Free Shipping Australia-wide for orders over $99.
Menu

Frequently Asked Questions

Welcome to our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page at Preloved Book Shop!

Here, we aim to address common queries to ensure your browsing and shopping experience is as seamless as possible.

Whether you’re curious about our shipping policies, payment methods, or how to navigate our extensive collection, you’ll find answers that guide you through every step. If you don’t find the information you’re looking for, feel free to reach out and send us a message.

Happy reading, and thank you for choosing Preloved Book Shop for your literary adventures!

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: Are you open to the public / can I come and browse your warehouse?
A: Regrettably, not at this time; our physical location is a warehouse, and not suitable for retail shopping. All of the secondhand books we’ve rescued are on our website, though, so you can browse through our virtual shelves from anywhere, and have books sent directly to you.

Q: Can I come and pick up my online order from your warehouse?
A: We do offer a click-and-collect service to locals. In your order notes, simply let us know you’d like to pick up, and give us an approximation of day and time, to make sure someone is there to hand you your order and refund the shipping cost.
All pickups will be held at our warehouse for a week, and if not collected in that time, posted out to you so you’re not waiting forever for your books.


A: Yes, we accept secondhand books in need of a new forever family! We have a whole page about Donations here.

Q: How do I find the book I’m after?
A: There are many ways to sort through all the secondhand books available to rescue in our online store!
a) You can go to the Secondhand Books page and use the filters on the page to narrow down the selection
b) You can use the Find My Perfect Book utility, to narrow down your book choices
c) You can browse our Award Winning Books or Books on Sale pages to see if anything catches your eye
d) You can use the search bar at the top of the page to search by title, ISBN, author, series name, or keyword
e) You can browse our Authors, Illustrators and Editors page, and click through on their name to view our available stock by them
f) Visit the All secondhand books currently in stock page, for – as you’d expect, a condensed table of everything we have currently in stock. As we have quite a lot of books, this page might take a little while to load
g) Follow us on Instagram of Facebook, to see whenever we upload anything new and be the first to re-home that gem!
h) If all else fails, send us a message, and we’ll help you find what you’re looking for.

Q: What are your shipping rates?
A: Standard shipping & handling anywhere in Australia for $9, tracked shipping & handling is a bit more (adjusted at checkout based on your order size), any order over $99 gets free shipping. For full details, visit our Shipping, Handling and Returns page.

Q: I live in New Zealand: do you deliver books here?
A: Yes! Regrettably the cost is quite high and we discuss on our Shipping, Handling and Returns page. Incidentally, if you have any freight suggestions to New Zealand that will cost us all less than Auspost, we’d love to hear about them so we can offer more reasonably priced rates to our New Zealand cousins – send us a message!

Q: I live outside of Australia and New Zealand, will you deliver to me?
A: It depends on where you live and how much it will cost to send books to you! Send us a message and let us know which books you’d like to order. We’ll get a quote from the postie, let you know how much shipping will cost – and we’ll go from there!

Q: Can I cancel my order?
A: If you email us within 24 hours, probably. Bear in mind, we usually post books on the day they are ordered, and if it’s already with the postie, there’s not much we can do to stop it. We suggest you choose your books carefully!

Q: What if I don’t like the condition the book is in when it gets to me?
A: Again, we’d advise you to choose your purchases carefully and remember that this is a secondhand book shop. Some of our books are in as-new condition, and some have wear and tear. Some of our books are over 60 years old, with age-appropriate weathering and yellowing. When there is any significant damage to a book, we will add a note to its listing. Please read these notes carefully. If you have any concerns about the quality of any of our rescued books, please send us a message before you purchase.

Q: How do I pay for my order?
A: When you go through our shopping cart, you’ll have the choice to pay via either Paypal, or Credit Card. Select whichever way suits you!

Q: I ordered a book and it hasn’t arrived yet!
A: Send us a message. We’ll let you know which date it was posted on, and if you paid for a tracked parcel in the cart, we can provide a tracking ID. Other than that – we wish we could control how long it takes Auspost to get our books out to you, but unfortunately we don’t have that kind of control! You’ll need to give anywhere up to 2 weeks for it to arrive in more remote locations.

Q: I am after a [specific book] that I can’t see in your online store.
A: Chances are we don’t have it, but feel free to sign up for our notification service so if the book does come in, you’ll be the first to know!

Q: Can I phone you?
A: The absolute best way to get in touch with us is via email; send us a message at [email protected].

Q: Can you provide a valuation service for this rare book I own? 
A: Not our area of expertise, we’re afraid! Best you get in touch with an approved Australian Valuer on the Australian Government’s Cultural Gift Program website, or search for a certified valuer on the Auctioneers and Valuers Association of Australia website.

Q: You haven’t answered my question here.
A: No worries – send us a message, and we’ll answer!