Refund & Cancellation Policy
Last updated: 10 August 2026
This policy explains when a refund is available across each stage of the IE Sourcing process — from your Free Sourcing Direction Check through to first order management. It's written to be read alongside our Terms of Service, which you agree to at checkout.
The short version: the Free Direction Check costs nothing, so there's nothing to refund. Paid Quote Packs and Assessments are refundable in full if you cancel before we've started supplier outreach on your project — once our team has begun work, the fee covers real time and access to our China-side sourcing network, so it becomes non-refundable. Third-party costs paid to factories on your behalf (samples, tooling, deposits) follow the same rule: refundable before they're committed, not after.
1. Free Sourcing Direction Check
This step is free. No payment is taken, so no refund applies.
2. Starter Supplier Quote Pack & Detailed Sourcing Assessment
These are paid, one-off deliverables produced by our China-based sourcing team.
- Before work begins: full refund available if you cancel within 24 hours of payment and before we've started contacting suppliers on your behalf.
- Once work has begun: the fee is non-refundable. It covers supplier outreach, negotiation and comparison work already carried out, regardless of whether you ultimately proceed to a production order.
- Missed turnaround: if your Quote Pack or Assessment isn't delivered within the working-day timeframe stated at the time of purchase, and we haven't given you a clear reason for the delay, you can request a full refund or choose to let us continue — your choice.
- Scope disputes: if the delivered document doesn't reflect what was agreed in your brief, tell us within 7 days of delivery. We'll revise it at no extra cost; a partial or full refund is considered case-by-case if we genuinely didn't deliver what was scoped.
3. Sample & Private Label Development Support
Our service fee for coordinating samples follows the same rule as above — refundable before work starts, non-refundable once we've begun coordinating with your chosen supplier. Factory-side costs (sample charges, courier fees, printing plates, tooling, moulds, testing, certification) are third-party costs paid on your behalf and are non-refundable once committed, as we cannot recover these from the supplier.
4. First Commercial Order & Order Management
Once a production order is placed, deposits and payments made to the factory are governed by that factory's own terms and are non-refundable once production has started — this is standard across Chinese manufacturing and outside our control. Our order management service fee is refundable only for the portion of work not yet carried out at the point of cancellation.
5. Your Right to Cancel (UK Distance Selling)
Under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, consumers buying services online normally have a 14-day cooling-off period. Because our paid services (Quote Packs, Assessments, sample coordination) begin promptly at your request, you'll be asked to expressly confirm at checkout that you want work to start immediately and that you understand you lose the standard 14-day right to cancel once that work is under way. This doesn't affect your other rights under UK consumer law.
6. How to Request a Refund
Email us with your order reference and the reason for your request. We aim to respond within 1 working day and, where a refund is due, process it to your original payment method within 5–10 working days.
7. Chargebacks
If something's gone wrong, please contact us directly before raising a card dispute with your bank — we can resolve most issues faster than a chargeback process, and it avoids unnecessary fees and delays on both sides.
8. Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The version in effect at the time of your purchase is the one that applies to your order.
This policy is provided as general guidance for our clients and does not constitute legal advice. It's drafted in line with standard UK practice for online service businesses, but we'd recommend a solicitor reviews the final wording — particularly Section 5 — before it's relied on as a binding legal document.