Refund Policy
Effective Date (new subscribers): 2026-MM-DD | Effective Date (existing subscribers): 2026-MM-DD | Last Updated: 2026-05-03 | Version: 3.0
1. Overview
SiliconLens ("the Service", "we", "us") is sold through Paddle, which acts as our Merchant of Record (MoR) for all subscription transactions. Paddle handles billing, tax collection, invoicing, refunds, and chargebacks in accordance with Paddle's own policies.
This Refund Policy describes when and how you may request a refund for a SiliconLens Pro subscription. It operates alongside — and is subject to — Paddle's Refund Policy, available at https://www.paddle.com/legal/refund-policy.
2. Who Processes Refunds
- SiliconLens reviews refund requests against the eligibility rules in Section 3 and coordinates approved refunds with Paddle.
- Paddle actually issues the refund to your original payment method. Paddle may independently issue a refund or reverse a charge in cases of chargeback dispute, fraud, or regulatory requirement, without SiliconLens's prior approval.
- SiliconLens cannot issue direct refunds. All refunds flow through Paddle.
3. Refund Eligibility
3.1 Monthly Pro Subscriptions
- You may cancel at any time from the Settings page. Cancellation stops future renewals.
- Upon cancellation, your Pro access continues until the end of the current billing period. No partial refunds are issued for unused days within the current period, except where required by applicable mandatory consumer law.
3.2 First-Time Subscriber Goodwill Refund
If you are dissatisfied with SiliconLens within 7 days of your first Pro purchase, you may email erratahunter@proton.me with your Paddle order ID and the reason for dissatisfaction. SiliconLens will review the request in good faith and, where eligible under Section 3.5, instruct Paddle to issue a refund (full or progressive prorated). Goodwill refunds apply only to first-time Pro subscriptions; renewals are not eligible.
Change from previous version: The goodwill window was reduced from 14 days to 7 days, effective on the dates listed at the top of this page. The window applies based on the effective date that corresponds to your subscription start date.
3.3 Credits
- Consumed credits are non-refundable. Once credits are spent on chat queries, document uploads, MCP tool calls, or any other metered action, they cannot be restored or converted to a monetary refund.
- Unused credits do not carry over. Monthly Pro credits reset at the start of each billing period based on your subscription anniversary. Unused credits at the time of cancellation or downgrade have no monetary value and are not refundable.
- Free plan credits are a one-time allocation with no monetary value and are never refundable.
3.4 Circumstances That Are Not Eligible for Refund
Unless mandatory local law provides otherwise, refunds will generally not be issued for:
- Subscription periods already elapsed
- Dissatisfaction expressed more than 7 days after the first purchase
- Credits consumed prior to the refund request
- Service unavailability shorter than 24 consecutive hours (SiliconLens does not offer an uptime SLA; see Terms of Service)
- Account suspension or termination resulting from violation of the Terms of Service, Acceptable Use Policy, or Paddle's Buyer Terms
- Failure of AI-generated output to meet subjective expectations, given that all output is provided "as is" and must be independently verified
- Renewals (only first-time Pro subscriptions are eligible under §3.5)
3.5 Progressive Refund Schedule (First Subscription Only)
If you request a refund within 7 days of your first Pro subscription, the refund amount depends on credit consumption at the time of request:
| Credits Consumed | Refund Type | Refund Amount |
|---|---|---|
| ≤ 5% (≤ 250 of 5,000) | Full refund | $25.00 |
| 5% < consumed ≤ 50% (251–2,500) | Progressive prorated | $25 × max(0, (0.50 − consumed/5000)) × 2 |
| > 50% (> 2,500) | Denied | $0 (service-defect exception applies separately) |
Worked Examples:
- 250 credits consumed (5%) → $25.00 full refund
- 1,250 credits consumed (25%) → $12.50 progressive prorated
- 2,000 credits consumed (40%) → $5.00 progressive prorated
- 2,499 credits consumed (49.98%) → ~$0.01 progressive prorated
- 2,501 credits consumed (50.02%) → denied
Why progressive prorated? A flat threshold creates a credit-mining incentive (e.g., consuming exactly 1,499 credits and requesting a refund). The progressive formula ensures the per-credit cost of any refund-mined consumption is at least 2× the standard Pro rate, removing the economic incentive to abuse the goodwill window.
Eligibility: First-time Pro subscriptions only. Renewals and second/subsequent subscriptions are not eligible.
Note on Service Defects: If a refund is denied under §3.5 due to consumption above 50%, but you experienced a service defect (e.g., RAG returned no results, payment processed but credits not granted), you may still be eligible for a full refund. Contact erratahunter@proton.me with timestamps, session IDs, and a description of the defect.
Self-check: Pro subscribers can preview eligibility from the Settings page (Refund Eligibility Self-Check). The self-check returns a non-precise bucket (<5% / ≥5%) and does not reveal exact remaining credit balance — the precise refund amount is determined by SiliconLens operations during the email review.
4. UK Right of Withdrawal
Under the UK Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, consumers in the United Kingdom normally have a 14-day right to withdraw from distance contracts. For digital services delivered immediately, this right may be waived.
By subscribing to SiliconLens Pro and gaining immediate access to the Service, you expressly consent to immediate performance of the contract and acknowledge that you lose your 14-day statutory right of withdrawal once the Service has been fully delivered. This waiver is confirmed at checkout through Paddle and does not affect any mandatory rights you may have under your local consumer protection law.
SiliconLens does not currently serve users in the EU/EEA. If we expand availability to the EU/EEA in the future, we will update this section to address EU-specific withdrawal rights under Directive 2011/83/EU.
Notwithstanding the above waiver, SiliconLens offers a voluntary 7-day goodwill refund window for first-time Pro subscribers as described in §3.2 and §3.5.
5. How to Request a Refund
- Email erratahunter@proton.me with:
- Subject line:
Refund Request — <your Paddle order ID> - Your Paddle order ID or customer ID (found in the receipt Paddle sent you)
- The email address associated with your SiliconLens account
- A brief reason for the refund request
- Subject line:
- Response time: We aim to respond within 5 business days.
- Approved refunds: Once approved, SiliconLens instructs Paddle to issue the refund (full or partial per §3.5). Paddle typically processes refunds within 5–10 business days; the exact timing depends on your bank or card issuer.
- Denied requests: If a request is denied, you may still pursue a chargeback or dispute directly with Paddle through the channels listed in your Paddle receipt. See §6 below for chargeback consequences.
6. Chargebacks
Filing a chargeback without first contacting SiliconLens or Paddle may result in immediate suspension of your account pending resolution, and may make you ineligible for future goodwill refunds. We ask that you contact us first so we can resolve the issue amicably.
Repeat chargeback consequences: Accounts with a history of chargebacks or refund-mining patterns may be barred from re-purchasing through the same payment method. SiliconLens reserves the right to refuse further service or future subscriptions to such accounts at its sole discretion.
7. Changes to this Policy
We may update this Refund Policy from time to time. Material changes are announced as follows:
- New subscribers: changes take effect at least 7 days after announcement.
- Existing subscribers: changes take effect at least 30 days after announcement (in-app notice and/or email). The previous policy version remains applicable to refund requests made before the existing-subscriber effective date.
8. Contact
- Refund requests and questions: erratahunter@proton.me
- Paddle buyer support: https://paddle.net (Paddle's dedicated buyer portal)
- Paddle Refund Policy: https://www.paddle.com/legal/refund-policy
Appendix: Refund Calculation Examples
The following table demonstrates how the progressive prorated formula prevents refund-mining abuse. Cost-per-credit is computed as (actual paid − refund) / consumed credits. The standard Pro rate is $25 / 5,000 = $0.005/credit. The progressive formula keeps the cost of any refund-mined credits at $0.010/credit — exactly 2× the standard rate.
| % Consumed | Credits | Refund | Net Paid | Cost / Credit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0 | $25.00 | $0.00 | — (no abuse) |
| 5% | 250 | $22.50 | $2.50 | $0.010 (2×) |
| 25% | 1,250 | $12.50 | $12.50 | $0.010 (2×) |
| 40% | 2,000 | $5.00 | $20.00 | $0.010 (2×) |
| 49.98% | 2,499 | ~$0.01 | ~$25.00 | $0.010 (2×) |
| 50.02% | 2,501 | $0 (denied) | $25.00 | $0.010 (full price) |
| 100% | 5,000 | $0 (denied) | $25.00 | $0.005 (standard) |
Refund amounts are rounded to two decimal places. The progressive formula is enforced by SiliconLens operations during the email review; the Settings self-check only returns a coarse eligibility bucket and does not compute the exact prorated amount.
SiliconLens — Refund Policy v3.0