're all fairly easy to get along with.

The following will not be tolerated here at The Bench.

1) Bad Traders
2) Abusive or Obscene Posts or Private Messages (Immediate Suspension)
3) Harassment via e-mail, Private Message or Post (Immediate Suspension)
4) Spamming on the boards. This includes affiliate or referral links to other web sites. We do not allow our members to post referral links to The Bench in forums which prohibit it.
5) Unsolicited offers through Private Messages. We do not allow our members to be pestered in this manner. A message would be considered unsolicited unless at least one of the following applies:

• You have previously made similar deals with the trader
• You are responding to a recent post by the trader. If you are offering to sell, the other trader must have explicitly stated in the post that they are willing to buy.
• The trader has a want list or trade list on their web site and you are asking for cards on their trade list, offering cards on their want list or both. Once again, if you are offering to sell, the other trader must have explicitly stated on their web site that they are willing to buy.(1st Offense = Warning. Continued offenses = Suspension)

6) Ignoring Moderators. If you ignore a Moderators request to contact them regarding trade issues, or site issues, you can be suspended until you comply.
7) Abusing the Trade Manager. The trade Manager is for posting Trades, Sales, or for posting Free Cards for the sake of getting a members address. Using the Trade Manager to artificially inflate your Bench Point totals or Trader Ratings, by posting fake trades or posting free cards as trades will not be tolerated.(please see Acceptable trades via the Trade Manager in The Bench Policies section of the FAQ, for definitions of what are acceptable trades to gain bench points.)

Please combine your posts whenever possible.

For example, if you are collecting two different sets, create one Thread for the two sets, not two Threads.

We ask for you to combine posts to keep the boards uncluttered. It also falls under the courtesy to other traders as far as the bumping rules are concerned(having to only bump one thread instead of multiple ones)

If the person running the contest provides the prizes and the contest is not a violation of the Code of Conduct, they do not need moderator approval to run a contest.

If member running the contest requires some type of entry fee, the member MUST get the approval of the moderator(s) before posting the contest. This also applies to Fantasy Leagues that involve entry fees of either cash or cards.

If you are running a contest and promise a prize to the winner, you are obligated to send the prize to the winner. However, you are not entitled to a Bench Point for sending the prize to the winner, Prizes from contest should be posted in the Trade Manager as "Send free cards"

Do not post the same thread in more than one forum at the same time.

For example, if you want to trade a Pujols auto, you may chose to post in Baseball for Trade/Sale or Baseball High Dollar for Trade/Sale, but not both.

We do not allow Grab Bag or Mystery boxes to be offered on The Bench.

Signatures may include links to any of the following:

• Personal webpages
• Legitimate card related resources
• Team web sites
• Player web sites
• The member's auctions
• Sports related blogs

Signatures may not include links to any of the following:

• Affiliate links where you get paid by the click
• Sites with objectionable material
• Forums
• Links to gambling or sportsbook sites

Members will be required to enter their full name and mailing address if they want to make trades on The Bench.

If you want to use The Bench as a Forum strictly to talk about sports and the Hobby, but do not want to have an address on file, you will be able to do so, but you will have NO access to our Trade Manager.

If you need to enter an address or update your address, go to: Trade Manager>Preferences.

More than one user name is prohibited.

Users caught attempting to sign up multiple accounts will be suspended or banned immediately. Users logging in, or sharing, another members account will result in both accounts being banned.

1) New members will be required to send first on all trades and assigned the New Member avatar. If two new members are trading with each other, there will be no such restriction.
2) New members are not allowed to sell until they reach 20 Bench points or are upgraded to regular members.
3) Once a new member has completed their end of at least 20 trades with at least 20 different members, their status will be reviewed. If they have completed their end of the trades without incidents including a 5.0 trader overall rating, they will be promoted to a regular member and be allowed to select their own avatar.

Raffles and fundraisers are not allowed on The Bench. The Bench fully supports people helping out charities. The Bench can not always 100% know if the charity or fundraiser is legit so we do not allow these types of posts. The Bench annual chairty drive is the only one allowed.

PayPal Gift funds is not an acceptable form of payment for purchases on The Bench. Any seller offering to take PayPal payments must be willing to absorb costs associated with that service. Normal protections of the TGB team will not be fully realized for anyone circumventing the rules and sellers insisting upon this may be subject to rules sanctions as well.

Any member of the site who is under 20 Bench Points is not allowed to sell until they reach the 20 point level. This rule applies to new members or established members.

IMPORTANT ! The Mod Team will not assist in a bad trade if an established member decides to ignore these rules

Spamming includes advertising for another trading site and/or including an unapproved affiliate or referral link in your posts or signature.

There are many trading sites on the Internet, and they all have their advantages and disadvantages. We ask that members of The Bench do not go to the other sites and advertise our site, and we ask that members of other sites do not come here to advertise their sites. It's impolite and continued spamming of the boards will result in the suspension of your account.

Information on what are and are not an acceptable Links, can be found in the Links in Signature section of the Bench Policies FAQ

Team box breaks are when someone sells all the cards from a particular team prior to opening the box. These are not allowed on The Bench.

When sending cards to another trader, a trader is responsible for the safe arrival of the cards they are sending. If the cards do not arrive safely, the sending trader shall be required to make amends. The one exception is that the sending trader may shift this responsibility to a third party by purchasing insurance.

Traders who are required to send first will have one of the following two avatars:



The avatar on the left indicates a trader is a new member. The avatar on the right indicates that the mod team has some concerns about the trader, but is willing to give them the opportunity to prove themselves as a trader.

When a trader who is new, trades with a trader who is required to send first by the mod team, the trader who is required to send first by the mod team must send first.

Traders will be required to send first if any of the following is true:

1) Their overall trader rating has fallen below 4.7.
2) They have been banned from another trade site for reasons related to trading.
3) They are currently suspended from another trading site for reasons related to trading.

Additionally, The Bench mod team may opt to require a trader send first if they have generated trading complaints or participated in suspicious activity.

Once a trader completes actions such that these issues are no longer issues, The Bench mod team will re-evaluate their status on The Bench.

IMPORTANT ! The Mod Team will not assist in a bad trade if an established member decides to ignore these rules

DO NOT trade or sell cards that you have incoming. Wait until you have those cards in hand before posting them in a new Trade/Sale. Too many things can go wrong and if the trade is posted and agreed to you WILL be held responsible for the card you posted.

In the event that you have to file a Help Desk Ticket due to a trade gone bad, or not receiving the cards you were promised, The Mod team will do everything it can to help you resolve the problem.

In the event of a trade gone bad we ask you to wait at least 3 weeks from the posting of the trade before filing a help desk ticket, mail can sometimes be slow.

If you need to file a help desk ticket for a trade gone bad, the help desk ticket MUST be filed no more than 8 weeks after the trade was posted. This may seem unfair but we feel that is an appropriate window for trade gone bad resolutions, any longer and it becomes extremely difficult to find tracking numbers, receipts, etc.

The Mod team will not assist on anything if one of the following is true:

• You made a deal on the site but did not post the trade in The Trade Manger
• You Purchased cards from a member who has less than 20 Bench Points
• You made a trade with a person who has the MSF (must send first) Avatar, but did not wait to receive their end first
• You purchased a card from a trader and paid via Paypal "Gift". Abusing Paypal's "gift" option leaves you no recourse to reclaim your money in the event that you do not receive the item(s) you paid for. If you pay with Paypal "Gift" you are doing so at your own risk