General Terms and Conditions of Engineering Offices in Austria -
B2B (between businesses)

1.) Applicability of the General Terms and Conditions and deviations

The following general terms and conditions apply to all current and future contracts between the client in his capacity as an entrepreneur and the engineering firm.

Deviations from these terms and conditions, and in particular from the client's terms and conditions, are only valid if they are expressly acknowledged and confirmed in writing by the engineering firm.

2.) Offers, side agreements

Unless otherwise stated, the offers of the engineering firm are non-binding with regard to all specified data, including the fee.

If an order confirmation from the engineering firm contains changes compared to the order, these are considered approved by the client unless the client objects immediately in writing.

Agreements generally require written form.

3.) Order placement

The type and scope of the agreed service are defined in the contract, power of attorney and these General Terms and Conditions.

Changes and additions to the order require written confirmation from the engineering firm in order to become part of this contractual relationship.

The engineering firm undertakes to properly execute the order given to it in accordance with generally accepted rules of technology and principles of economic efficiency.

The engineering firm may engage other appropriately authorized parties to fulfill the contract and issue orders to them in the name and on behalf of the client. However, the engineering firm is obligated to inform the client of this intention in writing and to give the client the opportunity to object to this commissioning of a third party within 10 days.

The engineering firm may also engage other appropriately authorized parties as sub-planners to fulfill the contract and issue orders to them in the name and on behalf of the engineering firm. However, the engineering firm is obligated to inform the client in writing if it intends to have orders carried out by a sub-planner and to give the client the opportunity to object to this assignment of orders to the sub-planner within one week; in this case, the engineering firm must carry out the order itself.

4.) Warranty and compensation

Warranty claims can only be made after notification of defects, which must be made exclusively by registered letter within 14 days of delivery of the service or partial service.

Claims for rescission of the contract and price reduction are excluded. Claims for rectification or completion of missing items must be fulfilled by the engineering firm within a reasonable period, which should generally be one-third of the period agreed upon for the performance of the service. Claims for damages due to delay cannot be asserted within this period.

The engineering firm must perform its services with the care expected of it as a professional (§1299 ABGB).

If the engineering firm has culpably caused damage to the client in breach of its contractual obligations, its liability for compensation for the resulting damage – unless otherwise stipulated in individual cases – is limited as follows in cases of slight negligence:

a.) in the event of withdrawal and in the event of personal injury without limitation,

b.) in all other cases with the following limitations:

- for order amounts up to €250,000.00: maximum €12,500.00;

- for an order value exceeding 250,000.00 euros: 5% of the order value, but not exceeding 750,000.00 euros.

c.) Liability for consequential damages and lost profits is excluded even in cases of gross negligence, unless otherwise stipulated in individual cases.

5.) Withdrawal from the contract

Withdrawal from the contract is only permitted for good cause.

If the engineering firm is in default with a service, the client may only withdraw from the contract after setting a reasonable grace period; the grace period must be set by registered letter.

If the client is in default with regard to a partial service or an agreed cooperation activity, which makes the execution of the order by the engineering office impossible or significantly hinders it, the engineering office is entitled to withdraw from the contract.

If the engineering firm is entitled to withdraw from the contract, it retains the right to the entire agreed fee, as is also the case if the client withdraws without justification. Furthermore, Section 1168 of the Austrian Civil Code (ABGB) applies; in the case of a justified withdrawal by the client, the client must compensate the engineering firm for the services already rendered.

6.) Fee, scope of services

Unless otherwise stated, all fees are quoted in EURO.

The stated fees do not include sales tax (value-added tax), which must be paid separately by the client.

Offsetting against any counterclaims, for whatever reason, is inadmissible.

Unless otherwise agreed, the non-binding calculation recommendations published by the professional association of engineering offices form part of the contract.

Unless expressly agreed otherwise, payment is due without deductions within 30 days of the invoice date to the account of a bank with a domestic branch specified by the engineering firm. In the event of late payment, interest at a rate of 9.2% per annum above the ECB base rate, plus reminder fees, is payable.

7.) Place of performance

The place of performance for all office services is the registered office of the engineering firm.

8.) Secrecy

The engineering firm is obligated to maintain the confidentiality of all information provided by the client.

The engineering firm is also obligated to maintain the confidentiality of its planning activities if and as long as the client has a legitimate interest in such confidentiality. After completion of the project, the engineering firm is entitled to publish the work that is the subject of the contract, in whole or in part, for advertising purposes, unless otherwise agreed in the contract.

9.) Protection of the plans

The engineering firm reserves all rights and uses to the documents it has created (in particular plans, brochures, technical documents).

Any use (in particular editing, execution, reproduction, distribution, public performance, making available) of the documents or parts thereof is only permitted with the express consent of the engineering firm. All documents may therefore only be used for the purposes expressly stipulated in the order or in a subsequent agreement.

The engineering firm is entitled, and the client is obligated, to state the name (company, business name) of the engineering firm in publications and announcements about the project.

In the event of a breach of these provisions for the protection of documents, the engineering firm is entitled to a penalty equal to twice the reasonable fee for the unauthorized use, without prejudice to any further claims for damages. This penalty is not subject to judicial mitigation. The burden of proof that the client did not use the engineering firm's documents rests with the client.

10.) Choice of law, place of jurisdiction

Contracts between clients and engineering firms are governed exclusively by Austrian law.

For all disputes arising from this contract, the jurisdiction of the competent court at the location of the engineering firm is agreed.

As of November 16, 2021

Consumer information (B2C)

These terms and conditions apply to consumers within the meaning of Section 1 of the Austrian Consumer Protection Act (KSchG).

Mandatory statutory provisions — in particular those of the Consumer Protection Act (KSchG) and the Distance and Off-Premises Contracts Act (FAGG) — remain unaffected and shall prevail over these Terms and Conditions in the event of any conflict.

For consumers, the following specific provisions apply in particular:

Statutory information obligations for distance and off-premises contracts are fully complied with.
Statutory rights of withdrawal remain fully guaranteed.
Warranty claims are governed exclusively by the applicable statutory provisions; no shortened limitation periods or restrictions of statutory remedies apply.
Limitations of liability apply only to the extent permitted by law.
Set-off is permitted within the framework of statutory provisions.
All prices are stated inclusive of the applicable statutory value-added tax (VAT).

General Terms and Conditions of Engineering Offices in Austria - B2B (between businesses)