Terms and Conditions – General
General Website Use Terms and Conditions
If you continue to browse and use this website, you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by the following terms and conditions of use, which together with our privacy policy govern Northumberland Honey Co’s relationship with you in relation to this website. If you disagree with any part of these terms and conditions, please do not use our website.
The term Northumberland Honey Co or ‘us’ or ‘we’ refers to the owner of the website whose registered office is Unit 6C, Haltwhistle Industrial Estate, Haltwhistle, Northumberland, NE49 9HA. Our company registration number is 09432006. The term ‘you’ refers to the user or viewer of our website.
The use of this website is subject to the following terms of use:
- The content of the pages of this website is for your general information and use only. It is subject to change without notice.
- This website uses cookies to monitor browsing preferences. If you do allow cookies to be used, the following personal information may be stored by us for use by third parties.
- Neither we nor any third parties provide any warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy, timeliness, performance, completeness or suitability of the information and materials found or offered on this website for any particular purpose. You acknowledge that such information and materials may contain inaccuracies or errors and we expressly exclude liability for any such inaccuracies or errors to the fullest extent permitted by law.
- Your use of any information or materials on this website is entirely at your own risk, for which we shall not be liable. It shall be your own responsibility to ensure that any products, services or information available through this website meet your specific requirements.
- This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited other than in accordance with the copyright notice, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
- All trademarks reproduced in this website, which are not the property of, or licensed to the operator, are acknowledged on the website.
- Unauthorised use of this website may give rise to a claim for damages and/or be a criminal offence.
- From time to time, this website may also include links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience to provide further information. They do not signify that we endorse the website(s). We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s).
- Your use of this website and any dispute arising out of such use of the website is subject to the laws of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Cancellations, Returns and Refunds
1.18 Consumers purchasing goods online have the right to cancel eligible orders in accordance with the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. Nothing in these terms affects your statutory rights.
1.19 Your right to cancel an eligible order begins when the contract is entered into and ends 14 days after the day on which you, or a person nominated by you, receives the goods.
Where an order contains multiple goods delivered separately, the cancellation period ends 14 days after the day on which the last of those goods is received.
1.20 To exercise your right to cancel, you must notify us of your decision before the cancellation period has expired. You can do this by email, telephone, or by any other clear statement informing us that you wish to cancel.
You do not have to provide a reason for exercising a statutory right to cancel.
1.21 Once you have notified us of your cancellation, goods must be returned to:
Northumberland Honey Co
Unit 6C
Haltwhistle Industrial Estate
Haltwhistle
Northumberland
NE49 9HA
Goods must be sent back without undue delay and no later than 14 days after the day on which you informed us of your cancellation.
Unless the goods are faulty, damaged, incorrectly supplied, or we have agreed otherwise, you are responsible for the direct cost of returning the goods to us.
We recommend obtaining proof of postage or using an appropriate tracked service, as returned goods remain the customer’s responsibility until delivered to us.
1.22 You have a duty to take reasonable care of goods while they are in your possession.
You may handle and inspect goods only to the extent reasonably necessary to establish their nature, characteristics and functioning, broadly equivalent to the inspection that would reasonably be permitted when examining goods in a shop.
If goods have been used, damaged, altered, opened beyond what is reasonably necessary for inspection, are incomplete, or have otherwise suffered a reduction in value as a result of handling beyond what is reasonably necessary, we reserve the right to make an appropriate deduction from the refund to reflect the actual diminished value of the goods.
This may include circumstances where use or handling means that the goods can no longer reasonably be sold as new.
This is not an administration or restocking charge. Any deduction will reflect the reduction in value resulting from the customer’s handling of the goods.
If you do not return goods after cancelling, or if we agree to recover goods from you at your request, we reserve the right, where permitted by law, to recover the direct costs reasonably incurred in recovering those goods.
1.23 Refunds
Where a valid right to cancel is exercised, we will refund the sums due to you, including any standard outbound delivery charge originally paid by you.
If you selected a delivery method costing more than our least expensive standard delivery option, we are not required to refund the additional cost of that enhanced delivery service.
Where delivery was provided free of charge, there is no outbound delivery charge to refund or deduct.
We may withhold the refund until we have received the returned goods or you provide evidence that you have sent the goods back, whichever occurs first.
Once the relevant requirement has been met, refunds will be made without undue delay and within the period required by law. Unless otherwise agreed, refunds will normally be made using the same payment method used for the original transaction.
Any permitted deduction for diminished value under clause 1.22 may be applied to the refund.
1.23a Alternative Products or Account Credit
If you would prefer an exchange, alternative product or account credit rather than a monetary refund, please contact us and we will be happy to arrange this where possible.
Choosing an exchange, alternative product or account credit is entirely optional and does not affect your statutory right to a monetary refund where such a right applies.
Where replacement or alternative goods require additional payment or delivery charges, we will let you know before arranging the replacement order.
1.24 Products Excluded from Change-of-Mind Cancellation
The statutory right to cancel does not apply, or may cease to apply, to certain goods where an exemption provided by law applies. These include, where relevant:
(a) goods made to the customer’s specifications or which are clearly personalised;
(b) goods which are liable to deteriorate or expire rapidly;
(c) sealed goods which are not suitable for return due to health protection or hygiene reasons once they have been unsealed; and
(d) goods which, after delivery, have become inseparably mixed with other items.
Where a product falls within one of these statutory exceptions, we reserve the right not to accept a change-of-mind cancellation or return.
1.24a Food, Drink, Cosmetics and Beeswax Products
Our products are made using natural ingredients and, where applicable, traditional or small-batch production methods. Natural variation between batches may occur and does not in itself mean that a product is faulty.
Taste, aroma, colour, texture and personal preference are subjective. Honey, mead, beeswax candles, skincare and other naturally derived products can have distinctive characteristics and aromas. A customer’s personal dislike of the taste, fragrance, aroma, texture or other subjective characteristic of a product does not, by itself, mean that the product is faulty, defective or not as described.
Where a statutory cancellation right applies, unused goods may still be returned in accordance with these terms. However, products which have been consumed, substantially used, burned, altered or otherwise used beyond what is reasonably necessary to inspect them may have suffered a significant or complete loss in value, and any refund may be reduced accordingly where permitted by law.
For example, lighting and burning a candle goes beyond the inspection normally necessary to establish its nature and characteristics and will materially affect its resale value. We would therefore not normally offer a refund or replacement for a beeswax candle that has been lit or burned simply because a customer has changed their mind or does not like its natural aroma. This does not affect your statutory rights where a candle is faulty, damaged or not as described.
To ensure the best performance from our beeswax candles, customers should follow our Beeswax Candle Burning Guide, which provides guidance on recommended burn times, wick care, positioning and troubleshooting.
For products supplied with a health or hygiene seal, the statutory right to cancel may be lost once that seal has been broken where the product is not suitable for return for health protection or hygiene reasons.
Nothing in this clause affects your rights where goods are faulty, damaged, incorrectly supplied or otherwise fail to conform to the contract.
1.25 Faulty, Damaged or Incorrect Goods
The change-of-mind provisions above are separate from your statutory rights where goods are faulty, damaged, not as described or have been supplied incorrectly.
If you believe that a product is faulty, damaged or incorrect, please contact us as soon as reasonably possible with your order details and, where appropriate, photographs or other information which will help us investigate the issue.
Where goods do not conform to the contract, we will deal with the matter in accordance with your statutory consumer rights.
Nothing in these Terms and Conditions is intended to exclude or restrict any statutory rights which cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.
Queens & Bees
a) The return of queens & bees is only accepted if they are returned alive and by royal mail special delivery within 14 days of receiving. Any returns outside of this time are at our discretion. – Please note terms and conditions for the sale of bees for more thorough information. Queens that are dead on arrival must be reported to us via the queen return/refund form on the day of arrival.
To request a return or refund on Queen Bees please use the designated return/refund form
Customer Behaviour Policy
To enable us to deal with unacceptable customer behaviour this policy enables us to set out how we expect to be communicated with and treated in our business transactions. This policy aims to deal with unacceptable customer behaviour professionally and consistently. It applies to all our customers interacting with our business and employees.
What behaviours are unacceptable?
Although difficult to predict all types of behaviour that could be unaceptable, examples are given under these 2 broad headings.
Aggressive or abusive behaviour
This consists of behaviour (written or verbal) that we consider might cause employees to feel intimidated, offended, bullied or harassed.
For example:
- threatening emails and telephone calls, threatening reports to authorities when no grounds for doing so.
- inappropriate comments on social media.
- inappropriate or false comments on reviews.
- Threats of negative reviews if we don’t submit to your requests
- Threats of negative reviews if we don’t financially or otherwise re-imburse you
- inappropriate banter, including innuendo
- malicious allegations with no basis of fact
- any form of physical violence or threats of physical violence
- derogatory racial, sexist, ageist or homophobic remarks
- comments relating to disability, perceived gender, religion, belief or any other protected characteristic
Unreasonable demands and vexatious complaints
Customers might make unreasonable demands on Northumberland Honey Company, some examples of these include but are not limited to:
- seeking compensation outside of the scope of the returns policy.
- nature and scale of service they expect, for example claiming for queen bees when introduction has been unsuccessful.
- seeking compensation for products that have been already used
- volume of correspondence they generate
We accept that persistence is not necessarily a form of unacceptable behaviour. What amounts to unreasonable demands will depend on the circumstances of the complaint and the seriousness of the issues raised by the customer.
However, customers who will not accept a decision taken in relation to their query, or persistently contact us about the same issue, can generate unreasonable demands – taking up a disproportionate amount of time and resources. This can affect our ability to provide a service to other customers.
Examples of behaviour that would fall within unreasonable demands and vexatious complaints include but are not limited to:
- refusing to follow our complaints procedure
- excessive volume of contact without allowing sufficient time for a response to previous correspondence
- insisting on seeing or speaking to a particular member of staff when a suitable alternative has been offered
- not accepting that an issue in relation to a legal requirement cannot be resolved by Northumberland Honey Company despite having been informed that this is the case
- inappropriate visits to our offices
- excessive contact because of an unwillingness to accept or agree with a policy decision adopted by Northumberland Honey Company.
If a complaint is considered to be vexatious, we’ll take the actions outlined in this policy. We’ll inform you that future correspondence will only be reviewed to ensure no new issues have been raised – if not, it will be filed without acknowledgement.
Actions we may take as a result of unacceptable behaviour
Our employees have a right to not have to tolerate unacceptable or vexatious behaviour when communicating with our customers. When this occurs, all our employees have the right to:
- place callers on hold
- end the call
- not reply to an abusive email or letter
However, before taking such action, it is reasonable to expect you are warned that your conduct is considered to be offensive to allow you the opportunity to moderate your behaviour.
Where these circumstances arise, we may take the following steps:
- We’ll ask you to modify your behaviour and explain why.
- If behaviour continues our employees will remove themselves from the situation.
- If the communication is by telephone you will be informed the call will be terminated.
- The employee will inform a manager and the incident will be recorded.
- In all cases a manager will investigate the situation and decide what action to take – which could include limiting your contact with us and refusing further orders from you.
- We’ll refer the matter to the police where a criminal offence has been threatened or committed.
Communication restrictions
If you continue to display unacceptable behaviour, a manager can authorise the decision to place a temporary or permanent communication restriction.
When communication is being restricted you will be told of the decision. Where possible, we will tell you in writing – but we may also tell you by telephone, supported by relevant notes on our records.
Communication might be:
- limited to being conducted in writing
- limited to a specific individual
- removed from social media and access to these channels blocked
- contact might be limited to a specific email address or telephone number
- placed on file without a further response if correspondence has previously been answered
Where circumstances are serious enough to warrant legal restrictions, we may refer to the police, apply for an injunction or court order to prohibit contact/poor behaviour.