The permissibility of selling an item for less than the usual market price when the price was not specified by the principal.
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Pledges (Collateral)
Primary text
If the principal gives a general authorization to sell and the agent sells the item for a price less than the usual market price, provided the reduction falls within the range that people typically overlook (*yataghabanu bihi*), the sale is valid, and the agent incurs no liability for the deficit. This exception is made because such small differences are generally difficult to precisely control.
Supporting text
If the reduction exceeds what people usually overlook, or if the sale price is less than what the principal had specifically stipulated (when a specific price was set), the sale is valid, but the agent is liable for the entire deficit. However, the preferred opinion among our colleagues is that such a sale is invalid because it constitutes a sale that the agent was not authorized to execute, similar to when the agent deviates regarding the medium of payment (*naqd*).