Crystal Classics

Terms and Conditions

Last updated – August 2008

Acceptance of Terms
This website (www.crystalclassics.co.uk) is owned and run by Crystal Classics, a UK-based partnership. By using this website and online shop it is deemed you accept the Terms and Conditions, and also the Privacy Policy of using this site.  **Please note we reserve the right to refuse sales of any items**

Modification of Terms
We reserve the right to change these Terms and Conditions at any time. Any such changes will take effect immediately when posted on the Website. It is your responsibility to read the Terms and Conditions each time you enter this Website and your continued use of the website indicates your acceptance of the current Terms and Conditions.


Minerals for sale on this website are either wholly owned Crystal Classics, OR by Kristalle (a USA based company) OR by the joint venture between Kristalle and Crystal Classics (under the name Bruce Leicht LLC).

Crystal Classics
Minerals owned by Crystal Classics are priced in GBP £, and payment will be charged in GBP £. Approximate converted currency amounts are given in US $ and Euro € and are for guidance only. Your card issuing bank will set the final rate of exchange for your purchases. Your credit card will be billed separately for Crystal Classics owned specimens in GBP £.

Kristalle or Bruce and Leicht LLC
Minerals owned by Kristalle or jointly owned by Kristalle and Crystal Classics (Bruce and Leicht LLC) are priced in US $ and payment will be charged in US $. Approximate converted currency amounts are given in GBP £ and Euro € and are for guidance only. Your card issuing bank will set the final rate of exchange for your purchases. Your card will be billed in US $ with a separate transaction for Kristalle-owned specimens and for Bruce and Leicht LLC-owned specimens.


PAYMENT OPTIONS

**We regret that we do not post any web site specimens on approval. All specimens must be paid in full before they will be posted**

Payment for orders made through the website are by credit card, through our secure payment system. Payment is not taken immediately at the time of purchase, as we manually split and process your payments determined by which company you purchase specimens from. Payment may take place up to two (2) days after the order.

We can accept payment by:

• Mastercard
• Visa
• Visa Debit/Delta
• Visa Electron
• Solo
• UK Maestro
• American Express

We can also accept payment by PayPal or personal cheque. Please contact us before placing your order if you prefer to use these options.


POSTAGE

Crystal Classics and Kristalle aim to post all items within seven (7) days of receiving payment. Specimens may be posted from Crystal Classics' UK office or from Kristalle's California, USA office.

Postage costs are:

• 1 specimen total from Crystal Classics - £7
• 1 specimen total from Kristalle or Bruce and Leicht - $15
• 2 or more specimens total from any company - FREE

Crystal Classics reserves the right to change the postage rates without notice as determined by the underlying costs.

Domestic postage
For specimens posted from Crystal Classics UK office, all orders within the UK are posted by Royal Mail First Class Recorded (Signed for). For specimens posted from Kristalle's California, USA office, all orders within the USA are posted by either United States Postal Service, or United Parcel Service (UPS).

International postage
For specimens posted from Crystal Classics UK Office, all orders are posted by Royal Mail 'International Signed For'. For specimens posted from Kristalle's California, USA office, all orders are posted by United States Postal Service Airmail.

If you wish to have your specimens posted via Fedex, please contact us first to find out the additional costs.

International orders are fully insured where possible, and the full value declared on the appropriate customs declaration forms.

Customs/Duty Fees
It is the customer's responsibility to pay all associated customs or duty fees when minerals are being shipped internationally.


20 Day Grace period
As there is no substitute for seeing the specimen in real life you are entitled to a 20 calendar day grace period. If you examine the specimen and decide it is not what you wish to buy please follow our Returns Procedure and we will happily refund the cost of the item. Please note that there can be no return if you do not notify us within the 20 day grace period.

First come, first served
All items are sold on a first come – first served basis; if there is a conflict between customers on one item, the person from whom we first received the order, will receive the item.

If the specimen is already sold
If you missed out on a specimen, or like the look of one that is already sold, please email us and let us know. We carry a large stock of specimens which change regularly, and may have a similar item that we could sell to you. You may also join our mailing list on our website to receive email updates when minerals of a particular category or location become available for sale.
Please note that minerals may be returned to sale (for instance if an order was cancelled) so if a mineral you like is currently reserved, please look again in an hour - it may have been returned to sale!!


RETURNS POLICY

All customers are entitled to a 20 calendar day grace period from receipt of the purchase, for you to view the specimen(s) in real life and decide if you wish to keep the specimen(s).
If you are in anyway unhappy with your purchase and wish to return the specimen, please follow the steps below:

1. Please contact Crystal Classics or Kristalle immediately (and within the 20 days grace period from the receipt of your purchase) in WRITING, including via fax or email, of your intent to return the item. You are also welcome to contact us by telephone, but we will require written confirmation to follow.
2. PLEASE NOTE THAT IF WE DO NOT RECEIVE WRITTEN NOTIFICATION OF YOUR INTENTION TO RETURN THE SPECIMEN WITHIN THE 20 DAY GRACE PERIOD, WE WILL BE UNABLE TO ACCEPT THE RETURN.
3. Return the specimen to us in its original condition following the instructions below. The specimen must arrive at either Crystal Classics' UK address, or Kristalle's USA address within 7 calendar days of notifying us of its return. This means you must post the item to us immediately upon notification of return.
4. International customers wishing to return specimens may have a longer period allowed for postage depending on their location. This will be decided upon the notification of intent to return.
5. Carefully wrap the specimen(s) individually using the original packing material, and include any labels or documentation. There should be at least 2cm of padding around each item, and each item should be placed in its original specimen box.
6. Place the specimen boxes (with wrapped specimens enclosed) in the postage box, or a new box if the original box was in any way damaged during transit, with at least 4cm of padding between the specimen boxes and the sides of the postage box. Bubblewrap or scrunched newspaper are the best to use as padding. There should be no possible movement within the box once packed.
7. Please insure the package for the full value of the specimen(s) being returned; as you are responsible for the full value of the items should they be lost or damaged during return transit.
8. Post the box to:
   
   Crystal Classics
   PO BOX 3967
   Yeovil
   Somerset
   ENGLAND
   BA20 9AH
   
   
   or
   
   Kristalle
   875 North Pacific Coast Highway
   Laguna Beach
   California
   USA
   92651-1415
   
   
   
9. Please note that you are responsible for all postage costs related to the return of a specimen to Crystal Classics.

All monies paid for the specimens, including the initial cost of postage and packaging will be refunded within 30 days of the notice of cancellation upon receipt of the returned specimen on time, and in good condition.

Item was received in a damaged condition
If you received your specimen and it was damaged in transit please contact us immediately via phone, fax or email. We will then be able to come to an arrangement with you for either:

• the return of the item and a full refund;

• return of the item and a similar item to be sent to you as a replacement;

• or a discount on the damaged item if you wish to keep it.

**Please note that we will need to see the evidence of the damage, preferably by digital photograph**
If you are returning the item please return all pieces of damaged or broken specimen with any labels and documentation, and the original packaging follow the steps in the Returns Policy.
Please remember to insure the item to the full cost of the specimen(s) and post to the return address.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT MINERALS

General health warning
Please note that some minerals may be toxic and/or contain heavy metals, and so all minerals should be handled carefully. Never inhale or ingest mineral dust, or lick specimens. Always wash your hands after handling minerals.

Size of specimens
Each specimen is assigned a size category based on the way the mineral would be displayed in a collection. The size category is determined by the length of the longest dimension.

 Size Category                        Centimetres     Millimetres     Inches
 Micromount (MM)                      <1                   <10                  <0.4
 Thumbnail (T)                               1 - 1.5            10 - 15             0.4 – 0.6
 Miniature (M)                               1.5 - 4.0       15 - 40             0.6 – 1.6
 Small Cabinet (S)                         4.0 - 10        40 - 100          1.6 – 3.9
 Large Cabinet (L)                        10 - 30          100 - 300      3.9 – 11.8
 Oversize/Museum size (O)      >30                >300               >11.8

Photographic representation
Whilst we endeavour to photograph the mineral specimens as accurately as possible, please be aware that they are NOT to scale and are only REPRESENTATIVE of the mineral. We try to keep the photographs as true to life with accurate colour. Please remember that the photograph colour of the specimen may not appear the same on your computer screen as the specimen in real life.


MAILING LIST

Crystal Classics offers a mailing list that users of the site may join. Emails are sent out on a regular basis to inform you when new items are added to the site, new collections we have purchased and will be available to buy, upcoming events, and information about your specific interests.

To Subscribe
There are two ways that you may join the mailing list.

1. Enter your email address under ‘join our mailing list’ on the left hand sidebar of the website. Enter your name, email address, and any mineral interests and click GO!. Your details will then be added to our mailing list.
2. When registering your details to purchase a mineral, tick the box for 'please add me to the mailing list'. Your details will then be added to our mailing list.

To Unsubscribe
You may unsubscribe at any time.
Please email orders@crystalclassics.co.uk from the email address you wish to unsubscribe, with 'Unsubscribe' in the subject line, and we will unsubscribe you.


OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Governing Law and Jurisdiction
These Terms and Conditions will be governed by the laws of England and any user of this Website hereby agrees to be bound exclusively by the jurisdiction of English courts without reference to rules governing choice of laws. If any of these Terms and Conditions are found to be unlawful, invalid or unenforceable by a Court, the remainder of the Terms and Conditions will not be affected and will remain valid to the full extent allowed by the law. This does not affect your statutory rights as a consumer.

A Special Note about Children
Children are not eligible to use our online shop and we ask that minors (under the age of 18) do not submit any personal information to us or use the online shop.

Links from this website
This Website contains hyperlinks to websites operated by other parties. Crystal Classics is not responsible for the site contents, the privacy policies or terms and conditions of those websites, and does not necessarily share or endorse the opinions expressed or the information contained in such websites.

COPYRIGHT and trademark notices
By using this Website you agree to respect the intellectual property rights of Crystal Classics, Kristalle and Bruce and Leicht LLC and agree to refrain from copying, downloading, transmitting, reproducing, printing, or exploiting for commercial purpose any material including photographs contained within the Website, or link to this Website without our written permission.
‘Crystal Classics’ and the Crystal Classics logo are the intellectual property of Crystal Classics. The copyright in this Website rests with us. All photographs on this site belong to Crystal Classics (excepting photographs of mineral specimens owned by Bruce and Leicht LLC or Kristalle) and may not be reproduced for any use without express permission. Photographs of mineral specimens owned by Bruce and Leicht LLC or Kristalle may similarly not be reproduced without express permission from Bruce and Leicht LLC and/or Kristalle.

If there is anything you do not understand or would like clarification on for the above terms and conditions, or would like to ask any other questions please do not hesitate to contact us.