Terms & Conditions of carriage

As a user of this website you acknowledge that you are bound to our terms and conditions below.


Definitions
Listed below are the terms that will be found in these terms of carriage:

Consignment - A parcel or a group of parcels sent to a single address.
Consignee/Receiver/Recipient - The person who is receiving the consignment.
Shipping Labels - The documentation placed on the parcel.
Third Party - The order placed through ParceLLink® utilising the account that ParceLLink® has with the carrier.
Working Day - Monday to Friday from 8.00am to 6.00pm, excluding public and bank holidays.


Obligation to our customers

ParceLLink® will arrange collection and delivery of the consignment(s) via a third party service, normally with a major reputable carrier, or in some instances with other carriers which ParceLLink® finds as suitable.
parcel-link.co.uk do not come into direct contact with the consignment(s) but arrange the shipment through one of the carriers that we hold an account with.
The carrier has the right to refuse a consignment for a given reason such as insufficient packaging or the consignment being too large.
In addition, ParceLLink® has the right to refuse any order/user from our system.
Please note anything written in the special requests box will be automatically sent to the carrier with the booking. If any requests are particularly urgent, you must contact us by phone or email after making your booking. We cannot guarantee that these requests are followed as we offer a non-guaranteed service only with a collection and/or delivery at any time between 8am and 6pm.
All queries/claims must be directed through parcel-link.co.uk via the office@parcel-link.co.uk email address, who will then contact the relevant carrier on the sender's behalf. If the carrier is contacted directly, parcel-link.co.uk may not be able to assist you with your query at a later date.
If your collection fails you must contact parcel-link.co.uk via the office@parcel-link.co.uk email address, and request an alternative collection time which will be booked as soon as possible or at another convenient time.
ParceLLink® can only deliver to a full street address.
We cannot deliver to a PO Box. If a consignment is collected and returned for this reason, no refund will be given.
Payment is taken by our automated system at the end of your order.
Tracking is available through the 'Track & Trace' tab on our Web site. Hard copy Proof of Delivery (POD) will be charged at £3.00 per item.


Prohibited Items & Items with limited liability

Click here to check our Prohibited Items list. If any one of the items in our Prohibited Items List is collected by a driver you are then liable to be surcharged and your parcel returned. No refund of postage will be made and compensation claims will be void.
We will not entertain any insurance claims for loss or damage for items which are on these lists.
Please note parcel-link.co.uk booking systems are automated by computer software, therefore parcel-link.co.uk employees are unable to monitor what is being shipped, so it is the customers' responsibility to either read the terms and conditions, or enquire directly, in writing, via email or fax to see if your parcel is acceptable.


Collection & Delivery

Via our 'Quote & Book' system, our website takes all booking data as per the customers' instructions. The customer will have a choice of various collection windows to choose from. Please note that this time slot is not guaranteed. If the collection does not happen within the time slot allocated it is the customers' responsibility to inform parcel-link.co.uk via email of a failed collection. We will then endeavor to rearrange another collection which is convenient to the customer. parcel-link.co.uk can only deliver to a full street address.
We cannot deliver to a PO Box. If a consignment is collected and returned for this reason, no refund will be given. Collections & Deliveries are made on Working days only. Saturday deliveries are optional at an extra cost. This option is available at point of booking.
On selected European road services the automated system will email barcode labels which must be attached to the goods by the sender. This will ensure the consignment travels on the correct road service to the final destination. The booking confirmation email contains these labels and the service description available on the quotation page also mentions the fact that a printer is needed in order to use the service. For this type of services NO other labels are accepted and extra charges will occur if manual labels are filled in at the time of collections or if any other labels are used to ship the freight through the carrier's network. The difference in price between the express air service and the amount paid initially will be charged to the customer. It is the customer's responsibility to ensure the sender has the correct barcode labels and they are being used prior to the goods being collected.
Also, if we collect/deliver from/to Europe or oversea, we will require a working contact number from the respective country, the collection or delivery depots from the respective countries cannot contact UK phone numbers.
Please note, you are paying for a collection and delivery service only and this does not include packaging. On occasion, we may agree to supply pallets for an additional cost. This must be arranged by telephone or email with the office at the time of booking and paid for before the collection is due to take place. However, it is the responsibility of the shipper to package the goods thoroughly, stack them on top of the pallet, and secure them with ratchet straps and/ or shrink wrap. The driver will only have ten minutes to wait at the collection address, so it is recommended that the shipper has enough man power to ensure this is done quickly. All collection and deliveries are carried out on curb-side services. If you are booking a pallet service, please use a Euro Pallet, or a UK pallet. All the carriers within the UK can only handle these 2 pallet types. Please make sure you do not use an American pallet, as it is not transportable through our services. Also, the pallet you are using must be a 4-way pallet, so it can be easily handled by a pump-truck. Please note that pallets must be placed on a hard and even surface (i.e concrete, tarmac). If your pallet collection is from a private address, we will not be able to collect until we have received pictures of the packed consignment.
Please ensure you or somebody else are in on the collection day that you request. A minimum surcharge of £7.50 + VAT will be applied if you are out when the driver attempts to collect for all parcel collections and £ 25.00 + VAT for all pallet and heavyweight (consignments over 70 kg) collections. Any failed pallet delivery is charged at 75% of the initial carriage value, with a minimum charge of £25+VAT per pallet or per pallet space. This charge is applicable for each failed delivery attempt.
In respect of a late delivery the customer may claim a refund of the consignment charges paid for the service selected as follows:
· Non-guaranteed services there will be NO refund.
Consignments collected and or delivered in certain areas in Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Offshore Islands may be subject to a 24 hour delay.
Any items over 35 kg must be suitably packaged for mechanical handling and might require 24-48 hrs notice depending on carrier and service. These collections/deliveries are handled by heavyweight vehicles (7.5t, 18t or 40t lorries) and it is the paying customer's responsibility to offer easy access and/or inform the company of any restricted access or parking restrictions to the collection/delivery points. The customer is responsible for the loading and offloading any pallets of more of 750 kg in weight and/or 210 cm in length or over.
Deliveries cancelled after the consignment had been collected will not be refunded. They will be returned to the customer or redirected to a third party and a surcharge will apply. No refunds are made for an order cancelled with less than one clear working days notice, or for orders booked with a same-day collection Any remaining balance, if any, including VAT will be refunded to you Once a parcel or pallet booking had been made through our system, the minimum cancellation fees per pallet or parcel are as follows:

  • £25+VAT per pallet space for domestic jobs
  • £60 per pallet space for imports
  • £60 per pallet space for export
  • 50% of the amount paid for sea freight services, with a minimum of £60
  • 50% of the amount paid for air freight services, with a minimum of £60
  • 50% of the amount paid for consignments where the required legal documentation is not supplied, with a minimum of £60.
  • 50% of the amount paid for bookings cancelled the day prior to collection date. ( working days only)
  • No refunds are to be made for orders cancelled on or after the collection date.

Any remaining balance, if any, including VAT will be refunded to you.
Once credit has been applied to the customer's ParceLLink account it will remain there available to be used indefinitely and is non-refundable.
Part and full load bookings are non-refundable if cancelled with less than 24 hrs notice. If we are unable to deliver a part or full load consignment the return costs will be payable at up to 100% of the original journey. If the delivery of a part or full load is unsuccessful we can provide storage for 24 hours, after which time the disposal or rerouting of the goods will become payable.
If a job is cancelled before the collection has taken place, we will refund 50% of the amount paid.
Part and full load bookings are non-refundable if cancelled with less than 24 hrs notice. If we are unable to deliver a part or full load consignment the return costs will be payable at up to 100% of the original journey. If the delivery of a part or full load is unsuccessful we can provide storage for 24 hours, after which time the disposal or rerouting of the goods will become payable.
Transit times must be checked for the service ordered. On some services there will be a surcharge if a re delivery is necessary.
Please note that all guaranteed services start once the consignment is collected. If the collection fails it is the customers' responsibility to inform parcel-link.co.uk, we will then re book for the next convenient time the customer is available for collection. No refund / discount will be given for failed collections.
In the event the recipient is not at the delivery address when the driver delivers, they will either leave with a neighbour or return the parcel to the depot. Some of the carriers we use may leave a calling card advising of the action that has been taken, but this is not guaranteed. The goods will be kept by us/our carriers for 3 days following the failed delivery attempt, during which time we will be contacting the customer in order to make other delivery arrangements. These delivery arrangements will be coming at an extra cost and the customer will be informed by either email or phone. Should we not receive a response or an agreement be reached within this time frame, we reserve the right to either return or dispose of the goods. Any costs incurred will be chargeable to our paying customer. Should the customer require the goods are held for a longer period of time, storage charges may also become applicable.
Third Party Collections / Three Way Collections / Freight Forward Collections, this is where the customer is arranging a collection from a remote address. It is the customers' responsibility to ensure there is somebody at the remote collection address to hand the goods to the driver. The customer may incur a surcharge of up to 50% of the original shipping charge if an attempted collection fails from a third party address. 'Track & Trace' will not work until the package has been actually been collected by the carrier.


Covid 19 – Safe working practice

As the situation regarding Coronavirus has continued to develop across the UK, we are now taking sensible precautions to reduce the risks whilst ensuring there is minimal disruption to our operational performance.
One area identified as a concern for both the delivery points and our drivers, when making collections or deliveries, is the collection of signatures from the consignees. This act provides close contact, between the two parties and increases the risk of infection.
We are therefore looking to retain our current EPOD and paper signature capture that is currently in place but add an additional process which will be accepted as a Proof of Delivery when signature capture is not possible.
In such events we are looking for your authority to enable collections or deliveries to commence without signature until risks from the Coronavirus are controlled.
In all cases, a name, date and time will be obtained but will be printed on the Proof of Delivery documentation by the driver.
We look for your support during this difficult period and feel it is necessary to take these preventative measures to minimise people contact and interaction, reducing risks relating to Coronavirus entering our working environments.
As the situation changes these terms will be updated.


Customs Clearance, VAT and Duty payments

You are pre-paying for the postage charges of your consignment(s) only. parcel-link.co.uk has no control over any customs queries or charges that may arise. Customs charges, VAT, Duty, Fines and any other taxes must be paid in addition by the sender or receiver before delivery is made. parcel-link.co.uk reserve the right to pass these charges directly onto the person that placed the order.

As the paying customer you are responsible for ensuring the consignee is able to clear the goods into the destination country. In the event that the consignee becomes unreachable, cannot clear the freight or refuses to accept the freight, the sender/customer is liable to pay for either the return or abandonment charges, any outstanding duty/VAT calculated on the goods plus a minimum admin fee of £100.

When goods are imported into the UK, they can be sent DDU (DELIVERED DUTY UNPAID) which means the consignee (receiver of the goods) will be liable to be making the payment for all customs charges (this will include VAT and duty charges). Our carriers might clear the goods for you, in which case they will be paying all the charges on your behalf. If this is the case, you will be responsible to be making this payment directly to the respective carrier. If you do not wish to pay the charges and the consignment is returned, all return charges will also be passed on.

In the event that one of our carrier's vehicles is stopped by customs or government officials due to irregularities and/or alleged illegal activities, any fines will be payable by the paying customer. We reserve the right to charge the paying customer in order to cover these unexpected costs/charges.


Surcharges

By entering the weight and dimensions of your consignment(s) you are pre-paying for the postage. If the consignment(s) is/are heavier or larger, any additional costs incurred will be charged to the card or Paypal account that the order was placed on together with an administration charge of £7.50 + VAT. Additional charges will be confirmed in writing. It is the paying customer's responsibility to ensure the correct weight and dimensions are given at the time of booking. If the amount owed cannot be charged or should we not receive a response or an agreement be reached, we reserve the right to either return or dispose of the goods.
Please ensure you or somebody else are in on the collection day that you request. A minimum surcharge of £7.50 + VAT will be applied if you are out when the driver attempts to collect for all parcel collections and £25.00 + VAT for all pallet and heavyweight (consignments over 70 kg) collections.
Transit times must be checked for the service ordered. On some services, there will be a surcharge if a redelivery is necessary.
Some areas will be subject to a remote area surcharge. This cannot be calculated by the quoting system at the time of booking. If the goods are going to be delivered to one of these areas you will be charged a £25.00 + VAT/consignment separately, after the booking had been completed.
The automated system books and charges for the delivery. If the consignment(s) has/have to be returned then the return charge is chargeable.
You are pre-paying for the postage charges. Any Customs charges will be passed on in addition should they arise.We may supply documentation to accompany your shipment. You will be advised of this at the time of ordering. This must go with the shipment, if not your shipment could be delayed and the carrier may well charge you a higher premium direct.

In addition to the above information, please be advised that the following charges may apply: Re-seal of parcel £3.00 +VAT; Re-pack to a new box £5.00 +VAT; Re-pack on a new pallet if good inappropriately palletised minimum charge of £30.00 +VAT; Redelivery of a parcel £12.50 +VAT; Re-delivery of a pallet £25.00 +VAT or more depending on the postal code. It is the paying customers responsibility to ensure goods are securely packaged. Our carriers may re-pack goods that are not sufficiently packed and any extra charges will become payable by the customer.
A minimum £7.50 +VAT charge will apply to all failed collections and £25.00 +VAT per pallet space in the case of freight, heavy consignment or pallet collections. Please be advised that jobs carried out by DSV have the failed collection or delivery charges set at 80% of the whole cost. This charge will stand when goods are not ready to be collected, the driver deems the items are not well packaged, the shipper is not available at the time of collection and generally when the goods are not made available to the drivers.

Our carriers will allow up to 15 minutes for loading/offloading the freight. In the event a driver is made to wait and/or is delayed over the allowance of 15 minutes, a waiting time fee of £15.00 +VAT per 30 minutes will become chargeable to the paying customer and this amount will be charged to the card used to pay for the booking. The minimum charge is £15 +VAT.

If palletised items are booked for and consequently sent on a parcel service, we reserve the right to charge the pallet rate and a £60.00 +VAT administration fee. These fees are imposed on us by the carriers, as pallets cannot be handled by the parcel networks. The fees apply per pallet and not per consignment.

As per our Prohibited & Restricted Item list we can ship engines and gearboxes if they've been cleaned to a professional standard and completely flushed through. If any traces of oil and/or any other fluids are found on the engine/gearbox or they leak during the transportation a minimum charge of £75.00 +VAT will apply. This minimum charge also applies to any consignment containing liquid which leaks during transportation. Charges may apply if the engines/gearboxes are not properly strapped/shrink-wrapped to the pallets and if during transportation they end up damaging other merchandise.

Collections from Argos will cost a minimum of £15 +VAT and the website automatically adds this charge to the costs during the booking process. This is the standard charge for collection requests between 10am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. If however, the request is for a pre 10am time, the cost will be £30 +VAT and the price difference will be payable before the freight can be collected.

Stackable/Non-stackable pallets: When non-stackable pallets are declared as stackable, surcharges will apply depending on the service and destinations you have chosen, furthermore, we strongly advise you to check the nature of your pallets before placing the order. (Your pallet is stackable when other freight can be safely placed on top of it).

When an order is cancelled at least one working day before the parcel(s) or pallet(s) collection date, you will be charged £7.50 + VAT for a parcel service or £25 + VAT for a pallet service (per pallet/per pallet space) and the remaining balance, if any, including VAT will be refunded to you. No refunds are made for an order cancelled with less than one clear working days notice before the collection date, or for orders booked with a same-day collection. In order to process any cancellation payments parcel-link.co.uk must receive your written confirmation by email or fax advising of your cancellation within the time limit stated above, together with the order ID and collection date.

Any cancellations related to the lack of legally required documentation will attract a cancellation charge of 50% of the booking's value.

Insurance covers are non-refundable. Once insurance has been selected and paid for we will not be able to refund the amount paid.

Please ensure you enter the correct weight & dimensions of your packaged items. Please use scales and a tape measure. Starting January 2009 we are required by all carriers to operate a zero tolerance approach on under declared weights and dimensions.

Any debt owed to parcel-link.co.uk may be charged to the card used to pay for the respective booking, or in the event this fails, to another payment method used in the debtors online account.

Manipulating the weights and dimensions to achieve a cheaper quote will result in an expensive surcharge (minimum £50 +VAT per pallet/parcel).

This fee will apply separately from the charges related to the extra chargeable weight (this is the actual or volumetric of a consignment, whichever greater).

If any charges included in these terms and conditions become payable the company reserves the right to charge the card used at the time of booking.


Delay / Damage / Loss

Any item that is listed in our Prohibited Items List will be exempt from any claim against delay, damage and loss. Please check our Prohibited Items List before booking with parcel-link.co.uk.
In respect of a late delivery the customer may claim a refund of the consignment charges paid for the service selected:
There is no refund for the Non-Guaranteed Services
Consignments collected and or delivered in certain areas in Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Offshore Islands may be subject to a 24 hour delay.
In the case of failed collections/deliveries from/to Amazon or Argos, we will inform the customer immediately and it is their responsibility re-book the collection/delivery slots with the relevant party and inform us in writing at the earliest opportunity. This task is not the responsibility of Pallet2Ship and/or the carrier.
Timed re-collections or deliveries to Argos/Amazon will cost from £30+VAT/per pallet in the UK, and £60 per pallet in the EU.
Your consignment/s must be packed to a professional standard. Any claim resulting from a parcel that is not packaged to a professional standard will be rejected. All items must be packed in a double walled box with further padding surrounding the item.
In the event of damage all packaging must be kept for inspection. The item must be available for inspection in the state it was delivered, at the address it was delivered to. Any claim will be rejected f the item is moved / repaired or if the packaging is not kept.
Any item traveling through our services must be able to withstand a short drop; fragile items should not be sent though our services. Any item that is damaged as a result of a fall, with the packaging intact will therefore be declined. If the outside packaging is intact, then any claim for damage to the consignment will be invalidated as the internal packaging would not have been sufficient to protect the product.
The recipient must carefully check all parcels and pallets immediately upon delivery and before signing for the goods. If the box or packaging is clearly damaged on delivery, it is of paramount importance the recipient must sign for as 'DAMAGED'. If goods are missing, the recipient must sign 'INCOMPLETE' otherwise any claims will be refused. It is the senders' responsibility to inform the recipient of these terms and conditions.
The customer must advise us of a potential claim via email to office@parcel-link.co.uk as soon as possible after the goods are delivered. The claim must be submitted to us via the website within 72 hours after the transit has ended. Please state your parcel-link.co.uk order number starting with 1000.... and a detailed description of the claim. To submit the claim we will need (this list is not extensive and we may ask for more information):

  • Our online form fully filled in
  • Reason for claiming
  • Detailed description of the goods and packaging
  • Clear photos of goods and packaging in case of damage
  • Repair value if applicable, along with proof such as a written estimate or an invoice
  • Proof of both cost and sales value.

Allow 2-3 working days for us to review all details of the claim before we contact you.


Liability & Claims

Each service comes with a limited amount of Transit cover. If you require cover on the full amount then you must cover the full value of the shipment as the additional cover replaces the inclusive liability cover.
Transit cover applies to per consignment only and not per parcel within a multi-parcel consignment. Our maximum liability is set at £50.00, or, only on pallet services within the UK, £1.30/kg, whichever is higher.
An insurance claim must be lodged in writing within 7 days of the expected termination date of the consignment. Any claim (regardless if it's for damage or loss of goods) submitted after this period will automatically be rejected.
In the event of a claim, a cost invoice will be needed to prove the value of the consignment/s, weight of the lost or damaged goods will need to be proven and photos must be supplied for all damage claims.
If the item is not sufficiently packed, the claim will be rejected.
If the item is not correctly labeled, the claim will be rejected.
Please check our Prohibited Items List to see if you are able to make a claim.
Any item that is listed in our Prohibited Items section will be exempt from our liability cover.
Our insurance cover to consignments where goods are in excess of 12 months old and/or used is for total loss ONLY. Brand new goods can be insured against loss as well as damage. By selecting the required level of cover you confirm that you did acknowledge and understand the previous statement. Should the consignment result in a claim, our carriers will be able to validate this information when they are supplied with the cost invoices. If they do subsequently find that the goods are over 12 months old, and /or used, the cover will be invalid.
The normal limit of liability can be applied to such consignments, please be reminded we do not offer new for old cover. Compensation will only be provided to the actual value of the lost or damaged item; therefore, proof of worth will be required.


Liability continued

The person placing the order is responsible for the information entered. parcel-link.co.uk will not be held responsible for wrong information that is entered and no refunds will be given in this instance.
You are pre-paying for the courier charges and parcel-link.co.uk applies these charges on your behalf to our account with the relevant carrier. We are not liable for any customs charges that may arise.
Liability is limited to the negligence of the company carrying the goods. This is then limited to the customer who placed the order with parcel-link.co.uk.
Loss or damage under the following conditions will not be covered:

  • Act of God
  • Consequences of war
  • Insufficient packaging / Incorrect labeling
  • Prohibited contents

ParceLLink® will deal with the person who placed the order only.
ParceLLink® will not accept liability for consignments incorrectly delivered or missing if not labelled or miss-labelled by our customers.
Liability is limited to the cost of sending the item only and to the Insured value if a claim is raised. We will not be liable for any further claim for any loss of profit, administrative inconvenience, disappointment, or indirect or consequential loss or damage arising out of any problem in relation to the service you ordered.
No refund of shipping costs will be made where the goods have been delivered partly damaged, or where an insurance claim for damaged goods have been logged with the respective carrier. Liability is limited to the cost of sending the item(s) only where the goods had been lost, stolen or not received and to the Insured value if a claim is raised. We will not be liable for any further claim for any loss of profit, administrative inconvenience, disappointment, or indirect or consequential loss or damage arising out of any problem in relation to the service you ordered.


Complaints

We aim to provide outstanding customer service. If you have any complaint about the service you have received from us, please contact our Managerial Team via office@parcel-link.co.uk.


Severability

If any part of these terms and conditions is found to be unenforceable as a matter of law, the enforceability of any other part of these terms and conditions will not be affected.


Governing Law

These terms and conditions and any contract between us shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with English Law and the English Courts shall have jurisdiction over any disputes between us.


Statutory Rights

These terms and conditions are in addition to your statutory rights as a consumer, which remain unaffected.


Office Address (Trading Address)

ParceLLink®, Office 1, Space Station, 149 St Pauls Ave, Slough, SL2 5EN

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