LEGAL

Refund & Returns

Effective Date: May 15, 2026

This Refund and Returns Policy explains how Clair Fareio, an independent artist trading as Clair Fareio Art (the “Artist,” “we,” “our,” or “us”), handles refunds, returns, withdrawals, damaged goods, and conformity claims. It forms part of, and should be read together with, the Terms and Conditions of Sale, which contain the full contractual framework and govern in the event of any inconsistency. Nothing in this Policy limits any right that you have under mandatory Italian or EU consumer law that cannot lawfully be excluded.

1. Scope & General Principles

The Artist creates unique, original, and handmade Works. Slight variations in color, surface texture, weight, dimension, and finish are inherent to handmade artwork and do not constitute defects or grounds for refund. Refunds are not available for change of mind, decor incompatibility, gift refusal by the recipient, misjudgment of size based on dimensions stated on the invoice, third-party opinion, or any reason of subjective taste, save where mandatory consumer law provides otherwise. The remedies described in this Policy are the consumer’s statutory rights (Sections 3 and 4), the transit-damage protocol (Section 5), and any voluntary remedy that the Artist may, at its discretion, offer.

2. Commissions — Withdrawal Excluded

Commissioned Works are made to the Client’s specifications and are clearly personalized within the meaning of Article 59, paragraph 1, letter (c) of the Codice del Consumo. The statutory fourteen-day right of withdrawal therefore does not apply to commissions. The fifty percent (50%) deposit required to start a commission compensates the Artist for design development, materials reserved, studio time allocated, and the Artist’s decline of other engagements; the parties agree this represents a reasonable pre-estimate of the Artist’s loss in the event of Client-side cancellation. Except where the Artist cancels a commission without cause attributable to the Client, the deposit is non-refundable in cases of Client cancellation, change of mind, change of decor, change of address, change of financial circumstances, or any other Client-side withdrawal.

If the Client fails to pay the final balance or to provide shipping or collection instructions, the Artist will send a written reminder by email to the Client’s address of record. If, thirty (30) days after that reminder, the Client has not responded or paid, the Artist will send a final notice expressly stating the Artist’s intention to treat the commission as abandoned. If, sixty (60) days after the original final-invoice notice, the Client still has not paid the balance or provided collection instructions, the Artist may treat the commission as abandoned, retain all sums paid (including the deposit), and dispose of the completed Work as the Artist sees fit. This procedure does not apply to commissions where the Artist is in breach.

3. EU Consumer Right of Withdrawal — Non-Commissioned Original Works

If you qualify as a consumer in the European Union and purchase a non-commissioned original Work at a distance through this website, you have the right under Articles 52 to 58 of the Codice del Consumo to withdraw from the contract within fourteen (14) days, without giving any reason. The fourteen-day period runs from the day on which you, or a third party other than the carrier indicated by you, acquired physical possession of the Work; where a single order is delivered in multiple shipments, the period runs from receipt of the last item.

To exercise this right, notify the Artist in writing of your decision to withdraw before expiry of the fourteen-day period. An email to the address in Section 10 stating clearly your decision to withdraw is sufficient. You may also use the model withdrawal form set out in Annex I.B to the Codice del Consumo; on request, the Artist will provide a copy of the form by return email.

You must return the Work to the Artist’s studio in Sulmona, Italy, in original condition and packaging, fully insured for its invoice value, within fourteen (14) days of giving notice. You bear the direct costs of returning the Work, which depend on size, weight, declared value, origin, and carrier; for an original Work of typical studio dimensions, return costs from within the European Union may range from approximately €40 to €200 or more, and substantially more from outside the EU.

The Artist will refund the purchase price and the original (standard) outbound shipping cost within fourteen (14) days of receiving your withdrawal notice, in accordance with Article 56 of the Codice del Consumo. The Artist may withhold the refund until the returned Work has been received, or until you have supplied evidence of having dispatched it, whichever is earlier (Article 56(3)). Refunds are issued by the same payment method used for the original transaction unless you expressly agree otherwise, at no cost to you.

In accordance with Article 57(2) of the Codice del Consumo, the Artist is entitled to reduce the refund by any diminution in value of the Work resulting from handling beyond what is necessary to establish its nature, characteristics, and functioning. The burden of demonstrating any such diminution rests on the Artist, who will provide written justification before any deduction is made. Original Works are valuable, fragile, and condition-sensitive: removing the Work from its protective packaging beyond what is necessary for inspection, hanging or framing the Work, exposing it to direct sunlight, humidity, or smoke, or causing scuffs, scratches, or surface contamination may constitute a diminution in value.

The right of withdrawal does not apply to commissioned Works (see Section 2) or to in-person sales concluded at the studio, at exhibitions, or at fairs.

4. Legal Guarantee of Conformity — Two-Year Statutory Warranty

If you qualify as a consumer under Italian or EU law, you are protected by the legal guarantee of conformity under Articles 128 to 135-septies of the Codice del Consumo. The Artist is liable to you for any lack of conformity of the Work that exists at the time of delivery and becomes apparent within two (2) years from delivery. A lack of conformity that becomes apparent within one (1) year from delivery is presumed to have existed at the time of delivery, unless the Artist proves otherwise.

A “lack of conformity” means a substantive defect that makes the Work materially different from what was described, advertised, or reasonably to be expected. It does not include: inherent characteristics of handmade artwork (variation in color, texture, weight, dimension, or finish); natural aging of materials over time (such as oxidation of metal leaf, settling of impasto, or color shift with light exposure); damage caused by mishandling, framing, cleaning, or environmental exposure after delivery; or wear and tear from normal use or display.

If the Work is non-conforming, you are entitled to have the Work brought into conformity, free of charge, by repair or replacement at your choice, unless the remedy you choose is impossible or would impose disproportionate costs on the Artist. Where neither repair nor replacement is available, or where the Artist has not completed the chosen remedy within a reasonable time, you may obtain a proportionate reduction of the price or terminate the contract for non-minor defects, in accordance with Article 135-bis. To exercise these rights, contact the Artist by email at the address in Section 10 with a description of the alleged non-conformity and supporting photographs. Statutory rights under this Section are in addition to, and not affected by, the transit-damage protocol in Section 5.

5. Transit Damage

If your Work arrives damaged, notify the Artist in writing as soon as reasonably possible and in any event within seven (7) days of receipt, and supply: photographs of the carton at the moment of receipt; photographs of each layer of packing during unpacking; photographs of the damaged Work; and the carrier waybill. Retain all packaging materials until the claim is resolved. You should inspect the Work and document any visible damage promptly upon receipt; failure to document obvious damage at the time of unpacking may affect the Artist’s ability to recover from the carrier’s insurance. This Section does not limit your statutory rights under Section 4 for hidden defects discovered later.

Subject to verification and, where applicable, recovery from the carrier’s insurance, the Artist will propose one of the following remedies: repair of the Work; replacement of the Work with a piece of comparable value; or a refund of part or all of the purchase price. Where you qualify as a consumer and the damage amounts to a lack of conformity, your statutory rights under Section 4 prevail, and you may choose between repair and replacement subject to the disproportionate-cost limitation. Where the Artist arranges return shipment as part of a remedy, the Artist pays for that return shipment. The Artist’s total liability for transit damage will not exceed the invoice value of the affected Work.

6. Risk of Loss in Transit

Where you qualify as a consumer under EU law and have not designated your own carrier, risk of loss, damage, theft, or deterioration in transit passes to you upon physical delivery of the Work, in accordance with Article 63 of the Codice del Consumo. For business buyers and Clients who have designated their own carrier, risk passes upon handover of the Work to the carrier at the Artist’s studio. Consumer status is determined by the substantive criteria of the Codice del Consumo (purchase outside any trade, business, craft, or profession) and is not affected by the label, account type, or shipping address chosen at checkout; misrepresenting business use as consumer use to obtain consumer protections constitutes a breach of these Terms. Transit insurance for the full invoice value is strongly recommended and will be arranged by the Artist at the Client’s cost upon written request.

7. International Orders & Customs

Clients resident outside the European Union are not entitled to the statutory right of withdrawal described in Section 3 and have refund rights only to the extent granted by mandatory law of their place of residence. The transit-damage protocol in Section 5 applies to all Clients regardless of location. Import duties, customs charges, taxes, broker fees, demurrage, and storage costs in the destination country are the Client’s sole responsibility and are not refundable by the Artist. Refusal of delivery or failure to clear customs does not entitle the Client to a refund and may result in destruction or abandonment of the Work by the carrier, for which the Artist accepts no liability.

8. Refund Mechanics & Anti-Fraud Conditions

Refunds, where due under this Policy, are issued at full value without deduction of payment-processing fees, currency-conversion fees, or administrative charges. Refunds are processed only to the original payer, only to the original payment instrument used for the transaction, and only after the underlying funds have fully and irrevocably cleared the Artist’s account. The Artist does not remit refunds to third parties, including any party identified as a “shipping agent,” “moving company,” “personal assistant,” “spouse,” or similar.

Any apparent overpayment will be presumed fraudulent and handled under Section 5 of the Terms and Conditions of Sale. For VAT-registered transactions, refunds are accompanied by a credit note (nota di credito) issued in accordance with Italian fiscal law.

9. Payment-Platform Disputes & Chargebacks

Your statutory rights to dispute unauthorized or non-executed payment-card or other payment transactions under Directive (EU) 2015/2366 (PSD2) and applicable national law are not affected by this Policy. Subject to those mandatory rights, you agree to contact the Artist by email first and allow a good-faith negotiation period of thirty (30) days from written notice before initiating any chargeback, payment-platform dispute, PayPal claim, or wire recall in respect of a transaction with the Artist.

A chargeback or dispute initiated in breach of the foregoing covenant, or asserted on grounds that the Work was “not as described” where the variation falls within inherent handmade variation, monitor color rendering, or subjective taste, or on grounds of “item not received” where a tracked, signed-for delivery receipt evidences delivery to the address of record, constitutes a Wrongful Chargeback within the meaning of Section 5 of the Terms and Conditions of Sale and a material breach. In the event of a Wrongful Chargeback, the Client is liable for the full purchase price, all chargeback and platform fees, all bank and recovery costs, and reasonable legal fees, and the Artist may pursue collection in any competent forum and may make appropriate public-record disclosures about confirmed fraud, subject to applicable law.

10. How to Make a Claim

To submit a withdrawal notice, damage claim, conformity claim, or any other request under this Policy, contact the Artist by email at clairvegas [at] gmail [dot] com. Include your full name, order number or invoice reference, the date the Work was received, and, for damage or conformity claims, the photographic evidence and waybill required by Sections 4 and 5. The Artist aims to acknowledge claims within five (5) business days. The statutory timeframes in Sections 3 and 4 govern in any case.

11. Dispute Resolution & Consumer Protection Authorities

The Artist is committed to resolving issues directly, in good faith, and within the timeframes set by this Policy. If a resolution cannot be reached through direct communication, EU consumers have access to the following channels: alternative dispute resolution (ADR) before an accredited body registered with the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, including the Chambers of Commerce mediation service (conciliazione camerale); the European Commission’s Online Dispute Resolution platform at ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr; complaint to the Italian Competition and Market Authority (Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato, AGCM) for unfair commercial practices; complaint to the consumer-protection authority of the consumer’s habitual residence within the European Union; or the European Consumer Centre Italy (Centro Europeo Consumatori) for cross-border disputes.

The governing-law, jurisdiction, and dispute-resolution provisions of Section 12 of the Terms and Conditions of Sale apply to any unresolved dispute, without prejudice to the consumer-jurisdiction rules of Regulation (EU) No. 1215/2012.

12. Force Majeure

The Artist is not liable for refund delays caused by natural disasters, governmental orders, war, civil unrest, pandemics, cyberattacks, banking outages, carrier failure, customs processing, or other events beyond the Artist’s reasonable control. Such delays do not impair your statutory rights, but may extend the practical timeframes for completing repair, replacement, or refund.

13. Language & Changes

This Policy is issued in English. Translations into other languages are provided for convenience only; the English text prevails in the event of conflict, save where mandatory law of the Client’s habitual residence requires otherwise. The Artist may update this Policy from time to time by publishing a revised version on this page with a new effective date; the version in force at the moment an order is accepted governs that transaction.