Shipping Rates are explained here. Free shipping thresholds are after discounts are applied, and do not include sales tax values where they apply.
Acclimation is explained here. Please use our acclimation process. It may be different than what you are accustomed to.
If you have experienced delays with USPS please order with UPS instead.
Please notify us prior to ordering if you have black sand in your tank. Soft bodied inverts that crawl (snails) will not do well in these systems.
Alive Arrival Guarantee
If your cleaners do not make the trip, we offer an Alive Arrival Guarantee. To take advantage of the guarantee, notify us within a reasonable time for the item to recover from shipping stress, or to confirm if it didn't make the trip. Snails take some time to come around, especially Ceriths that take up 72 hours to come around. After we confirm your loss, you will receive a refund for the purchase price of the claim. In some cases we will ship extras to makeup for deficiencies. We reserve the right to require documentation such as a photo, please take a picture of all the items you would like refunded do not take a video.
If you receive a notice because you are not available to receive the shipment for any reason you must pick up the package. Rescheduling delivery will take a long time and losses will occur as a result. We ask that you be pro active in getting the packages.
In order to qualify for our Alive Arrival Guarantee, you must be home at the time the package is delivered, or discuss with us prior to shipment that you will not be home and the package will be left somewhere. Please do not let packages sit out if they contain live animals, if you do this it will adversely affect their health.
Missing Items - If an item is missing from your order, or is out of stock at the time of shipment, we will issue a refund for the item(s), plus their pro-rated shipping value. (Item + (Item Price divided by the Total Order Price minus discounts multiplied by the Shipping Cost) = refund amount.) If you want a policy different than this one, we must know in advance. The cost of shipping is higher than the flat rate we charge, so we do not cover shipping twice. It is too prohibitive, we can though if we charge a higher shipping rate when the order goes out, such as the actual shipping cost. If you want these different terms, please work that out with us in advance of shipment. Once the package is shipped the standard terms apply.
Late Shipments - We will bear the risk of late shipments and give refunds for any losses that resulted, including pro rated shipping refunds for photographed losses. Any refunds available for the shipping will be credited to us to help offset the cost of losses, and drive the average cost of shipping down. (The actual cost of the shipping label is usually higher than what we charge, but we are able to reduce it because of the refunds we get from late shipping labels). We realize in some cases this will work to our benefit, but rest assured in the long run the last thing we want is for our packages to be delayed. Nothing worse for us than lost packages. If you would like a refund for the amount paid towards the label notify us before the shipment goes out that you will bear the risk of any delay, or prior to the arrival of the package. By arranging our shipping label refund policy in this way you are assured your item or the value you paid for it, and we can cover the risk of delays without building them into our prices.
Package Refusal - Never refuse or return your package without opening and inspecting it. Refused packages have to endure very long delays in handling because of the second trip back to us and are likely to suffer losses. Carriers do not cover perishables, only we do. Please do not refuse orders because of box damage or delays even if your carrier says it is covered. They are just unaware of this exception to their company's policies.
Correct Address - We require that the address on the order is correct, and not an old address.
Promotional Restrictions
- Promotions cannot be combined.
- Rock cannot be discounted.
- Penny Items and free items are not covered or replaced because they are basically free.
Special Shipping Services
Special services that are available with our carriers for extra cost, like hold for pickup service, are available to our customers. We only ask that you pay actual shipping in these cases, rather than the flat rate we charge for normal delivery services. We will not charge for boxes or packing materials, just the actual cost of the shipping label.
Unusually high shipping rate locations - Some locations in the country have very high costs to ship to, and do not qualify for our standard rates. In these cases we will contact you and ask if you would like to cancel, or come to an alternative arrangement. These locations are too few and spread out to list in our standard rate lists. They are usually in remote locations, and only an issue with UPS service. This will affect less than 1 in a 1000 packages. These are labels that are more than $40 more than what we charge ($75 total) and more than 35% of the order total.
Order Cancellation - We print the shipping list and prep boxes the day before shipping your order. Please send cancellation requests more than 24 hours before shipping if possible. Orders are subject to a 3% restocking fee, this is equal to the fee that we are charged and not refunded for the transaction and is used to offset transaction costs, the lost shipping slot, and the unavailability of the species.
Venue Clause - While we prefer to settle disputes through communication, any lawsuit arising from the use of this website, our products, advice, or services must be filed with a court within 20 miles of Stuart, Florida. If there is no court with jurisdiction to hear the case within that range, then it must be brought in a court within 60 miles of Stuart Florida. If there is still no venue with jurisdiction to hear the case within the 60 mile radius, the lawsuit may be filed anywhere in the state of Florida. In any event, you agree by using this website, our services, our advice, or our products that jurisdiction is proper for all purposes in the state of Florida, and that jurisdiction would be improper elsewhere.
Some species require Next Day Service, and have certain time constraints. These items have an asterisk * next to their name. Please check the details of each product for additional Alive Arrival info.