Refund, Cancellation & Service Policy

1. IMPORTANT: WEBSITE DOES NOT ACCEPT DIRECT PAYMENTS

The Innoscientica Website does not presently operate as an online payment platform for its professional services.

The Website may be used to:

• Learn about Innoscientica;
• Submit an enquiry;
• Request a consultation;
• Discuss a proposed research project;
• Request a proposal or quotation; or
• Initiate a professional engagement.

After discussions regarding the scope, requirements, deliverables, timelines and applicable fees, Innoscientica may provide payment instructions, including designated bank-account details, through an authorised communication channel.

A client may then make payment directly to the designated bank account.

2. WHEN A SERVICE ENGAGEMENT IS CONFIRMED

Payment alone should not be interpreted as creating an engagement where the scope of services has not been mutually confirmed.

A professional engagement generally becomes confirmed when:

1. The proposed scope of work has been discussed;
2. The applicable service, deliverables and commercial terms have been communicated;
3. The client has confirmed acceptance through email or another authorised written communication;
4. Payment instructions have been provided by Innoscientica; and
5. The agreed payment has been received by Innoscientica.

Depending upon the nature of the engagement, a separate proposal, quotation, service agreement, engagement letter or statement of work may additionally govern the relationship.

Where such a document exists, its specific terms will prevail to the extent of any inconsistency with this Policy.

3. CONSULTATION CANCELLATION AND RESCHEDULING

Where Innoscientica provides a paid consultation, the applicable consultation fee and cancellation terms will be communicated to the client before payment.

3.1 Cancellation Before Confirmation

If a consultation has not yet been confirmed and no payment has been received, the client may cancel the request without a refund issue arising.

3.2 Cancellation After Payment

Once a paid consultation has been confirmed and resources or professional time have been allocated, the consultation fee may become non-refundable.

Where reasonably possible, Innoscientica may permit the client to reschedule the consultation to another mutually agreed date and time.

Rescheduling is subject to:

• Availability;
• Reasonable advance notice; and
• The nature of the consultation.

Repeated rescheduling or failure to attend may be treated as cancellation.

4. RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICE CANCELLATION

Research and professional projects frequently require Innoscientica to allocate personnel, researchers, scientific consultants, statisticians, writers, project managers, technical resources or external specialists.

Accordingly, once a project has been confirmed and payment has been received, Innoscientica may immediately begin:

• Resource allocation;
• Personnel assignment;
• Hiring or engaging project-specific resources;
• Scheduling;
• Research planning;
• Literature or technical preparation;
• Data or methodological assessment;
• Project setup;
• Procurement or third-party arrangements; and/or
• Other preparatory work.

Because these commitments may be made specifically for the client's project, payments received for a confirmed project are generally non-refundable.

5. NON-REFUNDABLE WORK AND RESOURCE COMMITMENTS

Once payment has been received for a confirmed project, Innoscientica may allocate or engage resources specifically for that project.

Such resources may include:

• Researchers;
• Scientific consultants;
• Biostatisticians;
• Subject-matter experts;
• Academic consultants;
• Editors;
• Technical personnel;
• Project managers;
• External specialists;
• Software or technology resources; and
• Other project-specific resources.

Where Innoscientica has incurred or committed costs, assigned personnel or commenced work based upon the client's confirmation, the corresponding amount will generally be non-refundable.

This applies even if the client subsequently decides not to proceed with the project, changes the research direction, delays the project, becomes unavailable or otherwise elects to discontinue the engagement.

6. REFUND ELIGIBILITY

As a general principle, Innoscientica does not provide refunds for payments received after a professional project has been confirmed and project resources have been allocated or work has commenced.

A refund may be considered only in exceptional circumstances, including where:

• Innoscientica is unable to commence the agreed service for reasons attributable solely to Innoscientica;
• Innoscientica determines that the agreed service cannot reasonably be delivered;
• A duplicate payment has been made;
• An amount has been paid in error; or
• A refund is otherwise required by applicable law.

Any refund will be assessed based upon the particular circumstances of the engagement.

Where work has already commenced or third-party/resource commitments have been incurred, any eligible refund may be reduced by amounts reasonably attributable to work performed, resources committed or non-recoverable costs.

7. NO REFUND AFTER COMMENCEMENT OF WORK

Once work has commenced on a confirmed project, the client will generally not be entitled to a refund merely because the client:

• Changes their mind;
• Changes the research topic;
• Changes the project requirements;
• Decides not to publish;
• Decides not to continue with the research;
• Is dissatisfied with an independent third-party decision;
• Does not receive expected research results;
• Does not receive journal acceptance;
• Does not receive funding;
• Does not obtain institutional approval;
• Becomes unavailable;
• Delays providing information or materials; or
• Chooses to discontinue the project.

The reason is that Innoscientica may already have incurred professional time, personnel costs, resource commitments and other project-specific expenses.

8. NO REFUND FOR THIRD-PARTY FEES AND EXPENSES

Certain projects may require payments to third parties, including:

• Government authorities;
• Regulatory authorities;
• Journals;
• Publishers;
• Conference organisers;
• Research databases;
• Laboratories;
• Testing facilities;
• External consultants;
• Statistical or technical service providers;
• Software providers; or
• Other third-party service providers.

Where Innoscientica has paid, committed or become liable to pay such third-party costs on behalf of or for the benefit of a client, those amounts may be non-refundable.

Third-party fees may also be subject to the refund and cancellation policies of the relevant third party.

Innoscientica cannot guarantee or control refunds issued by third-party organisations.

9. GOVERNMENT AND REGULATORY FEES

Government, statutory, regulatory, filing, application, registration, examination or other official fees paid or committed on behalf of a client are generally non-refundable once submitted or incurred, except where the relevant authority itself provides a refund.

Any applicable government or statutory fee is separate from Innoscientica's professional fee unless expressly stated otherwise.

10. PAYMENT CONFIRMATION

A payment will be treated as received when the relevant amount has been successfully credited to the bank account designated by Innoscientica, subject to verification.

Clients should retain proof of payment until the payment has been acknowledged by Innoscientica.

Innoscientica may request:

• Transaction reference;
• Bank confirmation;
• Payment receipt;
• Date of payment;
• Amount transferred; and/or
• Other information reasonably necessary to reconcile a payment.

11. PAYMENT FAILURES

Because Innoscientica generally receives project payments through direct bank transfer rather than an online payment gateway, payment failures may include:

• Incorrect bank details;
• Insufficient funds;
• Bank rejection;
• Incorrect beneficiary information;
• Transaction limits;
• Delayed bank processing;
• Failed transfer;
• Reversed transaction; or
• Other banking or technical issues.

A project will not be treated as fully confirmed until the agreed payment has been successfully received and verified.

If a payment is reversed, rejected or subsequently not received, Innoscientica may suspend commencement or continuation of the project until payment is successfully received.

12. BANK DETAILS AND PAYMENT SECURITY

For security reasons, clients should make payments only to the bank-account details officially communicated by an authorised representative of Innoscientica.

If you receive a request to change bank-account details, you should independently verify the change with an authorised Innoscientica representative before making payment.

Innoscientica will not be responsible for payments made to fraudulent, unauthorised or third-party accounts resulting from failure to independently verify changed payment instructions.

13. CANCELLATION BY THE CLIENT BEFORE WORK COMMENCES

If a client requests cancellation after payment but before substantive work has commenced, Innoscientica may assess the request on a case-by-case basis.

The assessment may take into account:

• Whether resources have already been allocated;
• Whether personnel have been hired or engaged;
• Whether project preparation has commenced;
• Whether third-party costs have been incurred;
• Whether project capacity has been reserved; and
• Whether any other non-recoverable commitment has been made.

Accordingly, payment does not automatically become refundable merely because the client requests cancellation before receiving the first deliverable.

14. CANCELLATION BY INNOSCIENTICA

Innoscientica may cancel or discontinue a proposed or ongoing engagement where reasonably necessary, including where:

• The project cannot be lawfully or ethically undertaken;
• Required information or approvals are unavailable;
• The client provides materially inaccurate information;
• The client requests unlawful or unethical activity;
• The client materially breaches the applicable agreement;
• Required resources become unavailable;
• Continuing the project would create a material conflict of interest;
• The project requirements materially change beyond the agreed scope; or
• Circumstances beyond Innoscientica's reasonable control prevent continuation.

Where Innoscientica cancels a project for reasons attributable solely to Innoscientica and the service has not been substantially performed, the refund, if any, will be determined having regard to work completed, resources committed and applicable contractual terms.

15. RESCHEDULING AND PROJECT DELAYS

Research projects may require timelines to change due to:

• Client delays;
• Delayed data or documents;
• Institutional approvals;
• Ethics approvals;
• Third-party dependencies;
• Participant recruitment;
• Laboratory or technical requirements;
• Journal or publisher timelines;
• Regulatory processes; or
• Other circumstances outside Innoscientica's reasonable control.

A delay does not automatically create a right to a refund.

Where reasonably possible, Innoscientica will work with the client to revise the project timeline.

16. CLIENT-INITIATED CHANGES

After a project has been confirmed, a client may request changes to:

• Research objectives;
• Scope;
• Methodology;
• Deliverables;
• Timeline;
• Number of outputs;
• Publication target;
• Data requirements; or
• Other project parameters.

Innoscientica will assess whether the requested change falls within the agreed scope.

Additional work may require:

• Revised fees;
• Additional resources;
• Revised timelines; or
• A separate written confirmation.

Previously paid amounts will not automatically become refundable because the client subsequently changes the project requirements.

17. NO REFUND BASED ON THIRD-PARTY DECISIONS

Innoscientica will not generally provide refunds where the expected outcome depends upon an independent third party, including:

• Journal editors;
• Peer reviewers;
• Publishers;
• Conference organisers;
• Universities;
• Ethics committees;
• Institutional review boards;
• Government authorities;
• Grant-making organisations;
• Regulatory authorities; or
• Other independent decision-makers.

Examples include rejection of a manuscript, rejection of a grant application, refusal of institutional approval or failure to obtain a desired research outcome.

Such decisions are outside Innoscientica's control.

18. CLIENT RESPONSIBILITY

The client is responsible for providing accurate, complete and timely information, documents, approvals and instructions necessary for the project.

Failure to provide required information may result in:

• Delay;
• Additional costs;
• Revised timelines;
• Suspension of work; or
• Cancellation of the project.

Such circumstances generally do not create a refund entitlement where Innoscientica has already committed resources to the project.

19. NO-REFUND CIRCUMSTANCES

Subject to applicable law, payments will generally not be refundable where:

• The project has been confirmed and resources have been allocated;
• Work has commenced;
• Project-specific personnel have been hired or engaged;
• Third-party costs have been incurred or committed;
• The client changes their mind after confirmation;
• The client changes the research topic or scope;
• The client fails to provide required information;
• The client delays the project;
• The client becomes unavailable;
• The client decides not to continue;
• A manuscript is rejected by a journal;
• A conference rejects an abstract or paper;
• A grant application is unsuccessful;
• An ethics committee or institution does not approve a project;
• A regulatory authority does not provide an expected approval;
• Research results differ from expectations;
• The project does not produce the anticipated commercial or academic outcome;
• The client is dissatisfied with an independent third-party decision; or
• The client fails to use or implement the deliverables after they have been provided in accordance with the agreed scope.

This list is illustrative and does not limit the application of the other provisions of this Policy or the applicable service agreement.

20. REFUND PROCESS

Where a refund is approved, the client may be required to provide:

• Name;
• Project reference;
• Payment details;
• Transaction reference;
• Proof of payment; and
• Other information reasonably required to process the refund.

Refunds, where approved, will ordinarily be processed through the original payment route or another lawful method agreed between the parties.

Bank processing times may vary.

21. TAXES, BANK CHARGES AND TRANSACTION COSTS

Where a refund is approved, applicable taxes, statutory deductions, bank charges or non-recoverable transaction costs may be treated in accordance with applicable law and the terms of the relevant engagement.

Any GST or other tax treatment will be handled in accordance with applicable tax requirements.

22. PROFESSIONAL SERVICES ARE NOT GOODS

Innoscientica's services are primarily professional, research, scientific, consultancy, academic and knowledge-based services.

The nature of these services means that substantial work, professional time and resource commitments may occur before a final deliverable is provided.

Accordingly, refund eligibility is assessed based on:

• The stage of the project;
• Work already performed;
• Resources committed;
• Third-party expenses;
• The applicable engagement terms; and
• Applicable law.

23. SEPARATE SERVICE AGREEMENTS

For larger or specialised projects, Innoscientica may enter into a separate:

• Service Agreement;
• Engagement Letter;
• Statement of Work;
• Research Consultancy Agreement;
• Proposal;
• Quotation; or
• Other written contract.

Where a separate written agreement contains specific cancellation or refund provisions, those provisions will prevail over this Policy to the extent of any inconsistency.

24. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

Innoscientica may update this Policy from time to time to reflect:

• Changes in services;
• Changes in payment practices;
• Changes in technology;
• Changes in applicable law; or
• Changes in business operations.

The updated version will be published on the Website with the revised “Last Updated” date.

25. GOVERNING LAW

This Policy shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India. Subject to applicable law and the terms of any specific Service Agreement, the courts of competent jurisdiction situated in Pune, Maharashtra, India, shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute, claim or matter arising out of or in connection with this Policy.

26. CONTACT US

For questions regarding cancellation, payment or refund matters, please contact:

INNOSCIENTICA RESEARCH PRIVATE LIMITED CIN: U74909PN2025PTC241889 Email: admin@innoscientica.com General Contact: info@innoscientica.com Address:

Flat No. 203, A Wing, Sai Shraddha Apartment, Ambegaon BK, Haveli, Pune, Maharashtra – 411046, India.

Telephone: +91 8806246444

Website: https://innoscientica.com