Terms & Conditions of Sale and Website Use

Last Updated: 1 January 2026

Website: https://www.theorangescientist.co.uk/

Brand Ownership Notice

The Orange Scientist® is a brand owned by Astflick Holdings Ltd.

The Orange Scientist brand name, trademarks, logos, website design, graphics, original imagery, written content and associated intellectual property are the property of Astflick Holdings Ltd and are used under licence by Astflick Group Ltd.

Astflick Group Ltd is the contracting entity responsible for all sales, transactions and website operations carried out under The Orange Scientist brand.

1. About Us

This website is operated by Astflick Group Ltd trading as The Orange Scientist (“we”, “us”, “our”).

2. Scope & Acceptance

These Terms & Conditions govern your use of this website, all enquiries, quotations, purchase orders and orders placed with us, and the supply of all goods and services by us.

These Terms apply to all users including business-to-business customers, universities, laboratories, NHS trusts, public bodies, partnerships, sole traders and consumers where applicable by law.

By accessing this website, placing an order, submitting a purchase order, requesting a quotation or otherwise dealing with us, you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, you must not use the website or place an order.

3. Consumer and Business Customer Status

A consumer is an individual acting wholly or mainly outside their trade, business, craft or profession.

A business customer includes companies, institutions, laboratories, NHS trusts, universities, public bodies, charities, partnerships and sole traders purchasing in the course of business, professional, institutional or commercial activity.

You are responsible for ordering under the correct status. Where you purchase as a business customer, consumer protection legislation shall not apply except where the law expressly provides otherwise.

We reserve the right to treat any order as a business-to-business transaction where the nature of the goods, delivery address, purchase order, organisation details or other circumstances reasonably indicate a business purchase.

4. Business-Only and Restricted Products

Certain products sold on this website are supplied strictly on a business-to-business basis and are not available for consumer purchase. These include, without limitation, surgical sutures and certain sterile, regulated, medical, clinical, professional-use or restricted laboratory items.

By attempting to purchase such products, you confirm that you are acting in the course of business or professional activity and that you are legally entitled, suitably qualified and authorised to purchase and use them.

We reserve the right to request proof of business status, professional status, intended use, regulatory entitlement or any other reasonable information before accepting or fulfilling an order for restricted goods.

We reserve the right to refuse, cancel or restrict any order where we reasonably believe the purchaser is not entitled to purchase the goods, where appropriate information is not supplied, or where supply may breach regulatory, safety, professional or legal requirements.

5. Products and Regulatory Status

Products sold on this website may include laboratory consumables, clinical products, sterile and regulated items, research materials, educational supplies, medical supplies, made-to-order goods and customised goods.

Some products may be subject to regulatory, handling, storage, professional-use, transport or end-user restrictions. You confirm that you are legally entitled and suitably qualified to purchase, store, handle and use any such products ordered from us.

Where products are supplied for professional, laboratory, clinical, educational or research use, the purchaser remains solely responsible for product selection, suitability, compatibility, safe handling, regulatory compliance and end use.

We do not provide medical, clinical, diagnostic, scientific, legal or regulatory advice and accept no liability for product misuse, improper application or use outside the intended purpose.

6. Surgical Sutures

Surgical sutures are supplied strictly to business customers and professional users only.

Sutures are not sold to private individuals or consumers.

Sutures are sterile medical devices and, once supplied, are strictly non-returnable and non-refundable unless confirmed by us to be faulty or supplied in error.

Any purchaser of sutures confirms that it is professionally authorised, suitably qualified and legally entitled to purchase and use such products and that all suture purchases are made on a business-to-business basis only.

Consumer cancellation rights do not apply to suture sales.

7. Orders

All orders are subject to acceptance by us.

Orders may be placed via website checkout, email, telephone or purchase order.

The submission of an order constitutes a binding offer to purchase goods in accordance with these Terms.

A contract is formed only when we issue an order confirmation, expressly accept the order in writing, or dispatch the goods, whichever occurs first.

We reserve the right to refuse, cancel, restrict or suspend any order at our discretion, including where stock is unavailable, pricing errors occur, payment is not authorised, fraud is suspected, goods are restricted, regulatory concerns arise, or the order is otherwise unacceptable in our reasonable opinion.

8. Quotations

Any quotation issued by us is an invitation to treat only and is not a binding offer capable of acceptance by the customer unless expressly stated otherwise in writing.

Quotations may be withdrawn, amended or corrected by us at any time prior to acceptance of the order.

9. Prices and VAT

All prices are shown exclusive of VAT unless expressly stated otherwise.

Delivery charges, special packing charges, hazardous goods charges, cooling charges, customs-related charges and other additional charges may apply where relevant.

Prices shown on the website, in quotations, emails, catalogues or other materials may be amended at any time before order acceptance.

The price confirmed by us at the time of order acceptance shall apply.

Where VAT exemptions or zero-rating are claimed, valid supporting documentation must be provided when requested. If valid evidence is not supplied, VAT will be charged in the usual way.

10. Payment Terms

Payment must be made at checkout unless a credit account has been approved by us in writing.

Where credit terms apply, payment must be made strictly in accordance with the agreed terms. Time for payment is of the essence.

We reserve the right to withdraw, suspend or reduce credit facilities at any time without notice.

Where any balance becomes overdue, we reserve the right to place the account on stop, suspend supply, cancel outstanding orders, withhold delivery and pursue recovery of all outstanding sums.

For business customers, we reserve the right to charge statutory interest, compensation and recovery costs under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, together with all reasonable administrative, legal and debt recovery costs incurred.

11. Retention of Title

All goods remain the property of Astflick Group Ltd trading as The Orange Scientist until payment has been received in full and in cleared funds.

Until ownership passes, the customer must store the goods safely, keep them identifiable as our property where reasonably possible and must not resell, pledge, charge or otherwise dispose of the goods where payment remains outstanding.

Where payment is overdue, we reserve the right to recover possession of unpaid goods and the customer shall provide reasonable access for that purpose where legally permissible.

12. Delivery

Delivery times quoted on this website, in quotations, in emails or by our staff are estimates only and are not guaranteed unless expressly agreed by us in writing.

We may deliver goods in instalments and make partial deliveries.

Delivery dates are not of the essence unless expressly agreed in writing by an authorised representative of Astflick Group Ltd.

We shall not be liable for losses arising from delayed, incomplete, failed or split deliveries, including operational disruption, downtime, project delay, cancelled procedures, loss of contracts, loss of profit or business interruption.

Risk in the goods passes to the customer upon delivery to the nominated address or, where delivery cannot be completed due to the customer’s act or omission, at the time delivery would ordinarily have taken place.

Where the customer fails to accept delivery, provides an incorrect address, fails to collect, fails to respond to courier instructions or otherwise causes delivery failure, we reserve the right to charge additional delivery, return, storage, administration and re-delivery costs.

13. Inspection, Shortages, Damage and Acceptance of Goods

The customer must inspect all goods immediately upon receipt.

Any shortages, damages, discrepancies, incorrect goods or transit issues must be reported to us in writing within 48 hours of delivery.

If no written notification is received within this period, the goods shall be deemed accepted as delivered, in satisfactory condition and in accordance with the contract, subject only to latent defects not reasonably discoverable on initial inspection.

Claims made outside this notification period may be rejected and need not be investigated.

14. Returns and Cancellations

Returns are governed by our Returns & Refunds Policy, which forms part of these Terms.

No returns will be accepted without prior written authorisation from us.

The following goods are strictly non-returnable and non-refundable unless confirmed by us to be faulty or supplied in error: surgical sutures, sterile medical products, hygiene-critical goods, regulated goods where resale is not appropriate, temperature-sensitive goods, perishable goods, hazardous goods, custom-made goods, specially sourced goods and personalised goods.

Where a return is exceptionally authorised, the goods must be unused, unopened where relevant, complete, undamaged, properly packed and suitable for resale, and the customer shall remain responsible for all return costs unless we agree otherwise in writing.

We reserve the right to refuse any return that does not comply with these conditions and to apply a restocking charge where appropriate.

15. Consumer Cancellation Rights

Where you purchase as a consumer, statutory cancellation rights may apply in accordance with applicable consumer law.

Those rights do not apply to products exempted under law, including customised goods, certain sealed goods not suitable for return for health protection or hygiene reasons if unsealed after delivery, perishable goods, urgent services and other exempt products.

For the avoidance of doubt, consumer cancellation rights do not apply to suture sales, which are strictly business-to-business only.

16. Product Suitability, Handling and Use

The customer is solely responsible for ensuring that goods ordered are suitable for the intended application, compatible with existing equipment, appropriate for the environment of use and handled, stored and used in accordance with all relevant instructions, technical data, safety guidance, regulations and industry practice.

We accept no liability for damage, loss, failed experiments, failed procedures, contamination, product incompatibility, incorrect storage, user error or use outside intended applications.

Where products require controlled storage, refrigeration, specialist transport, hazardous handling or professional supervision, the customer assumes full responsibility upon delivery unless otherwise agreed in writing.

17. Customised, Made-to-Order and Specially Sourced Goods

Customised, personalised, made-to-order, specially sourced or non-standard goods are produced or procured specifically to customer requirements.

Such goods may not be cancelled, returned or refunded once production has commenced, sourcing has been undertaken, stock has been allocated specifically to the order, or dispatch has been arranged, unless confirmed by us to be faulty or supplied in error.

18. Chargebacks and Payment Disputes

Initiating a chargeback, payment reversal or banking dispute does not cancel the underlying contract of sale.

Where goods have been delivered and retained, payment remains due in full.

The customer agrees that any payment dispute must first be raised directly with us to allow investigation and resolution.

We reserve the right to suspend supply, cancel outstanding orders, place accounts on stop and pursue recovery of all outstanding balances together with associated administrative, banking, legal and debt recovery costs resulting from unjustified chargebacks or payment disputes.

19. Right to Refuse Supply and Fraud Prevention

We reserve the right to refuse, restrict or cancel supply where we reasonably believe that an order is fraudulent, abusive, commercially unreasonable, non-compliant with these Terms, presents unacceptable credit risk, involves restricted goods without sufficient justification, or otherwise gives rise to regulatory, legal or reputational concern.

We may perform reasonable verification checks before accepting or fulfilling orders.

20. Website Use

You agree not to misuse the website, introduce malware, attempt unauthorised access, interfere with functionality, harvest data unlawfully, use automated scraping without consent, or use any content or functionality for unlawful purposes.

We reserve the right to suspend, restrict or terminate website access where these Terms are breached or misuse is suspected.

21. Intellectual Property

All content on this website, including text, graphics, layouts, logos, branding, downloads, original images and design elements, is owned by or licensed to Astflick Group Ltd and/or Astflick Holdings Ltd.

No content may be copied, reproduced, republished, extracted, modified, distributed or used without prior written permission.

22. Limitation of Liability

Nothing in these Terms limits or excludes liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability which cannot lawfully be limited or excluded.

Subject to the foregoing, we shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special or consequential losses, or for any loss of profit, revenue, contracts, anticipated savings, goodwill, business opportunity, project delay, downtime, reputation or business interruption.

We shall not be liable for any loss arising from use of products outside their intended purpose, contrary to instructions, contrary to regulatory requirements, or without appropriate expertise or supervision.

For business customers, our total aggregate liability shall not exceed the value of the goods supplied giving rise to the claim.

23. Force Majeure

We shall not be liable for any failure or delay caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including supply chain disruption, courier or transport delays, customs delays, raw material shortages, acts of government, sanctions, war, civil unrest, strikes, labour shortages, power failure, flood, fire, epidemic, pandemic, natural disaster or force majeure events.

24. Privacy and Cookies

Your use of this website is subject to our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy, which form part of these Terms.

25. Assignment and Third-Party Rights

We may assign, transfer or subcontract our rights and obligations under these Terms at any time.

No third party shall have any rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any part of these Terms.

26. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them shall be governed by the laws of England and Wales.

The courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction.

27. Contact Details

Astflick Group Ltd t/a The Orange Scientist

Email: hello@theorangescientist.co.uk