Quotation Process

We would appreciate the opportunity to create a Quotation for any and every situation. The only limitation is quotations for the freight for the International leg of a potential order. See below for International requests. Note: we will be happy to quote Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico however it may take up to an additional business day for us to secure the best rates.

Even though we look forward to processing all requests for a quotation, we need to be clear on what you should expect. Our pricing has been developed to be some of the lowest prices on the internet when matching apples to apples. With that said, most quotations will reflect the same prices as posted and we use the same freight calculator as the shopping cart therefore the quotation may not offer any different results than that of the shopping cart totals.

We normally can present a quotation with more aggressive pricing based on some subjective quantities. As a rule unless you are looking to buy 12 or more folding tables, 52 or more folding chairs, 24 or more stacking chairs, 6 or more indoor Café tables, a stage system with 6 or more panels, 8 or more pieces of lobby furniture, 12 or more outdoor chairs, 4 or more outdoor tables or 3 or more cafeteria tables, your quotation will most likely reflect posted pricing.

We will also be running promotional pricing each quarter for different product lines. Typically those sale prices cannot be beat with most typical quantities. However, feel free to give us a call or when you get to the shopping cart press the “add to quote” button and we will look at each situation individually.

The point is “when in doubt, request a quote”.

International Quotations – I’m sorry but we do not quote international freight including Canada and Mexico. All potential International customers must have a US domestic Freight Forwarder shipping point OR we can present a quote FOB factory. If you want a quote FOB factory please contact us with the model numbers and quantities and we will create a quote with the proper notations or weight, cube and factory US zip code. This will allow your freight forwarder to calculate the “door to door” freight for you. If you would prefer a quotation with us shipping from the factory to a domestic US shipping point, please just go through the normal quotation process using the domestic US forwarder’s name address, contact person and US phone number and we will quote the inland freight plus provide the weight and cube to allow your forwarder to calculate the International leg for you.

IF YOU ARE JUST SHOPPING AROUND AND WANT TO SEE HOW MUCH THE FREIGHT WOULD BE FOR A POTENTIAL ORDER … SELECT YOUR ITEM(S), JUST PICK ANY COLOR (IF APPROPRIATE), PUT THE APPROPRIATE AMOUNT OF ITEMS IN THE "QUANTITY" BOX, THEN SELECT "ADD TO CART". THE NEXT PAGE WILL ALLOW YOU TO PUT IN YOUR STATE AND ZIP CODE AND OBPTAIN A FREIGHT QUOTE WITHOUT ANY OBLIGATION OR PUTTING IN YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION. 

HOWEVER, IF YOU WANT A FORMAL QUOTATION FOR YOUR PROJECT, THEN JUST SELECT THE “ADD TO QUOTE” BUTTON ON THE SHOPPING CART.
Please note, we do not create formal quotations for potential customers that do not want to enter in all of the pertinent information. Those folks can use our on line freight quote. And print the shopping cart screen as their “quotation”.

A short explanation of our freight service:

Buying furniture over the internet is not like buying a book from Amazon or a Sweater from JC Penney’s.  However, folks are beginning to see the many advantages of buying furniture on the internet. You can find special sizes not available retail, you can find great wholesale prices. However, returns are not as friendly and the delivery is much more complicated than receiving that book in the mail. As a retailer, I am far from being called a freight expert but here are a few points that I have learned.

1. Any items that are too big to go either UPS Ground or FedEx Ground must ship LTL freight. This is the case with almost 95% of what we sell. LTL freight carriers have minimums. Some carriers minimums are $X.XX for the first 200 pounds. That means that if you are interested in buying one BT1896 folding table that only weighs 42 pounds, your freight rate will cost the same as if you ordered almost 5 of them.  That is also true for a BT3072. It has a UPS box weight of 42 pounds but UPS charges an additional $50 for an “oversize” item. That could cost almost as much as a freight minimum. We are talking $90 to $130. The good news is that the big box stores carry 30x72 blow molded plastic tables and you would probably make out better going that route. However, two issues… the table quality is not necessarily as good and no stores that I know of carry an 18” wide table.
2. Residential vs. Business – when requesting a freight amount through the calculator, be sure to select the correct destination type. Carriers charge more for Residential deliveries than Business deliveries. Please do not think of cheating since there is a disclaimer that the additional charges will be run for any deliveries that were misrepresented. Please also note that deliveries to churches and schools are charged as residential. They are all considered “limited access” points. So if your delivery is to a church or a school, please select “residential”.
3. Since the vast majority of what we sell is fairly heavy, most all freight quotes include a “lift gate” level of service. This means that it is up to the carrier to get the product off of the truck and down to street level. It is then the customer’s responsibility to bring the products into the building.
4. “Inside delivery first floor” level of service is available. Our automated freight calculator is not capable of adding on that charge. Those requiring special levels of service should use the “add to quote” button and submit your special needs with the quotation. We will secure the correct freight amount manually.
5. Tables N Chairs, Inc. is a distributor. We are not designers nor do we set up product. Those that wish product to be unboxed assembled if necessary and put in place need to sub contract that themselves.
6. Receiving your product is the most important issue, especially for our new residential customers. This warning will be sent along with every new order acknowledgement…
    With today’s gas prices, the cost of moving freight has soared to new heights.  Transportation companies are trying to save operating costs in every way possible. Costs that, in the past, were ignored are no longer absorbed. In the past, when a shipment was delivered and the receiving customer found damage after the fact, the carrier just absorbed the cost of replacement items for all claims under $200. It seemed that it was not worth the time and effort to go back out to the receiver and verify the damage. This is no longer the case. Please understand…IF YOU DO NOT CHECK YOUR PRODUCT FOR DAMAGE AT TIME OF DELIVERY AND YOU SIGN FOR THE DELIVERY, NO FREE REPLACEMENT CLAIMS CAN BE MADE. If you do not check the condition of your delivery and don’t bother looking until the next day or so, a replacement could cost you as much as 30% of the original cost.  Your freight was quoted with the “Call before Delivery” option. This means that the carrier must call you at least 24 hours in advance.  This notification is to allow you to prepare for the demand of checking and verifying a damage free delivery. The carrier will call the phone number that you provided with your order. If the carrier shows up without making that notification you have the option to either ask them to come back the next day or you can receive the product.  If there is miscommunication and the carrier DID call that provided phone number and left a message about the delivery and that message does not make it to the folks receiving the product and the delivery is refused, a re-delivery fee ($50 to $75) may be charged. Issues older than 30 days cannot be resolved.
7. Where do you live? This has a bearing on the cost of freight. Of course it makes sense that moving freight from NJ to Texas will cost more then moving freight from NJ to Virginia. However, there is much more involved with the calculation. I genuinely do not completely understand the complex algorithm involved with LTL freight, but I have learned that it is much more expensive to ship something into a major metropolitan market then to the “middle of nowhere Montana”. There is good news for those folks lucky enough to enjoy the serene life style of rural living and that is the internet. They can find almost anything they want on the internet. My point is that when it comes to deliveries that weigh 100 pounds or so, it is more expensive to get product delivered to them than compared to a Chicago suburb. Mailing a book? Not so much.
8. Please understand that if you make a mistake and misrepresent the delivery type, the additional charges will be charged to your credit card once the carrier notifies us of the mistake.

Delivery & Returns

Receiving your product is the most important issue, especially for our new residential customers. This warning will be sent along with every new order acknowledgement…

With today’s gas prices, the cost of moving freight has soared to new heights.  Transportation companies are trying to save operating costs in every way possible. Costs that, in the past, were ignored are no longer absorbed. In the past, when a shipment was delivered and the receiving customer found damage after the fact, the carrier just absorbed the cost of replacement items for all claims under $200. It seemed that it was not worth the time and effort to go back out to the receiver and verify the damage. This is no longer the case. Please understand…IF YOU DO NOT CHECK YOUR PRODUCT FOR DAMAGE AT TIME OF DELIVERY AND YOU SIGN FOR THE DELIVERY, NO FREE REPLACEMENT CLAIMS CAN BE MADE. If you do not check the condition of your delivery and don’t bother looking until the next day or so, a replacement could cost you as much as 33% of the original cost.  Your freight was quoted with the “Call before Delivery” option. This means that the carrier must call you at least 24 hours in advance.  This notification is to allow you to prepare for the demand of checking and verifying a damage free delivery. The carrier will call the phone number that you provided with your order. If the carrier shows up without making that notification you have the option to either ask them to come back the next day or you can receive the product.  If there is miscommunication and the carrier DID call that provided phone number and left a message about the delivery and that message does not make it to the folks receiving the product and the delivery is refused, a re-delivery fee ($50 to $75) may be charged. "Concealed Damage" issues older than 15 days cannot be resolved.

Returning an item because it was not to your liking: 
We are unable to return these products that are in good condition (free of manufacturing defects) simply because you changed your mind or because it wasn’t what you wanted. Only the manufacturer’s warranty for product defects applies to these products. There are some unique situations where someone has ordered the wrong size table and wants the correct size table to be sent. The factory will normally not impose the standard 20% - 30% restocking charge but if the original table is received by the factory in the original box with no damage then the customer will be charged for the freight of the old item back, the difference in sales price (if any) and the freight for the new item to be sent.

Making A Claim Against Damage Through Shipping: 
It is the customer’s responsibility to check the product for damage BEFORE signing the carrier’s paperwork. Once you sign for the delivery you are saying that the product is 100% pristine and the carrier has no further responsibility to its condition.  

IF YOU DO NOT CHECK YOUR PRODUCT FOR DAMAGE AT TIME OF DELIVERY AND YOU SIGN FOR THE DELIVERY, NO FREE REPLACEMENT CLAIMS CAN BE MADE. If you do not check the condition of your delivery and don’t bother looking until the next day or so, a replacement could cost you as much as 33.3% of the original cost.  Your freight was quoted with the “Call before Delivery” option. This means that the carrier must call you at least 24 hours in advance.  This notification is to allow you to prepare for the demand of checking and verifying a damage free delivery. The carrier will call the phone number that you provided with your order. If the carrier shows up without making that notification you have the option to either ask them to come back the next day or you can receive the product.  If there is miscommunication and the carrier DID call that provided phone number and left a message about the delivery and that message does not make it to the folks receiving the product and the delivery is refused, a re-delivery fee ($50 to $75) may be charged. Issues older than 30 days cannot be resolved.  If you see damage on the box (usually a puncture made by a fork lift), open the box and refuse delivery of that item. Then have the drive make note on the paperwork that one box was damaged. At that point, please fax us the paperwork to 1-888-828-4966 and we will get the process of shipping a free replacement going immediately.