Store Policies
*****12-14-2024*****
After a VERY long several months working around the clock to catch up from unexpectedly being left without help after developing bilateral trigger thumb this spring, I'm thrilled to say we've finally reached the point where most orders are going out within normal timeframes again. We're still working through the last of the delayed orders-many of which are just waiting on titanium to come in-as well as resizes and the numerous replacements from shipping being an absolute *disaster* from about mid-September to mid-November (I'm assuming due to the unusually high volume of mail related to the election), but expect to have the rest finished off and shipped fairly soon.
I sincerely apologize for the delays and frustration and thank everyone for their patience and understanding as I navigate this very difficult situation!
Processing Time
As each splint is custom handmade to order processing time is largely dependent on order size and splint complexity. Most smaller orders are out in a week, while larger and/or more complicated orders can take 2-3 weeks. It is also important to keep in mind that titanium has extended processing time regardless of order size as it requires additional steps in production due to the properties of the metal, and will generally add around 1-2 weeks to the standard processing time. It's a very difficult metal to work with, which is likely why no one else offers it, but I believe we all deserve access to good quality metal splints-even when struggling with MCAS or severe metal allergies.
As an example, most orders for a swan neck or a lateral support or a regular hand/thumb MCP in most metals would only take 1-3 days, but an order for a full set of splints (two IP joint splints per finger, thumb combination splint and swan, and hand MCP hypermobility/buddy splint) with lots of supports in titanium would typically take anywhere from 1-3 months. If you'd like to know more about titanium and it's process check out my Metal Types page.
There's also been a notice in the description of each style of IP-MCP Combination splint regarding significant delays/extended processing time since May due to a hand injury that prevented me from being able to make them-particularly in titanium-until September, which will apply as long as the notices are up Thankfully though I've been in a really good groove with them over the last week, so I'm getting through the orders that have been waiting on them quickly and haven't botched and had to remake any recently. Titanium is still a bit of challenge for me though so are taking longer than they normally would, so they may be delayed a bit longer than the other metal types.
Orders placed during sale events often have a longer processing time due to the high volume of orders and complexity of the splints (people frequently take advantage of the opportunity to order thumb splints with extra supports added and designer series splints, which are more time consuming), so please keep that in mind when ordering.
I do my best to provide updates on any delays and current processing times on the site when/as they occur.
Shipping
*****IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR CANADIAN ORDERS*****
Canada Post had been on strike from 11/29/2024 to 12/17/2024
During this time USPS was not accepting shipments destined for Canada, and shipments that were already on the way when the strike started have been held once they reached the country. From what it says online they've ramped up efforts and are moving through quickly and expect to be back to normal operations Mid-January, but from my experience the last couple times I'd expect to have delays for a bit longer than that. I'm would also expect there to be an increase in missing shipments given that the strike happened right at the time people would be shipping the most, getting holiday gifts to loved ones.
Sadly, the news I've seen says the strike wasn't successful and grievances are being filed, so I'd be wary of that as well. Given everything going on I've added UPS as a shipping option for Canada so you have another choice if you'd like to avoid using the postal system, however I'd like to note that for now UPS options may have a delay from when the order is packaged and when it is picked up by UPS. I'm unable to drive due to a leg issue (my bad hip has been giving me trouble again, which is causing the nerve injury to act up, and my car is a standard. Yay, EDS!), and the closest UPS drop off is over half an hour away. And, same as USPS, since I live in the middle of nowhere pickup options aren't available. Many of my supply orders as well as personal shopping are delivered via UPS though, so I know that they would be able to pick up at least 1-2 times a week while dropping off my packages, but for the time being unfortunately I couldn't guarantee ship dates.
Orders are shipped Monday, Wednesday, and Friday via USPS. Transit time is generally 3-5 business days for First Class and Priority shipments and 1-2 business days for Priority Express, and automatically include $100 insurance in case they are lost or damaged in transit. Transit times can also occasionally be affected by inclement weather or other issues, as well as take longer during the holiday season from the increased volume of packages and cards.
Please allow 24-48 hours for tracking to update through USPS.
Domestic shipments: If a package is lost or damaged please contact me within 60 days to file a claim and have a replacement order sent out. USPS will not accept claims until at least a week has passed for Priority/Priority Express options, for regular First Class shipments the waiting period is two weeks. If your order has been marked delivered but not received please contact your local post office first, sometimes shipments are scanned delivered early and take another day or two and there are occasionally times when USPS recycles tracking numbers early, which results in orders being delivered to one of the other addresses associated with the tracking number. Contacting your local post office first gives you the best chances of USPS being able to locate and redeliver your package as they have GPS tagging for each delivery and in smaller communities may even remember delivering it
International Shipments: International orders with Standard or Priority shipping are transported by USPS shipping partner Global Post, who handles the international leg of the journey. USPS delivers shipments to their processing facilities where shipments are sorted and sent to the appropriate destination countries, then transfer the packages to the local postal service of the destination country for final delivered. They typically move a little faster than USPS and include $100 insurance with the option to add more with their standard shipping service, which is something you have to upgrade to a Priority option for with USPS. Transit time is generally 1-2 weeks, though some locations and more outlying areas can take up to 6, but generally international orders will have arrived by the 4th week, even to remote locations. Please keep in mind that these timeframes are also affected by how long customs in the destination country takes to process the shipment. While USPS has a 3-5 day transit time listed for Priority Express shipments it's important to keep in mind that the transit time is how long it takes to reach the destination country, it may take a longer as the package will need to clear customs before it can be handed off to the local postal service for delivery.
Claims for international shipments missing or damaged in transit must be made after 30 days but before 90 days for standard and Priority shipments, and after one week but before 60 days for Priority Express.
Some countries charge a customs fee/import tax/VAT. This is not a shipping charge, it is an import tax imposed by the government of the destination country. All customs forms are labeled as medical orthotics, which exempts them from this tax in some countries and discounts them in others. As these charges vary for every country and often fluctuate I am not aware of how much they will be, it is the buyers responsibility to be aware of any applicable fees for their individual country.
Claims: As long as I'm notified within the timeframe if your shipment is lost or damaged I'll file a claim with appropriate shipper and start work on remaking the order as soon I receive confirmation they're unable to locate the shipment. Unfortunately I'm not able to provide refunds as these claims are often rejected and even when accepted take many weeks to receive, but I always send a replacement order out ASAP. If I don't receive notification before the cut-off times I will be unable to file a claim with the shipper and the order will not be eligible for replacement.
In some special circumstances store credit may be issued, however this credit cannot be used during sale events if the original order was also placed during a sale event or otherwise discounted.
Please keep in mind that I don't have any control over what happens once the package is out of my hands, but rest assured I'll promptly get to work on a resolution should anything happen during transit.
Please ensure your address is correct before placing your order. To protect both buyer and seller, and to prevent fraud, addresses cannot be changed after an order is placed. Any shipments returned to me for missing or incomplete address or in the case of international shipments where they were never picked up from customs will not be eligible for a refund, but I will of course be happy
to send them back out to you for the cost of the reshipment.
Cancellations
Orders are immediately sent for processing when they are placed and therefore cannot be changed or canceled, so please double check measurements to ensure accuracy and ask any questions prior to placing an order. Typically the initial shaping of the splints is done at the end of the day the order is placed, and while larger orders may take longer to complete and ship small orders for simple splints often go out next day, sometimes even same day if the order is placed early enough, so there is generally not enough time after an order is placed to cancel before work on it has begun. You will receive an email from Zebra Splints when the order has been completed and getting packaged for shipment. Please allow 24-48 hours for USPS to update tracking.
Returns/Exchanges/Refunds
Please keep in mind that as all splints are handmade there may be slight variations from the splints pictured (no two swirls come out exactly the same, no two roses are exactly alike).
Since all splints are custom made to order based on measurements, sizes, and materials provided to me they are not able to be resold and therefore I'm unable to accept returns or exchanges, all sales are final. Therefore please be sure to ask any questions prior to ordering-if you're unsure of the splint type you need, what metal option would be best for your needs, if there are any concerns with sizing etc.-as I won't be able to make changes to splints after they've been made.
However, to balance this out I have the most generous resizing policy in the industry to cover instances when the splints received don't fit properly, only charging for the materials in cases where splints need to be remade and direct overhead costs associated with their production, I don't charge for my time.
If you receive your splints and they do not fit they may be sent back for low cost resizing as long as they are received back within 30 days. Buyer must contact for approval prior to shipping a splint back for resizing. While I don't charge for the work resizing splints within the first 30 days, if the splint(s) need to be remade entirely (this typically only applies to splints that need to be sized larger, hand MCP splints, and some types of thumb splints) fees for resizing will vary depending on the splint type and metal type to cover the cost of materials, and shipping costs to send the splint(s) back to you. An invoice will be sent via email for the shipping cost and materials cost (if applicable) when the resize is completed and ready to ship. Pease keep in mind that since I sell my splints at cost to help keep them affordable the bulk of the price of them is the cost of materials, so while it's fairly inexpensive for stainless steel and titanium sterling silver and gold filled options can add up quick when multiple/large splints need to be remade. When invoicing for the total cost of materials with sterling silver or gold filled I calculate by the actual cost of the material minus a discount for the scrap return of the returned splints based on weight.
Different companies use different sizing methods and in some cases even have their own proprietary sizing, so please use the tools and instructions available on my sizing page to ensure accuracy and prevent the need for resizing. Orders placed using sizing for another company will not be eligible for the free/low cost resizing policy due to the increased likelihood of inaccurate sizing. Historically most of the resizes on large orders have been the result of a therapist measuring incorrectly because they are following instructions they learned for a different company rather than the instructions on my site, which are designed for clarity and ease of use for people who are just ordering for themselves. It's been pretty uncommon for someone who measured themselves to need resizing done.
Please keep in mind that while I make every effort to get orders out as quickly as possible I'm just one person, and there's only so many hours in the day. EDS is a difficult and often unpredictable condition to live with and there is always the potential for an acute injury or severe flare that prevents me from being able to work efficiently (or sometimes at all).
I run this as a not-for-profit business, the money made from splint sales is used to purchase materials and cover the overhead costs so I can continue to offer beautiful and durable splints that will last a lifetime, and a good part of what keeps prices low is that I donate a lot of my time, I only pay myself wages enough to cover necessary living expenses. I've never been one to dream of an extravagance, I only ever wanted a quiet peaceful life where I wouldn't have to worry about how I'm going to pay my bills or bring a calculator with me when I go grocery shopping (I grew up in poverty, food insecurity is something I still struggle with). It's always been more important to me to be able to put some good into the world with this little life I have than to live it up with expensive dinners and fancy cars. I live in a modest rental home and drive a used car, I don't wear designer clothes or fancy jewelry (unless I made it myself). I'm just like everybody else.
Pretty much every assistant I've hired has told me the same thing: "You could almost double your prices and still be able to sell them cheaper than anyone else, and you'd have way more money!"...but that goes against everything I'm doing this for. I wanted to make splints *accessible*, I know that so many of use are on fixed/limited income or struggling to get by with the medical expenses of living with a condition like EDS. I've had so many people over the years place dozens of orders for just one splint at a time to build up the set they need and I couldn't fathom taking that option away, leaving them to gamble with Etsy sellers who may or may not be selling legitimate splints, or stuck with plastic ones that often damage our delicate skin and need to be replaced because they wear out. I've had to raise prices a few times over the years to cover increasing supply costs and employee wages, and I just despise it every time.
The flip side of that is that there isn't really anything extra to use for hiring temporary/emergency help if something goes sideways, or paying triple for materials from a retail store if something is backordered (and really, most of what I use can only be found at the specific vendors I use). While I try to keep everything stocked and always order early to avoid delays there have been a few occasions where it's taken months longer than the lead time I was given-last year I ordered stainless steel 6 months early because I was given a 4 month lead time and it ended up taking over 8 months, forcing me to remove the option from the site entirely for months and delaying countless orders.
I've been through some major events that caused serious delays: Hurricane Maria in 2018, losing my daughter followed immediately by Covid in 2020, last year needing emergency dialysis that required a few weeks in the hospital and two months outpatient (which happened to coincide with the 8 month wire delay). And now this year developing bilateral trigger thumb at the exact time my apprentice went through a major loss and unexpectedly stopped working (which I'm still fighting my way back from). But no matter what happens I always remain dedicated to the work and don't rest until everything is back on track. The vast majority of the time I'm able to work through and get all orders out quickly and it's not difficult to keep up on the multifaceted aspects of running the business, with even the largest orders only taking a week or two, but sometimes I struggle through circumstances beyond my control and all I can do is my best.
Despite my best efforts to keep ahead of everything and be prepared there will always be situations beyond my control that pop up from time to time, so there is always the potential that processing time could be unexpectedly delayed. If this is something that would be a big issue, please do not order from the site.
Should you receive your order and have an issue with it, please contact me immediately. Above all, I want every one of my customers to be happy. If there is something wrong with your order, I will be happy to fix it, ESPECIALLY if it is my mistake!