Cancellations are automatic. Refunds you decide. Here's the flow for both, and what Marrow handles behind the scenes.

When an athlete cancels

The cancel flow

Athletes can cancel from their own dashboard. When they click "Cancel my subscription," they confirm and get a short note explaining what happens next. Their subscription stops at the end of the current billing period. They keep access until that end date. No future charges run.

You get a notification the moment they cancel. Reach out if it makes sense. Many athletes who cancel come back, especially if the coach checks in without a sales pitch.

When an athlete asks for a refund

You decide; Stripe handles the mechanics

Refund policy is up to the coach. Marrow does not unilaterally refund athletes. The standard pattern most coaches use:

  • Hear them out. Sometimes the complaint is something you can fix.
  • Decide: full refund, partial refund, or no refund based on your stated policy.
  • Issue the refund through your Stripe dashboard. Click the transaction, hit "Refund," pick full or partial.
  • Marrow's 5% application fee refunds proportionally. So does the Stripe processing fee. The net comes out of your Stripe balance.
Screenshot: Stripe refund dialog
When to refund and when to hold

A few patterns coaches land on

There's no single right answer. Coaches who handle this well share a few patterns.

  • Be specific about your refund policy in writing, on your public coach profile. Athletes who know the rules complain less when the rules apply.
  • Refund when the athlete genuinely never used the service. A new athlete who never logged in inside the first week is worth a clean refund and a polite goodbye.
  • Pro rate partials when an athlete leaves mid month for a real life reason. It costs you a little money and earns you a long term reputation.
  • Hold the line when the athlete used the service and is asking out of buyer's remorse. Coaching is not a return aisle.
When a charge is disputed

Chargebacks come through Stripe

If an athlete disputes a charge with their card issuer (a chargeback), you'll get an alert from Stripe with a deadline to respond. Stripe walks you through submitting evidence. Save your message history with the athlete; it's the single most useful piece of evidence in a chargeback dispute.

If you want a second set of eyes on a chargeback before you respond, email edwin@marrowfitness.com. We've handled enough of these to help you frame the response.

What stays, what goes Cancelling a subscription does not delete the athlete's account or their data. They keep their training history. If they want their account or data deleted, they can request it from their settings and Marrow handles the deletion under our privacy policy.
Related