Refunds, Cancellations & Dispute Resolution

01 · Cancellations

Cancelling a booking

Either party can cancel a confirmed booking through the platform. The cancellation window depends on the provider's settings and how much notice is given; the window that applies, and whether any part of the price is non-refundable, are shown before you confirm.

If a pet owner or other client cancels an online booking

• Before the cancellation window (24 hours before the appointment unless the provider has set a different window, shown at booking), you can cancel in the app. If you paid in full at booking, the provider's price is refunded in full; if you paid a deposit, the deposit is refunded; if you were to pay after your appointment, nothing is charged.
• The facilitation fee is not refunded when you cancel. It is the component of the price that covers the online booking service, which is complete when your booking is confirmed, so it is kept even if you cancel in time. This does not affect your rights under the Australian Consumer Law (see section 04).
• Inside the cancellation window, you cannot cancel in the app. Message the provider through the platform. The provider decides whether to refund all, half or none of the provider's price, or, if you were to pay after your appointment, whether to charge all, half or none of it.
• A request the provider has not yet accepted can be withdrawn at any time. Nothing is charged for it.
• Rescheduling outside the cancellation window moves your booking, with its payments intact, to the new time.

If a client cancels any other booking

• Cancel with reasonable notice (the notice window is shown at booking) for a full refund of any amount paid.
• Late cancellations may incur a cancellation fee that reflects the provider's reserved time. The fee, if any, is shown before you confirm.

If a booking request is declined or not answered

• Where a provider reviews requests before accepting them, your card is saved but not charged. If the provider declines, or does not respond by the reply-by time shown, the request is automatically declined, nothing is charged, and the authority to charge your card for that request ends.

If a clinic cancels (Locum Hub)

• A clinic that cancels a confirmed shift outside the agreed window may be charged a cancellation fee, and the provider may be entitled to part of the agreed fee for the late cancellation.

If a provider cancels

• Providers should cancel only where genuinely necessary, and as early as possible. Repeated late cancellations may affect a provider's standing on the platform.
• Where a provider cancels, or does not attend, the client is refunded in full, including the facilitation fee, and any amount not yet charged is not charged.

02 · Refunds

How refunds work

Refunds are made to your original payment method through our payment processor (Stripe). Processing time depends on your bank.

When you are refunded

• You cancel an online booking before the applicable cancellation window: the amount you paid for the provider's service is refunded (the facilitation fee is not; see below).
• The provider cancels, does not attend, or the service you booked is not delivered: everything you paid is refunded, including the facilitation fee.
• A service is not delivered with reasonable care and skill, or otherwise fails to meet a consumer guarantee under the Australian Consumer Law: you are entitled to the remedies that law provides.
• You were charged in error (for example, a visit was marked complete but not delivered): the amount charged in error is refunded, including any facilitation fee charged in error.

The facilitation fee on a refund

Every booking a client makes online through Qwoll includes a facilitation fee as a component of the price. It is charged when the booking is confirmed and:

• is not refunded when you cancel, whether before or inside the cancellation window, or when the provider agrees to refund some or all of their price after a late cancellation;
• is refunded when the provider cancels or does not attend, when the service you booked is not delivered, or when you were charged in error; and
• is never charged for a request the provider declines or does not answer by the reply-by time.

Bookings a provider enters for you carry no facilitation fee. Nothing in this section limits a remedy you have under the Australian Consumer Law or other law that cannot be excluded.

If an automatic payment fails

If a charge to your saved card after your appointment fails, we retry it automatically where the decline is temporary and send you a link to pay another way. The amount remains owed to the provider. See the Platform Terms of Service, "If a payment fails".

03 · Disputes

Resolving a dispute

If something goes wrong with a booking, we use a simple two-step process.

Step 1: raise it with the other party

Most issues are resolved directly. Use in-app messaging to raise the issue with the clinic, provider, or pet owner within a reasonable time of the booking.

Step 2: escalate to Qwoll

If it is not resolved, either party can escalate to Qwoll through the platform. We review the booking record and the parties' accounts and determine what should happen within the platform: for example, whether a cancellation fee applies, whether a visit was correctly marked complete, or whether the provider's price, the facilitation fee, or both should be refunded under this policy. Because the provider is the merchant of record and Qwoll does not hold the funds, any refund of the provider's price is processed against the provider's own payment account, and Qwoll adjusts only the facilitation fee. Qwoll's determination is administrative and binding within the platform (for example, on platform standing or fees); it does not affect your legal rights, including under the Australian Consumer Law.

04 · Your consumer rights

Australian Consumer Law

This policy operates in addition to, and does not exclude or limit, your rights under the Australian Consumer Law or any other law that cannot be excluded. Where the Australian Consumer Law gives you a stronger remedy than this policy, that law prevails, including where this policy says the facilitation fee is not refunded. Qwoll is a marketplace and is not a party to the booking between users; the contract for the service is between you and the user you book or are booked by. The facilitation fee is a component of the price you pay your provider for a booking made through Qwoll; it pays for the platform's booking and payment service, and nothing in this policy limits any remedy you have if that service fails.

Contact

Get help

Cancellations, refunds, or disputes: support@qwoll.com.au, or through in-app messaging.