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LEGAL · GARLAND & ZHANG

Shipping & Refund Policy

Commercial-phase shipping, payment release, warranty and refund terms — with retail policies to follow in a later phase.

Last updated October 30, 2026

Working draft prepared for review by Garland & Zhang and its counsel. Highlighted items are business decisions still to be confirmed; publication follows approval. This page is not legal advice.

1. Scope, and the phased approach

This policy covers the phase of our business in force today: large commercial transactions with business buyers, in which payment is made by documentary credit through the buyer’s bank, payment is released against the required documents, and delivery is independently verified by a third party. Each transaction is governed by its own written sales agreement, and where that agreement differs from this policy, the agreement controls.

Retail sales are not offered in this phase. Before any retail or consumer sale is made, we will publish separate shipping, delivery, return, and refund policies for retail orders together with consumer terms of sale and a consumer privacy notice. Nothing in this policy should be read as a consumer returns or refund policy, and nothing here limits rights that applicable consumer law does not allow to be waived.

2. Orders and sales agreements

  • An order comes into existence only when a written sales agreement is signed by the parties, or confirmed in writing as that agreement provides. A quotation, catalog entry, or indication is not a binding offer.
  • The sales agreement specifies the goods, specification, quantity, price, delivery term, document set, inspection arrangements, warranties, and the cancellation and refund position for that transaction.
  • Orders are placed by verified participants only, as described in the Terms of Use.

3. Payment: documentary credit, and release against documents

  • Instrument. Payment is made by documentary credit — a letter of credit arranged through the buyer’s bank in favour of Garland & Zhang. Where a sales agreement provides for it, payment may instead be made cash against documents or under another documentary arrangement.
  • Where payment is remitted. Proceeds are remitted to Garland & Zhang’s account at HSBC under the terms agreed for the transaction. to confirm with the company and its bank: beneficiary details, and whether credits must be advised or confirmed through a named bank, payable at sight or on agreed usance terms
  • Release against documents. The buyer’s bank pays when the document set named in the sales agreement is presented and found compliant. The set typically includes the commercial invoice, packing list, transport document (bill of lading or waybill), certificate of origin, insurance certificate where applicable, and the inspection or verification certificate where the transaction provides for one.
  • Independent third-party verification. Delivery may be verified by an independent inspection body confirming quantity, condition, and conformity with the agreed specification. The inspector, scope, timing, and cost allocation are stated in the sales agreement, and the verification report forms part of the document set where the agreement so provides.
  • No card payments. Card payments and consumer checkout are not offered in this phase; retail payment methods will be described in the retail policies published with that phase.
  • Bank charges. Charges for opening, advising, confirming, amending, or extending a credit are borne by the party the sales agreement designates; where it is silent, by the applicant — the buyer.
  • Non-payment and delayed credits. Where a credit is not issued, amended, or confirmed as agreed, we may withhold the documents and suspend shipment or performance until it is resolved.

4. Shipping, freight, and delivery

  • Freight. In the initial phase we pay inbound freight as part of the agreed terms. Onward or outbound carriage, and any charges arising after the delivery point named in the sales agreement, are allocated as that agreement states.
  • Modes and routing. Shipments move by coordinated ocean, rail, and road legs — consolidated at or near the manufacturing origin, moved through bonded or trade-zone corridors where eligible, and delivered to the destination named in the sales agreement.
  • Risk and title. Risk and title pass as stated in the sales agreement; where it is silent, at the delivery point named in it. to confirm the default delivery term the company will quote, for example FOB origin, CIF, or delivered at destination
  • Other charges. Duties, taxes, port and terminal handling beyond the agreed term, storage, demurrage and detention, and buyer-requested inspection costs are the responsibility of the party the sales agreement designates. Charges incurred because a shipment cannot be received at the scheduled time are the buyer’s. to confirm with the company
  • Customs. Import clearance is handled through licensed brokers and forwarders. Garland & Zhang is not a licensed customs broker. to confirm the exact wording the company wants here, and whether any clearance service is offered directly
  • Delivery windows. Stated windows are estimates, not guarantees. Risk of delay from port congestion, weather, carrier allocation, labour action, inspections, or government action sits with the party stated in the sales agreement.
  • Keep the documents. The transport document and the verification report are the basis for the release of payment and for any later claim.

5. Inspection, claims, and non-conformity

  • Inspect goods on arrival. Where the transaction provides for independent third-party verification, the verified result governs conformity for the purpose of releasing payment, without removing the buyer’s own inspection rights.
  • Report visible damage or shortage on the delivery document and in writing within to confirm — recommended: 5 business days; report concealed damage within to confirm — recommended: 10 business days, with photographs and the shipping documents.
  • Claims for non-conformity follow the sales agreement; the remedies are typically repair, replacement, or credit.
  • Claims cannot be assessed after goods have been commingled, processed, or installed.
  • Where a claim is accepted after payment has been released under a credit, the adjustment is made by credit note and remitted through the banking channel — not by a card reversal.

6. Warranties

Products carry the warranties stated in the sales agreement together with any manufacturer’s warranty supplied with the goods, for the period stated there. Warranties do not cover normal wear, misuse, improper storage or handling after delivery, or modification without approval. Warranty service is separate from a refund: the warranty provides repair, replacement, or credit as it states. The parties’ inspection and non-conformity rights in section 5 are unaffected by the warranty terms.

7. Cancellation, returns, and refunds

  • Cancellation and refund terms are specified in each sales agreement. Because these are large transactions made to specification and financed through documentary credits, the parties agree the cancellation and refund position for each transaction rather than relying on a blanket policy.
  • Where a sales agreement is silent, these defaults apply. An order may be cancelled without a cancellation fee before the goods are consolidated at origin to confirm the window — for example, up to 7 days before the scheduled consolidation date. After shipment, or after documents have been presented under a credit, cancellation requires the parties’ written agreement, and charges already incurred — freight, bank charges, inspection, storage — remain payable.
  • Returns. Construction materials, grains and agricultural commodities, minerals and metals, and other industrial inputs are generally not returnable once released for shipment, because of handling, contamination, and traceability requirements. Returns require our prior written approval, may carry a restocking charge of to confirm — typically 10 to 25 percent per the manufacturer, and return freight is arranged as the parties agree.
  • Non-returnable. Custom-fabricated, cut, blended, or made-to-order goods, and goods stored beyond the free-storage period.
  • How refunds are paid. An approved refund is remitted back through the banking channel used for the transaction — a bank transfer to the account the buyer nominates, or a reduction against the credit where the parties agree — within to confirm — recommended: 10 business days of approval and receipt of confirmed bank details. Bank and transfer charges are borne as the sales agreement states.
  • Our error. If a shipment is short, materially non-conforming to the confirmed specification, or damaged in transit where we arranged the carriage, we arrange replacement or issue a credit, once the claim is documented, as the sales agreement provides.
  • Retail phase. Consumer cancellation, return, and refund rights are required by law in many jurisdictions and will be set out in a separate retail policy before retail sales begin.

8. Commission and referral effects

Where an order is refunded, cancelled, or credited, the associated referral or commission entries are adjusted or reversed in the commission ledger in line with the Referral & Commission Terms.

9. Raising a shipping, payment, or refund question

Contact us with the sales agreement reference, the shipping documents, and photographs where relevant: robertgarland9@gmail.com. We respond to documented claims within to confirm — recommended: 5 business days. Disputes that cannot be resolved follow the governing law and forum in the sales agreement, or in the Terms of Use where no sales agreement applies.