Overview
Typically orders are shipped within a day or two of the order being placed during our operational hours (Monday-Friday 10am to 4pm – excluding holidays). However, due to constraints beyond our control, some orders may take longer than expected to ship.
Truck freight orders must be booked with the freight companies and therefore may take an additional few days to be dispatched.
Some custom products are made-to-order in which case, the description of the product will include that information.
If an item is back ordered or delayed we try our best to indicate that on the product page.
We will keep you informed of your order shipping times and tracking numbers throughout the processing of your order. If you are leaving on a trip or doing a time sensitive install please contact us us before you place your order to confirm when your order would ship and it’s expected arrival to your shipping address and consider shipping the item to your destination.
If you have any questions or concerns about shipping or delivery times we encourage you to contact us before you place an order – we’re happy to help!
We will keep you updated on your orders status via email. We recommend you add orders@vanlifeoutfitters.com to your email “whitelist” or address book to ensure delivery. You can track your order status on the orders page of your profile.
Some of our products are shipped directly from the manufacturer. Typically this is noted on the product’s page in our catalog.
Occasionally the couriers we use (UPS, FedEx, USPS, etc.) will fail to adequately track a package’s journey to your delivery address. When this happens and you track a shipment you might get a confusing result – something like the package has a shipping label created but no other updates. Or perhaps there is one scan as your package leaves Florida but no other updates until it’s delivered. In these instances we may ask you for extra patience while we work with the shipper to get additional information.
Because we sell such a wide variety of products – from small items like a carbon monoxide/LP gas detector to big heavy items like refrigerators that must be shipped via truck freight our shipping calculations can be pretty complex! We work hard to offer competitive shipping rates. Additionally, we strive to provide accurate shipping rates during checkout but, in some cases, there may need to be a shipping cost adjustment. Shipping rates calculated at checkout are not guaranteed. In those rate situations, we will contact you with the details. Also, if it takes a while for an item to be added to your cart or for the cart page to load, it’s probably because we’re calculating the best shipping options for you.
Once a package is handed off to the shipper (UPS, FedEx, USPS, freight company, etc.) we cannot control the speed of delivery times. All of these couriers are experiencing delays and have removed all delivery guarantees until further notice.
If you have any questions about shipping costs please feel free to contact us before you checkout, we’re always happy to help!
Changes to Delivery Address
Sometimes it’s possible to re-route deliveries to a new shipping address but it’s not always possible. Anytime a shipping address is changed after the package leaves our warehouse or our supplier’s warehouse there are additional charges that we must pass onto you. For freight deliveries these charges can be very significant. So, please be careful when entering your shipping address and understand that changes can be costly! For ground deliveries, the cost of re-routing starts at $75 to $100 and can go even higher depending on the size of the package.
Carefully Inspect All Packages/Shipments
Please be sure to inspect all the packages/shipments you receive from us carefully upon delivery and “refuse” any shipments that appear to be damaged.
Sorry, We Cannot Ship to PO Boxes
Since the vast majority of our shipments are bulky and heavy, we ship using UPS or FedEx and, therefore, we cannot deliver to PO Boxes. If you really need something shipped to a PO Box, please contact us and we’ll see if we can make an exception. Any offers for free or flat-rate shipping do not apply to PO Boxes.
Expedited Shipping
We cannot guarantee any expedited shipping estimates. Once a package has left our facility, the responsibility falls upon the carrier to deliver any packages by a certain date. For this reason, we do not offer any refunds on expedited shipping charges. We recommend that you reach out to the carrier if you do not get your shipment in time.
Customers in Hawaii and Alaska
We are happy to ship our products to Hawaii and Alaska but unfortunately, the shipping rates to these states are considerably more expensive. For most products you’ll see calculated rates with UPS. If you’re trying to purchase something that must ship on a pallet via freight shipping, you’ll get a note in your cart and during the checkout process for those items that explains that shipping costs are NOT calculated or paid during checkout. Instead, we will contact you AFTER the purchase to let you know what the actual shipping rate will be. Keep in mind that all order cancellations are subject to a 3% fee to cover our credit card processing.
On The Road? What Address to Use?
We understand that many of our customers are nomadic and therefore don’t have a traditional mailing address. If you want to order something to the area that you’re in or expect to be in when the package arrives, we recommend this article that details options for General Delivery to a USPS location or other alternatives like UPS.
Truck Freight
Most of our refrigerators and air conditioners must be shipped with truck freight. We have flat-rate freight shipping costs for each state except Alaska and Hawaii. You can choose to have the item shipped directly to your residential address which includes a “lift gate” or to the nearest shipping terminal which, in most cases, is 10-60 miles from your address. If you live in rural area you might be farther from a terminal. Feel free to contact us if you’d like to check on the location of your nearest terminal or have any other questions.
Truck Freight Requires You To Be Present at Delivery – Consider Choosing Terminal Delivery
Many of our customers prefer to have their truck freight delivered to a nearby terminal for a few reasons. First, it’s typically less expensive. Also, if you have the freight delivered to your residence you must be there to accept the delivery. Typically the freight companies will schedule a fairly long window of time for the delivery and not give you a lot of notice. This means you have to be at the delivery location basically waiting on the freight company. In contrast, if you schedule delivery to a terminal, you can pick up the package at your convenience once it’s been delivered to the terminal.
