Payment Questions
Q: What's the difference between Paypal E-checks and Paypal Instant Payments?
Paypal instant payments are credited instantly to our Paypal account and we are able to ship your order immediately. Paypal E-checks require an average of 4-7 days to clear and we ship your order after Paypal has cleared your E-check.
In order to make instant payments with Paypal you must have enough money in your Paypal account (not your bank account) to cover the entire transaction, including shipping charges. Another way to make instant payment with Paypal is to link a credit card to your Paypal account and have your Paypal transactions deduct from your credit card.
If you do not have a credit card AND if you do not have enough money in Paypal then Paypal will automatically withdraw money from your bank's checking account to complete the transaction. Any payments made from your checking account through Paypal is an E-check.
Q: I have a credit card and I want to cancel my E-check and make an instant payment. How do I do that?
No problem. Just contact us so we can reopen your checkout page. After making payment please message us again so we can cancel your pending E-check. This is important because Paypal has already deducted the funds from your bank account for this transaction. Paypal just hasn't released those funds to us yet and if we don't cancel the pending E-check then you will end up making a double payment. Once the E-check is canceled the funds will go into your Paypal account. Those funds do not automatically go back into your bank account. You will need to login to your Paypal account and manually transfer the funds back into your bank account if you do not wish to store money in Paypal.
Please keep in mind, this is only applicable to CostumeAlibi.com, and not our store on eBay. With eBay's checkout system for our store, only PayPal transactions are allowed, and we cannot cancel your PayPal payment in order to pay with a credit card through eBay.
Q: I tried making payment with my credit card, but it didn't go through the first time, so I tried again. Now I see 2 charges on my card. Can you remove the first charge?
Your attempted charge actually didn't go through as a CHARGE. It only went through as an AUTHORIZATION, which was immediately voided. Banks will temporarily deduct a balance out of an account for a pre-authorization even if it didn't go through. Every bank differs on how long they hold a pre-authorization amount, but it's usually between 3-7 business days. On our end these pre-authorizations have already been voided because the information you originally entered did not match your credit card billing or security information. These authorizations should disappear from your account and your available balance will return to normal probably within a week, but if you call your bank they will be able to give you a more exact answer as to how long they hold onto authorizations.
Returns Questions
Please see our returns policy page for questions regarding returns.
Shipping Questions
Q: I live near Bloomington, Indiana. May I pick up my order at your warehouse instead of having it shipped?
Sure you can! You can pay for pick-up orders with only the following methods of payments: Money Order, Cashiers Check, or bringing in the exact cash amount. Please email us at support@costumealibi.com, with Warehouse Order Pickup in the subject line of your email. Our customer service team will assist you in creating an order, and working out the details for when a warehouse pick-up would be available.
Unfortunately, during October we are too busy to accommodate pick-up orders at our warehouse. We apologize for any inconvenience this may incur.
Q: How quickly will you ship my order?
We ship out our orders within one business day of your payment clearing, with the exception of weekends and holidays. Please keep in mind that we are a U.S. company on Eastern Time. If your payment clears after 1 PM Eastern Time, it may ship out the next business day. If your payment clears after 1 PM Eastern Time on a Friday, your order may ship out the following Monday. Business days are defined as Monday through Friday.
Q: How long will it take for me to get my package?
That depends entirely on the shipping service you choose. To give you an estimated delivery time, please use our shipping calculator. Remember, we cannot ship your item until your payment has cleared, and our hours of operation are 10 AM to 5 PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. For more information regarding ship times, please see the answer to the question above, "How quickly will you ship my order?" Please keep this in mind when ordering your item.
Please select the date and time you plan to submit payment, enter your current time zone, then enter your country and postal code to calculate. If you plan to pay after 11:59 AM, please select the next day as your payment date.
Q: What shipping service should I use?
For Domestic customers, we recommend that you choose a service that best suits your needs. If you purchase an item for an event that is several weeks away, choosing a slower and cheaper method is an option for you. However, if you have a tight deadline for when you need your item, please choose a method that would accommodate your time limit.
For International customers, we recommend staying away from First Class International Mail. We offer this inexpensive method for international customers who are not on a time constraint for receiving their item. Please read the answer to the question "I do not live in the U.S. and I have not received my order yet" for further information on why we do not recommend First Class International Mail.
Overall, we always recommend a choosing a service that has delivery confirmation and tracking capabilities.
Q: I live in the U.S. Can you ship overnight?
Yes we can! We offer Economy, Standard, 2-Day, Overnight, and Overnight with Saturday delivery shipping options.
Please keep in mind that payments made after 1 PM Eastern Standard Time may ship out the next business day. If your order is placed after 1 PM Eastern Standard Time on a Friday, your order may ship out the following Monday.
Q: I'm an international customer. Can you ship overnight?
Unfortunately, we cannot ship overnight for our international customers.
Q: How long does Express Mail International take?
This service applies only to Brazil, and varies according to your postal code. For a more accurate estimate please click here and fill in the information required. The Origin Zip Code for Costume Alibi is 47404.
Q: Can you ship to a PO Box?
Yes, but only if you select Standard or Economy shipping. The express shipping methods are sent using FedEx, and cannot be delivered to a PO Box.
Q: Can Costume Alibi ship to a different address than my PayPal or credit card billing address?
Yes! During the item payment process you will be able to enter your desired shipping address. Once you make payment a shipping label is automatically created based ONLY on the information you filled out in the checkout page, regardless of what your Credit Card or PayPal billing address is. Please make sure you enter your shipping address correctly because we do not look at PayPal receipts to verify shipping addresses.
Please note! It is the responsibility of the buyer to verify that the submitted shipping address is correct. Refunds cannot be given in the instance that an incorrect address was provided to us.
Q: I live in the U.S. and I have not received my order yet. What's going on?
Please check your tracking number. This will indicate where your package currently is. If it says that your item has been delivered, and you do not have it, then you need to call your local post office or FedEx office to see if they are holding a package for you. Occasionally they attempt a delivery when you're not home and they forget to leave a note in your mail box for you to pick it up. It is also possible that a friend or neighbor is holding your package because you weren't at home at the time of delivery.
Q: I do not live in the U.S. and I have not received my order yet. What's going on?
For all of our listings, we recommend our international customers to stay away from First Class International Mail. We offer this method because it is inexpensive, but it can result in severe delays at your country's border for customs inspection. First Class International Mail usually takes about 6 - 10 days to get to your country's border. However, customs inspection and processing time is very unpredictable with first class packages, and can add an additional 1 - 6 weeks onto the delivery time.
Typical delivery time for First Class International mail is 2 - 4 weeks, but depending on your country's customs inspections, it can take up to 2 months. If it has been over one month and you still have not received your package, then you need to call your local post office and ask them if they are holding any packages for you. It is very possible that they will require you to pay an import tax on your item before they allow it to be delivered to you. Customs duties and taxes are not included in the sale for non-North American shipments. Each country has different policies regarding how much tax to charge. If you are concerned, please check with your country's customs agency for more information.
Q: How can I track my package?
If your order was shipped using USPS, please click here and enter your tracking number.
If your order was shipped using FedEx, please click here and enter your tracking number.
If you are a Canadian customer and your tracking number begins with "LN", please click here and enter your tracking number on the OSM Worldwide website.
If you are an international customer and not Canadian, and your number begins with "LN", you did not choose a service that offers a tracking number. The number that you have is a customs number, and contains no tracking data.
Q: I'm having trouble with my tracking number. Why?
Please be sure that you are entering your tracking number correctly. The easiest way to do this is to copy and paste your tracking number, instead of entering it manually. It may also be possible that you are entering the correct tracking number, but on the wrong site. We use USPS, FedEx, and for our Canadian customers with a tracking number that begins with "LN," OSM. The answer above provides links to each website's tracking page. If your tracking number is still not working, please contact us, and we will assist you.
Size Questions
Q: I usually wear a certain dress size. How do I know the corresponding size for this item?
Dress size can vary a lot between different brands so the size you normally wear may not correspond to the size of the item you are buying. Generally you should refer to the manufacturer's size chart for every one of our items.
Q: I'm still not sure what size to get. What would you suggest?
If you feel you are between two sizes, try ordering the larger size. Typically, it is easier to alter something that is a little too large than it is to alter something that is a little too small. Please use this recommendation at your discretion
General Questions
Q: Where do you get the photos for your items? Are there any more?
We primarily use the photos that are provided to us by the manufacturer, with a few exceptions. We post all the photos we have available for each item listing.
