Frequently Asked Questions

The following notes are intended to help you if you have a question about buying from Books, by Kimbo!, either direct or via the ebay auction site, or have any sort of query about service, delivery etc. If the information you require is not here, please don't hesitate to use the contact form or send me an email.

• How can I pay?
• What happens if my item is lost in the post?
• How do I know which posting zone I'm in?
• Will you find a book for me?
• Do you allow personal collection?
• What is your shipping policy>"
• What if I'm not happy with my book?
• What does all that jargon mean?
• How do I link to Books, by Kimbo!?

How you can pay depends on whether you are in the UK, as I am, or are an overseas (non-UK) buyer. Overseas first: If you are not a UK buyer for whom the GB Pound Sterling is the normal currency, then you must pay using PayPal. I will be happy to send you a PayPal invoice. This will be presented in pounds sterling, and the currency conversion will be done automatically by PayPal themselves. Please note that I have no control over the exchange rate they use, so please do not ask me "how much is that in dollars" as I can't tell you what it will be -- you just pay the bill as presented, thanks. New!You can now pay using Google Checkout, contact me for details.

UK payers with sterling accounts have more options. You, too, may pay using PayPal, and I will be happy to send a PayPal invoice to make this a simple procedure. Alternatively you may pay using a sterling cheque, postal orders, or by Internet banking transfer. If you wish to do the latter, just ask for my bank account details and I'll be happy to provide them.

Buyers who wish to collect items in person may do so by prior arrangment only, when cash payments are perfectly acceptable. Please do not send cash through the post, unless you are totally happy to cover the risk yourself. If I say the money has not arrived, you must be content to accept that. Any doubts, don't do it! Thanks.

Books are sent using Royal Mail or Parcel Force and suitable insurance is included in the shipping costs you pay. I always get proof of posting, and will pursue any loss direct with Royal Mail -- lost items are not your problem!

That said, there are different degrees of "lost", and I will ask you to follow a few simple steps and make some basic checks to ensure that your package has really vanished forever, rather than is just awaiting collection somewhere.

If you think your item has gone missing, the routine should be as follows, and your cooperation is very much appreciated:

• Check that you have actually made payment. Items are not shipped until payment is received.
• Email me direct, or use the ebay message system if appropriate, to advise me of the non-delivery. Please do NOT use the ebay feedback system for this notification, as that is not its purpose. I will be happy to explain this concept further if you are at all confused. Thanks!
• I will check that the item has been shipped, and give you posting details to confirm dates. I will advise if delivery should have taken place by now, or if you need to wait a little longer for your book to appear.
• If I confirm that the package should have arrived, please check with your local sorting office to see if they are holding the item for you. You are welcome to perform this check in advance of contacting me if you wish to speed up the process -- and please remember that although the postie is supposed to put a card through the door to let you know of failed attempts to deliver, this does not always happen, so lack of card doesn't necessarily mean lack of book!
• If you confirm that you have checked with your local delivery office, and the book has definitely gone missing in the post, I will ask you to make a clear statement to this effect, to support my claim from Royal Mail to get back the value of the lost item. Often the emails already swapped will suffice for this purpose, but if we've been discussing the matter in an informal or cryptic manner, or you have been contact me by telephone, a formal statement of loss will be necessary. Email will be fine.
• When loss is confirmed, and all checks made (usually a matter of a few days) I will refund your payment in full. Please note that I do not make you wait until I have claimed from Royal Mail, though I might ask you to be patient for a few days to ensure the item is not going to arrive.
• If the book subsequently arrives at your address, I ask you to let me know and remake payment.
• If the book is returned to my address I will inform you that it has been returned, and ask if you would like to repurchase the item. If the return is as a result of incorrect delivery details provided by you, I might ask for an extra contribution towards the additional shipping costs. This will depend on how "reusable" the original packaging is.

If you're not sure whether your country counts as Europe, or Rest of World, please check the list of posting zones, as provided by Royal Mail.

Yes! If you're looking for a particular book, or books, and can't find it on my list, I will be happy to do the search for you. Use the contact page to get in touch, and let me know as much as you can about what you need, and I'll do my best to track down a copy for you. There is no charge for this service, just buy the book from me if I find it. If I track a copy to another dealer, I will let you have full details of the format and condition before committing you to the purchase. If it's a case of keeping my eyes peeled while I'm out and about buying, then I'll make sure I keep within your budget and match your requirements. If you're in any way unhappy, just send it back.

You are welcome to collect your book or books in person (my address is on the contact form), but I do ask that you arrange a day and time in advance. No point in turning up when I'm out looking for books! I don't charge any daft handling fees or rack up the charges in any other way; if you collect you simply pay the book price and forget the shipping.

What is your shipping policy

Books are shipped internationally, securely packed and fully insured. I use Royal Mail second class postage for the majority of items, with increased service levels for higher value items to ensure full cover. Overseas items are shipped using Royal Mail Airmail Printed Paper service, unless otherwise stated. Additional services are available at cost, on request (e.g. recorded, international signed-for). I aim to ship within 3 business days of payment. You will be notified on despatch.

If you are in any way unhappy with your item, please contact me immediately. As a business seller I will respect all of your rights under Distance Selling Regulations (DSR) and the Sale of Goods Act (SOGA). Effectively, this means that you have the right to return anything you don't like, within seven days, using the same or equivalent packaging and service as was used to ship it to you. I will refund your payment and will usually refund your return shipping also but you must contact me first for this to apply. Books returned unannouced will be shipped at your own cost, thanks.

Struggling with some bookseller's jargon? Not sure what foxed, sunned or bumped are? Let my jargon-busting glossary help you out.

If you would like to link to my site, you are very welcome to do so. In fact, I'd be thrilled, thanks. I have created a banner graphic that you can use for this purpose and you can either save this to your own web server,or link direct to the copy of the graphic held here. Whichever you prefer. You will need to add a bit of html to your links page, or wherever you wish to put the link. Here you go:
<a href="http://www.bykimbo.com"><img src="http://www.bykimbo.com/images/bykimbobanner.jpg" width=468 height=60 border=0 alt="Books, by Kimbo!" title="Books, by Kimbo!"></a>
If you prefer to use a local copy of the image, just change the img src to your local address when you've safely stored away the graphic.
And here's that code in action (you can right click and save this image if you want to store it locally):