Refund and Cancellation Policy

Supplier: THE A EU OÜ, a private limited company registered in Estonia in the Estonian Commercial Register under registry code 16643088

Registered office: Tuuliku tee 4c, 10621 Tallinn, Estonia

Registration date: 2 January 2023

VAT identification number: EE102578456

Management Board member and authorised representative: Anton Homza

Company website (THE A EU OÜ): https://www.theamarketingagency.com/

Company email (THE A EU OÜ): [email protected] | [email protected]

Service / trading name: Aspthea

Service website (Aspthea): aspthea.com

Service email (Aspthea), for all matters, including contractual notices, cancellations, billing, support and data protection requests: [email protected]

WhatsApp (messages and calls): +44 7389 769266

Summary

Topic	In short
Initial Payment (website build)	Non-refundable once work has commenced
Balance (on launch)	Non-refundable once the website is launched
Care Plan subscription (from £29 to £59 per month for a client established in the United Kingdom, from €29 to €59 for any other client, as stated in your Order Form)	Paid by card subscription through Stripe, or by monthly invoice if your Order Form says so. Cancel any time, effective at the end of the current Billing Period. The first 14 days from launch are free, or longer if your Order Form says so
How refunds are paid	The way you paid: by bank transfer for an invoice, to your card through Stripe for a card payment
When the Care Plan ends	The website stays online for 30 days; you get the website files and up to two hours of help to move it; your domain stays yours
Who this applies to	Business customers only

1. Who this policy applies to

1.1 We supply website design, development and related services under this Policy only to clients acting for the purposes of a trade, business, craft or profession. The person or organisation named in the signed Order Form is the client (“you”); THE A EU OÜ is the supplier (“we”, “us”). The Order Form must correctly identify the actual contracting party.

1.2 The statutory cooling-off rights applicable to a qualifying consumer under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, or under other consumer protection law that applies, are not offered as a contractual cancellation right to a genuine business client. Merely describing an individual as a business client does not remove a mandatory consumer right if that individual is in fact acting as a consumer. We do not contract with consumers: if a purchaser is a consumer, we will not proceed with the Order.

1.3 This Policy forms part of our Website Design & Development Terms and Conditions (“Terms”). It must be read with the signed Order Form and, if selected, the Care Plan Subscription Terms. An expressly agreed provision of the Order Form takes priority; the Terms otherwise take priority if the documents conflict. This Policy explains when an agreed payment is retained or returned and does not remove a remedy for our material breach or a right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

1.4 “Initial Payment”, “Balance”, “build price”, “Launch”, “Specification” and “Business Day” have the meanings given in the Terms and Order Form. In particular, Launch occurs when the agreed production website first becomes publicly accessible at its agreed URL. A Business Day excludes public holidays in the country whose law governs the contract under clause 12.7 of the Terms.

1.5 Where this Policy provides for a refund, we pay it by the method used for the original payment: by bank transfer to the account from which an invoice was paid, or, for a card payment made through Stripe, to that card through Stripe. The build price is normally paid by invoice and bank transfer, and the Care Plan by card subscription through Stripe, as recorded in the signed Order Form. We will not pay a refund to another person or account unless you ask in writing and we can verify the request.

2. The Initial Payment

2.1 The Initial Payment is the amount stated in your Order Form, due after both parties sign the Order Form and before substantive project work begins. It is part of, and credited against, the agreed total build price. It supports the work and commitments associated with the project, which may include discovery, design, build preparation and agreed third-party setup; it is not an additional fee on top of the build price.

2.2 We begin substantive work after receiving the cleared Initial Payment. In accordance with clause 6.3 of the Terms, we will send written confirmation within one Business Day after receiving cleared funds, identifying work actually begun and any non-cancellable third-party purchase made on your behalf, or, if work has not yet begun, confirming receipt and the date on which it will begin. Sending a confirmation without substantive work having begun does not by itself establish that work has commenced.

2.3 Once substantive work has begun and we have sent the written confirmation described in clause 2.2, the Initial Payment is non-refundable if you cancel the build for your convenience before Launch. It remains credited against the build price and is not charged a second time. This rule does not apply as an exclusion of a remedy for our material breach or of a right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

2.4 If we receive your cancellation before substantive work has begun and before the written commencement confirmation has been sent, we will return the Initial Payment less any documented, non-cancellable third-party cost already incurred on your behalf under the agreed Specification, such as a domain registration. We will identify the provider, amount and reason that the cost cannot be recovered. We will not deduct a cost already reimbursed, refundable by the provider or incurred without a reasonable basis in the agreed work. We will issue the remaining refund promptly, and no later than ten Business Days after receiving the cancellation.

2.5 If a commencement confirmation was sent after you dispatched an effective cancellation notice, that later confirmation does not turn the cancelled order into commenced work. We will assess the notice and the work actually undertaken under the notice provisions in the Terms and give you a written account of the position.

2.6 A free Preview prepared before the Order Form is signed, as described in clause 2.8 of the Terms, is not substantive work. No payment is due for it, and it does not make any part of the Initial Payment non-refundable.

3. The balance and the completed website

3.1 The Balance stated in the Order Form falls due on Launch, when the agreed production website first becomes publicly accessible at its agreed URL. The later issue of an invoice, signing of the Handover Certificate or start of the Care Plan does not move that due date. The Initial Payment already received is credited against the total build price.

3.2 After Launch, there is no refund of the build price merely because you no longer want the bespoke website, change your business plans or would prefer another provider. Acceptance and the payment position remain subject to the defect and breach remedies in the Terms. A refund is not automatically available for a change of mind, and a statement that a fee is non-refundable does not excuse our failure to supply the agreed work.

3.3 If the launched website materially fails to meet the Specification, tell us what is wrong. Under clause 5.3 of the Terms, for 14 days after Launch we will investigate a reproducible defect and correct a defect caused by our work without an additional charge within a reasonable period appropriate to its severity. If correction is ineffective, cannot reasonably be made, or another remedy is available because of our material breach or mandatory law, this Policy does not prevent an appropriate price adjustment, refund, damages or termination where legally available. Signing a Handover Certificate does not waive a notified defect or such a remedy.

3.4 Provided we have supplied the work in accordance with the contract, we do not give a convenience refund merely because:

• you have changed your mind about wanting a website;
• your business has closed, been sold or changed direction;
• the website has not produced the number of enquiries, bookings or customers you hoped for;
• you have decided to use a different provider, platform or booking system; or
• you did not provide the content, access or approvals reasonably requested for the agreed work.

3.5 The treatment of the build fee does not change your ownership of a domain, hosting account or materials held in your name. Ownership and licences in the delivered website arise as set out in clause 8 of the Terms, including the assignment of copyright we own in Custom Work when the full build price is paid.

4. Cancelling before launch

4.1 You may cancel the build at any time before Launch by sending an email identifying your business and Order to [email protected]. We will acknowledge it and stop further avoidable work after the notice takes effect under clause 12.8 of the Terms. We will not incur new discretionary third-party costs after that time.

4.2 On a cancellation for your convenience before Launch:

• the Initial Payment is returned or retained in accordance with section 2;
• work actually performed beyond the work covered by that payment may be invoiced only at a stage price or hourly rate agreed in writing before the work was performed;
• documented, approved and non-cancellable third-party costs incurred for the Specification may be charged only to the extent they are not already covered by the Initial Payment or refundable by the provider;
• cancellation does not, by itself, make the entire unpaid Balance due before Launch; and
• an unfinished website and Custom Work not assigned under the Terms remain subject to our rights, while your own materials, domain and accounts remain yours.

4.3 Within ten Business Days after cancellation, we will give you an itemised account identifying the work performed, any agreed stage price or rate relied upon, third-party costs and how the Initial Payment has been applied. We will not charge twice for the same work or cost. Any additional amount must be supported by that account and the written agreement described in clause 4.2. An amount we owe you will be returned within ten Business Days after the account is completed.

4.4 If you cancel because we are in material breach, the position is governed by clauses 10.1 and 10.2 of the Terms and applicable law. We cannot rely on a convenience-cancellation or non-refundable-fee provision to eliminate an appropriate remedy for our breach. If the project becomes dormant because you have not supplied a material dependency, any termination and accounting will follow clause 3.4 of the Terms.

4.5 Ending an unfinished build does not automatically cancel a separately running Care Plan. A Care Plan that was to begin on Launch does not start or become billable if Launch never occurs. Any necessary handover of a client-owned account, return of your materials or export from hosting in our name follows clauses 7 and 10 of the Terms and the DPA where personal data is involved.

5. The Care Plan subscription

5.1 The Care Plan is optional and is chosen by ticking the Care Plan box in the Order Form. If selected, it begins on Launch with a 14-day free trial, or any longer free trial stated in the Order Form. After the trial it costs the monthly price stated in the Order Form for each Billing Period (as defined in the Care Plan Subscription Terms), payable monthly in advance by the payment method recorded for that charge in the signed Order Form: a card subscription through THE A EU OÜ’s Stripe account or, where the Order Form so provides, a monthly invoice paid by bank transfer to its company bank account. The scope of support and included edits is set out in the Care Plan Subscription Terms; hosting of the website in our account and backups are part of the Care Plan. The Care Plan fee is separate from the build price.

5.2 You may cancel the Care Plan at any time without giving a reason by emailing the address in section 9 or, for a card subscription, using an available cancellation facility provided by Stripe. If you cancel through a provider, we will act on the cancellation notification it sends us; if you do not receive our acknowledgement, please email us so that we can identify your subscription and confirm the end date. Cancelling a payment mandate does not remove a charge properly due for a period of service already supplied.

5.3 If you cancel during the free trial, section 6 applies and there is no Care Plan charge. Once a paid Billing Period has begun, a cancellation for your convenience takes effect at the end of that paid period. We will not collect a renewal charge for a later period after an effective cancellation. Support included in the current paid period continues until that period ends, subject to the Care Plan Subscription Terms.

5.4 We do not refund an unused part of a paid Billing Period solely because you choose to cancel during it. For example, cancelling on day three does not convert the rest of that period into a cash refund. This does not permit us to keep a duplicate payment, a charge taken after an effective cancellation, or payment for a service we materially failed to supply where a refund or other remedy is legally due.

5.5 Unused monthly edit requests do not roll over or become refundable in cash. Requests started or additional work approved before cancellation are dealt with under the Care Plan Subscription Terms and the applicable agreed price; we will not start chargeable additional work without your prior agreement.

5.6 Cancelling the Care Plan does not switch the website off straight away. Unless the Order Form records a different hosting arrangement, the website is hosted in our Cloudflare account as part of the Care Plan. When the Care Plan ends, we keep the website online for 30 days, provide on request the website files, a list of the DNS records we manage for your domain and up to two hours of migration assistance, and may then remove the website and those records from our account after telling you the date in writing, as set out in clause 7.3 of the Terms. The registration of your domain stays in your name and is not affected. Our support, edits, monitoring, updates and backups end when the Care Plan ends, unless otherwise agreed. Where the domain or other accounts are in your name, they remain yours, and the website may continue to operate from another host subject to your continued payment of provider charges.

5.7 If you later ask us to restart the Care Plan, we will identify the then-current price and any reasonable catch-up work caused by missed updates before you agree to the restart. A catch-up fee or changed price applies only if you accept it in writing; it is not charged automatically under the cancelled subscription.

6. Free trial period

6.1 Where the Care Plan is selected in the Order Form, its first 14 calendar days from Launch, or any longer free period stated in the Order Form, are free. The trial does not alter the build price or the date on which the build Balance becomes due. No Care Plan subscription charge is made during the trial.

6.2 You may cancel at any time during the trial without a Care Plan charge. If you do not cancel before the trial ends, the first monthly charge stated in the Order Form is collected at the end of the trial and the first paid Billing Period then begins, followed by monthly advance charges in accordance with the Care Plan Subscription Terms.

6.3 We will identify the trial start and end dates and the intended first collection date in the Order Form or a written Launch notice. If a charge is taken despite a valid cancellation during the trial, we will refund it under section 7.

7. Payments taken in error

7.1 If we take a duplicate payment, charge you after an effective cancellation, or charge you for something you did not order, tell us using the email address in section 9. We will investigate promptly and issue a full refund of a payment taken in error within five Business Days after confirming the error. We will tell you when the refund is issued; the time your bank or payment provider takes to credit it may vary.

7.2 We will not treat a valid request for correction of an erroneous payment as a cancellation penalty or charge an administrative fee for making that request. If the amount disputed was correctly due, we will explain the contractual basis and provide the relevant invoice or account; this does not prevent you from using the protections available through your bank or payment provider.

8. Chargebacks

8.1 If you dispute a card charge or an invoiced bank payment, please contact us so we can investigate and, if an error occurred, refund it under section 7. Contacting us first is encouraged but is not a condition of a right you have under applicable law or a payment-provider scheme. Starting a genuine card dispute or raising a bank-payment query is not, by itself, a breach of this Policy.

8.2 If a payment provider reverses a charge, we may provide the contract, invoice and payment records to that provider and pursue an amount that remains properly due. We will not recover the same amount twice. A dispute alone does not automatically suspend the website or Care Plan; any suspension for an undisputed overdue amount must comply with clause 6.4 of the Terms and the Care Plan Subscription Terms.

9. How to contact us

9.1 Send a cancellation, refund request or billing query to [email protected]. Please give your business name, Order reference or Order Form date, the payment or service concerned and enough information for us to identify it. A request is not invalid merely because you do not know the Order reference, provided we can reasonably identify your account.

9.2 We will acknowledge your message within two Business Days, tell you if we need information to investigate it and confirm our decision, any amount due or refundable, and the effective cancellation date in writing. Notices under the contract are governed by clause 12.8 of the Terms.

9.3 You may also write to THE A EU OÜ, Tuuliku tee 4c, 10621 Tallinn, Estonia. Keep a copy of a cancellation notice and our acknowledgement for your records.