Basket

Shopping basket

DEPARTMENTS

Our Delivery Services

The Checkout Process

We try to make our delivery services as simple, fair, efficient and convenient as possible. Our aim is to get your goods to you, in prime condition, in a speedy, safe, and hassle-free manner.

We are able to send your order to your home, place of work or any other standard address. (For registered customers, this can be accomplished with ease: Each address used can be saved to your account and, thus, selected rapidly when placing your orders.)

All of our deliveries are sent at the same set tariffs regardless of weight or size. Delivery times and costs are dependent only upon the destination chosen at the time of ordering (regardless of billing address) and your selections based on the options provided for same.

Your Selections

During the check-out process on this site, as an alternative to your designated address, we also offer the opportunity to leave the parcel with a neighbour or in a safe place (e.g. in greenhouse, shed, etc.) as required. (Please note, this facility needs to be requested on each individual order and parcels are left unattended at the customer’s own risk.) Requests should be placed in the Special Instructions box. You may also specify any place that your parcel is NOT to be left should you wish.

What Happens Once I've Placed My Order...

After processing your goods (i.e. items are picked and then verified as correct by at least two different members of staff) we will assign your parcel as ready-for-despatch in preperation for courier pick up (meaning your package is sealed and labelled at this point). Our courier picks ups are every afternoon, Monday through Friday. Our mail order department is open on Saturdays, for your convience, and orders are still processed (and can assigned for despatch) but only Royal Mail pick up from us on that day (at noon).

Despatch E-mail

At this point you will receive a ready-for-despatch e-mail. This confirms the address that you have requested your parcel be sent to and exactly what you have ordered. (You may double check your sizes at this point should you wish.) Please contact us during normal office hours Monday through Saturday if you have any queries concerning your parcel. Out-of-hours messages can be left on our automated voicemail system. We will get back to you on our next working day.

Tracking Your Parcel

This e-mail will also contain your unique Tracking Number.* You can use this to track your parcel on its journey via the relevant courier's website (Royal Mail or DHL) or app. (See relevant sections below for specific details.)

We will include a printed Despatch/Delivery Note in with your parcel. This will state all Billing and other Invoice Details as well as outlining a rundown of everything purchased with fully itemised prices.

* During periods when we are running special promotional prices for our Standard deliveries, a different non-trackable Royal Mail service may be used.

Our delivery options/services vary based on the destination of your parcel. Select a tab below based on the relevant information you require...

 

Standard Delivery (available to all UK, IOM, Guernsey and Jersey addresses):

Your order will be with you in 5 to 7 working days via Royal Mail. This option is FREE for orders totalling over £99. Regular price: £4.95*


Next Day Delivery (all UK addresses):

Order by 3pm for same day despatch via DHL (Northern Ireland, and certain 'hard to reach' areas, including the highlands of Scotland, are via Royal Mail - see our Terms & Conditions for more details). This option is FREE for orders over £199. (Deliveries are WEEKDAYS ONLY, also EXCLUDES BANK HOLIDAYS. For more information on delivery schedules please see our 'In Detail' tab.) Regular price: £8.50*

We also offer two timed deliveries options for our Next Day service. These are also via DHL and are priced at £18 for Before 10:30am (ENGLISH MAINLAND & WELSH ADDRESSES ONLY) and £9.95 for Before 12pm (ENGLAND, WALES AND LOWLAND SCOTLAND ADDRESSES ONLY).


Saturday Delivery (UK DHL served addresses only):

For delivery via our courier DHL on the following Saturday. (Certain restrictions apply - see 'In Detail' tab for more info.) Price: £12.95

 

Sunday / Monday Delivery (all UK & IoM addresses only)

This option is available for last minute weekend shopping. Available right up until 11am on Saturdays. Via Royal Mail Tracked24. Price: £8.50
 

 

Should you wish delivery on a specific advance date (weekdays only) please state this in the Special Instructions box during check-out. We cannot guarantee specific delivery dates, except in line with our Premium Delivery options above, but will try our best to accommodate your requests wherever possible.

* Values are subject to offers and/or promotions that we run from time to time. Check our home page for any details of such.

 

Delivery Services to the British Isles

All UK, Isle of Man and Channel Island addresses are covered by our Standard Delivery option.

All UK, IOM and CI addresses are also offered a Premium Delivery option. (This encompasses Next Day and Tracked24 shipping. The latter is a one- to two-day service - predominantly used for deliveries to NI, the highlands of Scotland and the IoM. CI customers should allow an extra day or two for delivery.) The vast majority of UK addresses also offer timed weekday and full weekend delivery options. Complete details of what is available to where can be found in the section covering the Premium Delivery options below.

Details of our service to the Republic of Ireland can be found in the "International" tabs.

Given these various options, UK and IoM customers will be asked to make a despatch selection from one of the following,..

 

OPTION 1: STANDARD

Your Standard Delivery goods are sent with, and delivered by, Royal Mail's Track & Trace service. We currently have a standard delivery charge of £4.95 (or free for orders over £99 in value).

Standard Deliveries can take up to 5 to 7 working days to reach you from the time of ordering. This usually includes 2 to 3 days post-despatch. However, you can expect your parcel to take the full 7 working days to reach you only at our busiest times (e.g. during our 'Black Friday' events, or in the run up to Christmas). Note: Standard Delivery parcels may be delivered on a Saturday.

Unlike many of our competitors, who charge extra or make you wait longer if you live in a so-called ‘Premium Rate Area’, here at Banks' we see no reason why you should be penalised for this. (These areas include the Channel Isles, the Isle of Man, Anglesey, Northern Ireland and the Highlands of Scotland.) Therefore, we offer delivery to these addresses at the same £4.95 as the rest of the UK mainland and on the same 5 to 7 working day delivery schedule. All these areas are covered for us by Royal Mail.

Wherever your parcel is going, should you wish it delivered on a specific advance date (weekdays only) please state this in the Special Instructions/Message box during check-out. We can not guarantee specific delivery dates - except in line with our Premium Delivery options outlined below - but will try our best to accommodate your requests.

(If you miss your Royal Mail postman, they will put a card through your door telling you when the parcel will be available for collection from your local delivery office. These are usually located very conveniently. Alternatively, you can book a re-delivery on a weekday of your choice via Royal Mail's website or by phoning the number on the card.)

 

 

OPTION 2: 'NEXT DAY'

For more urgent orders a guaranteed Next Day Delivery service is available; this is charged at £8.50 (or free for orders over £199). Our Next Day's - available to most addresses in the UK - are sent with, and delivered by, DHL. Premium deliveries to certain northerly Scottish post codes,* along with those to the Isle of Man, the Isles of Scilly, Northern Ireland and all Scottish Island destinations, will be covered via Royal Mail's Tracked24 service.

Next Day orders must be placed no later than 3pm Monday to Friday for guaranteed delivery on the next working day. Orders placed after 3pm, will be despatched by us on the following working day.** Even during our busiest periods, we will always prioritise Next Day orders, ensuring that they are despatched on the required day.

Note: This service is “next working day delivery”; as such it naturally excludes Saturdays and Sundays. UK Bank Holidays are also excluded. Orders placed over any Bank Holiday period will be delivered on the next available working day based on DHL's pick ups from us and the schedule outlined above. (If ordering over a Bank Holiday weekend please check our store/mail order department's Opening Times page for when we are going to be closed during these periods.)

Next Day Delivery examples:

Orders placed on a Wednesday before 3pm will be delivered on Thursday; those placed on a Friday before 3pm will be delivered on Monday; orders placed on a Friday after 3pm or anytime on Saturday/Sunday will be delivered on Tuesday.

Should you wish your parcel delivered on a later weekday, subsequent to the above, please state the day and date required in the Special Instructions box during check-out. We will ensure your parcel is despatched on the correct day to meet your wishes.

Equally, if your delivery is to an area normally allocated to DHL and you would prefer it delivered via Royal Mail's 24 service instead, please state this in the Special Instructions box during check-out and we will be happy to send as per your request.

Normal Next Day deliveries can not be restricted to delivery at a specific time of day (but see our After-Despatch Service notes below for how DHL will inform you of your delivery time). Your parcel may reach you anytime between 8am and 6pm (or later during the busiest periods) on the appointed day. If you require delivery promptly by next morning please select a Nominateed Time Delivery...

* DHL post code exclusions can be checked here. Please note, the alternative Royal Mail 24 service is not guarenteed for the specific day; neither can we offer Nominateed Time or specified Saturday deliveries to any of these Royal Mail locations.
** These cut-off times also apply to Next Day orders taken over the phone or received through the post.

 

OPTIONS 3 & 4: NOMINATEED TIME

If you need your goods prompt by the next morning, we offer, guaranteed, both Before 10:30am (ENGLISH/WELSH MAINLAND ADDRESSES ONLY) and Before 12pm (NOT AVAILABLE TO SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS OR NI)* options on our Next Day service; these are priced at £18 and £9.95 respectively. These services are provided via DHL and the same 3pm cut off time as OPTION 1 above applies.

 

We also offer...

OPTION 5 & 6: WEEKEND

For even greater convenience, we also have an express Saturday Service for £12.95 (ENGLAND, SCOTTISH LOWLANDS, WALES & IOW ONLY).* You can order a Saturday Delivery anytime in the week up until Friday at 3pm. (Please enter the date you require in the Special Instructions box when ordering if you do not want delivery on the nearest Saturday.) This service is via DHL.

Alternatively, an additional Sunday/Monday Premium Delivery option extends our weekend services to allow you to shop right up until Saturday morning. This option is sent via Royal Mail's Tracked 24 service** at a price of £8.50. Orders must be placed by the cut-off at 11am on Saturday otherwise your parcel may not leave us until the Monday. (Service is available to the whole of UK and IOM. Channel Islands are excluded.)

* Specific post code availability for Timed and Saturday premium delivery options via DHL can be found here.
** Service will not be available on Easter Sunday, Black Friday weekend or on the nearest weekends to Christmas.

 

All DHL Deliveries Equal Enhanced After-Despatch Service

Including a One-Hour Window Notification

In addition, with all our DHL deliveries we are able to promise NO MORE WAITING IN ALL DAY FOR YOUR PARCEL! Provided we have a valid email address or mobile number for you, DHL will email/text you early on the day of delivery with a mere one-hour window for when your parcel will be arriving. This communication will also give you options to rearrange your delivery directly if you wish, as well as the name of the driver that has your parcel.

Please remember, if you know that there will be no-one at your designated address that can accept the delivery, you can provide an alternative delivery address or request a non-signed for ‘safe place’ delivery as outlined above. (When leaving your parcel in a safe place your driver will take a picture of it in situ.*) Note also that your driver may leave your parcel with a neighbour if no answer is received at your designated address.

If your parcel can not be delivered for any reason, your driver will take a picture of the door at which they are attempting delivery.* (DHL will try again to deliver on the next working day.) You will receive a text/email, to say the courier was unable to deliver. This will offer the opportunity for you to rearrange the date of your re-delivery. (You can amend your delivery date at any time via the texts/emails DHL send you.) Internet access is required to make these changes. You can, of course, also contact us and will we make the changes for you.

Alternatively, you can arrange to collect your parcel from a local service station/shop via DHL's website or app. You will be given a list of locations from which to select the most suitable option. Remember to check on your choice's opening times. Please take DHL's notification and a separate form of photo ID with you when picking up your parcel.

* These images are only accessible, with authorisation, from DHL. They help us to resolve any possible issues arising from your delivery.

 

Northern Ireland Premium Delivery

We also provide a Royal Mail Tracked24 option for our Irish customers in addition to the Standard Delivery option. This is a non-guarenteed next day service (please select "Next Day" from online options) that sees over 80% of parcels delivered next working day and 98% of parcels delivered within 48 hours. The 3pm cut-off time applies as per our Next Day orders (see OPTION 1 above for details). Charges are the same as our mainland service at £8.50Parcels can be tracked at here. (Note: Deliveries may be attempted on a Saturday.)

 

Channel Islands and Additional Isle of Man Premium Delivery

We can also offer our customers on the IoM, Jersey, Guernsey and the other Channel Islands a Royal Mail Tracked24 option. (Customers should just select "Next Day" online and we will ensure the correct service is used.) Tracked 24 is a 1 to 3 day service for these destinations. Great Value for £8.50!

These options are based around the same schedules and 3pm cut-off times as our mainland premium deliveries previously outlined. They also offer a similar tracking service. 

Note: All deliveries to the Channel Islands will NOT be charged UK VAT on any items or postage services purchased. Reduction in price will show automatically during the check-out process.

 

Republic of Ireland Delivery:

This service is via Royal Mail International Tracked. Price: £14.95


Rest of Europe Delivery:

For delivery to any other European address. Deliveries to all our European neighbours are now via Royal Mail Airmail. Price: £18

(Note: Additional import duties can be incurred at time of delivery. For EU destinations this occurs on orders whose value exceeds €150.)


Rest of the World:

For delivery to any other International address. Nominally delivered by Royal Mail air service. Price: £25

(Note: The threshold for incurring import duties will vary depending on the delivery destination.)

 

International Deliveries

John Banks delivers to practically anywhere in the world (over 200 countries in total).

world

Prospective customers should note that we always prioritise overseas orders alongside our UK Premium Delivery parcels. If placed before 3pm UK time (Monday to Saturday) you can expect that your order will be despatched on the same day (after this time it will be sent out on the next working day) thus limiting the time that you will be waiting for your parcel to an absolute minimum.

No matter where your parcel is going, you will receive an automated e-mail from us, sent to you as soon as we despatch your order. When you receive this you can be assured your order has been picked, checked, labelled and sealed, and is awaiting pick up by the relevant courier. (Royal Mail pick ups are Monday thru Saturday) Note: Your parcel's journey time and, most importantly, the duties you may be charged on delivery can be affected by where exactly your parcel is headed for and the value of the goods you've ordered. Your parcel will be transferred on to a local delivery service once in its country of destination. During this part of its journey, all customers should check with their local courier's website when attempting to track a parcel. Please contact us if you require any assistance with this.

Final delivery may be attempted on a Saturday.

Customs Arrangements

Please look to the customs accomodations applicable for your delivery address:

All overseas order will NOT be charged UK VAT on any items purchased. (The price reduction will show automatically during the check-out process.)

Customers should be aware however that thereafter they may be liable for the following import charges:

 • Customs Duties*
 • Local Taxes
 • Courier's Border Clearance Fee

The latter fee covers the cost of customs' processing and an administration cost associated with collecting the other import charges. The customs thresholds at which these taxes and duties (applied by overseas' customs authorities) become applicable will vary from country to country and as such it is advisable to check on these before ordering.

Where customs' charges are incurred customers will be e-mailed an online link by an approved courier agent for payment; this will occur before customs release your parcel for final delivery. Alternatively, a postage agent may collect the fees at your door before turning over your parcel. Failure to pay any fees that are due promptly will result in your parcel being returned to us.

Note also: Very large orders sent by air may need to be split into multiple consignments (we do not pass on any extra delivery costs to the customer for this); additional customs fees may be incurred as a result.

 * Applicable on all orders valued over a specific amount. For all destinations in the EU the IOSS threshold is €150. Outside of the EU, thresholds for when this charge will apply are variable.

 

Couriers, Rates, Tracking and Delivery Times

We streamlined our oversea's services. We now send almost all such parcels via air frieght. For some European destinations, this can cut one or two days off your parcel's transit time.

 

Europe

Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland: £14.95.

Sent via Royal Mail International Tracked (track online or via their app). Deliveries can take 3 to 4 days. (Please note, if the total value of your order is over €150 before postage, you will incur extra Customs Duties as outlined above.)

 

Deliveries to all other European Countries are charged at £18.00 per order.

International Tracking

Despatches are normally via Royal Mail's International Tracked Air Service (track online or via their app). Your parcel will nominally be in transit 2 to 8 days, dependent on destination. See here for more specific information; select your country and refer to "International Tracked". (Please note, if the total value of your order is over €150 before postage, and going to the EU, you will incur extra Customs Duties as outlined above.)

 

Rest of the World

Deliveries to all other countries (ie. all non-European destinations) are charged at £25.00 per order.

Orders are processed via Royal Mail's International Tracked/Signed Air Service (further details can be found here). Most international customers can expect to receive their parcel in 7 to 9 days from the time of despatch. However, transit times can be up to 3 weeks. Specific delivery times and other postage details can be found by selecting the country of your choice on this page. Check under 'International Tracked' or 'International Signed' on the subsequent webpage. Initial tracking can be done here.

 

In the unlikely event that your parcel does not arrive by its delivery date estimate, please contact us at your earliest convenience. We will do our utmost to trace your parcel and expedite its delivery. However, customers should be aware that we are only able to query such parcels as officially 'not received,' and register a claim for loss, if the operator has had no reference for your parcel for a certain period of time. For courier parcels this period is 8 or more working days (all UK and EU destinations); a full investigation can launched after 3 further working days. For Royal Mail the period is 10 working days (for UK parcels), 20 working days (Europe) and 25 working days (Rest of the World).

Can I amend the delivery address/conditions for my order after placing it?
If your order has yet to be picked up from us, we will be glad to change your order's contents, upgrade it to Next Day delivery, alter its delivery address or allow for your parcel to be left in a safe place, as required. Simply give us a call on 0121 373 5450 and we will arrange any of these for you. (We can process your request most efficently if you have your post code to hand when calling.)

If your parcel is already with DHL, its delivery address, safe place designation or service standard (extra charges can apply) may still be able to be amended by you or us. (If your parcel is already on the van for delivery, only the safe place/nominated neighbour designation can be changed for that day. Any other amendments will delay your parcel's arrival until the next working day.) Please contact us if you need help making any of these changes.

Unfortunately, delivery conditions for Standard orders are unamendable once your parcel has left us.

If you have received your goods and are unhappy with them in any way please refer to our Returns Page for details on how to obtain a refund or exchange.

Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share on your purchases?
Whether you are impressed or not with your purchases, you can place a review of any products that you buy from us by using opening the review box at the bottom of the product's page (simply click on the "+" on the right to do this). If you wish to review our services please go to our Trustpilot page. We are so confident that you will, generally, only have good things to say that we will send you a product review reminder email a couple of days after you receive your delivery! We thank you for giving us any feedback in this manner as it helps us to continue to improve the goods and services we offer going forward.