Cancellation Policy

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You do not have to agree to this policy however we will be unable to provide you with the service without your agreement.

The act of booking any appointment with our service means that you agree to this policy in full.

1. Why do we need this cancellation policy?  

  • Our practice is an ethically run practice that places client care and practitioner care above all else. Consequently, unlike many other practices, we do not fill cancellations, so as to ensure your time is ringfenced and protected and your practitioner is not overwhelmed with clients. We can only afford to provide you with this service if we have a stringent cancellation policy. 

2. Cancellation notice required to avoid fees:  

  • For ALL appointments at PsychologyCare, we require at least 7 days notice to prevent a fee from being due. 
  • Notice of Cancellation received between 7 days and 48 hours prior to your consultation will result in a 50% Cancellation fee being Charged 
  • Notice of a cancellation received with less than Two (2) Full Business Days* notice, will result in a 100% Cancellation fee being charged.
  • Except in the case of an illness or family emergency. Our practice manager will contact you to discuss in this event. 

3. What is meant by a “business day”? 

  • Business days include any normal weekday other than a public holiday or office closure period, between the hours of 8.00 am and 5.00 pm.  

4. What is the cancellation fee? 

  • For all ALL appointments at PsychologyCare a cancellation fee is 100% of the full consultation fee if notice is given in less than 48hours or 50% of the full consultation fee if notice is given between 48 hours and a week. For any cancellations provided with a week or more notice – no cancellation fee will be charged.

     

5. Are there any exceptions? 

  • If your practitioner cancels on you with short notice, we want to hold ourselves to the same standard, so we will not charge you for one time if you cancel late in the future.

6. What is meant by “illness or family emergency”? 

  • We understand that illnesses and family emergencies sometimes occur, and we will not charge a cancellation fee in such cases.
  • A medical certificate may at our discretion be required to waive the cancellation fee.  
  • For clarity, please note the following examples of “family emergencies”:
    • An illness, injury or death  
    • A car accident  
    • A robbery or assault 
  • Please also note the following examples which are NOT considered “family emergencies” under this policy:
    • A meeting: work or school, sports or extracurricular event  
    • A family activity or holiday  
    • The exhaustion of your current referral/ Mental Health Care Plan
  • Although we accept that such events may be beyond your control and can be genuine reasons for late cancellation, we still require that you take responsibility for these types of circumstances and a cancellation fee would still apply.  

7. How do I pay the Cancellation fee?

  • Cancellation fees are payable on the phone at the time of cancellation, or will be directly charged to the encrypted credit card account details stored, or invoiced.  

8. What happens if a cancellation fee is not paid promptly?  

  • If a cancellation fee is charged under this policy and you do not pay the fee promptly we will be unable to continue providing you with the service. We also reserve the right to take any further reasonable action necessary to recover any unpaid fees and to bill you for any reasonable additional costs incurred in taking such action. 

9. How do I notify PsychologyCare of a cancellation?

  • To cancel or reschedule an appointment with us, please contact us by calling the following landline: 03 9088 1122 between the hours 9.00am to 5.00pm. If unattended, please leave a clear message with reference to the appointment you wish to reschedule, and we will get back to you as soon as practical.
  • You may also send an email to [email protected]

10. What is a No-Show?

  • A “No Show” includes instances where:
    • A participant/client doesn’t attend or is not available for a scheduled appointment and doesn’t notify us.
    • A client arrives more than 10 minutes late to their scheduled appointment.
  • Why is this policy in place?
    Starting a session when a client is more than 10 minutes late is not ethical or feasible for the following reasons:

    1. Quality of Care: A shortened session does not allow sufficient time to provide the level of care and support the client deserves, leading to rushed or incomplete therapy. This compromises the therapeutic process, which we aim to protect.
    2. Impact on Other Clients: A late start can disrupt the schedule for subsequent clients, causing delays and reducing the quality of service for others.
    3. Ethical Standards: Our ethical obligation is to ensure sessions are conducted with adequate time and attention. Starting late undermines this commitment and does not uphold professional standards.

    If a client arrives more than 10 minutes late, they will need to reschedule, and a No-Show fee will apply unless there are mitigating/emergency circumstances as outlined in the policy.

    This policy ensures fairness to both clients and practitioners while maintaining the high-quality care that PsychologyCare is known for.

 

We hope you find this to be a fair and reasonable policy and we thank you for your understanding and cooperation.  

Our intent is to provide all participants/clients and their families with every opportunity to reduce the likelihood of cancellations/no-shows which may attract a fee. All participants/clients will be given a hard copy or emailed copy of all scheduled appointments and will always be sent a text reminder at least TWO DAYS and a WEEK prior to their appointment so to reduce the likelihood of a fee being charged for cancellation / no show. 

 

Please note that while we endeavour to remind you of your appointments through email reminders, these should not be relied upon and it is your responsibility to remember appointments you have made.

 

PsychologyCare (Vic) Pty Ltd uses a variety of communication modes to ensure that participants/clients are aware of the cancellation policy, and that communication of this policy is clear and comprehensible through the company website, verbally informed by clinicians, noted in Service Agreements, and clearly stated in the header of all emails forwarded to participants/clients. Participant’s / clients are encouraged to take note of the Cancellation Policy prior to commencing treatment with PsychologyCare (Vic) Pty Ltd.