Shipping & Returns

Our Refund Policy

Our policy on refunds and returns is in line with the Australian Consumer Law. Under the Trade Practices Act 1974 you may seek a refund if goods:

– are or become faulty through no fault of your own
– are not fit for a stated purpose or a purpose you made known to our sales staff
– don’t match our description or sample
– have defects that were not obvious or we did not bring to your attention

However, the goods must be returned within a reasonable period and you may be asked for proof of purchase. You may also be asked to demonstrate that the problem with the goods was not your fault.

If you prefer an alternative to a refund, we may be able to arrange for goods to be exchanged or repaired. A store credit may be offered at our discretion if you specifically request an alternative to a refund.

Please choose carefully as you are not entitled to a refund if you simply change your mind.

Please keep your receipt as proof of purchase.

The above is your legal right as set out by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission. This can be confirmed in detail on the ACCC website – Consumer Guarantees.

Please note that in certain situations we are required by law to refund the payment to the original purchase method. To reduce fraud, we do insist in every case that a refund be made using the same card or account and via the same bank or payment provider as the purchase. Cash can only be returned where cash was used for the purchase. A Visa card payment needs to go back to the same Visa card for example.

Our Exchange Policy

In addition to your statutory rights, we offer a change of mind exchange policy.

If you purchase an item and change your mind, you can choose to exchange that item for a store credit providing the following conditions are met:

– Item must not be opened or used
– All packaging and labels must be attached
– Item must be returned in original condition
– Returns accepted or arranged within 14 days of purchase

The following products are EXCLUDED from our exchange policy:

– Swarovski Crystals (All Swarovski products)
– Preciosa Crystals
– Polymer Clays, Resins and Adhesives
– Sterling Silver, Vermeil & Gold Filled
– Cut-to-length Chain, Leather, Cord, etc
– Custom Made Pieces
– Special Order Items or Commercial Quantities
– Clearance and Marked Down Products
– As-is or Ex Display Stock

These listed items are excluded from change of mind exchange or return, but they are still covered by your legal rights as set out in Our Refund Policy above.

Shipping Charges on Items Returned for a Change of Mind Exchange:

– If you wish to return an item please contact us first for approval.
– If you are sending item(s) back via Courier or Post, the return postage is at your own cost.
– Consider a registered or trackable service as we are not liable for returned items lost in transit.
– You will be required to cover the postage of the new goods. This can be added to any amounts payable where newly purchased goods are a higher value than the returned goods, or by providing a suitably sized pre-paid pre-addressed postage or courier satchel with tracking and insurance (send with the returned items) where goods exchanged are of equal value.
– If a free or discounted postage offer was made available on the original purchase, the cost of that service may need to be deducted from any credit amount, if a store credit is issued.
(This section applies to Change Of Mind returns only. We will cover reasonable costs associated with the return of any goods pertaining to “Our Refund Policy” above)

Payment Refunds and Credits

The following applies only to situations where a customer alters an order after payment and before dispatch, or an item is returned for change-of-mind exchange and the full credit amount is not used at that time. This DOES NOT APPLY to returns which are due to any of the reasons stated in the Our Refund Policy section above. This section in no way impacts consumer rights to a full refund on return of goods as per the trade practices act.

Where an item is exchanged or an order is altered resulting in a lower order total, any balance of funds will be held in store credit. Credits do not expire and can be used against any future purchase, in-store or online. They are recorded under the contact details provided by the customer. Where a customer declines to provide details, a fully transferrable gift voucher with 3-year expiry can be offered.

In certain situations, we may be able to refund a credit amount. The refund needs to be less the non-refundable merchant fees charged to us by the payment facility or bank for the transaction. The amount deducted needs to be the exact amount charged by the bank or payment provider. We do not profit from the deduction. As the fee needs to be precisely assessed, that may take several business days to be determined and actioned. Depending on the payment method, ID may be required. Refunds need to be back to the original payment method used for the initial purchase.

The following amounts are an example only and are to be used as a guide to the ballpark figures that the banks may be charging today. On April 10th 2023, Domestic PayPal charges were 30c + 2.6% (GST inclusive), In-store card payments were between 0.28% and 2.75% + GST, online card payments were 1.75% + 30c GST inclusive, Direct Bank Transfer and in-store cash payments were of course 0%. Percentages apply only to the amount being refunded.

Our Shipping Policy

We will attempt to dispatch your order on the same or following business day when all products are in stock. Due to order volumes this may take a little longer. Please allow 1-14 working days from dispatch for domestic delivery. All orders are sent via Courier or Australia Post, therefore PO Boxes and Parcel Lockers can be accepted as a delivery address.

You may specify Australia Post or Courier in the order notes if you have a preference, otherwise our team will determine the best method depending on your address. Note that in certain circumstances, one or the other may not be possible. For example, Courier do not deliver to the bay islands, and certain rural areas.

We recommend the use of an attended address for security as the Courier or Australia Post may leave parcels unattended if no one is present. If the package is returned to us for any reason, you may be responsible for an additional postal cost to re-send the order. If we are unable to make contact within a reasonable time-frame, we may refund or hold in credit the total amount paid less merchant fees and postage costs. Note that the postage cost may be more than the postage amount we charged for the purchase as we often subsidise the cost.

Orders are sent in good faith and we will work with the postal provider to lodge any required claims for lost or damaged goods. When a customer selects or requests an “Uninsured” or “Authority To Leave (ATL)” Service (or similar) or gives permission for a parcel to be left unattended, left in a letterbox or parcel locker, or left with a third party, we may be unable to assist once the postal provider marks the parcel as delivered or left. This is regardless of whether the parcel was correctly or incorrectly delivered. Allowing a parcel to be left allows additional risk as no person-to-person contact occurs. For this reason, this risk is the risk of the purchaser. We recommend the selection of Registered Post, Regular Post, Express Post or any form of insured service at checkout and address the parcel to an attended premises or post office box to alleviate your risk. Some promotional postage offers made available from time to time may include untrackable, ATL or uninsured services.

Liability and title of the goods passes to the recipient when the Tax Invoice is generated before the parcel is handed to the postal provider. Beads N Crystals has no control or responsibility over the goods once they are collected by, or delivered to the courier or postal provider. Tracking numbers will show an initial scan as they are received or collected.

Order Alterations

As we process all orders with priority, it may or may not be possible to make an alteration to your order. If you need to make a change, please call us as soon as possible with the part numbers you need to change. Part numbers are called SKU and are found between the Add to Cart button and the Description on the product page of our website. We will need to change the order invoice and email a copy for approval. This process may delay the dispatch of your order.

Where an order is already picked, packed or invoiced, these changes are not possible and the order will be sent as per the purchase.

Order Additions

As we process all orders with priority, it may or may not be possible to make an addition to an order. If you do require other items to be added, please call us immediately to hold your order. Providing your order has not been picked, packed or invoiced, we should be able to remove it from the picking queue.

Your additions will then need to be ordered separately. The new order can then be checked out using a no-postage method to avoid a second postage charge. Once the second part of the order is received with payment, we’ll process the two together. This may delay the dispatch of your order.

International Deliveries

As of October 1st 2020, we are not offering international shipping or purchases. Orders are restricted to Australian domestic customers and delivery addresses. The following terms and conditions apply to purchases paid for and/or dispatched before this date:

Countries outside Australia will receive orders in approximately 7-14 working days.
  
On occasion, some shipments may take up to 3 weeks to arrive, depending on the amount of time it may take for an item to clear customs and other delays including but not limited to network disruption, natural disasters, peak seasons and regulatory inspections.
Postal charge does not include any applicable taxes, duties, processing charges, inspection costs or quarantine fees which may be applied in the destination  country.

The responsibility for any customs duties, foreign taxes or other fees which may be imposed will rest with the customer. To comply with Australian Export regulations, we are required to declare the exact value of all items ordered and to mark them as dutiable “merchandise”. We are prohibited by law from marking the order as a “gift”, even if order is placed with the intention of sending to a gift recipient.

For further information, it may be necessary to call local customs offices in the destination country to gain further details.

Back Orders (Sales orders)

If a portion of your order is out of stock, we may send the in-stock portion and put the remainder on a Sales Order to be sent at a later date. There are no additional postage costs payable where we send in multiple parcels for this reason.

If the Sales Order portion is due within a few days we may hold the in-stock portion and send them together. Where back-ordered items form the majority of the order, we may be unable to split and send the in-stock portion separately. A majority is considered to be more than 50% by weight, volume, or value. If this is the case we will contact you to see if you’re happy to wait. If you are not happy to wait you will have the option of a full refund.

Please note that if you choose Express Postage option, we will send the in stock portion immediately with priority. We will then determine on a case-by-case basis whether the back order portion can be sent on a regular or express service.

Where a backordered item is unavailable, or the delay is unacceptable to the customer, a full payment refund will be issued.

Payment Before Delivery

Please note that orders will only be processed after clear payment has been received. We will not dispatch any orders without full payment under any circumstances. Our system will automatically reserve stock on a confirmed order, however we may not pick and pack the stock prior to payment. We can not guarantee stock will be held awaiting payment. Unpaid orders may be cancelled within 48 hours if we are unable to make contact, or in 7 days where contact is made but payment is not received.