Refund & Cancellation Policy
Val8.app - AI-Powered Business Idea Validation
Effective Date: 24 August 2026 Last Updated: 24 August 2026
Operated by: Yashraj Awasthi (Sole Proprietorship) Registered Address: 127/669, Flat No. 301, W-Block, Panchsheel Dham, Keshav Nagar, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India Contact: founder@val8.app Website: www.val8.app
This Refund & Cancellation Policy ("Policy") governs all refund requests, automatic credit restorations, and cancellation-related matters for the Val8.app platform and services (the "Service"). This Policy is incorporated into and forms part of the Val8.app Terms of Service. By purchasing credits or using the Service, you agree to the terms set forth in this Policy.
All capitalised terms not defined in this Policy have the meanings assigned to them in the Terms of Service.
1. Payment Model Overview
Val8 operates on a prepaid credit system. There are no recurring subscriptions, no monthly billing cycles, and no auto-renewal charges. You purchase credits in fixed packages, and each validation run consumes credits (1 for Quick Mode, 2 for Full Panel) from your balance. Credits remain in your account indefinitely until used.
Because there is no subscription, there is nothing to "cancel" in the traditional sense. If you do not wish to use the Service further, you simply stop purchasing credits. No action is required on your part to avoid future charges - you will never be charged automatically for credits you did not explicitly purchase.
This distinction is important: every charge on your payment method corresponds to a specific, deliberate credit purchase that you initiated. There are no surprise charges, hidden fees, or automatic renewals.
2. Types of Refunds
This Policy distinguishes between two categories of refunds:
- Automatic credit restorations (Section 3): Credits returned to your in-app balance when a validation run fails due to a technical error.
- User-requested monetary refunds (Section 4): Refunds of money back to your original payment method for unused credits.
These are separate mechanisms with different triggers, conditions, and processing timelines. Both are described in detail below.
3. Automatic Credit Restorations (Failed Validation Runs)
3.1 When Automatic Credit Restoration Applies
Each validation run consumes the required credits from your account balance at the time the run is initiated. If a validation run fails to complete due to any of the following causes, the exact amount of credits consumed by that run will be automatically restored to your account balance without any action required on your part:
- A server error or system crash on the Val8 platform.
- A failure, timeout, or error response from a third-party AI provider (DeepSeek or OpenAI) that prevents the validation report from being generated.
- A database error or data processing failure that corrupts or prevents delivery of the validation report.
- Any other technical malfunction originating from our systems or our third-party service providers that causes the run to fail before producing a complete validation report.
3.2 When Automatic Credit Restoration Does Not Apply
Credits will not be automatically restored in the following situations:
- Completed runs: The validation run completed successfully and produced a full validation report, regardless of whether you are satisfied with the content, scores, or conclusions of that report. Dissatisfaction with AI-generated output is not a technical failure.
- Content moderation rejections: Your submission was rejected by the automated content moderation system (Layer 1 or Layer 2) before a validation run was initiated. In this case, no credits were consumed in the first place, so no restoration is necessary.
- User-initiated cancellation during processing: You navigated away from the application, closed your browser, or otherwise disconnected while a validation run was in progress. If the run still completed successfully on the server side despite your disconnection, credits are not restored. Your completed report will be available in your account when you next log in.
- Network or connectivity issues on the user's side: If your internet connection failed during a run but the run completed successfully on our servers, credits are not restored.
3.3 Processing of Automatic Credit Restorations
Automatic credit restorations are processed immediately - within seconds of the system detecting the failure. The restored credits will appear in your account balance without delay and are immediately available for use in a new validation run.
Automatic credit restorations are applied as balance adjustments within the Val8 platform. They are not monetary refunds to your payment method. The credits are returned to your account exactly as they were before the failed run, and you may use them freely.
3.4 Notification
When an automatic credit restoration occurs, the application will display an error message indicating that the validation run failed. Your updated credit balance (reflecting the restoration) will be visible in your account immediately. We do not send a separate email notification for automatic credit restorations.
4. User-Requested Monetary Refunds
4.1 Eligibility for a Monetary Refund
You may request a monetary refund - a refund of money back to your original payment method - under the following conditions. All three conditions must be met:
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The credits are unused. The credits you are requesting a refund for must not have been consumed by any completed validation run. Partially used credit packages are eligible for a refund only for the unused portion (see Section 4.3).
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The request is made within thirty (30) calendar days of the original purchase date. The 30-day window begins on the date the payment was successfully processed, as recorded in our payment system. Refund requests submitted after this 30-day window will be denied.
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The account is in good standing. Your account must not be suspended, terminated, or flagged for violation of the Terms of Service or Acceptable Use Policy at the time of the refund request.
4.2 Situations Where Monetary Refunds Are Not Available
Monetary refunds will not be issued in the following situations:
- Credits that have been consumed by a completed validation run. Once a run has completed and produced a validation report, the two (2) credits consumed by that run are non-refundable, regardless of your satisfaction with the output. AI-generated validation reports are delivered instantly upon completion and cannot be "returned."
- Refund requests made more than thirty (30) calendar days after the purchase date. No exceptions will be made to this timeline.
- Credits that were automatically restored to your balance after a failed run (as described in Section 3). These credits were never lost - they are available in your balance and can be used for a new run.
- Accounts terminated for violation of the Terms of Service. If your account was terminated for cause (violation of acceptable use policy, fraudulent activity, or other policy violations), all remaining credits are forfeited as stated in the Terms of Service, and no monetary refund will be issued.
- Credits obtained through promotional offers, gift codes, or any non-purchased means. Only credits purchased directly through the Val8 payment system are eligible for monetary refunds.
- Duplicate refund requests. If a refund has already been processed for a specific transaction, a second refund request for the same transaction will be denied.
4.3 Partial Refunds for Partially Used Credit Packages
If you purchased a credit package and used some but not all of the credits within that package, you may request a refund for the unused portion only, subject to the following calculation:
- The refund amount will be calculated based on the per-credit rate of the package you purchased, multiplied by the number of unused credits.
- For example: if you purchased the "Growth" package (11 credits for $4.50 USD) and used 4 credits, your per-credit rate is $4.50 ÷ 11 = $0.4091 per credit. With 7 unused credits, your eligible refund amount would be 7 × $0.4091 = $2.86 USD (rounded to the nearest cent).
- The same proportional calculation applies to INR purchases.
This calculation ensures that you are refunded fairly based on what you actually paid per credit, not at a different rate.
4.4 How to Request a Monetary Refund
To request a monetary refund, send an email to founder@val8.app with the following information:
- Subject line: "Refund Request - [Your Account Email Address]"
- Your registered account email address (the email you used to create your Val8 account).
- The date of the purchase you are requesting a refund for.
- The credit package purchased (Try It Out, Starter, Growth, or Pro).
- The transaction ID or payment reference number, if available (this can be found in your payment confirmation email from Razorpay).
- The number of unused credits you are requesting a refund for (all unused credits in the package, or a specific number).
- The reason for your refund request (optional, but helpful for us to improve the Service).
Incomplete requests may delay processing. We may contact you at your registered email address to request additional information or clarification.
4.5 Refund Review and Approval
Upon receiving a complete refund request, we will:
- Acknowledge receipt of your request within two (2) business days via email.
- Verify your eligibility by checking your account's credit purchase history, credit usage history, and account standing.
- Approve or deny the request and notify you of the decision via email within five (5) business days of receiving the complete request.
If the request is approved, we will proceed with processing the refund as described in Section 4.6. If the request is denied, we will provide the specific reason for denial in our response.
4.6 Refund Processing Timeline
Approved monetary refunds will be processed as follows:
- We will initiate the refund through Razorpay within two (2) business days of approval.
- Once initiated, the refund will be credited back to your original payment method (the same credit card, debit card, UPI account, net banking account, or other payment method used for the original purchase) within five to seven (5-7) business days, depending on your bank or payment provider's processing times.
- The total time from refund approval to the money appearing in your account is therefore seven to nine (7-9) business days in typical cases.
Please note that the 5-7 business day timeline for the refund to appear in your account after initiation is determined by your bank or payment provider, not by Val8 or Razorpay. Some banks may process refunds faster; others may take the full 7 business days. In rare cases involving international transactions, the timeline may extend up to fourteen (14) business days.
"Business days" means Monday through Friday, excluding Indian public holidays and bank holidays.
4.7 Refund Currency
Refunds are always issued in the same currency as the original purchase:
- If you paid in Indian Rupees (INR), your refund will be in INR.
- If you paid in United States Dollars (USD), your refund will be in USD.
Refunds are always issued to the same payment method used for the original purchase. We cannot issue refunds to a different payment method, bank account, or currency than the one used for the original transaction. If the original payment method is no longer active (e.g., an expired credit card), please contact founder@val8.app and we will work with Razorpay to find a resolution, though this may cause additional processing delays.
4.8 Credit Balance Adjustment Upon Refund
When a monetary refund is approved and processed:
- The corresponding number of credits will be deducted from your Val8 account balance at the time the refund is initiated.
- If your account balance at the time of refund processing is lower than the number of credits being refunded (for example, because you used some credits between submitting the request and the refund being processed), the refund amount will be adjusted downward to reflect only the credits that are actually available and unused in your account at the time of processing.
- You will be notified of any adjustment before the refund is finalised.
This prevents a situation where a user requests a refund for unused credits but then uses those credits before the refund is processed, effectively receiving both the service and the refund.
5. Cancellation Policy
5.1 No Subscription to Cancel
Val8 does not operate on a subscription model. There is no monthly plan, annual plan, recurring billing, or auto-renewal of any kind. Every credit purchase is a one-time, user-initiated transaction.
Because there is no subscription, there is nothing to cancel. You will never be charged for credits you did not explicitly purchase. If you wish to stop using the Service, simply stop purchasing credits. No cancellation form, notice period, or termination request is required to stop future charges.
5.2 Account Deletion
If you wish to delete your Val8 account entirely (not just stop purchasing credits), you may do so through the account deletion feature within the Service or by contacting founder@val8.app. Account deletion is a separate action from requesting a refund and is governed by Section 9 of the Terms of Service.
If you wish to both delete your account and receive a refund for unused credits, you must submit the refund request before deleting your account. Once your account is deleted, we may not be able to verify your purchase and usage history, which could prevent us from processing a refund.
5.3 Unused Credits After Inactivity
Credits do not expire due to account inactivity. Even if you do not log in or use the Service for an extended period, your credits will remain in your account and will be available when you next log in. We will not deduct, expire, or forfeit credits due to inactivity alone.
However, if we decide to discontinue the Service entirely (permanent shutdown), we will provide at least thirty (30) calendar days' notice to all registered users via email, and we will offer refunds for all unused credits at the per-credit rate of each user's most recent purchase, regardless of when those credits were originally purchased. This commitment survives any other provision of this Policy.
6. Chargebacks and Payment Disputes
6.1 Contact Us First
If you believe a charge is incorrect or unauthorised, we strongly encourage you to contact us at founder@val8.app before initiating a chargeback or dispute with your bank or payment provider. In many cases, we can resolve the issue faster through a direct refund than through the formal chargeback process.
6.2 Chargeback Consequences
If you initiate a chargeback or payment dispute with your bank or payment provider without first contacting us and allowing us a reasonable opportunity to resolve the issue (at least five (5) business days from your initial contact), we reserve the right to:
- Immediately suspend your Val8 account pending resolution of the dispute.
- Forfeit any remaining credits in your account if the chargeback is found to be fraudulent or unjustified.
- Permanently terminate your account if we determine that the chargeback was initiated in bad faith (for example, filing a chargeback for a completed validation run that you received and used, or filing a chargeback after we already processed a direct refund for the same transaction).
We will cooperate fully with Razorpay and your bank or payment provider during the chargeback investigation process and will provide all relevant transaction records and evidence.
7. Fraudulent or Abusive Refund Behaviour
7.1 What Constitutes Abuse
We reserve the right to deny refund requests and take additional action if we detect a pattern of behaviour that indicates refund abuse or fraud, including but not limited to:
- Repeatedly purchasing credits, using the validation service, and then requesting refunds for "unused" credits - a pattern commonly known as "friendly fraud."
- Submitting multiple refund requests across different transactions within a short period without a legitimate reason.
- Creating multiple accounts to exploit refund eligibility windows.
- Providing false or misleading information in a refund request.
- Initiating chargebacks for transactions that were already refunded directly.
7.2 Consequences
If we determine, at our sole discretion, that refund abuse or fraud has occurred, we may:
- Deny the current and all future refund requests from your account.
- Forfeit all remaining credits in your account without refund.
- Permanently terminate your account.
- Report the activity to Razorpay and relevant fraud prevention services.
- Pursue any legal remedies available to us under applicable law.
8. Edge Cases Specific to a Credit-Based Model
8.1 Credits Purchased Under a Previous Pricing Structure
If you purchased credits at a certain price and we subsequently change the pricing of credit packages, your existing credits retain their full value - each credit still represents one credit toward a validation run, regardless of any price change. If you request a refund for these credits, the refund will be calculated at the per-credit rate you originally paid, not the current rate.
8.2 Promotional or Bonus Credits
If we offer promotional credits, bonus credits, or credits granted for any non-purchase reason (such as a goodwill gesture or a service disruption compensation), these credits are not eligible for monetary refund under any circumstances. They may be revoked at our discretion and are subject to any additional terms specified at the time they are granted.
8.3 Multiple Purchases with Mixed Usage
If you made multiple credit purchases and subsequently used some credits, the system considers credits to be consumed in first-in, first-out (FIFO) order - meaning credits from your earliest purchase are treated as consumed first. This matters for refund eligibility because the 30-day refund window applies to each purchase individually. If your earliest purchase is beyond the 30-day window but a more recent purchase is not, only the unused credits from the eligible (more recent) purchase qualify for a refund.
8.4 Currency Conversion and Exchange Rate Fluctuations
Refunds for international (USD) transactions are issued in USD at the original transaction amount (or the proportional amount for partial refunds). We are not responsible for any difference in value caused by exchange rate fluctuations between the date of purchase and the date the refund is credited to your account. Any currency conversion fees charged by your bank are your responsibility.
9. Changes to This Policy
We reserve the right to modify this Policy at any time. When we make changes, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this document. For material changes, we will notify registered users via the email address associated with their account.
Changes to this Policy will apply only to purchases made after the updated Policy takes effect. Purchases made under a previous version of this Policy will be governed by the version that was in effect at the time of purchase for the purposes of refund eligibility and conditions.
10. Contact Information
For all refund requests, questions about this Policy, or payment-related concerns:
Email: founder@val8.app
Registered Address: Yashraj Awasthi 127/669, Flat No. 301, W-Block, Panchsheel Dham, Keshav Nagar, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
We aim to respond to all refund-related inquiries within two (2) business days.
By purchasing credits and using Val8.app, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by this Refund & Cancellation Policy.