Billing & Refund Terms

Last updated: 3 November 2026 · These form part of our Terms of Service.

1. Tiers and prices

What each tier includes (including the monthly allowances for the assistant and email scanning, storage and calendars) is shown on our pricing section and in Settings → Subscription, and may be adjusted as described in section 6. Prices are shown in pounds sterling (GBP) and include VAT if we are required to charge it. The price shown to you when you subscribe is the total you pay, with no hidden fees. Your bank or card issuer may charge its own fees (for example, foreign transaction fees) which we don't control.

2. Payment

You don't need to pay to use Deskmate: the Desk tier is free. Autopilot Plus is paid for through Stripe, our payment processor. We never see or store your full card number; Stripe does, and it keeps it under its own privacy policy and security standards. By subscribing to Autopilot Plus you authorise us (through Stripe) to take payment using the payment method you provide, now and for each renewal until you cancel. We will only ever ask for payment details inside Deskmate (Settings → Subscription), and never by a link in an email.

3. Free trial

• New accounts get a 14-day free trial of Autopilot Plus. One trial per person: we keep a one-way, scrambled (hashed) version of your email address, and of any mailbox you connect to Deskmate, so that we can recognise a repeat trial. We may refuse a trial where we reasonably believe someone is creating multiple accounts to get repeat trials, and a mailbox that is already connected to another Deskmate account cannot be connected to a second one.
• We don't ask for a payment method to start the trial, and you won't be charged when it ends.
• When the trial ends you move to the free Desk tier, with nothing deleted. If you chose to receive marketing emails, we email you shortly before the trial ends and again when it has. If you didn't, we send you one plain service email to say the trial has ended. None of these emails contain a payment link: they tell you how to upgrade from inside Deskmate.
• If you add payment details during the trial, Autopilot Plus continues without a break and your first payment is taken straight away.

4. Automatic renewal

• Your subscription renews automatically at the end of each billing period (monthly or yearly) for the same period, at the then-current price, until you cancel.
• We email you a reminder 7 days before each academic-year renewal, and give you notice of any price change as set out in section 6. Please keep your email address up to date. If your email is out of date or blocked, we're not able to reach you but the cancellation and refund rights below still apply.
• If you'd rather not renew, cancel before the renewal date.

5. How to cancel

• Go to Settings → Subscription → Cancel subscription. It takes a few clicks, needs no phone call, and we won't ask you to jump through hoops or justify it.
• If you can't get into your account, email [SUPPORT EMAIL] from your account's email address and we'll cancel it for you within 2 working days (and treat the request as made on the day you emailed).
• Cancelling stops future payments. You keep access until the end of the period you have already paid for (unless you ask for a refund under section 8, in which case access ends when the refund is processed).
• Uninstalling, deleting the app, or simply not logging in does not cancel your subscription.

6. Changes to price and to what each tier includes

• We may change our prices. We'll give you at least 30 days' written notice by email and in the app before any increase applies to you. The new price only applies from your next renewal after the notice period.
• If you don't want to pay the new price, cancel before the renewal and you won't be charged it.
• If you're on a yearly plan, a price increase won't affect you until your next yearly renewal.
• Some price changes apply immediately without notice only where they are the result of a change in tax rates (for example VAT) or are a reduction in price.
• We may change the monthly allowances and limits for each tier (for example, the number of assistant prompts or emails scanned). If we reduce what Autopilot Plus includes during a period you've already paid for in a way that is against your interests, section 8.3 applies.
• Any special price, promo code or discount you signed up with applies only as described when you received it.

7. Promo codes and discounts

• Promo codes may give a percentage or fixed discount, or extra free time. The offer details (what it covers, how long it lasts, and whether it applies to renewals) will be shown when you apply the code.
• Codes have no cash value, can't be combined unless we say so, and can't be applied after payment has been taken.
• If a discount ends, we'll tell you and show the full price before it applies to you, as for any price change.
• We may withdraw a code that has been abused or published in error, but we will not remove a discount that you have already been given and that was promised to apply for a stated period.

8. Refunds and your right to cancel

8.1 Your 14-day right to cancel

If you're a consumer, the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 give you 14 days from the day your subscription contract starts to cancel it without giving a reason. Because Deskmate starts immediately, you ask us to begin the Service straight away when you sign up for the trial. If you cancel after the Service has started, the law allows us to charge for what you have used up to that point.

Our policy goes further than the law requires:

To request a refund, email [SUPPORT EMAIL] stating your account email. You don't need to use any particular wording. Requests made in the app or by email count from the moment you send them.

8.2 How refunds are paid

• Refunds go back to the original payment method through Stripe. We won't ask you to accept credit or vouchers instead.
• We start the refund within 5 working days of agreeing it, and in any case within 14 days of your request. After we've sent it, it can take 5–10 working days to appear on your statement, depending on your bank.
• If the original card has been closed or replaced, Stripe will generally still route the refund to your account; if it can't, we'll arrange another way with you.

8.3 Other times you can get money back

Whatever else is in this policy, you may be entitled to a refund, partial refund or credit in these cases:

• We charged you wrongly or twice, or charged the wrong amount (full refund of the error, see section 12).
• You were charged after cancelling or after the trial ended and you had cancelled in time (full refund of the charge).
• You didn't get the Service you paid for. If the Service was materially unavailable, or a core feature you paid for stopped working and we couldn't fix it within a reasonable time, you're entitled to a pro-rata refund or service credit for the affected period, and to your statutory remedies under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (repair, price reduction or refund as applicable).
• We ended your account other than for your serious breach, or we shut the Service down: pro-rata refund of any unused paid period (see Terms section 12).
• We made a significant change against your interests (such as removing a core feature or a price rise within a paid period): pro-rata refund if you cancel within 30 days of being told.
• Someone else used your payment details without your permission to subscribe: full refund once we confirm the facts (section 11).

Nothing in this policy limits your statutory rights.

8.4 What isn't refundable

Beyond the cases above, we generally don't give refunds for: periods of a plan you chose not to use; forgetting to cancel before renewal where you were sent the reminder and the 14-day window in section 8.1 has passed; or accounts we close for serious breach of the Acceptable Use Policy. We'll still consider genuine hardship or exceptional circumstances individually and fairly.

9. Failed payments

• If a payment fails (for example, because a card expired or has insufficient funds), we'll tell you by email (and in the app) and retry it a few times over about 7 days.
• During this period you keep access. You'll see a prompt to update your payment method, which you can do securely via Settings → Subscription.
• If we still can't collect payment, your subscription is paused. You can't use the Service until you pay, but we keep your data for 60 days so you can restart by paying the outstanding amount and not lose your content.
• Failed or reversed payments don't create a debt beyond the unpaid subscription period you've actually used. We won't add penalty fees. We may use Stripe's automatic card-updater services to refresh expired card details; you can ask us to opt out by email.

10. Taxes and currency

Prices include any VAT or similar sales tax that we're required to charge, calculated using your billing country. We'll show the tax breakdown on your receipt/invoice. We email you a receipt after every payment, and you can download receipts and invoices from Settings → Subscription → Manage (Stripe). If you need an invoice in a particular format, email us. Charges are in GBP. If your card is in another currency, your bank sets the exchange rate and may add fees.

11. Unauthorised or mistaken payments

• If you don't recognise a charge, check it against your receipts first. The payment descriptor on your statement will read [DESKMATE / STRIPE DESCRIPTOR].
• If someone used your card or account without permission, tell us and your bank straight away. We'll cooperate with the bank and with Stripe, cancel the subscription, and refund the unauthorised payments once we've confirmed the facts.
• If we made a billing mistake (wrong amount, duplicate charge, charge after cancellation), we'll refund the mistaken amount in full and fix the cause. You don't need to prove anything beyond telling us what happened. We'll check our records and Stripe's.

12. If you think a payment is wrong: how disputes work

Step 1: tell us

Email [SUPPORT EMAIL] with your account email and, if possible, the date and amount of the payment. Don't worry if you don't have all the details; we can look them up.

Step 2: we investigate

• We'll acknowledge within 3 working days.
• We'll give you a proper answer within 14 days of your first message. It will say what we found, what we'll do (including any refund), and why.
• We'll look at our records, Stripe's records, and your account activity. If you tell us something is wrong we'll assume good faith unless the evidence clearly shows otherwise.
• For clear mistakes (duplicate or wrong amount, charges after cancelling), we'll refund first and investigate the cause afterwards.

Step 3: if you're not satisfied

Reply asking for a review and we'll look at it again, ideally with a fresh pair of eyes. We'll reply within 14 days with a final decision in writing.

Step 4: other routes (always available)

• Your bank or card issuer. You have the right to ask your bank to look into a payment, for example under a card chargeback scheme or section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 where it applies. You can do this at any time and don't have to complain to us first. We'd appreciate you giving us the chance to put it right, because it's usually faster, but we won't treat you badly for going to your bank.
• Mediation or an ADR scheme. We'll consider in good faith any reasonable proposal for mediation or an approved alternative dispute resolution provider.
• Citizens Advice consumer service (citizensadvice.org.uk, 0808 223 1133) offers free advice on consumer rights.
• The courts. You may bring a claim in the courts as described in section 14 of the Terms, including the small claims track for lower-value disputes.

Chargebacks

If you start a chargeback or dispute with your bank, Stripe will tell us and we'll respond with the information it needs, which usually includes your account details, sign-up and payment records, and how and when you used the Service. We may pause your account while the dispute is open. If the bank rules in your favour, we'll treat the payment as refunded and end the related subscription. If we've already refunded the payment directly, please tell your bank so you aren't refunded twice. Using a chargeback to get a refund for a legitimate, correctly-billed charge that you didn't first ask us to review may lead us to close the account, but we'll never refuse you a refund you are legally entitled to.

13. Service problems and credits

• If Deskmate is unavailable or substantially unusable for more than 24 consecutive hours in a billing period (other than for planned maintenance we announced beforehand, or because of your own equipment or connection), you can ask for a credit or refund of the affected days. We'll give it to you without you having to prove loss.
• If a feature stops working because a third-party provider (for example, an email or calendar provider, or an organisation blocking access) changes or withdraws its service, we'll try to restore it. If we can't within a reasonable time and the feature was a main reason you subscribed, you're entitled to a pro-rata refund of the affected period on request.
• Assistant answers being imperfect is not a fault. See the Terms about relying on AI output.

14. Admin and complimentary accounts

We may give some accounts (for example, administrators, testers or partners) free access. This is a gift at our discretion, doesn't create any right to continue and can be withdrawn on reasonable notice. Free accounts can't be sold or transferred.

15. Closing your account and your data

• When you cancel Autopilot Plus, or your trial ends, you move to the free Desk tier at the end of the period you've paid for. Nothing is deleted: your to-dos, notes, files and settings stay in your account. A few Autopilot Plus features stop (for example, continuous email scanning and two-way calendar sync) and allowances are lower, and files beyond the Desk allowance stay where they are but you can't add new ones until you are back under it.
• You can export your data at any time.
• You can delete your account yourself at any time in Settings → Your data & account → Delete my account. It cancels any subscription and deletes your content straight away. Deleting does not itself refund anything: ask for a refund under section 8. If you email us to delete it, we'll do so and process any refund you're entitled to at the same time. We keep billing and tax records (not your content) for as long as the law requires, which is currently 6 years.

16. Contact for billing

[SUPPORT EMAIL] · [POSTAL ADDRESS]

Please include your account email so we can find your account quickly. Never send us your full card number or CVC. We'll never ask for them.