Our Policies
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Here at Modern Musician, we prefer to be upfront and transparent about how we do business.
We review our store policies regularly to ensure that we offer the highest level of customer service possible.
Our policies exceed the requirements set out by the ACCC, and any amendments are checked by by the ACCC prior to implementation.
If you have any queries in regards to any of the topics covered below, feel free to email our management team at nick@modernmusician.com.au
REFUNDS & EXCHANGES
We understand that on occasions, you may need to return goods for a refund, or exchange goods for something else – You may be purchasing a gift for a loved one, or perhaps over estimate your requirements, grab the wrong size drum head etc -it happens!
We’ll happily exchange stocked items within 7 days, if they are returned in the condition that they left the store on the date of purchase, with all original packaging & factory accessories. Unfortunately due to our rapid re-ordering cycles, unless previous approval for an extended grace period is granted, we cannot extend this period – and any extension will be stated in the comments field of your receipt.
There are certain things that due to licensing, hygiene & copyright restrictions we cannot exchange or refund, such as microphones, headphones, earphones, harmonicas, woodwind reeds & mouthpieces, sheet music, software & some technology products. This also means we are unable to offer in store testing of these products. Don’t worry, we’ll make you well aware of this at the time of your purchase, to ensure that you understand and are aware.
In accordance with the guidelines set out by the ACCC, we do not have to offer a refund or exchange if goods are soiled, returned without original packaging & accessories, nor if you simply change your mind. Any goods that we order from a manufacturer on your behalf are not able to be returned for refund or exchange. More on that here at our Customer Orders section.
In order to assist us with processing your refund or exchange, you will need to retain your original purchase receipt. Be mindful that some bundled offers may require the return of all components, or adjusted individual values in order to reflect the true value of that item within the individual bundled offer.
Goods originally purchased with cash to be refunded, under the value of $100 will be refunded in cash, however any purchases over $100 will be made via EFT, and may take 24 hours to be processed at our end. Goods purchased with either EFTPOS, Direct Debit card, Visa or Mastercard up to the value of $1000 will be refunded onto the original card used to purchase the goods, but goods cannot be refunded to a different card type (for example, purchases made with a VISA card cannot be refunded to an EFTPOS or direct debit card) and any card purchases over $1000 which need to be refunded will be completed via EFT, again allowing 24 hours for the payment to be processed at our end. Be aware that after any EFT payments are processed at our end, you may still need to allow time for your financial institution to process the payment at their end, and for the amount to be available.
WARRANTY CLAIMS & PROOF OF PURCHASE
Every now and then something goes wrong – you may be unlucky enough to receive your item DOA (dead on arrival), or more likely, something unforeseen occurs during your warranty period.
Each individual manufacturer stipulates the ins & outs of the warranty terms for their products, and again, they must comply with the ACCC.
In the occurrence of any issues during your warranty period, we’re always your first port of call! If you find yourself either living interstate or away for a prolonged period of time, we can arrange inspection & facilitate processing your claim at worst, at your nearest capital city.
You’ll need to keep a legible copy of your original purchase receipt, either printed or digitized– ask us about emailing your receipt at your time of purchase to make life easier for all parties involved.
Unfortunately warranty claims cannot be processed without your purchase receipt – due to recent software migration, we can no longer access all of our historical sales beyond 1st January 2015.
Bank statements showing transactions, without any other supporting documentation unfortunately do not constitute proof of purchase, as they don’t provide sufficient details as to the goods that were purchased.
The following diagram is designed to assist you in understanding the warranty repair/replacement process, and why we require your assistance and patience at times in order to achieve the desired outcome.
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Goods fail to perform or become faulty
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Contact us by either phone, instore visit or preferably, email, with a detailed fault description, so that we can use our diagnostic wisdom to troubleshoot any potential unrelated issues that could be causing your problems
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Once satisfied that the fault is sufficiently diagnosed, we’ll raise an internal RA (Repair authority) reflecting your detailed fault description, to ensure that we fully understand your issues, and to make any repairs as thorough and efficient as possible
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We then contact the importer and/or manufacturer to report your issues, and lodge an external RA (repair authority request) by providing a copy of your purchase receipt, as well as the detailed fault description that we crafted from your notes.
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Your application will then be assessed and checked against that items warranty terms, and likely deemed approved, or in some rare situations, denied.
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The manufacturer and/or importer will then issue the repair authority, and advise us of the location of their service centre – most brands offer local (greater Hobart area) service agents, but some require your item(s) to be sent interstate for inspection and subsequent repairs.
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Upon inspection and confirmation of the faulty, your item will either be repaired, or replaced at the manufacturer and/or importers discretion –
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Upon receiving the repaired/replaced item back instore, we’ll either test the unit ourselves prior to contacting you to let you know the item is back from service, or more likely, we’ll encourage you to thoroughly test the item for faults either in our store prior to leaving with the repaired goods, or within 7 days from collection.
At all times we will act with the best intentions, and as an advocate for you – we get no joy from disgruntled customers who’s warranty claims are refused, trust me. In the rare occurrence that your warranty claim is refused by the manufacturer and/or importer, we’ll happily provide records of all of our emails and documentation, as well as the contact details of those companies & employees who ultimately decide whether or not your warranty claim is approved. You can find the ACCC policy on warranty claims here, and contact them directly, however we strongly recommend that you attempt to resolve your grievances in the suggested order, as they’ll likely encourage you to do the same.
The most common reason for warranty claims being refused are usual due to poor overall condition of the item, which normally reflects lack of care and maintenance, or overuse, as well as late reporting of the faulty (for example, a cracked cymbal) where the accumulated damage doesn’t allow for accurate diagnosis of the cause of the fault. Bad news doesn’t get better with time, so the sooner that you report the goods as not performing, the sooner we can get your issues rectified and you can get back to making music, or whatever you kids call it these days!
LAYBY
Here at Modern Musician, we all have fond memories of those “She will be mine, oh yes, she will be mine” moments of admiring the instrument of our dreams, only to come in one day with the cash to find that someone else has snapped up your beloved, and that you can no longer get that item. It really sucks. That’s why we like to offer the option to layby. Unfortunately for some items (selected clearance items, consignment items and some products that attract rebates or redemptions) we are unable to extend the offer of layby. We request a 20% deposit to kick things off, and require at least monthly instalments, but the more frequent the merrier. We offer 3 calendar months to complete the purchase (for example, if you pay your deposit on the 4th of January, you have until the 4th of April to make your final payment), and can happily help you manage your payments by helping calculate weekly instalment, and even setup credit card auto-billing at your request – just ask!
We also understand that sometimes situations change – should life happen, and unforeseen circumstances occur, you can talk to us about extending the period of your layby, but be mindful that this is the exception and not the rule, and may be subject to individual approval, and may incur additional stock keeping fees.
LAYBY CANCELLATIONS
It’s happened to all of us – an unexpected bill or change in personal circumstances can leave us unable to meet financial commitments, and the non-essentials are the first to go out the window.
That’s why we’re happy to offer to refund your entire deposit for any laybys cancelled within 7 days of the first payment. Unfortunately due to our rapid stock replenishment, and additional storage and stock keeping costs, any laybys cancelled after the 7 day grace period will incur a restocking fee of 20% of the total purchase price, but rest assured that any additional payments will be promptly refunded, in accordance with our refund policy, which can be found above in our refunds & exchanges policy.
CUSTOMER ORDERS
The team at Modern Musician are excited to help facilitate you finding the item that you’re salivating over, which may involve placing a special order with a warehouse or even a custom build directly with the factory. For any standard off the shelf customer order, we’ll require a minimum 20% deposit to action your order – until this is paid any quote or enquiry will not be actioned.
Spare parts, Factory special orders, sheet music and items deemed esoteric will attract a higher deposit percentage, and in some cases we’ll ask for payment in full. Don’t take this as that we don’t trust you – it’s just to cover our butts in a worst case scenario.
Upon receipt of the goods into our store, we’ll notify you by either SMS, phone call or email at your preference, and can even forward the goods via courier if you’d like – just ask! We ask that you collect your goods within 14 days of them arriving instore, but we’re happy to convert your order to a layby if arranged prior to placing the order.
We’ll endeavour to provide regular updates on the ETA of your goods, and notify you of any unexpected delays in supply so that you’re always in the know.
Our 'same day dispatch for orders placed before 1PM' guarantee applies only to items in stock and shipping from our Hobart store location. Items listed as 'In Stock At Warehouse' are in stock at a third-party location and are not in stock at our Hobart store, and as such may take longer to ship. In some cases, items that are in stock at our Hobart location will still ship from a third-party location for logistical reasons - for example, if the warehouse is in the same state as the delivery address. In these situations, you will be notified.
CUSTOMER ORDER CANCELLATIONS
Once goods are ordered with the supplier and/or factory, orders cannot be cancelled without incurring restocking fees, which are explained below. Exceptions to this are if goods are backordered (out of stock with importer/factory) for prolonged periods of time, or if the incorrect item, or damaged goods are supplied. In these extraneous circumstances, you will be eligible for a full refund of the deposits paid to that point in time, again in accordance with the payment processing methods outlined above in our refund & exchange policy.
CONSIGNMENT SALES & TRADE INS
We no longer have the capacity to facilitate consignment sales or trade-ins.
If you're a Hobart local, we recommend that you contact Jake @ Classic Guitars & Amps:
https://classicguitarsandamps.com/pages/contact-us
TASMANIA FREE SHIPPING OVER $100 TERMS AND CONDITIONS
We love and value our Tasmanian customers, and in return we offer free shipping throughout Tasmania for orders where the cart value is over $100. Unfortunately, there are some exceptions to this. When items are too big & bulky, or in a remote location these orders will incur a shipping charge. For items that are over 28KG, you will see a shipping estimate on the product page and cart page. For remote locations, please contact us before shipping and our logistics manager will arrange a shipping quote for you.