Refund Policy

1. Overview, Scope and Nature of Our Services

This Refund Policy forms part of, and is incorporated by reference into, our Terms of Service. It governs all refunds, cancellations and payment disputes relating to services supplied by Desverso LLC ("we," "us"). Capitalised terms have the meaning given in the Terms.

You confirm that you have read this Policy before payment, that you have had the opportunity to ask questions about it, and that you accept it as a condition of engaging us.

2. Your Acknowledgement at Purchase

Before any engagement begins, you are required to affirmatively accept these Terms and this Refund Policy. Acceptance occurs by any one or more of the following, each of which constitutes your electronic signature:

• Ticking the acceptance checkbox on our enquiry, order or checkout form;
• Signing or returning a Statement of Work, proposal or order form;
• Confirming acceptance by email or written message;
• Making payment of a deposit, instalment or invoice.

We record and retain evidence of that acceptance, which may include the date and time, the IP address used, the version of the Terms and this Policy in force at that moment, the email address associated with the acceptance, and the related correspondence. You agree that these records are admissible and constitute conclusive evidence of your agreement, absent manifest error.

3. Deposits and Booking Fees Are Non-Refundable

All deposits, booking fees and retainers are non-refundable in all circumstances.

A deposit is not a part-payment held on account. It is consideration for a distinct and immediate benefit conferred on you the moment it is received: a reserved place in our production schedule, specialist personnel withheld from other clients, and the commencement of briefing, planning, scheduling and onboarding work.

That benefit is fully delivered at the point of booking and cannot be reversed. This applies regardless of whether you subsequently proceed, and regardless of the reason for withdrawal, including change of mind, change of circumstances, loss of funding, illness, or a decision not to publish.

4. Work Performed Is Payable and Non-Refundable

Fees attributable to work already performed are non-refundable. This includes work completed but not yet delivered, work in progress at the moment a cancellation or dispute is raised, and time spent on briefing, research, planning, revision and project management.

4.1 Calculation on Cancellation

Where you cancel mid-engagement, we will calculate in good faith the value of work performed to that date at our standard rates, together with all committed and unrecoverable third-party costs. If you have paid more than that amount, we refund the balance. If you have paid less, the shortfall is immediately due and payable.

4.2 Stages Not Commenced

Amounts prepaid for discrete future stages not yet commenced, and for which capacity has not been irrevocably reserved, are refundable less the non-refundable deposit and reasonable administrative costs.

4.3 Right of Setoff

We may set off any amount owed to you against any amount you owe us under any engagement, and may apply any prepayment or credit against outstanding invoices before issuing any refund.

5. Delivery, Review and Acceptance

Each Deliverable or stage is delivered to the email address or shared workspace you nominate. Delivery is complete, and the Deliverable is deemed received, when it is sent or made available to you — not when you open, download or read it.

5.1 Review Window

You have ten (10) business days from delivery to review each Deliverable and to notify us in writing of any specific way in which it fails to conform to the agreed brief and scope.

5.2 Acceptance

A Deliverable is accepted, and the associated fees become non-refundable in full, on the earliest of:

• Your written approval or written confirmation of satisfaction;
• Expiry of the review window without written non-conformity notice;
• Your instruction to proceed to the next stage;
• Your use, publication, distribution, submission or commercial exploitation of the Deliverable in any form, in whole or in part.

5.3 Records We Retain

We retain delivery logs, file transfer records, correspondence, approval messages, revision requests, call notes and version histories for each engagement. These records evidence delivery, review and acceptance.

6. Circumstances in Which No Refund Is Available

To the fullest extent permitted by law, refunds are not available in any of the following circumstances:

• Accepted work. Any Deliverable accepted under Section 5, expressly or by deemed acceptance or by use.
• Commercial performance. Sales, revenue, rankings, reviews, bestseller status, media coverage, advertising return, agent or publisher interest, or any other market outcome. We expressly disclaim any guarantee of results, and you confirm you did not rely on any such guarantee.
• Change of mind or withdrawal for any personal, financial or strategic reason.
• Subjective dissatisfaction with creative direction, tone or style where the work conforms to the agreed brief and scope and the revision remedy in Section 7 has not been exhausted.
• Client delay or non-cooperation, including failure to supply materials, feedback, approvals or access.
• Third-party costs committed or expended, including advertising spend, printing, ISBN registration, stock licences, narration, translation and platform fees.
• Platform decisions, including rejection, delay, removal, suspension or re-categorisation of a title, listing, advertisement or account by any retailer, distributor or platform.
• Content consequences, including any complaint, takedown, dispute or claim arising from material you supplied or approved.
• Termination by us for your breach, including non-payment, abusive conduct, or supply of unlawful or infringing material.
• Requests outside the time limits in Section 8.
• Duplicate or mistaken payment claims where the payment corresponds to a valid invoice for services performed.

7. Revision Is the Primary Remedy

Where you consider a Deliverable non-conforming, your first and primary remedy is correction, not refund. You must give us a genuine and reasonable opportunity to cure before seeking any refund or raising any payment dispute.

On receipt of a written, specific non-conformity notice within the review window, we will assess it and, where the work does not conform to the agreed brief and scope, correct it at no additional charge within the revision rounds stated in your Statement of Work.

Where we are genuinely unable to bring a Deliverable into conformity after a reasonable opportunity to do so, we will agree an appropriate resolution, which may include further revision at no charge, reassignment to a different specialist, a credit against future services, or a partial refund limited to the affected portion of the fee, at our reasonable discretion.

Failure to allow us to cure is a material breach of the Terms and will be relied upon in any dispute.

8. How to Request a Refund

All refund requests must be made in writing to legal@booktoshelf.com. Verbal requests, social media messages and requests to individual staff are not valid.

8.1 Required Information

A valid request must include: your full name and project reference; the specific Deliverable concerned; the date it was delivered; a detailed, itemised description of how it fails to conform to the agreed brief and scope, with reference to the relevant provisions of the Statement of Work; and the resolution sought. Requests that do not identify a specific non-conformity will be treated as an expression of subjective dissatisfaction and declined under Section 6.

8.2 Time Limits

Requests must be received within ten (10) business days of delivery of the affected Deliverable. Requests received after that period will not be considered, and the Deliverable is conclusively deemed accepted.

8.3 Assessment and Cooperation

We acknowledge valid requests within five (5) business days and complete assessment within fifteen (15) business days of receiving all information we reasonably require. You agree to engage constructively during assessment, including by attending a call if requested. The assessment period pauses while we await information from you.

8.4 Payment of Approved Refunds

Approved refunds are issued to the original payment method only, within fourteen (14) business days of approval. We do not refund in cash, to a third party, or to a different instrument. Bank charges, processor fees and currency conversion differences are not reimbursed.

9. Effect of a Refund — Rights Revert

Any refund is issued strictly on the following conditions, which take effect automatically and immediately upon issue:

• All licences, assignments and rights in the refunded Deliverables terminate and revert wholly to us;
• You must immediately cease all use, withdraw the Deliverables from publication and distribution, and delete or destroy all copies in your possession, custody or control;
• You may not thereafter publish, adapt, translate, distribute, sell, license or otherwise exploit the refunded Deliverables, in whole or in part, in any medium;
• You must confirm compliance in writing within seven (7) days if we request it;
• The engagement terminates in respect of the refunded work.

10. Payment Disputes and Chargebacks

10.1 Mandatory Pre-Dispute Procedure

10.2 Covenant Not to Dispute Services Rendered

You agree not to initiate, and to promptly withdraw, any chargeback, payment reversal or bank dispute in respect of services we have performed and Deliverables we have delivered or made available to you. Raising such a dispute without first exhausting Section 10.1 is a material breach of the Terms.

You further agree that, where a Deliverable has been delivered under Section 5, you will not assert to any issuer that services were "not received." Where a Deliverable has been accepted under Section 5, you will not assert that services were "not as described."

10.3 Evidence We Will Submit

Where a dispute is raised, we will contest it and submit to the issuer and card network all relevant evidence, which may include:

• These Terms and this Refund Policy as in force at the time of purchase, and the record of your affirmative acceptance under Section 2, including timestamp, IP address and version;
• The signed or accepted Statement of Work describing the services purchased;
• Invoices, receipts and payment records;
• Delivery logs, file transfer records and access timestamps evidencing delivery under Section 5;
• Correspondence evidencing your review, feedback, approval or instruction to proceed;
• Evidence of your use, publication or exploitation of the Deliverables;
• The complete revision history and records of any opportunity to cure offered and refused;
• Any communications inconsistent with the basis of the dispute.

10.4 Consequences of a Chargeback

Where a chargeback or payment reversal is initiated in respect of services performed, the following apply immediately and without further notice:

• All Services are suspended and all work ceases;
• All licences, assignments and rights granted to you in any Deliverable are revoked, and you must cease all use immediately;
• All outstanding sums under all engagements become immediately due and payable;
• We may withhold all Deliverables, working files, accounts and access;
• We may terminate the engagement and decline any future engagement.

10.5 Recovery of Costs

You agree to reimburse us, as a debt immediately due, for: the disputed amount where the underlying services were performed; all bank, processor, network and representment fees incurred; a reasonable administrative charge reflecting the staff time required to compile and submit evidence, which the parties agree is a genuine pre-estimate of our loss and not a penalty; and all costs of collection, including collection agency fees, court costs and reasonable attorneys' fees.

10.6 Referral and Enforcement

Unresolved amounts may be referred to a collections agency or to legal counsel, and may be pursued through arbitration or the courts in accordance with the Terms. Where a chargeback is resolved in our favour, you remain liable for the costs in Section 10.5.

10.7 Card Network Rules

Nothing in this Section purports to remove any right you hold under card network rules or applicable law. This Section records the parties' contractual agreement as to how disputes will be handled between them, and the consequences as between the parties of departing from it.

11. Abuse, Bad Faith and Serial Disputes

We reserve the right to decline service to, and to pursue recovery from, any person who: raises a dispute in bad faith or on a basis known to be untrue; continues to use Deliverables while disputing payment; misrepresents the scope of what was agreed; or has a pattern of disputes across engagements.

We may retain records of such conduct for the purposes of fraud prevention, credit control and the establishment or defence of legal claims, in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

12. Your Statutory Rights

Nothing in this Policy excludes, restricts or modifies any guarantee, right or remedy you may have under applicable consumer protection law that cannot lawfully be excluded, restricted or modified, including under the Washington Consumer Protection Act or equivalent legislation in your jurisdiction.

Where such law applies and confers rights greater than those set out above, those rights prevail to the extent of any inconsistency, and the remainder of this Policy continues in full force. If any provision is held unenforceable, it shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, or severed, without affecting the remaining provisions.

13. Records and Changes to This Policy

We retain engagement records, including acceptance records, delivery logs and correspondence, for the period necessary to establish or defend legal claims and to satisfy our legal obligations.

We may update this Policy from time to time. The version in force on the date your Statement of Work is accepted governs that engagement and will not be applied retroactively. Changes take effect when posted with a revised effective date and apply to engagements entered into thereafter.

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