When access returns after an interruption, the first question is not just “Can I trade again?” It is “What happened to the instruction I already sent?”
A working interface does not, by itself, establish whether an order was accepted, whether a cancellation took effect or whether a trade completed. Before considering another instruction, match the original request to timestamped records and separate what is confirmed from what remains unknown.
Scope: This guide concerns Polymarket’s international central limit order book, or CLOB. It is not guidance about US-app refunds, bonuses or account adjustments.
Separate four questions
1. Is the venue available for the action you want to take?
Check the official status information, including the affected service and any restrictions. “Recovering” and “all trading functions available” should not be treated as interchangeable.
The supplied official status history records September 2 international CLOB maintenance, a trading suspension and cancel-only recovery. That history illustrates why the recovery phase matters; it does not establish the venue’s current status or any individual order’s outcome.
2. What is the state of the original order?
Look for an order reference and the latest available record associated with it. Match the market, outcome, side, requested quantity and time. An unrelated order in the same market is not a substitute for identifying the original instruction.
Record the status exactly as shown rather than translating an ambiguous display into “failed” or “done.” If no matching record is available, retain unknown as a separate state.
3. What does the cancellation record actually confirm?
Distinguish your attempt to send a cancellation from a record confirming its result. Preserve any acknowledgement and its timestamp, but check what it says: do not silently upgrade a request acknowledgement into confirmation that nothing remains open.
A cancellation record also does not replace the need to check completed trades. Reconcile both questions separately.
4. Which trades are confirmed?
Match available trade records to the original order reference where possible. Note the confirmed quantity and price, along with timestamps and any associated charges shown in the records.
Do not use a changed balance or portfolio display as the only explanation of what happened. Start with the records for the instruction you are investigating.
Build a small reconciliation sheet
Save the evidence before deciding whether the original request is resolved. A simple table is enough:
| Record | What to capture | What it helps establish |
|---|---|---|
| Original instruction | Time and timezone, market, outcome, side, quantity, price instruction | What you intended to submit |
| Order reference | Identifier, if available, and matching order details | Which order you are reviewing |
| Latest order record | Exact displayed state and time checked | What the available record currently reports |
| Cancellation record | Request time, acknowledgement text, result if available | Whether a cancellation result is established |
| Confirmed trades | References, quantities, prices and timestamps | What is documented as executed |
| Venue status | Affected service, restrictions and update time | The operational context, not the account outcome |
| Unresolved fields | Missing references, conflicting quantities or unclear timestamps | What still needs clarification |
Use one timezone in your notes, or retain the timezone beside every timestamp. Distinguish the time an event reportedly occurred from the time you viewed its record.
Choose the branch supported by the records
The original order is still reported as open
Do not treat it as absent merely because access was interrupted. Identify any confirmed trades and the quantity still reported as outstanding before considering another instruction. A replacement based on the assumption that the first order disappeared could duplicate your intended exposure.
The records show completed trades and a resolved remainder
Account for the documented trades first. Then establish what happened to any unfilled quantity. Keep these conclusions separate: “this quantity traded” and “this remainder is no longer open” answer different questions.
Before proceeding, check that the quantities reconcile with the original request and that the records refer to the same order.
The state is unknown or contradictory
Do not label the request successful or failed simply to make the next decision easier.
For example, an absent order reference, an unclear cancellation acknowledgement or conflicting records belongs in the unknown branch. Note exactly what is missing, preserve the available evidence and seek clarification through official support for account-specific questions.
Avoid using a second instruction as a test of whether the first one worked. The reconciliation problem remains unresolved until the evidence supports a conclusion.
Hypothetical example: the page returns, but the answer does not
Suppose you attempt to cancel an order and lose access before seeing a result. Later, the interface loads again. You have a screenshot of the cancellation attempt, but no clear cancellation result and no matched trade history.
- Known: a cancellation was attempted at the recorded time; access has returned.
- Not established: whether the cancellation took effect, whether any quantity traded and whether any quantity remains open.
- Next check: locate the original order, its cancellation result and associated trade records. If those remain unavailable or inconsistent, take the references and timestamps to official support privately.
This is an educational example, not a report of an actual incident. The restored page is evidence of access—not a completed reconciliation.
A final check before another instruction
- Have I identified the original order rather than only the market?
- Have I separated attempted actions from confirmed results?
- Have I accounted for documented trades and any outstanding quantity?
- Do the timestamps and quantities agree?
- Have I marked missing evidence as unknown rather than assumed failure?
- Have I checked whether the relevant venue service has restrictions?
This guide focuses on resolving uncertainty after interrupted access. Partial-fill and limit-order education can help with the underlying order concepts, but neither replaces checking the records for the specific instruction.
TickBetter is PRE-ALPHA and currently in development. This guide is educational, not a live order-monitoring, cancellation or execution service.