98.5% refunds in 48 hrs; no incentive to pursue those un-interested: Byju's

BYJU'S processes 98.5 per cent refunds within 48 hours of receiving such requests from customers, the edtech company said in its submission to child rights body NCPCR on Friday.

Defending itself on the allegation of mis-selling, BYJU'S said it does not encourage, order or incentivise its sales staff and managers to pursue customers who are uninterested in or unable to pay for its products.

"BYJU'S stated that it has robust written refund policy for all products and services. At every purchase touch point, the customer is informed about the terms of the refund policy. It also stated that 98.5 per cent of the refund requests that are submitted to it through official channels are processed within 48 hours," the company said in a statement.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), taking cognisance of the matter, has summoned BYJU'S CEO Byju Raveendran to appear before it on December 23.

BYJU'S denied the allegation of "mis-selling", saying that such question does not arise because its sales professionals do not have the authority to close the sale of a product at the point of sale.

The company said that by design, every sale is un-approved until it is verified by a triple-layered audit mechanism that reaches out to the interested customer through SMS, audio and video calls.

"The completion of a sale happens at the central level. BYJU'S does not encourage, order or incentivise its sales staff and/or managers to pursue customers who are uninterested in or unable to pay for its products. A reputed international consulting firm in an independently conducted rigorous survey unequivocally confirmed this recently," the statement said.

On the question of financing, BYJU'S said that it has clarified that it does not directly offer loans to its users.

"In order to assist students that require financial support, where requested, BYJU'S connects the parents of such students to reputed third party banks/financial institutions. It is impossible for any sales executive to get a loan approved merely by making a potential customer sign some documents. The sale is concluded only after independent verification and approval by the institution providing the financing option," the statement said.