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SHIPPING POLICIES & PROCEDURES
revised March 2008

STANDARD SHIPPING

Carvin.com uses UPS Ground and Priority Mail (except where noted) for all deliveries. Carvin will decide how to best ship your order upon packaging. Packages shipped via UPS can be tracked online using your order confirmation number. The rule of thumb is that small orders will be delivered via USPS Priority, and larger items (guitars, amps, speakers, etc) will be delivered via UPS.


EXPEDITED SHIPPING

Carvin.com will ship all expedited orders via UPS (except where noted). Expedited costs are estimated by the following:

- Next day 4x standard shipping
- 2nd day 3x standard shipping
- 3rd day 2x standard shipping

The actual shipping cost will be calculated when you check out.


Certain products are shipped via Pilot services due to their size and weight. The actual expedited shipping cost will be applied when your order is received. Expedited Air Freight quotes are available via phone or email, please contact sales.

ALASKA, HAWAII & CANADA SHIPPING

Shipping charges to Alaska, Hawaii & Canada are similar to expedited shipping. The shopping cart on Carvin.com will correctly calculate your shipping total to these areas (including expedited shipping) or you can contact our sales staff for a shipping quote.

Shipping to Alaska & Hawaii is 3X the standard shipping charge, and shipping to Canada is 4X the standard shipping charge. Expedited shipping to Alaska, Hawaii & Canada is available on some items. THe charges multiple in a similar fashion as Continental US shipping:
- Next day 6x standard shipping to AK/HI; 16X to Canada
- 2nd day 5x standard shipping to AK/HI; 12X to Canada
- 3rd day 4x standard shipping to AK/HI; 8X to Canada


Note that not all items can be sent via expedited shipping to Alaska, Hawaii & Canada.

GUITAR & BASS SHIPPING

All Custom Shop guitars ship UPS ground to the continental US at a flat rate of $26.00. Custom Shop basses ship at a flat rate of $29.00. Cobalt acoustic guitars ship at a flat rate of $22.00, and Carvin kits ship at a flat rate of $15.00. Alaska, Hawaii & Canada shipping is the same formula as noted above. Expedited shipping is also available on all these items.

GUITARS-IN-STOCK SHIPPING

Guitars-in-Stock ship at the same rate as Custom Shop instruments ($26.00/guitars, $29.00/basses). Expedited shipping is also available on all Guitars-in-Stock. Generally, Guitars-in-Stock ship 3 - 5 business days after the order is placed. This is so that Carvin's Custom Shop staff can give your new guitar or bass a thorough inspection, cleaning and final setup.

SMALL PARTS ORDERS

Certain items, such as small parts, strings, stands, microphones, pics, clothing, etc are shipped ground for a flat rate of $9.50, regardless of quantity ordered. You can mix and match different part numbers in different quantities, and the entire order will ship for the flat rate. Small items eligible for flat rate shipping are indicated with the "Flat Rate Shipping" logo on the right.

Small orders are generally shipped via USPS Priority Mail.

Small parts orders cannot be combined with larger orders for shipping purposes. That is, Carvin will not place small items in the case with a guitar or in the box with an amplifier. This is to further protect your items in transit. So, for example, if you order a guitar and a strap and some strings, the strap and strings will be shipped in separate packaging from the guitar, and you would pay the standard shipping amount for the guitar, and the standard small parts shipping total.

You may combine flat rate shipping with express shipping based on the multipliers detailed above under "Expedited Shipping".

WARRANTY SHIPPING

Customers who are in need of warranty repair service by Carvin should note the following policies and procedures:

1. For gear requiring warranty service within 90 days of the original invoice date, Carvin will issue a call tag for UPS to pick up the equipment at Carvin's expense. Carvin will also pay the return shipping to the customer.

2. For equipment requiring warranty service work beyond 90 days of the original invoice date of the item, the customer is responsible for shipping of the item to the Carvin factory in San Diego, California. Shipping insurance is strongly recommended, as Carvin will not be held responsible for damages incurred in transit. If the item is being returned for warranty service less than one year from the original invoice date, Carvin will pay for return shipping to the customer.

3. For all equipment requiring warranty service or other work beyond one year from the original invoice date, the customer is responsible for all shipping charges both to and from the factory.

Contact the Carvin Service Department at 800-854-2235 to arrange for warranty service or to inquire about shipping charges.

CUSTOM SHOP RUSH BUILD OPTION

You can now have your Carvin Custom Shop guitar or bass "rushed" through the build process. This doesn’t mean that the quality of the build is rushed, just that your order is guaranteed to ship within 30 days. The charge for the RUSH option is $100. If you select the RUSH option, we guarantee your new guitar or bass will be shipped within 30 days of the first business day after your order is placed. That is, if you order on Tuesday, the clock starts ticking on Wednesday. If you order on Friday, the clock starts on Monday. Holidays are excluded – if you order the day before a holiday, the clock starts on the first business day after that holiday.

If you decide to return your guitar or bass under our 10-Day No Risk Trial, the $100 is NOT REFUNDABLE. If we fail to meet the 30-day deadline, we will refund your $100. Note that the 30-day deadline is from the first day ordered to the day your new instrument is shipped (not to the day you receive it).

Combine the RUSH option with our expedited shipping, and you can be playing your new Carvin in as little as 4 – 5 weeks! To have your build "rushed", call our toll-free number at (800) 854-2235.

START YOUR CUSTOM SHOP BUILD WITH 20% DOWN

You can get your Carvin Custom Shop guitar or bass build started by paying a deposit of 20% of the total price (excluding shipping). When you pay a deposit, we'll begin your build immediately, and then contact you when the build is complete to arrange payment of the balance. The Guitar Builder has an option at the end to select this method of payment. Note that if you're paying by check, we will not start your build until your deposit check has cleared.

There is a 20% restocking/cancellation fee on all online Custom Shop builds that are cancelled prior to receipt of the instrument. Therefore, if you pay a deposit, and subsequently cancel your order, you will not be refunded the 20% deposit. By selecting the 20% Deposit option in the Guitar Builder, you acknowledge these terms.

HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO RECEIVE MY ORDER?

Items that are In-Stock are generally shipped the same day they are received (Monday-Friday), if the order is received before noon Pacific Time. For orders placed late in the afternoon or on the weekends, shipping will occur on the next business day. Therefore, an order placed Friday night will not ship until Monday. An order placed Wednesday morning will ship Wednesday afternoon.

Guitars-in-Stock and Cobalt guitars take a few days to process and ship, as they are given a final inspection prior to being shipped.

How long it will take to receive your order depends on where you live, and what you ordered. A guitar shipped UPS Ground generally takes about 6 days to reach the East Coast. A small parts order will be received between 2 - 4 days via USPS Priority mail. However, once your package has left Carvin, we cannot control factors such as weather that may delay your receipt.

OUT OF STOCK ITEMS

On rare occasions, an item may be out of stock. If an item is out of stock, you will see a graphic on the product page indicating the expected in-stock date. You can still order, even if an item is out of stock, and it will ship as soon as it's available. You will also receive an automated email message if you order an item that is out of stock. If you order an item that's out of stock, and change your mind, you can cancel your order with no penalty.

10-DAY TRIAL

The only way to appreciate the performance of a Carvin product is to use it in your own environment, giving it the test of "real world" performance. Take 10 days to try out Carvin products.  Your trial period starts when the merchandise is received by you, not when it's shipped. Really give it a workout. If you're not satisfied for any reason, send it back for a prompt refund or exchange - you would only be responsible for the shipping.

PAYMENT

Purchase orders accepted from schools & government agencies. Personal Checks: Allow 2 weeks for your check to clear. Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back after trying for 10 days.

INTERNATIONAL SALES

Orders outside the USA must be taken from your local dealer - see carvinworld.com.
CANADA ORDERS: Carvin pays all import fees & taxes! You just pay shipping.

CALIFORNIA SALES TAX

Orders shipping to California will have sales tax of 8.25% added* to the total.

*For California orders which will be shipped to San Diego County or North San Diego County, the sales tax of 8.25% will have an additional 0.50% added to it once the order is received and processed, to make the total sales tax 8.75%.

GUITAR & BASS ORDERS

Allow up to 1 week for delivery of instruments purchased from Guitars-in-Stock and Cobalt models. Carvin Custom Shop guitars and basses can take anywhere from 6-12 weeks for delivery, depending on the model, options and time of year. You will receive a post card when your order is processed with an estimated completion date.

There is a $50 fee for any changes to Custom Shop orders, 20% restocking fee (including options) for Custom Shop orders cancelled prior to customer's receipt of instrument.

SOLID 1 YEAR WARRANTY

All Carvin products have a full 1 year warranty against manufacturing defects on parts and labor, except wireless systems, and guitar and bass amp tubes which have a 90 day warranty. DCM power amps come with a longer warranty of 3 years, while all Custom Shop guitars and basses carry an even longer warranty of 5 years. In fact, if any product becomes defective at any time during its warranty period, we will send that product through our Quality Assurance Lab to ensure that it meets all factory specifications.

Note that the Carvin warranty is not transferrable. The warranty only applies to gear still in the possession of the original owner.

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