Tortoise Deliveries
£65 - England and Wales
£75 - Lower Scotland
£85 - Higher Scotland
*Please note that the above Tortoise Delivery charges (including packaging) are included (where applicable) in the drop-down 'Collection/Delivery option', before you add to basket.
Booking a tortoise delivery date
On receipt of any order for a Tortoise we will contact you via email (within 2-3 working days) to confirm your setup, temperatures are within the safe ranges and arrange the collection or delivery. Please double-check you have entered a valid email address before submitting your order.
If you haven’t received any correspondence from us within 3 working days after placing your order, firstly please check your spam folder as sometimes our emails end up here (you can avoid this by adding happytortoises@hotmail.com to your contacts), otherwise please use the contact us form and quote your order number.
How often does the courier deliver tortoises?
Our specialist reptile courier delivers ONCE A MONTH (typically towards the end of the month). The delivery run lasts a week and as the courier has 200+ collections and deliveries to make over the course of a week, they run to a tight schedule and dictate the collection and delivery dates and times. Some postcodes may incur additional delivery charges or we may not be able to arrange delivery to certain postcodes*.
**The next delivery run available starts 18th September 2023, cut-off for booking is 11th September 2023.
How long will my tortoise be with the courier?
Tortoises will be on board for as short a time as possible but can be up to 7 days with the courier. We supply food and water for each tortoise for their journey to you. Please contact us as soon as the courier has provided your delivery date so we can make sure your tortoise has enough food & water for their journey.
When is the cut-off for booking a tortoise delivery?
The cut-off for booking a tortoise delivery is 8:00pm on the Sunday, 1 week before the delivery run is due to start. Please contact us for next delivery run details.
We will not arrange a tortoise delivery without confirming your delivery contact details and also your availability for the delivery run week.
Any tortoise tables or accessories on the same order as your tortoise will be delivered ahead of time so you have time to get everything setup and ready for your new arrival.
When will I know my delivery date and time?
The courier will text you a delivery date (on the mobile number you entered when ordering your tortoise), 1-2 days before the delivery run starts.
Please note that deliveries can start as early as 6am and sometimes as late as 11pm (but usually no later than 8pm).
On the delivery day, the courier will text you a 2-hour time slot (they also send you a handy link to monitor their progress and ETA when you are the next on the list for delivery). If the delivery time slot is before 9am, you will be notified the evening before of the 2-hour timeslot.
Keep the day free on delivery day.
By purchasing a tortoise, you agree to be at the delivery address all day. If you need to pop out – you must make sure someone is available to wait in for your tortoise(s) at the delivery address. Delivery address can only be changed before booking the courier. The courier can't wait and will not be able to leave your tortoise(s) unattended as it will put the tortoise's life at risk. If the courier is delayed or ahead of time, they will notify you of the changed delivery time. You will be liable for charges incurred for care of tortoises and redelivery costs for missed deliveries.
Tortoise delivery weather restrictions
All tortoises are packed and transported in accordance with UK laws.
Each and every tortoise in our care will only be sent with our specialist reptile courier when it is safe to do so.
If the weather changes then we reserve the right to postpone your delivery until it is safe to transport your tortoise as their welfare is of utmost importance to us.
We will notify you immediately should we need to postpone a booking due to change in weather.
No livestock orders will be taken from customers outside of the UK.
Courier costs vary depending on location
£65 - England and Wales
£75 - Lower Scotland
£85 - Higher Scotland - excludes some postcodes*
The above prices include courier costs, travel box, food and water for their journey.
Courier availability during festive period
The last courier run we will be able to book in December (weather permitting) is typically towards the middle of the month, subject to availability. Courier bookings will resume as normal in January.
Tortoises and non-tortoise items on same order
If you purchase non-tortoise items in the same order as the tortoise then no additional delivery charges (on top of standard tortoise delivery charges) will apply for non-tortoise items. All non-tortoise items will posted separately. Please note if you purchase non-tortoise items under a different order to your tortoise, then additional delivery charges will apply and we will need to wait until you have received your tortoise table and/or accessories before we can book tortoise delivery. This is to prevent your tortoise arriving before you have a setup for them.
Upfront payment for courier, packaging, tortoise(s) and any other items listed on the same order are required before we are able to make the tortoise courier booking. The tortoise delivery fee (including packaging) has already been included in the drop-down 'Collection/Delivery option' where applicable, before you add to basket. All delivery costs are also inclusive of VAT at the standard rate.
You are responsible for providing us with the correct delivery address, delivery contact number and any special delivery instructions to help the driver find your address at the time of placing your order.
Please see our Terms and Conditions page for more information.
Non - Tortoise Deliveries
*** Free delivery on orders over £50 ***
Orders <2kg £4.95*
Orders <6kg £6.99*
Orders <10kg £10.99*
Orders over 10kg £15.99*
Please see Tortoise Deliveries section for delivery charges on orders that include Tortoises.
The delivery charge for all items purchased items from our online shop (excluding tortoises) will be:
£4.95* per order up to 2kg
£6.99* per order up to 6kg
£10.99* per order up to 10kg
£15.99* per order over 10kg
FREE DELIVERY is offered on any order over £50* (non-tortoise items only).
We aim to ship all items within 2-3 working days, but please allow up to 14 working days if your package(s) do not arrive straight away. Please check your spam folder for dispatch notification emails as sometimes our emails end up there (you can avoid this by adding happytortoises@hotmail.com to your contacts).
Where possible, orders will be packaged into the same parcel or box. Orders where multiple packages are required, will be marked as such on your dispatch note and could arrive on different delivery days/times.
The delivery fee (including packaging) is added to your order at the checkout. All delivery costs are also inclusive of VAT at the standard rate.
Returns/Refunds/Exchanges
Please see our Terms and Conditions page for Returns/Refunds/Exchanges information.
Collection
Please see our Collections page for information on how to collect your order in person.
*Deliveries to the following may not be possible or may incur added delivery fees: Scottish Highlands, Channel Isles, Isle of Man, Isle of Scilly, Isle of Wight, Outer Hebrides, Shetland Isles, Orkney Isle, Northern Ireland, Aberdeenshire. Please use the contact us form if you require further information on delivery costs for these areas. We are unable to ship outside the UK at the current time.