All posted items are fully insured through our own business insurance, and are well packaged in strong cardboard mailers or boxes. We use as little plastic as possible in our packaging, and reuse suitable packing materials whenever possible. Orders received in the morning of a working day are usually dispatched the same day.

Local orders
Click and collect. Local customers can order online or reserve an item over the phone, and collect the order from our shop during normal opening hours. There is no charge for this service.

UK orders
Postage is free for orders over £20, placed on our website or over the phone at the shop, and delivered to a UK address. We dispatch orders every working day, order by noon for same day dispatch. Books are sent by the most appropriate method for the value and weight of the books- Next Day Special Delivery or Parcelforce. Less valuable items are sent by RoyalMail 48hr Signed For or 48hr. Want us to use a particular service? We're happy to help- however there may be a small additional charge for some services. Our free postage policy applies to full price, single volume items- we may choose to charge for postage for some heavy items, multi-volume sets or discounted sales. Please contact us by phone +44 (191) 2960664 for help with postage options. Alternatively, you can also email us at mail@keelrowbooks.com.

International orders
Postage is free for orders over £150* placed through our website or over the phone at the shop and delivered to an international address. Orders are usually dispatched within one working day. Orders are sent by the most appropriate method for the value and weight of the books- usually International Tracked and Signed Airmail, or regular Airmail. Heavier items may be sent by Economy (Surface mail) or by courier such as UPS. If you order a book or multi-volume set described as heavy, we may contact you to request a small extra contribution towards overseas postage.

Our free overseas postage policy applies to full price, single volume items- we may choose to charge postage for discounted sales, multi-volume sets or heavy items. Want us to use a particular service? We're happy to help- however there may be an additional charge for some services. Please contact us by phone +44 (191)2960664 for help with postage options. Alternatively, you can also email us at mail@keelrowbooks.com.

*International postage for orders under £150 are charged as follows:
Europe: £6
USA: £14
Rest of world: £9

International taxes, customs charges or duties
Our international postage (whether free or charged) covers delivery only. When a purchase is shipped internationally, it may become subject to local duties, customs charges & taxes, which are beyond our control. Payment of taxes and duties etc is the customer's responsibility. Unfortunately we are unable to falsify customs documents or declare incorrect amounts on our overseas paperwork. Thank you for your understanding.

Items remain the property of Keel Row Books until full payment has been received, and orders must be sent to the card billing address except by prior agreement.

Selling to us

Do you buy books? Yes, though of course it does
depend on what they are! Please see our Sell books page for more information. We buy rare and fine books, antiquarian books, first editions, signed books and good quality second-hand books.

If I sell my books to the Keel Row Bookshop, how will I be paid? We typically pay by cheque or bank transfer, or cash for smaller transactions.

Can you come to my house to buy my books? We travel throughout the north of England, Scotland and beyond to view and purchase books, maps, prints, photographs and paper ephemera. We regularly visit Newcastle, Sunderland, Durham, Carlisle, Leeds, Sheffield Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham.

Ordering books

Where do you deliver to? We deliver worldwide. Most orders are dispatched within one working day: if you need it faster than that, give us a call or email us and we’ll do our best to speed things up!

How long will delivery take? Most UK orders will be delivered within three to four working days after dispatch. Most international orders are delivered in seven to fourteen working days after dispatch, the exception being heavier items that we may chose send by Economy Mail (Surface). We do try our best to meet the delivery timescales that we quote, but occasionally a parcel can be late due to reasons that are out of our control.

How will my order be packaged? We take lots of care with our packaging to make sure your books get to you safely. We wrap books first if appropriate, then pack in strong cardboard mailers or boxes. We're working hard to reduce the amount of plastic we use for packaging and now usually use paper 'bubblewrap' or craft paper to protect books. As part of our ongoing commitment to reduce plastic waste, we save a good deal of the packaging materials that are received at the bookshop in deliveries sent to us, for reuse in outgoing orders.

Do you offer trade discount? We offer trade discount to all bone fide members of the book-trade. Please contact us prior to purchase to arrange discount terms.

All items are guaranteed to be as described.

If you’re unhappy with your purchase for any reason, we offer a no-quibble money back guarantee. Items must be returned in the condition in which they were sent. If you wish to return an item, please let us know within a fortnight of receiving your order.

You can let us know by calling or emailing us. Returned items must be dispatched to us within a month of you receiving the order.

Upon receipt of the returned item, we will issue a full refund including your original postage cost. If the book was inaccurately described, we will also refund the return postage. Our return postage refunds are limited to an amount equal to what you paid us in the first instance for the outward postage.