Who pays for insurance under FCA?

Under FCA the seller has no obligation to insure the goods for the buyer.

FCA (Free Carrier) Incoterms® 2020 rule

The seller clears export and hands the goods to the buyer's carrier at an agreed place; the buyer pays the main carriage.

In our own words, checked against public explanatory sources. The official rule text is published by ICC.

Transport mode: Any mode of transport
Risk passes: When handed to the first carrier
Seller must insure?: No

Who pays, at a glance

Seller pays or arranges:: packaging, export clearance.
Buyer pays or arranges:: main carriage, unloading at destination, import clearance, import duties, on-carriage.
Depends on the delivery place or arrangement:: loading at origin, pre-carriage, insurance — see the notes in the cost table.

Where risk passes

Risk passes on handover at the agreed place: at the seller's premises once the goods are loaded on the buyer's vehicle, elsewhere once they arrive on the seller's transport ready for unloading.

Cost and risk diagram

Rows follow the goods from the seller (top) to the buyer (bottom); the dashed line marks where risk passes. Generated from the table below. Positions are schematic — the named place in your contract decides the exact point.

Who pays for what

Cost item	Paid / arranged by	Notes
Packaging	Seller
Loading at origin	Depends	At the seller's premises the seller loads the buyer's vehicle. At another agreed place the seller does not unload its own vehicle; the buyer pays for unloading and onward loading.
Export clearance	Seller
Pre-carriage	Depends	When delivery is at the seller's premises there is no pre-carriage for the seller. When the agreed place is elsewhere, such as a terminal or consolidation warehouse, the seller pays transport to it.
Main carriage	Buyer
Insurance	Depends	No party has to insure under this rule. Each may cover the part of the journey where it carries the risk: the seller up to delivery, the buyer after it.
Unloading at destination	Buyer
Import clearance	Buyer
Import duties	Buyer
On-carriage	Buyer

Insurance

This rule puts no obligation on the seller to insure the goods for the buyer. Either side may still choose to buy cover for its own risk.

Common mistakes

Leaving the delivery point vague; the exact point within the named place decides where risk passes.
Missing the buyer's collection slot because of problems at the seller's own loading facilities; the seller stays responsible until loading is done.
Forgetting, when a letter of credit asks for an on-board bill of lading, to agree that the buyer will have its carrier issue one to the seller.

In your ERP and on invoices

Practical consequences of the cost split above for order data, cost bookings and invoice layout. Generic — not specific to any ERP product.

Store the rule code, the edition (for example 2020) and the named place as separate fields on orders, and print all three on the invoice.
Main-carriage freight is a buyer cost: the buyer's landed-cost or freight accrual should include it; the seller's sales price should not.
Import duties are a buyer cost: the buyer's landed-cost calculation should add duties and clearance fees on top of the purchase price.

When to look at another rule

Derived from the cost tables: rules for the same kind of route that differ from FCA in one of export clearance, main carriage, import clearance or insurance.

If the buyer should clear export: EXW.
If the seller should arrange and pay the main carriage: CPT, DAP, DPU.

Compare FCA with

Questions about FCA

Where does risk pass from seller to buyer under FCA?: Risk passes on handover at the agreed place: at the seller's premises once the goods are loaded on the buyer's vehicle, elsewhere once they arrive on the seller's transport ready for unloading.
Which transport modes can FCA be used for?: Any mode of transport.
Who pays for insurance under FCA?: Under FCA the seller has no obligation to insure the goods for the buyer.
Who is responsible for export clearance under FCA?: The seller.
Who is responsible for main carriage under FCA?: The buyer.
Who is responsible for import clearance under FCA?: The buyer.
Who is responsible for import duties under FCA?: The buyer.
Who is responsible for unloading at destination under FCA?: The buyer.

Sources

Checked on 11 October 2026.

Export Development Canada — edc.ca
Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (KVK) — kvk.nl
ICC Academy (International Chamber of Commerce) — academy.iccwbo.org
US International Trade Administration — trade.gov
Maersk (chart by Pilot Freight Services) — delivers.maersk.comsecondary