General Terms of Business

1. General

a) The forwarding conditions for furniture transport are valid for the transport in a furniture van (furniture trailer, container truck, container, lift van) both in this country and also from and to other countries. They apply to all transactions and associated business dealings of the contractor, to the extent that legal regulations, in particular those intended for consumer protection, do not conflict with these. b) The contractor is to carry out his obligations with the due diligence of a business man.

2. Liability

a) The contractor is liable for the loss or damage of the goods, to the extent that the loss or damage happens due to his liability during handling or forwarding of the goods. b) The contractor is to make good the damage excluding the liability for any depreciation in value in natura, however he is entitled in any case to pay monetary compensation. In any case, the liability of the contractor is limited to EUR 1.090 per metre of furniture.


Liability is excluded:

a) for the contents of containers of all kinds, the packing and unpacking of which was not included in the contract, b) for the contents of a furniture van which has been left standing, fully laden, on the orders of the contractor, to the extent that nothing special has been agreed; c) for damage which arises as a consequence of the natural or deficient nature of the goods, such as for example the breakage or damage of marble slabs, glass, china, mirrors, light bulbs, stucco frames, lights, lamp shades, ovens and mechanical devices, unless fault can be proved on behalf of the contractor. An insurance against damage to marble, glass, china etc can be concluded. Liability is further excluded for damage as for example too great a load on the furniture, separation of adhesive bonds, cracking or dulling of polished surfaces, oxidation, inner ruin, leaks or discharge and also the effects of weather. d) 1. for damage to precious metals, jewels, precious stones, gold, stamps, coins, stocks and shares of any kind, documents and certificates;

2. for functional damage to electrical apparatus such as washing machines, radios, televisions, computers or other sensitive apparatus;

3. for damage to plants or animals;

4. for damage which arises due to explosive, inflammable, radioactive, spontaneously combustible, poisonous, or corrosive materials, due to oils, fats and also animals; e) for damage of the goods during loading and unloading, lowering and hauling up, if their size or weight does not correspond to the spatial conditions at the place of loading or unloading, the contractor has previously advised the customer of this fact, however the customer has insisted on the carrying out of the work.


Liability is excluded further:

a) for damage to the walls, windows, floors and balustrades, if the size and weight of the goods to be transported do not correspond to the spatial conditions; b) for delays, damage and loss which are caused by a non-timely provision of the transport means (railway, ship), or which arise from traffic incidents which are no fault of their own (e.g. breakdowns, road conditions) c) for the keeping of fixed appointments when official certificates have arrived late and also information on customs, export requirements and other legal regulations.

a) Liability is rendered invalid if externally recognisable faults are not communicated in writing to the contractor immediately after delivery, and externally non-recognisable faults on the sixth day after delivery at the very latest. b) If the contractor is to provide a replacement for the loss of the goods in accordance with the contract, then the common value is to be replaced, which goods of the same kind and nature had at the place of delivery at the time when the delivery was to be effected; deducted from this will be that which has been saved on custom duties and other costs, as well as on freight, as a consequence of the loss. c) In case of damage, the amount of damages paid depends on the difference between the sales value of the goods in a damaged condition and the common value which the goods would have had without the damage at the place and time of delivery; deducted from this being all customs duties and other costs which have been saved as a consequence of the damage. d) The liability of the contractor for damage as a result of late delivery amounts in any case to EUR 109,1 a day, is however limited to EUR 1.090 at the most. e) The contractor is not liable for damages arising as a result of the loss of or damage to the goods.

The contractor fulfils his obligations by ceding his claim against the railway, shipping company or airline for loss and damage which arise during the transport by rail, by ship or by aircraft.

a) the contractor is obliged to insure for the damage which could accrue to the customer through the contractor during the carrying out of the contract in accordance with the cited furniture remover insurance certificate (Möbel SVS) (enclosure A) and to invoice the premium. The insurance should be covered by those insurers who are commissioned by the Association of Haulage Contractors. b) The customer himself accepts all the conditions of the furniture remover insurance SVS as well as for all persons in whose interest or on whose account he is acting. c) 1. If the furniture remover insurance is covered by the conclusion of the furniture SVS, then the contractor is free from liability for all damage covered by this insurance. This applies in particular also for the case in which the insurance sum falls short of the actual value or amount of damage as a consequence of missing or inadequate declarations of value by the customer. 2) If the contractor has not covered the furniture mover insurance in accordance with the conditions of the cited furniture SVS or not with the insurers described under letter a), he may not rely on the forwarding regulations for the transport of furniture with respect to the customer.


The customer is liable:

a) for the validity, correctness and completeness of the documents which have been handed over; b) for loss and damage of the transport means, accessory parts and packing means, to the extent that these are to be answered for by him or by the assistants made available by him; c) for the furniture van including that of the contractor in the case of him loading or unloading the transported goods himself; d) for the results of faulty details as regards weight, contents and nature of the goods to be transported; the contractor is not obliged to check this. In the absence of express written instructions, the contractor takes over and declares the transport as removal goods in the sense of the furniture transport tariff at the customer's own risk; e) for damage which arises through the transport of the objects described under Section 3, letter d), paragraph 4; f) for all expenses which arise as a result of a transport delay or hold-up which is not the fault of the contractor, such as for example natural disasters, war, official measures, strike, hold-ups in shipping or on the railways etc.


3. Transport Insurance

a) The contractor is obliged to insure the goods to the extent that written instructions concerning this, including details of the insurance value and the dangers to be covered are present. b) The transport insurance only extends to accident to the transport means, danger of fire, theft, accidents due to act of God and breakage of furniture. c) A special insurance can be concluded against breakage of glass, china etc, just as against risk of war, looting and civil unrest. d) The contractor accepts and declares instructions by ceding his claim against the insurance company. If the customer insures himself, then any compensation for damage against the contractor from the dangers covered by this insurance is excluded, in other words does not transfer to the insurer.


4. Price calculation

a) The cost calculation is effected in accordance with the tariffs, freight charges and exchange rates valid at the time of the removal. b) If the tariffs, freight charges and exchange rates fall or increase between the time the offer is made (enclosures 1 and 2) and the actual removal, then the agreed transport costs are altered correspondingly. To be paid extra are:

a) transports including pianos, safes and other heavy goods; b) increased costs or increased work in the interest of the removal even without special instructions. The contractor is free to choose the way in which this is carried out; c) installation, decoration, carpentry and cleaning work; d) additional costs due to weather conditions or, should the furniture van not be able to be driven up to the house due to closed or dug-up roads, the same for waiting time for the furniture van and the staff, which the contractor has not caused, further reasonable surcharges for carrying the goods a long or unusual way, to the extent that this has not been taken into account expressly when the price was agreed, and also additional costs which arise due to detours, if the direct route is closed off or can not be used; official charges and customs dues, just any possible public taxes.


5. Obligations of the customer

a) The obtaining of all documents and authorizations required for the carrying out of the transport is a matter for the customer. b) If the unloading of the furniture van can not take place immediately on arrival at its destination, the contractor is able to demand recompense for all costs and damage arising from the delayed delivery and can unload and store the goods at the customer's expense. c) When picking up the goods the customer is obliged to check that no object or no device has been removed or left behind by error. In the case of transports which have been agreed to or from a station or airport, the customer is to receive or hand over not only the loaded, but also the empty container truck, container or lift van including the associated inventory. In this event, it is up to him to preserve the rights of the carrier, while otherwise being liable, in particular by instigating a joint certificate of damage.

a) The amount of the invoice is to be paid: 1. In the case of transports in this country before unloading; 2. In the case of transports out of the country before loading. The contractor is entitled to demand an advance payment. b) An offset or withholding against claims of the contractor is only admissible in the case of due counter claims on behalf of the customer, the amount of which is fixed and the reasons for which are uncontested.


If storage is necessary in connection with a removal, then the storage regulations published by the Haulage Association apply to this. If the transport of the stored goods is not undertaken by the contractor, then the same is entitled to take a decision based on the furniture transport tariff of the Haulage Association. It is up to the customer to request the collection of packaging material he has been given.


6. Verbal agreement

The customer bears the risk of the carrying out of contracts which are issued verbally without being confirmed in writing by either side.


7. Time limitation of liability

All claims against the contractor irrespective of the legal basis are limited to a period of six months. The time limitation of liability begins with the knowledge of the claim by the beneficiary, however with the delivery of the goods at the latest.


8. Court of venue

The court of venue for all parties is determined by the place of business of the branch of the contractor with whom the business was concluded. However if the contractor is a consumer in the sense of the Consumer Protection Act, BGBI (Civil Legal Code) No. 140/1979 in the respectively valid version and should the customer have his place of residence or his customary residence in this country or if he is employed in this country, then so far as he is concerned, for a law suit/ a counter suit only the competence of a court can be justified in accordance with sections 88, 89, 93, paragraph 2 and paragraph 1 of the Jurisdiction Norm (JN) in the district of which the place or residence, the customary residence or the place of employment is situated.

9. Other agreements

Other agreements must be in writing to be valid.


10. Validity

Should some points not have been regulated by these General Conditions, then the regulations of the haulage department of the Chamber of Commerce are valid in the respectively current version.