We are a preferred account with UPS, therefore we receive discounted rates, however there are other factors involved when we calculate shipping. Please see below:
1) UPS surcharges us for Residential areas as opposed to commercial areas, so if you're in a Residential zone this will apply to you. The charge is anywhere from $3. 00 per box to $6.00
2) UPS has a standard yearly price increase of at least 4.9% for Ground Shipping and up to 6.9% for Air. They have also had additional increases to compensate them for the rising fuel costs. Click Here to see the recent letter received from UPS regarding these increases.
3) UPS surcharges us for “odd” size boxes; weight is not the only issue
4) There may be other items on the order that come with the product you are ordering (example some spot lights come with large spikes, etc)
5) We also include handling to cover our labor cost, the box(s), tape, packing material etc. We have received 2 price increases over the past 18 months from our packing material suppliers due to the rising fuel and the world wide rising cost of raw material.
6) Some items we also include an additional handling charge if they require extra labor such as an order of and odd amount of certain accessories that requires us to open a master and count them: Example: 41 clips out of a bag of 100, etc.
Another Important Note about Shipping Rates:
Please don't be fooled by companies that advertise free shipping. NO ONE GETS FREE SHIPPING or a REDUCED SHIPPING! This is a classic gimmick and quite frankly we are shocked that in this day and age, companies are still using this classic deceptive form of advertising. It is quite obvious that they factor the shipping into the cost of the product. In fact, this ends up costing you more than if they would have just separated the shipping cost. Why? Think about it... When the shipping amount is added to the product cost, everybody pays the same, whether you are located close or far from that company. You will end up paying much more for shipping than what it actually would have cost had the shipping cost been honestly separated from the cost of the product. Plus, you will never get the discount that normally applies to orders over certain weights, because you are being charged a flat incorporated shipping cost. Another example is that if you are buying an item in your same state, you will obviously have to pay sales tax. Now, if that item has the incorporated shipping into it, guess what? You end up paying tax on that shipping charge. So, this should clear things up...that there is NO SUCH THING AS FREE SHIPPING or LOW SHIPPING - and please beware of any company that still uses this gimmick.
We are at least honest enough to let you know that we carry over 2,500 items, yet we only advertise under 20 items with free shipping. Why do we have these 20 items at Free Shipping? Because they are recessed trims that cost us 6 cents a piece to ship. Unlike other companies that are selling chandeliers, post lights, and many other items and advertise them at free shipping. Anybody that uses this free shipping gimmick, have fun with them and throw them a curve ball by calling them and asking them, "Can I pick up the order?..."
Estimate your cost of shipping for products on our website by using the button above. Use the shipping cost estimator for any lighting on our website to receive an accurate estimate of what you can expect to pay for shipping and handling charges.
We have a $100 minimum order requirement before any other charges. Thank you.
