Here you will find information regarding our shipping policies, and other information you may need to know regarding shipping! Click on a topic below, and it will take you to that specific topic.
Standard Shipping Guidelines
All of our in stock orders are shipped same business day if ordered by 12pm EST, and shipped next business day if ordered after 12pm EST. We ship 6 days a week, Monday - Saturday. Business days are considered Monday - Saturday. National Holidays, and other postal holidays are not considered business days. We may ship items via multiple methods. We may ship via USPS, UPS, Fed Ex, or DHL.
International Shipping Guidelines
Most of our products are able to be shipped internationally. Most of these items are shipped via USPS First Class International, or USPS Priority Mail. We may ship items via other methods.We do not mark our items as 'gifts' on the customs forms. If an item you purchased is not able to be internationally shipped, you will be notified via email, and the purchase amount will be refunded.
If you are an international customer, you may be subject to import taxes, or other duties as charged by your local government. If you are unsure regarding taxes you may be charged to import your product, please consult your local government for guidelines. As a general rule, most items under $35 US don't require import or duties taxes to most countries. Once again, this is a general rule - please consult your local government for specific guidelines.
USPS Delivery Confirmation Numbers
The USPS only offers a "Delivery Confirmation" number, which is unlike a normal UPS or FedEx tracking number. The only times USPS updates their website with information is as follows:
1) The item has actually been delivered to an address
2) The item has been forwarded to a different address
3) There is some sort of problem with the shipment.
What the Delivery Confirmation # will NOT do is give you information regarding where it actually is at, or the date / time It was originally received by the Post Office.
It is NORMAL for the USPS to state one of the following messages:
"The U.S. Postal Service was electronically notified by the shipper on DATE to expect your package for mailing. This does not indicate receipt by the USPS or the actual mailing date. Delivery status information will be provided if / when available. Information, if available, is updated every evening. Please check again later. " "The tracking information for this item was received by the US Postal Service at TIME on DATE, but the item has not yet been scanned in the mailstream. Please check back later. "
Most of the time, the first time the delivery confirmation number is scanned is when it is delivered to your house.
If you wish to receive the delivery confirmation number for your shipment, please contact us via our contact form, which can be found here. Please ensure you include your order number when you contact us.
Should you not receive your package 2 1/2 weeks (3 1/2 weeks for international orders) after the shipping date, contact us, and we will escalate a claim to the USPS claims department to trace the package. We can NOT submit a claim before this date.
UPS / FedEx / DHL Tracking Numbers:
If we have an available tracking number from these shipping services, we will email it to you as soon as possible.
Shipping Insurance:
We offer shipping insurance on all of our orders. In order for us to keep costs as low as possible, we do NOT include shipping insurance with the price of the product, or with the normal shipping price when items are shipped via USPS.
Shipping Insurance is important because if your item is damaged, lost, or stolen during the shipment, we will ship you a second item, with no additional cost to you.
If you do NOT choose the shipping insurance at the time of purchase, you will not be covered if the shipment is lost, stolen or damaged during shipment. You will be responsible for all charges for replacement of the product. In these cases, you will not be eligible for a refund.
Packages not delivered, picked up:
If your order is shipped back to us by the postal carrier (USPS, UPS, FedEx, etc) for any reason, you will be responsible for paying the charges to reship the product back to you. The main reasons items are not delivered to your house, and are sent back to us are:
1) Postal Carrier wouldn't leave it at your dwelling because package is too large. In this case, it will be held at the local Post Office for 30 days for you to pick it up. If it is not picked up within 30 days, it will be sent back to us. We recommend contacting your local Post Office FIRST.
2) Postal Carrier had an incorrect address. We send the item to the address you supply us. If the address is incorrect, etc, we will need to reship the item.
We do NOT have the ability to reship the item to you unless we have physically received the product back in our hands.
In a case where we do receive a package back due non delivery or non pickup, we will automatically refund the item per our return/exchange policy. You will receive the purchase price of the product back (minus shipping & handling). In cases where you received free shipping, you will receive the full refund minus actual shipping costs plus $3.50 for shipping, handling, and restocking. You can then repurchase the product if you would like to have it reshipped.
Shipping Times :
Shipping times are not guaranteed, as they are determined by the carrier you choose. The following chart will help you determine the BEST shipping method for your situation:
Shipping Method |
Average Shipping Time |
Normal Maximum Shipping Time |
USPS First Class Mail |
3 business days |
9 business days |
USPS Parcel Post |
5-7 business days |
23 business days |
USPS Priority Mail |
2-3 business days |
6 business days |
USPS Express Mail |
1 business day |
1 business day |
|
|
|
USPS First Class International |
2 weeks* |
6 weeks* |
USPS Priority International |
10 business days |
14 business days |
USPS Express International |
6-7 business days |
10 business days |
|
|
|
FedEx Ground |
4 business days |
8 business days |
The times above were taken from ACTUAL Potter’s Gifts shipments from the time period of 6/23/08 to 9/21/08. Business days for USPS are considered every day except Sunday, and national holidays. Business days for FedEx are considered Monday-Friday.
*Time frames for First Class International are estimates, as sample size was too small.
What is the information on the "Important Shipping Information" box on your listings?
Item Stock Status
This status shows where this item is being shipped from. One of the following statuses will be shown:
- Ships from our warehouse. It is shipped from our warehouse and will qualify for the same or next day shipping if it is an in stock item.
- Ships from our distributor. This item is shipped directly from our distributor, and there may be a small delay in shipping time.
- Special Order. This item will be ordered on your behalf from the manufacturer. When it is in stock, it will be shipped directly to you. There will be a larger delay in shipping time.
- Pre-Order. This item will be released at a future date. It will ship directly from our warehouse, but will not ship until the item has been released.
How Its Shipped
We ship our items the most cost efficient way possible. One of the following ways will be shown:
- Poly Mailer. Poly mailers are the thinnest, and lightweight shipping material available. If it is shipped in this manner, the product will be placed in a poly mailer without any type of padding for the product. The advantage to this method, is it allows us to ship the item as cost effective as possible - which makes shipping very affordable for you. The dis-advantage to this method is the items outside packaging may not come in mint condition. The product itself will almost always have no problems whatsoever. If you are purchasing an item as a gift, and want to ensure it is in mint condition, we will ship via box method for additional shipping charges.
- Cardboard Box. Cardboard boxes are the normal, conventional method of shipping. If it is shipped in this manner, the product will be placed in a cardboard box, with fill to ensure the product is secure. The advantage to this method, is it ensures your product is 100% secure. In most cases, the outside packaging will be in mint condition. The dis-advantage to this method is it increases the cost of shipping. The box itself will add on additional weight, as will the packing materials. In some cases, it can increase the cost of shipping from anywhere between $2-$4 per item.
- No Outside Packaging. The item will be shipped by itself, without any type of outside packaging. In some cases the item will be shipped with a brown wrap, or it may not have any wrapping at all. Normally an item shipped in this method is a large, or awkward size.
If you don't like the method of packaging your item, we can always change it. Please message us, and we will do everything we can to satisfy you. There may be additional costs to change the packaging method.
Shipping Deals
If any shipping deals apply to this item, it will be listed here.
|
) 
