I bought goods to be weighed or measured out later, but they were destroyed before weighing. Do I still bear the loss?

Question

Accepted Answer

Generally no, not yet. Where the goods are sold for a price fixed by weight, number or measure, Article 1480 says the risk shall not be imputed to the vendee until they have been weighed, counted, or measured and delivered — unless you, the buyer, had already fallen into delay. The general rule on risk before delivery Article 1480 first states the ordinary rule: injury to or benefit from the thing sold, from the moment the contract is perfected to the time of delivery, is governed by the general provisions on caring for and losing a thing that is due. It adds that this rule applies to the sale of fungible things made independently and for a single price, or without consideration of their weight, number, or measure. In that ordinary case, the buyer can bear the risk of a loss occurring before delivery. But your situation is the special one the article carves out next, and it is treated differently. The special rule for goods priced by measure When the goods are sold for a price fixed according to weight, number or measure — priced only once they are weighed or counted out — the risk stays with the seller longer. Article 1480 says the risk shall not be imputed to the vendee until they have been weighed, counted, or measured and delivered. Until that weighing or measuring and delivery happen, a loss falls on the seller, not on you. The reason is practical: until the goods are measured, it is not even settled exactly which quantity is yours or what price is due, so it would be unfair to load the loss onto the buyer. The exception: buyer's delay There is one important qualification built into the same sentence. The protection holds unless the latter has incurred in delay — 'the latter' being you, the buyer. If the goods were ready to be weighed and delivered, and you wrongfully failed to take the steps required of you on time, the law will not let you shift onto the seller a loss your own delay helped cause. In that case the risk can pass to you despite the goods never having been weighed. So whether you bear the loss can turn on whether you were in delay when the destruction occurred. What this means for your case If your goods were sold at a price to be fixed by weighing or measuring, and they were destroyed before that weighing and delivery could take place, the loss ordinarily falls on the seller, not on you — you would not be obliged to pay for goods you never received and that were never even measured out. The exception is if you had already incurred in delay in doing your part. Because the outcome hinges on how the price was set and on whether either side was in delay, those two facts are where any dispute over who pays will be decided.

I bought goods to be weighed or measured out later, but they were destroyed before weighing. Do I still bear the loss?

What the law says

The general rule on risk before delivery

The special rule for goods priced by measure

The exception: buyer's delay

What this means for your case

Related provisions

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