Delivery Information
UK SHIPMENTS
When are orders processed?
Orders are processed and emails responded to from Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:00 GMT/BST.
Are your products immediately available to ship?
Most products can ship the same day if a UK order is placed by 2:00pm (14:00 GMT/BST). If delivery is urgent, we recommend you contact us for exact timings.
Please be aware that payment is taken automatically when an order is placed, so please feel free to contact us before or after placing an order if you wish to check when your order will be dispatched.
If there is likely to be a long delay or we are unable to obtain stock then we will endeavour to update our website, or contact you providing relevant information. If an item becomes unavailable, we will contact you providing alternatives if possible and give you the opportunity to cancel the original order.
How long does delivery take?
We state delivery times on our checkout; please note these are estimated and relate to the date the order is dispatched, not the date the order is placed.
A choice of delivery methods for your chosen destination is offered after you enter delivery details, country and continue.
Please note standard 'business/working days' for deliveries are Monday to Friday.
Is there a cut-off time for same-day shipping?
If an order for delivery to the UK is received before 2:00pm (14:00 GMT/BST) Monday to Friday, we aim to dispatch the same day.
Please be aware this is not a guarantee and is subject to stock availability, stock location and the provision of any additional information we may request before dispatch.
If delivery is urgent, we recommend you contact us for exact timings. We may also be able to provide delivery services not advertised online for an additional fee.
Which service should I choose if I would like next day delivery in the UK?
Both DPD Local (including the free promotional option sometimes offered) and Royal Mail Special Delivery operate on a next working day delivery (subject to stock availability).
We recommend choosing DPD Local for next working day delivery (subject to location) and placing your order before 2:00pm. This is because we hold stock in various locations; most of these can dispatch by UK Courier (various couriers used) but not all have Royal Mail Special Delivery facilities. It is best to contact us to confirm whether next day delivery is possible for the products you require.
If you specify Royal Mail Special Delivery, there may be 1 to 2 days delay before dispatch, to allow time for the stock to be relocated where Royal Mail services are available.
Which couriers do you use?
For UK orders we offer DPD Local on our website checkout.
To save time and keep to delivery expectations, we sometimes have orders shipped directly from our suppliers' or the manufacturers', shipping hubs. If this occurs, the courier may not be DPD Local or UPS. When your order is dispatched we will inform you if it has been sent direct, instead of by the options offered from our warehouse.
Why do you have separate courier options for 'Mainland' and 'Offshore'?
We have negotiated shipping rates with DPD Local. These are based on mainland UK postcodes. These companies levy surcharges for deliveries to Northern Ireland, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, Isle of Wight and some specific Scottish Highlands/Islands. As such we have a separate option for these postcodes.
You may find it more cost-effective to choose Royal Mail shipping options for these postcodes.
If we receive an order for these postcodes with the Mainland delivery option selected, we may contact you to arrange additional payment before the order is shipped.
Please note Courier deliveries to many Scottish postcodes may be a 2 working day service with no timed delivery slot available.
Will I get a tracking number?
On the day an order is dispatched from a Clove warehouse we will send an email notification, including any tracking reference available for tracked mail & courier shipments.
If your order is dispatched directly from our supplier or the manufacturer, we may not have the tracking information immediately available. In these cases, your dispatch email will note this detail, and we will endeavour to have the tracking information sent on to you promptly as soon as we are made aware of it.
If you do not receive a tracking number and are expecting one, please feel free to contact us.
Do you offer Weekend (Saturday / Sunday) Delivery?
Specific Saturday & Sunday shipping options are not listed on our website, however, we can manually provide these services should the stock be immediately available.
DPD Local
If a standard DPD Local order is dispatched on a Friday, no Saturday delivery will be attempted. A Monday delivery will be attempted. If you contact us prior to shipping, we can arrange for a Saturday shipment. A surcharge will be applied and we will ask for this to be paid before submitting the Saturday delivery request for your order.
Please Note - DPD Local now offer a Sunday delivery service for select postcodes. If you would like to take advantage of this option, please call us and we can check availability and quote you.
Special Delivery
If a standard Special Delivery order is dispatched on a Friday to a residential address, a Saturday delivery may be attempted, however, this is not guaranteed. If you contact us prior to shipping, we can arrange for a Saturday Guarantee on the shipment. A surcharge will be applied and we will ask for this to be paid before submitting the Saturday delivery request for your order.
Why do you have separate 'insured' options? Aren't all your shipments insured?
Clove personally guarantees all of our shipments. If your package/goods are damaged or presumed lost, please contact us immediately.
If you have a chosen a standard delivery service, we will need to open an investigation with the delivery company and any refund or replacement is subject to the outcome of this procedure. Please note, investigations may take several days before a decision is made.
Delivery options on our website with additional insurance will have the delivery company's own insurance policy activated on them. For these packages, should loss or damage occur please contact us immediately. In most circumstances, we will be able to offer you an immediate refund or replacement shipment without waiting for an investigation to be completed.
Once a package is delivered, responsibility for the goods transfers to you.
Please inspect your package and ensure that the delivery person makes a note of any visible damage to the outer box/bag before you sign for it. This will enable us to assist you if there has been any damage to the contents.
UK Delivery Services
We offer a wide range of services to UK addresses. Depending on the contents of your basket, not all options may be shown on our checkout.
1st Class Post - Royal Mail 24/48
Orders are delivered by Royal Mail and packages cannot be tracked. Delivery should take place within 2 business days after dispatch, although this is not guaranteed.
If the package is too big for your letterbox and nobody is available to take delivery, then a card will be left enabling you to arrange re-delivery online or collect from your local Royal Mail sorting office. If you do not rearrange delivery or collect the package within 18 days then it will be returned to us.
Royal Mail Special Delivery
Special Delivery shipments can only be sent from our head office warehouse. This sometimes results in a short delay as stock is relocated there. We will endeavour to contact you if delays may occur.
Once the order has been dispatched, delivery is guaranteed by 1:00 pm the next business day for UK mainland addresses. For Northern Ireland, Channel Islands and Scottish Highlands/Islands, delivery may occur next business day, but is guaranteed for two business days.
If Special Delivery is attempted and nobody is available to sign for the package, then a card will be left enabling you to arrange re-delivery or to collect from your local Royal Mail sorting office. If you do not collect the package within 18 days it will be returned to us.
Please Note: Royal Mail do not carry portable chargers, certain battery products and other goods in their network. For this reason, Special Delivery may not be offered when you expect it, depending on your basket contents.
Orders weights
Royal Mail Special Delivery is offered on our checkout for most orders weighing up to 10kg. Please note that orders between 2kg and 10kg attract a large surcharge; this is the reason for the steep price increase you may see if amending basket contents.
Orders over 10kg can be dispatched by Royal Mail, although it is generally much more cost-effective to either use a courier service or split the shipment into separate orders. Please contact us for a quote on Special Delivery shipments over 10kg.
Saturday Delivery
A Saturday Guaranteed option is available upon request. Please note this attracts an additional charge. If you would like to request this, please contact us directly and we will quote you.
Please Note: Special Delivery parcels dispatched on a Friday and sent to a mainland residential address stand a good chance of arriving on Saturday. However be aware this is not guaranteed without the additional service above being applied - without this delivery is only guaranteed by 1:00 pm on Monday.
9am Guarantee
There is also a 'Special Delivery' service which guarantees next working day delivery by 9:00 am. This is also an 'on-request' service. Please note this is much more expensive than any other service we offer.
UK Couriers
Most of our UK Courier shipments will be made by DPD Local, although depending on location and order contents we may use UPS. If dispatched directly from a supplier or the manufacturer, other services may be used.
Once dispatched, delivery should take place next business day between 7:00 am and 8:30 pm. We will provide details of the courier used and tracking information. DPD Local deliveries will be assigned a 1-hour time slot on the day of delivery.
If nobody is available to sign for the package, the courier will usually leave a card enabling you to arrange delivery on an alternative weekday, or you can collect from their nearest depot if you prefer.
We can deliver to 'Offshore' postcodes (N. Ireland, Isle of Man, Isle of Wight, Scottish Highlands/Islands & Channel Islands) with certain couriers. If you choose an Offshore option (or pay the additional amount when contacted due to your postcode), please allow an extra 1-2 business days to relocate stock to a suitable warehouse (if necessary) and effect the delivery.
International Shipments
We offer shipments to most global countries/territories. We do regret that not all countries/territories are serviced. This may be due to international sanctions, import restrictions, excessive customs charges or a managerial decision at Clove based on historical package loss to that destination.
Answers to common questions
1) Clove Technology is not liable for any customs duties that might be incurred when goods reach the destination country. If requested, we can provide you with an estimate of any charges you may incur, however we cannot guarantee the accuracy of this and any estimate may be lower than the final charges you incur.
2) We will not reduce the invoice value to lower your customs charges. We are legally obliged to state the full value of all goods we export from the UK.
3) We will not mark documentation to say the goods are a 'gift'. We are legally obliged to declare our exports from the UK as commercial goods.
4) In some countries, the import of some smartphones and devices may be restricted, or require an import licence from you, the buyer.
5) It is the responsibility of you, the buyer, to make yourself aware of any customs duties or restrictions applicable to the destination country.
6) If the import of the goods is refused and they need to be returned to the UK, this may incur further charges which have to be met by you as the buyer. If goods are returned to us and charges levied against our account by the courier, we reserve the right to withhold this amount from any refund issued to you.
7) If an order is required to ship to a friend/relative or a friend/relative is paying for the goods, then the payment option selected must be either PayPal (card payment can then be selected using this method if required and you do not need to have a PayPal account) or BACS Transfer. If any other method of payment is selected then the order is liable to be rejected and refunded for security reasons.
8) If additional security information is required you will be emailed once the order has been placed (please see International Customers FAQ page).
Potential delays with International Post
Please Be Aware: if you choose to have a smartphone or other cellular device dispatched by International Mail, then depending on your chosen destination country, final delivery may be considerably delayed.
This is due to two things. First is the time it can take for the packages to be processed through customs and assigned for delivery by your country's mail provider.
Secondly, Royal Mail use commercial flights to deliver international packages, so shipments are subject to the same regulations as passenger baggage carried in the hold of the aircraft. This means packages sent by Royal Mail which contain mobile phones are classed as “containing items suspected of being prohibited or dangerous” due to regulations regarding the transport of lithium batteries by air. Packages are not permitted to travel in the hold of passenger aircraft if the battery is outside the phone.
Please use the link below to view details of the regulations (in particular the sections 'Items containing batteries' and 'Batteries carried as spares'):
https://www.caa.co.uk/Passengers/Before-you-fly/Baggage/Items-that-are-allowed-in-baggage/
Once they have inspected your package and verified that the battery is inside the phone, they will forward it on to the delivery address requested. Unfortunately we are unable to confirm how long this will take but we would expect it to be approximately an extra 14 days (in addition to the average delivery times which are 3 to 7 business days*** within Europe and 7 to 14 business days*** for the rest of the world).
We have also seen additional delays for some regions of the world at times of high volume (Christmas, national holidays in your country etc.).
We always recommend choosing DHL Express or UPS couriers if available.
Please see details below for information regarding delivery methods and estimated transit times for all destinations.
International Delivery Services
The options available will depend on the contents of your basket and the total value. Couriers generally offer a much faster delivery time than postal services, although will usually be more expensive.
Airmail Post
Standard airmail post is offered for small and lower value orders. No tracking is available.
The average delivery times are 5 to 10 business days within Europe and 10 to 14 business days for the rest of the world.
Signed Post
This postal service is offered to the majority of international destinations. A tracking number is provided with online updates. Tracking will show when the package leaves the United Kingdom and when it enters the destination country.
Detailed tracking within the destination country may not be available, however you may be able to contact your local delivery service for further information.
You can track your package online with Royal Mail: https://www.royalmail.com/track-your-item#/ or Track & Trace: https://www.track-trace.com/post
Tracked & Signed Post
This postal service is offered to international destinations with more advanced postal services that have fully integrated with Royal Mail in the UK. A tracking number is provided with online updates. Tracking will show when the package leaves the United Kingdom and when it enters the destination country.
Further detailed tracking within the destination country (for instance from a national hub to a regional delivery centre) should also be available
You can track your package online with Royal Mail: https://www.royalmail.com/track-your-item#/ or Track & Trace: https://www.track-trace.com/post
DHL & UPS Couriers
DHL or UPS are offered to the vast majority of international destinations, except for a limited number of very remote territories, politically restricted zones or military locations such as BFPO / APO addresses.
We attempt to expedite all courier deliveries by providing the relevant companies with commercial invoices to complete customs entries in advance.
Where relevant, you may be contacted by the courier company to pay customs duties in advance of the package arriving, in order for it to be delivered as quickly as possible.
Once your package has been dispatched, we will provide you with a tracking number. Packages can be tracked online at:
DHL: https://www.dhl.co.uk/en/express/tracking.html
UPS: https://www.ups.com/track?loc=en_US&requester=ST/
The average estimated delivery time is 1-2 business days in Western Europe, 2-3 business days for Eastern Europe and 2 to 5 business days for the rest of the world. Please note these times are estimates and delays may occur with customs if you do not pay any charges promptly.