1. Your rights under Australian Consumer Law
Our goods and services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. You are entitled to a refund, repair, replacement or to cancel a service contract where there is a major failure (for example, the service is significantly different from what was paid for, or unfit for its purpose), and to compensation for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage. For minor failures we may choose to fix the issue within a reasonable time instead of refunding.
Nothing in this Policy excludes, restricts or modifies those rights.
2. Driver — charging session refunds
You may request a refund for a charging session where:
- You were charged but no energy was delivered;
- The session ended early due to a charger or network fault not caused by your vehicle;
- You were billed for materially more kWh than were delivered (metering error);
- You were charged after a session you did not start (suspected unauthorised use).
How to request: open the session in the app → "Get help with this session" → submit the dispute, or email info@tetheredaustralia.com.au with the session ID. Please request refunds within 30 days of the session.
Timeframes: we acknowledge within 2 business days and aim to resolve within 10 business days. Approved refunds are returned to the original payment method within 5–10 business days (bank-dependent).
Site Operator responsibility: Site Operators (not Tethered) supply the electricity and own the chargers. Where a refund relates to charger condition, signage or on-site pricing, we may forward your request to the Site Operator. Your statutory rights under the ACL are not affected by who is investigating.
3. Driver — pre-authorisation holds
When you start a session your card issuer places a temporary hold (typically $1–$50 AUD) which is reconciled against actual energy delivered when the session ends. The unused portion is released by your bank — this can take 1–7 business days depending on your card issuer and is not controlled by Tethered.
4. Driver — idle, parking and connection fees
Where a Site Operator publishes idle fees, parking fees or minimum session fees, those fees are disclosed on the charger and in the app before the session starts. Once disclosed and accepted, these fees are payable in full and are generally non-refundable, except where the ACL applies or the fee was incurred due to a Platform or charger fault.
Idle fee quiet hours: idle fees only accrue between 6am and midnight Australia/Sydney. No idle fee will start or continue to accrue between midnight and 6am local time.
5. Business — subscription fees
- Monthly plans: billed in advance and non-refundable for the current month. You may cancel at any time via the in-Platform billing portal; access continues until the end of the paid period.
- Yearly plans: billed up-front. We do not provide pro-rata refunds for unused months, except where required by the ACL or where we materially reduce Platform functionality during the term.
- 7-day free trial: no charge is made during the trial. You may cancel before the trial ends with no fee.
- Plan changes: upgrades take effect immediately with a pro-rated charge for the remainder of the cycle. Downgrades take effect at the next renewal.
6. Business — platform session fees
- While your subscription is active, an 8% platform fee is deducted from gross session revenue before payout.
- If your subscription lapses while chargers remain connected to the Platform, the platform fee increases to 30% from the end of the paid period until those chargers are removed or a new subscription covers them. See clauses 3 and 4 of the Terms of Service.
- Session fees, once correctly deducted from settled sessions, are non-refundable except where the underlying driver session is itself refunded under clause 2.
7. Chargebacks & payment disputes
If you raise a chargeback with your card issuer instead of contacting us first, your account may be temporarily suspended pending investigation. We will provide evidence of the session (energy delivered, timestamps, charger ID, pricing disclosed) to your card issuer. Chargebacks found in your favour are returned by your bank; chargebacks found against you may result in a chargeback handling fee and reinstated balance.
We encourage you to contact us first — most disputes are resolved faster directly than via a chargeback.
8. Receipts & tax invoices
Tax invoices for driver sessions are issued by the Site Operator (where they are registered for GST) and made available in the app. Tax invoices for business subscriptions are issued by Tethered Australia and available from the billing portal.
9. Complaints & escalation
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of a refund request, you may escalate to:
- your state or territory fair trading / consumer affairs office, or the ACCC;
- the relevant state energy ombudsman (e.g. EWON in NSW, EWOV in VIC) where the matter relates to the sale or supply of electricity;
- the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) for privacy-related concerns.
10. Contact
Email info@tetheredaustralia.com.au or write to Tethered Australia Pty Ltd, 48 McBride Ave, Wonthaggi VIC 3995. We will acknowledge within 2 business days.