FedEx Shipping Option Discontinued Effective January 19
Please be advised that FedEx Ground/Home Delivery will no longer be offered as a shipping option after this week (week of Jan 12). This decision was not made lightly but was done in light of continued significantly disproportionate service (delivery) issues as compared to the service our customers have been receiving from UPS and USPS. Any packages that have FedEx selected that have not yet shipped after Jan 16 will be switched to UPS when they do ship.
Important Shipping Rates News for UPS and FedEx - Please Read
We are that time again where our shippers (UPS and FedEx) raise their shipping rates. Rates going up have been an annual event since we have been in business, but there is one BIG change this year that both UPS and FedEx are implementing effective Dec 29 and Jan 5, respectively, that everyone should know about – charging shipping rates based on Dimensional Weight (aka DimWeight). For all essential purposes, DimWeight is the system of charging shipping cost based on the size of the package rather than the actual weight of the package. Although DimWeight is not a new concept, packages under 3 cubic feet (which is most of our outgoing packages) have been exempt from DimWeight until now.
What this means to us:
Our system of shipping cost is to charge our customers based on the actual cost of shipping that order, and until now, it has been calculated based on the weight of the package. The new DimWeight system now means we will not be able to accurately determine the expected shipping cost until the order is pulled and packed. Only at this point will we have the required information (the dimensions of the package) to be able to calculate the actual shipping cost.
What this means to you:
We will no longer be able to show you a fairly accurate shipping cost estimate at checkout for both UPS and FedEx shipping. The shipping cost shown to you at checkout is going to be an inflated amount that we collect pretty much assuming a worst case scenario, and we will refund any overage collected for shipping once the actual cost is determined. The reason we have to over collect up front is due to credit card security protocols now. When you place an order, an authorization is run to validate your credit card and determine if you have sufficient credit limit (sufficient balance for debit cards) and this authorization also reserves that amount temporarily. When we ship your order, we then can only collect up to this amount in reserve (or an amount lesser than the reserved amount) and no more. To protect your credit card information, we cannot see your credit card information other than the last four digits and the card type, which eliminates the option for us to charge for shipping (or excess shipping cost) afterward.
This is the reason we started the Lowest Cost Available shipping option (for USA only at this time) earlier this autumn. This will allow you to tell us that you want us to select the shipping method that is the lowest cost available for your order. For more details on this shipping option, please click here.
Please note that what we charge for shipping is completely unchanged in the 10+ years we have been in business – a shipping cost based on the actual cost charged to us (we do not make any profit on shipping – in fact every year we pay out more in shipping related charges that we collect due to the system not being perfect, and if not correct, it is almost always an undercharge).
SUMMARY
- Dimensional Weight (DimWeight) is where the shipping cost is based on the size/dimensions of the package
- Both UPS and FedEx are going to DimWeight to determine the cost of shipping effective Dec 29 and Jan 1, respectively.
- We will no longer be able to show you at checkout a fairly accurate estimate of the shipping cost for both UPS and FedEx
- For UPS and FedEx, we will be collecting essentially a worse case scenario cost, and we will refund any overage collected for shipping once the actual cost is determined
- If you are price sensitive to shipping cost, we recommend you select the Lowest Cost Available shipping option where we can select the shipping method for you order than costs the least.
Largest Selection of Modelling-Related Products (Nov 22)
Sprue Brothers stands ready to fulfill your holiday needs. We are entering the upcoming holiday season with 32,437 unqiue IN STOCK items which is by far the largest in stock selection of modelling-related products in North America.
Limited Time Special - 50% Off the MSRP on Rinaldi Tank Art 2 & 3 Books
For a limited time, get either Rinaldi Studio Press's TANKART Vol 2 - WWII Allied Armor or TANKART Vol 3 - Modern Armor for $19.99/each (MSRP is $40.00). Offer may end at any time without any prior notice, and is limited to in stock quantities.
New Shipping Option (for USA) - Lowest Cost Available
The "Lowest Cost Available" shipping option has the Sprue Brothers staff select the lowest cost shipping available for your order. The shipping method used could be any method including (and no limited to) USPS 1st Class Mail, USPS Media Mail, USPS Parcel Select, USPS Priority Mail, UPS Ground, or UPS SurePost. At this time, this method is only available to US shipping addresses.
The computer system does its best to offer the best possible shipping options/cost, however there are many idiosyncrasies in shipping that only a human can account for and determine the actual lowest cost option. By selecting this shipping method, you are requesting that the Sprue Brothers staff select the shipping method for your order that is the lowest cost (we will not factor any other factor such as the shipping time - only the cost will used to determine the shipping method used. If you need your order by a certain date or in a timely manner, we do not recommend you select this shipping option.
The cost of this method is only an estimate. The amount collected at checkout is an amount that the shipping cost should not likely exceed the final actual shipping cost. In the situation that it does, we will contact you to determine how you want to proceed. NOTE - SBM has no choice but to over collect due to the credit card security protocols that does not allow our staff to adjust the authorization amount upward if needed (our staff cannot even see your credit card information to put in a new charge if it was needed). Once we determine the actual/final shipping cost and method, our staff will refund any excess shipping cost collected that was not needed as we do already now.
Deal of the Day
We will be running a Deal of the Day most days of the week from now until the end of 2014. The Deal of the Day will be one product at a special price for 24 hours (starts at midnight and ends at 11:59pm US Central time). To see the daily deal, just click on "Deal of the Day" located at the top of the left column of categories, or click here.
Emails / Emails Not Received
Please be aware that we send you two emails for each order placed: the Order Confirmation email (sent when order is placed) and the Shipping Notification email (sent when we process/ship your order). If you are not receiving either or both of these email (or any other emails such as responses to emails sent to help@spruebrothers.com, this likely means either your ISP is blocking them; they are in your spam folder; or your spam filter settings may be set too high (this is particularly an issue with AOL and Earthlink/Mindspring email accounts).
What does "In Stock" mean to us?
Our definition of "In Stock" means that the item is actually in our warehouse (not at our distributors'/suppliers' warehouse) and is ready to immediately ship to you.
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Inventory Questions
We have been receiving a lot of inquiries lately regarding whether we actually have something in stock as our website indicates. This is likely due to the practices of other online hobby stores who have a different definition of what "In Stock" means. In case you are not familiar with our business practices, we use a real time inventory system that shows (accurately and live/in real time) what is available for sale and how many. It automatically and instantly updates the available quantities after each order is successfully placed.
Also, our definition of "In Stock" means that the item is actually in our warehouse (not at our distributors'/suppliers' warehouse) and is ready to immediately ship to you. Thus if you order from us, you will reliably and quickly receive what you order. On a side note, we are also human, so on rare occasion something could be in error, however our error rate in 2009 to-date has well been less than 0.1%.
International Customers (May 14, 2007) - Please be advised that the US Postal Service has discontinued Surface Mail service. As a result any restricted shipping items (mainly certain glues and paints) we will no longer be able to ship outside the USA.
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