Live Fish Delivery Information

How live fish delivery works

Live fish are not posted like a parcel of dry goods. They are packed by aquatic specialists and travel overnight with a licensed live-animal courier, so they spend the minimum possible time in transit.

1. Your delivery date is determined by the time & day you order. Livestock is delivered Tuesday to Saturday. The earliest day you can choose depends on when you order, and the daily cut-off is 11am:

  • Order by 11am Monday: delivery Wednesday
  • Order by 11am Tuesday: delivery Thursday
  • Order by 11am Wednesday: delivery Friday
  • Order by 11am Thursday: delivery Saturday
  • Order by 11am Friday: delivery Tuesday

Orders placed after 11am move to the next day’s slot. Orders placed after 11am on Friday, or over the weekend, are delivered from Wednesday. There are no deliveries on Sunday or Monday.

2. We pack on dispatch day. Fish are packed in insulated boxes designed for live transport, with heat management appropriate to the season.

3. Overnight courier. Your fish travel with a licensed live-animal courier and arrive before 1:00pm on your selected day. Tracking reaches you by an email the day before and text on the morning of delivery with a specific delivery window included.

4. Be home for the box. Live fish must not sit on a doorstep. If no one is in, the courier attempts redelivery the next day; losses caused by a missed delivery are not covered, so please pick your day carefully.

5. Unbox straight away. Open the box on arrival and follow the acclimatisation steps in our When Your Fish Arrive guide. Every fish is covered by our Live Arrival Guarantee.

Livestock delivery is £20 per order, whatever the size of the order. Anything else in your basket ships exactly as normal and your usual delivery options are unaffected.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How do the fish travel? In insulated boxes designed for live transport, packed by aquatic specialists, 
overnight with a licensed live-animal courier, arriving before 1pm.

What if a fish does not survive the journey? It is covered by our Live Arrival Guarantee. Photograph it within 4 hours of delivery, email [support email] with your order number, and the refund is processed automatically. The cover continues for 7 days after arrival.

What days can I get delivery? Tuesday to Saturday, arriving before 1pm. Order by 11am Monday for Wednesday, Tuesday for Thursday, Wednesday for Friday, Thursday for Saturday, and Friday for Tuesday. Orders after 11am move to the next day’s slot, and orders after 11am Friday or over the weekend arrive from Wednesday.

Can I mix fish with the rest of my order? Yes. One basket, one checkout; the fish arrive with the specialist courier and the rest of your order ships as normal.

Do you deliver to my area? We can deliver to UK mainland only for live fish.

What do I do when they arrive? Follow the five-minute acclimatisation steps in our When Your Fish Arrive guide: float the bags, add tank water gradually, net the fish in, lights low, feed tomorrow.