Simply ensuring that you have clear terms of trade, and that you have drawn them to your customer's attention, helps to minimise the risks of disagreements. Key areas to consider include:
- Clarifying what the customer can expect in terms of the quality of your product.
- Specifying when payment will be due (when selling on credit), what interest will be due on late payments and so on.
- Limiting your liability if you are unable to supply the goods.
- Explaining what will happen if only part of an order is
delivered, or if a delivery contains faulty products.
- Stating that you retain ownership of goods until payment has been received.
There may be other areas that are important in your particular circumstances. For example, your terms might need to protect your ownership of intellectual property. In some industries, it is standard practice to set out how any dispute will be dealt with (for example, by binding arbitration).
