Hours of Business

Monday to Friday 9:00am - 5:00pm

We supply trading businesses and buying groups only and reserve the right to refuse trade to any customer or potential customer.

Orders for Delivery

This service is free of charge provided our minimum order values are met. Orders must be placed by 11:00am on the weekday before delivery. We reserve the right to refuse delivery if our terms of trade are not met. Deliveries are made throughout the day and specific times cannot be provided. Delivery times may vary from week to week. If you will not be available to receive your order on the arranged date then you must make adequate provision and inform us of the alternative arrangements. Failure to do this will result in a 20% cancellation fee as laid out under the heading - late cancellation - below.

Priority Service

Priority service orders are placed before close of business, two working days before the day of delivery. Priority Service enables us to call customers with shortages and possible substitutions. Orders placed on the day before delivery are subject to our Standard service. Details of Priority service versus Standard service are published towards the beginning of this Information section.

Orders for Collection

The minimum order value for trade collections is £100 and for Buying groups £300. We require at least 24hrs notice on all orders; this applies to the main order and any additions. We cannot take any additions after the 24hrs deadline, only substitutions for out-of-stocks or shortages. Collection time is between 9:00am and 4:30pm on weekdays. Please note that if you arrive outside of those times, we will not be able to accommodate you. We require that orders be collected within 5 working days of being placed. If you find you cannot collect within 5 working days, please contact us to make other arrangements. Orders that are not collected within 5 working days and where other arrangements have not been made are subject to a cancellation fee of 20% of the order value.

Discounts

Our discount scale is based on invoice value and whether the order is delivered or collected.

Payments

We are no longer able to accept cash payments for delivered goods. Please pay by cheque or card upon delivery, unless prior arrangements have been made. Returned or represented cheques are liable to a minimum charge of £10.00. Payment by Bank transfer, Debit card, Credit card or Direct Debit may be arranged through Customer Accounts, please call 0845 458 1460 for further details. All goods remain the property of Essential Trading until paid in full.

Price and Size Changes

Prices and pack sizes are correct at the time of going to print and are subject to market change without notice. The most up-to-date information is available through our website: essential-trading.coop. Login to see details.

Invoice Signing

All orders must be checked and signed for at the time of delivery/collection by the customer or their agent and an Essential Trading member of staff. Any errors will be noted at the point of delivery/collection. Please note that once a signature has been received we will not accept liability for errors.

Credit Claims

By prior agreement with our credit claim department only. We reserve the right to dismiss claims. We do not give cash refunds. Please refer to the claims procedure described in the previous pages.

Returns

By prior agreement with our credit claim department only. We do not offer goods on a sale or return basis. We reserve the right to dismiss requests for the return of goods.

Late Cancellation

In the unlikely event that you find you no longer require your order and you wish to make a cancellation, please be aware that we reserve the right to charge a cancellation fee. The fee is only applicable on orders cancelled with less than 24 hours' notice from the date of delivery or collection. The cancellation charge levied will be equivalent to 20% of the order value to reflect our lost time in collating and loading the order. Where more than 24 hours' notice is given then we may be able to cancel an order without charge.

Special Order Items

We can obtain items for you which are not part of our normal stockholding. However, if goods are ordered in this way, we ask customers to guarantee the purchase of the goods once they have arrived at our depot. We cannot accept the return of Special Order items. Please note these items are subject to availability and lead time - please enquire for details on specific products/brands.