Free Shipping Orders over £30

*Excludes Bee Orders

Use this form to submit any change requests for Existing Queen Orders

Step 1

Complete form and submit. Ensure your details are correct. Please also review Bee/ Queen purchases terms and conditions below.

Step 2

You’ll receive an e-mail with details submitted. We will review the changes

Step 3

If we can make the changes, we’ll update/ cancel the order on the system, issue any refunds due, and e-mail or call to confirm the change. For date changes you are then able to re-order. 

Queen Order Change Request Form

Terms & Conditions Cancellation of Bee Orders

1.9 Please contact us by telephone or e-mail if you need to cancel your bee order or by submitting the queen changes request form.

2.0 Northumberland Honey Co is not liable for any losses incurred if you have to cancel your bee order. If the bee order is cancelled due to force majeure then Northumberland Honey Co will not be liable for any losses or costs incurred. This includes severe weather events which may effect bees.

2.1 If you cancel at short notice, we will make every effort transfer your bees to another customer, this is not always possible at short notice; the more notice you give us the better. Please remember we only have finite stock of bees, and if you place an order that stock is reserved for you, which prevents us from selling this to anyone else in that time frame that you reserved your bees. There is also beekeeping work involved in preparing your bees and a considerable amount of work involved in the months and weeks before you take delivery of your bees. Therefore if you cancel we have costs and losses caused by the cancellation. 

2.2 Once you have received bees, if you wish to cancel/ return the bees they should be returned within 14 days of your cancelling the order. Until they are returned you must retain possession of the products and take good care of them. You should return the bees to us as you received them. If they are returned but not to our satisfaction then you will not receive a refund. 
 
2.3 Any deposits are completely non-returnable – under the Distance Selling Regulations bees are perishable items. In the event we are unable to supply you, you are entitled to a full refund of any deposit.
 
2.3a Specific deposit/ cancellation fees relating to Nucleus Colonies and Queen Bee Orders. At the point of placing the order, the order value including shipping is made up of a 15% deposit / cancellation fee. In the event of any cancellation or changes we incur extra costs in adminsitering the cancellation, re-stocking and the work already committed to producing the queen or bees. In the event of a cancellation of a queen or bees (overwintered nucleus colony / packages / summer nucleus colony) you will be refunded 85% of the purchase amount, with the remaining 15% non-returnable being the cancellation fee/ non returnable deposit. If you would like a breakdown of the costs associated with cancellation please ask and we will be happy to provide.  
 
2.3b If cancellation or changes are requested within 48 hours of collection or delivery date, 100% of the order value is due, and no refund on bee orders will be given. 
 
2.4 If you wish to return any bees they are to be replaced are to be fully returned at the buyers expense by royal mail special delivery.  They will be examined by us to inspect the problem and authenticity, before a refund or replacement is supplied. It is important that any returned queens are delivered to us alive, or sent under an insured / guaranteed service. If there is suspicion that you have returned a different item to the one supplied by us (this is fraud and will be reported as such), or if the bees have been mistreated / mishandled you will not be eligible for a refund or replacement.
 

Customer Cancellations of Bee Orders

2.4a Please contact us by telephone or e-mail if you need to change your bee order.

2.4b  Queen and Bee order change examples include, changing delivery or collection date. Changing quantity or type of bees.

2.4c Bee order changes create significant administration and beekeeping costs, production of bees are timed accurately, planned months in advance, changes to delivery dates, quantities or type of bee create significant cost burden. As a result queen and bee orders requiring changing need to be cancelled, which attracts the 15% queen / bee deposit charge, and then re-ordered for the next suitable delivery week. If changes or cancellation are requested within 48 hours of an order due to be dispatched then no refund will be given

2.4d Changes to delivery address or contact details do not attract a fee. 

A full breakdown of costs associated with order changes and cancellation are available on request. 

Queen Issues

2.5 If any queen is found dead on arrival this needs to be reported to us immediately upon delivery. Please note special delivery items are signed for and recorded so we are aware of when the items have been delivered.
 

2.5a The queen must then be returned to us by Royal Mail Special Delivery at your expense with her original attendents in the original unopened package for examination. We will then examine the cause of death, this is of paramount importance to us for our due diligence. Then if appropriate we will send a replacement. Queens will only be replaced once and in the case that queens are replaced free of charge, the postage cost to return the queen to us will be bourne by the customer, but we will cover the cost to re-send any queen(s).

2.6 Queens are guaranteed from being drone layers for the first 6 weeks (2 full brood cycles). We are the only Queen breeder currently to offer this.  Given the variable nature of matings and problems that can also co-exist in the hive we are only able to guarantee queens against drone laying for this period of time. If queens are suspected of being drone layers and a replacement is sought, the original queen must be returned in a queen cage with candy and attendents, sent by Royal Mail special delivery for us to inspect and test. Return postage cost to be bourne by the customer. It is important for you to send the queen by special delivery so there is insurance against transit loss etc, if your returned queen does not arrive to us, or arrives in condition where we cannot examine her we cannot offer replacement. On arrival we will examine her spermatheca, if she is found to be infertile we will replace the queen and the replacement queen will be sent by special delivery at our cost. In the interest of fairness across the board, the cost of returning a queen is to be bourne by the customer, but we will cover the cost to re-send any replacement queen(s).

2.7 Non laying queens. Mated queens are all in full lay before being sent out and checked, however due to circumstances down to handling, shipping, introduction issues or hive conditions, age of supporting workers in the hive and strength of the hive the queen may not come into lay straight away. Issues such as the queen being damaged on introduction (having a damaged hind leg for example) may also lead to non-laying if the queen is unable to adequately lower herself into a cell to lay. If a hive has been queenless for sometime workers may be reaching the end of their life and not able to support a queen in either strength or royal jelly production. The condition of the receiving colony is the customers responsibility. Please note weather and local conditions also play a major role in queens going off lay. Non laying queens must be reported to us within 21 days of receipt and sent back to us alive by Royal Mail special delivery for examination – the cost of returning the queen is to be bourne by the customer. Upon examination of the queen we will be able to feedback what if any issues exist, we will check the queens spermatheca and examine under the microscope for any evidence of trauma, stings etc. If there are issues that are attributable to the queen supplied a replacement will be offered. We will not however be able to offer replacements or refunds for any issues attributable to the receiving colony, handling on introduction etc. 

2.8 Replacement Queens. Queens will only be replaced once, and no further guarantees beyond the first queens guarantees will be supplied. Replacement queen(s) will be sent with the next order of queens placed / next available delivery week. You will not be able to expect an off-the shelf replacement as queen rearing has specific timings and there will be weeks where queens are not available. 

Reporting Queen Issues:

Queen Issues cane be reported by the relevant form and by attaching photos: Click through for Queen Returns and Refunds Forms

Northumberland Honey Co
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