This is actually why Escrow.com is not actually a real Escrow service when it comes to domains .. unless you pay DOUBLE their fees to get concierge service.
That said, I wouldn't be too worried as I'm pretty sure with the industry connections Escrow.com has, most issues would
eventually be sorted out. But I'll let
@Escrow.com Support /
@Escrow.com give their official answer, as I've been curious about that myself, and very curious as to how they can market their non-concierge service as an "Escrow Service", when in fact the assets are not secured by them in any way.
What's more, with their concierge service they charge
6.5% PLUS payment processing fees of
3.05% PLUS even more extra fees to send you your money (
$25 if you aren't in the USA). So on a $1000 domain they are actually collecting over
12% in fees. All that to not even get an automated instant process like you would with several registrars.
I'm pretty sure at
@epik (
@Epik.com) it's 9% AND the transaction is "instant" if your domain is registered there. In some situations it's even less (although I'm not sure of the exacts .. please confirm
@Rob Monster /
@Sufyan Alani). At
@DAN.COM I think it's 5% although admittedly I'm not sure how smooth/instant their process is (
@LaszloSchenk please confirm).
@Escrow.com has made the argument that registrars are not legal "escrow" services. In cases where registrars are slow to transfer/pay then there is a tiny chance they could go bankrupt in that window of time. But with some registrars (like Epik for example), the reality is that with instant transactions, it doesn't matter, as they would need to go bankrupt within the fraction of a second it takes for them to make the money<>domain switch between your and the buyer's accounts.
That said ..
where Escrow.com theoretically does deliver extra legal protection is when you do a payment plan. The real benefit of "Escrow", is that the assets (both money and domain) are protected and separate from the assets of the escrow service (Escrow.com in this case). So if Escrow.com were to go bankrupt in the middle of your transaction, your assets would still legally belong to you (would likely still be a mess to figure out how to conclude the payment plan, but at least the domain wouldn't be liquidated to Escrow.com debtees/creditors).
Whereas in theory if you have a payment plan with a non-escrow company (most if not all registrars), then depending on their legal/accounting structure, your domain could be seized by creditors if the registrar goes bankrupt (whether or not you do or don't have a legal option at that point would really be beyond what I could say either way for sure and could even be different depending on your jurisdiction).
While it sounds like I'm dumping on Escrow.com, they definitely can be an asset to you as a domainer. For most domainers who only do inbound sales, it's usually the buyer who pays the fees, so the fact that Escrow.com's fees are truly excessive in some cases actually doesn't actually affect you. I've personally used Escrow.com for some of my sales and I'm happy they are there as one of many tools and alternatives available to us in order to help us close sales.
Also, the fact that they secure the money for you isn't nothing. While it is not in any way a real escrow service because they don't also simultaneously secure the domain (unless you pay double fees), it still is a significant layer of protection. Also, while their service is vastly slower than "instant" or "fast" transfers, they do offer very competent and friendly service in a timely manner.
Again, while my comments sound negative because their regular service actually is not a real escrow service, I'll also point out that I do not recall of hearing of a single instance where the seller has not ended up with the money owed to them, or has had the domain returned to them.
Oddly enough their strongest asset has nothing to do with their actual service, but more to do with their "Escrow.com" brand and the perceived protection. So the biggest irony of all is that Escrow.com is probably the best example you could ever give of how a domain name brings authority .. their domain actually allows them to pretend to be an escrow service when in fact the main service they offer is not a true two-way escrow! lol
All that said .. again .. there are potential legal matters neither registrars nor any escrow can protect you from. Namely if the assets within the transaction were previously stolen. For example, if you sold a domain that you acquired legally, but the previous owner had stolen, then you could still be sued by the person who bought it from you. Escrow services can't protect you from that.
Escrow.com has accounts at most registrars. It really is as simple as a push to their account at the current registrar (after they secured the funds. Once you done done your push to Escrow.com's concierge service, be sure to reach out to them for your payment. In one of my previous transactions with "concierge service" I was incorrectly told I need to wait for the buyer to secure the domain. But once I pointed out that 100% of my responsibilities had been concluded in the transaction, they quickly released the funds to me (the only reason I went with concierge service in the first place).