Refund & Cancellation Policy

About this policy

This Refund & Cancellation Policy explains how cancellations and refunds work for services provided by Cambridge Publishing Press. It forms part of our Terms & Conditions and uses the same defined terms, such as "Project Agreement" and "Deliverables". If your Project Agreement contains specific cancellation terms for your project, those terms apply in addition to this policy and take priority where they differ.

Publishing projects involve skilled work that begins quickly and cannot be "returned" once delivered, so refunds are based on how much work has been done and what costs have been incurred when you cancel. Our aim is that you pay only for work carried out and costs genuinely incurred.

Your statutory rights

Nothing in this policy affects rights you have under consumer protection law that cannot be excluded by contract. In particular:

• Consumers in the UK and the European Union who buy services at a distance (for example, online or by email) usually have the right to cancel within 14 days of the contract being made without giving a reason. If you ask us to start work within that 14-day period, you will need to pay for the work carried out up to the time you tell us you are cancelling. If you ask us to complete the service within the 14 days, the right to cancel ends once the service is complete. We will ask for your express request and acknowledgement before starting work within this period.
• Where our work does not meet what was agreed or is not carried out with reasonable care and skill, you may be entitled to have it put right or to a price reduction or refund.
• Consumers in other countries and US states may have similar rights under local law, which also apply.

Cancellation before work begins

You may cancel at any time before work on your project starts by writing to us. We will refund all fees you have paid, less [ADMINISTRATIVE DEDUCTION, e.g. up to 10% of fees paid, limited to costs actually incurred]. Work is treated as having started when an editor, designer or other team member begins work on your project, which we will confirm to you in writing.

If you cancel within the statutory cancellation period described above and we have not started work, you will receive a full refund with no deduction.

Refund eligibility

You may be eligible for a full or partial refund if:

• you cancel in line with this policy;
• we cancel the project for reasons that are not caused by you;
• we fail to deliver the agreed Services, or cause a significant delay that we do not remedy within a reasonable time after you notify us; or
• a Deliverable does not match the agreed specification and we are unable to correct it after you have given us a reasonable opportunity to do so.

Refunds are not available for a change of mind about the style or direction of work that matches the agreed brief and that you have approved, although you may still cancel the remaining work as described below.

Initial deliverables

Many projects begin with an initial deliverable, such as a sample edit, cover concepts, an interior sample or a marketing plan outline. If you are unhappy with an initial deliverable, please tell us within [DELIVERABLE REVIEW PERIOD, e.g. 7 days] of receiving it. We will first offer to revise it in line with the brief. If you then decide to cancel, we will refund the fees paid for the remaining work, less the value of the initial deliverable and [ADMINISTRATIVE DEDUCTION, e.g. up to 10% of fees paid, limited to costs actually incurred].

[CONFIRM: refund model. This policy proposes a cost-based model (you pay for work done and costs incurred). Some businesses use a fixed schedule instead, for example a set percentage refund within a set number of days of the initial deliverable. If you prefer fixed percentages, they must reflect a reasonable estimate of the work and costs involved at each stage.]

Cancellation after work has begun

If you cancel after work has begun, we will:

1. stop work promptly once we receive your written notice;
2. calculate the value of the work completed up to that point, based on the stages and fees in your Project Agreement;
3. deduct any non-recoverable third-party costs already incurred for your project; and
4. refund the remaining balance of the fees you have paid, or invoice you for any shortfall if the work completed is worth more than you have paid.

We will send you a written breakdown of this calculation. Work completed up to the date of cancellation will be delivered to you once it has been paid for.

Revision and approval stages

When you approve a stage of your project, for example a final cover design, a completed edit or an interior proof, that stage is treated as completed and its fee is no longer refundable. Requesting revisions within your agreed revision rounds does not affect your refund eligibility for stages you have not yet approved.

Completed projects

Once all Deliverables have been delivered and approved, or the final files have been delivered and the review period has passed without any notice of a problem, the project is complete and its fees are not refundable. This does not affect your right to have work corrected if it did not meet the agreed specification.

Promotional and discounted packages

Promotional offers, such as the 60% discount advertised on our Website, and bundled packages are subject to this policy in the same way as other projects. Any refund is calculated on the price you actually paid, not on the standard price. The discount itself has no cash value and cannot be refunded or transferred. Where a bundle is cancelled part-way, the value of completed services is calculated at the discounted rates shown in your Project Agreement. [CONFIRM: promotional eligibility, dates and exclusions in the Terms & Conditions]

Third-party expenses

Some projects require us to pay third parties on your behalf, or to recommend that you pay them directly. Once committed, these costs cannot usually be recovered and are not refundable. They include, for example:

• ISBNs, barcodes and copyright registration fees;
• stock image, font, music or software licenses purchased for your project;
• domain names, website hosting and third-party software subscriptions;
• narrator, studio or specialist contractor fees for work already performed; and
• any other cost listed as a third-party expense in your Project Agreement.

We pass third-party costs on at cost unless your Project Agreement says otherwise, and we will provide receipts on request. Where a third party refunds us, we will pass that refund on to you.

Publishing and printing expenses

Fees charged by Third-Party Platforms (such as retailers, distributors and print-on-demand services) are governed by their own terms and are paid directly by you in most cases. Once a print order has been placed with a printer, it cannot normally be cancelled. If printed copies are defective because of a printing error, we will help you claim a reprint or refund from the printer. If the error is in files we prepared and you approved, the correction of those files is covered, but the cost of the print run you approved is not refundable by us.

Marketing service fees

Fees for marketing strategy, planning, copywriting and design are refundable only for work not yet carried out, in line with the "Cancellation after work has begun" section. Advertising budgets paid directly to advertising platforms are governed by those platforms. If you have paid us an advertising budget to manage on your behalf, any unspent amount will be refunded when the campaign ends or is cancelled. Marketing outcomes such as sales, rankings or reviews are never guaranteed, so a refund is not available because a campaign did not achieve a particular result.

Your responsibilities

To keep your project and refund eligibility on track, please provide materials and feedback on time, review Deliverables within [DELIVERABLE REVIEW PERIOD, e.g. 7 days], and tell us promptly if anything is wrong. If you do not respond for [INACTIVITY PERIOD BEFORE A PROJECT IS PAUSED, e.g. 30 days] after we have tried to contact you, we may pause your project. If we still have not heard from you within [INACTIVITY PERIOD BEFORE A PROJECT IS CLOSED, e.g. 90 days] of our first attempt, we will send a final written reminder and may then close the project. Closing a project is treated as a cancellation after work has begun: you will receive any refund due for work not yet carried out, and work completed so far will be available to you once paid for.

How to request a refund

1. Email info@cambridgepublishingpress.com with the subject line "Refund request", your name, your project or invoice reference, and the reason for your request.
2. If your request relates to the quality of a Deliverable, please explain what does not match the agreed brief, ideally within [REFUND REQUEST WINDOW, e.g. 14 days] of delivery.
3. We will acknowledge your request and, where relevant, offer to correct the work first.
4. We will give you our written decision, with a breakdown of any refund, within [DECISION TIME, e.g. 5 business days] of receiving all the information we need.

Refund processing

Approved refunds are paid to the original payment method within [PROCESSING TIME, e.g. 10 business days] of our decision. Your bank or card provider may take a few additional days to show the refund on your account. Any currency conversion or transfer charges made by your own bank are outside our control. Where the law requires a refund within a specific period, we will meet that deadline.

Disputes and complaints

If you disagree with a refund decision, please reply to our decision email and ask for it to be reviewed by a senior member of the team. We will try to resolve your concern through good-faith discussion within [GOOD-FAITH NEGOTIATION PERIOD, e.g. 30 days]. If we still cannot agree, the dispute resolution and governing law provisions of our Terms & Conditions apply, and consumers may also contact their local consumer protection authority or an alternative dispute resolution service.

You are always free to contact your bank about a payment. We ask that you contact us first, as we can usually resolve concerns more quickly.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The version that applies to your project is the one in force when you accepted your Project Agreement, unless you agree otherwise. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page shows when it was last changed.

Contact us

Questions about cancellations or refunds can be sent to info@cambridgepublishingpress.com. Postal address: 1115 Broadway, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10010.