Terms of Sale
Pre-Orders, Livestock Availability & Customer Cancellations
Livestock orders and pre-orders are reservations for seasonal, live biological stock. When you place an order, livestock is allocated to your order and we may make commitments to our breeders and suppliers based upon that reservation. Availability and supply dates are estimates because the breeding, development and availability of live insects can be affected by weather, temperature, breeding success and other biological or environmental factors outside our reasonable control.
Estimated availability dates are not guaranteed delivery dates. Unless we have expressly agreed otherwise, you are purchasing the livestock rather than delivery on a particular date. We will supply your order when the livestock becomes available and is suitable for dispatch.
Your right to cancel
The livestock we sell is live, seasonal and/or liable to deteriorate, develop or expire rapidly. Where the statutory right to cancel a distance contract does not apply to particular goods, including where an applicable exemption for goods liable to deteriorate or expire rapidly applies, you will not have an automatic right to cancel simply because you have changed your mind.
Nothing in these terms affects any cancellation or other statutory rights that you have under UK consumer law.
If you ask us to cancel a livestock order or pre-order
If you ask us to cancel an order when we are not in breach of contract, we will assess the cancellation and any refund due having regard to the losses reasonably and directly caused to us by your cancellation.
Because livestock may have been specifically allocated, bred, sourced or reserved for your order, these losses may include, where applicable:
- non-recoverable amounts committed or paid to breeders or suppliers;
- costs reasonably incurred in sourcing, breeding, reserving, allocating, caring for or preparing the livestock for your order;
- loss arising from livestock that cannot reasonably be reallocated or resold because of its species, developmental stage, seasonal availability or limited remaining sale period;
- loss of profit directly resulting from the cancellation; and
- other reasonable costs or losses directly caused by your cancellation.
We will take reasonable steps to reduce our losses, including attempting to reallocate or resell the livestock where reasonably practicable.
We will not retain more than our reasonable loss resulting from your cancellation. Any amount retained will therefore depend upon the circumstances at the time you cancel and may vary from order to order.
Where cancellation means that we avoid costs which have not yet been incurred, those savings will be taken into account when calculating any amount due back to you. This includes delivery charges that we have not incurred where the order will no longer be dispatched.
Store credit following customer cancellation
Where you choose to cancel a livestock order or pre-order, we may offer store credit as an alternative resolution, including in circumstances where we would otherwise be entitled to retain some or all of the payment because of losses resulting from your cancellation.
Any store credit offered in these circumstances is at our discretion and may be for up to the value paid for the cancelled order, depending upon the circumstances of the cancellation.
Where agreed, store credit may be used towards a future purchase from us, subject to any reasonable conditions communicated to you when the credit is issued.
Offering store credit does not affect any statutory right you may have to receive a monetary refund. Where UK consumer law requires us to provide a refund, you will not be required to accept store credit instead.
If requested, we will explain the basis on which any cancellation deduction, refund or store credit has been calculated.
If we cannot supply your livestock
If we are unable to supply the livestock by the end of the applicable season, we will offer you an appropriate alternative where available or a refund for the livestock we are unable to supply.
If we cancel an order in circumstances where you are not at fault, you will not be charged for losses arising from our cancellation.
Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee
We guarantee that livestock will arrive alive and in good condition for orders sent to mainland UK addresses.
We take great care when preparing and packaging live insects for transport. If livestock arrives dead (DOA), sick, or in a condition which indicates that it has not arrived healthy, please contact us on the day of delivery so that we can investigate and resolve the issue promptly.
Reporting a problem
If livestock arrives dead, sick or in poor condition, you must notify us as soon as reasonably possible on the day of delivery and provide:
- your order number;
- details of the livestock affected; and
- clear photographs showing the condition of the livestock and its packaging.
Please retain the livestock and original packaging until we have responded, as we may need further photographs or information to assess what has happened.
Replacement livestock
Where livestock is confirmed as having arrived dead, sick or in poor condition, we will replace the affected livestock as soon as reasonably possible and at no additional cost to you.
Because our livestock is seasonal and its availability depends upon breeding cycles, developmental stages and biological conditions, an immediate replacement may not always be available.
Where a replacement is available or is expected to become available within a reasonable period, we will arrange replacement livestock as soon as reasonably possible.
We will cover the reasonable delivery costs of sending replacement livestock where the problem is covered by our Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee.
Where replacement is not possible
If we are unable to provide suitable replacement livestock within a reasonable time, we will refund the price paid for the affected livestock.
Where only part of an order is affected, the replacement or refund will apply to the affected livestock rather than livestock which arrived alive and in good condition.
After arrival
Our Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee covers the condition of livestock when it arrives with you.
Once livestock has arrived alive and in good condition, its continued health and survival depend upon appropriate care, environmental conditions, temperature, feeding, handling and the natural biological development of the species.
We therefore cannot guarantee livestock against subsequent illness, mortality, unsuccessful pupation, emergence, breeding or other biological outcomes where the livestock arrived alive and in good condition and the subsequent issue was not caused by a problem for which we are legally responsible.
Delivery and your responsibilities
Because livestock is particularly sensitive to delays, temperature and environmental conditions, customers are responsible for providing an accurate and complete delivery address and for taking reasonable steps to receive or promptly collect their livestock.
Our Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee may not apply where the death, illness or deterioration of livestock results from circumstances caused by or within the reasonable control of the customer, including where:
- an incorrect or incomplete delivery address was provided;
- delivery could not be completed because nobody was available to receive the parcel where attendance was reasonably required;
- the carrier attempted delivery but the parcel was not collected or redelivery was not arranged within a reasonable time;
- the customer requested that delivery be delayed, redirected or rescheduled and this resulted in an avoidable delay;
- the customer instructed the carrier to leave the parcel in a nominated safe place or with another person and the livestock subsequently deteriorated because of conditions after delivery;
- the parcel was refused by the customer without a valid reason; or
- the livestock was not opened and appropriately cared for within a reasonable time following delivery.
Where a delivery attempt has been made, customers should follow the carrier's tracking information and arrange collection or redelivery as soon as reasonably possible.
We will not refuse a claim merely because a delivery attempt was unsuccessful. We will consider the circumstances of each case, including the length and cause of any delay and whether that delay caused or contributed to the condition of the livestock.
Safe places, neighbours and delivery instructions
If you instruct us or the delivery carrier to leave livestock in a safe place, with a neighbour or at another nominated location, you are responsible for ensuring that the location is suitable for receiving live insects.
Livestock should not be left for prolonged periods in direct sunlight, freezing conditions, excessive heat or other unsuitable environmental conditions.
Where livestock was alive and in good condition when delivered in accordance with your nominated delivery instructions, we cannot accept responsibility for subsequent deterioration caused by conditions at the nominated location.
Checking your delivery details
Customers are responsible for checking that the delivery information provided when ordering is correct.
If you discover an error, please contact us as soon as possible. We will make reasonable efforts to amend the delivery details where the order has not yet been dispatched.
Once an order has been dispatched, we may be unable to change its destination. We are not responsible for loss, delay or deterioration resulting from incorrect delivery information supplied by the customer, except to the extent that we are responsible under applicable law.
Delays outside the customer's control
Customers will not lose the benefit of our Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee simply because a carrier experiences a delay which was not caused by the customer.
If livestock arrives dead, sick or in poor condition following a postal or courier delay outside your control, please report the problem in accordance with the guarantee above.
Your statutory rights
This Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee is provided in addition to your statutory rights.
Nothing in this guarantee or our Terms of Sale excludes, restricts or replaces any rights or remedies you have under UK consumer law where livestock is faulty, not as described, not of satisfactory quality or otherwise does not conform to the contract.
International Orders
International Orders & Live Livestock Shipping
We are pleased to offer international shipping for certain livestock and other products where available. International orders are subject to the same Terms of Sale, cancellation conditions and pre-order conditions as UK orders prior to dispatch.
However, sending live insects internationally involves additional risks and circumstances which are substantially outside our control once an order has been dispatched. These can include longer and unpredictable transit times, customs and border inspections, import procedures, local postal or courier delays, adverse weather and temperature conditions, and delays caused by the authorities or delivery services in the destination country.
For these reasons, our Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee does not apply to livestock dispatched to addresses outside the United Kingdom, except where we are required to provide a remedy under applicable law.
Customer responsibility for international orders
It is the customer's responsibility to ensure before ordering that the livestock or other goods being purchased may lawfully be imported, possessed and received in the destination country or territory.
This includes responsibility for checking and complying with any applicable:
- import restrictions or prohibitions;
- permits, licences or other authorisations;
- customs requirements;
- animal, plant, wildlife or biosecurity regulations;
- requirements relating to protected or controlled species;
- local laws concerning the keeping, breeding or possession of the species ordered; and
- taxes, duties, customs charges or other fees imposed by the destination country.
Unless expressly agreed otherwise in writing, we do not undertake responsibility for obtaining import permits, licences or other documentation required by the customer's country.
The customer should satisfy themselves that all necessary requirements have been met before placing an international order.
Customs, import authorities and border delays
International livestock orders may be inspected, delayed, detained, returned, refused entry, seized or destroyed by customs, postal authorities, border agencies or other governmental authorities.
Once we have correctly dispatched an international order to the address supplied by the customer, we cannot guarantee its transit time or the health, survival or developmental condition of livestock following delays or handling outside our reasonable control.
We are not responsible for loss, deterioration, death, delay, seizure, destruction, return or refusal of an international shipment where this results from customs or border procedures, import restrictions, missing customer-required permits or authorisations, carrier delays, or other circumstances outside our reasonable control.
Transit times and live livestock
Any international delivery or transit times provided by us or by the carrier are estimates only and should not be treated as guaranteed arrival dates.
Customers ordering live insects internationally acknowledge that livestock may continue to develop during transit and that extended transit times can affect its condition, developmental stage or survival.
Because these circumstances cannot reasonably be controlled by us after dispatch, international livestock is purchased and shipped at the customer's risk in relation to the inherent risks of international transit.
Our UK Live & Healthy Arrival Guarantee therefore does not extend to international livestock shipments.
Tracking and collection
Where tracking is provided, international customers are responsible for monitoring the shipment and responding promptly to any request or notification from the carrier, customs authority or local postal service.
Customers are responsible for providing complete and accurate delivery and contact information and for promptly paying any applicable import duties, taxes or charges where required.
If a parcel is awaiting customs clearance, collection, payment of charges or further information from the recipient, it is the customer's responsibility to take the necessary action as soon as reasonably possible.
We cannot accept responsibility for deterioration, loss or death of livestock caused by avoidable delays resulting from the customer's failure to respond to the carrier or authorities, pay applicable charges, provide required information or documentation, or collect the shipment within a reasonable time.
Returned or refused international shipments
Where an international shipment is returned to us because the customer provided an incorrect address, failed to collect the parcel, failed to pay applicable import charges, failed to provide required documentation, or because the goods could not lawfully be imported into the destination country, we are not obliged to resend the livestock at our expense.
If the livestock remains suitable and lawful to resend, we may offer redelivery subject to payment of the additional delivery costs and any other reasonable costs incurred.
Because of the perishable and developmental nature of live insects, livestock returned following an international journey may no longer be alive, healthy, suitable for resale or capable of being resent.
Any refund due in these circumstances will be determined in accordance with these Terms of Sale and applicable law, taking into account any reasonable losses and costs resulting from the failed international delivery.
Problems caused by us
The international shipping provisions above do not remove our responsibility for matters within our reasonable control.
For example, they do not exclude responsibility where we dispatch materially incorrect livestock, incorrectly address a parcel despite the customer having supplied the correct information, or otherwise fail to fulfil our obligations under the contract.
Your statutory rights
Nothing in this International Orders section excludes or restricts any right or remedy which cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.
Consumer rights can vary between countries and territories. Customers ordering from outside the United Kingdom may have mandatory rights under the laws applicable to them which are not affected by these Terms of Sale.