terms & conditions.

These terms and conditions govern your use of Parchel's shipping service, including doorstep collection, packing, and UK and international shipping (“the Service”). The Service is operated by Parchel Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales (company number: 16849647), with its registered office at Office 173, Unit 5, 399–405 Oxford Street, Mayfair, London W1C 2BU (“we”, “us”, “our”).

By booking the Service you confirm you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

Parchel arranges the shipment of your items through our trusted carrier partners. For parcels booked online, this includes free doorstep collection from residential and business addresses within Greater London during the launch offer described below. Outside Greater London, available carriers collect self-packed parcels from the pickup address you provide. Parchel checking and Premium Pack are available only for Greater London pickups. Services depend on postcode, destination, contents and carrier availability.

Other services — such as same-day, business shipping, pallets and freight, and specialist items — are quoted individually. Any additional terms that apply to a quoted service will be set out in your quote, alongside these terms. An instant same-day price is an estimate, not a confirmed courier booking. We check availability and send a final quote for your acceptance before arranging a courier. There is no payment to submit a quote request.

Free Parchel doorstep collection in Greater London is offered as a launch promotion until 31 October 2026. Same-day collection in Canary Wharf and E14 is subject to the daily cutoff and an available slot; other Greater London areas may receive same-day or next-day collection depending on route availability. Collection arrangements are subject to confirmation. After 31 October 2026, Parchel may introduce, amend, or withdraw this promotion at its discretion, without affecting bookings already confirmed.

We arrange carriage through carrier partners and booking platforms. Applicable carrier restrictions and service conditions form part of the selected service and will be provided with the booking or quote. Contact Parchel about your booking, changes, cancellations or claims. We remain responsible for the services we agree to provide; using a carrier does not remove your statutory rights against us.

Parcel service prices show the shipping element. Any selected packing fee or eligible additional protection is shown separately, with the total before you confirm. Customs duties, import taxes and destination clearance charges are not included unless your quote expressly says otherwise.

Prices are calculated based on the destination country, box size, and estimated weight you provide. All quoted prices are estimates. When you book, your card is authorised (a hold is placed) for this estimated total — you are not charged at this point. We confirm the final rate from the packed parcel's actual dimensions and weight and the selected carrier service. In London we can check this after collection; nationwide self-pack customers must supply their own packed measurements, because Parchel does not collect the parcel for a packing check. We capture the confirmed amount at dispatch. If a carrier later identifies a discrepancy, we will explain any proposed extra charge and its basis before asking you to pay it.

If the final price is lower than or equal to the estimate, we capture only that final, lower amount — you are simply never charged the uncaptured difference. No refund is needed because you were never charged more than the final price in the first place.

If the final price is higher than the estimate (by more than £0.50), card networks do not allow us to capture more than the amount authorised. We will contact you with a payment link for the difference. The top-up is a separate payment; the original authorised amount is captured at dispatch. We will not dispatch until the required payment is confirmed. You may cancel an ordinary parcel booking before dispatch without a cancellation charge: we release any unused hold and refund any payment already taken for that cancelled booking.

Card authorisations are normally valid for around 7 days. If your parcel has not been dispatched within that window and the authorisation lapses, we will contact you with a new payment link for the final amount before we can dispatch. If you cancel a booking before dispatch, we arrange release of any unused authorisation. Your bank controls when the hold disappears. Any payment already taken is handled under our Refund Policy.

If you choose our Premium Pack service (flat fee of £6.66 including box and packing materials, available in Greater London), the packing fee is fixed and no price adjustment will be made for packing. The carrier shipping element may still be reconciled based on actual weight and dimensions.

We offer three service tiers — Parchel Economy, Parchel Standard, and Parchel Express — with different price and transit time combinations. Quoted transit times are estimates provided by our carrier partners and are not guaranteed.

You are responsible for:

• Providing an accurate description of the parcel contents.
• Declaring the correct weight and dimensions when booking.
• Ensuring the parcel is properly packed and ready for collection at the agreed time.
• Ensuring the contents are not prohibited under UK export law, carrier terms, or the law of the destination country.
• Providing accurate recipient name and address details.
• Being present (or ensuring an authorised adult is present) at the collection address on the booked collection day.

If your parcel is materially heavier or larger than declared and a higher rate applies, we explain the proposed difference and ask you to agree it, or arrange return of the parcel where appropriate. The pricing and cancellation policies above apply.

The following items must not be sent using the Service:

• Cash, banknotes, coins, or negotiable instruments
• Firearms, weapons, or ammunition
• Explosives, flammable, or hazardous materials (including lithium batteries above carrier thresholds)
• Controlled drugs or substances
• Live animals or perishable goods requiring cold chain
• Human remains or ashes
• Counterfeit or infringing goods
• Items prohibited for import in the destination country
• Liquids, aerosols, perfume, medicines, plants, seeds and soil through our standard parcel booking flow

This list is not exhaustive. Check the selected service's restrictions and ask us before booking unusual or restricted items. We reserve the right to refuse collection or return any parcel where prohibited items are suspected. You remain liable for any costs, fines, or penalties arising from shipment of prohibited items.

Our booking flow includes an optional AI-powered photo analysis feature that suggests an appropriate box size based on an image you upload. This suggestion is provided as guidance only and may be inaccurate. You must confirm or adjust the suggested size before proceeding. An AI suggestion does not replace your responsibility to give accurate packed measurements, or remove your statutory rights concerning the services we provide.

AI cannot replace measuring and weighing a packed parcel. For nationwide self-pack collection, enter the actual packed dimensions and weight before booking. Price adjustments follow the process in section 3; a photo estimate is not a guarantee of the final shipping charge or acceptance by the carrier.

Optional photos and item descriptions are sent to our AI providers for analysis. Avoid including people, address labels or other personal information where it is not needed. See our Privacy Policy for providers, storage and retention details.

For international shipments, you are responsible for accurately describing every item, and for confirming its value, quantity, country of origin, and any restrictions that apply. You will be asked to review and accept a specific customs declaration before we book your shipment, and that declaration is your legal statement to us and to the carrier.

Our VulchIR AI may suggest a commodity (HS) code candidate from your description or photos. This is a suggestion only, not a legal or tariff determination — it does not verify or guarantee the correct classification, and it is checked against carrier requirements before dispatch. You remain responsible for confirming the code is accurate, and we may ask you to clarify material, use, or composition before your parcel can be dispatched.

Where you purchase our Premium Pack service, we are responsible for packing your item to a reasonable professional standard using the materials supplied. Where you pack the parcel yourself (self-pack), you are responsible for the adequacy and safety of your own packaging; we are not liable for damage caused by insufficient packing that we did not carry out.

We may inspect, hold, refuse, or repack any parcel that we reasonably believe is unsafe, prohibited, or inconsistent with its declaration, at your cost where repacking or additional documentation is required.

Final acceptance of any parcel, and final classification, duty, tax and clearance decisions, are made by the carrier and the relevant customs or border authorities — not by Parchel. We do not guarantee customs clearance, duty outcomes, or delivery timescales for international shipments, and we are not liable for delays, charges, or refusals imposed by a carrier or customs authority where they are outside our responsibility. This does not exclude responsibility for our own failure to provide the agreed services with reasonable care and skill.

Any protection included with a shipment is the exact amount shown for the selected carrier service at booking and may be £0. Some contents are excluded from compensation; electronics may be eligible for loss only and not damage. All claims remain subject to the selected carrier's current terms and evidence requirements.

Declare the full value of your goods and review the protection status shown before booking. Additional protection is offered only where the selected service and contents are eligible. We are not liable for any loss, damage, or delay beyond the carrier's applicable compensation rules for the carrier claim itself. Those rules do not remove your rights against Parchel for services we perform without reasonable care and skill. Any exclusion of indirect or consequential losses applies only where permitted by law.

Nothing in these terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud, or any other liability that cannot be excluded by law.

Please refer to our Refund Policy for full details of your right to cancel and the refunds available.

All content on this website — including the Parchel name, logo, design, and text — is owned by or licensed to Parchel Ltd and is protected by UK and international intellectual property law. You may not reproduce or use any part without our prior written consent.

We may update these terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes where required. The terms accepted for an existing booking continue to apply to that booking unless we agree a change with you or the law requires it. Updated terms apply to new bookings from their stated effective date.

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. Any disputes arising in connection with the Service shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

If you are a consumer, you may also benefit from any mandatory consumer protection provisions of the law of the country in which you are resident.

Questions about these terms? Please email us at support@parchel.com.