Trust & safety

Trust is the product.

Most marketplaces compete on price and inventory. We compete on trust - because in someone's home, with their kids, around their stuff, nothing else matters as much.

Trust & safety

The six guarantees that don't bend.

These six promises sit at the foundation of every booking. They're the bar we set for ourselves, and the contract we offer to every resident, Neighbour, and property partner.

ID & background checked

Every Neighbour goes through ID verification, a background check, and reference checks before accepting their first request. Specialised trades include verified credentials.

Protected payments

Funds are held securely until the job is done, and released to the Neighbour once both parties confirm completion — protecting both parties in a fair, secure transaction.

Insured local work

All Neighbours carry liability insurance, giving you complete peace of mind for every job or lesson.

In-app chat only

No phone numbers exchanged, no emails shared. Communication stays in the app so it can be referenced if anything goes wrong.

24-hour dispute window

You have a full day after the work is marked complete to raise an issue. Your payment stays on hold while a dispute is open.

Reviews from real Neighbours

Reviews come from verified, completed bookings, never anonymous. A Neighbour's reputation is built on real work, not gamed.

The checks we run

Five checks. Every Neighbour. Every time.

A Neighbour can't take a single booking until every check is cleared. We don't run "lite" tiers, we don't skip checks for friends, and we don't grant exceptions for busy Neighbours. The bar is the bar.

01

Government ID verification

Photo ID matched against a live selfie via an independent identity service. No anonymous Neighbours, ever.

SLA Same day
02

Criminal background check

Provincial criminal record check on every Neighbour before they can take a booking. Re-run annually for active Neighbours.

SLA 24–72 hrs
03

Reference checks

Two professional references called and logged. Skill verticals require subject-matter references (e.g., a music teacher provides a former student or studio).

SLA 2–5 days
04

Credential & skill checks

Trades verify licences (electrical, plumbing, gas). Neighbours who teach complete a brief sample session. Childcare adds a Vulnerable Sector Check.

SLA 3–7 days
05

General liability insurance

General liability coverage on file for every active Neighbour, at or above our published minimum. Lapses auto-suspend the profile.

SLA Ongoing
How your payment is protected

Where the money sits, every step.

The single most important diagram on the site. Money never moves straight from the resident to the Neighbour until both sides confirm - or the system can safely release it on its own.

T+0
Booking confirmed
Held safely by Swifli
T+work
Neighbour completes the job
Held safely by Swifli
T+complete
Resident confirms
Released to the Neighbour
T+24hr
No confirmation? Auto-release
Released - Neighbours protected from ghost residents
T+flag
Resident raises issue
Held - trust team reviews within 48hrs
Dispute resolution

A real ladder, not a contact form.

When something goes wrong, and at scale, something always does, Swifli has a defined escalation path with real timelines. No support ticket black holes.

0 - Auto-resolution Immediate

For common issues (Neighbour no-show within 15 min grace, resident never opens door): the system auto-refunds or auto-pays based on what the app recorded.

1 - Trust team review < 48 hours

Human review of message logs, photos, timestamps, and any uploaded evidence. Most disputes are decided here.

2 - Mediated conversation 2–5 days

For ambiguous cases, both parties are invited to a structured back-and-forth moderated by Trust. Goal: agreement on partial release.

3 - Final adjudication < 10 days

If mediation doesn't resolve, Swifli's Trust lead makes a final call documented in writing. Funds release. Account standing updated for both sides.

Privacy by design

Your data, where it should be.

Swifli is PIPEDA-aligned and built around three privacy commitments:

  • Neighbours never see your full address until you confirm the booking. Before that, they only see the neighbourhood.
  • Your phone number is masked through Swifli for the duration of any booking. Comms happen in-app.
  • Sensitive data is encrypted at rest and in transit. ID documents are stored separately from operational data with stricter access controls.

Something you need to flag?

Trust issues, safety concerns, or anything that doesn't feel right - we're staffed to respond within 24 hours.