Shipping policy

Shipping Days:

None of us want these crickets to sit in a shipping facility or truck any longer than necessary. We don’t ship cricket orders that will sit unmoving with a shipping service over a weekend, or on a shipper observed holiday. With this in mind, please be aware of our shipping practices below when placing your order and choosing your shipping speed and rate.

  • Orders for shipping with an estimated 1 or 2 business day transit for delivery, placed before 12 PM Noon Monday - Wednesday, will typically be shipped on the same day the order is placed.
  • Orders placed before 12 PM Noon on Thursdays, with shipping that estimates 1-business day transit for delivery, will typically be shipped on the same day for an expected Friday delivery.
  • Orders with an estimated 2-business day transit for delivery, placed after 12 PM Noon on Wednesday, will be shipped the following Monday.
  • Orders with an estimated 1-business day transit for delivery placed after 12 PM Noon on Thursday will be shipped the following Monday.

We reserve the right to not ship crickets on days when high temperatures, in our area and the destination area, are above 90° or below 25° Fahrenheit (our “Safe Shipping Temperature Zone”) for extended periods of time. 

If your order will not be shipped in the timeframes listed above, due to weather conditions or unforeseeable situations, we will send you an email and/or text message to confirm when your order will be shipped from our facility.

Current Shipper Issues:

No company is perfect, and shippers are no exception.  Please visit our Shipping Information page for the latest information on shipper issues.

Safe Shipping

We reserve the right not to ship crickets on days when high temperatures, in our area and the destination area, are above 90° or below 25° Fahrenheit (our “Safe Shipping Temperature Zone”) for extended periods of time. 

We packaged our shipments of crickets based on the expected temperatures during transit and at the delivery location.  These adjustments do affect the size and weight of the packaging and shipping and handling costs fluctuate throughout the year accordingly. 

It is the customer's responsibility to bring their received cricket order into a temperature controlled environment immediately upon the package's delivery by the carrier service.  Cricket shipments are packed for transit survivability and not to survive direct outdoor exposure to conditions outside of our "Safe Shipping Temperature Zone" or inclement weather.

During hotter weather quantities of crickets will be moved up to the next larger container size, and vented boxes are utilized, to allow more room for the crickets to separate and have better dispensation of heat from the container.  In cooler weather we will package crickets more condensed in blind boxes to conserve heat.

As the winter months approach, we implement our Winter Packaging Protocol.  This protocol goes into effect when overnight lows are 50° F or below and daytime temperatures do not exceed 60° F.  Winter Packaging Protocol procedures are dependent on forecasted temperatures.  As average temperatures drop Winter Packaging Protocols incrementally include:

  • Ship with blind (non-vented) boxes.
  • Add a heat pack to blind boxes.
  • Send blind boxes in sleeves with circulation spacing between heat pack and cricket containers.
  • Send blind boxes paper packed in sleeves containing a heat pack (or multiple heat packs).
  • Send blind boxes in sleeves containing a heat pack (or multiple heat packs) with gel packs, and/or phase changing material packs, surrounding the cricket container as a temperature and insulation barrier.

Winter Packaging Protocols progressively increase the weight and dimensions of shipments significantly and shipping and handling charges increase accordingly. Shipping and handling charges are continually adjusted during Winter Packaging Protocols based on current regionally forecasted temperatures.

During Winter Packaging Protocols shipments are also subject to:

·       Shipment delays during significant cold weather, to align with the warmest forecasted shipping night of the week.

·       Forced upgrade to overnight shipping (on shipments that would normally take 2 or 3 days for delivery) or be subject to an extended shipping fulfillment delay until forecasted daily temperatures significantly improve.

When a Winter Packaging Protocol shipment delay is anticipated, or an upgrade to overnight shipping is required to avoid a significant fulfillment delay, a Twin Cities Crickets representative will make every effort to contact the affected customer, through the contact information provided by the customer during the ordering process, to inform the customer of the situation and discuss any alternatives that may be available.

Expected Shipping Mortality:

All orders are packed with a minimum quantity overage of at least 10% of the purchased quantity.  Due to various shipping factors, causing stress on the crickets or physical harm, a 5% - 10% rate of mortality may be apparent when your crickets arrive at their destination.

Delivery Satisfaction Guarantee

Our goal is to have satisfied long-term customers.  Your crickets should be delivered healthy and alive (within the expected shipping mortality rate) to your location.  We guarantee live delivery (within the expected shipping mortality rate) of your purchase when you select USPS Priority Mail Express, UPS Next Day Air – Early, or FedEx Priority Overnight as your shipping delivery method and when the weather conditions are in our Safe Shipping Temperature Zone.  Shipping fulfillment may be delayed until the Safe Shipping Temperature Zone is achieved.

Even if you do not select an “Early Next Day” shipping delivery method you should still be satisfied that your crickets have arrived alive (within the expected shipping mortality rate) and healthy. Should an issue arise, we will do what we can to make the situation right.  Situationally dependent, this could mean an account credit to be used on future orders or a no-cost replacement shipment of your original order. In order for us to be able to make things right all shipment issues must be reported within 24 hours of shipment delivery.  We may require photos of the shipping issue, to ensure we have the best understanding of the shipping issue, to work towards preventing the issue from happening again in the future.

Refunds for Mass Mortality

When shipping it is possible that unavoidable situations could arise that may lead to excessive mortality (beyond the expected shipping mortality rate) with a shipment.  We provide refunds based on our Delivery Satisfaction Guarantee policy and is applicable to the following shipping methods:

  • UPS Next Day Air – Early and FedEx Priority Overnight Delivery: Eligible for 100% Refund.
  • USPS Priority Mail Express, UPS Next Day Air and FedEx Standard Overnight Delivery: Eligible for 50% Refund.
  • UPS Ground (1 or 2 Business Day) or USPS Priority Mail (1 Business Day) Delivery: Eligible for refund or account credit equal to shipping costs.

We may require photos of the mortality issue, to ensure we have the best understanding of the issue, to work towards preventing the issue from happening again in the future.