What is cross offer and counter offer?

Answer 1

Cross offer - When the offers made by two persons to each other containing similar terms of bargain cross each other in post they are known as cross offers. For example, on 1st January A offers to sell his radio set to B for Rs. 500/- through a letter sent by post. On the same date B also writes to A making an offer to purchase A's radio set for Rs. 500 /- When A or B send their letters they do not know about the offer which is being made by the other side. In these cross offers, even though both the parties intend the same bargain, there arises no contract. A contract could arise only if either A or B , after having the knowledge of the offer, had accepted the same.

Counter Offer - A counter offer amounts to rejection of the original offer.

Legal effect of counter offer:-

(i) Rejection of original offer

(ii) The original offer is lapsed

(iii) A counter offer result is a new offer.

For example -

A offered to sell his pen to B for Rs.1,000. B replied, " I am ready to pay Rs.950." On A's refusal to sell at this price, B agreed to pay Rs.1,000. Held, there was not contract as the acceptance to buy it for Rs.950 was a counter offer, i.e. rejection of the offer of A. Subsequent acceptance to pay Rs.1,000 is a fresh offer from B to which A was not bound to give his acceptance.

Answered by Kirankumar.G(CMA)

Answer 2

Counter offers and cross-offers, it is obvious that they are not the same. In a counter-offer, the statement of the offeree has the effect of rejecting the offer and proposing a new offer to the previous offer. However, cross-offers are similar offers made by the offeror and offeree in ignorance of each other.

Source: bscholarly - Edeh Samuel Chukwuemeka