Conditions for the performance of work on motor vehicles, trailers, assemblies, and their parts, and for cost estimates (as of August 2022)
Based on the recommendation of the Central Association of the German Motor Vehicle Trade (Zentralverband Deutsches Kraftfahrzeuggewerbe), Bonn
I. Placing an order
1. The order form or a confirmation letter must specify the services to be provided and state the expected or binding completion date.
2. If repairs are carried out by the Contractor in its capacity as a vehicle manufacturer under one of its manufacturer's warranties, the corresponding warranty terms and conditions shall apply to these repairs with priority. Repair terms and conditions that conflict with the warranty terms and conditions are void. The remaining repair terms and conditions remain in full force and effect.
3. The contract authorizes the Contractor to issue subcontracts and to conduct test drives and transfer journeys.
4. Transfers of the Client's rights and obligations arising from the contract require the Contractor's written consent. This does not apply to any monetary claims the Client may have against the Contractor. For other claims of the Client against the Contractor, the Contractor's prior consent is not required if the Contractor has no legitimate interest in excluding assignment or if the Client's legitimate interests in the assignability of the right outweigh the Contractor's legitimate interest in excluding assignment.
II. Price information in the order form; cost estimate
1. At the client's request, the contractor shall also note on the order form the prices expected to be charged for the execution of the order.
Price information in the order form can also be provided by reference to the relevant items in the price and labor catalogs available at the contractor's.
2. If the client requests a binding price quote, a written cost estimate is required; this must list the work and spare parts in detail and include the respective prices. The contractor is bound to this cost estimate for a period of three weeks after its submission. The services rendered to provide a cost estimate may be invoiced to the client if this has been agreed upon in the individual case. If an order is placed based on the cost estimate, any costs for the cost estimate will be offset against the order invoice or credited separately.
3. If the order form contains price information, sales tax must be stated, just as in the cost estimate.
III. Completion
1. The Contractor is obligated to adhere to a binding completion date specified in writing. If the scope of work changes or expands compared to the original order, resulting in a delay, the Contractor must immediately provide a new completion date, stating the reasons.
2. If the Contractor, for orders involving the repair of a motor vehicle, culpably fails to meet a binding written completion date for more than 24 hours, the Contractor shall, at its discretion, provide the Client with a replacement vehicle of the same value free of charge, in accordance with the Contractor's applicable terms and conditions, or reimburse 80% of the costs for actually using a rental vehicle of the same value. The Client must return the replacement or rental vehicle immediately upon notification of completion of the order; further compensation for damages due to delay is excluded. The Contractor is also liable for any impossibility of performance occurring accidentally during the delay, unless the damage would have occurred even if the performance had been provided on time. For commercially used vehicles, the contractor may compensate for the loss of earnings resulting from the delayed completion instead of providing a replacement vehicle or covering the rental car costs. Recreational vehicles (mobile homes, vans, and caravans) are generally excluded from this provision unless the client can prove that the vehicle is their sole means of transportation.
3. The exclusions of liability in Section 2 do not apply to damages resulting from a grossly negligent or intentional breach of duties by the contractor, their legal representative, or their vicarious agents, nor in the event of injury to life, limb, or health.
4. If the contractor is unable to meet the completion date due to force majeure or operational disruptions through no fault of their own, there is no obligation to pay compensation for any resulting delays, in particular not to provide a replacement vehicle or to reimburse costs for the actual use of a rental vehicle. However, the contractor is obligated to inform the client of the delays, as far as this is possible and reasonable.
IV. Acceptance
1. Acceptance of the contracted item by the Client shall take place at the Contractor's premises, unless otherwise agreed.
2. The Client is obligated to collect the contracted item within one week of receipt of the completion notification and delivery or transmission of the invoice. In the event of non-acceptance, the Contractor may exercise its statutory rights. For repair work completed within one working day, the period shall be reduced to two working days.
3. In the event of delayed acceptance, the Contractor may charge the customary local storage fee. The contracted item may also be stored elsewhere at the Contractor's discretion. The costs and risks of storage shall be borne by the Client.
V. Calculation of the order
1. Prices or price factors for each technically self-contained work service, as well as for the spare parts and materials used, must be listed separately on the invoice.
If the client requests collection or delivery of the contracted item, this will be done at the client's expense and risk. Liability for negligence remains unaffected.
2. If the order is carried out based on a binding cost estimate, a reference to the cost estimate is sufficient, with only additional work being listed separately.
3. Calculating the exchange price in an exchange procedure assumes that the removed unit or part corresponds to the scope of delivery of the replacement unit or part and that it does not exhibit any damage that would make reconditioning impossible.
4. VAT is borne by the client.
5. Any correction of the invoice must be made by the contractor, as well as any complaint by the client, no later than 6 weeks after receipt of the invoice.
VI. Payment\
The invoice amount and prices for additional services are due for payment in cash upon acceptance of the contract item and delivery or transmission of the invoice, but no later than one week after notification of completion and delivery or transmission of the invoice.
2. The Client may only offset claims of the Contractor if the Client's counterclaim is undisputed or if a legally binding title exists. This does not apply to counterclaims of the Client arising from the same contract. The Client may only assert a right of retention if it is based on claims arising from the same contractual relationship. The Contractor is entitled to demand an appropriate advance payment upon placing the order.
VII. Extended Lien
The Contractor is entitled to a contractual lien on the items that came into its possession as a result of the contract due to its claim arising from the contract. The contractual lien may also be asserted for claims arising from previously performed work, deliveries of spare parts, and other services, insofar as they are related to the contract item. For other claims arising from the business relationship, the contractual lien only applies if these are undisputed or there is a legally binding title and the object of the contract belongs to the client.\
VIII. Liability for material defects
1. The client's claims for material defects shall expire one year from acceptance of the contracted item. If the client accepts the contracted item despite being aware of a defect, they are only entitled to claims for material defects if they reserve these rights upon acceptance.
2. If the subject of the contract is the delivery of movable items to be manufactured or produced, and the client is a legal entity under public law, a special fund under public law, or an entrepreneur acting in the exercise of their commercial or independent professional activity upon conclusion of the contract, the client's claims for material defects shall expire one year from delivery. For other clients (consumers), the statutory provisions apply in this case.
3. The reductions in the limitation periods in Section 1, Sentence 1 and Section 2, Sentence 1 do not apply to damages resulting from a grossly negligent or intentional breach of duties by the contractor, their legal representative, or their vicarious agents, or in the event of injury to life, limb, or health.
4. If the Contractor is required by law to compensate for damage caused by slight negligence, the Contractor's liability is limited:
Liability shall only apply in the event of a breach of essential contractual obligations, such as those which the contract specifically intends to impose on the Contractor based on its content and purpose, or the fulfillment of which makes the proper execution of the contract possible in the first place, and on whose compliance the Client regularly relies and may rely. This liability is limited to the typical damage foreseeable at the time the contract was concluded. The personal liability of the Contractor's legal representatives, vicarious agents, and employees for damage caused by them through slight negligence is excluded.
Clause 3 of this section shall apply accordingly to the aforementioned limitation of liability and the aforementioned exclusion of liability.
5. Regardless of any fault on the part of the Contractor, any liability of the Contractor for fraudulent concealment of the defect, for the assumption of a guarantee or procurement risk, and under the Product Liability Act remains unaffected.
6. If a defect is to be remedied, the following applies:
a) The Client must assert claims for material defects against the Contractor; in the case of oral notifications, the Contractor will provide the Client with written confirmation of receipt of the notification.
b) If the object of the contract becomes inoperable due to a material defect, the Client may, with the prior consent of the Contractor, contact another specialist company. In this case, the Client must have it recorded in the order form that the defect is to be remedied by the Contractor and that any removed parts must be kept available to the Contractor for a reasonable period of time. The Contractor is obligated to reimburse the Client for any demonstrably incurred repair costs.
c) In the event of repair, the Client may assert claims for material defects based on the contract for the parts installed to remedy the defects until the expiration of the limitation period for the subject matter of the contract. Replaced parts become the property of the Contractor.
IX. Liability for other damages
. Liability for the loss of money and valuables of any kind not expressly taken into safekeeping is excluded.
2. Other claims of the Client not regulated in Section VIII. "Liability for Material Defects" shall expire within the regular limitation period.
3. For claims for damages against the Contractor, the provisions in Section VIII. "Liability for Material Defects," clauses 4 and 5 apply accordingly.
X. Retention of Title
To the extent that installed accessories, spare parts, and assemblies have not become an integral part of the contracted item, the Contractor retains title to them until full and undisputed payment has been made.
XI. Place of jurisdiction
The exclusive place of jurisdiction for all current and future claims arising from the business relationship with merchants, including claims arising from bills of exchange and checks, is Kehl am Rhein. The same place of jurisdiction applies if the client does not have a general place of jurisdiction within Germany, relocates their place of residence or habitual abode outside Germany after the conclusion of the contract, or their place of residence or habitual abode is unknown at the time the action is filed.
XII. Notice pursuant to Section 36 of the Consumer Dispute Resolution Act (VSBG)
The contractor will not participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board within the meaning of the VSBG and is not obligated to do so.
