Terms and Conditions

Return Policy

We want your order to be right.

If we ship the wrong item to you, we will provide a return shipping label, as well as a full refund upon receiving the returned item in the same, new and unused condition.

If you make a mistake, we want to be helpful.

If you accidentally purchase the wrong item, we offer a 15-day window to c ontact us to request a return. You may ship the item back to us in new and unused condition at your expense. Once we receive the item, we will provide either a refund, or in-store credit at our discretion, depending on the circumstances. A 15-25% restocking fee may apply.

#Manufacturers warranties.

Manufacturer defects or issues with the tool that are warranty related are handled according to the warranty policy of the manufacturer, not according to our return policy. We will do our part within the policy of the manufacturer in helping to get the issue resolved.

#Restocking fees.

We pay shipping charges on any item that is sold and shipped through the website. Items that meet the above return criteria are subject to restock fees to recoup those expenses, especially when it's a refund and not an in-store credit.

Also, some items that ship directly from the manufacturer/distributor are returned directly to the manufacturer/distributor, and are subject to the restocking fees, return shipping policies, and return time frame windows of the manufacturer/distributor. For example, a TapeTech® Bazooka® Continuous Flow Set would generate significant restocking fees at 15-25%, plus return freight. We are a small family owned business and cannot absorb that cost, so we ask that those purchases be well thought through.

#Canceling orders

Because we try to get orders shipped as quickly as possible, we have a very small window to cancel an order. Orders can be shipped or sent to our vendors for drop shipment within one hour of the time of purchase. Once an item has shipped or been sent to our vendor for drop shipment, that order can not be canceled, but would have to be returned according to our return policy.

#Cancellation fees

We pay payment processing fees on all purchases made through our website. PayPal refunds us the fee we pay when an order is canceled, so orders that were paid for though PayPal, and have not been shipped or sent through to distribution are eligible for a full refund. Orders made with credit cards which get canceled are however subject to a 2-3% cancellation fee, as these fees are final.

Always feel free to ask before you buy.

If you are unsure what the return scenario will be with any given purchase, please feel free to contact us and we will gladly explain prior to your purchase!

Shipping Policy

Shipping methods

The following shipping methods are used for Great Lakes Taping Tools orders:

USPS Ground Advantage Shipping
USPS Priority Shipping
FedEx
UPS
XPO Logistics

Note: Some items will require signature confirmation for delivery. The customer is responsible either to have someone available at the residence to sign for the package, or to contact the carrier and arrange a pick up.

# Free shipping

Individual Items marked "Ships FREE" qualify for free shipping within the continental US. Some of those smaller items qualify for free USPS Ground Advantage shipping but can be upgraded to faster Priority shipping at the time of checkout. Shipping rates apply for Hawaii and Alaska.

We also offer:

Free USPS Ground Advantage shipping on all orders of $75 that weigh less than 16 oz
Free USPS Ground Advantage shipping on all orders over $200.

# Tracking

You will be automatically emailed when tracking information becomes available. For Drop Shipments, it's usually the day after the order ships, but can be longer depending on the distributor or manufacturer. On orders that ship direct, tracking information will be made available shortly after the shipping label is generated. Tracking information will also be stored in your account, when you click on each individual order.

# Fulfillment

We are always aiming to get in-stock orders out the same day they are ordered. Most in-stock orders deliver to the customer between 3-5 days from the time they are ordered, when they are placed within the continental US. It's not uncommon however for the order to ship out on the following business day because it came in later in the afternoon, or for other reasons. The following factors affect fulfillment times:

The time of day that the order was placed (Eastern Standard Time)
The shipping method selected
The address we are shipping to
If we need to verify a transaction that was flagged by our system

# Back orders / Pre-order status

Some products, or products within a set might be on back order from the manufacturer, or temporarily out of stock. We have a flagging system in place which changes the text of the Add to Cart button to "PRE-ORDER". Clicking the "PRE-ORDER" button simply adds the item to the cart, but notifies you of the delay. The products marked for PRE-ORDER are considered sold to you out of the incoming inventory that we have coming from the factory, placing you in a queue based on the time of purchase. If you purchase a tool set which contains products that are on back order, we will try to ship whatever of your order is in stock immediately, and contact you via email to give you an estimated time of arrival on the remainder of your order. You can also feel free to Contact us if you want any info on estimated lead times prior to placing your order.

Sometimes we forget to mark an item as "PRE-ORDER", or we mark it as available before it's in stock because we know it is in route to us. In the event that we are out of stock on something that is not marked "PRE-ORDER", we try to notify the customer immediately of the delay. With Canadian manufacturers like NorthStar and Columbia, that wait can be a little longer.

# Drop shipments

Some items ship directly from the factory or distribution center. The customer is responsible to be at the residence or make accommodations to pick his item up from the carrier that the factory or distribution center uses.

# Returned shipments

Shipments that are returned due to incorrect address information can be resent to the customer, but there will be shipping charges for the second shipment. The initial shipping charge only covers the initial shipment. Free shipping only covers the initial shipment as well. If the customer decides they want to return the item instead, the initial shipping charge is not refundable.

# Shipping to Canada

We do offer international shipping to Canada from our website. Orders under $400 can be shipped via the United States Postal Service (USPS) and will arrive to you via Canada Post. Orders over $400 will ship via FedEx Ground. FedEx Ground can get very expensive on large packages, so we would encourage you to contact us as we might be able to provide you a shipping discount on larger orders.

International shipping

We can also cater to other international customers on an individual basis. If you need to place an order and have it shipped internationally, and you are not a resident of the USA or Canada, please contact us for a freight quote, and to arrange a payment method.

Any questions? Contact us.

Privacy Policy

Your privacy and security are very important to us.

We recognize and respect your need for privacy and security as you visit Great Lakes Taping Tools. When you visit our site to view any pages, read product information, or watch video guides, you do so without telling us who you are and without revealing any personal information. While we do not collect identifying information about visitors to our site, we do use standard software to collect information for the strict purpose of tracking activity on our site. This allows us to better understand how many people use our site and which pages and features are most popular. The only information we normally collect and store is:

The name of your Internet service provider
Your approximate city, state and country from which you are accessing our site (using Google Analytics)
The web site that referred you to us (if any)
The date and time the pages were accessed
The page or pages you requested

We do not store credit card information on our servers. Payment transactions are submitted directly from your browser to our secure payment gateway.

We reserve the right to change our privacy policy. A revised policy statement will only apply to data collected subsequent to its effective date. Any revisions will be posted at least 30 days prior to its effective date.

There are instances where you may elect to provide us with personal information. If you fill out our contact form or send us email you are transmitting the information that appears to you in the form or the message. This will typically include information like your name, mailing address, email address, the kind of request you are making, and any other information necessary to fulfill your request. You never transmit personally identifying information that you do not enter yourself. And this is always your option; this information cannot be collected unless you specifically elect to send it to us. This information is used internally only for the purpose of fulfilling the request or for contacting you directly and is not given or sold to any other organization.

We hope you find our website useful and informative and are always willing to answer questions and receive suggestions. If you have either, please contact us.