Dispute Resolution Policy
Guard Select · Operated by Guard Select Limited · Version 2026-09-28-v1 · Last updated September 2026
1. Purpose and scope
This policy explains how Guard Select Limited (“Guard Select”, “we”) resolves disagreements between clients and guards about bookings made and paid through the Guard Select platform. It forms part of the Terms of Service, the Client Terms and the Guard Contractor Agreement. Where it conflicts with them, the more specific document applies. It covers attendance, hours, arrival and departure times, the standard of work, conduct on site, shift reports, cancellations, payments, refunds and card chargebacks. It does not cover allegations of crime, serious harm or a notifiable health and safety event. Those are reported to Police, WorkSafe or the Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority as set out in section 8. This policy never delays a safety report.
2. Our principles
• Pay by default. Work that was done gets paid on time. Money is held back only where there is evidence that the work did not happen. • Every dispute on its merits. No one is presumed at fault. Each dispute is decided on the evidence for that shift, not on a person’s history, rating or size as a customer. • Both sides are heard. No decision is made until each party has had a fair chance to give their side and see the other side’s evidence. • Talk before we rule. If written evidence does not settle it, we get everyone on a video call. • Proportionate. Small disagreements are settled quickly, and Guard Select would rather carry a small cost than let a minor matter escalate. • Timely. Every step has a time limit, and so does Guard Select. • Your legal rights stay yours. Nothing in this policy removes a right that New Zealand law gives you, including the right to go to the Disputes Tribunal or get independent legal advice at any time.
3. The automatic payout rule
If the guard checked in on site, the guard is paid. The only shift where Guard Select refunds the client instead of paying the guard is a direct no-show. No dispute, no delay. When a shift ends the guard files their shift report. The client then has 72 hours to confirm the shift or dispute it. If the client confirms, or does not respond within 72 hours, payment is released to the guard automatically. A dispute does not stop pay for work done. If the guard checked in on site through the app, Guard Select releases payment for the time the guard was on site, even while a dispute is open. The GPS check-in and check-out record is the starting point for hours worked. • If the client says the guard arrived late or left early and the GPS record agrees, the guard is paid for the time on site and the client is refunded the difference. • If the concern is about the standard of work or conduct, the guard is paid in full and the concern goes to Level 1 review. Any remedy for the client comes from Guard Select, not out of the guard’s pay, unless a review finds serious misconduct or dishonesty (section 6).
4. Direct no-shows and cancellations
A direct no-show means all of the following are true: the guard did not check in on site through the app; there is no other evidence the guard attended; the guard did not cancel through the app before the shift started; and the client did not prevent the guard from working, for example by refusing entry or cancelling on the day. Before a no-show is confirmed, the guard is notified and has 24 hours to show evidence that they attended or had a valid reason, such as an app or GPS fault, a site access problem or an emergency. If they do, the shift goes to Level 1 review. If they do not, the client is refunded in full, including the booking fee, within 5 working days. Cancellations follow the Client Terms. A cancellation more than 12 hours before the shift is refunded in full. Inside 12 hours it is a late cancellation: the client is not automatically refunded and the guard’s payout may still be due. A late cancellation is only a dispute if one side says the cancellation terms were applied wrongly.
5. How to raise a dispute
Time limits: • Clients: within 72 hours of the guard filing the shift report, using Confirm or dispute on the booking. • Guards: within 14 days of the payout date or decision, about unpaid or underpaid hours, a no-show finding, a cancellation outcome or a refund taken from a payout. • Anything else about a booking: within 14 days of the shift, through in-app support. A late dispute can still be accepted where there is a good reason for the delay. Nobody loses a legal right because they missed a platform time limit. Tell us what happened in your own words, what outcome you are asking for, and attach any evidence you have. Guard Select acknowledges every dispute within 1 working day. The other party is notified the same day and has 48 hours to respond with their side and evidence. Talking to each other first is encouraged but never required, and no one has to accept an offer they think is unfair. What evidence counts. Guard Select weighs all evidence but gives most weight to records made at the time: GPS check-in and check-out, geofence, SOS and incident logs; the shift report and its photos; in-app messages; site records such as sign-in sheets, CCTV stills or police event numbers; and statements from named witnesses. A person’s rating, number of past bookings or size as a customer is never evidence about what happened on a shift. While a dispute is open, only the amount actually in dispute is held, and never longer than the time limits in section 7 allow. Guard Select keeps both parties informed at every step.
6. Outcomes
The outcome follows the evidence. These are the starting points; a reviewer may depart from them only with written reasons. • Direct no-show with no valid reason: guard not paid; client refunded in full, including the booking fee. • No check-in, but the guard proves attendance or a valid reason: guard paid for the hours proven; client charged for those hours. • Client stopped the guard working (refused entry, sent home early or cancelled on the day): guard paid for booked hours, subject to the late cancellation terms. • Late arrival or early departure shown on GPS: guard paid for time on site; client refunded the difference. • Hours disagreement where GPS is unclear: guard paid for undisputed hours straight away, the rest after review. • Standard of work or a minor conduct concern: guard paid in full; Guard Select may give the client a goodwill credit where the concern is upheld. • Serious misconduct proven at Level 1 or above: the guard’s payout for that shift may be reduced or withheld, with reasons; the client receives a partial or full refund. • Dishonesty, such as a false check-in or false report: guard not paid for the shift and platform access restricted; client refunded in full. Guard Select pays for small disagreements. For a minor concern about a shift that was worked, Guard Select may give the client a goodwill credit or partial refund from its own funds, up to a limit Guard Select sets. The guard is still paid in full. Refunds go back to the card or account that paid within 5 working days of the decision. Banks may take a further 5 to 10 days to show it. Card chargebacks. Please raise any concern through this policy first. If a client disputes a charge with their bank instead, Guard Select responds with the platform evidence. Guard Select will not take back a guard’s payout for a shift the guard attended because of a chargeback, unless the guard was dishonest. Chargeback fees for a chargeback the client loses may be recovered from the client.
7. The three levels of escalation
Most disputes end at Level 1. A party who is not satisfied may ask for the next level within 5 working days of a decision. Guard Select may move a dispute straight to Level 2 when the written evidence conflicts. Level 1: Platform review • A Guard Select dispute reviewer reads both sides and the platform records, and may ask either party questions. • A written decision with reasons is issued within 3 working days of both sides’ evidence being received, or of the response window closing. • The decision says what money moves, when, and how to ask for Level 2. Level 2: Three-way video call • Guard Select arranges a video call with the guard and the client within 5 working days of the request, at a time that suits both. • A Guard Select facilitator runs the call. Each party speaks without interruption, then responds to the other, then questions are asked. • Each party may bring one support person, such as a whānau member, colleague or advocate. An interpreter is arranged on request. A party who cannot join by video may join by phone. • The call is recorded only if everyone agrees at the start. Otherwise the facilitator takes notes, which are shared with both parties within 1 working day for correction. • Any agreement reached is written up and confirmed by both parties. If there is no agreement, Guard Select issues a written decision within 2 working days of the call. A party who will not take part is decided on the evidence available. Level 3: Independent resolution • Independent mediation with an accredited mediator. Guard Select meets the mediator’s fee for disputes about a single booking. • The Disputes Tribunal, which hears claims up to $60,000. Either party may file there at any time, and Guard Select will take part and comply with any order. • The courts, the Employment Relations Authority, the Commerce Commission or any other body the law allows. Guard Select does not require arbitration and does not ask anyone to give up their right to go to the Disputes Tribunal or the courts. A decision closes a dispute on the platform; it does not stop anyone taking the matter further under New Zealand law.
8. Safeguards
Safety and crime come first. Anyone in danger should call 111. Alleged assault, theft, harassment or other crime should be reported to Police; a notifiable health and safety event is reported to WorkSafe; a complaint about a licence holder’s conduct can be made to the Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority. Guard Select supports these reports and may pause a payment dispute until they are resolved, but never discourages a report. Independent reviewer. No one reviews a dispute they are personally involved in. Where possible, Level 1 and Level 2 decisions on the same dispute are made by different people. Reviews and ratings. While a dispute is open, reviews on that booking are hidden. A review posted in retaliation for raising a dispute is removed. No retaliation. Raising a dispute in good faith never affects a guard’s access to work or score, or a client’s ability to book. A dispute that is knowingly false is a breach of the Terms of Service. Contractor status. This policy decides what money is owed under a booking. It is not a performance-management or disciplinary process. Guard Select restricts platform access only for safety, dishonesty, repeated proven no-shows or a licence problem, as set out in the Guard Contractor Agreement, and gives written reasons. Privacy. Evidence is used only to resolve the dispute, shared only with the parties and reviewers who need it, and handled under the Privacy Act 2020 and our Privacy Policy. You may ask to see and correct information we hold about you. Records. Every dispute keeps a written record of what was raised, the evidence, each decision and its reasons, and the money moved. Records are kept for 7 years. Tikanga and accessibility. You may use te reo Māori, bring whānau or a support person, and ask for an interpreter or other reasonable help to take part. Honest communication. Guard Select tells both parties the same facts, gives reasons for every decision, and never makes confidentiality a condition of being paid what you are owed.
9. Changes and contact
Guard Select may update this policy. We will notify users in the app before a change takes effect, and a dispute already open is decided under the version in force when it was raised. To raise or ask about a dispute, use the booking in the app, contact in-app support, or email admin@guardselect.co.nz.
Read with our Terms of Service.