Wager policy & payouts
1. Eligibility
Wager mode is intended for adults who are legally permitted to participate in the paid contest where they are located and where the hunt is conducted. EyesPie may require identity, age, residency, geolocation, tax, payment, or other verification and may disable wager mode where necessary for law, risk, or payment-provider requirements.
2. Entry payments
The player is charged the buy-in displayed at checkout unless checkout expressly identifies another charge. The EyesPie platform fee is not added on top of that buy-in. Stripe Checkout may show only the hunt entry itself. A client-side success message is not authoritative until EyesPie verifies the payment server-side.
3. EyesPie deductions
EyesPie applies a 9% base platform fee to the qualifying gross entry pool when calculating the available prize amounts. In the default Smart split only, EyesPie also deducts an amount equal to 9% of one buy-in from first place’s otherwise-calculated award so third place can remain a full one-buy-in prize. Custom fixed-dollar and percentage prize settings do not inherit that Smart-only first-place adjustment.
Payment processors can impose separate processing, transfer, dispute, currency, or network costs on EyesPie. Those provider costs are distinct from the prize formula unless a payment flow expressly says otherwise.
4. Prize pool
The gross entry pool is the total qualifying paid entries. Final winner awards are the gross entry pool less the normal 9% base platform fee, the Smart-only first-place adjustment when applicable, and any payment reversals, refunds, required deductions, or other applicable adjustments.
Qualifying pool amounts can change if a payment is refunded, reversed, disputed, duplicated, fraudulent, unauthorized, or otherwise becomes ineligible.
5. Default smart split
The default Smart split requires at least four qualifying paid players. EyesPie first reserves one full buy-in for each of first, second, and third place. The remaining base Smart pool is split 80% to first place and 20% to second place. After that regular Smart award is calculated, EyesPie subtracts an amount equal to 9% of one buy-in from first place. Third place remains one full buy-in and second place is not changed by this additional adjustment.
6. Example
Seven qualifying players each pay a $50 buy-in:
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| 7 players × $50 | $350.00 collected |
| 9% base EyesPie fee | −$31.50 |
| Base Smart pool | $318.50 |
| Reserve $50 for 1st + 2nd + 3rd | −$150.00 |
| Bonus pool | $168.50 |
| Regular first prize: $50 + 80% of bonus | $184.80 |
| Second prize: $50 + 20% of bonus | $83.70 |
| Third-place original-payment prize | $50.00 |
| Smart first-place adjustment: 9% of $50 | −$4.50 |
| Final first prize | $180.30 |
| Final second prize | $83.70 |
| Final third prize | $50.00 |
| Total final winner awards | $314.00 |
Third place requires no Stripe Connect setup in this example because its $50 prize can be refunded against that player’s original $50 entry payment. The $4.50 Smart adjustment comes out of first place’s otherwise-calculated $184.80 award, making first place $180.30.
7. Custom prize settings
Before the hunt starts, the Host may choose supported percentage or fixed-dollar prize settings. EyesPie rejects configurations that exceed the available prize pool. If a valid custom configuration leaves money unallocated, the current product rolls that remainder into first place rather than silently stranding prize money. Prize settings lock when the hunt starts.
For payout routing, a winner whose frozen prize is no greater than that player’s qualifying entry amount may be paid through an original-payment refund. A winner whose frozen prize exceeds the amount that player paid uses Stripe Connect.
8. Scoring and live previews
Challenge points, Extra Points spending, and peer voting all affect official standings. Each completed peer vote currently awards 3 points to the voter and 3 points to the owner of the selected photo. Prize positions shown before the hunt ends are previews and can move with scores, accepted or rejected evidence, payment eligibility, and ties.
9. Final standings and ties
Final winner records use the standings locked by the authorized end-of-hunt process and the qualifying paid-player pool. When players tie on the implemented competitive criteria across prize positions, EyesPie may combine the affected prize amounts and divide them evenly among the tied players, subject to cent rounding. The final amount assigned to each tied winner determines whether that individual prize uses an original-payment refund or Stripe Connect.
10. Refunds, disputes, and reversals
Entries are not automatically refundable because a player changes plans, plays less than expected, loses, or disagrees with a good-faith evidence decision. EyesPie may issue or facilitate refunds for duplicate or erroneous charges, eligible cancellations, material service failures, legally required refunds, or other circumstances reasonably requiring correction.
An original-payment prize refund is different from an entry cancellation: it is a payout rail for an already-finalized prize and does not by itself make that winner’s original entry ineligible. Other refunds, disputes, chargebacks, or reversals can remove an affected entry from the qualifying pool and may pause remaining payouts.
11. Automatic winner payouts
After final scores and prize amounts lock, EyesPie selects the payout rail for each winner. If the prize is no greater than that winner’s qualifying entry amount, EyesPie can submit the prize as a full or partial refund to the same original payment method used to enter, with no Stripe Connect onboarding required. Card issuer and bank posting times can still delay when that credit becomes visible.
If the prize is greater than the winner’s qualifying entry amount, the winner must complete Stripe Connect payout onboarding unless an already-ready EyesPie Connect account is on file. Once Stripe reports that account ready, EyesPie sends the frozen prize automatically. Pending verification, unavailable funds, payment review, or provider restrictions can delay settlement.
12. Taxes
Participants and prize recipients are responsible for their own tax obligations. EyesPie or a payment provider may collect tax information, withhold amounts, issue forms, or report payments when required by law.
13. Fraud and integrity
Do not manipulate scores, duplicate submissions, falsify identity, coordinate fake accounts, tamper with payment states, exploit vulnerabilities, or attempt to obtain prizes through deception. EyesPie may preserve records, invalidate ineligible points or payments, pause payouts, or restrict accounts when reasonably necessary to protect contest integrity.
14. Technical and provider issues
EyesPie depends on Firebase, Stripe, networks, browsers, devices, and financial institutions. An outage or provider review can delay payment confirmation or payout without changing the underlying scoring rules. EyesPie may retry safe pending payout operations and may pause finalization where payment integrity is uncertain.
15. Changes
EyesPie may update this policy as the product, law, payment relationships, or business model changes. Material payment-term changes may require renewed acceptance before a future wager-mode payment.
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