Terms of service
1.The contract between us
We must receive payment of the whole of the price for the goods that you order before your order can be accepted. Once payment has been received by us we will confirm that your order has been accepted by sending an email to you at the email address you provide in your order form. Our acceptance of your order brings into existence a legally binding contract between us2.
2. Price
2.1. The prices payable for goods that you order are as set out in our website.
2.2. You will be required to pay extra for delivery and it might not be possible for us to deliver to some locations. Our delivery charges are set out in our website3.
3. Right for you to cancel your contract4
3.1. You may cancel your contract with us for the goods you order at any time up to the end of the fourteenth working day from the date you receive the ordered goods. You do not need to give us any reason for cancelling your contract nor will you have to pay any penalty.
3.2. You cannot cancel your contract if the goods you have ordered are newspapers or magazines or if you have taken any audio or video recording or computer software out of the sealed package in which it was delivered to you5.
3.3. To cancel your contract you must notify us in writing6.
3.4. If you have received the goods before you cancel your contract then[unless, under clause 3.2, you do not have a right to cancel]you must send the goods back to our contact address at your own cost and risk. If you cancel your contract but we have already processed the goods for delivery you must not unpack the goods when they are received by you and you must send the goods back to us at our contact address at your own cost and risk as soon as possible.
3.5. Once you have notified us that you are cancelling your contract, any sum debited to us from your credit card will be credited to your account as soon as possible and in any event within 30 days of your order PROVIDED THAT the goods in question are returned by you and received by us in the condition they were in when delivered to you. If you do not return the goods delivered to you or do not pay the costs of delivery, we shall be entitled to deduct the direct costs of recovering the goods from the amount to be credited to you.
4. Cancellation by us
4.1. We reserve the right to cancel the contract between us if:
4.1.1. we have insufficient stock to deliver the goods you have ordered;
4.1.2. we do not deliver to your area; or
4.1.3. one or more of the goods you ordered was listed at an incorrect price due to a typographical error or an error in the pricing information received by us from our suppliers7.
4.2. If we cancel your contract we will notify you by email and will credit to your account any sum deducted by us from your credit card as soon as possible but in any event within 30 days of your order. We will not be obliged to offer any additional compensation for disappointment suffered.
5. Delivery of goods to you
5.1. We will deliver the goods ordered by you to the address you give us for delivery at the time you make your order.
5.2. Delivery will be made as soon as possible after your order is accepted and in any event within 30 days of your order.
5.3. You will become the owner of the goods you have ordered when they have been delivered to you. Once goods have been delivered to you they will be held at your own risk and we will not be liable for their loss or destruction.
6. Liability
6.1. If the goods we deliver are not what you ordered or are damaged or defective or the delivery is of an incorrect quantity, we shall have no liability to you unless you notify us in writing at our contact address of the problem within 10 working days of the delivery of the goods in question.
6.2. If you do not receive the goods ordered within 30 days of the date on which you ordered them, we shall have no liability to you unless you notify us in writing at our contact address of the problem within 40 days of the date on which you ordered the goods.
6.3. If you notify a problem to us under clauses 6.1 or 6.2 above, our only obligation will be, at your option:
6.3.1. to make good any shortage or non-delivery;
6.3.2. to replace or repair any goods that are damaged or defective; or
6.3.3. to refund to you the amount paid by you for the goods in question in whatever way we choose.
6.4. Save as precluded by law, we will not be liable to you for any indirect or consequential loss, damage or expenses (including loss of profits, business or goodwill) howsoever arising out of any problem you notify to us under this condition and we shall have no liability to pay any money to you by way of compensation other than to refund to you the amount paid by you for the goods in question under clause 6.3.3 above.
6.5. You must observe and comply with all applicable regulations and legislation, including obtaining all necessary customs, import or other permits to purchase goods from our site. The importation or exportation of certain of our goods to you may be prohibited by certain national laws. We make no representation and accept no liability in respect of the export or import of the goods you purchase.
6.6. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in these terms and conditions is intended to limit any rights you might have as a consumer under applicable local law or other statutory rights that may not be excluded nor in any way to exclude or limit our liability to you for any death or personal injury resulting from our negligence.
7. Notices
Unless otherwise expressly stated in these terms and conditions, all notices from you to us must be in writing and sent to our contact address at (postal address)and all notices from us to you will be displayed on our website from to time.
8. Events beyond our control
We shall have no liability to you for any failure to deliver goods you have ordered or any delay in doing so or for any damage or defect to goods delivered that is caused by any event or circumstance beyond our reasonable control including, without limitation, strikes, lock-outs and other industrial disputes, breakdown of systems or network access, flood, fire, explosion or accident.
9. Invalidity
If any part of these terms and conditions is unenforceable (including any provision in which we exclude our liability to you) the enforceability of any other part of these conditions will not be affected.
10. Privacy
You acknowledge and agree to be bound by the terms of our privacy policy8.
11. Third party rights
Except for our affiliates, directors, employees or representatives, a person who is not a party to this agreement has no right under the United Kingdom Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any term of this agreement but this does not affect any right or remedy of a third party that exists or is available apart from that Act.
12. Governing law
The contract between us shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with English law and the English courts shall have jurisdiction to resolve any disputes between us.
13. Entire agreement
These terms and conditions, together with our current website prices, delivery details, contact details and privacy policy, set out the whole of our agreement relating to the supply of the goods to you by us. Nothing said by any sales person on our behalf should be understood as a variation of these terms and conditions or as an authorised representation about the nature or quality of any goods offered for sale by us. Save for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, we shall have no liability for any such representation being untrue or misleading.
1.This is a short-form set of terms and conditions for use by a supplier of goods via a website. These terms and conditions are intended to cover the contract of sale between a supplier and customer, and have been drafted to comply with the requirements of Council Directive (EC) 97/7 (as amended) on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts (the 'Distance Selling Directive') and United Kingdom consumer protection law. However, other important pre- and post-contractual information also needs to be posted on the site in conjunction with these terms, such as information on after-sales services or guarantees that may exist, delivery costs and a privacy policy. As to the definition of 'consumer' and the relevant UK consumer protection laws see Paragraph 287 [1641] et seq ante. For a checklist of information requirements for all websites see Form 27 [2921] post. For a checklist of further information requirements for websites selling to consumers see Form 28 [2922] post. For a privacy policy see Form 37 [3149] post.
Note that any set of terms and conditions must be tailored to meet the specific needs and practices of the supplier in question. Simple language should be used so that the terms are easy to understand. Simple language also makes the task of translation easier if seeking to establish a 'standard' set of terms to be used as the basis for producing similar sets in other jurisdictions that comply with relevant local laws.
Further, in light of the fact that certain jurisdictions wish to adopt a 'long-arm' approach, seeking to impose their regulations on website proprietors located outside their jurisdiction, suppliers should consider all the jurisdictions in which their products will be available and may set up their sites, and draft their terms and conditions, so that it is abundantly clear that they intend to target and contract only with residents of those jurisdictions where they have conducted local legal 'health checks'. As to extraterritoriality see Paragraph 295 [1676] ante. An example of a general disclaimer that may be displayed prominently on a site to this end is as follows:
'This site is directed at United Kingdom resident customers only. If you are not resident in the United Kingdom, DO NOT USE THIS SITE. We reserve our right to refuse to supply our products to you without reason.'
At the very least such a disclaimer provides an indication to a court of the supplier's intentions. However it is important to remember that disclaimers like this one must be consistent with the actions of the relevant supplier. A disclaimer cannot be effective if, despite the disclaimer, the supplier consistently delivers to addresses outside the United Kingdom: see further Paragraph 295 [1676] ante.
2.This makes it clear that the supplier is issuing only an invitation to treat. As to offers and invitations to treat in the context of e-commerce see Paragraph 301 [1702] ante.
3.It is advisable to include a link here to the page that contains the delivery charges and details.
4. A consumer can cancel a distance contract at any time during the 'cancellation period' by notifying this intention to the supplier in writing: see the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000, SI 2000/2334 regs 10-13 as amended by SI 2005/689. This is commonly referred to as the 'cooling-off period'. As to the definition of 'consumer' and the relevant UK consumer protection laws see Paragraph 287 [1641] et seq ante.
5.This alternative provision is useful to take advantage of the apparent loophole in Council Directive (EC) 97/7 (as amended) on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts (the 'Distance Selling Directive') for these types of goods. Note that contracts for custom-made goods and perishables, amongst other things, are also excluded from the right of withdrawal for obvious reasons.
6. Note that customers are required, under clause 7 of this Form, to send written notice by post. This avoids the problem of the uncertainty of email correspondence but may not be workable if the supplier prefers to use email for correspondence: in that case, an email contact address should be inserted in clause 3.3.
7. This gives the supplier the ability to refuse to supply certain customers in certain circumstances, for example where a typographical error in the price stated would contractually bind a company to supply goods at a significantly lower price.
8. A link should be included here to the privacy policy posted on the site. As to privacy policies see Paragraph 363 [2103] post. For a privacy policy see Form 37 [3149] post.