What to actually read in a vendor's terms of service

Most people skip vendor TOS entirely. I read them now after a dispute where the vendor cited their own policy to deny my claim. The key sections that matter for buyers are narrow but important.

Reship and refund policy

This is the most practically important section. What exactly qualifies for a reship? Most vendors distinguish between non-delivery (package never arrived), customs seizure (package confiscated), and wrong or defective product. Each may have different terms. A vendor might reship for non-delivery after 30 days but not offer refunds. Or they might replace defective products but not reship seized packages.

Look specifically for: the time threshold before a reship claim is valid (usually 30 to 45 days from shipping), whether customs seizure is covered, what documentation is required to claim a replacement, and whether there are limits on the number of replacements per order.

Order modification window

Most vendors allow order changes within a short window — sometimes as little as two hours after payment. After production begins, modification is either not possible or costs extra. Knowing this window before you finalize an order lets you act quickly if you realize a mistake.

Photo rejection policy

Some vendors reject photos that do not meet their standards and refund rather than producing from a poor-quality submission. Others proceed with what you send and produce a poor-quality card. Knowing which policy your vendor follows matters if your photo submission quality is uncertain.

What TOS cannot tell you

Terms of service are what vendors claim they will do. Actual behavior depends on whether they honor those terms consistently. A vendor with fair written terms and a pattern of ignoring them is worse than a vendor with more restrictive written terms that they consistently follow. Recent reviews that specifically mention support experiences are better evidence of actual behavior than TOS language.