Questions:
Answers:
I need advice or an appraisal. Can you help me?
Due to the high volume of e-mails we receive each day, we regret that we cannot offer assistance with these requests. However, we can recommend a FREE service called Ask The Experts, an online site with over 160 antiques and collectibles dealers who donate their time to help buyers and collectors with their questions. You might also want to take a look at our Research Help page for more referrals. Or, if you'd prefer to do your own research, take a look at our antiques and collectibles Book Recommendations.
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I need help finding something. Can you help me?
Possibly, but it depends on several factors. Please see our Custom Searches page for more information on this topic.
Can I make you an offer?
Absolutely. We may not always accept your offers, but we are open to hearing them. As market demand for most items fluctuates frequently, prices do too. With hundreds of items listed, it's difficult for us to keep up with these constant changes. If you think an item is priced too LOW, by all means jump right in and buy it! But, if you think the price could be better, please with a specific Dollar amount offer. It never hurts to ask. Prices of all our items are subject to change (up or down) without prior notice.
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Can I combine items into one shipment?
Yes! After you submit your order through the shopping cart and pay by credit card through PayPal, we will pack your items and determine the safest way to combine them for shipment. As our shopping cart charges postage for EACH ITEM ordered, we will manually calculate the reduced shipping cost and credit your PayPal account for the difference, if any. For example, let's say you buy 3 items with individual shipping costs of $5, $10 and $8, for a total of $20. You will be charged $20 shipping when you pay for your order, but we will provide a refund based on the combined shipping costs.... probably between $5 to $10 in this example. Combined shipping of more than two items is almost always less (average of 25%) than the cost to mail the items separately, so you will probably receive a shipping refund if you buy more than one item. If you'd like to know the combined shipping cost before you place an order, please feel free to .
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How do I place an order?
USA BUYERS: If you live in the continental United States and want to pay by credit card, please use our PayPal shopping cart. If you would prefer to pay by check, Money Order, Western Union or cash (not recommended by mail), you can place an order by using the Manual Order Form, or by with a list of the items you want to buy. To request a layaway, use the Manual Order Form. We will hold items pending receipt of mailed payments for 10 DAYS. The Sale Pending hold status will be removed on the 11th day, and item(s) not paid for by that time will be returned to the shop. In most cases, we will confirm receipt of your order and/or payment within 1 business day, and ship within 2 business days. If you mail us a check or Money Order, it must be made payable to us personally (not the business name). Because over 95% of our orders are made online by credit card, we do not have a separate business bank account. Payments made payable to Trojan Horse Antiques will be returned, as we cannot cash them. Items listed for sale should be assumed to be one, unless the listing specifically states that multiple quantities are available.
INTERNATIONAL: If you live outside the continental USA (including Alaska, Hawaii, APO, FPO, and Puerto Rico), please do NOT use the shopping cart, as it is not configured for shipping rates outside the mainland 48 states. We are happy to ship worldwide, but need to quote postage on a case-by-case basis. Please use the Manual Order Form, or listing the items you would like to buy. To request a layaway, use the Manual Order Form. We will hold items pending receipt of mailed payments for 10 DAYS. The Sale Pending hold status will be removed on the 11th day, and item(s) not paid for by that time will be returned to the shop. Payments accepted from outside the USA include PayPal, bank-issued Money Orders in US Dollars, and Western Union. In most cases, we will confirm receipt of your order and/or payment within 1 business day, and ship within 2 business days.
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How are items packed?
We take great care in packing your purchases so they arrive safely. Everything that leaves here is protected with plastic, bubble wrap and/or floated in a bed of styrofoam peanuts. You will never receive an item wrapped in newspaper like yesterday's garbage! Items that are especially fragile or of high insurance value will also be double-boxed as necessary. We generally use recycled boxes to help reduce shipping costs, but they are always sturdy and of the appropriate size to protect the contents. Large items, and those with special packing needs, may be sent to a professional packing/crating service.
Do you sell to non-USA buyers?
Yes! We are happy to ship our items internationally, and have many repeat customers around the world, although international buyers CANNOT use our PayPal shopping cart, since it is not configured with international shipping costs. Please use the manual order form or contact us via to place an order. International buyers may ONLY pay in US Dollars by credit card thru PayPal, an international Money Order issued by a BANK (not a Postal Service or retail store) or Western Union. Due to fraud concerns, we will only accept PayPal online credit card payments from non-USA buyers if they are to a CONFIRMED address in a PayPal verified country. All others must pay by Western Union or Money Order.
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How much does International shipping cost?
All shipping costs quoted in our listings are for continental USA deliveries via UPS Ground. If you live outside the mainland USA (including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico) and/or have a US military APO or FPO address, please . The cost is usually between $2 and $5 per item for packing/handling, plus the actual cost of insured Airmail via the Postal Service. Please note that our shopping cart feature cannot automatically calculate the exact cost of international shipments. All buyers located outside the USA must use the Manual Order Form or to place an order. Please contact us if you have questions.
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Can I put items on layaway?
We are happy to offer layaway terms of 2 months on purchases over $50, 4 months over $150, and 6 months over $250. A 20% deposit is required within 10 days of the order to hold the item, with equal payments over the remaining months. As we are committing to hold items for long periods of time, layaway payments are NOT refundable for any reason. However, payments may be converted to store credit if the layaway is canceled or cannot be completed. The maximum layaway period is six months. If full payment is not received within 6 months, payments will be converted to store credit, and the item(s) will be put back up for sale on the website. No layaways on items under $50. Discounts, sales and special promotion pricing is not available on layaway items. Layaways cannot be processed through the shopping cart feature. We do not send payment reminders, so please make note of your layaway payment due dates and remit them accordingly. Use the Manual Order Form for layaway purchases, or feel free to .
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What is your return policy?
Due to the nature of the antiques and collectibles business, nearly everything we sell is in used condition, with the exception of most of our collectible Barbies. As with most physical "brick-and-mortar" antique shops, items are sold AS IS and all sales are final. Please read the descriptions carefully, take a good look at the photos, and ask questions before placing an order. We do our best to describe each item carefully, so you'll know exactly what you are buying before you place an order. If you'd like to see additional photos, or need a more detailed description of any item before placing an order, please . We will be happy to provide whatever information we have available.
Since you are relying on our photos and descriptions to make your purchasing decision, we do occasionally bend the "no returns" rule. We are not experts in any collecting category, but we do our best to provide accurate information. If you feel the item you received is substantially different from our description, or if we made an error of some sort, please contact us and we'll do what we can to fix the problem. If we've made a mistake in describing an item, we will refund the purchase price of the item upon its return, but do not reimburse for shipping, handling or insurance costs in either direction, in most cases. Our goal is to make you happy and earn your business as a repeat customer. If we ever fall short of that goal, we encourage you to bring it to our attention and give us the opportunity to resolve your concerns.
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When is my payment due?
Full payment (or a 20% layaway deposit) is due within 10 days of a submitted order, unless other arrangements are made in advance. Items not paid for by the specified due date will be returned to the shop, and are subject to re-sale. If you would still like to purchase the item after that time, you will need to process a new order. To prevent duplicate orders, please via e-mail if you are placing a new order for the same item.
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What forms of payment do you accept?
We accept online payments through our shopping cart, mailed Money Orders, personal checks, Cashier's Checks, cash worldwide through Western Union, and major credit cards online via PayPal. International buyers may only pay by international Money Order issued BY A BANK in US Dollars, Western Union, or credit card via PayPal IF you have a confirmed address from a PayPal verified country. As we do not have credit card equipment in our office, credit card payments can only be charged through online processing through the services listed above -- we *cannot* charge your card over the phone as the online credit card services do not allow this for security reasons. Please do NOT send us your credit card information via regular e-mail. E-mail is easily accessible by hackers, and it is NOT a secure mode of communication for this sensitive information.
Important note: Our shopping cart feature is linked directly with PayPal's SSL encrypted credit card processing service. If you would like to pay by any other method other than credit card through PayPal, please use the Manual Order Form or . Please tell us what payment method you prefer, but please do not send us any credit card info by e-mail.
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How do I pay with a check or Money Order?
The shopping cart feature can ONLY be used when paying online with a credit card through PayPal. If you live in the USA and would like to pay by check, cash (not recommended, unless you are a local customer), Western Union or a Money Order, please use the Manual Order Form or . After we confirm your order and provide the total amount due, you can mail your payment to us. Checks and Money Orders must be made payable to us personally (not the business name). Because over 95% of our orders are made online by credit card, we do not have a separate bank account in the business name. Payments made payable to Trojan Horse Antiques will be returned, as we cannot cash them. Mail payments to: 25101 Bear Valley Road # 209, Tehachapi CA 93561. Be sure to include shipping costs as outlined in the item listing.
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How do I pay by credit card?
Add the item(s) to your shopping cart as you browse. When you're done shopping, click the "checkout" button. You will be prompted for your credit card information by PayPal during the checkout process. The shopping cart and credit card checkout features provided by PayPal are SSL encrypted for safe transmission of your personal information.
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Can I call you to provide my credit card number?
Unfortunately, no. The online credit card processing companies we use do not allow phone-in charges for security reasons, because we cannot personally see your credit card or confirm your identity by a Driver's License or other ID. Please do not send us your credit card number via regular e-mail.... it is NOT secure.
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When will my item be shipped?
We make every effort to ship by the next business day after receiving a Money Order or credit card payment. However, there may be times when our shipping volume is especially heavy, and it may take two days before your order is sent. (This usually only occurs on Mondays and during busy shopping seasons such as Christmas, Mother's Day, etc.) Items paid for by personal check are shipped (10) business days after they are received to allow the check to clear both banks. We will advise you when your payment arrives, and will send an e-mail confirming when your item has been mailed so you know when to expect it. Nearly all our items are shipped via UPS so we can provide you with a tracking number. Payments received after 5pm on Friday and before 8am Monday are shipped on Tuesday.
The bottom line? We shoot for a one-day turnaround time on all orders (Monday through Friday), however we would rather delay your shipment one day, if necessary, to insure that all items are properly packed. We are a small business that prides itself on personal service and prompt delivery, but we will not compromise careful handling and packing of your order to rush it out the door!
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When will I receive my shipment?
We ship nearly all items via insured UPS Ground to the continental USA, which takes from 1 to 7 days, depending on your distance from us here in Southern California. For estimated delivery times to your zip code, please see our UPS Map. We reserve the right to use US Priority Mail for shipments to Alaska, Hawaii, US Territories, military APO/FPO addresses, on very small and/or light items, or if Priority is the less expensive option. The Postal Service quotes 2 to 3 day service for Priority Mail, but they do NOT guarantee delivery within this timeframe. International shipments are sent with insurance via the Postal Service, and vary by country. We prefer Airmail for international, but leave it up to the customer if they would prefer the lesser expensive "slow boat" method of Surface mail.
We will notify you when your shipment has been sent, and will tell you what carrier we used. If it was UPS, we will provide you with the UPS tracking number and scheduled delivery date. Once you receive the tracking number, you can return to this page at any time to check the status of your delivery. Simply enter the number we e-mailed to you into the following box and click the "track" button: You will then be taken to the UPS website, where you can review the details of your shipment:
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Is your street address the location of your store?
No. As our business is conducted entirely online, we do not publish the location of our warehouse. The address shown on the home page is our mailing address -- we do not have a brick-and-mortar store that you can visit. If you would like to write to us, the address is: Trojan Horse Antiques & Collectibles, 25101 Bear Valley Road #209, Tehachapi CA 93561. Our e-mail is . This street and address information is for the use of our customers only -- please, vendors, do not add us to your junk mail, solicitation, or spam lists.
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How do I know I can trust you?
We have been doing business online as Trojan Horse Antiques & Collectibles since June 1998. We have an established reputation on the major auction and sales sites, including eBay, Yahoo, Bargain & Haggle, Amazon, and Ancient Faces, in addition to our website sales. If you go to any of these sites and do a "Seller Search" for "trojanhorseantiques" (we're "trojanhorse" on Bargain & Haggle) you will find thousands of positive comments about us written by people we have done business with over the years. Visit our website's Feedback page for more information on this topic.
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How am I protected against fraud?
We are a Verified Premier Business account holder with PayPal, our shopping cart's credit card service. Buyers who pay us by credit card through this service are protected by PayPal's Buyer Protection Guarantee, and your PayPal account is insured up to $100,000 by Traveler's Insurance. If you purchase an item from us and do not receive it (or an insurance reimbursement for loss/damage), you are entitled to a full refund of the purchase amount up to $5000 per year. This policy is subject to change by PayPal, so please visit their website for more information about this fraud protection program and other PayPal Terms of Service & Use.
