If you operate any type of business where you supply goods and or services to customers it is a good idea to have a terms of trade (or sometimes called terms and conditions) which your customers agree to at the time of engagement.
Generally speaking, Terms of Trade will deal with various aspects of your business; from the point you provide a quote for your work, particulars of hand over of the goods/services, particulars of payment (and how to deal with non-payment), cancellation, and warranties.
Some of the aspects are governed by Federal or State Acts (such as the Competition and Consumer Act, or Sale of Goods Act) which may mean that the Act will set minimum standards you will need to abide by and cannot be contracted out of. These include implied warranty, indemnity, and passing of title (please read our PPSA page here for more information). It is important to deal with these terms in your Terms of Trade as the Act may require that you agree in writing on certain points to benefit from its protection or you may wish to depart from the minimum standards set by the Act to your benefit.
Other aspects of trade that are not governed by any Act will be dealt in accordance with the agreement between the two parties. These include, for example, whether you can charge interest on outstanding invoices, or how one party can terminate the agreement. If these points are not agreed to by the parties when the customers first engage you to commence work, it will be extremely difficult to enforce what may seem to you like common sense. For example, often people are surprised that they do not automatically have the rights to charge their debt collector or lawyer’s fees to recover outstanding money from former customers.
Depending on the industry you operate in, or the particulars of your business, it may be especially important to protect certain rights such as images and logos that you use or to set out in detail the way fees will be charged. Having a comprehensive Terms of Trade is a proactive way to minimize disputes, and reduce complications when a conflict occurs (such as non-payment).
At Prime Lawyers we will firstly get to know your business well so that we can draft a Terms of Trade that addresses issues that may be particular to your industry. We can also assist you in drafting only the particular areas of your concern, for example a Director’s Guarantee and Indemnity or Warranty terms.
Call us now and speak with one of our commercial lawyers on (02) 9521 2222. You can also send your enquiry online now and we will call you shortly.