GTC

General Terms and Conditions

Table of contents

  1. Scope of application
  2. Conclusion of contract
  3. Right of withdrawal
  4. Prices and terms of payment
  5. Delivery and shipping conditions
  6. Retention of title
  7. Liability for defects (warranty)
  8. Liability
  9. Redemption of promotional vouchers
  10. Applicable law
  11. Place of jurisdiction
  12. Alternative dispute resolution

1) Scope of application

1.1 These General Terms and Conditions (hereinafter referred to as “GTC”) of the company Plant Light Science GmbH & Co. KG (hereinafter referred to as “Seller”) shall apply to all contracts concluded between a consumer or a trader (hereinafter referred to as “Client”) and the Seller relating to all goods and/or services presented in the Seller’s online store. The inclusion of the customer’s own terms and conditions is hereby rejected, unless otherwise agreed.

1.2 A consumer within the meaning of these GTC is any natural person who concludes a legal transaction for purposes that cannot be attributed primarily to their commercial or independent professional activity. An entrepreneur within the meaning of these GTC is a natural or legal person or a partnership with legal capacity who, when concluding a legal transaction, is acting in the exercise of their commercial or independent professional activity.

2) Conclusion of contract

2. 1 The product descriptions contained in the seller’s online store do not constitute binding offers on the part of the seller, but serve to submit a binding offer by the customer.

2.2 The customer can submit the offer via the online order form integrated into the seller’s online store. After placing the selected goods in the virtual shopping cart and going through the electronic ordering process, the customer submits a legally binding contractual offer with regard to the goods contained in the shopping cart by clicking the button that concludes the ordering process. Furthermore, the customer can also submit the offer to the seller by e-mail.

2.3 The seller may accept the customer’s offer within five days,

  • by sending the customer a written order confirmation or an order confirmation in text form (fax or e-mail), whereby the receipt of the order confirmation by the customer is decisive in this respect, or
  • by delivering the ordered goods to the customer, whereby the receipt of the goods by the customer is decisive in this respect, or
  • by requesting payment from the customer after the order has been placed.

If several of the aforementioned alternatives exist, the contract is concluded at the point in time at which one of the aforementioned alternatives occurs first. The period for accepting the offer begins on the day after the offer is sent by the customer and ends at the end of the fifth day following the sending of the offer. If the seller does not accept the customer’s offer within the aforementioned period, this shall be deemed a rejection of the offer with the consequence that the customer is no longer bound by his declaration of intent.

2.4 When submitting an offer via the seller’s online order form, the text of the contract is saved by the seller and sent to the customer in text form (e.g. e-mail, fax or letter) after the order has been sent, together with these GTC. In addition, the contract text is archived on the seller’s website and can be accessed free of charge by the customer via his password-protected customer account by entering the corresponding login data, provided that the customer has created a customer account in the seller’s online store before sending his order.

2.5 Before submitting a binding order via the seller’s online order form, the customer can recognize possible input errors by carefully reading the information displayed on the screen. An effective technical tool for better recognition of input errors can be the browser’s magnification function, which enlarges the display on the screen. The customer can correct his entries during the electronic ordering process using the usual keyboard and mouse functions until he clicks on the button that concludes the ordering process.

2. 6 The German and English languages are available for the conclusion of the contract.

2. 7 Order processing and contact are generally carried out by e-mail and automated order processing. The customer must ensure that the e-mail address provided by him for order processing is correct so that the e-mails sent by the seller can be received at this address. In particular, when using SPAM filters, the customer must ensure that all e-mails sent by the seller or by third parties commissioned by the seller to process the order can be delivered.

3) Right of withdrawal

3.1 Consumers are generally entitled to a right of withdrawal.

3.2 Further information on the right of withdrawal can be found in the seller’s withdrawal policy.

3.3 The right of withdrawal does not apply to consumers who do not belong to a member state of the European Union at the time the contract is concluded and whose sole place of residence and delivery address are outside the European Union at the time the contract is concluded.

4) Prices and terms of payment

4.1 Unless otherwise stated in the seller’s product description, the prices quoted are total prices that include statutory VAT. Any additional delivery and shipping costs will be indicated separately in the respective product description.

4.2 For deliveries to countries outside the European Union, further costs may be incurred in individual cases for which the seller is not responsible and which are to be borne by the customer. These include, for example, costs for the transfer of money by credit institutions (e.g. transfer fees, exchange rate fees) or import duties or taxes (e.g. customs duties). Such costs may also be incurred in relation to the transfer of funds if the delivery is not made to a country outside the European Union, but the customer makes the payment from a country outside the European Union.

4. 3 The payment option(s) will be communicated to the customer in the seller’s online store.

4.4 If advance payment by bank transfer has been agreed, payment shall be due immediately after conclusion of the contract, unless the parties have agreed a later due date.

4.5 If payment is made using a payment method offered by PayPal, payment is processed via the payment service provider PayPal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449 Luxembourg (hereinafter referred to as “PayPal”), subject to the PayPal Terms of Use, available at https://www.paypal.com/de/webapps/mpp/ua/useragreement-full or – if the customer does not have a PayPal account – subject to the terms and conditions for payments without a PayPal account, available at https://www.paypal.com/de/webapps/mpp/ua/privacywax-full.

4.6 If the payment method purchase on account is selected, the purchase price is due after the goods have been delivered and invoiced. In this case, the purchase price must be paid within 30 (thirty) days of receipt of the invoice without deduction, unless otherwise agreed. The seller reserves the right to offer the payment method purchase on account only up to a certain order volume and to reject this payment method if the specified order volume is exceeded. In this case, the seller will inform the customer of a corresponding payment restriction in his payment information in the online store. The seller also reserves the right to carry out a credit check when selecting the payment method purchase on account and to reject this payment method if the credit check is negative.

4.7 If the payment method “PayPal invoice” is selected, the seller assigns his payment claim to PayPal. Before accepting the seller’s declaration of assignment, PayPal carries out a credit check using the transmitted customer data. The seller reserves the right to refuse the customer the payment method “PayPal invoice” in the event of a negative test result. If the payment method “PayPal invoice” is permitted by PayPal, the customer must pay the invoice amount to PayPal within 30 days of receipt of the goods, unless PayPal specifies a different payment term. In this case, he can only make payment to PayPal with debt-discharging effect. However, the seller remains responsible for general customer inquiries, e.g. regarding goods, delivery time, dispatch, returns, complaints, revocation declarations and deliveries or credit notes, even in the event of assignment of claims. In addition, the General Terms of Use for the use of PayPal’s purchase on account apply, which can be viewed at https://www.paypal.com/de/webapps/mpp/ua/pui-terms.

4.8 If the SEPA direct debit payment method is selected, the invoice amount is due for payment after a SEPA direct debit mandate has been issued, but not before the deadline for advance information has expired. The direct debit is collected when the ordered goods leave the seller’s warehouse, but not before the deadline for advance notification has expired. Pre-notification is any communication (e.g. invoice, policy, contract) from the seller to the customer that announces a debit by SEPA direct debit. If the direct debit is not honored due to insufficient funds in the account or due to the provision of incorrect bank details, or if the customer objects to the direct debit although he is not entitled to do so, the customer shall bear the fees incurred by the respective credit institution as a result of the chargeback if he is responsible for this.

4.9 If the SEPA direct debit payment method is selected, the invoice amount is due for payment after a SEPA direct debit mandate has been issued, but not before the deadline for advance information has expired. The direct debit is collected when the ordered goods leave the seller’s warehouse, but not before the deadline for advance notification has expired. Pre-notification is any communication (e.g. invoice, policy, contract) from the seller to the customer that announces a debit by SEPA direct debit. If the direct debit is not honored due to insufficient funds in the account or due to the provision of incorrect bank details, or if the customer objects to the direct debit although he is not entitled to do so, the customer shall bear the fees incurred by the respective credit institution as a result of the chargeback if he is responsible for this. The seller reserves the right to carry out a credit check when selecting the SEPA direct debit payment method and to reject this payment method if the credit check is negative.

5) Delivery and shipping conditions

5.1 Unless otherwise agreed, goods shall be delivered by dispatch to the delivery address specified by the customer.

5. 2 Goods delivered by a forwarding agent shall be delivered “free kerbside”, i.e. to the public kerbside closest to the delivery address, unless otherwise stated in the shipping information in the seller’s online store and unless otherwise agreed.

5.3 If the transport company returns the shipped goods to the seller because delivery to the customer was not possible, the customer shall bear the costs for the unsuccessful shipment. This does not apply if the customer effectively exercises his right of withdrawal, if he is not responsible for the circumstance that led to the impossibility of delivery or if he was temporarily prevented from accepting the service offered, unless the seller had notified him of the service a reasonable time in advance.

5.4 If the customer acts as an entrepreneur, the risk of accidental loss and accidental deterioration of the goods sold shall pass to the customer as soon as the seller has delivered the goods to the forwarding agent, carrier or other person or institution designated to carry out the shipment. If the customer is acting as a consumer, the risk of accidental loss and accidental deterioration of the goods sold shall not pass until the goods are handed over to the customer or a person authorized to receive them. Notwithstanding the above, the risk of accidental loss and accidental deterioration of the goods sold shall pass to the customer, even in the case of consumers, as soon as the seller has delivered the goods to the forwarding agent, the carrier or the person or institution otherwise designated to carry out the shipment, if the customer has commissioned the forwarding agent, the carrier or the person or institution otherwise designated to carry out the shipment and the seller has not previously named this person or institution to the customer.

5.5 The Seller reserves the right to withdraw from the contract in the event of incorrect or improper self-delivery. This shall only apply in the event that the seller is not responsible for the non-delivery and the seller has concluded a specific covering transaction with the supplier with due care. The seller shall make every reasonable effort to procure the goods. In the event of non-availability or only partial availability of the goods, the customer will be informed immediately and the consideration will be refunded without delay.

5.6 In the case of self-collection, the seller shall first inform the customer by e-mail that the goods ordered by him are ready for collection. After receiving this e-mail, the customer can collect the goods from the seller’s registered office by arrangement with the seller. In this case, no shipping costs will be charged.

6) Retention of title

6.1 In relation to consumers, the seller reserves the right of ownership of the delivered goods until the purchase price owed has been paid in full.

6.2 The Seller shall retain title to the goods delivered to entrepreneurs until all claims arising from an ongoing business relationship have been settled in full.

6.3 If the customer acts as an entrepreneur, he shall be entitled to resell the goods subject to retention of title in the ordinary course of business. The customer assigns to the seller in advance all claims against third parties arising from this in the amount of the respective invoice value (including VAT). This assignment shall apply irrespective of whether the reserved goods have been resold without or after processing. The customer remains authorized to collect the claims even after the assignment. The seller’s right to collect the claims himself remains unaffected. However, the seller will not collect the claims as long as the customer meets his payment obligations to the seller, is not in default of payment and no application for the opening of insolvency proceedings has been filed.

7) Liability for defects (warranty)

If the purchased item is defective, the provisions of statutory liability for defects shall apply. Deviating from this applies:

7.1 If the customer acts as an entrepreneur,

  • the seller has the choice of the type of subsequent performance;
  • the limitation period for defects in new goods is one year from the transfer of risk;
  • rights and claims for defects are generally excluded for used goods;
  • the limitation period shall not recommence if a replacement delivery is made as part of the liability for defects.

7.2 If the customer acts as a consumer, the limitation period for claims for defects for used goods is one year from delivery of the goods to the customer, with the restriction of the following clause.

7. 3 The limitations of liability and shortening of the limitation period regulated in the above clauses do not apply

  • for items that have been used for a building in accordance with their normal use and have caused its defectiveness,
  • for claims for damages and reimbursement of expenses by the customer, and
  • in the event that the seller has fraudulently concealed the defect.

7.4 In addition, for entrepreneurs, the statutory limitation periods for the right of recourse according to § 478 BGB remain unaffected.

7.5 If the customer acts as a merchant within the meaning of § 1 HGB (German Commercial Code), he shall be subject to the commercial obligation to inspect and give notice of defects pursuant to § 377 HGB. If the customer fails to comply with the notification obligations regulated therein, the goods shall be deemed to have been approved.

7.6 If the customer is acting as a consumer, he is requested to complain to the deliverer about delivered goods with obvious transport damage and to inform the seller of this. If the customer does not comply with this, this has no effect on his statutory or contractual claims for defects.

8) Liability

The Seller shall be liable to the Customer for all contractual, quasi-contractual and statutory claims, including claims in tort, for damages and reimbursement of expenses as follows:

8.1 The Seller shall be liable without limitation for any legal reason

  • in the event of intent or gross negligence,
  • in the event of intentional or negligent injury to life, limb or health,
  • on the basis of a guarantee promise, unless otherwise agreed,
  • due to mandatory liability such as under the Product Liability Act.

8.2 If the Seller negligently breaches a material contractual obligation, liability shall be limited to the foreseeable damage typical for the contract, unless liability is unlimited in accordance with the above clause. Material contractual obligations are obligations which the contract imposes on the seller according to its content in order to achieve the purpose of the contract, the fulfillment of which is essential for the proper execution of the contract and on the observance of which the customer may regularly rely.

8.3 Any further liability of the seller is excluded.

8.4 The above liability provisions shall also apply with regard to the Seller’s liability for its vicarious agents and legal representatives.

9) Redemption of promotional vouchers

9. 1 Vouchers that are issued free of charge by the seller as part of promotions with a specific period of validity and that cannot be purchased by the customer (hereinafter “promotional vouchers”) can only be redeemed in the seller’s online store and only during the specified period.

9.2 Individual products may be excluded from the voucher promotion if a corresponding restriction results from the content of the promotional voucher.

9.3 Promotional vouchers can only be redeemed before completing the order process. Subsequent offsetting is not possible.

9.4 Only one promotional voucher can be redeemed per order.

9.5 The value of the goods must be at least equal to the amount of the promotional voucher. Any remaining credit will not be refunded by the seller.

9.6 If the value of the promotional voucher is not sufficient to cover the order, one of the other payment methods offered by the seller can be selected to settle the difference.

9.7 The balance of a promotional voucher is neither paid out in cash nor does it bear interest.

9.8 The promotional voucher will not be refunded if the customer returns the goods paid for in full or in part with the promotional voucher within the scope of their statutory right of withdrawal.

9.9 The promotional voucher is only intended for use by the person named on it. The promotional voucher may not be transferred to third parties. The seller is entitled, but not obliged, to check the material eligibility of the respective voucher holder.

10) Applicable law

10.1 The law of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply to all legal relationships between the parties, excluding the laws on the international purchase of movable goods. In the case of consumers, this choice of law only applies insofar as the protection granted is not withdrawn by mandatory provisions of the law of the country in which the consumer has his habitual residence.

10.2 Furthermore, this choice of law with regard to the statutory right of withdrawal does not apply to consumers who do not belong to a member state of the European Union at the time of conclusion of the contract and whose sole place of residence and delivery address are outside the European Union at the time of conclusion of the contract.

11) Place of jurisdiction

If the customer acts as a merchant, a legal entity under public law or a special fund under public law with its registered office in the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, the exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from this contract shall be the registered office of the seller. If the customer is domiciled outside the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, the seller’s place of business shall be the exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from this contract if the contract or claims arising from the contract can be attributed to the customer’s professional or commercial activity. In the above cases, however, the seller is in any case entitled to appeal to the court at the customer’s place of business.

12) Alternative dispute resolution pursuant to Art. 14 para. 1 ODR-VO and § 36 VSBG

12.1 The EU Commission provides a platform for online dispute resolution on the Internet at the following link: https://ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr

This platform serves as a contact point for the out-of-court settlement of disputes arising from online purchase or service contracts in which a consumer is involved.

12.2 The Seller is neither obliged nor willing to participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board.