Legal
Refunds and right of withdrawal
The right of withdrawal is the EU consumer rule — Directive 2011/83/EU, implemented in Germany in §§ 355–356 BGB — that lets a consumer cancel a distance contract within 14 days of concluding it, without giving a reason. Blockquote sells monthly and yearly subscriptions to a digital service, so that rule applies here. This page states when money comes back, how to ask for it, and how it is paid out.
TL;DR: cancelling stops the next renewal; withdrawing within 14 days brings money back. In detail:
- Cancel anytime in the billing portal. The plan keeps working until the end of the paid period; that period itself is not refunded by a cancellation.
- Consumers in the EU or EEA can withdraw within 14 days of purchase by plain email. The withdrawal takes effect when the statement reaches us — there is no approval step.
- After a withdrawal, the refund is submitted within 14 days of the notice, back to the original payment method via Stripe.
- If the service was already used, a proportionate amount for the elapsed part of the period is deducted; if it was never used, the full amount comes back.
- Prices: Pro $12 per month or $120 per year, Agency $29 per month, tax included.
How do I cancel my Blockquote plan?
Cancel in the billing portal, reachable from your account. A cancellation stops the next renewal; the plan keeps working until the end of the period you already paid for. Cancelling on its own does not trigger a refund of that period.
There is no cancellation fee and no notice period beyond the current billing cycle: a Pro monthly plan cancelled on day 3 still runs for the rest of that month and simply does not renew. The portal shows the end date of the paid period, so the exact last day of access is always visible before and after cancelling.
What is the 14-day right of withdrawal?
If you are a consumer in the EU or EEA, you can withdraw from the contract within 14 days of concluding it, without giving a reason. The right comes from the Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU, implemented in Germany in § 355 BGB (how a withdrawal works and what follows from it) and § 356 BGB (the 14-day period for distance contracts). Sending an unambiguous statement by email within those 14 days is enough — the address is below. No particular form is required.
The period starts when the contract is concluded — for Blockquote, the moment checkout completes. Subscribe on 1 August and the last day to withdraw is 15 August. The Directive covers distance contracts — contracts concluded online without trader and consumer meeting in person — which includes every Blockquote purchase, since checkout happens entirely on the web. The withdrawal right applies to consumers; purchases made for a business, trade or profession are not covered by it.
How much money comes back when I withdraw?
The service starts immediately after payment: at checkout you tick a required checkbox and thereby expressly consent to performance beginning before the withdrawal period ends, and you acknowledge what that means for a withdrawal. If you withdraw after using the service, you owe a proportionate amount for the part of the period already elapsed — the value-compensation rule in § 357a BGB — and the remainder is refunded. If your checkout did not include that consent, a withdrawal within the 14 days is refunded in full. If you have not used the service at all, the full amount is refunded either way.
A worked example: withdraw from a Pro monthly plan ($12) on day 7 of a 30-day month after running scans, and the elapsed share is 7/30 of the price — $2.80 stays with us and $9.20 comes back.
Can I get a refund outside the withdrawal period?
There is no automatic refund for a period that is already running. If the service was unavailable, or scans failed repeatedly during a period you paid for, write and describe what happened — those cases are handled individually and refunded where the complaint is justified. Statutory warranty rights are unaffected by this paragraph.
How do I declare a withdrawal or ask for a refund?
Email hello@arnekellmann.de from the address on the account, or name it in the message. Include the invoice or receipt number from Stripe if you have it. Postal mail also works: Arne Kellmann, Odenwaldstr. 134L, 64372 Ober-Ramstadt, Germany. A withdrawal needs no approval — it takes effect when your statement reaches us, and we confirm it by email. Goodwill requests get a decision by email. Three details speed every request up: the email address on the account, the Stripe invoice or receipt number, and the date of the charge.
What is the model withdrawal form?
The model withdrawal form is the standard text prescribed by Art. 246a § 1 (2) sentence 1 no. 1 EGBGB that any consumer can use to declare a withdrawal. To withdraw, you can — but do not have to — use it. Copy it into an email or letter, fill it in, and send it to the address above:
To Arne Kellmann, Odenwaldstr. 134L, 64372 Ober-Ramstadt, Germany, email hello@arnekellmann.de:
I/we (*) hereby give notice that I/we (*) withdraw from my/our (*) contract for the provision of the following service: ____
Ordered on: ____
Name of consumer(s): ____
Address of consumer(s): ____
Signature of consumer(s) (only if this form is notified on paper): ____
Date: ____
(*) Delete as appropriate.
Which case leads to which refund?
Every refund case on this page reduces to one of five rows. The prose above is authoritative where wording differs; the table restates it.
| Case | Refund | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Withdrawal within 14 days, service not used | Full amount | Submitted within 14 days of your notice |
| Withdrawal within 14 days, service already used | Price minus a proportionate amount for the elapsed part of the period | Submitted within 14 days of your notice |
| Withdrawal within 14 days, checkout lacked the express consent | Full amount | Submitted within 14 days of your notice |
| Cancellation only, no withdrawal | None — the plan runs to the end of the paid period | — |
| Justified complaint (outage, repeatedly failing scans) | Decided individually | Submitted within 5 working days of acceptance |
How and when is the money paid back?
Refunds are processed through Stripe, our payment provider, and go back to the payment method used for the original charge — Stripe documents the mechanics in its refunds guide. There is no store credit and no alternative payout route. After a withdrawal, the refund is submitted no later than 14 days after your notice reaches us, as § 355 (3) BGB requires; goodwill refunds are submitted within 5 working days of being accepted. How quickly the money appears afterwards depends on your bank or card issuer and usually takes a further 5 to 10 working days.
What do the plans cost?
Pro costs $12 per month or $120 per year; the yearly price equals ten monthly payments, a saving of $24 per year. Agency costs $29 per month. Listed prices are end prices with tax included, in US dollars. The amount shown at checkout is the amount charged, and every refund on this page is calculated from that charged amount.