Paint Protection
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6 min read
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What Happens to Your Deposit If You Change Your Mind
By
Dragon Auto Team
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Milpitas, California
We've Given Back Over $66,000 in Deposits
Since we started taking deposits, 59 customers have asked for one back because something changed, and we refunded every one of them, $66,079.75 in total. We pulled that number out of our own payment records before writing this, because we didn't want to publish a rounded guess. It leaves out billing corrections and refunds for services we no longer offer, so what's left is only people who booked, put money down, and then ran into a reason to stop. Here's what those reasons actually were, in the words our own team wrote down at the time: a loss in the family, a family emergency, medical bills that came up out of nowhere, one person who lost their job and another who got fired, a car still sitting in the body shop, money that suddenly had to go toward travel instead, a different car bought before we ever got to this one, someone who realized after booking that we were just too far away, and more than one person who simply changed their mind. One customer last week cancelled a job on an M3 because the rod bearings needed doing first, and if you own that car you know exactly what that bill looks like and you know it was the right call. The money was back the same day they asked. None of them had to explain themselves twice, and none of them paid a cancellation fee, because we don't have one.
Why We Don't Make This Difficult
A deposit reserves a spot on our calendar, that's the whole job it does. Dates get spoken for, more than one person wants the same Saturday, and we need a way to know which bookings are real, so the deposit is the priority system. Once your date is yours we're building the installers' schedule around it and setting aside the material for your car specifically. So when you cancel with reasonable notice that spot goes back out to whoever wanted it and nothing is really lost on our end, which means keeping your money would just be a way of punishing you for something that wasn't your fault. It also tends to work out for us. One customer paid a deposit in August, then told us they wouldn't be driving the car for a while, so we sent it back. They came back in October, paid again, and we did the job. Keeping that deposit would have won us half of a job we weren't doing, letting it go got us all of it. None of this feels like generosity on our end, it's just the obvious call. You booked something, your plans changed, and it's your money.
What the 72 Hours Is Actually About
The only thing that 72-hour mark changes is whether the money comes back to your card or stays on your account. Inside three days of your appointment we've already built the day around your car, put installers on it, and set aside the material for it, and that's genuinely hard to reassign on that kind of notice. So in that window your deposit stays as credit toward the job instead of going back to your card, and you can put it toward the work whenever you reschedule. You haven't lost anything, you just haven't got it back in cash yet. And if you're past that window and something serious has happened, talk to us anyway. Most of the refunds in that $66,000 went to people we didn't technically owe anything to, because life doesn't check our calendar before it happens.
Is the deposit refundable?
Yes, if you cancel more than 72 hours before your appointment date we refund it in full to the card you paid with, and inside 72 hours it stays on your account as credit toward the job whenever you reschedule.
How long does a refund take to show up?
We process it on our end the same day you ask, usually within a few hours, and your bank then takes a few business days to post it, so plan on seeing it on your statement inside a week. If it hasn't turned up by then let us know and we'll chase it down, because that means something went wrong on the technical side rather than on yours.
Do you charge a cancellation or restocking fee?
No, we don't have one. You get the full amount back, not the amount minus a processing charge.
What if I cancel inside the 72 hours?
Your deposit stays on your account and counts toward the full price of the job whenever you come back, it doesn't expire and you don't lose it. If something serious has come up, tell us what happened anyway, because we've refunded plenty of people who were technically past that window.
Can I just move my appointment instead of cancelling?
Yes, and that's usually the easier option, because rescheduling keeps your deposit and your pricing exactly where they are. Give us as much notice as you can and we'll find you another date.
Do I have to pay a deposit before you confirm my appointment?
No, the quote is free and we confirm your appointment date with you first, so the deposit request only goes out once your date is locked in, and what it does is reserve that slot.
What if I am not happy after the work is done?
That's a separate promise from the deposit. If the coating fails or the finish doesn't meet our workmanship standard within 30 days of pickup we'll redo the work or refund you in full, and that sits on top of the 15-year manufacturer warranty on the coating itself.
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