Shipping Policies
and Information

• SHIPPING COSTS & CHARGES
  
  We do not and cannot control the shipping costs of your order. Our web site is connected directly to the UPS Shipping Estimator via XML link. During checkout and after completing the address section of your checkout cart, when applicable, the cart weight and zip code are transmitted to UPS. The next page in the checkout process will display the "Cost Summary" and includes the UPS shipping charges. Customers should be aware of several issues:

       1. After lengthy research, we selected UPS as our primary carrier because they deliver practically everywhere. Contrary to their marketing promises, other carriers do not ship to all consignee destinations using their networks. For many rural deliveries, they may hand-off the package to other carriers including the US Postal Service (USPS). This can create a breach in package tracking  and becomes an invitation for problems with some deliveries.
  
       2. Shipping Charges are based on UPS Published Rates by weight and zip code.
  
       3. UPS adds "Fuel Surcharges" to our weekly shipping bill for shipping products to you. We do not recover these expenses.
  
       4. UPS adds "Mileage Surcharges" to our weekly shipping bill for packages with destinations beyond the limit of local zip codes. We do not recover these expenses.
  
       5. Gas prices are at an all time high.
  
       6. UPS Trucks run on gas.
  
       7. More time and money is spent driving to and from destinations to purchase products in a vehicle that burns gas as well.
  
       8. We sell products in this web store that are competitively priced and easy to purchase. If you do not wish to spend a few extra dollars for the convenience of product delivery to your door, you should drive to a retail store.
  
       9. Pardon our candor ;-).
  
   

• HANDLING CHARGES
  
  This may be a sore spot for some of our customers, we know it is for us. While "handling" might encompass a multitude of elements, it was initiated as a way to cover some of our packaging costs. Since first publishing our stores in 2003, the cost of packaging materials has increased over 100%. That is, we're paying twice as much for the same materials today as we did in 2003.  We attribute this to the escalating cost of fuel.  Accordingly, it was our decision to add a small but reasonable charge to the overall order rather than increase all of the prices of our products across the board or require a "Minimum" purchase amount.
   

OUR SHIPPING POLICIES
 

• USA SHIPPING ONLY
  
  We ship only to USA destinations.  Our store allows only for checkout in the 48 continental states. If you live in Alaska or Hawaii, please call or email us. However, we DO NOT ship butane outside of the 48 continental States.
   

• ORDER PROCESSING & SHIPPING TIMES
  
  One of the greatest things about online shopping is the ability to make purchases 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.  Unfortunately, our shipping carriers normally operate Monday through Friday.
  
        1. We process all orders 7 days per week. Once an order is received, products are pulled and prepared for shipment. 
  
        2. Orders received are normally shipped within 24 hours on the same or next business day.
  
        3. Depending on weekend order volume, orders received are normally shipped Monday. Sometimes high weekend order volume may push an order's shipment to Tuesday. 
  
        4. All orders are processed and shipped on a First In First Out basis.
  
  
   

• PROVIDE ACCURATE SHIPPING INFORMATION
  
       1. When completing the checkout form, you should complete the (top) "Customer Details" section with Name, Address & Zip Code according to the BILLING ADDRESS for the credit card being used. If the shipping address is different, or you wish to ship your order to a different location, you should complete the "Shipping Details" section of the checkout form.
  
       2. A Notification of Shipment is sent to the email address entered on the checkout page. If you did not use a real email address, you will not receive our notifications. If you entered your email address incorrectly, you will not receive our notifications. If you have SPAM blockers or filters on your email, you may not receive our notifications.
  
       3. If you check the box indicating the "shipping destination is a commercial location", you must include the NAME of the commercial location, i.e., Bill's Welding, Inc., Dixie's Cigar Shop, etc.  (If you operate a business out of your home, it is still a residential location.)
  
       4. All shipping addresses/destinations are validated in the USPS and UPS database. If an address is indicated as "Commercial Location" and cannot be validated, the order will be cancelled and payment refunded.
  
  
   

• RECEIVING YOUR ORDER
  
  It is the Customer's responsibility to be present at the time of delivery. If no one is available to receive the package, a subsequent attempt to deliver will be made. Whenever possible, we encourage you to use a commercial business address to assure the fastest delivery time. If subsequent attempts to deliver your package are unsuccessful, your order will be returned to us. Accordingly, the Customer will be required to incur these shipping costs, regardless of the Customer's decision to cancel the order.
  
  
   

• BUTANE SHIPMENTS
  
       1. To comply with hazardous material regulations established by the United States Department of Transportation, we ship all butane orders, without exception, via ground transportation only.

       2. We cannot and DO NOT ship orders for butane fuel to PO Boxes, APO/FPO or International addresses. Butane orders placed with these types of shipping destinations  will not be processed. A notification is sent to the email address used in checkout with a request for a compliant physical shipping address. If a reply is not received by us within 24 hours, the order is cancelled and payment is refunded in full.  PLEASE NOTE: A PO Box shipping address for a butane order can delay your order for several days.

       3. We do not ship butane via USPS due to volume/weight restrictions and class of service available.

• ORDERS WITH "FREE SHIPPING"
  
  Many items in our store include FREE SHIPPING.  Any items noted as "Free Shipping" represent just that. Shipping costs have been included in the cost of the product and no shipping charges are incurred during check out. Accordingly, "Free Shipping" items are tagged as "Shipping Exempt" and their respective weights are not included in shipping charges at checkout.
  
       1. We use either UPS or USPS to expedite "Free Shipping" orders, depending on weight and products being shipped.
  
       2. When using USPS, we ship First Class or Priority Mail, depending on package weight. All USPS shipments are shipped with delivery confirmation. Average delivery for USPS is 2 - 4 days. There is an occasional package (1 out of 100) that takes 10 days to two weeks.  We don't know why and the folks at the Post Office cannot explain it. USPS policy is a package is considered "Lost" or "Missing" after 30 Days.  They have never lost a package out of the thousands that we've shipped.
  
       3. When placing an order for products that include "Free Shipping" along with products that have shipping added, we may, at our discretion, pack the "Free Shipping" products in one container and any additional shipping costs are paid by us.

       4. We ship orders with "Free Shipping" only once. Any packages returned to us as undeliverable will be held until additional fees are paid for REshipping the package(s).
   

• QUESTIONS OR SUGGESTIONS
  
  If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions regarding our shipping policies, feel free to contact us at service@calypsoproducts.com.
   

By placing an order with us, you agree to have read and comply with all of our shipping policies.

This document was last updated February 15, 2006