Refund policy

Applicable to all purchases from Sydney Art Flooring, including supply-only, as well as supply and installation order.

This policy should be read together with our Terms & Conditions printed on your quote or invoice. Our goods and services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL). Nothing in this policy limits those rights, and if anything in this policy conflicts with the ACL, the ACL prevails.

1. Returns:

We do not offer refunds or returns for change of mind. The only exceptions are standard rug exchanges (section 3) and order changes made before stock has been modified or cut for you (section 6).

We allocate and order material to match each customer's order. For that reason, change-of-mind returns are not accepted for:

leftover or over-ordered boxes, including additional flooring no longer required after the project is completed;
a change of colour, design or product;
a decision not to go ahead with the project;

This applies even where the boxes are unopened.

Please confirm the product, colour and installation method with us before paying your deposit. When you are placing an order for supply only of products ask your installer to check your measurements if you are unsure.

Where goods are faulty, or do not match their description, you are entitled to a remedy under the ACL. Section 6 explains how these claims are assessed.

2. Sale, Clearance & Discontinued Items:

Refunds are not offered for sale, clearance, end-of-line or discontinued products, except where a remedy is required under the ACL. Products purchased at regular price are also not refundable for change of mind (section 1).

A reduced price does not reduce your ACL rights. However, you are not entitled to a remedy for a defect, mark or variation that we pointed out to you before you bought the product.

Ranges, colours and finishes can be discontinued by us or by the manufacturer. We cannot guarantee future stock or an exact replacement, so please buy enough for current and planned stages of your project.

3. Exchanges & Replacements:

Damaged, incorrect or defective product replacements are arranged where goods are damaged in transit, incorrect, missing or defective. Please check every delivery or collection before any boards are laid:

Take photos and notify us within 1 business day of delivery or collection.
Keep the original packaging undamaged and keep the delivery paperwork.
If something looks wrong, stop and call us before installing. Do not lay boards with visible faults.
Once we have inspected the goods, we will arrange a replacement where needed and confirm the return or collection arrangements. Please do not return goods until we have confirmed where and when.

Problems visible before installation are far easier to fix before the floor is laid. Hidden defects that only appear later are still covered by your ACL rights.

4. Rug exchanges:

We will exchange standard rugs within 48 hours of delivery or collection, provided they are returned to our Bondi Junction showroom in showroom/saleable condition. Rugs are exchanged, not refunded, for change of mind. Custom-made rugs cannot be exchanged or refunded once ordered, unless they are faulty.

5. Rugs damaged on delivery:

Check your rug as soon as it is delivered and before you use it:

Report any damage within 24 hours of delivery, with photos of the rug and its packaging.
Keep the rug unused, and keep the packaging, until we have inspected it.
If we confirm it was damaged at delivery, we will replace it or, if a replacement is not available, refund you.

All exchanges and replacements are subject to inspection and the consumer guarantees under the ACL.

6. Transaction Fees & Payment Charges:

Card surcharges and payment processing fees charged by banks or third-party payment providers are generally non-refundable where permitted by law. This also applies to any surcharge on a charge made to your nominated credit or debit card for an overdue balance.

Where a refund is required because goods or services are faulty or otherwise fail a consumer guarantee, any fees that must be refunded under the ACL will be refunded.

7. Refund Process:

Once we have received and inspected the goods, we will advise you by email whether your claim has been approved and which remedy applies (repair, replacement, refund or other remedy). A manufacturer or supplier may need to inspect the floor before a product warranty claim is decided; we lodge and manage those claims for you.

Where a refund is approved, it will be made to the original payment method. Payments made by direct deposit are refunded to a bank account in the name of the customer shown on the invoice. Refunds are generally processed within a few business days, subject to bank processing times.

Where you are exchanging a rug for change of mind, you are responsible for returning it to our showroom at your own cost.

Where goods are confirmed to be faulty or otherwise entitled to a remedy under the ACL, we will cover reasonable return or collection costs. Where goods cannot be returned without significant cost, such as installed flooring, we will arrange inspection or collection at our expense.

If a price or description on your quote or invoice is clearly wrong because of a typing or system error, we will contact you before going ahead. You can accept the correct price or cancel for a full refund of what you have paid.

8. Refund Eligibility & Criteria:

You are entitled to a replacement or refund for a major failure. Where a failure is not major, you are entitled to have the goods repaired or replaced, or the installation fixed, within a reasonable time.

9. Change of mind.

We do not offer change-of-mind refunds. Standard rugs may be exchanged within 48 hours of delivery or collection (section 3).

10. Order changes:

You may change your order before stock has been modified or cut for you, subject to a restocking fee and any difference in product price. No restocking fee applies to faulty-product or warranty returns.

11. Special orders:

Items made or imported for you, such as custom stair nosing, special colours, non-stock quantities and custom rugs, cannot be cancelled, changed or refunded once we have placed the order with the factory or supplier, unless they are faulty.

12. Cancellations and fees:

Please notify us in writing. The following apply to non-faulty orders:

Situation	Charge
You cancel your order	Minimum 20% of the total invoice amount
You cancel after product has been secured, allocated or cut for you	Cancellation not accepted; full order price payable
Order not finalised within 3 months of deposit	We may cancel and apply the 20% cancellation fee, or charge reasonable storage fees
You reschedule the installation date with less than 72 hours' written notice	$500 administration fee
Installation cannot proceed because the site is unprepared, or for another reason attributable to you	$500 installer's lost workday
Installation cannot proceed because of the subfloor's condition	Reinstatement costs, including our return visit

These amounts are deducted from any refund of your deposit or part payment. All requests are assessed against this policy, our Terms & Conditions, the condition of the goods and your rights under the ACL.

13. Installation & Liability:

Sydney Art Flooring guarantees that flooring we install will be installed in a proper, tradesman-like manner in accordance with industry standards. We do not warrant the existing subfloor or its condition. Floor preparation, levelling, moisture testing, removal of old flooring, skirting boards, trims and furniture moving are not included unless listed on your quote or invoice.

14. Supply-only orders:

Where flooring is installed by a third-party installer or by the purchaser, Sydney Art Flooring is not responsible for that workmanship. Workmanship concerns should be directed to the party who installed it. Faults caused by incorrect installation, including failing to follow the product's installation guide, are not product defects.

15. Damage we are not responsible for:

Refunds and replacements are not provided for damage caused by:

accidental or deliberate damage, other than damage caused by our staff or contractors;
stiletto heels, castor chairs, or metal or hard furniture ends, whether standing on or moved across the floor;
water from spills, leaks or flooding, or moisture coming up through the subfloor;
other trades, such as builders or cleaners, working on or interfering with the floor (this also voids our workmanship guarantee);
furniture relocation or door shaving carried out by you or others;
use other than normal foot traffic, unless disclosed to us in writing and approved;
incorrect cleaning, lack of maintenance, misuse, or normal wear and tear;
damage to stairs after the client has inspected the stair installation.

16. Natural Variations & Sample Selection:

Natural product variation is not a defect on its own and is not grounds for a refund or exchange.

Timber and engineered timber: boards differ in colour, grain, knots, mineral streaks and other natural features, and change colour with sunlight over time.
Hybrid, laminate and other manufactured floors: may vary slightly in shade, print, texture and size within the manufacturer's tolerances.
Carpet: colour will vary from the showroom sample even when dye lots are matched. Cut-pile carpets can show pile reversal (shading or "water-marking"), which is a characteristic of cut pile, not a fault.
Rugs: no two handmade rugs are identical. Handmade and wool rugs can vary slightly in size, pattern and colour, stated sizes are approximate, and new wool rugs shed loose fibres for the first few months.

Because production batches differ, we cannot promise a later order will match an earlier one, so order enough for the whole job. During installation, we do not select, set aside, sort or place specific boards in particular areas by colour, grain or natural features.

Photos, renders, screen colours and showroom samples are a guide only. We strongly recommend viewing a physical sample or visiting our Bondi Junction showroom before ordering. If you have questions about suitability, colour or specifications, please contact us before paying your deposit.

For more information, please refer to our Terms & Conditions on quotations and invoices.