Refund and Returns Policy

Effective Date: May 23, 2026

Website: Shipping Container Store

Thank you for choosing Shipping Container Store for your intermodal equipment, heavy-duty storage, and architectural fabrication needs. Because shipping containers are large-scale, highly capitalized industrial assets involving complex intermodal logistics, heavy machinery deployment, and custom manufacturing, our return and refund policy differs significantly from traditional consumer e-commerce guidelines.

Please read this comprehensive policy thoroughly before finalizing your transaction, signing your purchase agreement, or approving engineering designs. By placing an order or executing a deposit with Shipping Container Store, you explicitly agree to the structural, financial, and logistical guidelines detailed below.

1. Cancellations & Refunds Prior to Delivery Dispatch

The financial penalties and administrative assessments associated with canceling an order prior to its physical dispatch depend entirely on the container class and the level of fabrication involved:

Standard Dry Storage Containers (Unmodified Fleet)

• The 48-Hour Grace Window: Orders placed for standard, unmodified dry storage containers (including new “one-trip” units and used cargo-ready units) may be canceled for a full, 100% refund up to 48 hours prior to the mutually agreed-upon delivery date and time. This allows us to halt the logistical dispatch without incurring third-party carrier costs.
• Late Cancellations: Any cancellation requests received within the 48-hour window before delivery will automatically be subject to a mandatory 15% restocking and administrative fee. This fee is strictly assessed to offset the specialized yard expenses already incurred, including crane operations to unstack and stage the container, internal depot tracking audits, and contract cancelation penalties issued by our heavy-haul trucking network.

Customized & Modified Containers

• Post-Engineering Freeze Status: Once a customer completes the formal blueprint sign-off protocol with our engineering team, the order is immediately frozen into production. From this exact milestone onward, the order is strictly non-cancelable, non-returnable, and 100% non-refundable.
• Rationale for Non-Refundability: Because our modification yards instantly begin cutting high-grade structural steel, executing structural welds, and installing bespoke windows, personnel doors, insulation, or HVAC climate control arrays tailored exclusively to unique customer schematics, these assets cannot be salvaged, repurposed, or reintegrated into our standard fleet inventory. The buyer remains legally and contractually responsible for the total balance of the purchase price.

Refrigerated Containers (“Reefer” Units)

• Pre-Trip Inspection (PTI) Staging: Orders for specialized refrigerated containers may be canceled up to 5 business days prior to the scheduled delivery date, subject to a mandatory 10% mechanical prep and testing fee.
• Specialized Labor Recovery: This fee is required to recover the technical labor costs of our certified refrigeration engineers, who perform extensive, state-of-the-art multi-point diagnostic tests, electrical system calibrations, and continuous data-logger performance runs to certify the unit’s deep-freeze and heating capabilities prior to dispatch. Cancellations submitted fewer than 5 business days before dispatch will be treated as late cancellations and incur a 20% penalty.

2. Policy Upon Delivery & Mandatory On-Site Inspections

Shipping Container Store enforces a strict “Inspect Before Drop” protocol across all asset deliveries to eliminate disputes regarding transit wear and structural status.

                DELIVERY ARRIVES ON-SITE
                           │
                           ▼
               MANDATORY CLIENT INSPECTION
             (Prior to Offloading Container)
                           │
         ┌─────────────────┴─────────────────┐
         ▼                                   ▼
STRUCTURAL DEFECT FOUND?             UNIT MATCHES MANIFEST?
(e.g., Hole in roof, rust puncture)  (Correct size, grade, specs)
         │                                   │
         ├──► YES: REJECT DELIVERY           └──► YES: SIGN MANIFEST
         │    • Unit returns to depot             • Container offloaded
         │    • Free swap or full refund          • SALE IS FINAL
         │                                        • No post-drop refunds
         └──► NO: Proceed to drop

• Mandatory On-Site Review: Upon the arrival of our transport vehicle (tilt-bed, rollback, or crane-equipped HIAB flatbed), the buyer, or a designated corporate representative, must thoroughly inspect the container prior to the transport driver offloading, dropping, or unchaining the unit from the trailer bed. This inspection must verify external and internal structural integrity, door seal compliance, and matching manifest numbers.
• Exercising the Right to Reject: If the container exhibits structural damage that violates the contract grade (such as a structural puncture that breaks the wind-and-watertight barrier), or if the wrong size/configuration was dispatched, the buyer must immediately note the defect on the driver’s manifest and reject the delivery. In these clear-cut instances, the driver will return the container to our nearest depot, and Shipping Container Store will arrange a replacement unit or issue a full refund at zero additional transit cost to the buyer.
• Finality of Offloading: Once the container is offloaded from the vehicle, successfully placed on your designated site, and the delivery manifest is signed, the commercial transaction is finalized. Shipping Container Store will not issue full refunds, partial refunds, or accept physical returns based on cosmetic complaints, ground settling, site change-of-mind, or localized structural shifts that occur post-placement.

3. Post-Delivery Structural Integrity Claims

While we do not offer traditional retail “change-of-mind” returns or buyer’s remorse refunds once a container is placed on your property, we stand firmly behind our engineering standards and structural guarantees:

• The 30-Day Wind and Watertight (WWT) Guarantee: If, within the first 30 calendar days following your official delivery date, your container experiences a hidden structural failure (such as an unexpected roof seam leak or door gasket degradation) that explicitly compromises its wind-and-watertight status, you must submit a claim to our logistics desk immediately.
• On-Site Remediation Protocol: Because the logistical cost of reloading and hauling a multi-ton steel structure back to a corporate depot is economically and environmentally restrictive, our primary remedy is remediation over return. Shipping Container Store will dispatch our mobile repair network and certified welders to your physical location to weld, patch, seal, or repair the verified structural defect at our absolute expense. If, and only if, our senior engineers determine the structural defect is completely unfixable on-site, we will coordinate a flatbed swap-out of the unit at zero cost to you.
• Explicit Policy Exclusions: This structural claim policy is completely null and void if the structural failure or leak was directly or indirectly caused by:
  1. Improper or unlevel site foundation preparation by the buyer, leading to frame twisting.
  2. Overloading the container beyond its certified maximum ISO structural weight capacities.
  3. Accidental structural impacts, punctures, or scratches caused by your on-site heavy machinery, forklifts, or construction activities.

4. Return Shipping, Logistics, and Staging Fees

In the highly exceptional and rare circumstance where an executive return is authorized in writing by the management of Shipping Container Store for an asset that has already been delivered and accepted:

• Logistical Costs: The buyer is completely responsible for sourcing, scheduling, and paying for the certified heavy-haul transport, tilt-bed operators, or mobile cranes required to return the multi-ton container safely back to our designated regional depot. Shipping Container Store will not subsidize, reimburse, or coordinate return shipping logistics for approved, non-defective returns.
• Condition of Returned Assets: Returned containers must be delivered to our depot completely empty, sweeping clean, unlocked, free of structural modifications executed by the buyer, and completely devoid of toxic residues, hazardous materials, personal property, or localized debris. Units failing to meet this standard will be rejected at the gate or assessed severe hazardous cleanup fees.
• Restocking Penalty: All approved, post-delivery contract returns are subject to a mandatory 20% restocking and logistics fee, which will be calculated based on the original invoice amount and deducted directly from the final refund credit issued to the customer’s financial account.

5. Initiating a Claim or Cancellation

To initiate an order cancellation, report a delivery discrepancy, or submit a structural claim regarding a standard, customized, or refrigerated cooling unit, please follow our centralized claims process:

1. Locate Your Identifiers: Locate your original invoice number and the container’s unique 11-character alpha-numeric identification number (stenciled prominently on the structural cargo doors and side panels).
2. Submit Photographic Proof: Draft an email to our logistics help desk containing a detailed description of the issue along with high-resolution photographs detailing the specific structural defect, leak point, or mechanical code.
3. Review Phase: Our logistics desk and depot engineers will evaluate your claim file and contact you within 2 business days to coordinate mobile technician dispatching, scheduling, or refund authorizations.