Delivered At Place: arrival without unloading

Arrival is the delivery event

The seller bears cost and exposure until the goods are placed at the buyer's disposal on the arriving vehicle, ready to be taken off, at the agreed point. Everything up to that moment, including the main carriage and any transit formalities along the way, is the seller's problem. This is a substantial undertaking: a loss anywhere in the chain falls on a seller who is often thousands of miles from the incident.

Unloading belongs to the buyer

The rule stops short of taking the goods off the vehicle. Where a receiving site lacks a dock, a forklift or the crew to unload, that is the buyer's difficulty, and a driver waiting while it is resolved generates charges the buyer bears. Parties who want the seller to unload should use the rule written for that rather than adding a word to this one, because an undefined modification leaves it unclear whether the exposure during unloading moved as well.

Import clearance stays with the buyer

The buyer clears the goods, pays the duty and any import tax, and obtains any licence needed. That is what separates this rule from the one where the seller delivers with charges paid. It is also what makes it usable by sellers who have no presence in the destination country, since the formalities requiring local standing remain with the party that has it.

The named place decides more than it looks

A term naming only a city leaves open whether the seller's obligation ends at a city boundary, at a distribution centre or at a specific bay, and the cost of the last stretch can be significant. The named point should be precise enough to send a vehicle to. Where the destination is inside a facility with access restrictions or booking systems, the contract should say who arranges access, because a seller cannot deliver into a slot it cannot book.

Frequently asked questions

Who pays if the goods are held at the frontier?

Import clearance is the buyer's responsibility, so a hold arising from clearance is generally at the buyer's cost and risk, including storage and demurrage. The contract should address what happens if the seller's documentation is the cause, because that is the situation where responsibility is genuinely contested.

Can the seller refuse to wait while the buyer arranges unloading?

The seller has performed once the goods are at the buyer's disposal ready for unloading. Waiting time and any charge the carrier levies for it is a matter between the parties, and it is worth agreeing a reasonable period in the contract rather than discovering the carrier's demurrage terms at the gate.