Terms and Conditions

DELIVERY : FOR MOST ITEMS, DELIVERY IS FREE !

STAMPS AND COVERS

These are mailed free by ordinary post to any destination worldwide (1st class or airmail) - but this is at customers risk for orders under £200.If you require "special delivery" (UK) or "signed for, insured" (abroad, = "registered") for insurance on orders under £200, this must be ordered and costs extra.

If you order £200+, we provide "special delivery" or "signed for, insured" postal service free of charge.

COLLECTIONS

SMALL LOTS (with no indication of weight) are sent free by ordinary post (first class or airmail) - but this is at customers risk.

If your order is under £200 and you require insurance, this costs extra.

If your order is £200+, we provide either "special delivery" (UK) or registration (abroad) by post, or secure delivery by Fedex, free of charge.

LARGE LOTS (indicated by weight, usually 2kg and more) are normally sent by Fedex courier in the UK without extra charge. If you live overseas and wish to buy a larger collection described by weight (2kg+), check with us first about delivery costs, this will cost extra.

BOOKS

If you live Overseas, we can send airmail for quicker delivery. For the additional costs for airmail, click on "delivery upgrades". All books are mailed at customers risk. "Signed for" registration/special delivery is not normally possible for books. If you do require "signed for" service for urgent or valuable book orders, this can sometimes be provided at extra cost, but please contact us first (it is not available through the web site order form)

Books are sent post free by cheapest means to any destination worldwide. This means UK 2nd class or parcel, Europe air printed paper, Overseas surface printed paper. Larger orders for books where total package is over 3kg may go by M-Bag, which is faster.

SATISFACTION ASSURED

"I recognise you are buying "unseen", even though a picture is provided in most cases. Therefore, I offer the simple guarantee of satisfaction on receipt, or refund/exchange if you return the complete item, with description/invoice, within a month, in the same condition. This is the advantage of dealing direct with a store, as opposed to an auction where stamps can't be returned. With 40 years' experience as a stamp dealer, I describe stamps accurately without frills, and understand collectors' expectations." John Barefoot.

STOCK AVAILABILITY POLICY

Items advertised are those that have been set aside for priority sale through this website. Essentially, if you see it on the site, it is there at our premises and available to buy. 1) Stamps, postal history and collections are unique offers. When a customer makes a confirmed order with approved payment, that item is automatically allocated to the customer and the item description is automatically removed from the site display at the moment of completed payment. 2) Books advertised are held in stock. For books we publish or wholesale, good quantities are held. For other books we hold in small quantities or one only, the item is automatically removed once all available stock is ordered. 3) The website is regularly checked to ensure that items advertised are correctly described and are currently available. In the unusual event that it is not possible to supply something ordered, we guarantee that any credit card charge for that item would be cancelled or refunded. However, we do know that the best business is simply to supply the goods ordered 100% of the time and so that is our aim!

PRIVACY POLICY & TRANSACTION SECURITY

We comply with legal privacy requirements for any personal data you provide.

1) if you order using the shopping cart to provide credit card information, that page is on a separate site provided by SagePay, part of the credit card providers, and linked to our bank, the Royal Bank of Scotland. This has the full security you would expect from a banking environment, and is currently the most secure method of on-line purchasing. (They state that "The payment system uses a combination of established and innovative techniques to ensure the security and integrity of all sensitive data. Our internet facing web servers are certified by Verisign, this ensures that no third parties can obtain secure information. Transaction Security :The transfer of the less sensitive transaction details from the retailer's site to the bank is encrypted and digitally-signed. This ensures that the information passed is secure and tamper-proof. Security for the Shopper : Any communication from the customer is encrypted to the maximum strength supported by the customer's browser. The customer is also protected from fraudulent use of their card in a "card not present" environment, by their card issuer. Data Storage : All data stored on the server systems is held on encrypted and highly secured databases. Systems are regularly audited by Visa and MasterCard to ensure that the systems conform to the latest security standards.") SagePay do not provide us your credit card information, they just supply your address details for delivery of the goods and the confirmation that the card has been approved for debit.

2) If you order from us directly by postal mail, email or phone, you will need pay by cheque or provide us with credit card information. In this latter case, we are legally obliged to keep your order information on file as part of company trading records for tax reasons, but records are kept securely and no unauthorised access is permitted.

SUBSEQUENT MARKETING

We understand that most clients who order material from the website are active collectors, and may welcome occasional offers of similar material. We may therefore send relevant offers or a newsletter by mail in order to keep in touch. In view of both postal costs and the general hatred of junk mail, these will be limited to once or twice a year only for each country category, and would only be continued if there is a response. We do not send out marketing emails, or pass on your email address to others. Your telephone number would only be used in case of a query with an order or payment; it is not used for marketing and it is not passed to others. If you choose to let us know your collecting interests, this will ensure that any offers we may make are as relevant as possible. If your order is simply a "one off" (for instance, if you are buying a present for someone else) you are welcome to request "no further mailing". In that case, we need to record your name and address once as a company transaction but you will then receive no further mail information.