Livestock Terms & Conditions of Sale

1. Scientific Nomenclature & Product Representation

  • Latin name governance: All livestock transactions are strictly governed by the official scientific (Latin) binomial species name displayed on the product listing. Common English trade names are provided solely for search convenience and do not form part of the binding contractual item description.
  • Representative stock photography: Unless a product listing is explicitly titled or tagged as WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get), all photographs, video recordings, and visual media on the website are representative stock imagery of the species. Living marine organisms naturally vary in colour intensity, pattern, shape, and physical features. Visual variation from website media does not constitute a defect, mismatch, or “Item Not as Described”.
  • Lighting spectrum & colour variations: Coral, anemone, and invertebrate colouration depends directly on aquarium lighting (including actinic/blue LED channels, PAR intensity, and Kelvin ratings) and water chemistry. Colour variations resulting from home aquarium lighting setups or transit stress do not qualify as a misdescribed or defective item.

2. Live Arrival Guarantee & Dual-Photo DOA Verification

Marine World Aquatics provides a conditional Live Arrival Guarantee on direct livestock shipments. To qualify for a Dead on Arrival (DOA) credit or replacement, the customer must strictly adhere to our mandatory two-step reporting protocol:

  • 1-hour delivery alert window: You must notify Marine World Aquatics of any DOA issue by email within exactly 1 hour of courier delivery confirmation.
  • 4-hour evidence window: All required media evidence must be emailed to info@marineworldaquatics.co.uk within 4 hours of courier delivery confirmation.

Mandatory Dual-Photo Evidence

Every DOA claim requires two (2) distinct, clear, well-lit photographs:

  1. Photo 1, unopened bag: A clear photo or video showing the deceased specimen still sealed inside its original, unopened transit bag, on a plain background.
  2. Photo 2, tail-cut verification: A second clear photo of the deceased specimen removed from the bag, with its tail fin clearly cut in half (or completely severed), to confirm disposal and prevent fraudulent or duplicate claim resubmissions.

Automatic voiding: The Live Arrival Guarantee and all DOA claims are completely voided if you open or cut the transit bag before capturing Photo 1, fail to submit Photo 2, or miss the 1-hour notification or 4-hour evidence deadlines.

3. Delivery & Transit Protocols

  • Mandatory signature: Livestock deliveries require an authorised physical signature on delivery, on the scheduled dispatch date.
  • Customer absence & address errors: If a delivery attempt fails due to an incorrect shipping address, customer absence, delivery refusal, or customer-requested courier redirection, the Live Arrival Guarantee is entirely voided.
  • Transit stress: Temporary paleness, closed polyps, or lethargy upon immediate arrival are natural biological responses to shipping stress. They do not constitute a defective, diseased, or misdescribed specimen.

4. Acclimatisation & Post-Release Liability

  • Customer responsibility: Once the packaging seal is broken, proper acclimatisation to your home aquarium’s water parameters (salinity, pH, temperature, alkalinity) is the sole responsibility of the customer.
  • Post-release exclusions: Water chemistry, light acclimation, tank mate aggression, and pre-existing environmental conditions are beyond our control once livestock enters a home aquarium. Our Live Arrival Guarantee therefore ends immediately upon release into your system, and Marine World Aquatics accepts no liability or financial responsibility for specimen mortality occurring post-acclimatisation.
  • System compatibility: The customer is strictly responsible for researching species temperament, reef compatibility, dietary requirements, and minimum aquarium volume prior to purchase.

5. Order Cancellations & Payment Dispute Agreement

  • Non-returnable perishable goods: Under the UK Consumer Contracts Regulations, live marine organisms are perishable goods and are exempt from statutory cancellation or return rights once dispatched or packaged. Livestock orders cannot be returned or refunded after dispatch.
  • Binding chargeback terms: By completing a transaction with Marine World Aquatics, you explicitly acknowledge and agree that the following do not constitute valid grounds for payment chargebacks or gateway disputes (including claims of “Item Not as Described” or “Merchandise Damaged”):
    • Non-compliance with our reporting windows
    • Failure to provide the mandatory dual-photo evidence (unopened bag and tail-cut verification)
    • Transit delays caused by customer absence
    • Post-release specimen losses
    Any unauthorised payment dispute filed in violation of these agreed terms will be formally contested using your signed checkout agreement and audit logs.