General Terms and Conditions of Engineering Offices in Austria – B2B (Between Businesses)

1.) Applicability of General Terms & Conditions and Deviations

a) The following General Terms and Conditions apply to all current and future contracts

between the client as an entrepreneur and the engineering office.

b) Deviations from these terms, especially from the client's terms, are only valid

if expressly acknowledged and confirmed in writing by the engineering office.

2.) Offers, Side Agreements

a) The offers of the engineering office are, unless stated otherwise, non-binding, including

all data provided, including fees.

b) If an order confirmation from the engineering office includes changes to the order, these are considered

approved by the client unless the client immediately objects in writing.

c) Agreements must generally be in writing.

3.) Order Placement

a) The nature and scope of the agreed services are determined by the contract, power of attorney,

and these General Terms and Conditions.

b) Changes and additions to the order require written confirmation from the engineering office

to become part of the current contractual relationship.

c) The engineering office commits to the proper execution of the order according to recognized technical standards

and principles of economy.

d) The engineering office may involve other qualified parties in fulfilling the contract and

issue orders on behalf of the client. The engineering office is obligated to

inform the client in writing of this intention and grant the client the opportunity

to object to the engagement of a third party within 10 days.

e) The engineering office may also involve other qualified parties

as subcontractors and issue orders to them on behalf of the engineering office.

The engineering office is obligated to inform the client in writing if it intends to engage

a subcontractor and grant the client the opportunity to object to the engagement within one week;

engagement within one week; in this case, the engineering office must carry out

must carry out the work itself.

4.) Warranty and Compensation

a) Warranty claims can only be raised after formal notice of defects, which

must be sent by registered letter within 14 days of the delivery of the service or partial service.

b) Claims for rescission or price reduction are excluded. Claims for improvements

or supplementation of missing items must be fulfilled by the engineering

office within a reasonable period, which should generally not exceed one-third

of the agreed execution period. No claims for delay damages can be made during this period.

The engineering office must provide its services with the care expected from

a professional (§ 1299 ABGB).

d) If the engineering office causes damage to the client through breach of contract,

its liability for the resulting damage –

unless otherwise agreed – is limited to:

1) No limitation for withdrawal and personal injury.

2) In all other cases:

– For orders up to 250,000.00 EUR: maximum 12,500.00 EUR;

– For orders over 250,000.00 EUR: 5% of the order amount,

but no more than 750,000.00 EUR.

3) Liability for consequential damage and lost profits is excluded, even in cases of gross

negligence, unless otherwise agreed in a specific case.

5.) Withdrawal from The Contract

a) Withdrawal from the contract is only permitted for a good reason.

b) In case of delay by the engineering office, the client may only withdraw after

setting a reasonable grace period; the grace period must be set by registered letter.

c) If the client delays a partial service or agreed cooperation, making it

impossible or significantly hindering the execution of the order, the engineering

office is entitled to withdraw from the contract.

d) If the engineering office is entitled to withdraw from the contract, it retains

the right to the entire agreed fee, also in the event of an unjustified withdrawal by the client.

Additionally, § 1168 ABGB applies. If the client has a legitimate reason

for withdrawal, they must compensate the engineering office for the services rendered.

6.) Fees, Scope of Services

a) All fees are quoted in EUR unless otherwise specified.

b) The indicated fee amounts exclude VAT (Value Added Tax),

which must be paid separately by the client.

c) Offsetting with any counterclaims is not permitted for any reason.

d) Unless otherwise agreed, the non-binding calculation recommendations

issued by the Association of Engineering Offices are part of the contract.

e) Unless expressly agreed otherwise, payment must be made without

deductions within 30 days from the invoice date to the bank account

of the engineering office with a domestic branch. In the case of delayed payment, interest of 9.2%

per annum above the ECB base rate plus reminder fees must be paid.

7.) Place of Performance

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

8.) Confidentiality

a) The engineering office is obliged to keep all information provided by the client confidential.

b) The engineering office is also obliged to keep its planning activities

confidential as long as the client has a legitimate interest in this confidentiality.

After completion of the project, the engineering office is entitled to publish the contractual

work, in whole or in part, for advertising purposes unless otherwise agreed contractually.

9.) Protection of Plans

a) The engineering office retains all rights and uses of the documents

it creates (including plans, brochures, technical documents).

b) Any use (especially editing, execution, duplication, distribution, public

presentation, availability) of the documents or parts thereof is only permitted

with the express consent of the engineering office. All documents must exclusively be

used for the purposes explicitly defined when placing the order or through a subsequent agreement.

c) The engineering office is entitled to require the client to mention the name

(company name, business name) of the engineering office in publications

and announcements about the project.

d) In case of violations of these provisions regarding the protection of documents,

the engineering office is entitled to a penalty equal to twice the reasonable

fee for the unauthorized use, with the right to claim further damages

remaining reserved. This penalty is not subject to judicial reduction. The burden

of proof that the client did not use the engineering office’s documents lies with the client.

10.) Choice of Law, Jurisdiction

a) For contracts between the client and the engineering office,

Austrian law exclusively applies.

b) For all disputes arising from this contract, the jurisdiction of the court

responsible for the location of the engineering office is agreed upon.

Date: November 16, 2021

Owner, Publisher, and Editor: Association of Engineering Offices, Schaumburgergasse 20/1, 1040 Vienna

Responsible for Content: TR DI Dr. Rainer Gagstädter, Schaumburgergasse 20/1, 1040 Vienna