Overview
FAR 46.503 mandates that every contract explicitly specify the location where the government formally accepts supplies or services, typically aligning this location with where quality assurance is performed.
Key Rules
- Mandatory Specification: Each contract must clearly state the designated place of acceptance.
- Alignment with Quality Assurance: Contracts requiring quality assurance at the source should ordinarily provide for acceptance at the source; conversely, those requiring it at the destination should provide for acceptance at the destination.
- Prohibition on Reinspection: If supplies are accepted at a location other than the destination (e.g., at the source), the government may not reinspect them for acceptance purposes upon arrival at the destination.
- Permitted Destination Examinations: Even when acceptance occurs elsewhere, the government retains the right to examine supplies at the destination for quantity accuracy, transit damage, potential substitution, or fraud.
Practical Implications
- Transfer of Risk: Clear designation of the place of acceptance is critical for determining when the risk of loss passes from the contractor to the government.
- Administrative Efficiency: This rule prevents redundant technical inspections, protecting contractors from conflicting results between source and destination inspectors while maintaining basic inventory safeguards for the government.