Reimbursement Policy updated

We have published a new edition of the reimbursement policy. There are some changes but nothing too dramatic - mainly just moving, combining and clarifying a few things to better fit our present situation.

Before I invite you all to take a look at the new edition, posted in its entirety below, I would like bring attention to some of the principles and practicalities involved.

Shit happens and people find themselves filing reimbursement petitions from time to time. Customer Support is here to help and this we aspire to do to the utmost of our abilities and in accordance with the rules outlined in our reimbursement policy. 

The tl;dr version of our reimbursement policy would be, "If we can verify the cause to be a bug or server issue using server side logs, we'll reimburse." We approach each petition with the mindset of trying to find a reason to fulfill the player's claim, but if there is no verification to be had we will most likely have to say no. This is what causes the most friction and this is why we feel that our reimbursement policy needs to be well known to our players, as well as the reasoning behind it.

In EVE, as opposed to sharded universes of many other games, all players are located in a single game world and anything that one player does may potentially affect large numbers of other players. With a player driven economy and market system, all this adds complexity to our situation in regards to reimbursement, as reimbursing one player's losses may mean stepping on other players' toes directly or indirectly. Additionally, as an intervening force of many, we must be above making arbitrary decisions that could be construed as favoritism. Due to those complications, our policies may appear somewhat strict at times but they are geared towards maintaining a level of overall fairness for everyone concerned and protecting the delicate game balance.

Finally, we endeavor to be consistent in how we handle petitions and clear, relevant and enforceable policies play a key role in accomplishing this. Consistency can only be achieved by applying the same standards to everyone in a similar situation but often this is best done by not interfering at all. We try to keep the GM footprint in the biosphere as small as possible for a reason, while trying to fulfill as many legitimate claims as we can.

That's about all for now so without further ado, effective as of 11:00 GMT today, here is the new edition of:

EVE ONLINE REIMBURSEMENT POLICY

Players are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the following information and refer to this document before submitting any reimbursement requests. A loss of items, skill points or money within the game that may have been caused by unusual circumstances could be eligible for replacement if it falls within the scope of this policy.

As a rule, reimbursements will not be given unless a game master (GM) is able to verify that the loss occurred due to unnatural reasons through a review of the server logs. Due to the fact that logs and screenshots are easily altered, we unfortunately cannot accept player statements, chat logs or screenshots as definitive evidence for these cases.

Spamming the GM queue with petitions or e-mails requesting reimbursements or giving false information in an attempt to have an item replaced is not permitted and may result in disciplinary action being taken against your account. See Terms of Service.

Note that this policy is not all inclusive. Other situations outside this policy may be deemed eligible for reimbursement if circumstances warrant such a decision. These will be carefully reviewed on a case-by-case basis. No reimbursement requests are guaranteed to be fulfilled.

1. General Guidelines

The following list is a set of guidelines that are applicable to every reimbursement request. The sections below will provide additional notes or information that may apply to specific types of reimbursement requests.

1.  All reimbursement requests must be sent within a week (7 days) from when the loss occurred. After that time we will not provide reimbursement.

2.  Reimbursement can only be requested by the in-game owner of the items lost. Note that items in a corporate hangar or other corporate-owned entity are considered to be owned by the corporation and not a player. Reimbursement for corporate-owned items should be requested by the CEO or a Director.

3.  Reimbursement will only be granted if a loss is attributable to a bug or server error. 

a.  Any losses attributable to errors in the EVE client may not be eligible for reimbursement.

b.  Any losses attributable to problems with a player's system (i.e. computer, internet connection, etc.) or any system owned by a third party are not eligible for reimbursement.

4.  Losses caused by lag or non-server related disconnection will not be reimbursed.

5.  Any losses of any kind resulting from a large-scale player engagement are not covered by this reimbursement policy.

6.  Potential or theoretical gain is not eligible for reimbursement. Only assets lost when already in possession of the player are eligible for reimbursement.

7.  No guarantee of replacement is given or implied through the policies outlined here. A GM must investigate each case and refunds are given on a case-by-case basis.

2. Lost Ships

1.  The insurance payout received when a ship is lost will be subtracted from a player's wallet if the ship is reimbursed.

2.  Only items destroyed along with the ship are eligible for reimbursement.  Any items left in space (in wreck, containers, etc.) are not eligible for reimbursement.

3.  Ships destroyed by use of the "self destruct" feature or any action initiated by the owner (including but not limited to: recycling, trashing, etc.), whether intentionally or accidentally, cannot be reimbursed.

3. Missions

Missions may be offered by either NPC agents or as courier missions created by other players.

1.  Mission collateral may be required for some missions. This collateral may be refunded in cases where GM investigation shows the mission creation was incomplete or if the mission was impossible to complete within normal gameplay parameters available to the player.

2.  Reimbursements will not be granted in instances where:

a.  A player who has accepted a mission decides not to complete it, for whatever reason.

b.  A player is unable to complete a mission due to loss of ship under normal gameplay mechanics.

c.   A mission objective is destroyed or stolen by another player.

4. Recycled Items

Recycling is a feature offered at many stations. Players may use the recycling facilities to "melt down" unwanted items into their component minerals.

1.  Items recycled accidentally may be reimbursed on a case-by-case basis, but only if the minerals received have not been moved from the original recycling station and the original resulting "stacks" of minerals have been retained (thus not merged with other stacks of minerals or broken up into smaller stacks).

5. Trade Sessions

A trade session is the in-station exchange of items or money between two players using a trade window.

1.  Any trades mutually accepted by both parties are considered final.

2.  It is vital that items be carefully examined in the trade window before accepting a trade. This is particularly true in the case of blueprints and assembled ships.

3.  In the event that a server node drops during a trade and items in the trade window have disappeared, reimbursement may be allowed following an investigation by a GM.

Note: Direct trades should be avoided with unknown parties - we recommend using Contracts.

6. Deleted/Corrupt Characters

Unwanted characters may be deleted at the character selection screen by clicking the skull and crossbones icon. A verification window will appear asking if you are certain you wish to permanently delete this character. Players are urged to exercise caution when deleting a character and to verify that this is an action they wish to take. Corrupt characters may have a graphic flaw that was undetected during the creation process.

1.  Characters deleted either accidentally or intentionally may be restored on a case-by-case basis.  Restored characters are returned "as is".

7. Containers

Cargo containers can be secure containers anchored in space or containers kept in stations or ship cargo holds.

1.  Contents of lost cargo containers that were present in space may only be reimbursed if the container was an anchored secure container.

2.  Lost non-secure containers that were present in space cannot be reimbursed.

3.  Non-anchored containers will be destroyed during downtime if they are still present at that time. These cannot be reimbursed.

4.  Anchored containers will be destroyed if no items are added or removed for 30 days.  Those cannot be reimbursed.

8. Scamming

1.  Assets lost to a scam may only be reimbursed if the scammer used a verified bug to hide his intentions to scam. Generally in-game scams are allowed and considered a valid tactic as long as they are done via normal game mechanics.

2.  Players are cautioned to use their best judgment when entering into agreements with other players.  To avoid getting scammed, please read our article on scamming.

9. Hacking & Account Transfers

Hacking is any unauthorized access to another person's account, by illegal means or not. 

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and for any damage, harm, lost or deleted characters, etc. resulting from your disclosure, or allowing the disclosure, of any password, or from use by any person of your password.

1.  If your account is accessed by another player and assets are stolen or transferred to other players, we will investigate and items that we are able to track down will be moved back to the rightful owner.

2.  Any ISK stolen from the account may be transferred back to the rightful owner on a case-by-case basis.

3.  Any assets sold to another player will not be returned to the original owner; however, any ISK gained from the sale may be transferred to the original owner of the items instead on a case-by-case basis. 

4.  Reprocessed assets cannot be restored to prior status.

5.  If someone gained access to your account as a result of your use of a third party program or other violation of our EULA/TOS, all requests for reimbursement will be null and void.