30. What should I send my broker before approving payment?

Send one consolidated request covering the mission, price, counterparties and failure scenarios. The following is a desk-drafted template; adapt it to the agreement and the urgency of the trip.

Please confirm the following for our proposed flight:

1. Exact airports, dates, local departure times and planned arrival time.
2. Suitability for our stated passenger count and baggage manifest, including any expected stop.
3. Offered aircraft configuration and the process for disclosing the allocated registration.
4. Operating carrier’s legal name, certificate details and your role in the transaction.
5. Total payable amount, applicable taxes and every excluded, conditional or unpriced charge.
6. Whether flight time or other charges can be reconciled after the trip.
7. Quote validity, payment deadline and cancellation rules, including the governing time zone.
8. Aircraft and carrier substitution rights and our acceptance options.
9. What happens if the aircraft or crew becomes unavailable, who sources a replacement and who pays any difference.
10. Insurance evidence and the process for any additional-insured request.
11. Refund arrangements and the legal entity receiving payment.
12. The responsible after-hours contact and escalation process.

Please identify the supporting proposal or contract clause for each answer and flag anything that remains unknown.

Keep the response, agreement, evidence checks and approval together. For repeat buyers, use the same file after travel to reconcile the invoice and record what was actually delivered.

The buying standard is not perfect certainty. It is a clear record of what is known, what remains unresolved, who accepted the exposure and what happens next.