Refund Policy

1. Scope

This policy describes refunds for purchases made directly from Armstrong K9 Registry (“we”, “our”). It does not cover marketplace dog purchases, storefront purchases, and transporter bookings which are governed by the Escrow & Dispute Resolution section of our Terms of Service.

2. Subscriptions (Breeder & Buyer Pass)

• 7-day no-questions refund window: Any new monthly or annual subscription is fully refundable within 7 calendar days of purchase, provided fewer than 5 included registrations have been used.
• Pro-rated cancellation: After the 7-day window we do not pro-rate annual plans. You may cancel auto-renewal at any time from the Billing page; the plan will remain active through the paid period, then expire.
• Auto-renew failure: If a renewal payment fails, the plan is converted to its 30-day month-to-month equivalent until the payment method is updated, then re-billed at the original rate.

3. One-time registrations

• Dog & litter registration: Refundable within 24 hours of purchase as long as the registration certificate has not been downloaded or shared. Once the printable certificate is generated, the registration is final.
• Pedigree certificate ($14.99): Refundable within 24 hours if the PDF has not been downloaded.
• Ownership transfer ($15): Refundable only if the transfer has not yet been approved by an admin. Once approved, the transfer is recorded immutably on the dog’s pedigree and the fee is non-refundable.

4. Marketplace listing fees

• Single-dog & litter listings: Non-refundable once activated. We will, however, transfer remaining listing days to a different dog or litter you own on request, one time per purchase.
• Featured-listing boost: Non-refundable once the listing has been featured for any period. If we fail to surface your listing in the featured slot for any reason, we will extend the feature window by the lost days at no charge.

5. Breeding directory listings

Non-refundable once published. You may delete the listing at any time but the listing fee is not pro-rated.

5a. Upcoming Litter listings & waitlist deposits

Upcoming Litter listings are a separate product. Two fees apply:

• Listing fee ($25 planned breeding / $40 expected litter): Paid by the breeder to Armstrong. Non-refundable once the listing publishes to the marketplace. If the listing is removed before it goes live for any reason, the fee is refunded in full.
• Featured boost ($15 / 30 days): Non-refundable once the listing has been featured for any period.
• Waitlist deposits: Deposits are paid by the buyer directly to the breeder via Stripe Connect. The breeder is the merchant of record. Armstrong does not hold, escrow, or refund deposits. Each breeder publishes their own refund policy in their listing; that policy is the contract between buyer and breeder. Armstrong takes a platform fee (5% capped at $25) at the time of the deposit charge; that platform fee is non-refundable if the underlying deposit is subsequently refunded by the breeder.
• Disputes: Stripe chargebacks on a deposit are assessed against the breeder’s Stripe Connect account, not Armstrong. Buyers seeking a refund must request it from the breeder; the “Request refund” button in the marketplace listing notifies the breeder but does not auto-refund any funds.

6. Live video tour bookings ($35)

Video tour bookings are 15-minute browser-based audio/video calls between a buyer and a verified breeder, powered by our Daily.co infrastructure. Refund rules:

• Card not charged until seller accepts. When you submit a tour request, no payment is captured. If the seller declines or fails to respond within 24 hours, you pay $0.
• Cancel before the call. Either party may cancel up to 60 minutes before the scheduled start; the buyer is refunded in full (less Stripe processing fees).
• Seller no-show = automatic full refund. If the seller fails to join the room within 5 minutes of the scheduled time, the system marks the tour seller_no_show and issues a full refund to the buyer’s original card. No support ticket required.
• Buyer no-show = no refund. If the buyer fails to join, the booking is forfeit and the seller is paid out their 80% share of the fee.
• Connection problems mid-call. If technical issues on either side prevent the call from completing, contact support within 24 hours. We will review the Daily.co session logs and either re-schedule or refund at our discretion.

7. Armstrong storefront purchases

Purchases made through the Armstrong family storefront at /armstrong — dog training subscriptions, dog food deliveries, and Printify-fulfilled apparel — follow these rules:

• Dog training subscriptions: Auto-renew monthly. The $150 setup deposit is non-refundable once paid. The monthly fee is non-refundable; we do not pro-rate cancellations. You may cancel auto-renewal at any time from your customer portal — your training continues through the end of the period you’ve already paid for, then service ends.
• Pauses: If you need to pause training (e.g., travel, temporary leave), email us and we’ll pause billing on your behalf. Paused periods are not charged but also do not refund any unused portion of the month they were paused in.
• Dog food pre-orders: Non-refundable once placed, because we order against your purchase. If a delivery is missed or damaged on our end we will deliver a replacement at no charge.
• Printify-fulfilled merch: Print-on-demand items are non-refundable once submitted to the print partner (typically within 15 minutes of payment). If your item arrives damaged or misprinted, contact us within 14 days with a photo and we will arrange a free reprint with the print partner.

8. Marketplace dog purchases (escrow)

Refunds for the actual purchase of a dog through our marketplace escrow are governed by mechanically-enforced rules. Armstrong K9 Registry does not adjudicate the merits of any dispute — the platform administers a published timeline and the outcome is determined by that timeline, by the parties’ own actions, or by their mutual written agreement.

• Funds are held by the platform until released by one of the mechanisms below. The breeder is the merchant of record on the underlying sale.
• Buyer confirms pickup → funds release to the breeder immediately. This is the normal happy path.
• 14-day automatic release. If the buyer takes no action within 14 days of payment, funds release automatically to the breeder. The clock and a countdown are visible to both parties.
• Buyer files dispute within 14 days → escrow freezes. The auto-release clock stops. Both parties are notified. From this point the outcome is determined ONLY by:
  • Mutual written agreement — both parties click “Agree” on the same proposed outcome (full refund, full release, or any partial split). The platform mechanically executes whatever they agree to. Either party may propose; the other party must accept in writing within the platform.
  • 30-day default outcome — if no mutual agreement is reached within 30 days of the dispute being filed, funds return to the buyer in full. This is the published floor; the platform enforces it mechanically with no admin involvement.Individual sellers may publish a longer window (e.g. 60-day satisfaction guarantee) under §8a; sellers can never shorten the 30-day floor.
• Armstrong’s role is limited to: hosting the dispute messaging channel between the parties, running the countdown timer, and executing the mechanical refund or release when one of the above conditions is met. We do not read evidence, weigh fault, render decisions, or pick sides. We are not a judge, arbiter, or mediator of these disputes.
• Chargebacks remain available. A Stripe chargeback is assessed against the breeder’s Stripe Connect account, not Armstrong. Buyers seeking faster recourse than the 30-day default may always pursue a chargeback directly with their card issuer.
• Sales tax on Dog Shop orders is calculated and collected at checkout via Stripe Tax, transferred to the seller along with the order total, and is non-refundable by the Registry. The seller is the merchant of record and remains responsible for remitting the collected tax to the appropriate authorities. Tax-refund disputes (e.g. a return on a Dog Shop order) are handled directly by the seller; the Registry has no mechanism to refund tax once it has been transferred out.
• Sales tax on private-treaty dog sales (escrow, marketplace listings, waitlist deposits, video tours, transport) is never collected by the Registry. The seller is the merchant of record. If the seller collected sales tax on the side, the buyer must recover it directly from the seller.

8b. Per-seller refund extensions & deposits (Stance C)

Individual breeders may publish two ADD-ONS to the platform baseline above. They can only ADD buyer protection or layer a non-refundable deposit on top of it — they can never shorten the 30-day mechanical floor or opt out of the buyer’s right to dispute.

• Refund extension (optional). A breeder may publish a longer mutual-consent / auto-resolve window (e.g. “60-day satisfaction guarantee” or “90-day health refund”). When set, the 30-day auto-refund deadline is extended to 30 + N days for any escrow purchase from that breeder. The buyer’s rights are strictly expanded.
• Non-refundable deposit (optional, max 50%).A breeder may declare that a portion of the purchase price (up to 50%) is non-refundable in the event the buyer cancels BEFORE pickup. The deposit terms must be disclosed on the dog’s detail page and the buyer must explicitly acknowledge the deposit at checkout. The deposit clause does NOT apply if (a) the seller fails to deliver, (b) the dog arrives in materially misrepresented condition, or (c) any consumer-protection statute makes the deposit unenforceable in the buyer’s jurisdiction. In those cases the standard mutual-consent / 30-day floor applies as if no deposit had been declared.
• Sellers cannot publish ANY of the following: “no refunds,” “sale is final,” “all claims waived,” or any clause that purports to eliminate the buyer’s right to file a dispute or shorten the 30-day floor. Such clauses are void on this platform and the platform will ignore them.

8c. Failed subscription payments (no automatic refund)

A failed charge is not a refund — it just means the charge never completed. When your card fails on an auto-renew:

• Your subscription enters a past due state and your benefits pause until payment is restored.
• Stripe automatically retries the charge up to 3-5 times over approximately 7 days (Stripe Smart Retries). You'll receive email notifications during the recovery window.
• A red "Payment failed" banner appears on your Dashboard and Billing page with a single-click link to the Stripe Customer Portal where you can update your card.
• If all retries fail, the subscription cancels automatically. You can re-subscribe anytime at the current published price.
• We never refund "lost time" caused by a failed payment — your card simply wasn't charged for that period.

8d. Service-provider bookings (trainers, groomers, walkers, sitters)

Bookings made through /find-pros — including training sessions, grooming appointments, dog-walking jobs, pet-sitting / boarding stays, day-care, behavior consultations, and any other service offered by a verified service provider on the platform — are peer-to-peer transactions between the buyer (the dog owner) and the independent service provider. The service provider is the merchant of record for the booking; Armstrong K9 Registry is the listing venue and a payment processor. The Registry does not perform services, supervise providers, train animals, custody dogs, warrant outcomes, or guarantee provider conduct.

Armstrong K9 Registry does not offer refunds on service-provider bookings, and Armstrong K9 Registry does not mediate, arbitrate, or adjudicate refund disputes between buyers and providers. Every refund question is between the buyer and the provider directly, subject to the provider’s own published cancellation and refund policy, the parties’ own contract or service agreement, and any applicable state or local consumer-protection law.

8d.1 The provider’s published policy is binding

• Each provider publishes their own cancellation, no-show, weather, and refund policy on their public profile and on the booking confirmation. That policy is the contract between buyer and provider. Buyers are expected to read it before booking; clicking “Book” acknowledges that policy.
• Providers, not Armstrong, decide whether to refund. The provider receives payouts directly to their own Stripe Connect account; they are the merchant of record and the only party with the authority and the funds to issue a refund. The buyer’s refund request must go to the provider, not to Armstrong.
• Providers cannot publish any clause that purports to waive the buyer’s statutory consumer-protection rights or eliminate the right to a Stripe chargeback. Such clauses are void on this platform and the platform will ignore them.

8d.2 What Armstrong does NOT do

• Armstrong does not refund service-provider booking fees from Armstrong’s own funds.
• Armstrong does not mediate disputes between buyer and provider. The Registry has no claim-review process, no internal appeal, and no human reviewer who weighs evidence on either side’s behalf.
• Armstrong does not adjudicate whether a service was performed, performed competently, or worth the price paid. Service quality is between the parties.
• Armstrong does not freeze, escrow, or claw back payouts on service-provider bookings. Funds flow directly to the provider’s Stripe Connect account on successful payment.
• Armstrong does not custody dogs, leashes, equipment, medications, premises, vehicles, or any other property in connection with a service booking. The provider operates their own business from their own premises (or yours) with their own equipment.
• Armstrong does not carry liability insurance for service-booking incidents. Each provider is required to attest to their own licensing and insurance status at signup; buyers should verify both before booking high-risk services (boarding, off-leash training, etc.).

8d.3 What Armstrong DOES do

• Routes the booking payment to the provider via Stripe Connect (destination charge or split, depending on the service).
• Collects a 12% platform fee at the time of charge to fund discovery, verification, search, support, and infrastructure. The platform fee is non-refundable as a Registry expense (see §8d.4) unless the entire booking is refunded by the provider and the platform fee is mechanically reversible via Stripe.
• Surfaces the optional FCRA-compliant Checkr background-check badge (see §9a) on cleared providers so buyers can make better-informed booking decisions.
• Provides a messaging channel between buyer and provider for coordinating logistics, sharing photos/notes, and discussing any concerns. Messages are stored as evidence the parties may use in their own dispute, but Armstrong does not read or adjudicate them.

8d.4 Platform fee is non-refundable

The 12% Armstrong platform fee on a service-provider booking is a Registry expense for matching, payment routing, and trust-and- safety infrastructure already rendered at the moment of booking. It is not refundable as Armstrong-issued cash, even if the underlying booking is refunded by the provider. Where the booking is refunded in full via a Stripe-initiated reversal that mechanically returns the platform fee in lock-step (transporter-style reverse_transfer=true flows), the platform fee is reversed automatically; service-provider bookings do not currently use this flow.

8d.5 Chargebacks (your real recourse if a provider refuses)

If a provider refuses to issue a refund the buyer believes is owed under the provider’s own published policy or under applicable consumer-protection law, the buyer’s recourse is a Stripe chargeback through their card issuer or small-claims court, not Armstrong. Chargebacks are assessed against the provider’s Stripe Connect account, not against Armstrong; the chargeback decision is made by the card issuer, not by us. Buyers should contact the provider in writing first (via the Armstrong message thread or directly) and allow 7 calendar days for a response before opening a chargeback.

Providers who receive unjustified chargebacks may appeal them through Stripe’s dispute-evidence portal. Repeated substantiated chargebacks (3+ within a rolling 90-day window) result in profile suspension under the Service Provider Agreement.

8d.6 No-show, weather, illness

No-show, severe-weather rescheduling, provider illness, dog illness, and similar exception flows are governed entirely by the provider’s published policy. Armstrong does not impose a platform-wide minimum or maximum on these terms. Buyers and providers are encouraged to discuss exception terms in the message thread before the booking date.

8d.7 Provider safety incidents are a matter for the provider, the buyer, and applicable authorities

If a dog is injured, lost, escapes, becomes ill, or is otherwise harmed during the course of a service-provider booking, the responsibility rests on the service provider (and, where applicable, the buyer) per their service agreement and per applicable veterinary, animal-welfare, and tort law. Armstrong is not a party to the service agreement, does not custody the animal, and is not liable for any incident occurring under a provider’s care. Buyers should report serious incidents to local animal control, their veterinarian, and (where applicable) law enforcement — not to Armstrong. We will, on request, provide the parties their own booking records, the message thread between them, and the provider’s attested licensing/insurance disclosures at signup; we will not testify as a fact witness or render an opinion on fault.

9. Independent transporter bookings (Armstrong Transport marketplace)

The Armstrong Transport marketplace is a listing service connecting buyers with independent, USDA-licensed third-party transporters. The Registry does not drive vehicles, handle animals, set trip prices, or warrant transporter performance. Trips are paid via Stripe Connect destination charges to the transporter; funds are held in marketplace escrow until delivery is confirmed (or auto-released 48 hours after the transporter marks delivered, whichever comes first).

9.1 Buyer-initiated cancellation (tiered)

Once a transport has been booked and paid, buyer cancellations are subject to a kill-fee tier based on how much advance notice the transporter receives:

• 72+ hours before pickup: 100% refund (no kill fee). Stripe reversal is initiated within 1 business day.
• 24–72 hours before pickup: 75% refund. The remaining 25% is paid to the transporter as a kill fee to compensate for lost dispatch and scheduling time.
• Less than 24 hours before pickup: 50% refund. The remaining 50% is paid to the transporter.
• After delivery (or in-transit): No cancellation is possible — buyers must use the Dispute process below.

Pre-payment cancellations (while the order is still gathering bids or awaiting payment) are always 100% free with no fee. All refunds are processed via Stripe with reverse_transfer=true so the transporter’s Stripe Connect balance is debited in lock-step with the buyer credit; the Registry’s 10% platform fee is also reversed on full refunds.

9.2 Transporter-initiated cancellation

If the transporter cancels a confirmed trip, the buyer receives a full refund regardless of timing. The transporter does not collect any portion of the fare. If the transporter provides less than 12 hours of notice (or if the Registry is unable to rebook the trip with another verified transporter), a strike is recorded on their account; three strikes within a rolling 90-day window result in a 30-day suspension from the Armstrong Transport marketplace under the Transporter Agreement.

9.3 Disputes

Either party may open a dispute on a transport order from the time the trip is booked through 24 hours after delivery. Opening a dispute immediately freezes the escrow — the auto-release clock stops and no funds move to the transporter until the dispute is resolved. Armstrong K9 Registry does not adjudicate the merits of any transport dispute — the platform administers a published timeline and the outcome is determined by that timeline, by the parties’ own actions, or by their mutual written agreement. Resolution falls into one of three mechanical outcomes:

• Mutual written agreement — both parties click “Agree” on the same proposed outcome (full release to the transporter, full refund to the buyer, or any partial split from 1% to 99%). The platform mechanically executes whatever the parties agree to. Either party may propose; the other must accept in writing within the platform.
• 30-day tiered default outcome — if no mutual agreement is reached within 30 days of the dispute being filed, the platform mechanically applies the published tier rule below. This is NOT a judgment call: the outcome is determined entirely by objective timestamps (when the dispute was filed relative to the booked pickup time) and the order’s own status field (whether the transporter has marked the trip as in-transit / delivered).
  • Tier 1 (filed > 72h before booked pickup):full refund to buyer. No transporter work yet incurred.
  • Tier 2 (filed 24–72h before booked pickup):50% refund to buyer, 50% release to transporter. Mirrors the §9.1 buyer-cancellation schedule.
  • Tier 3 (filed < 24h before pickup, OR after the transporter has marked the trip “in transit,” delivered, or completed): full release to transporter. Their costs are real once they are on the road or about to load. Note: opening a tier-3 dispute alleging negligence, fraud, or material misrepresentation still allows the buyer to pursue a Stripe chargeback in parallel — the chargeback is judged by the card issuer, not by Armstrong.
• Withdrawal — either party may withdraw their dispute at any time. If withdrawn by the buyer, the escrow auto-release timer resumes. If withdrawn by the transporter without buyer agreement, the dispute remains open until the timeline above resolves it.

Armstrong’s role is limited to hosting the dispute messaging channel between the parties, running the countdown timer, and executing the mechanical refund or release when one of the above conditions is met. We do not read evidence, weigh fault, render decisions, or pick sides. Chargebacks remain available as a parallel recourse and are assessed against the transporter’s Stripe Connect account.

9.4 Delay flags

Transporters may flag a delivery delay (weather, mechanical issue, buyer unreachable, requested reschedule, or other) at any point during a trip. Each active flag pauses the 48-hour escrow auto-release clock and extends it by 24 hours. Flags do not by themselves entitle either party to a refund — they are a transparency mechanism. If a flag persists for more than 5 business days without being cleared, either party may escalate to the Dispute process.

9.5 Stripe Connect & platform fee

Buyers are charged via Stripe Checkout using a destination charge to the transporter’s Stripe Connect Express account. A flat 10% platform fee is collected by Armstrong K9 Registry on every completed trip to fund verification, escrow administration, insurance auditing, and customer support. The platform fee is refunded automatically on any full Stripe refund (whether buyer cancellation in tier 1, transporter cancellation, or the 30-day default outcome of a dispute).

9a. Provider background-check badge ($39 service fee)

The optional $39 background-check badge for service providers (trainers, groomers, walkers, sitters) is a service fee that covers Armstrong’s per-check pass-through cost to Checkr, Inc. plus the workflow administration (consent capture, FCRA disclosures, pre-adverse and adverse- action notices, dispute reinstatement). The full process is documented in the Background Check & FCRA Adverse Action Policy.

• Before Checkr invitation is sent (typically a 30-minute window after Stripe capture): full refund within 1 business day on provider request.
• After Checkr invitation is sent, regardless of outcome (Clear, Consider, or Suspended): non-refundable. Armstrong has incurred the pass-through cost and performed the workflow service. A “Consider” or “Suspended” outcome is a valid output of the service the provider purchased, not a service failure.
• Successful candidate dispute through Checkr. If Checkr revises a report to “Clear” after a successful dispute, Armstrong reinstates the badge at no re-run charge. No refund is issued (the original service was performed), but the provider receives the badge they paid for at no additional cost.
• Chargebacks. A provider who initiates a chargeback on the $39 SKU after the Checkr invitation has been sent will have any active badge revoked while the chargeback is pending, regardless of the report outcome. See §12.

10. Promo codes

Discounts applied via promo code are not refundable as cash. If a refund is granted, only the amount actually paid is returned and the redemption is reversed.

11. How to request a refund

Email support@armstrongk9registry.com from the email tied to your account, including:

• Order ID or session ID (visible on Billing → Payment history).
• Reason for the refund.
• Whether you’d prefer a refund to your original payment method or credit toward a future purchase (when applicable).

We acknowledge requests within 2 business days and process approved refunds within 5–10 business days back to the original card. Stripe-issued refunds typically appear on bank statements within 5–10 business days after we trigger them.

12. Chargebacks

Please contact us before initiating a chargeback. We work with most billing concerns directly and a chargeback can result in suspension of your account while the dispute is investigated. Repeated unjustified chargebacks may lead to permanent termination per the Terms of Service.