Refund & Cancellation Policy

Who we are

This policy is issued by the business that provides the services described on this website and that appears on your invoice and payment statement.

What this policy covers

This policy covers website design and web development services ordered from us: website design, custom website development, landing pages, e-commerce websites, website redesign, UX/UI design, performance optimisation, SEO optimisation, and maintenance and updates.

It applies alongside our Terms and Conditions and the written quotation accepted for your project. Where the signed project agreement says something different, the project agreement prevails. How and when work is actually delivered is described in our Delivery Policy.

The nature of our services

We do not sell physical products, downloadable templates or off-the-shelf software. Every project is bespoke work produced to a scope agreed in writing for one client, and it is charged as a service, not as a product.

Work is normally invoiced as a deposit before the project begins and the balance on completion, before final files are transferred. Because the work is made to order, refunds depend on how much of the agreed scope has already been carried out at the moment you cancel — not on whether the finished website is still in your possession.

Right of withdrawal for consumers

If you are a consumer (an individual ordering outside of any business activity) and you ordered at a distance, you have a legal right of withdrawal of 14 calendar days from the day the contract is concluded, under Article L221-18 of the French Consumer Code. You do not have to give a reason.

Two points matter in practice:

• If you ask us to start work during the 14-day period, you may still withdraw, but you must pay for the work already carried out, in proportion to what was agreed (Article L221-25).
• Once the service has been fully performed with your express prior agreement, and you acknowledged that you would lose the right of withdrawal on completion, the right no longer applies.

To withdraw, send us a clear statement by email to contact@smartcodex.site before the 14 days expire. We will confirm receipt in writing and refund any amount owed within 14 days of that confirmation.

If you are ordering as a business or professional, this statutory right of withdrawal does not apply. The cancellation terms below apply instead.

Cancellation by you

You may cancel a project at any time by writing to us. What happens next depends on the stage reached:

• Before any work has started — the project is cancelled at no cost and any deposit already paid is refunded in full.
• After work has started — the work carried out up to the cancellation date remains payable. Any deposit is applied against that work. If the deposit exceeds the value of the work done, the difference is refunded to you; if the work done exceeds the deposit, we invoice the balance.
• After final delivery — the service has been performed and the fee is not refundable. Defects in our own work are corrected under section 10 rather than refunded.

On request, we will provide a written summary of the work completed and the stages it covers, so the amount retained is clear and verifiable.

Cancellation by us

We may end a project in writing if the scope cannot reasonably be delivered, if required content, access or approvals are not provided after repeated reminders, or if invoices remain unpaid past their due date.

If we cancel for a reason that is not your fault, you are refunded every amount paid for work not yet carried out. If we cancel because of unpaid invoices or prolonged lack of input from your side, the work completed to that point remains payable.

What is not refundable

• Work already carried out and evidenced at the date of cancellation.
• Third-party costs already incurred on your behalf — domain names, hosting, paid platform subscriptions, premium plugins, licensed fonts or stock assets. These are purchased from third parties under their own terms and we cannot recover them.
• Fees for a service that has been fully performed and delivered.
• Dissatisfaction with results that were never promised — in particular search engine rankings, traffic volumes, conversion rates or revenue, none of which we guarantee. This is stated in our Terms and repeated here so there is no ambiguity.

How refunds are issued

Approved refunds are issued to the original payment method used for the order. We do not refund to a different card, account or person.

Refunds are processed within 14 days of the date we confirm the refund in writing. Once processed on our side, the time for the money to appear on your statement depends on your bank or card issuer and is outside our control. No fee is deducted for issuing a refund.

How to request a cancellation or refund

Email contact@smartcodex.site with:

• the name the project was ordered under, and the invoice or quotation reference;
• the date of the order;
• whether you are cancelling the project or requesting a refund, and briefly why.

We acknowledge every request within 2 business days and give a decision, with reasons, within 14 days.

If you are unhappy with the work

If something we delivered is defective or does not match the agreed scope, tell us first. Defects in our own work reported within a reasonable period after launch are corrected at no additional cost, as set out in our Terms.

Please contact us before opening a dispute or chargeback with your bank or card issuer. Nearly every problem is faster to solve directly, and we would rather fix the work than argue about the payment. Raising a dispute does not remove your statutory rights, and nothing in this policy limits the mandatory consumer rights available to you under French law.

If we cannot reach an agreement, you may refer the matter to a consumer mediator or to the competent French courts, as described in our Terms and Conditions.