Commercial_Correspondence

ACCOUNT SALES

4 April 20—

In the matter of books ex-MV Orianna, sold for the account of Educational Books Ltd, Chatham, Kent, England.

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Agents and agencies

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Points to remember

1 If you are offering an agency, convince the agent that your products are worth selling and will find a market in their area.

2 Be clear about the type of agency you are offering, for example exclusive or nonexclusive, on a consignment basis on the agent's account.

3 Offer terms and suggest ways of settling accounts. Be positive about the support that you, the principal, can provide for your agent.

4 If you are asking for an agency, convince the manufacturer that their products will be well represented.

Transportation and shipping

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Road, rail, and air transport

The three main methods of transporting goods, apart from shipping which we will deal with in a separate section, are road, rail, and air. However, consignments can be transferred from one form of transport to another, especially when containers are used. The term MULTIMODAL (Or INTERMODAL) indicates units that can be transferred between systems (or modes), e.g. containers being moved from truck to ship or train to truck.

CHARACTERISTICS

Road transport

Road transport tends to be cheaper and more direct than rail, especially for the transportation of small consignments. Its

advantages include door-to-door service, quick loading and unloading in containers, and the use of roll-on roll-off (ro-ro) facilities on ferry crossings, where the truck can drive onto and off the ferry or a semi-trailer can be driven onto a ferry by one truck and driven off at the destination docks by another.

TIR (Transports Intemationaux Routiers) vehicles, which are sealed, can go through customs without being searched. CAB OTAGE LAWS permit carriers to transport thirdcountry goods, e.g a French carrier can take goods from Spain to Italy.

Rai transport

Rail transport tends to be more economical than road transport for BULK CONSIGNMENTS (e.g. oil, grain, and coal). There are often links between road and rail carriers, e.g. many of the European services which use the Channel Tunnel.

Air transport

Some goods lose value or deteriorate over a short period of time, e.g. newspapers and flowers. For this kind of consignment air transport is used for speed, particularly over long distances. Insurance tends to be cheaper

is the main document used in road transport. It is issued by the carrier and is the CONSIGNOR'S (person sending the goods) RECEIPT. It usually states that the goods are in good condition when the carrier receives them, but if there is something wrong with them, there may be a clause which states what this is. There are three original copies.

A CMR cannot be a DOCUMENT OF TITLE, i.e. it does not give ownership of the goods to the person named on the document.

DELIVERY NOTES are sent with consignments. They can be signed by the CONSIGNEE (person receiving the goods) stating either contents have been examined, which means the consignee has seen the goods and is accepting them in good condition, or contents not examined, as a precaution against receiving damaged goods.

Rail transport

Rail transport is covered by a RAIL CONSIGNMENT NOTE (CIM). Like a CMR, it is a receipt and not a document of title.

Air transport

The main document used in air transport is the AIR WAY B ILL, which consists of twelve copies: one is sent to the airline, one to the consignor, and one to the consignee, each being accepted as originals. The other copies are sent to customers and handling. Unlike the bill of lading ► see page 198, the air waybill is only a receipt and cannot be transferred to another

person. It acknowledges that the goods were received in apparent good order.

Only the consignee named on the air waybill can claim the goods, and they will need to quote the bill number. When a FORWARDING

AGENT uses CONSOLIDATION SERVICES

1> see page 199, each consignee receives their

OWTIHOUSE AIR WAYBILL, and will need to

quote the numbers of both the master air waybill and house air waybill.

General

Consignment notes and air waybills are obtained from the freight company by the consignor (sender) filling out an instructions for despatch form and paying the freight charges. Charges are calculated by size (volume), weight, or value, and sometimes also

risk.

Most freight companies are private carriers, and are responsible for taking proper care of the goods and getting them to their destination on time.

Correspondence in transport is generally between consignors and freight companies, or consignors and forwarding agents, who send goods on behalf of the consignor. Customers are kept informed about consignments by means of advice notes, which can be sent by ordinary mail or email. They give details of packing and when goods will arrive.

In the European Union (Eu) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA),MOVEMENT CERTIFICATES are used, especially for container shipments s.see page 211 where the consignment is taken through different customs posts to member countries.

In the EU, the SINGLE ADMINISTRATIVE

DOCUMENT (sAn), an eight-part set of forms for export declarations, incorporates what were previously several customs forms. The

SIMPLIFIED CLEARANCE PROCEDURE (SCP) is

used to make documentation easier for exporters and agents.

No customs documents are required for trade between Eu member countries.

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Transportation and shipping

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Requezt fcav a quotaVion fov deHvenj y ©d

In this example Mr Cliff of Homemakers,the furniture manufacturer we met in earlier units, faxes a road haulage firm to askfor a quotation to deliver furniture to a customer, R. Hughes & Son. He describes the packing (note that size rather than weight will be the main concern of the carrier in this case), states the value of the consignment, and mentions a delivery time.

HOMEMAKERS

54-59 Riverside I Cardiff CFI Inv

Telephone: +44 (0)29 20 49721

Fax:+44 (0)29 20 49937

FACSIMILE MESSAGE

To Cartiers Ltd

Fax 029 20 498315

Date 10 November 20—

Subject Quotation for Swansea delivery

Pages 1

Please quote for collection from the above address and delivery to:

R.Hughes & Son Ltd, 21 Mead Road, Swansea. 6 divans and mattresses, 700cm x 480cm

7 bookcase assembly kits packed in strong cardboard boxes, each measuring 14.m3

4 coffee-table assembly kits, packed in cardboard boxes, each measuring 10m3

4 armchairs, 320 x 190 x 260cm

The divans and armchairs are fully protected against knocks and scratches by polythene and corrugated paper wrapping, and the invoiced value of the consignment is £4,660.50.

I would appreciate a prompt reply, as delivery must be made before the end of next week.

RiclutroGcliff

Richard Cliff

Director

CA TIE S LT

516-519 CATHAYS PARK • CARDIFF CFI 9U1

Telephone +44 (0)29 20 821597/8/9

Facsimile -1-44 (0)29 2049833.5

Fax

Fax 029 20 49937

From H. Weldon (Ms)

Subject Quotation for Swansea delivery

Date 10 November 20—

Page(s) 2

Dear Mr Cliff

In reply to the fax you sent today, we can quote £272.20 for picking up and delivering your consignment to the consignee's premises. This includes loading and unloading, plus insurance, and is valid with immediate effect until 14 December 20—.

If you would like to go ahead, please complete the Despatch Note with this fax, and let us know two days before you want the delivery to be made. Our driver will hand you a receipt when he collects the consignment.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

H.Weid.oh,

H.Weldon (Ms)

Quotation Corr denvevy by woad

In her reply to Mr Cliff's fax, notice how Ms Weldon refers to the consignment note as a receipt. She includes, loading and unloading the consignment in her quote. (Carriers may quote for delivery on a time basis, as here, i.e. how long it will take to load or unload the vehicle.)

gppinshi andationportTrans

11 emailExample

19 0

Robert Hughes

Order No. B1517

w

Invoice No. DM2561

Dear Robert

As our own driver is ill, I have arranged for Cartiers Ltd to deliver the above order on Wednesday 18 November. Before signing the Delivery Note, could you please check that the consignment is complete and undamaged?

I have attached the invoice, No. DM2561, and will add it to your monthly statement as usual.

Richard Cliff

Director, Homemakers Ltd

54-59 Riverside, Cardiff CF1 1JW

Tel.: +44 (0)29 20 49721

Fax: +44 (0)29 20 49937

Email: rcliff@homemakers.com

1 Arial

Dear Herr Gerlach

Yesterday we received the above consignment to our order No. 02/310, but found that the CDs in boxes 4, 5, and 6 were damaged—either scratched, split, or warped.

The goods cannot be retailed, even at a discount, and we would like to know whether you want us to return them or hold them for inspection.

Regards

Pierre Gerard

Manager

Disc S.A.

251 rue des Raimonieres F-86000 Poitiers Cedex

Tel: (+33) 2 99681031, Telecopie: (+33) 2 74102163 Email: p.gerard@disc.co.fr

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Complaint of (damage in deilverry frroad

In this example the goods were sent by road, at the consignee's request, and were received damaged. Disc S.A., the customer,

is emailing their supplier to complain.

ngshippi andonatiportTrans

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Transportation and shipping

ne0y to corattOsAnt of dallarma

Telefon (+49) 221 32 42 98

Telefax (+49) 221 83 61 25

Email gerlachr@rge.co.de

www.rge.de

Your Ref:

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Example letter

1 What does Herr Gerlach quote in the letter?

2Why is he sure the goods were in perfect condition when they left his company?