Medievalbookshop — small print for medieval people

Bargain books on the Middle Ages and all related subjects

GENERAL TERMS & CONDITIONS

~(that’s "small print" to you and me —
if it’s too small you can use your browser’s "increase font size" command)~

Current as of August 1st, 2023

If you feel there is any ambiguity below, or that anything is not covered, you are welcome to email your question at any time using the link at the top of this page.

At this date the medievalbookshop site is under revision and all listings should be taken as not intended for public view, except where an individual listing specifically states otherwise. It is understood and accepted that search engines and other external links might lead potential customers into closed-off parts of the site, and in such cases every effort will be made to fulfil their requests for the books they require.

All items listed for sale by medievalbookshop are offered subject to these terms and conditions, and by requesting to reserve or buy any item from medievalbookshop you acknowledge that you have read and and that you accept these terms and conditions. Your order will not be processed without such acceptance. Your statutory rights under English law are not affected.

Statement of intent. The terms and conditions as stated on this page and throughout this web site should be construed as intending mutual benefit between the users or customers of this web site and its operators (we supply goods, you pay for them). If ambiguity exists it should be construed as intending the least possible harm loss or inconvenience to any party.

Subject to this, while these terms and conditions attempt to cover a wide variety of contingencies and situations, if a specific clause is not provided below the relevant customary implied terms should be taken as intended in its absence.

These terms and conditions apply to any transaction with medievalbookshop including both the sale of books and any use of this web site, and are subject to the understanding that the internet is a dynamic medium, and that these terms and conditions and their associated pages will be reviewed and may be modified regularly in substance and/or detail and/or effect, and in all cases without further notice than is given in this paragraph. When you confirm an order, this terms and conditions page and the associated pages that are current at the date of that confirmation will apply, and will apply only to that one order. The texts on the medievalbookshop “Privacy policy", "Access policy", “How to order", “Returns policy", “book descriptions policy", and “Payment options" pages are the associated pages referred to above and constitute part of these terms and conditions. The texts on these seven pages at the date given at the head of this page supersede any terms or agreements previous to that date. Errors and Omissions Excepted, naturally.

Paypal is a third‑party service provider with no connection to medievalbookshop, so use of their facilities is governed by their own terms and conditions — see the PayPal website for full details.

This site operates through only two URLs — www.medievalbookshop.co.uk and www.medievalbookshop.com — links provided from this site to pages at any other domain are to third‑party sites and neither medievalbookshop nor its operators or contractors accept any responsibility for the content or any other aspect of any web site outside of the two domains listed in this paragraph.

Anyone claiming to represent medievalbookshop from any other variation or domain address probably doesn’t (i.e., any domain that is NOT .co.uk or .com), though this does not preclude the possibility of medievalbookshop taking on additional domains in the future. See also the note on information pages below. This web site has no affiliation with any other site, domain, individual or company that may use the name “medievalbookshop” or any variation or similar name, whether as a business name, a domain name, or in any other context. The primary business of this site is the selling of books on medieval and related themes, as well as occasional related items (CDs, videos, etc). You use this site at your own risk, and you accept that medievalbookshop, its operators and contractors cannot be responsible for any consequences arising from your own actions or interpretations, or from any third party action that affects this site, whether hostile or otherwise.

The remaining notes are in roughly alphabetical, rather than logical, order.

Address medievalbookshop may be contacted at Box MBS, 41 The Crescent, Watford, WD18 OAD, United Kingdom. Please note that there is not a physical shop at this address. The business operates part time and does not have any retail outlets or other premises open to the public.

All books in all categories are offered as imperfect. This includes all unused books such as remainders and returns from shops and publishers. By their nature returns, secondhand and used books contain all manner of unsightly and disgusting imperfections. No absolute guarantee is offered against any item, but all books are returnable as described in the paragraph headed Returns below.

Addthis. Many page on this site offer a link-sharing facility. This is provided by AddThis, which is a third party company and has no connection to medievalbookshop. AddThis operates by serving ads, which you may choose not to receive, and it will serve cookies to your device. You can find their full terms and conditions at http://www.addthis.com

Amazon. Some pages contain links to Amazon UK. These will take you away from the medievalbookshop web site; any purchase consequent to following such links involves a third‑party transaction over which medievalbookshop has no control, and which is subject to the separate terms and conditions listed on the Amazon website.

Complaints. Other than in exceptional circumstances, any complaint will be acknowledged within five working days of its receipt. Every reasonable attempt will be made to resolve any dispute in confidence and within thirty working days.

Commencement of contract. Each individual sale will be treated as a new contract, which will be assumed to start at the time payment is received by medievalbookshop after having gone through the reservation and confirmation process outlined on the Ordering pages. Prior to this you may make reservations without obligation, and without imposing any obligation on medievalbookshop or its owners, representatives or employees. Notwithstanding any such commencement, no obligation will arise where payment is not received for any reason, and no contract will commence where you despatch payment without first ensuring both the availability of the goods you require and the cost of posting them to you; similarly no contract will commence where you despatch an incorrect payment. If you are a repeat customer, goods may be supplied on invoice, in which case each contract will be assumed to start at the time any requested goods are despatched to you.

Conflict of laws. By placing an order with medievalbookshop you agree that your transaction will be governed by English law, and that if this in any way conflicts with the law of your own country, English law shall take precedence. If any such situation should arise, this paragraph gives notice of intent to agree a solution that will cause the least possible harm loss or other inconvenience to all parties involved. You agree to give notice of any such potential conflict as soon as possible.

Copyright. So far as it goes, any original material on this site which is capable of being subject to intellectual property rights should be construed as belonging to the operators or designers of this web site where it does not clearly belong to anyone else, and any available rights are reserved on such material. Where source code from third parties is used in the construction of this site, any associated copyright notices are reproduced in source comments as a matter of policy (and courtesy). You are welcome to re-use any source code from this site within the customary terms of fair use, where doing so will not adversely affect medievalbookshop’s business, and where reproduction is not specifically forbidden, with any acknowledgement that may be appropriate, and with the proviso that you don’t then pass it off as all your own work. Not that you’d want to.

Currency. medievalbookshop quotes all prices in sterling — you can pay with other currencies (also with credit cards or applepay) if you use PayPal. Conversion will be made by Paypal using their own daily exchange rate. If a refund should be necessary, the amount refunded will be the sterling amount stated in the original transaction, and the conversion rate (and therefore the amount refunded) may differ from that original amount.

Customs duties and local taxes. medievalbookshop is not currently V.A.T. registered, and printed books are zero-rated for V.A.T. in the United Kingdom. Goods are supplied on the understanding that the customer will meet in full any V.A.T. or other duties or taxes that might arise, and that the customer indemnifies medievalbookshop against any demand whatsoever for duties or taxes in any form that might arise.

Date. If dates are hard coded on this web site or in any communication or transaction with medievalbookshop, the date current in the British Isles is intended, using either Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) or British Summer Time (BST) if appropriate, according to whichever is in operation at the time.

Descriptions. Every effort is made to describe used books honestly, according to the criteria and format set out on the “book descriptions" page on this web site. However, any description is entirely subjective and it is accepted that your understanding of any wording may not be what was intended. In the case of the unused bargains, a description of  book’s content is usually copied from publisher’s matter, and should be treated with extra caution, as it is a sales blurb and not an objective opinion. To allow you to reassure yourself about what you are buying, ordering happens in two stages — you first reserve the title(s) you are interested in, and at this stage it is your responsibility to make any enquiries necessary to satisfy yourself as to any book’s condition, and that it is the book and edition you think it is. By proceeding to the second stage of confirming the order and despatching your cheque, you agree that you have satisfied yourself and that you accept the wording of the descriptions offered as reasonable.

Books offered by medievalbookshop are described in a way that should allow you to form an accurate opinion of their general condition, excepting that certain factors common to used books, such as previous ownership marks, previous sellers’ pricing, minor pencil annotation, etc., are likely to be present and will not be described. See the descriptions policy page for a detailed account of how each book is assessed. Books are not generally offered as collectable items, except where specifically stated. You are encouraged and welcome to make detailed enquiries to satisfy yourself about the condition or content of any item before confirming your order (use the email link at the top of this page to get in touch); by confirming your order and making payment, you agree that you are satisfied with the description of the item(s).

Email from medievalbookshop is not encrypted and therefore may be liable to external compromise. In requesting to join the medievalbookshop mailing list you agree that it is your own responsibility to protect your own devices and particularly to scan all incoming email and any attachments for viruses, worms, trojan horses, and similar hazards. As viruses and compromises of security are inherent risks in the ordinary use of email, medievalbookshop, its operators and contractors, do not, to the extent permitted by law, accept any liability whatsoever for any virus infection or external compromise of security or confidentiality in relation to transmissions sent by email. If a virus is discovered in our systems, action will be taken to neutralise its effects and prevent its further transmission — if necessary this will include suspending services. On your part, you agree to take any reasonable steps to prevent transmission of viruses etc. from your own devices to medievalbookshop, and you can use the email link at the top of this page to let us know at once if you believe any virus or other risk may have been transmitted, inadvertently or otherwise. It is now becoming more common for ISPs and email providers to disinfect their customers' email at point of transmission — however, this is something you should check with your own ISP or email provider.

All legitimate emails will be replied to: however no responsibility is accepted where the reply address is unavailable for any reason (for example, if the host server implements a ‘whitelisting’ policy that blocks or bounces replies from other servers).

Medievalbookshop is a part‑time business. In particular, please note that email may be checked only once a day (or less if on vacation), but any email received will be replied to as soon and as fully as necessary. medievalbookshop cannot be held liable for any email that is not received in either direction, but a receipt button will always be responded to where one is present. You are responsible for supplying a working email address: if email is returned as undeliverable from the address you supply, no further attempt will be made to contact you at that address.

If you succumb to the urge to submit lavish praise, all or part of it may be quoted out of context in testimonials, publicity material, or elsewhere; you should state at the time of submission if this is not acceptable.

‘First come, first served’ In most cases, items offered by medievalbookshop (other than unused bargains) are single copies, but where another copy is available and the one listed has been reserved or sold, you will be offered a choice of any others that are in stock. Where there is only one copy of an item, your email address will usually be kept on file so that you can be notified if another copy becomes available in the future.

Force majeure. medievalbookshop and its operators or contractors will not have any liability under any contract and may cancel or amend any order if prevented or delayed from fulfilling it by circumstances outside any reasonable control, subject to having made all reasonable efforts towards fulfilment.

Governing law. medievalbookshop operates from England. This means it is subject to English law, and in the event of any dispute, you agree to arbitration under English law, and that where any conflict of law arises English law shall take precedence. In confirming your order, you agree to use and be bound by English law as it stands at the date when you confirm your order as the body of law governing your contract with medievalbookshop. Incidentally, it also means that any communication can be monitored without your knowledge or agreement, and without our knowledge or agreement, by any party granted a license under England’s Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, and that even if we inadvertently became aware of it we wouldn’t be allowed to tell anyone, including you.

Hosting. The medievalbookshop site is hosted by Media Munch, a third party with no connection to medievalbookshop. They would be delighted to send a quote for providing a similar service for you: you can find their details at www.mediamunch.co.uk

Information pages. There are a number of pages on this site which utilise information and material provided by third parties, and this includes all links to third party sites — that is, any location at any site that isn’t constructively owned by www.medievalbookshop.co.uk. A number of defunct pages also include such information: they are no longer available from this site, but you may still find old cached versions when you make web searches (these include the diary, the new books pages, and the helpful links pages). Material on these pages is provided without any guarantee and may be inaccurate or out of date, and you accept full responsibility for checking any details provided before acting on them in any way. This includes the new books pages, most of which provide links for purchasing from Amazon or similar third‑party sites.

No representation is offered or to be inferred about any third party link, with regard to its legality, its suitability for any given type of user, that it is what it purports to be, or in any other respect. Suggestions for amendments or deletions can be emailed to the address at the top of this page and they will be posted on the web site as soon as possible. medievalbookshop reserves the right to amend or refuse any material submitted, on grounds of illegibility, irrelevance, illegality, or for any other reason that might seem applicable. In submitting any material, you agree to accept responsibility in full for the accuracy and any consequences arising from that material. medievalbookshop is not responsible for any aspect of any third party site, and accepts no responsibility for any interpretation of any details provided. All such material is freely provided on the understanding that you fully indemnify medievalbookshop and its operators and contractors against any legal or other action arising from your use or interpretation.

Language. medievalbookshop operates in English in all its dealings, and where any dispute as to meaning arises, the standard English of Great Britain will be given preference, particularly where there is a customary or other likely conflict of meaning between this and any other variety of English. If a customer wishes to correspond in any other language, they agree to bear the cost of any translation work that becomes necessary. On the web site and in the mailouts, descriptions of books may reproduce wording in their original language where this is not English, but transactions regarding these items will still be conducted in English.

Limitation of liability. medievalbookshop will not be liable by way of representation (unless fraudulent), common law duty or under contract for any indirect, special, or consequential loss or damage or loss of profits (whether caused by our negligence or that of our contractors or agents or otherwise) arising in connection with the supply of products or their use by you or for any loss or retrieval of data. Our entire liability in connection with any contract or in any context will not exceed one and a half times the purchase price of the products in question.

‘Offers invited’. If an item description uses the phrase ‘offers invited’ instead of stating a price, this paragraph is confirmation that the item is available at the date of its inclusion in a list, and that any reasonable offers will be considered. Once an offer has been accepted the item will not then be available to anyone making a higher offer so long as the first bidder confirms their order and agrees the total price including postage and any other charges, and on condition that this cost is received by medievalbookshop as cleared funds within one calendar month of that order confirmation. After this month has expired, the item may be re-offered for sale without further enquiry by medievalbookshop, or may be offered to any other bidder. Inclusion of such an item in any list constitutes an invitation to tender only, and medievalbookshop and its operators reserve the right to refuse any offer or to withdraw the item at any time, unequivocally and without explanation. Enquiries as to the final result of any particular sale may be directed to contact links at the top of this page, but no personal details about any buyers will be supplied.

Orders will not be despatched until funds are cleared. Customers agree to meet the cost of any charges arising from the transaction. If a price does not specifically state ‘P&P inc.’, customers agree to meet the cost of postage and packing. The total cost will be included as part of confirmation of your reservation. Once you have confirmed your reservation and agreed to the price, items will be held in your name for up to one calendar month to allow time for funds to arrive and be cleared (the period may be shorter if several customers enquire after the same title). After this period you will be contacted to see if you want to continue your reservation, but if no reply is received they may be either re-offered to other customers or returned to stock without making any further enquiry to you.

If invoicing arrangements are granted, these may be discontinued at any time without further notice than that given in this paragraph. In particular, where invoices are outstanding we reserve the right to not process any further orders until all previous invoices have been paid in full.

PayPal. You can pay for items on this site using PayPal. This initiates a third‑party transaction which is subject to the separate terms and conditions detailed on the PayPal website. Medievalbookshop has no connection with the operators of this service.

Postage and transit. With regard to postage and packaging costs, there are currently two classes of listing on this site. Many listings now list an inclusive price by stating ιP&P inc.’. For older listings that do not specifically state this, customers agree to meet the cost of postage and packing – the total cost will be notified when your reservation is confirmed.

Where P&P is included in the price, the package will be posted with Royal Mail using their standard second class post service; no signature will be required on delivery except where this is specifically stated beside the price, and customers accept responsibility for providing an address where delivery can be made safely: to comply with Paypal’s terms and conditions, your delivery address should be the same as the address registered in your Paypal account. At most times of the year delivery should take around two to four days, but this may be longer during busy periods such as Christmas, or at other unusual times such as during strike action. (And yes, since you ask, we have in the past experienced delays due to volcanic activity).

Where P&P is included in the price and you require other options such as first class delivery, or insured or signed-for delivery, etc., these will be charged extra, pro rata. Please notify your requirements when making your reservation. Delivery is not currently available outside the U.K. No responsibility can be accepted by medievalbookshop for any item from the time at which it is passed to the post office or any other carrier.

Previous ownership. By the nature of the secondhand and used book trade, absolute guarantees can rarely be made about any book’s previous ownership; items may hace had several previous owners, and may pass through several dealers’ hands. All items listed by medievalbookshop are offered in good faith as to their sound title, and you can use the contact links at the top of this page to request details of the provenance of any item offered for sale, so far as such details can be established, and with the proviso that personal details of third parties will not be disclosed except where required by law or similar exceptional circumstances. Any prospective seller may be asked to provide evidence of ownership of any item that they wish to sell to medievalbookshop, and the right is reserved to make any enquiries that might seem necessary. In listings of ex‑library books, the name of the originating library will be stated in the ‘condition’ line (except, rarely, where this has been removed in some manner); libraries often do not cancel their ownership marks when selling books, but medievalbookshop will not offer ex‑library or any other items where there is reason to believe they may have been stolen.

Pricing. Any price on this web site may be increased or decreased at any time without further notice than that given in this paragraph. Any price stated on this web site and in any mailouts from medievalbookshop has the status of an invitation to treat and is not intended as an offer or as a statement of intent to form a contract. If a price is posted in error it will be corrected at the earliest opportunity and the amended price will apply from then on.

Any book may show older pricing, whether in print as part of the book, or marked by previous sellers in pencil or ink or other means such as non-removable stickers: except on very recent publications, such prices will usually be less than the price currently being asked by medievalbookshop. This site may list two or more separate copies of a similar item or title at different prices: all books offered are priced individually, reflecting a number of factors, including an individual item’s condition and rarity, its current retail price, and the amount paid for it to its previous vendor. Copies of most items offered by medievalbookshop are likely to be available from other vendors at other prices.

It should also be noted that medievalbookshop has been operating for over twenty years, and older versions of the site are stored by archiving projects including but not limited to Wayback Machine and the UK Web Archive. Although such archived material will show up in search results, medievalbookshop has no connection with or control over any such project or site, and customers should be aware that pages stored in this way will display stock which has been sold and older pricing which is no longer valid.

Privacy and data protection policy. This paragraph is notification that your email address and any personal details that you supply will be stored in one or more digital or other formats. This information will not be made available to third parties, except where required by law or similar exceptional circumstances. This site does not transmit cookies on its own behalf, and does not use other means to obtain personal information. See the separate privacy policy page for fuller details.

Returns. medievalbookshop does not formally supply items on approval. However, if for any reason you are not completely satisfied with an item, you are welcome to return it. You will receive a full refund on the cost of the book if it is returned within 30 days of the date on your delivery note or invoice, and in its original condition. Please check all items immediately on their arrival — postage and packing costs are only refundable if the book is not as described or was damaged in the post. When returning an item please send an email first to notify that you are doing so; pack it securely (reusing the original packaging if possible) and always obtain a receipt from the Post Office as this will include a unique tracking number for your package. Click here to view the returns policy in full.

Selling your books. When books are offered for sale to medievalbookshop, any prices stated in response have the status of estimates only, sight unseen and based on such details as are supplied by the seller, and such prices will usually be modified after inspection of the items being offered. Any such statement of price is strictly not binding on either party; it is not a statement by medievalbookshop of intent to purchase, and is not intended to create any contract, and is absolutely conditional upon a satisfactory physical inspection of the items being offered. Sellers may be asked to provide evidence of their good title to any item offered, particularly in the case of rare books or ex‑library books. Upon completion of payment the seller will be required to sign a printed receipt which will include their legitimate contact details.

Severability. If any part of this page or its associated material is unenforcable or void, the remainder is not affected and will continue in force and effect. “Associated material” includes the medievalbookshop Privacy policy, Access policy, How to order, Returns policy, book descriptions policy and Payment options pages, and any other part of this web site where terms or conditions are stated.

Signed editions. No guarantee can be offered as to the authenticity or otherwise of any signatures or inscriptions included in a book’s description, but the normal Returns policy does apply. A scan of the relevant material can be supplied on request. This disclaimer does not apply where medievalbookshop has commissioned a signing.

Technical difficulties. You can use the contact links at the top of this page to notify details of a problem. In particular, you may wish to use the snailmail link if email appears to be not working. medievalbookshop does not provide a technical support service and it is not in 24-hour operation, but you will get a response as soon as possible. Before getting in touch, please check to ensure that the problem is not being caused at your ISP or web host, or by any settings on your own computer. Bear in mind that web traffic may be especially heavy at certain times of day, either at your ISP or worldwide, and this may slow down reception on your PC. The pages on this site contain little complex coding and should be compatible with most browsers other than very old ones that can’t read table formatting or javascript. medievalbookshop offers no guarantee of being able to resolve any technical matter.

Termination of business. Medievalbookshop may be terminated at any time without any further notice than that given in this paragraph. In any such circumstance, all paid-for orders would be honoured and despatched. Any items reserved but not paid for would remain property of medievalbookshop and would constitute part of the assets of the business; all such outstanding and unpaid reservations would be cancelled automatically and without further notice than is given in this paragraph.

At this date the bookselling side of the business is dormant but not terminated; as stated elsewhere on this site, reasonable effort will be made to fulfil customers’ orders during this period. At this date no decision has been made whether the bookselling business might be relaunched at a later date, or might be fully terminated as stated above. The graphic design side of the operation remains open for business and enquiries are welcome.

Transfer of property. No order shall be deemed as accepted by medievalbookshop until the goods have been despatched and a despatch note issued. For sale of goods purposes transfer of property in any item shall be deemed, in the case of pre-paid orders, to take place after payment in full has been cleared into medievalbookshop’s bank account and when you take delivery of that item from the carrier, or when the carrier leaves it at your requested delivery address. You accept full responsibility for providing a delivery address at which goods can be delivered or can safely be left. Where an invoice is issued no transfer of property shall be deemed to have taken place until that invoice has been settled in full, notwithstanding despatch or delivery of any part of the order which it covers, and neither despatch nor delivery may be taken to imply any intent to transfer title.

You should inspect all items thoroughly and notify medievalbookshop immediately of any damage to the contents of your package(s) so that their return and your refund can be arranged. As most items are stocked as single copies, refund will usually be the only option available in such circumstances, though the damaged goods may be reoffered for sale at a new price once they have been returned to medievalbookshop. You should notify medievalbookshop immediately if any part of your order has not been received within a reasonable time — in the UK, this period may be no longer than one month after posting; packages may take up to three months or longer outside the UK, depending on their destination and the method of carriage, but please get in touch using the links at the top of this page if you have any concerns.

Medievalbookshop reserves the right to refuse dealings with anyone at any time without explanation. Not that it’s likely, because I’ve got a business to run. But you never know.

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