Nick Dobson Wines - Delivery Costs

Please refer to the following table to select the appropriate transport option for your order.

Delivery charges regrettably continue to rise as a result of increasing costs and high fuel surcharges imposed by the courier companies. Charges are now based on the quantity of product ordered; a minimum charge applies which covers the first 12 bottles - for quantities greater than 12 bottles, the total cost is arrived at by adding to this basic cost an additional charge per extra case or part thereof, or in some cases per bottle - check the table below. A slightly higher charge may apply for quantities less than 6 bottles. Charges are based on the weight of each consignment and intended to cover the costs incurred by us - we do not make a profit on carriage charges. We are aware that some of the charges may seem high; however this merely reflects the charges made to us by our transport subcontractors, and we do not aim to profit from these. The basic SIGNED and UNSIGNED services continue to offer good value for money if you can be flexible about delivery time.

Unfortunately couriers now charge a premium for delivery to the Scottish Highlands - the list of postcodes is shown below. If your postcode is NOT in this list, you can use the standard SIGNED or UNSIGNED service.

Delivery charges are calculated automatically by the website when you enter your order and select the class of service in the checkout. There is no need to enter the number of cases purchased in the checkout to determine carriage costs.


Please take care to select the correct shipping class for your needs!

Fortunately breakages and losses during transit are rare, but they do happen. They happen most often when an attempted delivery fails because the recipient is absent, and the parcel is returned to the courier's depot where it will be mixed up with all sorts of other parcels which have also suffered failed delivery. So we ask for your help in trying to ensure the parcel can be delivered at the first attempt.

Here are some tips to minimise delivery problems:-

• Please do not specify a delivery date or time with our standard delivery services - these services are UNTIMED and whilst they often provide a next-working-day service this is NOT GUARANTEED and you should allow 7 working days for shipments to England/Wales and slightly longer for other destinations - see table. If you stipulate date/time with standard service, we are unable to pass this information to the courier.
• Premium services may available if your delivery is time-critical, although these are offered only on case by case basis. We no longer make these options available to be selected online - please contact us by telephone to request them.
• If you do not expect to be at home to receive your wine when it is delivered, you should select the UNSIGNED delivery option, and leave special delivery instructions (e.g. “leave in shed”, “leave behind gate”). We are happy to pass these instructions to the carriers, however neither we nor the carriers will accept responsibility should for any reason the wines be lost, stolen, or damaged as a result of such instructions being followed.
• When choosing between SIGNED and UNSIGNED options, please consider carefully whether or not a signed-for service is best. It offers greater security, but if there is nobody home to receive your parcel it can lead to delays and complications; if you do, and the courier has to reattempt delivery for which they make a charge to us, any such further charges (which may be greater than the original delivery charge) WILL be made PER DELIVERY ATTEMPT and you expressly authorise us to charge this to your card by selecting this service. If you have a safe secure shed, garage, greenhouse etc. then it may be better to request the parcel be left there for you.  Remember that for unsigned service, goods are left at your risk.
• The above considerations are particularly important if you are sending a gift and the recipient does not know it is coming - if the SIGNED service is specified, problems can arise if the recipient is not there to receive the goods. If at all possible, please alert the recipient to the arrival of the parcel in advance. PLEASE check if they will be on holiday and let us know - we can delay despatch to fit their plans.
  

Notes:-

1. All carriage costs are subject to VAT
2. With standard UK mainland SIGNED and UNSIGNED services, delivery is normally within 7 working days.
3. We no longer routinely offer other premium services (timed deliveries, evening & weekend deliveries) as the costs and reliability of these are unpredictable. However, these MAY be available on a case-by-case basis but will be subject to individual quotation. If you think you may need one of these services, please call for a quote before placing your order.
5. 1 case means up to 12 bottles of any size up to 75cl.
6. Magnums are subject to special handling and are excluded from the above table - please call for more information.
7. Note quantity restrictions for some destinations - we use special packaging for offshore destinations and this is incompatible with odd quantities - see table above.

This table last updated 7 September 2011