Terms and Conditions

1. About these terms

Hawkins & Wells Publishing is an independent publishing house based in Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom. In these terms, “Hawkins & Wells”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to the operator of this storefront and the seller identified in a direct Hawkins & Wells checkout and order confirmation.

These terms apply to use of the site, reader accounts and direct purchases. A retailer such as Amazon is the seller for an order completed on its site; its terms govern that transaction.

2. Eligibility and accounts

You must be legally able to enter the relevant agreement. If your age or circumstances require a parent, guardian or authorised representative, that person must validly agree and supervise the account or purchase as applicable.

Give accurate information, keep credentials confidential, use multi-factor checks when requested, and tell Reader Care promptly about suspected misuse. You are responsible for activity you authorise, but not for unauthorised activity merely because it appears on your account.

3. Catalogue information and availability

Each product page identifies the title, edition, author, language, format, price, currency, availability and known compatibility information. Samples illustrate the work but do not replace the full product description.

We may correct catalogue errors or change an offer before accepting an order. If a material error affected an accepted order, we will contact you and provide the remedy required by law rather than silently substituting a different edition.

4. Orders and contract formation

Submitting checkout is an offer to buy the selected edition. A contract is formed only when payment is verified and Hawkins & Wells sends an acceptance or order confirmation. A browser redirect or pending payment screen is not confirmation.

We may reject or cancel an order before acceptance for unavailability, rights or territorial restrictions, a clear pricing error, failed payment, suspected fraud or technical duplication. If money was taken for an order we do not accept, it will be returned through the payment provider.

5. Prices, tax and payment

Checkout shows the total price, currency, applicable tax treatment and any eligible reward before you commit to payment. The payment provider displays the payment methods available for your device and location and may apply its own terms.

You authorise the provider to process the displayed amount. Hawkins & Wells does not store full card credentials. We may use verified provider events to fulfil, refund or reconcile an order and will not treat an unverified browser response as proof of payment.

6. Digital delivery and compatibility

After verified payment, an account purchase is added to that reader library. A guest purchase is delivered with its invoice or receipt to the order email through a time-limited signed link. Delivery may otherwise use streaming, downloads and reasonable device or session controls.

You are responsible for a compatible device, software and internet connection described before purchase. We remain responsible for the content meeting the contract and for providing the remedies required when it does not.

7. Digital-content licence

Unless the product page states otherwise, a direct digital purchase grants the named customer a personal, limited, non-exclusive and non-transferable licence to access that edition for private use. The purchase does not transfer copyright or ownership of the underlying work.

• You may use the edition on compatible personal devices controlled by you, whether delivery used a reader account or guest email, subject to reasonable technical limits stated before purchase.
• You may not redistribute, resell, publicly perform, systematically extract, upload to an unauthorised service, share access credentials, remove rights information, or use the edition to train a model without written permission or a legal exception.
• Nothing in these terms restricts a quotation, accessible-format use, backup, resale or other act that applicable law expressly permits and does not allow us to exclude.

8. Updates, changes and continued access

We may provide security, compatibility, correction or content updates. An update will not intentionally remove a material feature of a purchased edition unless required by law, rights, safety or a necessary technical change and accompanied by the notice or remedy required by law.

Temporary maintenance may interrupt access. We use reasonable care to restore service and protect purchased entitlements. The Refund Policy explains remedies if content remains unavailable or no longer conforms to the contract.

9. Cancellations, withdrawal and refunds

The Digital Content, Cancellation and Refund Policy is incorporated into these terms. It explains change-of-mind rules, immediate digital supply, defective content, duplicate charges, refund timing and external retailer purchases.

Where the law requires it, immediate digital supply begins only after express consent and acknowledgment of the effect on a cancellation or withdrawal right. Statutory remedies for defective, unavailable or misdescribed content are separate and are not lost merely because supply began.

10. Print and external retailer purchases

Some product links lead to Amazon or another retailer for print or digital formats. The retailer controls its price, stock, payment, tax, delivery, cancellation, returns and customer service. A link does not make Hawkins & Wells the seller for that transaction.

An affiliate relationship or other commercial connection will be disclosed where required. Rankings, prices and availability shown by an external retailer can change without notice.

11. Reader rewards and contributor activities

Reward points are promotional, account-bound units. They are not cash, stored value or a payment instrument; they cannot be purchased, transferred or redeemed for cash. An offer states the points required, eligible purchase, benefit, expiry and any combination limits before use.

Referral and contributor rewards must arise from genuine eligible activity. We may reject or reverse points for self-referral, linked or duplicate accounts, artificial traffic, false evidence, undisclosed incentivised promotion, a refunded qualifying order, fraud or other documented abuse. A proportionate review and appeal route is available through Reader Care.

Unless an offer states otherwise, points expire 12 months after becoming available. We may change or end future reward offers, but will apply the recorded terms and expiry to points already earned except where correction, fraud, law or an invalid underlying event requires reversal.

12. Acceptable use

Use the site lawfully and in a way that respects readers, contributors, systems and rights. You must not compromise security, evade access or territorial controls, scrape protected content, automate purchases abusively, upload malware or unlawful material, impersonate another person, test vulnerabilities without authorisation, or interfere with service availability.

Reasonable indexing by recognised search engines and good-faith security reporting through the contact route are not prohibited. If you believe content infringes your rights, send enough identification, location and supporting information for a fair review.

13. Reviews, inquiries and submitted material

You retain ownership of material you submit. You give Hawkins & Wells only the limited permission needed to receive, store, review and respond to it or, for a feature that publishes content, the permission clearly stated when you submit.

Do not submit confidential material unless the relevant process expressly accepts it, or personal data and copyrighted material you are not entitled to share. A publishing inquiry does not create an agency, publishing, confidentiality or compensation agreement.

14. Intellectual property

The site, software, Hawkins & Wells marks, editorial material, artwork and published editions are protected by copyright, trade mark and other rights. Except for the licence expressly granted with an edition or by law, all rights are reserved.

A rights report should identify the protected work, the material concerned, its location, the basis of the claim and a reliable contact route. We may request proportionate verification before acting.

15. Suspension and termination

We may restrict an account where reasonably necessary for security, fraud, unlawful conduct or a material breach. Except in an urgent security or legal situation, we will explain the reason and provide a reasonable opportunity to respond.

Closing an account does not automatically erase records that must be retained, decide a pending refund, or remove paid entitlements without a lawful basis. My desk provides separate privacy-request controls for export and deletion.

16. Our responsibility

We provide the service with reasonable care and skill and do not exclude responsibility that law does not allow us to exclude, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, and mandatory consumer remedies.

Subject to those rights, neither party is responsible for a loss that was not a reasonably foreseeable result of the breach. Business-only losses are not recoverable on a consumer contract. Nothing here limits a remedy expressly provided by the Digital Content, Cancellation and Refund Policy or applicable law.

17. Complaints, law and disputes

Please contact Reader Care first if practical so we can investigate. You remain free to use a regulator, consumer body, ombudsman, alternative-dispute process or court available under applicable law.

The law and courts that apply depend on the seller identified at checkout, where you live and mandatory consumer rules. These terms do not deprive a consumer of protections or a forum that cannot lawfully be excluded by contract.

18. Changes, severability and contact

We version these terms and show their effective date. A new version applies prospectively unless law permits another treatment; material changes affecting an existing service receive appropriate notice. The terms accepted for an order remain recorded with that transaction.

If a provision is invalid or unenforceable, the remainder continues to the extent legally possible. A delay in enforcement is not a waiver. Use My desk > Support and refunds or the public About contact form to contact Hawkins & Wells Publishing in Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom.