Payment, Cancellation & Refund Policy

1. Purpose and application

This policy explains payment, scheduling, cancellation, and refund rules for remote on-page SEO services provided by Rankforge Search. It applies together with the applicable service description, proposal, invoice, written scope, and Terms of Service. If a specific written project agreement contains a different commercial term, that specific term controls for that project.

2. Prices and scope limits

Website prices are stated in U.S. dollars and apply to the service limit shown. Current listed examples include a basic audit for up to five pages, titles and meta descriptions for up to five pages, keyword research and mapping for up to ten pages, heading and content structure optimization for up to five pages, internal linking optimization for up to ten pages, image SEO for up to twenty-five images, and monthly maintenance for up to five pages.

Additional pages, images, research, implementation, revisions, technical troubleshooting, custom development, urgent delivery, multilingual work, or work outside the listed scope may require a separate quote. A project does not expand automatically because more URLs, files, or issues are discovered.

3. Quotes and invoices

A quote is based on the information available when it is prepared and remains valid for the period stated on the quote. If no validity period is stated, it may be withdrawn or updated before acceptance. An invoice may require full advance payment, a deposit, milestone payments, or monthly payment. Work may be scheduled only after required payment and project information have been received.

Submitting the website form does not create an invoice, charge a payment method, or reserve service availability.

4. Accepted payment methods

Payment methods are identified on the applicable invoice or payment request and may be provided through a reputable third-party payment processor or banking provider. Rankforge Search does not ask clients to submit full payment card information through the website inquiry form. A payment provider processes payment information under its own terms and privacy practices.

A client authorizes the stated charge when it approves the invoice and completes the provider’s payment process. Payment is not considered received until cleared and available.

5. Taxes and fees

Unless an invoice states otherwise, the client is responsible for applicable sales, use, value-added, withholding, or similar taxes and for bank, wire, currency conversion, or payment-provider fees associated with its payment. If law requires withholding, the client should provide appropriate documentation and cooperate in determining the correct treatment.

6. Deposits and advance payments

A deposit or advance payment reserves planned work time and allows project preparation to begin. Once research, review, scheduling, access setup, or another in-scope activity has started, the portion of payment corresponding to completed work and committed time is earned and non-refundable except where law requires otherwise.

7. Monthly maintenance billing

Monthly on-page maintenance is billed at the price and cadence stated in the accepted scope. The client must cancel before the next billing date to avoid the next scheduled charge where automatic recurring billing has been expressly authorized. If billing is invoice-based, cancellation affects future unissued service periods but does not erase an issued invoice or work already performed.

Unused page capacity does not roll into a later month unless agreed in writing. Monthly maintenance is not continuous emergency monitoring and does not include unlisted services.

8. Late or failed payment

If a payment is late, reversed, declined, disputed, or not received, we may pause scheduling, withhold unfinished deliverables, revoke project access, suspend monthly work, or terminate the engagement. The client remains responsible for amounts due for completed work, committed time, approved expenses, and reasonable collection costs to the extent permitted by law.

A pause caused by payment delay may change the delivery estimate. Original scheduling priority is not guaranteed after the account is brought current.

9. Client cancellation before work starts

A cancellation request must be made in writing. If the client cancels before any work, research, setup, scheduling commitment, or access review begins, an unearned advance payment may be refundable, less non-refundable payment-provider fees or approved expenses, where permitted by law. A reserved rush fee or other expressly non-refundable reservation charge is not refundable if it was clearly disclosed before payment.

10. Client cancellation after work starts

If the client cancels after work begins, the client must pay for work completed, time committed, approved expenses, and any project stage already delivered or substantially prepared. Any remaining unearned balance may be refunded after the account is reconciled. Because digital research and recommendations can be usable as soon as they are prepared, completed portions are not refundable merely because the client decides not to publish or implement them.

11. Cancellation or refusal by Rankforge Search

We may decline or cancel work because of nonpayment, lack of required access or information, unsafe credentials, abusive conduct, unlawful instructions, deceptive SEO requests, platform restrictions, a material scope conflict, a conflict of interest, illness, or an event outside reasonable control. If we cancel without client breach, we will return any clearly unearned prepaid amount after deducting completed work and approved expenses.

12. Rescheduling and client delay

A request to reschedule is subject to availability. If the client does not provide required information, access, approval, or feedback, the project may be placed on hold. A project inactive for thirty days may require a revised schedule or reactivation quote. Delay does not entitle the client to a refund for work already completed or time already reserved.

13. Refund eligibility

A refund may be appropriate for a duplicate payment, an accidental overpayment, a clearly unearned prepaid balance following cancellation, or another amount that applicable law requires to be returned. Refund requests should identify the invoice, payment date, service, amount, and reason.

Refunds are not provided for completed audits, research, page maps, titles, descriptions, headings, internal link plans, image metadata, approved changes, expired review periods, unused client capacity, client delay, a decision not to implement, dissatisfaction with a result that was not guaranteed, or a search engine’s ranking or indexing decision.

14. Service concerns and correction

If a delivered item materially omits an agreed in-scope requirement, the client should provide written notice during the review period and identify the specific issue. Our first remedy may be to correct the material in-scope omission. A preference change, new direction, new page, additional research request, or third-party platform issue is not a defect in the original service.

15. Refund method and timing

An approved refund is generally returned to the original payment method where practical. Processing time depends on the bank or payment provider and may take additional business days after issuance. We are not responsible for a provider’s posting delay, currency difference, or non-refundable transaction fee.

16. Chargebacks and payment disputes

Clients should contact us before initiating a chargeback so the parties can review project scope, delivery records, approvals, and payment history. A chargeback filed for properly delivered or contractually earned work may be contested with relevant records. Nothing in this section limits a lawful consumer right that cannot be waived.

17. No ranking-based refunds

Search engines control crawling, indexing, presentation, and ranking. Payment is for the agreed professional work and deliverables, not for a guaranteed position, traffic volume, lead count, or revenue outcome. A change or lack of change in rankings does not by itself create refund eligibility.

18. Policy changes

We may update this policy for future purchases and service periods. The date at the top identifies the current posted version. A change does not retroactively alter a confirmed project’s payment terms unless the parties agree or law requires otherwise.