Shipping Policy

At StonesDirect.com, most orders ship directly from the quarry or distribution point to the delivery address provided with your order. Because natural stone is heavy freight and shipping requirements vary considerably by product, quantity and delivery location, please review the following requirements carefully before placing your order.

1. Order Processing and Lead Times

Most orders are reviewed and submitted to the supplying quarry within approximately 1–2 business days after the order and payment have been confirmed.

Production and delivery time are separate from order processing time. Typical lead times range from approximately 1 to 4+ weeks depending on product availability, quarry production schedules, order size, season, destination and carrier availability. Special-order or made-to-order products may take longer.

If timing is important to your project, please contact us before ordering and we can confirm the best available lead-time estimate.

All production dates, ship dates, transit times and delivery dates are estimates unless Stones Direct has specifically agreed otherwise in writing. Delivery estimates are not guaranteed and a delay does not, by itself, create a right to compensation. Any cancellation or refund rights arising from a delayed shipment or delivery remain subject to applicable law.

2. How Your Order Will Ship

Stone orders are generally shipped using Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) or Truckload (TL) freight.

Stones Direct will determine the appropriate shipping method based on the weight and dimensions of the shipment, pallet weights, destination, carrier requirements and available equipment.

Smaller shipments may qualify for LTL delivery. Larger shipments, unusually heavy pallets or shipments that cannot safely be handled using LTL equipment may require Truckload service.

Pallet sizes and weights vary by quarry and product. If you require a specific maximum pallet weight or have limitations on the equipment available to unload your order, you must tell us before the order is processed.

3. Delivery Location and Truck Access

Stone is delivered using commercial freight equipment. Depending on the shipment, this may include a straight truck, tractor-trailer or a tractor with a trailer up to approximately 53 feet long.

The customer is responsible for ensuring that the delivery location can safely and legally accommodate the vehicle required for delivery.

Please advise us before shipment if there are narrow roads, tight turns, steep grades, low branches or wires, weight restrictions, gated entrances, construction-site restrictions, private roads, restricted delivery hours or any other access concern.

The carrier and driver retain final discretion over whether a location can be safely accessed. Drivers are not required to enter driveways or properties that they consider unsafe or unsuitable for their equipment.

If you are unsure whether your location can accommodate commercial freight delivery, please contact us before ordering.

4. LTL and Liftgate Deliveries

LTL deliveries are curbside freight deliveries. They are not placement or installation services.

When liftgate service has been arranged, the driver will normally lower the pallet from the truck to ground level and move it only as far as the driver's equipment can safely accommodate.

A pallet jack requires a firm, level and hard surface such as concrete or asphalt. It generally cannot operate safely on gravel, grass, soil, mud, loose stone, steep slopes or other soft or uneven surfaces.

Liftgate service does not include moving stone to a backyard, garage, jobsite staging area or other requested location on the property.

Pallet weight is also subject to the carrier's liftgate and pallet-jack capacity. As a general guideline, pallets intended for liftgate delivery should not exceed approximately 2,000 lb. 

If a pallet is too heavy for liftgate delivery, the order may need to be split into smaller pallets at the quarry, shipped using different equipment, or converted to Truckload service. Additional charges may apply.

5. Truckload Deliveries

Truckload shipments generally require the customer to unload the freight from the trailer.

You must have appropriate unloading equipment available when the truck arrives, such as a forklift, loader or other equipment capable of safely handling the confirmed pallet weights and dimensions.

The driver is not responsible for supplying unloading equipment or manually unloading Truckload shipments.

If you have any uncertainty about the equipment required, contact us before delivery. We can provide available pallet information so you can arrange suitable equipment.

6. Delivery Appointments and Timing

Freight deliveries do not operate like parcel deliveries and exact arrival times cannot normally be guaranteed.

Where appointment service has been arranged, the carrier will contact the delivery party to arrange or confirm delivery. An appointment generally establishes a delivery window rather than an exact arrival time.

A carrier may also call before delivery even where formal appointment service has not been purchased. A courtesy call should not be interpreted as a guaranteed delivery appointment.

You or an authorized representative must be available to receive the shipment unless unattended delivery has been specifically approved.

7. Freight Rates and Accessorial Charges

Shipping rates are calculated or quoted based on the information available when your order is placed, including the delivery location, shipment characteristics and delivery services requested.

Freight rates may be subsidized by Stones Direct and may not represent the carrier's full transportation cost.

The following standard accessorial charges may apply unless already included in your confirmed freight rate:

• Residential delivery - $100
• Limited-access delivery - $75
• Liftgate service - $125

More than one accessorial may apply to the same shipment. For example, a residential LTL delivery requiring both an appointment and liftgate may incur all applicable services.

A location may also be classified by the carrier as limited access based on its characteristics, including certain construction sites, remote or restricted locations, gated properties and other locations where normal commercial freight access is limited.

All orders are provided with a delivery appointment accessorial, with the charge included in the shipping price.

Additional carrier charges may apply for services or circumstances not listed above.

It is important that the delivery information provided when ordering is complete and accurate. Additional charges assessed because a residential address, limited-access location, liftgate requirement or other delivery condition was not disclosed may be charged to the customer after the order is placed or delivered.

If the underlying freight market changes materially before the shipment is dispatched, Stones Direct may contact you regarding a revised freight rate before shipment.

8. Customer Responsibilities at Delivery

The customer or authorized receiving party is responsible for being prepared to receive the shipment.

This includes ensuring that the delivery location is accessible, having any required unloading equipment available, providing accurate contact information, responding to carrier appointment requests and having an authorized person available when required.

The customer is also responsible for ensuring that the delivery site is safe and reasonably clear of snow, ice, vehicles, construction materials or other obstructions that could prevent delivery.

For Truckload deliveries, unloading should begin promptly after arrival.

9. Failed Delivery, Redelivery, Storage and Detention

Additional charges may apply when a delivery cannot be completed because of circumstances within the customer's control or because the delivery requirements supplied to Stones Direct were incomplete or inaccurate.

Examples include the customer or authorized receiver not being available for an agreed appointment, required unloading equipment not being available, the delivery site being inaccessible, an undisclosed residential or limited-access condition, or an unauthorized refusal of the shipment.

Redelivery charges typically start at approximately $450+.

Storage charges may be approximately $100 per day while freight is being held awaiting new delivery instructions.

Where unloading exceeds the carrier's permitted free time, detention charges of approximately $100 per hour may apply after the first hour.

These amounts are estimates based on typical charges and may vary by carrier and shipment. Where a carrier assesses additional or higher charges resulting from a customer-caused delivery issue, those charges may be passed through to the customer.

If delivery cannot be completed, the shipment may be held at a carrier terminal, returned to the quarry or redirected as appropriate. Return freight, redelivery, storage, reconsignment and related costs caused by a customer or site issue are the customer's responsibility.

Customer charges under this section do not apply where the failed delivery was caused solely by an error by Stones Direct or the carrier.

10. Delivery Address or Service Changes

Please review your shipping address and delivery requirements carefully before submitting your order.

Changes requested after an order has been dispatched may result in reconsignment, address-change, storage, redelivery or other carrier fees.

Changing the destination may also change the freight rate or require a different carrier.

Any additional transportation charges resulting from a customer-requested change are the customer's responsibility.

11. Inspecting Your Shipment

You or your representative should inspect the shipment before signing the carrier's delivery receipt.

At minimum, verify the number of pallets or packages received and inspect the shipment for visible damage.

If there is visible damage or a shortage, clearly note the issue on the carrier's delivery receipt before signing it. Do not sign a clean delivery receipt when visible freight damage or shortages are present.

Please also take clear photographs showing the overall shipment, pallets and packaging, shipping labels, and any damaged product. Where possible, photographs should be taken before the shipment is moved or unpacked.

Contact Stones Direct as soon as possible after discovering a shipping issue. Prompt documentation is essential to our ability to pursue a freight claim or other resolution.

If damage is concealed by packaging and cannot reasonably be identified during delivery, contact us immediately after it is discovered and provide photographs and supporting information.

Natural variations in stone—including variations in color, texture, veining, surface characteristics and other naturally occurring differences—are not freight damage.

12. Refusing a Shipment

Do not automatically refuse a shipment because a pallet or its packaging appears damaged.

Where delivery can be completed safely, visible damage should normally be documented on the delivery receipt and photographed so that Stones Direct can determine the appropriate next step.

If a shipment is substantially damaged, the product cannot be safely unloaded, or you believe refusal is necessary, please contact Stones Direct before refusing the shipment whenever reasonably possible.

An unauthorized refusal for reasons unrelated to confirmed shipping damage or a Stones Direct shipping error may result in return freight, storage, redelivery and other carrier charges being assessed to the customer.

Refusing a shipment does not automatically cancel the underlying order or create eligibility for a refund.

13. Damaged, Missing or Incorrect Product

If freight is damaged in transit, pieces are missing, or the wrong product has been shipped, please contact Stones Direct immediately with photographs and details.

We will review the circumstances and work with the quarry, carrier or other responsible party to determine the appropriate resolution.

Please retain the affected product, pallets, packaging and shipping documents until we advise otherwise, as they may be required as evidence for a freight claim.

Do not dispose of damaged material without authorization while a claim is being investigated.

14. Cancellations and Restocking

Except where cancellation or refund is required by applicable law, natural stone products are often processed, selected, cut, packaged or otherwise prepared specifically for an order, and cancellation is therefore not guaranteed once an order has been processed with the quarry.

Restocking or cancellation fees vary by quarry and product. Large orders, special-order material and custom-processed products may be non-cancellable.

If you need to request cancellation, contact us as soon as possible. We recommend submitting any cancellation request within 48 hours of ordering, but doing so does not guarantee that cancellation will still be available.

Where cancellation is approved, the applicable quarry restocking charges and any freight or other costs already incurred may be deducted from the refund.

Credit-card processing fees are non-refundable where permitted. An eligible customer-requested credit-card cancellation is subject to a 4% cancellation fee. This fee does not apply to payments made by wire transfer or e-transfer unless another applicable cancellation or restocking charge applies, and it does not apply where applicable law requires a full refund.

15. Natural Stone Returns and Refunds

Because natural stone products are frequently sourced and processed specifically for an order, Stones Direct does not accept returns or provide refunds for change of mind, project changes, natural stone variation or other reasons unrelated to an approved damage, shortage, incorrect-product or shipping claim.

Once material has been produced or processed by the quarry, the order is generally final.

Sample orders are non-refundable and non-returnable.

Nothing in this section changes any remedy specifically approved by Stones Direct for confirmed transit damage, shipment shortages, incorrect products or another error for which Stones Direct is responsible.

Nothing in this policy limits any consumer right or remedy that cannot be excluded or waived under applicable law.

16. Service Area

Stones Direct ships to many locations throughout Canada and the continental United States, subject to quarry and carrier availability.

We do not currently provide standard delivery to Alaska, Hawaii or Puerto Rico.

Certain remote or difficult-to-service locations may require a custom freight quote or may not be serviceable.

17. Acceptance of Delivery Terms

By placing an order with Stones Direct, you acknowledge that you have reviewed and accepted the shipping and delivery requirements applicable to your order.

If any requirement described above cannot be met at your delivery location, please contact us before ordering or before the order is released for shipment.

Providing accurate delivery information in advance is the best way to prevent delays, unexpected carrier charges and failed deliveries.