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Number 2 is actually pretty common. Maybe not as an advertised policy but if you write to cancel reps will often give a pro rates refund. This may happen more

by graeme 6y ago

Number 2 is actually pretty common. Maybe not as an advertised policy but if you write to cancel reps will often give a pro rates refund. This may happen more in businesses which figure you may be back someday.

xemdetia 6y ago
I would go further and expect number 2 to be the norm. If I pay for a service and I'm allocated and the service is up and available for 6 months and I have 6 months left I would expect the refund to be 6 months and not from the beginning of the contract. They've already spent the money and you've already earned the money at that point.
- carstenhag 6y ago
  But then it doesn't make sense to have the yearly subscription (and 12 months of contract duration at a time). Then you can just have the monthly subscription.
  - krallja 6y ago
    Charging someone’s credit card 12 times a year has a definite cost. Having the funds ahead of time is also worth more than earning the funds one month at a time.
  - xemdetia 6y ago
    I think you are approaching it from a different place than I am. If I get into an annual contract I have the expectation that I would be paying the full amount up front to secure the discount and that I would be utilizing the full amount of the term. If after six months I stop then that's for some new reason that was not there in the start. At that time I would expect a rebate for the services that would not be rendered. I could be a six month customer or a ten year and six month customer and have the same expectation. Things change.
    - barry27 6y ago
      So use the monthly subscription then. It's preposterous to expect someone to refund you simply because you changed your mind. If you bought a microwave, for example, and then subsequently decided you preferred to use your stove, you wouldnt take it back, would you. You bought access for a year. That is the indivisible product you now own.
nicolas_t 6y ago
What I've seen that can be effective is to not have a pro rated refund but have the ability to pause the account. This means that the discount for the 1 year commitment still makes sense but shows that you're willing to work around the customer's life or issues.

by graeme 6y ago

xemdetia 6y ago

I would go further and expect number 2 to be the norm. If I pay for a service and I'm allocated and the service is up and available for 6 months and I have 6 months left I would expect the refund to be 6 months and not from the beginning of the contract. They've already spent the money and you've already earned the money at that point.

carstenhag 6y ago
But then it doesn't make sense to have the yearly subscription (and 12 months of contract duration at a time). Then you can just have the monthly subscription.
- krallja 6y ago
  Charging someone’s credit card 12 times a year has a definite cost. Having the funds ahead of time is also worth more than earning the funds one month at a time.
- xemdetia 6y ago
  I think you are approaching it from a different place than I am. If I get into an annual contract I have the expectation that I would be paying the full amount up front to secure the discount and that I would be utilizing the full amount of the term. If after six months I stop then that's for some new reason that was not there in the start. At that time I would expect a rebate for the services that would not be rendered. I could be a six month customer or a ten year and six month customer and have the same expectation. Things change.
  - barry27 6y ago
    So use the monthly subscription then. It's preposterous to expect someone to refund you simply because you changed your mind. If you bought a microwave, for example, and then subsequently decided you preferred to use your stove, you wouldnt take it back, would you. You bought access for a year. That is the indivisible product you now own.

nicolas_t 6y ago

What I've seen that can be effective is to not have a pro rated refund but have the ability to pause the account. This means that the discount for the 1 year commitment still makes sense but shows that you're willing to work around the customer's life or issues.