My order is over $75, why is the cart still showing a charge for shipping?

In order to qualify for free shipping, your cart must meet the following criteria (the cart will automatically apply free shipping when it meets these criteria):

Your order is over $75.00
Your order is under 10 lbs.
Your order is shipping to the contiguous 48-states. (Hawaii, Alaska and APO/FPO do not always qualify)

How long does it take before my order is shipped?

If items are in stock and we receive your order by 1pm (Eastern) Monday through Friday, excluding holidays, your order will generally be shipped the same business day, otherwise it will be shipped on the next business day. If you gave us your correct email address, you will receive an email confirmation (including a tracking number, if any) not before the third business day after your order has been placed or the next business day after your order has been shipped, whichever comes last. Please be sure you add "orders@bestbodyvitamins.com" to your safe senders list to ensure you receive timely order updates. Carriers may not deliver on weekends or holidays. We are not responsible for the delivery practices or policies of any carrier, or for any shipping delays caused by holidays and weekends.

When is my credit card charged?

Unless we made an error, your credit card will be charged when your order is shipped. Your credit card will not be charged for any items not shipped. This standard practice is consistent with the rules and regulations regarding our merchant account and credit card acceptance.

Does Bestbodyvitamins charge any additional fees?

Like any small business, we operate on a small profit margin, but we still have to pay fees to remain in business and offer our customers the convenience of options they expect when shopping on the internet. In order to continue to provide the best products and conveniences and stay in business, Bestbodyvitamins may add fees that we are charged by our service providers. The fees currently in effect on our store are:

Minimum Order Handling Fee ($2.99): If your order subtotal is less than $25, Bestbodyvitamins charges a fee to cover the cost of shipping materials and order handling. We hope this will also encourage our customers to save items in their cart to build a bigger order in order to save money on shipping fees per order.

What if I order an item that has been discontinued?

If items are discontinued and no longer available, we will remove those items on your order without prior notice and immediately ship the remaining items in stock. If this happens, we will adjust the charge to your credit card accordingly and notify you of the status of your order, if possible, via email, after the fact. Although we strive to keep our website as up-to-date as possible, it is nearly impossible for us to know in advance when an item may be discontinued by the manufacturer. Your patience and understanding is most appreciated in this regard.

What if I decide to cancel my order?

Please notify us immediately by email if you should decide to cancel your order. Once your cancellation has been acknowledged by us, and as long as we have not already shipped your order, we will not charge your credit card for any amount. If your order has left our warehouse and is in transit when we acknowledge your cancellation, then simply refuse to accept delivery from the carrier, have the package returned to us unopened, and we will give you a refund to your credit card account less the cost of shipping and handling after we receive your return and have checked the item(s) back into our inventory.

All orders are shipped FOB our warehouse. This means that we are not responsible for any order after it leaves our warehouse. Although we will attempt to assist you in locating any order, we are not responsible for lost orders due to carrier issues. No refunds or credits will be given for lost or stolen orders. When we ship your order via UPS or FedEx, we will provide you with a tracking number via email confirmation not before the next business day after your order has left our warehouse. You will then be able to track your order on the UPS or FedEx websites. Be advised that when shipping to a PO Box or APO/FPO address, USPS Priority Mail is not trackable. Except as provided under these Terms of Sale, all sales are final. No refunds or credits will be given.

Even with your great prices, do you offer wholesale discounts?

Congratulations on finding BestBodyVitamin.com - You are already saving 25-65% on thousands of quality eco-friendly products! BestBodyVitamin prices are so low, we cannot further discount our products. However, we do offer additional discounts when purchasing in bulk quantities ~ you need only order in quantities of 3 or more and the discounts will be automatically applied to your cart. For even greater savings you can buy 12 or more and save even more money.

What type of packaging materials do you use?

We have looked into several options for packing materials, including peanuts made from plant based starches. Unfortunately, corn and wheat, the most common plant starches used for this application, are both considered food allergens. Several of our customers suffer from severe food allergies which would make using peanuts from an allergen source to pack their food orders dangerous and irresponsible. As an alternative to the biodegradable peanuts, we have sourced packing peanuts that are made from 100% recycled polystyrene that are 100% recyclable through FP International. In 2004, FP International recycled over eight million pounds of expandable polystyrene in the U.S. and another three million pounds in the U.K. When you receive an order from us, simply store the peanuts and return them to any UPS or FedEx shipping station.

Can I order tax exempt from BestBodyVitamin?

We can set you up for tax exempt in California if you simply scan and email us your current California Reseller Certificate (customerservice@BestBodyVitamins.com). Your first order must be at least $250 in order to get tax exempt status. You need to also have registered an account with us on our website and provide us with your user name so we can register your tax exemption status.

Can I receive a catalog of all your great products?

At this time we do not offer a paper catalog. Since we are an eco-conscious online e-tailer we feel we are saving trees and helping the environment to boot ~ we hope you agree! Perhaps our shop by category page will help you to narrow down your search time and online usage: http://www.bestbodyvitamins.com/store/pg/32-Search-by-Category.aspx We believe that natural and organic products, created using environmentally responsible manufacturing techniques and in accordance with the principles of conservation and safe-land use, best benefit our customers, employees, and the world-at-large.

The product picture looks different that I remember - What Gives?

The manufacturers of our products are always innovating and updating their packaging. If their products change ingredients, then it is normal practice for the manufacturer to provide a new UPC number and it is deemed a new and different product. If they change their marketing, packaging, size or count, frequently this does NOT result in a UPC change and it is considered the same product with updated packaging. We are constantly working to keep our website as up to date as possible to match these changes but occasionally you might see a product picture, description or size with older packaging. If you do and are concerned with this, please email us prior to purchase and we will confirm the item for you.

What's the difference of using Debt Cards instead of a Credit Card?

As one of BestBodyVitamin's important debt or credit card customers, we want to make sure you are aware of the banking issues involving the use of debit cards. To do this we will need to explain the processing of your order once placed and the processing of your debit card:

1. After we receive your order our system automatically will process your debit card to obtain a pre-authorization. This initial authorization ensures there are sufficient funds available to pay for the order plus any costs associated with the order.
2. When this pre-authorization is approved by your bank, only then will we process your order and prepare it for shipping. Since it is a debit card your bank will "hold" the pre-authorized funds in your bank account until the final sale goes through after shipping.
3. After we have prepared your order for shipping we will process the debit card as part of the final sale process (plus shipping costs).
4. Once your bank processes the final sale, and depending on your bank's policy, the pre-authorization amount will be cleared by your bank and replaced by the final sale amount.
5. However please be aware that not all banks clear the pre-authorization for a debit card on the same day the final sale goes through. It may take days before your bank will clear these pre-authorizations. This may tie up your money in your bank account and could cause an overdraft and resulting overdraft fees.

Because of the above, BestBodyVitamin strongly suggests the use of a credit card instead of a debit card. In this way you can still charge your order, have additional time to pay the credit card, and eliminate any chance of overdraft fees associated with purchasing by debt card. BestBodyVitamin cannot be held responsible for a customer's decision to use a debit card, or for any overdraft fees that may occur based on the customer's bank policies.

Using a Debt Card: What are the issues with deferred posting of offline debit?

To the consumer, a debit transaction is perceived as occurring in real-time; i.e. the money is withdrawn from their account immediately following the authorization request from the merchant, which is the case when making an online debit purchase. However, when a purchase is made using the "credit" (offline debit) option, the transaction merely places an authorization hold on the customer's account; funds are not actually withdrawn until the transaction is reconciled and hard-posted to the customer's account, usually a few days later. This is in contrast to a typical credit card transaction; though it can also have a lag time of a few days before the transaction is posted to the account, it can be many days to a month or more before the consumer makes repayment with actual money. Because of this, in the case of a benign error by the merchant or bank, a debit transaction may cause more serious problems (e.g. money not accessible; overdrawn account) than in the case of a credit card transaction (e.g. credit not accessible; over credit limit). This is especially true in the United States, where writing "hot checks" is a crime in every state, but exceeding your credit limit is not.

Please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authorization_hold for more information.

We are providing this information as a service to our customers.