Refund and Cancellation Policy
Last updated: July 2026
1. What this policy covers
This policy applies to purchases made from Sphin Media, the studio brand operated by Assur Media, a UAE Free Zone Company registered under the Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park Free Zone Authority, Registration No. 9978.
It covers two kinds of purchase, each with its own refund stages and cancellation terms:
| Purchase type | What it covers | Payment structure |
|---|---|---|
| One-off purchases | Launch packages and standalone projects, in any service tier: Entry, Professional, or Premium. | Paid in full at the time of order, or at contract signing on the consultation path. |
| Retainers | Growth and Complete monthly engagements. | Billed monthly in advance, with a minimum three-month term. |
The refund stages below describe how much of your payment is refundable at each point in the work. The cancellation terms describe how you can cancel, and what happens when you do. The stages are written as clear, named stages because what you can recover depends on how far the work has progressed.
This policy does not remove any right you have as a consumer that cannot be removed by agreement. Where the law of your market gives you a statutory right that applies and cannot be waived, such as a return, withdrawal, or cancellation right, that right applies in addition to this policy.
2. The confirmation phase: cancel for a full refund before any work
Every direct order goes through a confirmation phase before any work begins. Within one Business Day of your order, a Sphin Media strategist reviews the brief and confirms the scope with you.
Business Day means any day other than a Friday or a public holiday in the United Arab Emirates.
You can proceed as ordered, adjust the scope, or cancel. Sphin Media may also decline to proceed, in which case you receive a full refund.
3. How to cancel
You can cancel an order or a project at any time before it closes. See section 7.
To cancel, write to admin@assurmedia.com, or use your existing project channel.
Your cancellation takes effect when Sphin Media receives it. At that point:
Work stops.
Your refund is set by the stage the work has reached.
The refund is calculated using the stages in section 4 and section 5.
For a retainer, month one follows the stages in section 5. Cancelling the retainer itself is covered in section 6.
Either side may also end an engagement where there is a material breach that is not remedied. Where an engagement ends, fees already earned are payable, and any refund due follows the stages in this policy.
Cancelling an order or a project is not the same as ending the Master Services Agreement. Where you have signed a Master Services Agreement, ending the agreement itself follows its terms, including written notice of not less than 30 days.
4. Refund stages for one-off purchases
This applies to Launch packages and standalone projects. Payment is taken in full at order, or at contract signing on the consultation path, and held against the stages below.
| Stage | When it applies | Refundable |
|---|---|---|
| Order placed or contract signed | Payment taken in full. | 100% |
| Scope mutually confirmed | Both sides confirm the scope and work begins. | 80% |
| Milestone 1 approved | You approve the first deliverable milestone. | 50% |
| Final draft delivered | We deliver the final draft. This stage is keyed to delivery, not to your approval. | 20% |
| Final approval | You approve and accept the final deliverable, or it is treated as accepted. See section 7. | 0% |
The closer the work is to finished, the less is refundable. The final-draft stage is keyed to the moment Sphin Media delivers the final draft, so that refund rights are not extended by delaying approval.
5. Refund stages for retainers — month one
This applies to the first month of a Growth or Complete retainer. Retainers are signed after a consultation, so the scope is confirmed before month one is charged; that is why these stages begin at 80%.
Month one is charged when the contract is signed, and held against the stages below. From month two onward, the retainer is billed monthly in advance and the minimum three-month term applies.
If you are a consumer with a statutory right that cannot be waived, section 1 applies to this term as well.
| Stage | When it applies | Refundable — month one |
|---|---|---|
| Contract signed | Month one charged. | 80% |
| Strategy approved | The initial strategy and first drafts are approved. | 50% |
| Month one delivered | The month-one deliverables are delivered in full. | 20% |
| Month one complete | The end of month one. | 0%. The minimum three-month term applies. |
6. Cancelling a retainer after month one
The retainer has a minimum term of three months, running from the date both sides confirm the scope.
Within that term, the retainer ends early only where there is a material breach that is not remedied, or on the lawful-use grounds in section 8. Months already billed are not refunded, and month one follows the stages in section 5.
If you are a consumer with a statutory right that cannot be waived, section 1 applies to this term as well.
After the minimum term, either side may end the retainer on not less than 30 days' written notice. The retainer ends at the end of the last billed month, and monthly fees already billed are not refunded.
As an alternative to cancelling, a client in good standing can request a voluntary pause after the minimum term. The conditions, including the notice required and the maximum pause length, are set out in the Retainer Agreement.
Billing, late payment, and their consequences for a retainer are also set out in the Retainer Agreement.
7. How a project closes
A project closes, and reaches the 0% stage, when you approve and accept the final deliverable.
If Sphin Media delivers the final draft, tells you that the three Business Day acceptance period has started, and does not hear from you within that period, the final draft is treated as accepted.
Business Day means any day other than a Friday or a public holiday in the United Arab Emirates.
At that point the project is considered closed and complete. This keeps projects from staying open indefinitely, and it is explained again in the Master Services Agreement and the Statement of Work.
8. Approved drafts, lawful use, and protection against misuse
A Milestone 1 deliverable is a draft, not a finished product. If you approve it and then ask for the 50% refund available at that stage, you may keep the approved draft and still receive the refund.
Ownership of an approved draft is covered in the Usage Rights and Licensing Schedule.
Lawful use and fraud. Engaging Sphin Media is on the basis that you are acting lawfully and that any business you operate is legitimate and lawfully conducted, as set out in the Master Services Agreement. Where Sphin Media reasonably suspects, on a stated basis, that an engagement involves fraud or unlawful activity, it may end the engagement immediately, as set out in the Master Services Agreement. Where there is credible, substantiated evidence of fraud or unlawful activity connected to the engagement, Sphin Media may decline a refund that would otherwise be due.
Protection against misuse. Separately, Sphin Media may decline a refund where there is an objective, stated basis to conclude that the refund right is being used in bad faith or misused. This is a safeguard against abuse, not a general right to withhold refunds. It does not affect the full refund available during the confirmation phase, and it does not remove any consumer right described in section 1 that cannot be waived.
9. How refunds are processed
Approved refunds are returned to the original payment method within 14 days of approval. To help prevent money laundering, fraud, and scams, Sphin Media cannot send a refund to a different card, bank account, or transfer destination from the original payment method.