1. About this policy

This policy explains when you can cancel an order, return goods and obtain a refund, replacement or credit from Tropical Seeds Corporation (Pvt) Ltd ("Tropical Seeds", "we", "us"). It applies to every order placed through our website at tropicalseedscorp.com, by telephone, email or WhatsApp, through our field sales representatives, and at our offices and stores.

It forms part of our Terms and Conditions of Sale and should be read with them and with our Privacy Policy. It does not affect your statutory rights under the Consumer Affairs Authority Act No. 9 of 2003 or any other law of Sri Lanka.

2. Deadlines at a glance

The sections below explain each of these, and the goods that cannot be returned at all.

3. Cancelling an order before dispatch

1. You may cancel an order, in whole or in part, at any time before it is dispatched, by contacting us using the details in section 13. Please quote your order or invoice number.
2. If you have already paid, we refund the amount in full, including any delivery charge, by the method described in section 9.
3. An order for goods made, packed, blended, treated or imported specially to your requirement may not be cancellable once production or import has begun. We will tell you at the time of the order if that applies.
4. If we cancel an order, for example because the goods are unavailable, a regulatory restriction applies or a pricing error occurred, we refund every amount you have paid for the cancelled part in full.

4. Shortages, damage and incorrect items

Check the delivery before signing. Count the packs, check the varieties, pack sizes and batch numbers against the invoice, and look for wet, torn, punctured, swollen or heat-damaged packaging.

1. If anything is missing, damaged or incorrect, write it on the delivery note or carrier document before you sign, ask the driver to initial it, and photograph the goods and the outer packaging where you can.
2. Report it to us within 2 Working Days of delivery, with your invoice number, the batch or lot number and the photographs.
3. Damage or a defect that could not reasonably have been seen at delivery should be reported within 7 days of delivery, before the goods are used.
4. We will arrange collection, replacement or a refund at our cost. Do not return goods to us before we have agreed the return, because we cannot accept unannounced returns.
5. Signing a clean delivery note is evidence that the goods arrived complete and in good order, and makes a later claim for shortage or visible damage difficult to accept.

5. Returning goods you no longer need

We are not obliged to accept a return simply because you have changed your mind, over-ordered or your planting plan has changed. As a gesture to our customers we may accept such a return, at our discretion, on these conditions:

• you ask us within 7 days of delivery and we agree the return in writing before you send anything back;
• the goods are unopened, unused, in their original sealed packaging with labels and batch markings intact, and in fully saleable condition;
• the goods have been stored in the conditions printed on the pack since delivery;
• the remaining validity or shelf life is long enough for us to resell them, normally at least 6 months;
• you produce the original invoice or receipt.

A handling and restocking charge of up to 10% of the invoice value may be deducted, and the original delivery charge is not refunded. Return transport is at your cost unless we agreed otherwise.

6. Seed germination and varietal purity claims

Seed is a living product. Laboratory germination is tested for each lot before release, but field emergence depends on soil moisture and temperature, sowing depth, seedbed preparation, irrigation, pests, disease and weather, and is normally lower than laboratory germination. A claim can only be assessed if the evidence still exists, so please follow these steps.

1. Keep the evidence. Retain the original pack, the label, the batch or lot number, any unsown seed from the same lot, and the invoice. A claim cannot be assessed without the batch number and, wherever possible, a retained sample.
2. Tell us early. Report the problem as soon as it appears and no later than 21 days after sowing, while the field can still be inspected and the crop stage is clear.
3. Leave the field undisturbed. Do not plough in, re-sow or spray the affected area until we have inspected it or told you in writing that inspection is not needed.
4. Field inspection. Our technical officer will normally visit within 7 Working Days, with an officer of the Department of Agriculture or its Seed Certification Service where the case warrants it, and will record sowing date, method, depth, spacing, soil and irrigation conditions, weather and crop stage.
5. Germination test. Where the retained sample or our reference sample from the same lot is available, a germination test may be carried out at an accredited laboratory or at the Seed Certification Service. The result of that test on the sealed lot is the primary evidence.
6. Outcome. If the seed is found not to have met the germination or purity standard declared on the label, we will replace the seed, supply equivalent seed for the next suitable season, or refund the price paid for it, at our option.

7. Goods we cannot accept back

For reasons of plant health, product safety, traceability and law, we cannot accept the return of:

• seed packs that have been opened, resealed, decanted, repacked or relabelled;
• treated, primed, coated or pelleted seed once the pack is opened;
• seed that has been sown, or whose validity or expiry date has passed;
• fertilisers, soil conditioners or crop-protection products in opened, punctured, damp, caked or part-used containers;
• goods weighed out, blended, cut or packed to your specific order;
• goods sold as clearance, short-dated, end-of-season or "sold as seen", where that was stated at the time of sale;
• goods stored or transported by you outside the conditions printed on the pack, or exposed to moisture, direct sunlight, heat, pests or agrochemical contamination;
• goods without the original invoice, label or batch identification;
• goods returned after the deadlines in section 2 without our written agreement.

Nothing in this section limits our responsibility for goods that were defective, damaged or incorrect when delivered, or for your statutory rights.

8. How to request a return or refund

1. Contact us using the details in section 13, quoting your invoice or order number, the product name and pack size, the batch or lot number, the quantity concerned and the reason.
2. Attach photographs of the goods, the label and the outer packaging, and the delivery note where damage or shortage is involved.
3. We will acknowledge your request within 2 Working Days and tell you whether we need to inspect the goods or the field.
4. If the return is approved we issue a return authorisation. Please keep the goods in their original packaging and do not send anything back before you receive it.
5. We will tell you the outcome within 14 Working Days of receiving the returned goods or completing the inspection, and will explain the decision if a claim is not accepted.

9. Refunds: method and timing

1. Approved refunds are paid to the original payment method. A payment made online through PayHere is refunded through PayHere to the card, bank account or wallet used. We cannot refund an online payment in cash or to a different card or account.
2. We issue the refund within 7 to 14 Working Days of approving it. The time it then takes to appear on your statement depends on your bank or card issuer, and is commonly a further 5 to 10 Working Days.
3. Refunds of payments made by bank transfer or cheque are paid to the account from which payment was received, on production of the account details.
4. Where you hold a credit account with us, we may issue a credit note against your account instead of a cash refund, and will set it off against amounts you owe us.
5. We refund the price paid for the goods. The original delivery charge is refunded where the goods were defective, damaged, incorrect or cancelled by us, and is not refunded where you simply no longer need the goods.
6. Bank charges, card-scheme fees or currency differences applied by your own bank or provider are not refundable by us.
7. A partial refund may be offered where goods are returned incomplete, with damaged packaging, or outside the condition required by section 5.

10. Return transport and collection

• Where the goods were defective, damaged, incorrect, or cancelled by us, we arrange and pay for collection.
• Where you are returning goods you no longer need, return transport is at your cost, and the goods remain your responsibility until they reach us. Please use packaging that protects them in transit and obtain proof of despatch.
• Goods returned without a return authorisation may be refused, and we are not responsible for goods sent back to us without one.

11. Replacements and exchanges

Where a claim is accepted, you may ask for a replacement, an equivalent variety or product, or supply of the same item for the next suitable season, instead of a refund. Replacements are subject to availability and to the seasonal release of the variety concerned. Where the replacement costs more, the difference is payable; where it costs less, we refund the difference.

12. Product recalls

If a batch is recalled by us or by a regulatory authority, we will contact affected customers using the records we hold and publish a notice at tropicalseedscorp.com. Stop selling and using the affected batch immediately, follow the instructions in the recall notice, and return the goods as directed. Recalled goods are refunded or replaced in full, including return transport, whether or not they were opened, and the exclusions in section 7 do not apply.

13. How to contact us

• Returns and refunds: [email protected]
• Telephone: +94 77 732 5877
• WhatsApp: +94 77 732 5877
• Post: Tropical Seeds Corporation (Pvt) Ltd, No. 74, Union Place, Colombo 02, Sri Lanka
• Business hours: Monday to Friday, 8.30 am to 5.00 pm

If you are not satisfied with our decision, please ask for it to be reviewed by the Customer Service Manager. Our Terms and Conditions of Sale explain how complaints and disputes are handled. You may also contact the Consumer Affairs Authority of Sri Lanka.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The effective date at the top shows when it was last changed. The version in force when you place an order is the version that applies to it, and the current version is always published at tropicalseedscorp.com.