01The short version
40% deposit before we start. Cancel before any work begins and you get it all back. Once work has started, you pay for what has been done, and you are never charged for milestones we have not touched.
We build custom work, so refunds work a little differently than returning a product off a shelf. This page explains the full picture in plain language: what you pay, when money comes back, and how to ask for it.
02The deposit
Every project begins with a 40% deposit. It reserves your place in our schedule and covers the first phase of work: discovery, planning and setup.
- Cancel before we start any work? Your deposit comes back in full.
- Cancel after work has begun? The deposit is not refundable, because it pays for time and work already done.
- Can we not start for reasons on our side? You get the full deposit back, every time.
03Milestone payments
Larger projects are split into milestones, and each milestone has its own invoice. Here is how refunds work with those:
- A milestone that is finished and approved is not refundable.
- If you cancel before a milestone starts, you are not charged for it.
- If you cancel in the middle of a milestone, you pay for the part that is done, and the rest of any prepaid amount comes back to you.
04When you will get a refund
- We cannot start your project for reasons on our side: full deposit refund.
- We fail to deliver the agreed scope and cannot fix it after a reasonable number of attempts: a fair refund for the part we did not deliver.
- You were double charged or billed by mistake: we return the difference.
- You prepaid for work that never started: that money comes back.
05When you will not get a refund
- Time we have already spent and work we have already delivered.
- Designs, code or other deliverables you approved.
- Third-party costs paid on your behalf, such as domains, hosting, fonts, plugins or stock assets.
- A change of mind after work has started.
- Abandoned projects: if we chase you for 30 days and hear nothing, payments made are kept, because your slot sat empty that whole time.
- Problems we can fix. If something is not right, we would rather repair it through revisions than talk about refunds.
Here is the whole picture at a glance:
| Situation | What happens |
|---|---|
| Cancel before any work starts | Full deposit refund |
| We cannot start for reasons on our side | Full deposit refund |
| Cancel after work begins | Deposit kept, pay for work done |
| Cancel mid-milestone | Pay for the part done, rest refunded |
| Milestone not started | Not charged |
| Work already delivered and approved | Not refundable |
| Project abandoned for 30+ days | Payments kept |
06How to ask for a refund
Email info@divenclave.com and include:
- Your name and company
- The project and invoice number
- Which payment you would like back, and why
We acknowledge every request within 2 business days and give you a decision within 5 business days. Approved refunds go back to the original payment method within 7 to 10 business days. If your bank adds charges for an international transfer, those are usually on their side.
07If we cancel a project
This is rare, and usually comes down to non-payment. If it happens, you pay for the work completed up to that point, and any prepaid amount for work we have not done is refunded to you.
08Talk to us first
Something not sitting right? Email info@divenclave.com or use our contact form. Most refund questions get answered with a quick conversation, and we are always fair about it.