Why we call it 'Report a problem' instead of 'File a dispute'
Most marketplaces have some version of this button. It's usually called "File a dispute," it's usually buried two clicks deep in a help menu, and it usually shows up next to a paragraph about arbitration that nobody reads. The wording does a job: it tells you, before you even tap it, that what comes next is going to be slow and adversarial. Most people who would have legitimately reported something just close the tab.
We renamed ours to "Report a problem." The internal database column is still called dispute — we kept the term as a developer-facing label so the codebase stays clean — but the customer never sees it. The button on a booking says Report a problem, and that's the only language we use in the product.
Why the wording matters
If you call a button "File a dispute," you're telling the user: this is a formal process, this is conflict, you'd better be sure. That filters out a lot of real complaints — not because they're not real, but because most people don't see themselves as the kind of person who files disputes. They see themselves as someone whose laundry didn't get folded the way they asked. That's a problem worth reporting. It might not be worth a dispute, depending on how you define one.
A marketplace that suppresses problem-reports has nothing to act on. We're at the stage where every signal matters, and the cost of missing one because of a scary button is much higher than the cost of reading a few reports that turn out to be misunderstandings. Lower the bar, hear more, fix more. That's the whole calculation.
What happens when you tap it
The flow is intentionally short. You're not opening a case; you're telling us what happened.
- Describe what happened. A short text field, a few prompts ("Did the work get done?", "Was the Welper on time?", "Anything else we should know?"). You can write a sentence or a paragraph; both are fine.
- Attach photos or files, if it helps. Some problems are easier to show than describe — a stain that didn't come out, a fixture installed crooked, a receipt for materials that didn't match the agreement. Drag the files in; we keep them attached to the report.
- Tell us what you'd like to happen. Three options, plain words: a refund (or partial refund), more communication with the Welper, or for Welpco to step in and decide. You can change your mind once we've replied — picking one now isn't a commitment.