Shipping,  Delivery & Returns

Delivery Times
In general, parcels are delivered between one and three working days after ordering, within Ireland. Outside Ireland, delivery take three to five days for EU countries and 4-6 days for other countries. We do not deliver to the US. If your destination is not on our list, just give us a call on 059-6481999 to see if we can arrange it.

Next day delivery
If you order before 10.30am, we can often despatch your goods on the same day for delivery on the following working day. The next day service is not available for remote areas where delivery days are restricted; it may not be possible during busy periods either. We avoid despatching chocolate items on Fridays as we have no control over how suitable the storage conditions are for them over the weekend.

Overseas Deliveries
Overseas deliveries take a minimum of three days to arrive and we usually allow a week. Prices for overseas deliveries begin at €19.50 incl. VAT. (UK). For specific enquiries, please call us on 059-6481999 or contact us by email.

Busy Periods
At busy periods, we cannot guarantee normal delivery practices as there is often a queue of orders. If you wish to order early to avoid disappointment, then we are happy to send out orders at a later designated date. You can ring us on 059-6481999 to discuss your requirements. Placement of an order is not a guarantee that it can be delivered at very busy periods, e.g. Valentines Day, Christmas; however, we will make every effort to ensure that all our customers’ expectations are met and exceeded.

Breakage / Loss
All our parcels are sent on insured courier services and a signature is sought on delivery. We guarantee to replace goods damaged in transit providing we are informed within 48 hours of delivery. Damaged goods may be refused on delivery and the carrier will return them. If the damage is not immediately evident they should be retained for inspection and the damage made known to us as early as possible. Responsibility cannot be accepted for damage occuring to product after it has been delivered. We will offer a replacement or refund for goods lost in transit provided that we are notified within 21 days of the required delivery date. Parcels are traceable and signatures are obtained when delivered, so a thorough investigation occurs before any refund is made.

If you are concerned about your delivery some days after the order, we will be able to trace it as all parcel are referenced. Call 059-6481999 for customer service.

Nobody’s home? ...
If the recipient is not there to receive a parcel, the carrier will contact the number on the delivery label to make arrangements for an alternative delivery point. If there is no answer to this call, delivery will be attempted again the following day. If an alternative delivery point is close by, generally no additional charge will apply. If several unsuccessful attempted deliveries have been made, the parcel will be returned to our premises. While we may refund the value of the goods, the delivery cost cannot be refunded.

Delayed Deliveries / Insufficient Address Details
We ask for recipient telephone numbers so that we can contact people directly in the event of a delivery issue. We do our best to check that addresses are valid but we can’t accept responsibility for late delivery of goods in the event that the address is incomplete or incorrect. We are not responsible for late deliveries due to adverse weather conditions or other causes beyond our reasonable control. If goods have been returned to our premises and must be sent out again, a second delivery charge will apply.

Storage of Goods after Delivery
We generally avoid sending out goods containing temperature sensitive items (e.g. chocolates) on a Friday as they may be left in vans / warehouses where inappropriate temperatures cause the products to deteriorate. We thank you for your understanding in this matter.

Warning - Cold Weather and Chocolate
If your delivery of chocolates has been made in very cold weather, it is best to let the parcel acclimatise slowly to room temperature (Leave for 1-2 hours inside in its parcel packaging). Your patience will be rewarded! Sudden temperature changes (from cold to hot) may cause sweating inside the packaging and deterioration of the product - what a shame that would be!

Warning - Heat, Odours and Chocolate
Please don’t leave parcels in sunlight, near a source of heat, in a car / van for prolonged periods, or near any strong odours as this will can deterioration / melting / tainting of the product.

And lastly....
Enjoy Chocolate in its Prime
All our artisan products are made fresh with especially tailored recipes to lengthen shelf life without artificial additive. Our expert advice, however, is... for ultimate enjoyment, eat them as fresh as possible; you can always come back for more!

Our Returns Policy

Thinking of returning an item?

To ensure the safe return of your items and the correct allocation of the items to your order, please follow the guidelines below:

• Please contact us as soon as you become aware of a reason for returning the parcel. If you received a gift, please notify the sender immediately of any defect / damage affecting your delivery and advise them to get in contact with us - Tel. +353-(0)59-6481999 or info@chocolategarden.ie
   
• Do not under any circumstances destroy / dispose of product or packaging prior to speaking with our customer care staff. Please retain all delivery dockets / reference numbers etc. that you find with the parcel.
   
• In the event that the parcel must be returned to us, please ensure your name, address and telephone number are clearly written on a note and accompany the parcel.

In the event of Chocolate Garden sending you a replacement for a damaged, defective or wrong item, you must return the damaged / faulty item in question to Chocolate Garden, Lathaleere, Baltinglass, Co. Wicklow, within 10 working days. Chocolate Garden reserves the right to charge the price of the replacement item to the payment card used for the original order if you do not return the original item to us within 30 days of the date on which Chocolate Garden confirmed that we would be issuing a replacement.

Please use the original packaging to return the item if practically possible.

Our returns guarantee means that, if for reasons of defective product, you are unhappy with your purchase, you can return it to us in its original condition within 10 working days of the date you received the item, as complete as possible, and we will issue a full refund for the price you paid for the item. We will only refund the shipping costs if the defect is our responsibility, i.e., not in circumstances where inappropriate storage conditions have resulted in the defect, e.g. excessive heat, cold or strong odours. Please note that we reserve the right of non-refund in the event that goods were not faulty or were not appropriately treated at destination, e.g. left in sunlight / exposed to excessive heat / cold.

This returns policy does not affect your statutory rights.

We are unable to exchange items that are not damaged, defective or incorrect. Any exchanges are entirely at the discretion of management and will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Management is not obliged to exchange or refund goods that have been mistakenly ordered, however, common sense and discretion will be exercised in reaching any decision.