Should I pay the full sample fee upfront?
Full payment upfront can be reasonable for an identified stock sample whose total cost you can afford to lose. For development, pay only against a defined scope, deliverables and spending cap; ask for staged payments where useful. Have the quotation and available evidence reviewed with Cambridge China Bridge.
Are you buying a sample or commissioning work?
A stock sample is an existing item supplied for evaluation. Development means paying for work such as adapting drawings, sourcing materials, making a prototype or changing tooling. A modified stock item can involve both. Ask the supplier to separate the goods from the work in its quotation before deciding whether full prepayment is acceptable.
For stock, check the exact model, variant, condition and availability. For development, establish whether you are buying a specified result or an attempt to resolve an uncertain design. Our sampling guide explains the different sample stages; this payment decision concerns what you authorise before those results exist.
Write down what the fee purchases
Ask for an itemised scope covering the physical sample, drawings, material list, tooling work, agreed checks, revision allowance and dispatch. Record what is excluded, the delivery trigger and who pays when the result misses an agreed requirement. Distinguish correcting a supplier error from making a buyer-requested design change. Use our product specification guide to define acceptance.
Specify which editable files you receive, who keeps any tooling and what access you have if you stop development. Treat file delivery and copyright transfer as separate questions. For a UK copyright transfer, you must have a written agreement signed by the copyright owner stating that ownership has transferred to you. Seek advice on the rights arrangement for your project.
Check the evidence available before payment
For stock, request current photographs or a live video showing the quoted variant, its identifying marks and packaging. Ask the supplier to confirm that this is the item it will dispatch. For development, ask for relevant previous work, a proposed process, material availability and an explanation of unresolved technical questions. Previous work indicates capability; it does not prove your unfinished sample will succeed.
Match the quotation, specification and receiving account to the agreed supplier. Confirm changed payment details through an established contact route. Our supplier payment guide covers those checks. Pause if the supplier cannot explain what it will deliver, asks for payment against an incomplete scope or presents unrelated photographs as evidence.
Set a cap using actual written quotations
Build your cap from the supplier's actual itemised quotation and written quotations for courier delivery, checks and any separately commissioned work. Record currencies, quote validity, tax treatment and exclusions. Obtain a price for an optional revision before authorising it. Mark unquoted costs as unresolved rather than treating them as free; do not approve work whose possible additional charges remain open.
Write the approved scope and maximum authorised spend into your instruction. Require written approval before extra work, substitutions or chargeable revisions. For development, propose payments against agreed outputs, such as drawing approval, documented prototype checks and dispatch evidence. If full prepayment is required, narrow the paid scope to a bounded feasibility task you can afford to abandon.
Agree what happens if you stop
Ask what happens if development proves infeasible, the sample fails agreed checks or you decide against production. Record any refund terms, rework commitment, cancellation charges and handover of completed work. If a sample fee is credited against a later order, specify the qualifying product, order conditions and how the credit appears on the invoice. Do not count a conditional credit as cash recovered.
Keep the quotation, approved scope, payment record, progress evidence and acceptance decision together. Review the sample before committing to tooling changes or production. Use our guide to stopping endless sample revisions when changes keep expanding. A sample payment should buy a defined learning step, with a clear decision to continue, revise or stop.
Frequently asked questions
Is full payment upfront normal for a sample?
It can be reasonable for an identified stock sample with a bounded total cost. For development, assess the scope, deliverables, uncertainty and amount you could lose before agreeing.
What should a sample development fee include?
Only what the written quotation specifies. Ask it to identify the sample, development work, files, checks, revisions and delivery, with exclusions and acceptance criteria.
Can I get the sample fee back if I do not order?
Ask before paying and record the answer. A refund and a credit against a later production order are different arrangements; a conditional credit does not repay you if you stop.
How do I cap sample development costs?
Use actual written quotations for the authorised work and associated costs. Set a maximum spend, resolve exclusions and require your written approval before any chargeable change.