FOB shipping point What is an FOB shipping point?

This concept is particularly important in accounting because we record sales when they are made. This sale was made when GM dropped the goods off on the loading dock because the title transferred. To fully grasp the concept, it’s important first to understand the difference between place of origin vs. place of destination and freight collect vs. freight prepaid. Goods shipped EXW will usually be cheaper FOB, since Free on Board would have the supplier bear the costs of transportation, handling, and customs clearance. EXW terms, however, are often riskier since the supplier is responsible for the goods until they reach their location.

Simply put, an incoterm is the standard contract used to define responsibility and liability for the shipment of goods. It plainly lays out how far along into the process the supplier will ensure that your goods are moved and at what point the buyer takes over the shipment process. The buyer is not responsible for the goods during transit; therefore, the buyer often is not responsible fob shipping point means for paying for shipping costs. The buyer is also able to delay ownership until the goods have been delivered to them, allowing them to do an initial inspection prior to physically accepting the goods to note any damages or concerns. When it comes to the FOB shipping point option, the seller assumes the transport costs and fees until the goods reach the port of origin.

The platform analyses the extracted data in no time to generate relevant insights. This can lead to errors, which directly impact efficiency and productivity. In addition, it increases the risk of human error and can lead to delays due to lost or misplaced documents. These delays can cause delays in payment and customer satisfaction issues.

Costs Associated with Freight on Board

Since FOB shipping point transfers the title of the shipment of goods when the goods are placed at the shipping point, the legal title of those goods is transferred to the buyer. Therefore, the seller is not responsible for the goods during delivery. FOB shipping point is a further limitation or condition to FOB, as responsibility changes hands at the seller’s shipping dock. Assume that a seller quoted a price of $900 FOB shipping point and the seller loaded the goods onto a common carrier on December 30.

• The supplier is only responsible for bringing the electronic devices to the carrier.
• From that point, buyers need to bear all the expenses for further transport.
• Responsibility for the goods is with the seller until the goods are loaded on board the ship.
• In this case, the seller completes the sale in its records once the goods arrive at the receiving dock.
• Some vendors will offer longer terms for payment, but the start date is based on FOB date.

Even if the seller pays for the shipment, the buyer remains responsible for the goods. The company will assume responsibility for the office supplies even as they are yet to receive possession of the goods. The company will also have an open accounts payable balance and will soon mention office supplies in its financial statements. It does not matter how long it takes for the shipment to arrive at its destination.

Accounting and auditing

Under the FOB shipping point, the buyer can record an increase in their inventory as soon as the products are placed on the ship. Under the FOB destination, the seller completes the sale in their records only when the goods arrive at the receiving dock. The FOB shipping point (or the FOB origin) is an important term to understand in a contract, as it can significantly affect how much you pay for packing materials and insurance. The vendor-client transaction defines the FOB terms in the purchase order.

Also assume that the goods are on the truck until January 2, when they are unloaded at the buyer’s location. Therefore, the seller should continue to report these goods in its inventory until January 2. The seller will be responsible for the shipping costs, which will be an expense in January when the sale is reported.

Why does FOB matter?

As a result, things tend to get messy when it comes to assigning blame. Having said that, buyers and sellers should take the time to study and understand FOB designations to avoid any problems. FOB on an invoice stands for Free On Board or Freight On Board and refers to the point after which a business shipping products to a buyer is no longer responsible for the items. FOB is always followed by a designation to indicate when the seller’s obligation ends. Ownership of a cargo is independent of Incoterms, which relate to delivery and risk.

From a practical perspective, recognition of receipt is instead completed at the receiving dock of the buyer. Thus, the sale is recorded when the shipment leaves the seller’s facility, and the receipt is recorded when it arrives at the buyer’s facility. This means there is a difference between the legal terms of the arrangement and the typical accounting for it. The transportation department of a buyer might insist on FOB shipping point terms, so that it can take complete control over the delivery of goods once they leave a supplier’s shipping dock.

However, the ownership title in the FOB destination gets transferred from the seller to the buyer when the buyer receives the shipment at the unloading dock. When the shipment arrives at the origin, the buyer needs to attain responsibility for them. Even if the seller pays the shipping charges initially, they may charge the customer later. It is the primary transportation point where the company will assume responsibility for the office stationery they have ordered. The sale record will only happen when the supplier hands over the supplies for transportation at the FOB shipping point.

What is FOB Shipping Point?

Sellers can record a sale when they deliver the shipment to the point of origin, where the buyer assumes the responsibility for the goods. Similarly, buyers need to record the goods in their inventory at that point. Even if the shipment takes a week or two to arrive, the inventory remains an asset in the accounts. FOB clearly indicates whether the buyer or the seller is responsible for bearing the shipping costs.

FOB means that the seller delivers the goods on board the vessel nominated by the buyer at the named port of shipment or procures the goods already so delivered. Once the delivery is unloaded in the receiving country, responsibility is transferred to you. Unlike FOB shipping, the supplier is not required to ensure the safe movement from port to ship. Understanding the differences between each is as simple as knowing how much responsibility the buyer and supplier assume under each agreement. Of the 11 different incoterms that are currently used in international freight, Free on Board (FOB) is the one that you will encounter most frequently. If the same seller issued a price quote of “$5000 FOB Miami”, then the seller would cover shipping to the buyer’s location.

The buyer pays the transportation costs from the warehouse or vendor to the store. If the terms include the phrase “FOB origin, freight collect,” the buyer is responsible for freight charges. If the terms include “FOB origin, freight prepaid,” the buyer assumes the responsibility for goods at the point of origin, but the seller pays the cost of shipping. The accounting systems of companies get impacted based on the time the buyer assumes responsibility for the shipment. While the shipping costs also get determined only after the transfer of ownership, it also affects inventory and accounting records. The seller can record a sale as soon as they ship the goods to their loading dock.

FOB destination, on the other hand, would not have recorded the sale until the package was delivered. Now that you understand the various FOB terms, let’s put it all together. In shipping, the unit price refers to the cost to ship a good based on a pre-agreed or standardized unit basis. For instance, to ship coal per ton, oil per barrel, or grain per bushel.

Responsibility for the goods is with the seller until the goods are loaded on board the ship. The acronym FOB, which stands for “Free On Board” or “Freight On Board,” is a shipping term used in retail to indicate who is responsible for paying transportation charges. It is the location where ownership of the merchandise transfers from seller to buyer. The seller pays the freight, and the buyer takes the title once it’s been shipped.

The primary difference between the two contracts is in the timing of the transfer of the title for the goods. When businesses get into a CIF agreement, the seller remains responsible for all the costs related to shipping the goods. Sellers have a major role to play here as they have to transport the goods to the loading point and ensure it gets loaded for shipment.

FOB, or Free on Board, instead shifts the responsibility of the goods to the buyer as soon as they are loaded onboard the ship. FOB transfers liability from seller to buyer when the shipment reaches the port of origin, and not the destination. Under the FOB shipping point terms, the buyer pays the shipping cost from the factory and becomes responsible for the goods in case of any damages during the shipment. This means that your shipment is in the proverbial hands of the supplier through the process of transporting them to a port and loading them aboard a ship. Free Alongside Ship (FAS) is a barebones ocean freight shipping option.

FOB Destination means that the ownership of the products transfer from the seller to the buyer only when the goods arrive at the buyer’s location, in good condition. FOB Destination is more beneficial to the buyer, whereas FOB Shipping Point benefits the seller. For example, if a company was shipping its goods to New York City, it would be written out as FOB New York. The accounting treatment of the FOB shipping point is important since adding costs to inventory means the buyer doesn’t immediately recognize an expense. This delay in recognizing the expense and changes in the buyer’s inventory affects the net income.