Fees, cancellations, and when we refund

The first conversation costs nothing. We do not collect payment details to schedule it, and there is no obligation afterwards. If we are not the right fit for what you describe, we say so at that stage rather than invoicing you to find out.

Advisory work is quoted in writing before it begins, either as a fixed fee for a defined deliverable or against agreed rates for time and materials. The engagement agreement states the fee, the schedule, and what counts as complete.

• A deposit is normally required to reserve field or analysis time.
• Travel, lodging, and shipping are billed at documented cost.
• Invoices are payable within thirty days unless stated otherwise.
• Long engagements are usually invoiced by milestone.

If you cancel before we have begun substantive work, we refund the deposit in full, less any non-recoverable third-party costs already committed on your behalf, such as non-refundable travel booked at your request.

Once work is under way, fees are earned as it is performed. If you stop an engagement mid-stream we invoice for time and expenses incurred to that date, deliver whatever analysis is complete, and refund the unused balance of any deposit.

Field work depends on weather, season, and crew availability, so we expect some movement. Tell us at least ten business days ahead and we reschedule at no charge. Inside that window, we pass on any non-recoverable travel or accommodation cost.

If we are the ones who must move a date, we reschedule at no cost to you and absorb our own additional travel.

We do not resell equipment, so we do not hold funds for it and cannot refund it. When you buy traps, sprayers, or sensors, you buy them from the manufacturer or its distributor, and their return and warranty terms apply. We will help you document a warranty claim.

Because we never promise a vector control outcome, refunds are not available on the basis that populations did not fall, that a funder declined an application, or that a third party did not implement our recommendations.

Refunds are available where we failed to deliver the work described in the agreement. That is the standard we hold ourselves to.

Write to the office by email with the invoice number and a short description of the issue. We respond within five business days and, where a refund is due, issue it by the original payment method within fifteen business days of agreeing the amount.

If we disagree about an invoice, we will discuss it directly and in good faith before either party escalates. Most billing disputes come from a scoping misunderstanding, and those are usually resolved in a single conversation.