The Wine Bank Shipping Policy

 

Age Disclaimer

Wine may only be purchased and delivered to persons who are at least 21 years of age. By placing an order, you validate that you and the person who accepts delivery will be 21 years of age or older. When your wine is delivered, the person accepting delivery may be required to show identification. Wine will not be delivered to a visibly intoxicated person. Delivery of your wine requires an adult signature (21 or older).If no adult is present at time of delivery, the package will not be left. Therefore, business addresses are highly recommended. We will not ship wine to a PO Box or APO address.

Legal Disclaimer

You assume and take title to your wines in California upon purchase. You are responsible for the shipment of all orders you place with The Wine Bank. By placing an order, you authorize The Wine Bank to act on your behalf to engage a common carrier (i.e.,UPS) to deliver your order where you want it delivered. The Wine Bank acts only as your agent for the shipping/delivering of your wine. We make no representation to the legal rights of anyone to ship or import any wines into any state. You are solely responsible for the shipment of your wine and for determining the legality and the tax/duty consequences of having your wine shipped to you. Once wine has left our facility, the buyer is solely responsible for any loss or damage.

Restricted States

The shipment of wine into a state is regulated by the recipient state. Currently a number of states prohibit or limit the shipment of wine from California. View Our State Shipping Guide.

Billing Information

All items are subject to availability. Orders placed on this website are not final. Your credit card is not charged automatically, although the amount is approved by your credit card company. Orders placed with us are received in the form of a request and must be confirmed before they can be processed. Upon receipt of your request we will verify that we have the wine in the quantity you requested. If there is any problem with your order, we will notify you (usually within one business day). Otherwise, we will process your order, including the method of shipment/delivery and insurance charges, and (if applicable) tax. All orders must be paid in full prior to shipment. Payments can be made by domestic credit card.

Please note that all credit cards are verified. You must provide a billing address that corresponds to the credit card you are using. If the billing address does not match the credit card and the order form is not signed you will be informed and the order will not be processed. If you encounter any problems in placing an order though the shopping cart, please call (619) 234-=7487 or email us at Info@sdwinebank.com for assistance.

Shipping Costs

Prices of our wines do not include shipping charges (or sales tax if you are accepting delivery in California). Shipping charges vary depending on the destination, weight and speed of delivery.

Shipping costs are automatically calculated at the time your order is placed based on the information you give.

Our shipping containers hold 1, 2, 3, 6, or 12 bottles of most wines (some larger bottles require magnum shippers). We recommend you keep this in mind when ordering as an odd number (7, for instance) will be shipped in the bigger box, increasing the shipping charges per bottle. We also carry large format shippers.

Domestic Shipping Options

Domestically, we ship Ground, 3 Day Select, 2-Day Air and Next Day Air (Standard and Priority) via UPS:

Ground Service – one (1) to five (5) business days in transit, depending on the location
3-Day Select – three (3) business days in transit
2-Day Air – two (2) business days in transit
Next-Day Air – one (1) business day in transit (Priority assures morning delivery in most areas)
In calculating transit times, shipping companies do not count the day the item is picked up. Generally, all orders are processed within one (1) business day (if placed after noon Pacific time). We will contact you by the end of the next business day if there are any problems with your order. We will notify you by email of any unexpected delays in processing and/or shipping your order. During times of bad weather, we recommend you don’t ship your wines but if you must, using 2nd Day or Next Day shipping is best to avoid spoilage. Orders to Alaska or Hawaii must be shipped 2nd Day Air at a minimum.

Generally orders are shipped the next business day unless the shipment would spend the weekend in transit. In that case, we ship on Monday. You will receive an email from UPS notifying you that your wines have been shipped and providing you with the tracking number(s) for your shipment.

We highly recommend shipping to a business address where an adult will be present to receive shipments during business hours. If the shipment is returned to us by UPS for any reason (including but not limited to an improper or incomplete address) we will charge you again for any re-shipment. If we are asked to re-direct a shipment in transit for any reason we will pass the additoinal UPS charges ($20.00) on to you. So please make sure the address is complete including business name, department or mail stop, if any, and suite number if going to a business complex.

Weather and Limited Weather Holds

It is important to understand that wine is perishable and very sensitive to temperature. This should be taken into consideration especially while wine is in transit. We recommend that you take the weather into consideration in selecting the appropriate shipping method for your purchases. Transporting wine in extreme weather conditions, even by overnight service, may seriously damage it. During periods of extreme weather, The Wine Bank strongly advises against the transport of wines by any means. During these times we are pleased to provide you with free, short-term storage until better weather conditions prevail (Limited Weather Hold). Once you are ready to ship give us a call at (619)234-7487 or an email to Info@sdwinebank.com and we will ship the wine to it’s final destination.

If shipment is requested during periods of extreme weather, the buyer exempts The Wine Bank from any liability for any damage to the wines during shipment. Please remember these are your wines and you determine the shipping method and timing.

Please keep in mind that we are not in the wine storage business. Hence, we will assess storage fees for orders kept longer than 6 months at a rate of $10.00 per case, per month (one case minimum).

Insurance Requirements

Because all wine purchased from The Wine Bank is sold in California and title passes to you (the buyer) in California, you are responsible for the shipment of your wine, including the procurement of insurance. Insurance for breakage is including in your shipping costs at the time of purchase. Please note, weather damage is NOT covered by this or any other insurance.

In The Event of a Damaged Shipment

The Wine Bank will refund insured purchases only for the breakage of wine while in transit. The Wine Bank will not refund shipments for any other types of damages, such as, but not limited to, the defacing of labels, the failure or damage to corks and capsules, spoilage, and all other forms of damage. If you receive wine that has been broken during shipping, do not contact UPS, they will not issue refunds, please contact The Wine Bank directly within 24 hours of receiving the parcel. We Will only replace broken items once you have shipped the items back to us.Note that weather damage is NOT covered by this insurance and we will not be responsible nor will we replace bottles damaged by the weather. Again, you, the customer, are the ultimate decision-maker for shipping of your wine.

Delivery Attempt

Whenever possible, we encourage you to use a commercial business address to assure the fastest delivery time. It is your responsibility to provide an address for delivery where an adult will be present at the time of delivery. If an adult is not available to receive the package, two subsequent attempts to deliver the shipment will be made. If these delivery attempts are unsuccessful, UPS will notify you that your shipment will be available for pickup at a local UPS substation for approximately 10 days. If your shipment is not claimed during this time, UPS will return your wine to The Wine Bank. If your wine is returned to us, you still own the wine (all sales are final) and need to make other arrangements to get the wines to you. This will include additional shipping charges and may also include storages charges.

Undrinkable and “Corked Wines” – No Refunds

Because The Wine Bank did not produce or bottle any of the wines we sell, and due to the fact that the character of wine changes with age, we cannot guarantee the personal “drinkability” of every bottle we sell. It is the industry standard for shops such as ours, and it is the policy of The Wine Bank, that older wines are purchased “as is” and at the buyer’s risk as to the drinkability of the wine.

This policy includes “corked” wines (those tainted with TCA and smell of wet cardboard). This wine fault occurred during the maturing/bottling of the wine at the winery and is completely out of the control of The Wine Bank. Whether the wine is from us or not, please contact the winery if you encounter a “corked” wine. Only the winery can solve this problem.

We do not issue refunds on wines that are deemed undrinkable or “corked.”

Cancellations and Returns

All wine sales are final. Please review the email you receive confirming your order carefully to make sure you ordered the correct wine and shipping address. We are not responsible for any incorrect orders placed by the customer.

Any cancellation of any order must be done within 48 hours of placing the order and prior to the shipment of the order. All cancellations are subject to a 10% restocking fee, unless there was an error on our behalf. The restocking fee is not a penalty but compensates us for our loss. When we charge your card your order is reserved for you. Your credit card company charges us when we charge your card and when we subsequently credit your card for a cancellation. Therefore, we will strictly enforce the collection of the restocking fee if your card has been charged. If we have not charged your credit card, you may cancel your order without being subject to the restocking fee.

No order may be cancelled after 2 days of placing the order. No order may be cancelled after it has shipped (the shipment is in the possession of the shipping carrier). An address change (shipment re-routing) may be requested by the customer after shipment but a $15.00 fee will apply (this is the fee charged by shipping carriers for address changes).

Any return of unopened and undamaged wine that was incorrectly sent to the customer (i.e., wrong wine or vintage) must be done within 7 days of your receipt of the wine. Please email or call to inform us that you are returning the shipment. We will only issue an exchange/refund on returned products that were incorrectly shipped to you (i.e., wrong wine or vintage). We will not accept return of any wine that has been opened, harmed during transportation or harmed due to extreme weather conditions.

In rare circumstances we may, in our sole discretion, accept the return of unopened and undamaged wine that was correctly sent to you. Please call us prior to returning the wines as such circumstances are determined on a case-by-case basis. If we do accept a return under these circumstances, the customer is responsible for a 10% restocking fee and the shipping costs both ways.

Pricing and Availability

All listed prices do not include shipping/delivery charges. All listed prices do not include sales tax, if the wine is being delivered in California. Prices, ratings/reviews and availability of wines are subject to change without notice. Although it rarely happens, we do make mistakes. The Wine Bank cannot guarantee the availability of all items on our website. Occasionally we run out of an item before we can reflect that on the website. In the event that we do run out of an item you ordered, we will promptly contact you via email or telephone. At that time you can cancel your order free of charge or substitute another product.