Customer cancellation

IMHO, yes, the Pro is entitled to a refund when a User cancels a project. However, unless the User cancels within a few hours, my experience is no refund is given.

When you ask for a refund, you'll find about 20% of the time it's approved, from my experience, regardless of the reason. It's simply a roll of the die.

Reporting suspicious Users helps a little as I recall.

However, since most of us who regularly use Thumbtack have multiple leads that should be refunded at any give time, I've also found that requesting refunds sporadically and gauging the Thumbtack refund department's mood that day does help. If they approve your first refund request, submit another. If they deny it, try a different request tomorrow.

I've had a Thumbtack User refuse to sign a contract. This is good business policy to have a contract and protects both the contractor and the consumer. But refusal means she's either thinks I'm incapable or most likely she's not going to pay me, Either way, I'm not working without a contract. Thumbtack denied.

I've had teenagers make requests when they damage their parents home - they have no standing to hire me, may not pay me (and I have no recourse to pursue payment since I can't make a contract with a minor without parental consent), Thumbtack denied.

About a third of the time when I made a plea to Thumbtack that their booking system should not have offered my services and it'll get approved.

You really don't know what you're going to get when you request a refund, so the best thing you can do is make sure Thumbtack charges you as little as possible by offering only services that you have a better chance of winning at the lowest cost to you. When a User makes a request, immediately call that person and strong arm him into an appointment.
That's not the way I like to do business, but with Thumbtack Users, that seems to be the only way that works more often than not. Which I admit, does not work for a User who doesn't want to answer the phone or reply to messages. Heck, a disturbing number of them don't even read the messages.

Also why I've kept my business hidden from Thumbtack Users for most of 2025 and so far, all of 2026. My revenues and profits for this year are outpacing last year. Life is good!

The best way to improve the "refund experience" is to install an "approve" button. As stated previously, it rarely happens. Maybe one that that encourages the refund team to approve refunds. Right now? I think the refund button probably shocks the person who presses it and it's only pressed in error, shocking the team member to remind him not to press the approve button. Kind of like me today re-installing live electrical receptacles. I might get shocked, but I probably won't, but I am holding a live electrical outlet and a half inch is the difference between getting shocked or not..

Or, here's a really off-the-wall idea. Approve refunds automatically. You can fire all the "refund team" members and nullify all the money Thumbtack charges for garbage leads because they're not paying someone to click the "reject" button.