A company abroad that regularly buys goods or services from suppliers in Germany is on the receiving end of German terms of sale, with retention of title, short inspection periods and limited warranties. Its own purchasing terms, drafted under German law, put the balance back. They define the inspection and notification duties under § 377 HGB in a way the buyer can actually meet, extend the warranty, regulate quality assurance, tooling and spare parts, and settle the battle of forms in the buyer’s favour as far as German law allows. We draft purchasing terms for a fixed fee of 1,500 EUR.
What the fixed fee of 1,500 EUR covers
The purchasing terms with the clauses on orders and confirmations, prices and payment, delivery dates and penalties for delay within the limits of German law, incoming goods inspection and notification of defects, warranty and liability, product liability and insurance, quality, tooling and documentation, intellectual property and confidentiality, compliance and supply chain due diligence under the German Supply Chain Act, and applicable law and jurisdiction. The texts are delivered in English and German, ready to publish. We check the integration into your purchase orders and framework agreements and the rejection of the supplier’s terms, because terms that are not validly included are not part of the contract under § 305 Abs. 2 BGB. One round of revisions after your comments is included, and as attorneys we are liable for the result.
What you should know
German suppliers will refer to their own terms in every order confirmation, and under German law contradicting terms cancel each other out, leaving the statutory rules. A defence clause and a disciplined ordering process decide which terms prevail. German commercial law also requires the buyer to inspect goods immediately and to notify defects without delay, otherwise the goods are deemed accepted, which is the single most expensive trap for foreign buyers.
Not included
Individual supply agreements and the negotiation with a particular supplier, which we handle by time at rates agreed in advance. The privacy policy and legal notice for your website are covered by the website privacy compliance package, reduced to 150 EUR when ordered together.
Prices are net attorney fees. For business clients outside Germany no German VAT is added.
How to instruct us
Send us the details through the form below. You will receive our confirmation and, where required, our questions in English within one working day. We correspond in English throughout the mandate.
The German-language description of this offer, written for clients in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, is available at Einkaufsbedingungen. Please note that this link takes you to our German website matutis.de. You do not have to use it, everything you need to instruct us for the purchasing terms is on this page, and you are welcome to write to us in English at any time.