How it works

Two ways to hire. One rule: you approve before money moves.

Small jobs are fixed-price and instant to book. Bigger jobs get compared quotes and milestone payments. Both run through SafeHold.

Fixed-price services

Instant Book — small jobs, set prices

Defined scope and a set price, for jobs like a heat pump service or a tap replacement.

  1. Pick a service

    Choose from the fixed-price menu — the scope and price are set before you book.

  2. Pick a time

    Choose a slot that works. A licence-checked pro takes the booking.

  3. Pay into SafeHold

    Your payment is held — the tradie sees it's funded but can't touch it yet.

  4. Approve and release

    The job's done, you confirm it, and the payment is released in one step.

Quoted work

Quoted jobs — bespoke work, milestone payments

For renovations, rewires, cylinder swaps and anything that needs a proper quote.

  1. Post your job

    Describe the work, add photos, set your timing. Free to post — and tradies never pay to see it.

  2. Compare verified quotes

    Licence-checked pros quote with a milestone plan: what gets done, in what stages, for how much.

  3. Fund milestone by milestone

    Accept a quote and fund only the first milestone. Each stage is held, then released when you approve it.

  4. Changes in writing

    Scope changes become written change orders you approve before the work continues — no surprise invoices.

Milestones keep both sides safe: you never pay for work that hasn't happened, and your tradie knows each funded stage is real. If you take no action for 7 days after a completion request — and no dispute is open — the milestone releases automatically, with reminders before it does.

Every payment on Serproz is held in SafeHold until you approve the work.

Read the full trust & verification explainer →

FAQ

Common questions

When is my money actually charged?
Per milestone, when that milestone starts — never the whole job upfront. The funds are held and released to the tradie only after you approve the work for that milestone.
Do tradies pay to see my job?
No. There are no lead fees and no subscriptions. Tradies pay a success fee only when a job completes, so quoting on your job costs them nothing.
Who is allowed to quote?
Pros whose licence has been checked against the official register for their trade (PGDB for plumbers and gasfitters, EWRB for electrical workers) and whose business is matched to an NZBN record.
What happens if I'm not happy with the work?
Don't approve the milestone. You can open a dispute, which freezes the funds for that milestone only while our published 4-stage process runs — starting with direct resolution and escalating to evidence-based mediation.
What does it cost?
Posting a job is free. Consumers pay a small payment-protection fee per milestone (capped), and tradies pay a success fee only on completed jobs. The full schedule is on the Pricing page.