Refund & cancellation policy

1. Overview & scope

This Refund & Cancellation Policy applies to services purchased from Researva — the customer-facing brand of GRV Research Solutions, a proprietorship operating in India. It covers research-support, research consultancy, data-management, statistical-analysis and scientific or medical-writing services.

It explains when a payment can be refunded, how cancellations are treated before and after work has commenced, how delays and academic outcomes are handled, and how to raise a refund or service-resolution request with us.

This policy forms part of, and should be read together with, our Terms & Conditions.

2. Key definitions

• Client / you: the person or organisation that purchases a Researva service.
• Service: the specific research-support, consultancy, data-management, statistical or writing work selected and paid for.
• Project account / ledger: the internal accounting record in which payments received and delivered work are tracked against your project. It is not a wallet, bank account, cash equivalent or independent payment instrument.
• Commencement: the point at which work starts — ordinarily after the required payment or advance and complete project information, data and instructions have been received.
• Deliverable: an agreed output of the service, such as a protocol, synopsis, e-form, masterchart, analysis output, chapter or manuscript.
• Committed submission date: the timeline communicated to you in writing for the agreed scope.

3. Payments & the project ledger

• Payments are made only through authorised Researva payment channels. Clients must not make direct financial arrangements with consultants, mentors, researchers, statisticians, analysts or other professionals assigned to their project.
• Amounts received are recorded against your project account as an internal project balance. As the agreed service is delivered, the applicable service value is recorded against that balance in line with the agreed scope and delivery milestones.
• The project balance is an internal accounting and service-tracking mechanism only. It is not a transferable stored-value wallet, a bank account, a cash-equivalent facility or an independent payment instrument, and it cannot be withdrawn, transferred or redeemed outside Researva services.
• Assigned consultants, mentors and other professionals are engaged and settled by Researva internally, based on agreed work and service delivery.
• Only the services expressly selected and paid for are included. Additional services, or material changes in scope, may require separate approval and payment.

4. Mistaken or duplicate payments

If you make a mistaken, unintentional or duplicate payment, email us within 24 hours of the transaction at support@researva.com with your transaction/reference details and the reason for the request.

Where the request is eligible and the service has not been utilised, we will initiate the refund through the applicable payment/refund mechanism. The time taken to credit the amount depends on the payment gateway, bank, card issuer or other intermediary, and is outside our control.

To help us resolve it quickly, please include:

• The transaction ID or payment reference;
• The date, amount and currency of the payment;
• The email address or phone number used for the payment;
• The service or project the payment relates to.

5. Cancellation before work commences

You may cancel a service before work commences by writing to us at support@researva.com.

Where no work has commenced and no professional resources have been allocated, the amount paid for that service will ordinarily be refunded in full, less any non-recoverable third-party charges actually incurred (for example payment gateway or bank charges).

Where a consultant or mentor has already been assigned, or preparatory work has begun, the assessment described in section 6 applies.

6. Cancellation after work commences

Cancellation after commencement does not automatically create a right to a full refund. We assess the project on work already completed, work in progress, professional resources utilised, third-party commitments and the remaining scope.

Where a refund is approved, it ordinarily relates to the eligible pending or unutilised portion of the service amount, calculated on the basis described above. Work already delivered remains payable, and deliverables already handed over may be retained by you.

Cancellation must be requested by email from the registered contact for the project so that we can verify and action it securely.

7. If we cannot deliver by the committed date

If Researva is unable to perform the agreed service up to the communicated or committed submission date for reasons solely attributable to us, you may raise a refund or service-resolution request through our official channel.

We will review the agreed scope, the committed timeline, the work actually completed and the reason for non-delivery. Where appropriate, we will either refund the eligible pending or undelivered portion, or provide an alternative service resolution — for example completing the work on a revised timeline at no additional cost — whichever the review supports.

8. Delays that do not create a refund right

A delay does not automatically mean non-performance, and does not by itself create a refund entitlement. Every matter is reviewed case by case.

This applies in particular where the delay is caused or contributed to by:

• Incomplete or late project information, data, approvals or university guidelines;
• Late responses, feedback or reviews from you;
• Changes in scope, additional data or revised objectives;
• University, supervisor, department or Ethics Committee feedback and approvals;
• Technical, statistical or data-quality complexity discovered during the work;
• Circumstances outside our reasonable control, including platform, network or payment-gateway issues, illness, public holidays and force-majeure events.

Where an item is pending from your side, we may pause commencement or continuation of the work until it is resolved, and we will communicate the revised timeline.

9. Academic & publication outcomes

Researva does not guarantee passing marks, degree completion, university or college acceptance, supervisor approval, Ethics Committee approval, publication, journal acceptance, a particular statistical result or a particular research finding.

An adverse academic or publication outcome alone does not automatically create a refund entitlement. Our services provide research support and professional execution of agreed deliverables — the academic decision rests with your institution, examiner, committee or journal.

You remain responsible for your final submission and for complying with your institution’s academic-integrity policies, as described in our Terms & Conditions.

10. What is not refundable

Unless required by applicable law, refunds are not ordinarily available for:

• Work already delivered or substantially performed, and its proportionate value;
• Third-party services already procured for your project with your approval (for example paid software, data-entry or translation services);
• Payment-gateway, bank or currency-conversion charges actually incurred and not recoverable by us;
• A change of topic, university, guide, methodology or scope after commencement;
• Dissatisfaction arising solely from an academic, examiner, Ethics Committee or journal outcome (see section 9);
• Delay or non-completion caused or contributed to by information, data or approvals not provided by you;
• Services you were unable to support with genuine, lawful and usable data.

Nothing in this section limits any refund or remedy that cannot be excluded under applicable law.

11. How to request a refund

To raise a refund or service-resolution request, follow these steps:

1. Email us at support@researva.com from your registered email address, with the subject “Refund request — your project reference”.
2. Include the transaction ID or payment reference, the date and amount paid, the service purchased and the reason for the request.
3. If the service has commenced, tell us what remains pending or undelivered so we can assess the eligible portion.
4. We acknowledge your request and review the project against the agreed scope, delivery milestones and the applicable clauses of this policy.
5. We communicate the outcome — approved, partially approved, an alternative service resolution, or declined with reasons — along with the eligible amount where a refund is approved.
6. If approved, we initiate the refund to the original payment method through the applicable payment/refund mechanism.

12. Refund method & timelines

• Refunds are processed to the original payment method wherever possible. In exceptional cases we may ask for your bank details to complete a refund.
• Once approved, we initiate the refund within 5–7 working days. The time taken for the amount to reflect in your account depends on the payment gateway, bank, card issuer or other intermediary, and is outside our control.
• Refunds are ordinarily issued in the same currency as the original payment; any currency-conversion or gateway differential actually incurred may be deducted.
• Where a partial refund is approved, your project account is adjusted against work already delivered and the remaining balance.

You will receive a reference for the refund once it has been initiated.

13. Chargebacks & payment disputes

If you believe a payment was incorrect, please contact us first at support@researva.com or +91 72230 28521. Most issues are resolved faster through the process described above than through a bank dispute.

Where a chargeback or payment dispute is raised, we may provide the relevant engagement records, agreed scope, delivery evidence and communications to the payment gateway or bank. An active disputed transaction may place the related project on hold until the dispute is resolved.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, payment arrangements or applicable law. The “last updated” date above shows the current version, and the version in force at the time of your purchase governs that engagement.

15. Contact & governing terms

This policy is governed by the laws of India and forms part of our Terms & Conditions. Where this policy conflicts with the Terms & Conditions or a signed engagement document, the Terms & Conditions or that document prevails to the extent of the conflict.

• Refund & cancellation requests: support@researva.com
• Phone: +91 72230 28521 (Mon–Sat, 10 AM to 6 PM IST)
• Or use our contact form

Researva is the customer-facing brand of GRV Research Solutions, a proprietorship operating in India.