Legal

These terms apply to all services provided by FIX Inc. (trading as Scratch Lab). By sending media to us or approving our written quotation, you agree to these terms. Where a separate written agreement has been signed between us, that agreement prevails over these terms to the extent of any conflict.

FIX Inc. (trade name: Scratch Lab)

Scratch Lab also serves customers in Japan under the name 秋葉原データ復旧スクラッチラボ. Japanese site: media-sos.com

Representative Director: Fumihiro Iino

Scratch Lab (FIX Inc.)
Spacia Akihabara B1,
4-9-7 Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku,
Tokyo 101-0021, Japan

This is also the address for shipping media. Shipping instructions, declared values, and customs handling are described on our Partner Workflow page.

Email: [email protected]
Phone: +81 50-5577-5733
Hours: Monday–Friday, 10:00–19:00 JST

Closed on Japanese public holidays and during the year-end and New Year period.

• Data recovery services (HDD, SSD, NAS, RAID, flash media, MacBook, and other storage devices)
• Specialist recovery of platter scratch damage, including subcontracted work for other data recovery providers
• Technical consultation for trade partners on difficult cases

Scratch Lab is a trade-only service. We accept work exclusively from data recovery providers, PC repair shops, and other businesses.

We may decline any request at our discretion, including where we are unable to accept the case for operational, technical, or compliance reasons.

We work on fixed wholesale rates for trade partners. Our trade rate sheet is available on request. The final price for each case is confirmed in writing before any recovery work begins.

Success-based pricing: if the recovery is unsuccessful, no service fee is charged. What counts as a successful recovery is determined by the end user on the basis of the file list we provide before delivery.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis and quotation are free of charge as a rule. For cases requiring advanced procedures beyond our standard treatment, or for specialist media, a diagnostic fee may apply. Where this applies, we inform you and obtain your agreement before carrying out any such work.

Costs that may apply regardless of outcome

• Shipping and customs costs, as set out in Section 8.
• Destination media: recovered data is delivered on a storage device supplied by you. If you do not include one, we can supply one at Japanese retail price plus a handling fee. No media charge applies where the recovered data is small enough for online delivery.

Tax and currency

Invoices are issued in US dollars (USD). Quotations are valid for 30 days from the date of issue; after that period we may re-issue the quotation to reflect current rates.

Japanese consumption tax is not charged on our services to overseas clients.

We accept the following payment methods.

• Credit card (via Stripe) — we send a secure payment link by email
• Bank transfer — international wire transfer to our Japanese bank account
• Wise — local transfer in major currencies, no Wise account required (not available for certain countries or currencies)
• PayPal — available on request

Payment is due within 14 days of the invoice date. Recovered data is delivered and original media is returned once payment has been confirmed, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Bank transfer fees, intermediary bank charges, and currency conversion costs are borne by the payer. Our bank details are provided on the invoice.

All amounts are payable in full without deduction. If the law of your country requires you to withhold tax from the payment, the amount payable shall be increased so that we receive the full invoiced amount. On request we can provide a Certificate of Residence in Japan issued by the Japanese tax authority, to support relief from withholding under an applicable tax treaty.

Payments are processed through third-party platforms. Please refer to each provider's privacy policy for details of how your payment data is handled, and to our Privacy Policy for how we handle your information.

• Inbound (to our lab): shipping costs are borne by the partner. Japanese import duties and taxes are handled by us. Please list FIX Inc. as the Importer of Record and set duties and taxes to Receiver / DDP.
• Outbound after a successful recovery: return shipping costs are borne by us.
• No recovery, or case not accepted: return shipping costs are borne by the partner.
• Cancellation at your request: return shipping costs are borne by the partner.
• Disposal instead of return: if you prefer, we can securely dispose of the media at no cost instead of returning it. Disposal is irreversible and is carried out only on your written instruction.
• Online delivery: no shipping costs apply.
• Import duties, customs fees, and taxes imposed in your country on the returned shipment are borne by the partner.

Please note that carriers do not insure stored data. Their terms expressly exclude loss or erasure of data, and coverage is limited to the replacement value of the physical media. Declared value guidance for both directions is given on our Partner Workflow page.

Before delivery we provide a file list (CSV) showing the recovery status of each file, so that you or the end user can confirm the result.

Upon successful recovery and confirmation of payment, recovered data is delivered by one of the following methods, as agreed in advance.

• Shipment of the recovered data on a storage device
• Secure online transfer, available for datasets up to a few gigabytes

Turnaround varies with the condition of the media and is stated in the written quotation for each case. Original media is returned together with, or shortly after, the recovered data.

Our cancellation terms are as follows:

• Before work begins: no charge.
• After work has begun: in a limited number of cases, actual costs incurred (e.g., parts or labor already performed) may be billed. Where this applies, we will inform you explicitly before any such work begins and proceed only with your agreement.
• Once data has been successfully recovered and confirmed by the client, cancellation is not accepted.
• Inquiries not followed up within 14 days (no device received) may be treated as cancelled.

• You confirm that you are entitled to instruct the recovery of the data on the media you send us, and that you have obtained any consent required from the end user or data subject.
• Data recovery is attempted on media that has already failed. Opening a drive, replacing components, or attempting recovery may render the media permanently unusable. This risk exists in every case and is accepted by you when you instruct us to proceed.
• We do not warrant that any specific file will be recovered, or that recovered files will be complete, uncorrupted, or openable. The file list provided before delivery is the basis on which the result is assessed.
• For media previously opened or worked on by another provider, we accept the case without surcharge, but we cannot assess or accept responsibility for the condition in which the media reached us.
• Please check the delivered data within 30 days of delivery and notify us of any issue within that period.
• The recovered data delivered to you is a copy. Please maintain your own backup of any data you receive from us.

All client data and case information is handled with strict confidentiality. We do not disclose case details to any third party without prior written consent.

Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) are available upon request prior to commencement of any work.

Where you provide a device password or encryption details, these are used solely to perform the recovery and are deleted once the case is closed. Our handling of personal information is described in our Privacy Policy.

Recovered data and working copies are securely erased from our systems within a defined period after the case is closed, as described in our Privacy Policy.

If media has been delivered to us and you do not respond to our quotation or subsequent contact, we will attempt to reach you at the details you provided. Media that remains unclaimed for 90 days after our final attempt may be securely disposed of at your cost risk. We will notify you before any disposal takes place.

These terms and any disputes arising from our services are governed by the laws of Japan. The Tokyo District Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction as the court of first instance, unless otherwise agreed in a separate written contract.

Our total liability in connection with a case is limited to the service fee paid by the client for that case. Where no service fee has been charged, our liability is limited to the direct shipping costs you incurred for that case.

We are not liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential loss, including loss of profit, loss of business, or loss of data, arising from data loss, unsuccessful recovery, or damage to media.

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits our liability for damage caused by our intentional misconduct or gross negligence.

We are not liable for delay or failure to perform caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including natural disasters, fire, power failure, war, epidemic, labour disputes, carrier disruption, customs delays, or the failure of third-party services.

We may update these terms from time to time. The most current version is always available on this page, with the updated date noted below.

Last updated: August 19, 2026