Refund & Payment Policy

We sell professional services, not products off a shelf. This page explains how we quote, invoice and handle refunds so there are no surprises. It applies to design and development engagements with HashBitStudio (SMC-Private) Ltd.

Proposals and quotes

We quote against a defined scope. Unless the document says otherwise, a proposal is valid for 30 days from its date. After that we may re-quote, since availability, team allocation and third-party costs change. A quote becomes binding when both sides sign it, not when it is issued. Estimates given informally — over a call or by email — are indicative only.

Deposits

Engagements begin with a deposit, typically a percentage of the total project value, stated in the signed agreement. We schedule your slot, assign the team and start discovery on the strength of it.

The deposit is refundable only before work begins. Once work has started it is non-refundable, because it covers time we have set aside for you and turned away from others. If you cancel before we start, we return the deposit in full, less any third-party costs already committed on your behalf.

Milestone payments

Beyond the deposit, projects are billed in milestones set out in the agreement. Each milestone has defined deliverables. Payment for a milestone falls due on delivery of that milestone, and invoices are payable within the period stated in the agreement.

We may hold work on later milestones while an invoice for a delivered one is outstanding. Where a milestone includes a review round, delivery means we have handed over the work for review — not that every comment has been resolved.

Refunds

Refunds are available only for milestones we have not yet delivered. If a project ends early, we account for the work as follows:

• Milestones already delivered, and work in progress on the current milestone, are payable in full.
• Amounts you have paid in advance for milestones we have not started are refunded to you.
• The deposit is not refunded once work has begun, as set out above.
• Third-party costs already incurred on your behalf — licences, subscriptions, hosting, stock assets — are not refundable.

Approved refunds are issued to the original payment method within 14 business days of agreement. We do not refund on the basis of subjective dissatisfaction with delivered work that meets the agreed specification; the review rounds in your agreement are the mechanism for getting the detail right.

Delays caused by the client

Projects need input from you: content, assets, access, decisions and approvals. Where those are late, timelines move accordingly, and we are not liable for the resulting delay. Substantial delays may require us to re-plan around other commitments, and any additional cost is discussed with you before it is incurred.

Pausing and abandonment

If we cannot reach you or receive the input we need for 30 consecutive days, we treat the project as paused. We invoice for all work completed to that point and release the team to other work.

Restarting a paused project depends on availability and may require rescheduling, and where a significant amount of time has passed we may need to re-quote the remaining work. If a paused project is not restarted, we treat it as ended, with amounts settled as described under Refunds.

Change requests

Work outside the agreed scope is billed separately. New features, additional screens, extra review rounds beyond those agreed, added platforms and reworks following a change of direction on your side all count as out of scope.

We do not absorb these silently. When something falls outside scope we say so, quote the additional time and cost, and wait for your written approval before proceeding. Small clarifications and reasonable refinements within the agreed scope are simply part of the work.

Disputed charges

If you believe an invoice is wrong, tell us within 14 days of the invoice date at hello@hashbitstudio.com, setting out which items are in question and why. We will review it with you and correct anything that is genuinely mistaken.

Undisputed amounts on the same invoice remain payable while we work through the disputed part. Raising a chargeback with your bank instead of contacting us first is not a substitute for this process, and doing so may put the engagement on hold.

Taxes and payment costs

Quoted amounts exclude taxes and duties unless stated otherwise. Bank transfer fees, currency conversion costs and payment processor charges are payable by the client, so the amount we receive matches the invoice.

Changes to this policy

We may update this page as our process evolves. The version in force for your project is the one in effect when you signed your agreement, and the agreement itself always takes precedence.

Contact us