TERMS and CONDITIONS
As stated elsewhere on this site, the majority of the models offered for sale are pre-owned/scond-hand and sold on a commission basis on behalf of the owners. However, they are all tested and confirmed to be in working order by Steamline Ltd before being offered for sale. Commission sales are all handled through STEAMLINE LTD and this is the name you will see on the Commission Sale Receipt which accompanies each despatch.
Where models are new/unused this is stated in the description. In fact we try to give as much information as we can in the description, including any know faults. However a picture paints a thousand words and the photographs we provide for each model are carefully taken to show all aspects of the model and the photographs and description together form part of the contract of sale.
Please note that the Warranty Period on all sales is Three Months.
We try to be fair to everyone and apply a strict 'first come first served' basis to all our sales. Once models are listed on the website then the first person to contact us by email or telephone wishing to purchase a model will be given a 'Reservation'. This means that the model is reserved for that Customer pending payment. We tend to make a note of other interest in a model as occasionally a sale will fail to materialise, then we will notify the next person who has expressed interest in a purchase.
Once a Reservation has been made, we expect payment to be received into our bank account (by bank transfer or cheque) within 14 days. Please note that we require payment in Sterling. Also we do not accept payment by regular Paypal due to the heavy charges made (in the order of 4% of the transaction value). We do accept payment by Paypal 'Friends and Family' (on which no charges are applied).
Where a Customer prefers not to have models posted or couriered and wishes to collect at a Model Show, we will accept a 10% deposit in advance of the show. The Customer can then examine the model at the Show before committing to a purchase. Where the Customer decides not to proceed then the 10% deposit is refundable. This is the reason why some models will show on the website as 'Reserved' for an extended period.
Shipping is offered by UK First Class 'Signed For' postage for models up to £50 value per parcel. Above £50 value we use UK Post Office 'Special Delivery' which provides insurance up to a maximum of £2500 per parcel. A 'Special Delivery parcel cannot exceed 61cm in length. So for shipment of a parcel exceeding 61cm or with an insure value over £2500, we use DHL with whom we have an account.
For overseas shipments we use DHL and have both an Export account and an Import account (for when models are shipped to us) with all the necessary UK Customs registrations and approvals in place.
Upon payment to Steamline and clearance of the funds by our bank, the title of the goods will pass from the owner (Steamline Ltd or one of our many commission vendors). For this reason we will only ship to the new owner with the correct level of insurance cover in place as per the methods described above. As many overseas countries impose prohibitive import duties, we are sometimes asked to understate the value of goods shipped. We frown on this approach as any insurance claim (we stress that these are rare) have to be substantiated by documentation proving the true value of the goods. If the value of goods are under-declared (or indeed over-declared) with the shipper this will invalidate the insurance and likely result in any claim being refused.
The bottom line is that our intention is always to provide a top class, quality service to our Customers, who are the foundation of our business. In doing so we want to 'do it right first time' and will always strive for this. Steamline Ltd has now been in business for over 20 years and we are as busy as we have ever been, but we will always seek to improve the service we offer.
Our objective is to be 100% efficient and accurate in everything we do, but mistakes occasionally (but rarely) occur. So for our own peace of mind we have to say, as far as the website is concerned, ‘Errors and Omissions Excepted’.
Steamline Ltd.