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Event refund policy generator (free)

Choose how refunds work for your event and get a clear policy in plain English, ready to paste. It matches how refunds work on One Ticket, so the policy you publish is the one buyers get.

8 minute read

Write your policy

Fill in your event and pick a policy: the policy below writes itself as you go. Then paste it into your event on One Ticket, in Refunds under the same option, and buyers see it there before they pay.

Your event
Tickets
Refunds

Refund policy for [Event name]

This policy covers tickets to [Event name], run by [Organiser name].

Refunds up to 7 days beforeYou can refund your order yourself, from your ticket, up to 7 days before the event starts. You get the ticket price back; the booking fee isn’t refunded. Only the person who booked can do this, and not once anyone on the order has checked in. After that, we don’t give refunds if you change your mind or can’t come.

If the event changesIf we change the date, start time or place after you’ve booked, you can refund your order in full, booking fee included, from your ticket until the event starts.

If we cancelIf we cancel the event, we’ll refund every order in full, booking fee included.

How refunds are paidRefunds go back to the card you paid with, usually within 5 to 10 business days. When we refund an order ourselves, the booking fee comes back too. If you paid at the door, ask us.

Your rightsNothing in this policy takes away your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

QuestionsEmail us at [your email].

The four policies

  • Refunds any time before it starts. The friendliest choice, and good for building trust when an empty place costs you little, like a weekly class or a watch party.
  • Refunds up to a set number of days before. The usual middle ground. Set the cut-off where your costs become fixed: a week for a catered dinner, a day or two for a class.
  • Case by case. Buyers ask from their ticket and say why; you refund or decline within three days, or by the day before the event if that’s sooner. A request nobody answers goes to One Ticket support.
  • No change-of-mind refunds. Common for cheap tickets and shows where every seat is paid for up front. You still refund if you cancel, and buyers still can if you change the date, time or place.

Whichever you choose, a buyer’s own refund under the policy returns the ticket price; the booking fee stays. Only the person who booked can refund an order, and not once anyone on it has checked in.

What every policy includes

  • A change means a full refund. If you change the date, start time or place after people have booked, each of them can refund in full from their ticket, booking fee included, until it starts, whatever your policy says.
  • Your refunds include the booking fee. When you refund an order from Orders, the whole amount goes back to the card, booking fee included. A buyer’s own refund under your policy returns the ticket price, and the booking fee stays.
  • Cancelling doesn’t refund by itself. If you cancel, refund each order from Orders.
  • New organisers’ money waits. Until your first paid event has gone cleanly, ticket money is paid out two days after each event, and an open refund request holds it for longer.
  • Buyers see it first. The policy you choose in the event’s settings is shown on the event page and at checkout before anyone pays, with your own written policy under it when you paste one in.

The law, in short

A refund policy sits on top of the Australian Consumer Law; it can’t take away its guarantees. If you cancel the event, or change it in a big way, people are generally entitled to their money back whatever your policy says. What a policy can decide is a change of mind: someone who simply can’t come.

That’s why the strictest choice here reads “no change-of-mind refunds”, not “no refunds”: a blanket “no refunds” can mislead people about rights they still have.

This page and the policies it writes are general information, not legal advice. For your situation, see the ACCC or your state’s fair trading office.

Templates by type of event

Ready-made policies, each with why it suits: all refund policy templates.

Read more

Common questions

What should an event refund policy say?
Whether people can get their money back if they can’t come, and until when; how to ask; and what happens if you change or cancel the event. Keep it to a few plain sentences and show it before people pay.
Can my policy say no refunds?
It can say no change-of-mind refunds. Under the Australian Consumer Law people are generally entitled to a refund if you cancel or significantly change the event, and a policy can’t take that away.
Is the booking fee refunded?
When a buyer refunds themselves under your policy, the ticket price comes back and the booking fee stays. When you refund an order, or when you’ve changed the date, start time or place, the booking fee is refunded too.
Where do buyers see my policy?
On One Ticket you choose how refunds work in your event’s Refunds settings, and paste the policy from this page into the box under that choice. Buyers see it under the option you chose, on the event page and at checkout before they pay, and on their ticket where they refund or ask for one. The option still decides who can refund themselves.