Cancellation & Refund Policy

1. Individual Order Cancellation Policy

Due to the perishable and custom nature of freshly cooked food, our cancellation guidelines are structured as follows:

• Confirmed Orders: Once an individual meal order is placed and payment is successfully confirmed, the order is instantly queued in the canteen kitchen for preparation. Therefore, customer-initiated cancellations are not permitted once cooking has commenced.
• Order Changes: If you made an accidental selection, immediately notify the counter manager before the food is plated. Canteen staff will make reasonable efforts to accommodate equal-value substitutions when operationally feasible.

2. Bulk Event & Symposium Order Cancellations

For large-scale catering bookings (college symposiums, sports meets, guest lectures, department events):

• Notice Window: Cancellations or significant headcount reductions must be submitted in writing or by phone to the catering coordinator at least 24 to 48 hours prior to the scheduled event delivery date.
• Advance Procurement: If ingredients or specialized bulk provisions have already been purchased specifically for the event prior to cancellation, an administrative raw-material fee may be deducted from the refund.

3. Eligibility for Full 100% Refunds

A full 100% refund is guaranteed under any of the following circumstances:

• Item Out of Stock / Kitchen Sold Out: If an item becomes unavailable after payment confirmation, the admin will mark the item out of stock and initiate an immediate refund.
• Unscheduled Canteen Closure: In the rare event that the canteen kitchen must close early due to power disruption or institutional mandates, any pending, unfulfilled orders will be refunded automatically.
• Payment Deducted but Order Creation Failed: If money was debited from your bank or UPI app, but a network glitch prevented the order or token from generating on our website.
• Duplicate Charges: If an accidental double deduction occurred during checkout for a single meal order.

4. Refund Processing Modes & Timelines

All approved refunds are credited back exclusively to the original payment source (via our payment gateway partner, Zoho Payments):

Note: Bank holidays, weekends, and issuing bank reconciliation cycles may occasionally cause minor settlement delays beyond our direct control.

5. Non-Refundable Scenarios

Refunds will not be granted in the following circumstances:

• Unclaimed Meals: If an order is prepared and available at the counter, but the student fails to claim the food during the designated service session (Breakfast, Lunch, or Evening).
• Wrong Pickup QR: Showing someone else's order QR code or providing an inaccurate order number.
• Personal Taste Preference: Dislike of dish flavor, temperature after delayed pickup, or customized spice levels that were prepared as requested.

6. How to Request or Track a Refund

If you experienced a failed transaction or payment deduction without an order token:

1. Note down your Order ID (if visible) and the Payment Reference / UTR Number from your banking or UPI app.
2. Send an email to kitcbecanteen@gmail.com with the subject line "Refund Request - [Your Order / Transaction ID]" including a screenshot of the payment receipt.
3. Alternatively, present your transaction proof in person at the Central Canteen Manager Counter for immediate verification and ledger reconciliation.