What is a contract of sale
A contract of sale is a legal contract for an exchange of goods or services to be exchanged from the seller (or manufacturer) to the buyer (or purchaser) for an agreed upon value in money (or money equivalent) paid or the promise to pay at a future point in time. It is a specific type of legal document that outlines the details of the sale and it is an extremely important document.
Importance of having a contract of sales
It is crucial to have a correctly executed, contract of sale ( or sales contract ) in place before you pay your deposit to a supplier in China. Contracts of sale are best when they are written in both Chinese and English so as to help eliminate misunderstanding in interpretation’s. Sales contracts can assist in ensuring the goods you expect to get are the same as the ones you are delivered. They help remove the wiggle factor where each party potentially says different things, as you can reference the contract of sale and clearly see what was originally requested and agreed to.
A correctly executed contract of sale can significantly reduce potential problems in both the specifications of the product requested and the quality of the goods requested.. If there is a problem and you have a properly executed contract of sales it puts you in a very powerful position when dealing with any court action that may arise.
Ten points to remember when drafting a contract of sales
- Make sure you clearly outline all the details for the products. Use bullet points for the specification’s
- Use clear engineering plans as a reference in the contract of sale.
- Make sure the correct name of the company you are dealing with is on the contract. Sometimes you may think you are dealing with a company who is a manufacturer, when in fact the contract has been written in the name of a trading company.
- Make sure the contract is stamped with the company stamp and that the correct stamp has been used.
- Make sure the person who signs the contract is in a position of power and has the authority to sign a contract on behalf of the company.
- Make sure the correct address of the manufacturer is noted on the contract.
- Outline the payment process and mile stones for when payments are to be made
- State the agreed number of days for the goods to be produced
- Outline details of agreed warranty for the products and who is responsible for any costs to return any defective product’s to the factory in China.
- Make sure the contract of sales is written in both Chinese and English
How can Manufacturing China assist?
- Manufacturing China can find well organised factories that are capable of producing quality products to your specifications.
- Manufacturing China staff can check to see if acceptable quality control procedures are in place in the factory
- Manufacturing China can assist in getting samples made and shipped to you wherever you are in the world
- Manufacturing China staff can help execute a well, documented contract of sale on your behalf in line with the ten points for a good contract of sales. ( see above)
- Manufacturing China Staff can do a factory inspection report and help determine if the factory is capable of manufacturing the goods to your expectations while making sure the factory has the correct machinery in the factory to produce the products you are seeking. FACTORIES OUTSOURCING production to a third party can be a real problem as far as quality control is concerned.
- Manufacturing China staff can perform quality control checks on the products when production is complete
- Manufacturing China can arrange freight consolidation and logistics to your door anywhere in the world.