ReadTheTalkRefunds and processing failures
Processing hours and payment refunds
- Failed processing does not use processing hours. Partially completed processing is charged as described under “When processing fails” below. You can retry only the failed or missing parts.
- A payment refund returns money charged for a subscription.
Retrying missing parts does not itself refund a subscription payment or cancel a renewal.
Cancelling your subscription
To cancel your subscription, use the Stripe customer portal if it is available, or email support@readthetalk.com from the email address on your ReadTheTalk account.
Cancellation stops future renewals. Pro access continues until the end of the paid period, then the account returns to Free. Your own generated or unlocked results remain unlimited to read permanently. Community or shared content follows the Free 15-item allowance; Pro Picks are not available on Free. Cancellation alone does not refund the current subscription payment.
Payment refunds
A full refund is available when all of these conditions are met:
- It is your first Pro payment; renewal payments (the second and later charges) are not covered.
- You request it before 168 hours have elapsed since the payment.
- When we execute the refund, counted usage is less than 60 minutes.
Partially completed processing counts the source minutes already charged; failed processing with no completed source stage does not count. If we approve a refund, we also cancel the subscription. We do not offer prorated refunds for unused days or unused allowance.
| First payment, before 168 hours have elapsed, usage below 60 minutes | Full refund. |
|---|---|
| Partially completed processing | Already charged source minutes count toward the 60-minute limit; completed work is not charged again on retry. |
| Renewal payments (the second and later charges), requests at or after 168 hours, or usage of 60 minutes or more | Not refundable. |
| Duplicate charges or billing errors, including charges after cancellation | The incorrect charge is refunded in full, regardless of the time or usage limits above. |
| Refunds required by law | Your statutory rights apply regardless of this policy. |
How the 60-minute limit is counted
For refund eligibility, ordinary processing counts the whole source minutes already charged. Unlocking a Pro Pick counts its full source minutes before the discount. Each item is counted once: transcribing and processing a 30-minute episode counts as 30 minutes, not 60.
Partial success counts the source minutes already charged. A retry that completes the remaining work adds only the remaining charge, without counting the completed part twice. Reading existing or already unlocked results, or using a translation pass, does not add to this total.
When processing fails
A source-stage failure charges no minutes and keeps the reservation until retry, cancellation, or the end of its subscription period. If only the overview or article is incomplete, half of the source minutes are charged, rounded up; the remainder stays reserved for retry. Retrying uses the remaining reservation and does not charge completed work again. This is separate from a refund of your subscription payment.
If a result is still missing or incomplete after retrying, contact support@readthetalk.com with the source URL and a description of the problem.
How to ask for a refund
Send refund requests to support@readthetalk.com with:
- the email address on your ReadTheTalk account;
- the approximate date of the charge, and the amount;
- the payment reference from your receipt, if you have it.
Submitting a refund request does not pause your account. You may continue using the service during review, and eligibility is checked against your usage when we execute the refund. Further use may make you ineligible.
We cannot execute a refund while any processing minutes remain reserved. Once those reservations have been settled or released under the normal processing rules, we pause new processing, Pro Pick unlocks, and translations, then recheck your usage. A refund request does not cancel processing tasks or release their reservations.
We review requests and reply within 3–5 business days. Approved refunds are returned to the original payment method through Stripe; we also cancel the subscription at the same time. This review period is not the bank’s processing time; the time until funds appear depends on your bank.
After a refund
If we approve a refund, we cancel the subscription at the same time so you are not charged again. Pro access ends immediately. Your own generated or unlocked results remain unlimited to read permanently; community or shared content follows the Free 15-item allowance; Pro Picks are not available on Free. Unused processing hours are not paid out or carried over.
The refund is returned to the original payment method. Currency conversion or bank fees charged outside Stripe are not controlled by us.
If the service is unavailable
If a paid feature is unavailable for a sustained period because of a problem on our side, contact us. We will extend the subscription or refund the affected period where appropriate. This is not a fixed service-level guarantee.
Abuse
We may refuse refunds that are an obvious abuse of this policy, such as repeatedly subscribing, using close to 60 minutes, and refunding across multiple accounts. A normal first refund that meets the conditions above will not be refused for lack of “proof”.
Billing complaints and disputes
If you believe a charge is wrong, contact support@readthetalk.com so we can investigate. We usually reply to general enquiries within 1–2 business days; refund requests are reviewed and answered within 3–5 business days.
Contacting us is not a condition for exercising your rights under consumer law or through your card issuer.
Your statutory rights
Nothing on this page limits any right you have under mandatory consumer law in your country, or any right your card issuer gives you.