Terms of Service

Nature of Service

The Kindest Goodbye is not a registered veterinary clinic, but an agency that connects families and their pets with our wonderful network of home euthanasia vets and aftercare providers across Australia. All euthanasia service providers are independent registered veterinary contractors  and they are responsible for providing services under Australian law and local veterinary board guidelines. The Kindest Goodbye provides booking, coordination, and payment facilitation services only.

Booking Availability

Availability of home euthanasia vet for bookings is subject to change. As far as possible, individual vets’ availability will be maintained frequently and accurately to avoid appointments being made that cannot be serviced by the booked vet. Where unforeseen circumstances should render the booked vet unavailable for a specific appointment, The Kindest Goodbye will contact the client immediately via the phone number provided in the booking process to offer an alternative provider or an alternative appointment time. If alternative times are unacceptable to the client, a full refund will be issued.

Cancellations/Changes & Refund Policy

Changes to appointments and cancellations may be made by calling our customer care team on 1300 799 452 or via the link in your booking confirmation email. A cancellation or change takes effect at the time your request is submitted via the link, or at the time of your call, whether or not the call is answered immediately.

Late cancellation or rescheduling

For cancellations or rescheduling within 60 minutes of the start of the appointment arrival window, the following fees will apply to compensate the veterinarian booked for the service for their time, travel and the potential loss of another booking:

• Weekdays, 8am–6pm: $100
• Weekdays, 7–8am and 6–10pm; weekends, 7am–10pm: $150
• Public holidays, and overnight 10pm–7am: $200

Any agreed travel fee will also be retained for the veterinarian. For a cancellation, the remainder of the booking charge will be refunded. For a rescheduled appointment, the remainder will be applied to the new booking as described below.

Earlier cancellation

For cancellations made more than 60 minutes before the start of the appointment arrival window, a $20 administration fee will apply to cover transaction and administrative costs, and the balance of payment will be refunded.

Rescheduling

Appointments may be rescheduled free of charge more than 60 minutes before the start of the appointment arrival window. Rescheduling within 60 minutes attracts the late fees set out above, and any agreed travel fee for the original appointment will be retained for the veterinarian, who will generally already be travelling to you. In either case, payment already received, less any applicable fees, will be held and applied to your new appointment. Any travel fee for the new appointment will be assessed separately, based on the veterinarian allocated to it, and may differ from the original travel fee or may not apply. If the new appointment costs more, the difference will be charged to your booking. If it costs less, the difference will be refunded to you.

If your pet passes away before the appointment

Where a cancellation is due to a pet passing away of natural causes, a full refund will be issued, unless the cancellation is made within 60 minutes of the start of the appointment arrival window. In that case, a $100 cancellation fee plus any agreed travel fee will apply. If we are organising crematorium transfer for your pet and our veterinarian is facilitating this, the following collection and transfer fees will apply in place of that cancellation fee:

• Weekdays, 8am–6pm: $160
• Weekdays, 7–8am and 6–10pm; weekends, 7am–10pm: $220
• Public holidays, and overnight 10pm–7am: $260

Any agreed travel fee will also be retained for the veterinarian.

Change of mind after the veterinarian arrives

Should the veterinarian attend and you decide not to proceed with euthanasia, a home visit and consultation fee will apply, plus any agreed travel fee:

• Weekdays, 8am–6pm: $220
• Weekdays, 7–8am and 6–10pm; weekends, 7am–10pm: $350
• Public holidays, and overnight 10pm–7am: $460

Any balance of payment already received will be refunded to you.

Where the service cannot proceed safely

Our veterinarians may decline to proceed where, in their professional judgement, it is not safe to do so. In that case, the late cancellation fees set out above will apply, plus any agreed travel fee, and the balance of payment will be refunded.

Incorrect booking information

If an incorrect date or address is provided at the time of booking, additional fees may be payable. If, as a result, the veterinarian attends at the scheduled time and the euthanasia does not proceed, the applicable cancellation fee and any travel fees associated with the booking will apply. If additional travel is incurred due to an incorrect address and the service proceeds, additional travel fees may be charged. If the service is cancelled or postponed because an incorrect address leaves insufficient time to provide it, a cancellation fee will apply in addition to any travel fees associated with the booking.

If your veterinarian becomes unavailable

Where unforeseen circumstances make the booked veterinarian unavailable for an appointment, The Kindest Goodbye will contact you as soon as possible on the phone number provided at booking to offer an alternative veterinarian or appointment time. If no alternative is acceptable to you, a full refund will be issued.

Service concerns

In the unlikely event that you are unhappy with the service provided by a veterinarian referred by The Kindest Goodbye, please contact us. A full refund may be issued after consultation with company management.

Aftercare and cremation

Transfer and communal cremation. The transfer of your pet to the crematorium, whether for communal or individual cremation, is arranged by The Kindest Goodbye and charged as part of your booking. Where you choose communal cremation, the cremation is also charged by The Kindest Goodbye as part of your booking. This policy applies to both. If you cancel the transfer or communal cremation before your pet has been taken into our veterinarian’s care, the relevant charge will be refunded. Once your pet has been taken into our veterinarian’s care, the transfer is non-refundable. If you change from communal to individual cremation, or cancel a communal cremation, before the cremation has taken place, the communal cremation charge will be refunded in full. If you would like your pet returned to you after they have been taken into our veterinarian’s care, please contact us as soon as possible. We will arrange for your pet to be made available for collection or, for an additional fee, returned to you. Timing will depend on the availability of our veterinarian or crematorium partner. Any questions or concerns about the transfer or a communal cremation should be directed to us.

Individual cremation. Individual cremations, and any associated memorial items, are arranged and paid for directly with our crematorium partners, and the crematorium’s own terms, including its cancellation and refund terms, apply to them. The transfer of your pet to the crematorium remains a service provided by The Kindest Goodbye, as set out above. If you change from individual to communal cremation, any refund of the individual cremation charge will be handled by the crematorium under its terms, and the communal cremation charge will be added to your booking. If your pet has already been transferred to the crematorium and you would like them returned, this will be arranged by the crematorium. Enquiries, changes, cancellations and disputes relating to the individual cremation itself or to memorial items should be directed to the crematorium. We are happy to help you get in touch with them.

Refunds

Refunds are made to the original payment method unless you request otherwise. They are processed immediately but, depending on your financial institution, may take a few business days to appear in your account.

Your rights under the Australian Consumer Law

Nothing in this policy excludes, restricts or modifies any right or remedy you may have under the Australian Consumer Law, including rights relating to services that are not provided with due care and skill.

All fees are in Australian dollars and include GST.

Variation to Standard Service

Please note that if your pet is severely debilitated at the time of our arrival, we may discuss with you providing euthanasia without giving sedation first as the sedation may make it impossible to then place an IV catheter if your pet’s blood pressure is already extremely low. Alternative injection methods including intracardiac, intrarenal and intrahepatic may occasionally be necessary where IV access is not possible. This will always be discussed with you in advance of proceeding with any these processes should they be deemed necessary by our vets. Also, please be aware that in some rare instances where pets are very unstable, peaceful euthanasia may be achieved with only the first injection and intravenous injection may not be required.