Returns & Restocking Policy

At Metro Fixings, we understand that commercial construction schedules are dynamic, and requirements on-site can shift due to architectural revisions or design updates. If you have over-ordered, selected the wrong dimension, or need to return materials, we aim to make the process clear, accountable, and efficient so you can manage your cash flow without stalling your procurement line.

Because we serve trade professionals and tier-1 commercial contractors handling high-volume procurement across an active stock profile of over 35,000 product lines, our standard policy handles returns with strict commercial transparency and fairness.

1. Standard 30-Day Return Window

• Eligibility: You may return standard, in-stock, unused, and undamaged Goods within thirty (30) calendar days from the original date of delivery or trade counter collection.

• Condition of Goods: To qualify for a return or account credit, all items must be returned in their original, unopened outer packaging. Boxes, kegs, and bags of structural fasteners or anchors must be complete and in perfectly resaleable condition; we cannot accept partial boxes or mixed components.

2. Restocking Charges & Administration Fees

• Discretionary Pricing: Please note that all returns for correctly supplied trade orders are subject to a standard handling and administration fee. The application, waiver, or percentage calculation of any restocking charges remains entirely at the absolute discretion of Metro Fixings.

• Variable Fees: Because warehouse verification, technical engineering inspections, and inventory reassignment costs vary depending on the product line and volume, restocking fees are calculated on a case-by-case basis relative to the specific order.

3. Extended Returns (Beyond 30 Days)

• Absolute Judgment: While we always strive to be fair, reasonable, and supportive of our trade partners, there is a strict time limit to our inventory flexibility.

• Case-by-Case Assessment: Any request to return standard stock items beyond the initial 30-day window is outside our standard terms. Acceptance of such returns is entirely down to the personal judgment and express written authorisation of the Metro Fixings management team (fully in line with UK commercial contract law for B2B trade transactions).

4. Non-Returnable & Perishable Product Categories

Certain specialised or safety-critical lines are strictly excluded from our standard returns policy and cannot be returned for credit under any circumstances:

• Bespoke Fabrications & Non-Stock Items: Any structural steelwork, custom bracketry, or specialised non-catalogue items ordered or manufactured specifically to your engineering take-offs or client specifications.

• Perishable Building Chemicals: Temperature-sensitive or dated products—including advanced vinylester chemical anchoring resins, specialised sealants, structural adhesives, and expanding foams—cannot be returned due to strict safety traceability and shelf-life storage regulations.

• Specialised Cutting Tools & Consumables: Diamond blades, holesaws, and core drills that have been unsealed or mounted to site machinery.

5. How to Initiate a Return

1. Request a Return Authorisation (RAN): Before dispatching any transport or sending a site driver to our trade counter, you must contact our Customer Care desk via email at sales@metrofixings.co.uk or by phoning +44 (0)1707 375172 to request an official Return Authorisation.

2. Provide Invoice Proof: Supply your original Metro Fixings invoice or delivery note number alongside the specific product codes and quantities you wish to return.

3. Arrange Safe Transit: Unless Goods were supplied incorrectly due to an internal Metro Fixings logistics error, the cost and safety of return transport rests entirely with the Buyer. We strongly advise using an insured, trackable commercial carrier network or booking a returns slot at our Welwyn Garden City trade hub.

6. Damaged, Defective, or Short-Supplied Goods

• Immediate Notification: The Buyer must thoroughly inspect all materials upon arrival. Any shortages, transit damage, or incorrect product allocations must be reported to our customer care team in writing within three (3) working days of delivery.

• Manufacturer Warranty: Where a structural fixing or tool defect is suspected and validated under the manufacturer's warranty, Metro Fixings will arrange immediate collection and provide a full replacement or a 100% credit note, completely exempt from discretionary restocking charges.

Terms & Conditions of Sale and Supply

1. Definitions and Interpretation

• "The Company" refers to Metro Fixings (www.metrofixings.co.uk).

• "The Buyer" refers to the corporate entity, firm, partnership, or individual purchasing Goods or Services from the Company.

• "Goods" refers to any fixings, fasteners, building chemicals, tools, or other materials supplied by the Company.

• "Services" refers to technical support, testing, tool calibration, or equipment hire provided by the Company ("Metro Hire").

• "Contract" refers to the legally binding agreement between the Company and the Buyer for the sale and purchase of Goods and Services, incorporating these Terms and Conditions.

2. Incorporation of Terms

• All quotations are given, and all orders are accepted by the Company exclusively subject to these Terms and Conditions. They shall override any alternative terms, conditions, or warranties stipulated, incorporated, or referred to by the Buyer, whether in the order form, specifications, or during negotiations.

• No variation to these Terms shall be binding unless expressly agreed in writing and signed by an authorised director of the Company.

3. Orders, Specifications, and Technical Support

• An order placed by the Buyer constitutes an offer to purchase. No contract comes into existence until the Company issues an official order acknowledgement or dispatches the Goods, whichever occurs first.

• The Company maintains an active stock profile of approximately 35,000 product lines. While every effort is made to ensure live website inventory accuracy, the Company reserves the right to amend, substitute, or withdraw products without prior notice if manufacturer specifications alter.

• Any technical advice, substrate guidance, load calculations, or specification suggestions provided by the Company (whether via the technical support desk, sales team, or digital platforms) is issued in good faith as a guide. It remains the ultimate responsibility of the Buyer’s structural engineers, site managers, or architects to verify that the Goods meet local building regulations, site compliance, and safety standards before installation.

4. Price and Payment

• Unless otherwise agreed in writing, the price of the Goods shall be the Company’s quoted price or, where no price has been quoted, the price listed on the Company’s e-commerce platform at the date of order acceptance.

• All prices are exclusive of Value Added Tax (VAT), which shall be due at the prevailing rate, and exclusive of delivery charges unless the order qualifies for free delivery terms.

• For Approved Trade Credit Account Holders: Payment is due strictly in accordance with the agreed credit terms, normally within 30 days from the end of the month of invoicing, unless specified otherwise in writing by the Company's finance desk.

• For Non-Account Holders: Payment must be cleared in full via an authorised credit/debit card or electronic bank transfer before the Goods are dispatched.

• The Company reserves the right to withdraw, suspend, or reduce the limit of any Trade Credit Account Facility at its absolute discretion at any time if the Buyer fails to make payments by the due date or if the Company's credit risk assessment shifts. Interest on overdue invoices shall accrue daily at a rate of 8% per annum above the Bank of England base rate from time to time in force.

5. Retention of Title and Risk

• Risk of damage to or loss of the Goods shall pass to the Buyer immediately upon delivery to the specified site address or upon collection from the Company's trade counter.

• Notwithstanding delivery and the passing of risk, property and legal title in the Goods shall not pass to the Buyer until the Company has received payment in full (in cleared funds) for those Goods and all other sums which are or which become due to the Company from the Buyer on any account.

• Until title passes, the Buyer must store the Goods safely, preserve their original packaging, and clearly identify them as the Company’s property. The Company reserves the irrevocable right to enter any site or premises occupied by the Buyer to inspect or repossess the Goods if payment terms are breached.

6. Delivery and Transport Logistics

• The Company operates its own transport delivery fleet alongside premier national express carrier networks (such as DPD). Delivery dates and windows are estimates only, and time of delivery shall not be of the essence of the Contract.

• Orders over £100 net (exclusive of VAT) qualify for free delivery within standard mainland UK zones. Orders under this threshold, or deliveries destined for international locations or high-tariff zones, will incur a transport surcharge.

• The Company shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, or consequential loss, cost, damages, or site penalties (including liquidated damages or main contractor delays) caused directly or indirectly by a delay in delivery or a failure to deliver due to circumstances beyond its reasonable control ("Force Majeure").

• The Buyer must provide safe, unobstructed access and adequate offloading facilities at the designated site delivery address.

7. Shortages, Defective Goods, and Returns

• The Buyer must inspect the Goods immediately upon arrival. Any claim for shortages, visible transit damage, or incorrect product supply must be notified to the Company's Customer Care team in writing within three (3) working days of delivery. Failure to notify within this timeframe shall constitute absolute acceptance of the shipment.

• The Company offers a 30-day return policy for standard, unused, un-opened, resaleable stock items in their original packaging.

• Bespoke fabrications, non-stock items ordered specialised to client specifications, and perishable building chemicals (such as expired or temperature-sensitive vinylester resins) are strictly non-returnable and non-refundable unless verified as defective by the manufacturer.

• Where a defect is validated under the manufacturer's warranty, the Company’s liability shall be limited entirely, at its sole discretion, to replacing the defective Goods or issuing a credit note for the invoice value.

8. Specialised Equipment Hire ("Metro Hire")

• All machinery, power tools, testing gauges, and safety systems supplied under the Metro Hire banner remain the sole property of the Company.

• The Hire Period commences when the equipment leaves the Company’s depot and terminates when a formal off-hire confirmation is issued or the equipment is safely returned to the Company’s custody.

• The Buyer is strictly responsible for ensuring that all hired equipment is operated exclusively by fully trained, qualified personnel in accordance with HSE guidelines and manufacturer operating manuals.

• The Buyer must maintain comprehensive insurance covering the full replacement value of the hired equipment against theft, loss, or accidental damage throughout the duration of the hire period. Any equipment returned damaged, uncleaned, or missing components will be subject to direct repair or replacement charges billed to the Buyer's account.

9. Limitation of Liability

• Nothing in these Terms shall limit or exclude the Company’s liability for death or personal injury caused by its negligence, or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

• Subject to the above clause, the Company shall under no circumstances whatsoever be liable to the Buyer, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, for any loss of profit, loss of revenue, loss of business opportunity, site delay costs, or any indirect or consequential loss arising under or in connection with the Contract.

• The Company's total cumulative liability to the Buyer in respect of all other losses arising under or in connection with the Contract shall be limited strictly to the net invoice value of the specific Goods or Services that gave rise to the claim.

10. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

• The Contract, and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England and Wales.

• The Company and the Buyer irrevocably agree that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with the Contract.