Major Russian online retailers disclaim liability for goods lost in drone attacks

Online Russian marketplace Megamarket has followed Wildberries and Ozon in changing its terms for sellers, disclaiming liability for goods lost in drone attacks.

Source: Russian Telegram channel Mozhem Obyasnit (We can explain)

Details: Megamarket, which is owned by Sberbank, has followed its competitors in changing its terms and conditions for sellers, significantly expanding the list of force majeure circumstances.

The company has stated that it will not be liable for loss or damage to goods resulting from the use of weapons, military equipment, drones or munitions, or as a result of bombardments and explosions.

Previously, the list of force majeure circumstances consisted only of general categories such as acts of God, military action and decisions by state authorities. The new rules will come into force on 8 August.

Quote: "Following a series of Ukrainian drone attacks on Wildberries warehouses, Russia's largest marketplaces have begun rewriting their terms of service. Wildberries, Ozon and Yandex Market have updated their rules for sellers, abandoning their obligation to compensate them for lost or damaged goods if the cause was military action, including drone strikes."

Details: Many sellers are reported to have received compensation that turned out to be dozens or even hundreds of times lower than the value of the goods lost.

Sellers have posted evidence of payouts ranging from RUB 2,000 to 15,000 (US$26-192) for losses worth hundreds of thousands of roubles. They have also complained that they were unable to retrieve intact goods from other warehouses and criticised an offer from the marketplace to help them rebuild their businesses through preferential loans rather than guaranteed compensation.

Background:

• On 18 July, drones attacked the town of Kotovsk in Russia's Tambov Oblast, causing a fire at a Wildberries logistics centre.
• Major Wildberries logistics centres in the Russian cities of Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk in Stavropol Krai caught fire following a drone attack on the night of 21-22 July.
• On 24 July, it was reported that explosions had been heard across Russian-occupied Crimea for the third night in a row, with social media users reporting drone strikes in several cities, including on a Wildberries warehouse in Simferopol.
• Following Ukrainian drone attacks on Wildberries warehouses, the online retailer has removed the product tag "Everything for the SMO", which had been attached to over 200,000 products. The Russians refer to their unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine as "the special military operation" (SMO).

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