Shipping Policy

[GeckoMandi]

Ok I just wanted to get opinions on this subject since I hadn't seen it brought up here before.

I bought a crestie over a week ago, and it got stuck at the airport due to weather, of course I was worried sick that it wouldn't be warm enough, need water, food etc. I know it was going to be packed well and had a proper heat pack provided. It came a day late but was perfectly ok.

This got me thinking about shipping policies being such as what if something happens and the gecko/snake whatever could get stuck for days somewhere without you or the seller being able to do anything about it.

I mean just say you know you are buying from someone you know is awesome, and know the shipping is well packed, but sometimes things happens and the animal does arrive DOA due to whatever reason, stress etc.

Should the seller refund or replace the lost animal?

I personally am torn on this because being a buyer I think well I should get refunded some way, either from the seller/shipping company etc.

But then I think well if it were me losing an animal I sold and being an honest person I would want to make the customer happy and get what they paid for, so most likely I would either refund money or offer another animal.

Has anyone here ever got into this issue, and if so would you mind sharing how it was resolved.

Thanks so much.

 

[robin]

if i guarantee live arrival (which i do when shipping animals) and the animals arrives DOA for any (even shipping company mistake) reason i will refund the money (including shipping) or replace the animals (covering the shipping as well). of course i have to have proof of the death. if the package was late in arriving, i will take the responsibility of filing a claim for the shipment not being on time.
even though some companies do ship reptiles, they do not have a live arrival guarantee (except delta dash). if i, as the seller, chose a company that does not offer the live arrival guarantee. that is my choice in shipping companies, thus i take responsibility if something happens during shipping.
if the animals arrives alive and healthy but is late in getting to your house by the designated time, i will refund shipping too.
it all comes down to customer service and how you would want to be treated.
the animal is my responsibility until it reaches you, alive, healthy and you are happy with it.
as a seller i will never spend the money of animals that have not been received, in case such things happen.

to sum it up. as a seller i take all responsibility until you get your animals, alive and healthy.

this is how i would want to be treated so this is what i offer to someone who buys from me. also if i know a seller who does not offer this kind of customer service. i do not care who they are. i will not buy from them.

 

[GeckoMandi]

Robin those are excellent points and I am learning myself on the do's and dont's of selling and what should be what the signs to look for about buying etc, because soon enough I will be selling and even shipping.

I just want to make sure I do everything perfect, I was just trying to see how a person could see it on each side of the fence.

I would do anything of course to make the buyer happy in the end, of course. It just shows what kind of person you are also.

 

[robin]

how you care for your customers and the quality and health of your animals speaks volumes above anything else.

even though most of us do this as a hobby. we are still selling animals to a customer, another person just like you (well maybe not just like you LOL). as a seller we must take responsibilities to ensure the health of our geckos but we also must not forget the people who buy from us.
so sometimes we might have to eat shipping or replace animals or make refunds but that is part of doing business.

 

[robin]

now while i say this SOMETIMES (very very rare .. which may have to be evaluated on a case by case situation) there might be certain circumstances that may cause some of this to be null and void. for example the customer not being home when the animals arrive and the animals are left at the door, outside, in the weather.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

This is a tricky subject! Here is my policy:

Shipping

Geckos are shipped UPS Next Day Air to your door for a flat rate of $45.00, and packed in heavy-duty, corrugated boxes with styrofoam insulated inserts, clearly labeled "KEEP WARM, LIVE HARMLESS GECKOS, FRAGILE- PERISHABLE". Whenever possible, recycled boxes may be used to keep shipping costs down and conserve the environment. Heat /cold packs will be used when appropriate based on the weather/temperature forecast for the shipment origin, destination and UPS sorting hub.

Carriers may not have overnight service to all cities, and/or have limitations to guarantee their service.

Shipping days are Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday to the lower 48 United States only.

Delivery destinations within 75 miles of Golden Gate Geckos must be picked up.

I reserve the right to postpone shipping if weather temperatures are extreme.

~ Shipping costs are NOT refundable. ~



Guarantee

All Leopard Geckos are guaranteed to be 100% healthy and feeding well at the time they are shipped.

Since I have no guarantee of their care after arrival, my responsibility ends 72 hours after delivery.

~ Live arrival is guaranteed under normal circumstances. ~




Conditions

You must be at least 18 years old to make purchases with Golden Gate Geckos. You must be available to take delivery of your gecko(s) on the pre-arranged date, time, and place to insure their health and safety. I cannot be held responsible for changes in the weather during transit, delivery delays, or other carrier related issues. Visual gender cannot be 100% guaranteed until geckos are 4 months of age. Refunds/exchanges are made on a case-by-case basis at my discretion.

~ Please report any problems to me immediately, and I will make every effort to solve them with you. ~


I deliberately put the weather, delay, and refund clause in my terms, but if a gecko arrived DOA as a result I would most likely give my customer a refund or another gecko.

 

[GeckoMandi]

Marcia those are good terms here are the ones I added on my website, but I might make a few changes, but of course in the end I want people to be happy with their purchase from me.

We ship on Monday and Tuesday UPS Next Day , your animal will be shipped in an insulated box, prices do vary we will give you a shipping quote at time of inquiry or purchase. We do offer a live arrival guarantee only if you are there to sign for the package on the first delivery attempt. If for some reason the animal does arrive DOA you must contact us within 24 hours after the shipping time, with digital pictures of the animal. We do not ship in extreme cold or hot temps, our animals will be shipped with proper heat and cool packs.

 

[ByRandom]

Amanda,

People are shifty and they always look out for themselves, especially if they are con artists. Case in point, I had shipped a beautiful Red Stripe Female to a "lady" (I say "lady" because I really haven't the foggiest if it was a lady). She emailed me approximately 20 hours after the gecko had arrived to tell me that the gecko was dead, that it was soaked on the inside of the box (there was no way for that to actually happen) but the outside of the box was perfectly dry. I explained to her that I would be more than happy to refund her money, but I needed a digital picture as proof (per my terms) that the animal was dead. Needless to say she e-mailed me about 5 days later claiming that her camera was broken and she couldn't find one to borrow from someone...

Now, mainly common sense could have helped me figure out not to refund this lady her money. Because I had in my terms that she had to provide me proof within 24 hours, which she should have already read if she was purchasing from me, it gave me an "out" (if you will allow me that word). So, when you write your terms, you have to decide what you will cover and what you won't cover. Then add the "won'ts" to your terms so that people know "If my gecko is delayed because of severe weather -- That's not her fault and she has no obligation to reimburse me".

Hopefully that made sense.. Lol

 

[GeckoMandi]

Joshua that made perfect sense to me.

Everyone is different and has their own terms, and of course I'm sure most honest breeders of anything would go out of their way to make you happy. All though sometimes unhappy people cannot be pleased even if you do everything perfect to the T', I worked in retail for 10 years and vow to never do it again!! lol

I think I'm going to keep the weather policy out of my terms, I feel like Marcia does pretty much, that animal is my responsibility until it comes to your door.

 

[DanTheFireman]

if i guarantee live arrival (which i do when shipping animals) and the animals arrives DOA for any (even shipping company mistake) reason i will refund the money (including shipping) or replace the animals (covering the shipping as well). of course i have to have proof of the death. if the package was late in arriving, i will take the responsibility of filing a claim for the shipment not being on time.
even though some companies do ship reptiles, they do not have a live arrival guarantee (except delta dash). if i, as the seller, chose a company that does not offer the live arrival guarantee. that is my choice in shipping companies, thus i take responsibility if something happens during shipping.
if the animals arrives alive and healthy but is late in getting to your house by the designated time, i will refund shipping too.
it all comes down to customer service and how you would want to be treated.
the animal is my responsibility until it reaches you, alive, healthy and you are happy with it.
as a seller i will never spend the money of animals that have not been received, in case such things happen.

to sum it up. as a seller i take all responsibility until you get your animals, alive and healthy.

this is how i would want to be treated so this is what i offer to someone who buys from me. also if i know a seller who does not offer this kind of customer service. i do not care who they are. i will not buy from them.

Thanks, Robin - you saved most of us alot of typing.

 

[sacredcreatures]

Right on Robin! I certainly couldn't have said it better!!!!! I have a story and it proves Dan is the man! Yes, Dan(Hot Geckos) can tell you our story if he wants in more detail But when I bought some geckos from Dan and it took them three and a half days to get here!!! AND the Shipping Co didn't even know where they were until they showed up basically here. Oh How I worried! I called and emailed Dan alot. Because this had never happened to me. Dan was so helpful, kind and worked with DHL to search for my Leos. This was during summer but between here and Fl the weather was OK the day he shipped. So we expected no problems. Dan sent out replacement animals right away( with UPS) which got here the next morning and then at 7pm that night I got the others. ( Dan is a great guy) All were alive but two of the RS from the three day shipment seemed "Not right" for quite awhile. Dan felt that because of the temp changes and who knows what could of happened while in transit that organ failure could have occurred. So I accepted the new animals and kept the others which did turn out to be OK with lots of care and one Vet trip!
Us as breeders have to be like Dan as much as possible for our customers. I will always buy from Dan and a few other special breeders here like him. Oh the other note: Yes its true that some people try and scam you. Which has even happened with me in selling My Manx Cats. Just use good judgement ask for pics if you question a death or whatever ect. I use UPS Only or send by Airline for cats or at the request of someone who buys anything from me. Good Luck!!!! Deb

 

[LeosForLess]

I think as long as they get back to you by like, that night you should be goood. If they wait until the next day to tell you it died, or later thats a little fishy.