Return of Products
Commercial Contract
Table of Contents:
Pre-Return Testing/Inspection
Returns
Risk and Expenses
Remedy
Return of Products
The parties may find it desirable to define the process by which delivered products can be returned by the customer to the seller, including testing/inspection, RMA, shipping, and remedy.
For example, as reflected in the following exemplars, only defective and/or non-conforming products may be returned, and then once a defect is confirmed, a limited universe of remedies is available to the customer:
Pre-Return Testing/Inspection
In the following exemplar, the customer must verify a defect using seller-supplied test equipment:
Exemplar C63-1
Unless otherwise agreed to in writing by Seller, Seller shall only accept the return by Customer of Products that are defective and in-warranty, which Products shall be treated in accordance with this Section X. Prior to returning any Product for repair or replacement or credit pursuant to this Section X, Customer shall first confirm that the Product is under warranty and shall conduct pre-return testing to verify that the Product is defective. Each Product will be tested by Customer on Seller-supplied test benches with no-fault-found (NFF) units being refurbished by Customer as Customer inventory and defective units returned to Seller pursuant to this Section.
Returns
The following exemplar requires the customer to notify the seller of a returned defective product, which will be tracked by a return-material-authorization number assigned by the seller:
Exemplar C63-2
No Product shall be returned to or accepted by Seller unless and until Customer has notified Seller in writing of an alleged defect in the Product within the time prescribed in Section (“Warranty”) above and Seller has been issued a return material authorization (“RMA”) number to Customer. Customer shall ship the Product in its original carton or packaging to a site designated by Seller, accompanied by the RMA number issued from Seller.
Risk and Expenses
In the following exemplar, the seller bears no liability or responsibility for the shipment of the returned product unless until the product is confirmed to be defective by the seller:
Exemplar C63-3
Customer shall bear the risk of loss or damage during transit and shall prepay shipping costs for a Product returned to Seller. For a repaired or replacement Product returned to Customer, Seller shall bear the risk of loss or damage during transit and shall prepay shipping costs. If a Product returned by Customer is defective and in-warranty, Seller will reimburse or credit the shipping costs prepaid by Customer for returning such Product. If a Product returned by Customer is not defective or out-of-warranty, Seller shall advise Customer in writing of this determination and shall return such Product to Customer at Customer’s expense (freight collect) and risk in its "as received" condition.
Remedy
Refunds are usually not identified as a remedy for a defective product. Rather, as reflected in the attached exemplar, the seller has the option of fixing the defective product, replacing it a non-defective unit, or issuing a credit for the defective product against future purchases:
Exemplar C63-3
As Customer's exclusive remedy, and Seller’s sole obligation, relating to defective Products, Seller at its option shall: (i) repair a defective Product within thirty (30) days after confirmation of a defect and return the Product to the place designated by Customer, (ii) return a replacement for the Product to Customer to the place designated by Customer, or (iii) issue a credit to Customer equal to the actual purchase price of the returned Product. The foregoing remedy shall not apply to Products that have been damaged while in the possession, custody, or control of Customer or its end-user customers.