Draft — pending legal review. The final wording of this policy is being finalised with qualified counsel. The structure below reflects what the published policy will cover.
DRAFT — pending legal review. Not legal advice.
Test Failure, Insufficient Sample & Recollection Policy
This policy explains what happens when a sample cannot be successfully processed — for example, if it fails quality checks, arrives in poor condition, or contains too little material to analyse. It describes what VAMS BioInnovation Private Limited ("VAMS", "we", "us") does in these situations, the free recollection we offer, reasonable limits on repeated attempts, and your rights under applicable consumer law.
This policy forms part of, and should be read together with, our Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, and Shipping & Returns Policy. It applies to consumers who purchase our kits and services.
1. Why a sample may fail or be insufficient
Microbiome sampling is sensitive, and it is completely normal for a small proportion of samples to be unusable on the first attempt. If this happens to you, it is not unusual and, in most cases, not your fault. Common reasons include:
Collection factors. Even when instructions are followed carefully, a swab or sample may pick up less material than needed, or the sample may not have been preserved exactly as intended.
Transit factors. Samples travel through the post and can be affected by time in transit, temperature, delays, or handling along the way before reaching the processing facility at Samples may be processed by qualified third-party laboratories in India or another location disclosed to the customer before sample submission or processing. The specific processing laboratory and country will be identified in the order documentation or test report where applicable..
Low biological material. Some samples simply contain too little usable genetic material to generate a reliable result, which cannot always be predicted or avoided at the point of collection.
Quality-check outcomes. Every sample goes through quality checks before analysis. A sample that does not meet the quality threshold is flagged as failed or insufficient rather than being reported with an unreliable result.
We deliberately choose to flag a sample as failed rather than issue a result we are not confident in. This protects the informational, wellness-oriented value of your report.
2. What VAMS does when a sample fails
Where a sample fails or is found to be insufficient for a reason within VAMS's control or reasonably attributable to the kit, its components, or standard processing, we will:
Notify you that the sample could not be successfully processed, with a plain-language explanation where we can give one; and
Offer you a free replacement kit for recollection, at no additional charge to you, including any standard shipping we would normally provide.
You do not need to re-purchase the service to recollect in these circumstances. The free recollection offer is our standard first response to an in-scope failure.
"Within VAMS's control" includes, for example, a defective kit component, an issue arising during our standard processing, or a quality-check failure that we cannot reasonably attribute to misuse. Where a failure is clearly caused by something outside our control — such as a sample collected contrary to the instructions provided, or a kit used after any stated expiry — we will still work with you in good faith and will tell you if any charge would apply before you incur it.
3. Reasonable limits on repeated recollection
To keep the service fair and workable, some reasonable limits apply to repeated recollection:
Free recollections. We will provide up to two (2) free recollection kits per purchased service where the failures are within VAMS's control, as described in Section 2.
Repeated failures outside our control. If sampling repeatedly fails for reasons that are clearly outside VAMS's control (for example, the collection instructions are not followed), we may discuss further options with you, which could include a chargeable additional kit. We will always explain any cost before you commit to it.
Good-faith review. Limits are applied reasonably and in good faith. Nothing in this section limits any remedy you are entitled to under applicable consumer law (see Section 6).
These limits exist to prevent misuse and manage costs; they are not intended to deny you a workable result or a remedy you are legally entitled to.
4. Timelines
We aim to handle failed and insufficient samples promptly:
Notification. We aim to notify you that a sample has failed or is insufficient within a reasonable period after our quality checks are completed.
Dispatch of a replacement kit. Where a free recollection applies, we aim to dispatch the replacement kit within a few business days of confirming the failure with you.
Your recollection. We ask that you use the replacement kit and return your new sample within any window stated in the kit instructions, so that components remain within their intended shelf life.
Shipping regions. Replacement kits are sent within Initially available only in serviceable regions of India. International and Australian availability must not be represented as active until local operations, logistics and legal requirements are confirmed. Eligible locations will be shown during checkout.. Delivery times depend on your location and on Approved third-party courier and logistics providers selected according to serviceability, biological-sample handling requirements and applicable transport rules. The carrier for a particular order will be communicated at dispatch..
These are target timelines, not guarantees, and may be affected by factors outside our control such as postal delays.
5. What happens if recollection still fails
Sometimes a result cannot be produced even after a fair recollection attempt — for example, if repeat samples still contain too little usable material. If we reach that point:
We will tell you clearly that a reliable result could not be produced.
Where the failure is within VAMS's control and we cannot deliver the analysis you paid for, we will offer you a refund of the amounts paid for the affected service, or a suitable replacement, at your choice, consistent with your rights under applicable consumer law.
Any refund is processed to your original payment method within a reasonable period. Where only part of a bundled purchase is affected, we will apply the refund or replacement to the affected part fairly.
This does not take away any other remedy you may have under applicable consumer law (see Section 6).
6. Your refund and replacement rights
Nothing in this policy excludes, restricts or modifies any right or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded, restricted or modified — including your statutory consumer rights under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and other applicable consumer-protection law of India.
In particular:
Where a service is not rendered, is deficient, or a product is defective, you retain your statutory rights, which may include a refund, replacement, or other appropriate remedy.
The limits and processes in this policy operate in addition to, and do not replace or reduce, these non-excludable statutory remedies.
Any limitation of our liability elsewhere in our terms does not exclude liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, including for fraud, wilful misconduct, statutory consumer remedies, and our personal-data-security obligations.
Consumer disputes. You are not required to use arbitration as your only route for a consumer dispute. You retain access to the Consumer Commissions and other statutory grievance mechanisms and competent regulators available to you under applicable law.
7. A note on your report
VAMS reports are informational and wellness-oriented. They are not a medical diagnosis and do not diagnose, rule out, treat, prevent or predict any disease or medical condition. A failed or insufficient sample means we could not generate that informational report reliably — it does not indicate anything about your health.
8. How to contact support
If your sample has failed or been flagged as insufficient, or if you have questions about recollection, refunds or replacements, please contact us:
Email: legal@vamsbiome.com
Please include your order reference and, where relevant, any kit or sample identifier, so we can help you quickly. If you are not satisfied with how your matter is handled, you may also raise a grievance through the channels described in our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, and you retain your rights to approach the statutory mechanisms referred to in Section 6.
Version and Change History
Document name: Test Failure, Insufficient Sample & Recollection Policy
Version: 1.0
Effective date: 10 July 2026
Change history: v1.0 (10 July 2026) — Initial publication.