Refund Policy

1. Scope

This policy applies to all paid StudyDeck plans and AI-credit top-ups purchased via Razorpay or direct bank / UPI transfer (and any gateway we enable later).

2. First-time 7-day refund

If you're not happy in the first 7 days after purchasing your first paid plan, write to hello@theconsultant.chat from the email associated with your account. We refund the full amount via the original payment method:

• Razorpay — typically lands in 5–10 business days.
• Bank / UPI transfer — refund initiated to the source account within 3 business days; bank-side delays are outside our control.

The 7-day window starts on the day the payment lands on our side (not the day you initiated the bank transfer).

3. Annual plan cancellation (8–30 days)

If you cancel an annual plan between days 8 and 30, you receive a pro-rated refund of the unused portion. Beyond day 30 there's no refund, but the plan stays active until its expiry date.

Pro-ration formula: refund = paid × (days_remaining / total_days), rounded down to the nearest minor unit.

4. Monthly plans

Monthly plans are not refundable beyond the 7-day first-time window, since the billing period is short. Plans don't auto-renew — if you don't purchase another term, access simply ends at the expiry date.

5. AI managed-pool credits

For the managed AI pool included with your plan:

• Credits already consumed by a successful generation are not refundable, regardless of plan tier.
• Unused credits from a top-up purchase (bought at /buy-credits) are refundable within 7 days of the top-up.
• Tier-included monthly credits reset at the start of each billing month and do not roll over or refund into cash. Purchased top-up credits persist until used.

6. Plan changes

• Upgrades start a fresh term at the new plan's price and take effect immediately. The remaining value of the old term is not refunded or prorated.
• Downgrades are free and scheduled: you keep the current plan until it expires and the lower plan applies from your next purchase. There is no refund of the price difference.

7. Chargebacks

Please write to us first — we're cheaper to talk to than a chargeback. Filing a chargeback automatically:

• Suspends the account.
• Cancels the subscription.
• Forfeits any goodwill credit.

Once the chargeback is resolved, the account can be re-enabled if the underlying issue is sorted.

8. Refunds we cannot offer

• Beyond the documented windows above.
• Where the account has been suspended for violation of our Acceptable Use clause.
• Where the bank-transfer payment cannot be matched against an account on our side after a reasonable investigation.
• For partial-month usage of a monthly plan.

9. Tax handling

For payments subject to Indian GST (INR payments), the refund is processed for the full pre-tax amount; the GST portion is handled per the standard credit-note flow on our GSTIN. The credit note will appear in your account.

For international (USD) payments, the refund is issued for the captured amount via the original payment method; any bank-side currency-conversion variance is outside our control.

10. How to request a refund

1. Email hello@theconsultant.chat from the address on your account.
2. Include the order reference (visible in your purchase confirmation email or under /admin/orgs/:id if you're an org admin).
3. State the reason briefly — helpful for us, not required for first-time 7-day refunds.

We confirm receipt within 1 business day and complete the refund within the timeframes above.

11. Changes to this policy

Material changes are announced in-app at least 30 days before they take effect. The version that was active when you purchased applies to that purchase.