Refund & Cancellation Policy

Scope of this policy

This policy applies to services supplied under the Octothorp ITWS trading name by either Octothorp ZA or Octothorp LLC. The client's quotation or invoice identifies the contracting entity. A client-specific quotation or agreement may contain additional cancellation terms, but it does not remove rights that cannot lawfully be excluded.

A typical deposit is an advance payment allocated to reserved delivery capacity and early project work. It is not automatically forfeited merely because it is described as a deposit.

Cancellation before work begins

If a client cancels before work begins, Octothorp will calculate the unused portion of payments received. Approved, unrecoverable third-party expenses and a reasonable, disclosed reservation or administration charge may be deducted where applicable. The remaining unearned amount will be refundable.

Cancellation after work begins

• The client remains responsible for completed work and services performed up to the effective cancellation date.
• Completed or accepted milestones remain payable, subject to applicable law and remedies for defective service.
• Approved and unrecoverable third-party costs remain payable.
• Reasonable project-closing, data-export or handover work may be charged where required.
• Any payment exceeding earned fees and recoverable costs will be refunded.

If Octothorp ends an engagement

If Octothorp ends an engagement without client breach, Octothorp will refund the unearned portion of payments received and provide paid-for work in its then-current state where reasonably possible.

Octothorp may suspend or terminate services for material non-payment, unlawful instructions, abusive conduct, security risk or persistent failure to provide required cooperation. Where appropriate, written notice and a reasonable opportunity to remedy the breach will be provided first.

Defective or undelivered services

A client should report a suspected defect promptly and provide enough information for Octothorp to investigate. Where reasonable, Octothorp must first be given an opportunity to correct work that does not materially match the agreed scope.

Where a service cannot be remedied or was not provided to the required standard, an appropriate partial or full refund will be assessed according to the extent of the failure and applicable law.

Duplicate and mistaken payments

Verified duplicate or mistaken payments will be refunded promptly. Octothorp may request the transaction reference, payer details and reasonable evidence needed to verify the payment and prevent fraud.

How to request cancellation or a refund

• Send the request to support@octothorp.co.za with the quotation or invoice number, payment reference, reason and requested outcome.
• Octothorp aims to acknowledge the request within two business days.
• Octothorp aims to decide a complete request within ten business days.
• An approved refund will ordinarily be initiated within five business days using the original payment method where practicable.
• Paystack, banks and card networks may require additional processing time after initiation.

Cooling-off and statutory rights

Applicable consumer or electronic-transaction laws may provide cancellation, cooling-off or service-quality rights in particular circumstances. Where a client expressly requests that services begin during an applicable cooling-off period, the effect of that request will be handled according to applicable law.

Nothing in this policy limits a right or remedy that may not lawfully be limited.