Returns

1. This policy sets out the returns policy for goods or services purchased from Taniwha Rodworks, online or by any other means.

2. You may cancel your order for a full refund prior to dispatch, contact us promptly as we dispatch orders as soon as we can.

3. Once goods have been shipped, our standard returns policy entitles you to a full refund within 14 days of receipt, excluding postage charges, provided that that you follow our procedure and meet our refund terms.

4. You must contact us first if you wish to return an item so that we can advise you on your options and how best to proceed.  If the item you purchased was faulty or did not work properly, or you think the item was not as described in the item description, please contact us first to see if we can resolve any problem to your satisfaction.

5. To be eligible for a return of goods that have been shipped, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it, and it must be in the original packaging.

6. Our returns policy excludes the following unless they are faulty: items custom-made, modified or otherwise personalised for you, or items ordered on your behalf that are not listed for sale in our on-line shop as part of our usual stock.

7. You must follow our instructions on the method to use to return goods, and on postal customs labelling (CN22 or CN23 form). Rods or blanks must be returned in the protective tubing used for delivery, which will either be a purpose made rod tube that you purchased as part of the order, or a section of PVC pipe. Do NOT use cardboard tubing. If you have lost or discarded the shipping tube we supplied, PVC pipe is available from hardware or plumbing supplies shops.

7. Returned items that are lost by the delivery company or that we receive in damaged condition will not be refunded. We recommend that you purchase insurance cover for the full value of the returned goods from the delivery company you choose to use to protect yourself from this rare eventuality.

8. Once your return is received and inspected, we will contact you to let you know whether your refund will be processed or not (and if not why not), and we will promptly credit your original method of payment. This may take a number of days to credit your account.

10. Where a refund is agreed we will refund the amount that you paid in £ sterling. The amount you receive in your own currency may be slightly higher or lower than the price you originally paid, depending on any difference in the exchange rate on the date of refund compared to the date of purchase.

11. If an item is returned from outside the UK because you or the addressee (i) were not home when delivery was attempted, (ii) did not respond to communications from the delivery company in time, (iii) did not collect the parcel from the delivery company in time, or (iv) did not pay any customs charges due, and you then ask for a refund: a 10% handling and restocking fee will be levied. We will refund you 90% of the goods value excluding delivery charges. If you ask us to send the returned item to you again, a second postage charge will be payable.

Warranty

1.  In most cases (exclusions and exceptions below) our items are sold with a 12 month warranty against manufacturing defects to protect you in the unlikely event of a product failure due to a defect, or that we supply you with a product with a defect that we did not see.

2.  The general approach and aim if a product falls short of reasonable quality and durability expectations within the warranty period is to make it good and get you back on the water as soon as we reasonably can. 

3. The essential first step is that you contact us by email with a good resolution photo of the product fault or damage area.  If the issue is a broken or damaged blank or rod section, please also supply photos of the whole rod.

Warranty exclusions and exceptions

3. The warranty does not cover

• Accidental damage (your home contents insurance might do so).
• Intentional damage, misuse, or the failure or a product that you have modified.
• Consequential loss such as but not limited to: a curtailed fishing trip (always bring a spare rod!), expenditure on other rod components that cannot be re-used.

4.  Products labelled and sold as end-of-line or clearance items are supplied with a reduced warranty of 2 months.   Our normal returns policy applies. Replacement parts are unlikely to be available if needed in the future.

5.  Products labelled and sold as seconds are graded as cosmetically imperfect but otherwise fit for use.   There is no warranty for seconds, but our normal returns policy applies.

Blanks and rods warranty

6.  Rod blank flaws are thankfully very rare, but if a blank does have a flaw, it will typically fail in the first few outings.  It is always a good idea to inspect the blank carefully, and to give it a good flex and wiggle or test cast with taped-on guides before assembling the rod.  And to test cast again before going fishing.

7. Accidental damage or misuse is not covered by the warranty.  For the purposes of this warranty Misuse includes, but is not limited to:

• use of a fly rod blank for other types of fishing
• use of a single-handed fly blank for two-handed casting
• using the rod inappropriately, for example using a 2-weight rod to target large fish, or pulling excessively with your rod when your fly gets snagged (point the rod at the snag and pull on the line without flexing the rod).

8.  From time to time rods that have performed well for months or years can break for no apparent reason.  This type of failure is unlikely to be a product flaw, but within the warranty period you will be given the benefit of the doubt unless there is clear evidence of accidental damage or misuse.  Reasons for unexplained failure might include weakening from impacts e.g., from bead head flies or knocks on boats or branches.  Or rod build issues such as guide feet damaging the blank surface because they have not been prepared properly, or because they were wrapped with excessive thread tension. 

9.  For our higher price point blanks and rods we carry spare tips in case of breakage, subject to availability. For our lower price blanks, we carry a few extra blanks in case spare parts are needed. We will usually have spares available for 2-3 years from product launch.

Warranty claim process

10.  For blanks and rods that meet our warranty claim criteria, we will accept and confirm to you that the breakage was due to a fault.   The first recourse is to replace a damaged section. To do so you will need to return the rod or part of the rod so we can confirm good ferrule fit (we will tell you what we need). Remove any salvageable components first.  You will bear the postage cost of doing so, and we will bear the cost of sending a replacement.    

11. If we have a suitable replacement section, we will send it to you. We may send you a complete blank/rod (as applicable) instead.  Alternative options such as a refund, exchange or a credit note will only be considered at our discretion.

If section or full replacement is not possible the blank/rod cost would be refunded.

At fault or out-of-warranty damage

12. To obtain a replacement section the same process applies, but we will charge for it: 50%% of the full retail blank price if we have to break up a complete rod/blank, or 30% if we have existing spares available that will fit.

Other components

13. The same process applies, and we will replace the item if possible.  If we do not have a replacement in stock, we will offer a similar alternative, or a full refund.