Refund Policy

This Refund Policy explains when and how refunds are available for purchases on the ChefSphere platform. For purchases on the Ebook Marketplace see the Ebook Refund Policy and the Ebook Fee Schedule. For purchases on the Tools Marketplace see the Tools Return & Refund Policy, the Tools Fee Schedule, and the model withdrawal form at /legal/tools/withdrawal-form (Annex I(B), Directive 2011/83/EU). This Policy does not limit any mandatory statutory rights you have as a consumer under the law of your country of residence.

1. What this Policy covers

Platform purchases in scope of this Policy:

• Subscriptions — Premium and Pro (monthly, quarterly, annual), web or in-app.
• Verified badge — monthly, quarterly, annual.
• Swipe addon packs — one-time purchase of extra daily swipes.
• ChefCoins — one-time purchase of in-app currency.

2. Who processes your refund

Refund routing follows the billing channel.

Channel	Who decides	Where to request
Apple App Store (iOS)	Apple	Apple's Report a Problem page. Apple applies its own refund policy and is the merchant of record.
Google Play (Android)	Google	Google Play → Account → Purchase history → Report a problem. Google applies its own refund policy.
Web (payment processor)	ChefSphere OÜ, through the payment processor	Write to [email protected] with your order reference.

We cannot override an App Store or Google Play decision; please use the store channel for iOS or Android purchases. For web purchases we respond within 10 business days and typically return funds within 3–10 business days after approval (your bank may take longer).

3. EU / EEA 14-day right of withdrawal for digital content

Under Directive 2011/83/EU, consumers in the EU / EEA have a 14-day right to withdraw from a distance contract without giving a reason. For digital content delivered immediately (like a subscription that activates instantly), Article 16(m) of the Directive allows you to waive that right in exchange for immediate access. ChefSphere activates paid features instantly on purchase; at checkout you expressly consent to immediate performance and acknowledge that doing so waives the 14-day withdrawal right for that specific purchase. Where national law grants a right that cannot lawfully be waived, that right prevails over this clause.

4. When we grant refunds (web purchases)

For purchases billed on the web, we grant a refund in the following situations:

• Billing errors — you were charged more than once for the same period, or the renewal ignored a valid cancellation.
• Duplicate charges caused by a payment-processor retry after a successful charge.
• Service unavailability of material duration that affected the paid period (for example a multi-day outage of paid features).
• Unauthorised transactions on your payment method that you report promptly and that we can verify.
• Material misrepresentation — where a paid feature did not meet the description in the app or on the website.
• Fraud recovery — amounts reversed as part of a fraud investigation.

Outside these situations, refunds for web purchases are discretionary. We may grant one as a goodwill gesture; doing so once does not oblige us to do so again.

5. What is not refundable

• Unused quotas (for example remaining AI tokens, swipes, or ChefCoins) when you cancel a subscription or deactivate your account.
• Partial periods after you cancel. Cancellation stops the next renewal; it does not refund the remaining days of the current paid period.
• Addon packs and ChefCoins once consumed in whole or in part.
• Verified badge after it has displayed on your profile, except where a billing error applies.
• Promotional items granted without payment (for example the 7-day referral reward), which are not refunded in cash.

6. Chargebacks

We try to resolve billing issues directly before you raise a chargeback with your bank. If you raise a chargeback that we believe is unfounded, we may contest it with the card network and provide our transaction records. A final chargeback decision against ChefSphere typically results in the corresponding subscription being suspended or terminated and the account being blocked from further purchases until the dispute is resolved. For marketplace chargebacks see the Tools Marketplace chargeback addendum.

7. Ebook and tool purchases

• Ebooks — see the Ebook Refund Policy, the Buyer Licence, and the Ebook Marketplace Terms for the first-pages preview rule, the CRD Art. 16(m) waiver, and author-specific conditions.
• Tools — see the Tools Return & Refund Policy, the Shipping Policy, and the Rental Terms for return windows, rental lifecycle rules, CRD Art. 18 delivery deadlines, Art. 20 passing of risk, and shipping responsibility; use the statutory model withdrawal form to exercise the 14-day right of withdrawal.

8. How to request a refund for a web purchase

Write to [email protected] with:

1. The email address on your ChefSphere account.
2. The invoice or transaction reference (visible in Settings → Subscription).
3. A short explanation of the reason.

We confirm receipt within two business days and give a final decision within ten business days. If we need more information we will ask for it and pause the deadline until we hear back.

9. Changes

We update this Policy when billing flows, store rules, or applicable law change. Material changes are announced in-app or by email at least 30 days before they take effect. Past versions are available on request.

10. Contact

• Billing / refunds: [email protected]
• Legal: [email protected]