Staying Safe on Chealu
Chealu connects you with people near you. That is the point of it — and it is also why a few habits are worth having. Nothing here is complicated; most of it is what you would do anyway.
Meeting someone
Meet in a public place in daylight where you can. For a bulky item, a driveway or building entrance is fine — you do not need to invite someone into your home.
Bring someone with you if you can, and tell a friend where you are going and when you expect to be back.
Trust your instinct. If something feels wrong, you can leave. You owe a stranger nothing.
Paying and getting paid
Chealu never handles payment. There is no escrow, no protected checkout, no Chealu wallet — money moves directly between you and the other person, and we cannot see it, hold it, or get it back.
Anyone who claims otherwise is not telling you the truth. That includes messages that mention "Chealu buyer protection" or ask you to pay "through Chealu".
Inspect an item before you pay for it. Agree the price and what is included before any money changes hands.
Spotting a scam
Be wary of anyone who will not meet, wants to move the conversation off Chealu immediately, or has a story about why they cannot show you the item.
Be especially careful with overpayment ("I will send extra, refund me the difference"), courier or shipping arrangements you did not ask for, and requests for a deposit to "hold" something.
Never share a verification code, password, or bank details. No genuine buyer, seller, or member of Chealu staff will ever ask for them.
Your address and your privacy
An individual's listing never shows an exact address. The map shows an approximate area of roughly 300 metres, and that is deliberate — it is enough to say where you roughly are without saying where you live. Only a business listing can show a precise address, and only when the business chooses to.
Share your address only with someone you have decided to deal with, and only when you need to.
Keep the conversation on Chealu until you are comfortable. It gives you a record.
Reporting a problem
If a listing or a person is abusive, fraudulent, or selling something that should not be here, report it. Reports go to the Chealu team, not to the person you are reporting.
You can also block a conversation at any time, which stops further messages on that thread in both directions.
If you believe you are in danger or a crime has taken place, contact your local emergency services first. Chealu is not an emergency service.