Gumtree launches verified badges to boost marketplace trust

Gumtree has introduced business seller verification, giving traders a visible badge after completing a series of identity and company checks.

The feature adds a new layer of validation for businesses using the marketplace and builds on a wider set of safety changes across listings, messaging and account access.

Verified sellers receive an on-profile marker that signals their status to users browsing ads. Sole traders display an "Identity Verified" badge, while limited companies display a "Business Verified" badge.

Verification Checks

The process includes photo-to-ID verification, company registration lookups, adverse media screening and address validation. Electoral roll matching is also used as part of the authenticity checks.

The feature is available first to Pro Accounts, with plans to extend it to Business Services users. Gumtree expects adoption to build in its Services categories before expanding it to other business sellers.

Gumtree says the aim is to make identity signals easier to spot early in a transaction. Marketplaces have increased their focus on trust measures in recent years as fraud tactics have evolved across platforms and consumers have come to rely more on peer reviews and profile signals.

Joseph Rindsland, Head of Digital Trust & Safety at Gumtree, said the badge system was designed to make it clearer who is behind a listing.

"Trust is the foundation of every great marketplace," Rindsland said. "Business Seller Verification gives customers greater confidence in who they're dealing with by making key identity signals clearer and easier to spot, while giving verified businesses the visibility and credibility they deserve."

Reviews And Ratings

The verification launch sits alongside other changes aimed at increasing transparency for users choosing service providers. Gumtree has started importing Google Business reviews for Services profiles, which appear directly on provider pages to help users compare options.

Gumtree also continues to use its own buyer and seller review system for consumer-to-consumer trading. Users submitted more than one million reviews during 2025, and sellers averaged a 4.5 rating over the same period.

Users can leave feedback at different points in a transaction, including in the message centre and after delivery. This reflects a wider industry trend to capture trust signals earlier than a completed sale, particularly in categories where buyers and sellers may arrange in-person meetings or agree work through messaging.

Security Changes

Gumtree is preparing additional account security measures, including phone verification for new and existing accounts before the summer. It also plans to add profile photo support and improve tracking of login events.

In parallel, Gumtree has renewed its partnership with ThreatMetrix, which provides device fingerprinting tools to assess activity across login, account creation and posting. The technology will be used to detect and prevent fraud.

Device fingerprinting has become common across online platforms as fraudsters use multiple accounts, disposable phone numbers and automation to scale scams. Many companies combine it with stronger identity checks, tighter account-creation controls and clearer user education in messaging flows.

For Gumtree, which has operated in the UK since 2000, the update is part of an effort to sustain user confidence in high-volume categories such as services and second-hand goods. Gumtree says it hosts more than 1.8 million live ads at any one time and attracts more than 10 million visits per month.

The business verification feature will expand beyond its initial focus on Services categories as it rolls out to a wider group of business sellers.