Livestock Shipping Disclaimer


By placing an order for any marine livestock (fish, corals, invertebrates), you acknowledge and accept all shipping risks outlined below.

1. General Risk Disclaimer

Marine livestock are highly sensitive to stress during transit. Despite our best‑practice packing procedures (insulated polystyrene boxes, temperature‑control packs, oxygen‑rich sealed bags), there remains an inherent risk of illness, shock or mortality while in courier transit.

All courier shipments are sent entirely at the purchaser’s own risk. Reef Aquaria shall not be held liable for livestock loss caused by courier delays, mis‑routing, rough handling, weather‑related disruptions, missed delivery attempts or rural delivery transit extensions.

We make no guarantee of live arrival for any items dispatched via courier service. This disclaimer applies to all North & South Island courier deliveries.

2. Customer Responsibilities

  1. It is your responsibility to provide an accurate delivery address and keep track of your tracking number. Please ensure someone is available to receive the parcel on the first delivery attempt. If delivery is missed and the parcel is held or re‑routed, Reef Aquaria accepts zero liability for resulting losses.
  2. Rural delivery addresses carry extra transit risk. All rural shipments are fully at buyer’s risk. We strongly recommend using a town / business delivery address for livestock orders.
  3. After you receive livestock, correct acclimation and quarantine is critical. Reef Aquaria cannot be held responsible for livestock deaths or health issues occurring after successful handover and acclimation into your aquarium tank. Tank water parameters, tank mates compatibility, user‑error during acclimation are outside our control.
  4. We reserve the right to delay or cancel shipment in extreme weather or widespread courier network disruptions to minimize transit mortality risk.

3. DOA Claim Policy (Limited Courtesy Only)

Please note: this is a goodwill courtesy and NOT a legal guarantee of live arrival.
  1. If your livestock arrives dead‑on‑arrival (DOA), you must notify Reef Aquaria by email within 60 minutes of receiving your parcel.
  2. You must supply clear, un‑edited photos / video showing the livestock still sealed inside its original shipping bag. Do NOT open the bag before submitting your claim. Do not dispose of livestock without our written approval.
  3. High‑risk / delicate species (marked on individual product pages) are excluded from this courtesy claim policy.
  4. Any goodwill compensation, if approved, will be settled by store credit only at Reef Aquaria’s sole discretion. Shipping & packing fees are non‑refundable under any circumstances. No cash refunds will be issued.
  5. Claims sent outside the allowed notification window will automatically be rejected. We may request further information about your aquarium system & acclimation process for claim assessment.