Policies

Visual Arts Mississauga takes the health and safety of our community seriously. Our public washrooms are cleaned by the City of Mississauga multiple times daily. Face masks are encouraged for those feeling unwell, but not mandatory. We ask for the cooperation of all staff, students, and volunteers to respect the choice of others if they choose to wear a mask or not. Please continue to monitor any symptoms and use your best judgement when attending our classes. 

VAM facilities are nut-free and scent-free for the enjoyment of all patrons. Please avoid wearing scented body sprays and perfumes, and only bring nut-free snacks. 

Prior to registration, please carefully read the course description, level, day and time, so that it suits your needs, abilities and schedule. 

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HOW TO MAKE A REFUND OR TRANSFER REQUEST 

All refund and/or switch requests made by a customer are subject to a $30 administrative fee (+ HST where applicable). 

Requests for refunds or course transfers must be made by the customer in writing to info@visualartsmississauga.com as soon as a concern arises.  

TERMS  & CONDITIONS OF PURCHASE 

COURSES: Course cancellations and/or switch requests must be made by the customer no less than one week (7 days)  before the start date of the course. VAM will not provide refunds for cancellations made after that time. There are no exceptions.   

CAMPS: Cancellation and/or switch requests for camps must be made by the customer no less than two weeks (14 days) before the scheduled start date. VAM will not provide refunds for cancellations made after that time. There are no exceptions.   

WORKSHOPS: Like concert tickets, our workshop fees are non-refundable. You may transfer them to a friend or family member by emailing the new registrant’s contact info to info@visualartsmississauga.com. There are no exceptions.   

DROP-IN SESSIONS: If registered for a Drop-in Session (including Life Drawing, Open Studio, etc.), cancellations must be made at least one week (7 days) in advance. Requests to transfer to the following week may be accommodated based on availability. Limit one transfer request per person per registration, repeated transfer requests will not be permitted. No refunds or transfers will be issued for cancellations made with less than one week’s notice. 

EVENT/FUNDRAISER TICKETS: Like concert tickets, our event tickets are non-refundable. You may transfer them to a friend or family member by emailing the new registrant’s contact info to info@visualartsmississauga.com. There are no exceptions. 

ENTRY FEES: for exhibition applications and artist competitions are non-refundable.  

POST-CLASS REFUNDS: Fees for a course or workshop that has already been attended are non-refundable. 

FREE WORKSHOPS: Unless otherwise listed, free workshops that are offered by VAM in partnership with other organizations are on a first come first serve basis. VAM is unable to hold spots, and will not provide any rescheduled reservations for missed sessions. 

DISCOUNTS APPLIED: If a course or camp was discounted using a coupon/discount code or automatic discount (i.e. Early Bird), any refund issued will be refunded for the total amount paid, less the standard admin fee (plus HST where applicable). 

STACKED DISCOUNTS APPLIED: If checkout was discounted through a purchase incentive where multiple courses/camps/workshops were required AND if the number of courses or camps being refunded are now lower than the eligible purchased total, an adjusted refund amount will be issued – deducting the discount that would not otherwise be valid – less the standard admin fee (plus HST where applicable). 

Policy exemption requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.  

Exemptions may be granted if the registrant’s spot can be filled by the waitlist or if proof of an emergency situation or a medical note is provided. All policy exemptions are subject to a minimum $50 administrative fee (plus HST where applicable) and are only granted with approval by VAM’s Program Development Manager and/or Executive Director. 

VAM reserves the right to postpone or cancel programs for any reason. 

In the event that VAM postpones or cancels a paid program: students will be offered a refund, or the opportunity to transfer to another course of equivalent value if there is space available. There is no administrative fee applied to refunds or credits for programs cancelled by VAM. 

VAM administration reserves the right to postpone or cancel a course one week prior to the start date due to insufficient registration. We encourage students to purchase required materials for a course or workshop until closer to the start date or keep receipts for any purchased materials. 

EMERGENCIES: VAM reserves the right to postpone or cancel due to an emergency.  In this scenario, VAM will notify students by phone and/or email to offer a refund or reschedule if there is space available. Students must notify VAM if they cannot attend a rescheduled class, and will be issued a refund.  

INSTRUCTOR CHANGES: VAM reserves the right to substitute or change instructors if required to continue the successful delivery of a course due to unforeseen circumstances. No refund will be issued for courses that are occurring as scheduled. 

Credit Notes are not a typical form of refund offered. 

Credit Notes are issued at the discretion of the Executive Director or Program Development Manager in exceptional scenarios only. 

Credit notes issued by the office for cancelled classes or camps are valid for a period of 1 year from the date of issue. After this period, any unused credit will expire and cannot be redeemed. It is the responsibility of the recipient to use the credit within the validity period. 

Gift Cards issued by VAM do not have an expiration date.  

Gift Cards purchased and sent electronically via Amilia SmartRec, stay within the purchaser’s account until claimed by the user via the provided emailed link. 

Recipients can use the gift card value for any electronic purchases in the VAM online store. Gift cards cannot be refunded for cash or another method of payment. 

SENDER CANCELLATION: Senders of gift cards wishing to cancel, can do so as long as it has not been redeemed by the recipient yet.  To request a cancellation, please contact VAM in writing to info@visualartsmississauga.com.  Once a recipient has redeemed the gift card, the value has been transferred and cannot be cancelled or refunded. 

Memberships 

VAM Memberships (Individual or Family) are purchased on a one-year calendar basis.  VAM does not offer pauses or holds. Memberships cannot be transferred to another user. 

VAM reserves the right to modify membership perks as required based on available partnerships and resources. 

REFUNDS: Membership fees are non-refundable. 

RENEWALS: Memberships may be renewed up to 3 months prior to expiration. 

INCENTIVES: Any promotional membership incentives being offered will be valid for the advertised time period only. Existing memberships that are not yet eligible for renewal will not qualify for incentives.  

VAM may choose from time to time to offer purchase incentives, discount codes, or other promotions that are valid for a posted date range. 

VAM will not offer special reductions for clients who miss any promotional periods, or, offer any credit or price adjustment for merchandise or registrations already completed. 

Amilia SmartRec is VAM’s main registration software. VAM may occasionally host registration off-platform depending on an offering, subject to partnership requirements or marketing needs.  Registration off-platform may charge different fees than those listed in Amilia SmartRec, and is up to the client’s discretion to choose to register on an external platform. 

Students must be the age listed in course description when the course starts. VAM may request proof of age at any time.  

Students who are not the correct age for the program will be transferred to an appropriate group or removed from the program.  Exceptions will not be made for students who do not meet the minimum age requirement. 

Prior to registration, please carefully read the course description, level, day and time, so that it suits your needs, abilities and schedule. 

Course start dates are listed on our website and on customer receipts. Students and parents are responsible for making a note of their course dates when they register.  

VAM does not provide credit notes, refunds, homework, materials, or makeup classes for students absent from regularly scheduled class(es). 

VAM may permit late registration after a course begins. Call our office or email info@visualartsmississauga.com to see if late registration is possible. The maximum rebate available for a late registration is $20. Instructors are not responsible for delivering missed content to late registrants.  

 

Auditing or sitting in on any course for any reason is not permitted. Students may be asked to show proof of payment to the instructor at the first class.   

VAM has a zero-tolerance policy for violence and bullying. Students who display aggressive, harassing, hateful, violent, or otherwise disrespectful behaviour will be removed from programs at the discretion of the Executive Director or Program Development Manager. A refund for the balance of remaining classes will be issued (subject to the $30 + HST administration fee). 

VAM does not contact students individually for weather-related closures. Closures are listed on the visualartsmississauga.com home page and on social media two hours before the start of class.