Shipping Quick Shade Dips

[Correus]

I know this is going to sound like a strange question, but are you able to ship items like the Quick Shade Dips to the US?

According to the 'Cannot Ship' posters at the post office items like this are not to be shipped.

Do these items count towards the £50 for free shipping?

[grant]

My order that shipped today:

Product Code: AP-QS1003
Description: Dark Tone - Quick Shade Dip
Item Price: GBP 19.99
Qty: 1
Total: GBP 19.99

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Product Code: AP-TL5006
Description: Hobby Sculpting tools
Item Price: GBP 6.99
Qty: 1
Total: GBP 6.99

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Product Code: BF4127
Description: Swamp Tufts
Item Price: GBP 3.99
Qty: 3
Total: GBP 11.97

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Product Code: BF4134
Description: Meadow Flowers
Item Price: GBP 3.99
Qty: 3
Total: GBP 11.97

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Product Code: WGP-SUR-01
Description: Pike & Shotte Surgeon
Item Price: GBP 6.00
Qty: 1
Total: GBP 6.00

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Your Order Qualified for the following Discount(s):

FREE POSTAGE £50
FREE POSTAGE ON ALL ORDERS OVER £50

[Correus]

But are they allowed to ship to the US?

[BigMike]

Don't see why not - It's my understanding that commercial firms can ship most things most places as long as the documentation on the package is right.

[Correus]

This is the reason I ask:

Many household items can’t go in the mail.
Hazardous materials come in a wide variety of forms and can be chemical, biological, radioactive, or a combination.

The Postal Service's™ definition of a hazardous material includes many common household and consumer products. They may not be dangerous on your shelf at home, but they can become a hazard when shaken or when the temperature or pressure changes.

Some common hazardous materials include…

Perfumes
Nail polish
Flea collars or flea sprays
Aerosols
Bleach
Pool chemicals
Paints
Matches
Batteries
Fuels or gasoline
Airbags
Dry ice
Mercury thermometers
Cleaning supplies
Items previously containing fuel
Glues
Fireworks

Not sure if what you’re sending is hazardous or prohibited? Just call 1-800-ASK-USPS or your local Post Office.

This list is from the USPS (United States Post Office) web site. Note that 'Paints' are listed - this includes stains and sprays.

The following is from a USPS worker:

I know for a fact it would be against US Postal laws to send any inflammable or combustible materials through the mail unless you are using a pre-approved fire-retardant, airtight shipper.

I don't know what the regulations are with Fed-Ex or UPS but they probably wouldn't knowingly let you mail them unless they were in the same type of fire-retardant, airtight shipping container.

The companies that manufacture spray paints use these types of containers to ship their paints, usually by overland freight.

However - one person says small pots of hobby paint can be ship, by ground, as long as it is in a pre-approved package with "Consumer Commodity ORM-D" for ground shipping and "Surface Only" or "Surface Mail Only" for surface deliveries written on the side of the box.

When I have ordered paint from other companies it has been shipped FedEx or UPS; I've never ordered paint from a company outside the boarders.

I'm going to try and ask my Post Mistress tomorrow, but I figured WG would know.

I just don't want to place an order and then be told "sorry - we can't ship that to the USA".

[Comte Michel]

From what I recall from my days in Technical Services for a larg(ish) chemical company, the basic situation is this:

The Post Office (for whatever country) don't like you to ship paint, or liquids in general, even if non-hazardous like pots of acrylics, because of the risk of breakage and consequent ruination of people's mail. However there is no legislation that covers this specifically.

If the material is hazardous (and that includes aerosol cans even if the contents are non-hazardous), then it will be classified according to a number of regulations covering road, sea and air freight. These don't normally prohibit shipping, they simply specify the packaging and labelling required to ship them by the chosen route. The regulations are as would be expected far stricter for air, than for road or sea. The quantities at which the regulations cut in also varies in the same way.

A good guide as to whether something is likely to be restricted in this way is to check if it carries any of those square orange hazard labels. If it does, then almost certainly it will be restricted. If you find a UN or SI number on the label, for example the 1950 on my can of airbrush cleaner, then it's definitely going to be restricted.

The repsonsibility lies with the shipper to ensure he complies with the regulations. If he chooses to take a chance it's his neck on the block

[mikeland]

Not sure about Warlord... but the Army Painter have their own dedicated US webstore. With orders over $65 shipping free. They don't mention any issues with shipping via UPS... seems they ship from Denmark.