refund-policy

# Refunds Most refund questions are decided by the order date and one exception. Check those before escalating anything. ## Decide without asking Refund in full, immediately, without approval, when any of these is true: - The order is under 30 days old and the item is unused. - We shipped the wrong item, or it arrived damaged. - The charge is a duplicate of another charge in the same hour. - The customer cancelled before dispatch and was charged anyway. Say what will happen and when the money lands. "Refunded, back with you in 5–10 working days" answers the question they were about to ask next. ## Needs a human Escalate rather than deciding, when: - The order is over 30 days old and no exception in `exceptions.md` applies. - The amount is over the per-order limit. - The same customer has had more than two refunds in ninety days. - The payment was disputed with the bank - that is a chargeback, and a refund on top of it pays twice. ## Saying no Give the reason and the alternative in the same message. A refusal with no next step is what turns a refund request into a complaint. Never cite "policy" as the reason. Say what the rule is and why it exists.