Warehouse Receipt

Summary of Warehouse Receipt

A document issued by a public warehouseman, acknowledging receipt of and title to specific merchandise held in the warehouse. Such receipts are issued in accordance with the provisions of the U.S. Uniform Commercial Code, where applicable, or the U.S. Uniform Warehouse Receipt Act. Warehouse receipts are issued in two types:

1. Negotiable warehouse receipts are issued to order of the party depositing the goods or his designee; title to the goods may be transferred by the owner by endorsement and delivery of the warehouse receipt. A negotiable warehouse receipt is a title document and must be presented to the warehouseman whenever goods are withdrawn. This type of warehouse receipt is used commonly in commodity transactions, where goods are stored in a public warehouse pending subsequent sale, which can be effected by endorsement and delivery of the warehouse receipt.

2. Nonnegotiable warehouse receipts are more common and cannot be used to effect title transfer. Title to the goods is vested in a named party, and merchandise will be delivered to that party or his designee only. Inasmuch as the warehouse receipt is purely a receipt and cannot be used to convey title, it is not necessary to present the document each time a withdrawal is made; any written instruction to release goods will be accepted by the warehouseman.

Warehouse receipts are common forms of collateral used in bank financing of inventories

(Main Author: William J. Miller)

Warehouse Receipt in International Trade

Meaning of Warehouse Receipt, according to the Dictionary of International Trade (Global Negotiator): A document listing the goods or commodities deposited in a warehouse. It is a receipt for the commodities listed, and for which the warehouse is the bailee. Warehouse receipts may be negotiable o non negotiable.

A warehouse receipt made out to the “order” of a named party is a bearer instrument. As with order bill of lading, ownership of the warehouse goods can be transferred by endorsing and passing the documents from party to party.

Non-negotiable. A warehouse receipt lacking the word “order” is similar to a non-negotiable bill of lading, as it permits delivery only to the named party.