2019 CHRISTMAS ROYAL MAIL LATEST RECOMMENDED POSTING: International - Japan, Asia & Far East, Caribbean, Central & South America 9th Dec. Australia & New Zealand 12th Dec. USA, Canada, Italy, Finland & Sweden 14th Dec. Germany, Iceland, Norway, Netherlands & Spain 16th Dec. France, Ireland & Belgium 18th Dec. UK 2nd class 18th Dec. 1st class 20th Dec. Please ask for deadlines for any further countries. FREE GIFT WRAPPING AS STANDARD!

Orders (except of sale items - see third paragraph below) will be shipped within 1 to 3 working days of payment being received. (Working days here in the UK are classed as Monday to Friday and exclude weekends, bank holidays and public holidays).

I never make a profit from postage and packing charges. I only charge what is necessary to cover costs, such as packing materials and travel costs to the post office, which is some distance away, as I live in a rural English village with no post office of its own.

**Items included in a sale and showing a discounted price on their listing** I reserve the right to extend the 'dispatch within 1-3 working days' policy on sale items during busy sales periods, though this is a rarity. If your item is likely to be dispatched beyond the 1-3 working days period, I will keep you informed of progress and work to dispatch it as soon as possible. All purchases are packed and shipped in the order they are received.

I also reserve the right to extend the 'dispatch within 1-3 working days' policy on items during exceptionally busy periods, though this is a rarity. I will always post a shop announcement and note on my shipping policy informing shoppers when the dispatch period has been temporarily extended, so that potential buyers can be aware before ordering. If your item is likely to be dispatched beyond the 1-3 working days period, I will keep you informed of progress and work to dispatch it as soon as possible. All purchases are packed and shipped in the order they are received.

I should be notified of any in transit breakages or damage within 24 hours of you, or your chosen recipient, signing for it from the courier or receiving it from the post man. I WILL REQUIRE you to email a photo of any damaged or broken items and their original packaging, before I am able to discuss with you a refund or replacement as appropriate.

I will contact you to let you know when your order has been dispatched.

Estimated delivery times:
UK 1st class ~ 1 - 2 days
UK 2nd class ~ 2 - 5 days
Europe & Russia ~ 1 week or possibly up to 2
USA & Canada ~ 1 to 2 weeks
Australia and New Zealand ~ 1 to 2 weeks, longer to remote addresses
Everywhere else 1 to 3 weeks, depending on remoteness of destination.
(Please note these are estimates).

In the event of a poor postal service in a destination country, The Afternoon Tea Set retains the right to cancel an order to any particular country. The customer will receive a swift and full refund (including postage costs) when such a situation arises. However, the necessity to cancel an order is rare.

**INTERNATIONAL ORDERS (i.e. outside the UK): I use Royal Mail Standard International airmail for all orders, unless stated otherwise on an item's listing. THIS MEANS THAT THEY ARE *NOT* TRACKED. I use this as the default in order to keep shipping costs as low as possible. However, if you require any other type of postage, e.g. tracked and/or signed for, priority shipping etc. I am happy to provide a quote - please message me for details BEFORE placing your order.

All orders OVER £20, or equivalent value in the buyer's currency, WILL ONLY BE SENT TRACKED/SIGNED FOR, whether they consist of a single item, or a multiple order where the combined total value of the items ordered exceeds £20. ITEMS WITH FREE SHIPPING ARE ALSO POSTED *UNTRACKED*, UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE ON AN ITEM'S LISTING, EVEN IF THEIR PRICE IS OVER £20.

I am not able to ask the Royal Mail to investigate shipment of parcels until 25 business days AFTER the 7th business day delivery aim has passed, in accordance with their terms. Therefore, it is not possible for me to class an order as undelivered until after this time frame set by Royal Mail has passed. However, please rest assured that non-deliveries are extremely rare, so please be patient, especially at busy holiday times. I will always do my best to help if you suspect your parcel could be late. **Please note: In the event of an order being lost in the postal system outside of the UK, no postage costs will be refunded, only the item value. Once an item has left the UK, its delivery is out of my control and the destination country's postal system is responsible for its delivery.**

Please note that any parcel sent outside of the EU will have a customs label listing the item and price. This is a legal requirement.

**UK ORDERS: orders will be sent using Royal Mail standard second class, unless otherwise specifically stated on the shipping information against an individual item. You can upgrade to first class shipping at the checkout, if the option is available for an item. If you would like recorded, tracked or next day/guaranteed delivery, please contact me BEFORE ordering.

All orders of OVER £20 WILL ONLY BE SENT 1ST CLASS 'SIGNED FOR', whether they consist of a single item, or a multiple order where the combined total value of the items ordered exceeds £20. INDIVIDUAL ITEMS WITH FREE SHIPPING ARE ALSO POSTED *STANDARD SECOND CLASS*, UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE ON AN ITEM'S LISTING, EVEN IF THEIR PRICE IS OVER £20.

I am unable to ask the Royal Mail to investigate shipment of parcels until 15 business days AFTER the 3rd business day delivery aim has passed, in accordance with their terms. Therefore, it is not possible for me to class an order as undelivered until after this time frame set by Royal Mail has passed. However, please rest assured that non-deliveries are extremely rare, so please be patient, especially at busy holiday times. I will always do my best to help if you suspect your parcel could be late.

PLEASE NOTE FOR MULTIPLE/COMBINED ORDERS WEIGHING MORE THAN 2kg INTERNATIONAL & DOMESTIC: I will inform you ASAP if your order totals more than 2kg (normally 3 vintage china listings or more) and combined shipping may not be possible. For large multiple orders I reserve the right to ship orders in more than one parcel, for safe packaging and cost effective purposes. Rest assured that if this is done, it is due to it being the most cost effective and safe way to get your items to you - no one wants to receive broken goods. I will inform you if your order is to be shipped in more than one parcel. If you would like a shipping quote for a multiple order of more than one item please just ask BEFORE ordering.