Shipping, Live Arrival & Returns

Non-Express live orders: Monday through Wednesday

Express & Overnight live orders: Monday through Thursday

Dry goods: Monday through Friday

These are our normal shipping days and are not guaranteed shipment dates.

Shipping schedules may change because of holidays, extreme weather, carrier delays, product availability, or other conditions that could affect the safe delivery of live feeders.

We schedule live shipments to reduce the likelihood that live insects will remain in carrier facilities over weekends or during periods when delivery delays are more likely.

Our shipping schedule is designed around the welfare of the feeders and the likelihood of successful delivery.

Tracking information may be created before the carrier physically receives your package. Carrier tracking normally begins updating after the first acceptance or facility scan.

Customers are responsible for monitoring tracking information for live shipments.

Yes.

Extreme heat, freezing temperatures, storms, carrier disruptions, or other unsafe conditions may require us to delay shipment of live products.

SpoodFood may place a live order on a temporary weather hold when we believe shipping conditions create an unreasonable risk to the animals.

The purpose of a weather hold is to improve the likelihood that your order arrives safely. When practical, orders held because of weather will ship when conditions improve.

Carrier delays are outside SpoodFood's direct control.

If an eligible live shipment is delayed and arrives in poor condition, you must contact us within the Live Arrival Guarantee claim period.

We will review the tracking history, shipping method, weather conditions, delivery conditions, transit time, and condition of the live product when evaluating the claim.

Yes.

Customers are responsible for monitoring tracking and retrieving live shipments promptly after delivery.

Live insects should not be left in:

• Mailboxes
• Parcel lockers for extended periods
• Vehicles
• Direct sunlight
• Exposed porches
• Areas subject to excessive heat or cold

Live shipments should be brought indoors as soon as reasonably possible after delivery.

Our Live Arrival Guarantee applies only to eligible live orders shipped using:

• Express
• 2-Day
• Overnight

Orders shipped using other methods may not qualify for live-arrival coverage.

Selecting an eligible shipping service does not guarantee coverage if the other requirements of this policy are not met.

If a live product arrives dead, severely damaged, or otherwise appears to have been adversely affected during shipment, you must contact SpoodFood within 2 hours of the carrier-recorded delivery time.

Please provide:

• Your order number
• A description of the problem
• Clear photographs of the affected live product
• Photographs of the packaging when relevant

Claims submitted more than 2 hours after the carrier-recorded delivery time may not be eligible for replacement, store credit, or refund under the Live Arrival Guarantee.

The 2-hour reporting period helps us distinguish shipping-related issues from conditions that may occur after delivery and allows us to evaluate claims fairly and consistently.

We may review:

• Carrier tracking history
• Transit time
• Shipping method
• Weather conditions
• Delivery location and conditions
• Time between delivery and the claim
• Photographs provided
• Condition of the packaging and live product

Approved claims may result in a:

• Replacement
• Store credit
• Partial refund
• Refund

The appropriate resolution is determined based on the circumstances of the individual order. Shipping charges are not automatically refundable.

Live-arrival coverage may be denied or limited when the problem is caused or contributed to by circumstances including:

• A claim submitted more than 2 hours after carrier-recorded delivery
• An incorrect or incomplete shipping address provided by the customer
• Failure to retrieve the package promptly after delivery
• A package left in excessive heat, cold, direct sunlight, a mailbox, vehicle, or other unsafe environment
• A customer-requested carrier hold
• A customer-requested reroute or delivery change
• Refusal of delivery
• Use of a shipping method that is not eligible for the Live Arrival Guarantee
• Damage occurring after delivery
• Failure to provide reasonable photographic evidence when requested

Each claim is evaluated individually based on the circumstances of the shipment.

Not necessarily.

A fruit fly culture may contain eggs, larvae, pupae, and developing flies even when few or no adult flies are immediately visible.

Temperature changes during shipping can also temporarily reduce visible activity.

Allow the culture to stabilize at normal room temperature before determining that it has failed.

If you believe a fruit fly culture was damaged or killed during shipment, you must still contact us within 2 hours of the carrier-recorded delivery time to preserve eligibility under the Live Arrival Guarantee.

Please include clear photographs of the culture and packaging.

No.

Live feeders, fruit fly cultures, larvae, pupae, and other live or perishable biological products cannot be returned.

If there is a problem with a live order, it must be handled under the applicable Live Arrival Guarantee or other order-resolution process.

Do not mail live products back to SpoodFood unless we specifically instruct you to do so.

Possibly.

Please contact us before returning any dry-good item.

Return eligibility may depend on:

• The type of item
• The reason for the return
• Whether the item has been used
• Whether the item is in its original condition
• Whether the original packaging is available

Unless the product is defective, damaged, or incorrect due to an error by SpoodFood, the customer may be responsible for return shipping.

Do not send a return without contacting us first and receiving instructions.

Please inspect your order after delivery.

If you receive an incorrect, damaged, or defective non-live product, contact us promptly and provide:

• Your order number
• A description of the problem
• Clear photographs of the item
• Photographs of the packaging when relevant

We will review the issue and determine the appropriate resolution.

Contact us as quickly as possible.

If your order has not yet been packed, processed, or entered the shipping workflow, we may be able to modify or cancel it.

Once an order has been packed, transferred to a carrier, or otherwise entered fulfillment, changes or cancellations may no longer be possible.

Submitting a cancellation request does not guarantee that the order can be cancelled.

Contact us immediately.

Customers are responsible for providing a complete and accurate shipping address at checkout.

If you notify us before the order ships, we may be able to correct the address.

Once the package has been transferred to the carrier, we may not be able to modify or redirect the shipment.

Delivery problems resulting from an incorrect or incomplete address supplied by the customer may not qualify for replacement, store credit, or refund.

Customer-requested carrier rerouting may also affect Live Arrival Guarantee eligibility.

Carrier tracking showing a package as Delivered is considered the official delivery time for purposes of our Live Arrival Guarantee.

The 2-hour claim period begins at the carrier-recorded delivery time.

Customers should monitor tracking and make reasonable arrangements to retrieve live shipments promptly.

Approved refunds are normally issued to the original payment method when possible.

After SpoodFood processes a refund, your bank, card issuer, or payment provider may require additional time to post the credit to your account.

Shipping charges are not automatically refundable and may remain non-refundable depending on the circumstances of the order.

Email: sales@spoodfood.com

Phone: 858-201-6838

Location: San Diego, California

Please include your order number when contacting us about an existing order.