Delivery costs and conditions
Delivery charges 2023
| UK | Standard parcel value | £3.95 + VAT |
| Rod, tube or blank | £5.95 + VAT | |
| Over length (>88cm) by courier | £9.95 + VAT | |
| Europe | Standard parcel by airmail tracked or signed for | £11 |
| Rod, tube or blank by airmail tracked or signed for | £15 | |
| Over length (>88cm) by courier | £20 | |
Germany: We regret that delivery to Germany is not currently offered due to persistent service problems with both postal and courier services. Italy: Delivery is by courier (at higher cost) due to unreliable postal services. | ||
| USA (CONUS) | Standard parcel by airmail tracked or signed for | £15 |
| Rod, tube or blank by airmail tracked or signed for | £20 | |
| Over length (>88cm) by courier | £25 | |
| Everywhere else* | Standard parcel by airmail tracked or signed for | £15 |
| Rod, tube or blank by airmail tracked or signed for | £25 | |
| Over length (>88cm) by courier | £35 | |
| We reserve the right to request a delivery surcharge not exceeding the actual cost of delivery, if the standard charges listed are insufficient to cover the cost of delivery to your location. In any such cases you would have the right to decline to the pay the surcharge and to receive a full refund. We reserve the right to decline and refund orders e.g. to locations where delivery may be adversely affected by conflict, natural disaster or political unrest. | ||
Dispatch and delivery times
Stock items we dispatch within 1-2 business days by royal mail or (if requested) courier in the UK, Europe and worldwide.
If an item is being modified for you, please allow 2-4 days. If an item is being made for you, we will advise you how long that will take prior to purchase, if it is not already stated in the item description in the shop.
Delivery is usually by Royal Mail and all items are sent securely packaged. Blanks / rods are posted in a protective PVC tube. Purchases of £50+ are posted with tracking (if available) and/or signature on delivery, and are insured. If tracking is available, you will be provided parcel tracking details.
Delivery times are typically 2-3 days in the UK, 7-10 days in Europe and 10-18 days worldwide. Deliveries can take longer especially in rural areas. Italy and Canada usually take 14-21 days. Allow an extra 7-14 days around Christmas.
Express delivery
On request we can send your order by an express delivery service charging you the additional cost, but we cannot guarantee delivery arrival dates. If you have a deadline, especially near Christmas, please make your purchase in good time.
Import charges
Customers from outside the UK are responsible for any import duties, processing charges and sales tax (VAT, GST etc) that may apply in your country. Starting 2021 this also applies to sales to the EU and EEA.
If a delivery is returned because the recipient refuses to pay the customs charges due, a 10% restocking and handling charge will be levied. The delivery charge will not be refunded. The refund issued will be 90% of the purchased goods value (in £GB) excluding the delivery charge.
UK VAT 20% sales tax is NOT added to our prices when the delivery address is outside the UK.
Delivery to someone else or to an address that is not your own
If you pay by credit card using the STRIPE payment option, we will send your item to a third party provided that:
- The recipient is notified to expect a delivery
- The recipient is aware of and agrees to pay any import customs charges that may be due.
- You provide us the recipient's email address before dispatch so that we can send them parcel dispatch confirmation and tracking details
Late or missing parcels
The delivery timescales listed about will cover 95% of cases, but sometimes delivery take longer than usual for no obvious reason, or because of events such as bad weather or COVID.
If you are unlucky enough to experience longer than normal delivery times, Royal Mail provides a lost package tracing service. However they will not investigate until 25 working days after the expected date of delivery. Usually this means that there is nothing we can do until about six-seven weeks after the posting date. In our experience 99.9% of the time the parcel has shown up by then.
In the event your parcel is lost or damaged, you will receive a choice of a refund or replacement, provided that you supplied the correct delivery address in the first place.