Warranty on sale

The legislator has introduced a special statutory regime of liability for improper performance of the seller’s obligation to deliver a contractually compliant item to the buyer. The seller’s liability under warranty has been tightened in comparison with the rules of contractual liability (i.e. for non-performance or improper performance of an obligation) on general principles.

Modification of the statutory regulation

The parties may modify the code rules of the seller’s liability under warranty. Article 558 of the Civil Code allows for the extension, limitation or exclusion of this liability in the contract. However, the exclusion and limitation of the scope of warranty liability towards the consumer is only permissible if it is empowered by a specific provision. By contrast, the legislator does not condition the extension of warranty liability with respect to consumers on the validity of a specific provision. Extension of liability is therefore possible in any case.
As regards any sales contract, regardless of whether it was concluded with a consumer, the exclusion or limitation of liability under the warranty is ineffective if the seller has fraudulently concealed the defect from the buyer.

Entitlements of the buyer

The purchaser is entitled to the following rights:

• replacing an item with a defect-free item
• elimination of the defect

The right to demand the replacement of an item with a defect-free item or the removal of a defect may be exercised in any case where the item has a defect. The seller is obliged to replace the item with a defect-free item or remove the defect within a reasonable time without undue inconvenience for the buyer.
The seller may refuse to fulfil these claims if:
– it is not possible to bring the defective item into conformity with the contract in the manner chosen by the buyer, or
– would require excessive costs compared to the other possible means of bringing the contract into conformity,
– and if the buyer is a trader, the seller may also refuse to replace the item with a defect-free item or to remedy the defect if the cost of remedying this obligation exceeds the price of the item sold.
When exercising these rights, the buyer may additionally demand that the item be dismantled and reinstalled after it has been replaced or the defect has been remedied. If the seller fails to fulfil this obligation, the buyer is entitled to carry out these measures at the seller’s expense and risk. The seller may refuse disassembly and reassembly if the cost of these steps exceeds the price of the thing sold.

• price reduction
• withdrawal from the contract

The buyer may make a declaration to reduce the price or withdraw from the contract if the thing has a defect. The seller may contest the effectiveness of the declaration if it promptly replaces the defective thing with a defect-free one or removes the defect without excessive inconvenience for the buyer, unless the thing has already been replaced or repaired by the seller or the seller has failed to comply with the obligation to replace the thing with a defect-free one or remove the defect. The legislator thus gives priority in principle to the exercise of the buyer’s right to demand that the thing be replaced or the defect removed.
Withdrawal from the contract is further limited by an additional condition. The buyer cannot withdraw from the contract if the defect is immaterial.
The reduced price should be in such proportion to the contract price as the value of the thing with the defect bears to the value of the thing without the defect.

Obligations of the buyer

• delivery of the good to the place indicated or to the place where it was handed over to the buyer

A buyer who exercises warranty rights is obliged, at the seller’s expense, to deliver the defective thing to the place specified in the contract of sale, and if such a place is not specified in the contract – to the place where the thing was handed over to the buyer.
If, due to the nature of the item or the way in which it is installed, it would be excessively difficult for the buyer to deliver the item, the buyer shall make the item available to the seller at the place where the item is located.
The provisions of § 1 and 2 shall apply to the return of the item in the event of withdrawal from the contract and to the replacement of the item with a defect-free item.

• if the buyer is a trader, he also has a duty to examine the goods and to notify the seller of the defect as soon as it is discovered

In sales between traders, the buyer loses his warranty rights if he failed to examine the goods in the time and manner usual for goods of that type and failed to notify the seller immediately of the defect. If a defect only becomes apparent at a later date, the trader is obliged to notify the seller immediately upon discovering the defect or else lose their warranty rights. Sending notice of the defect before the expiry of this period is sufficient to meet the above deadline.

Presumption of legitimacy of the buyer’s claim

It is incumbent on the seller to respond to the buyer’s request without delay.
If a buyer who is a consumer has requested the replacement of an item or the rectification of a defect or has made a declaration concerning a reduction in price, specifying the amount by which the price is to be reduced, and the seller has not responded to this request within fourteen days, the seller shall be deemed to have acknowledged the request.

Deadlines for the exercise of warranty rights

The liability under the sales warranty is limited in time. The seller shall be liable under the warranty if a physical defect is discovered before the expiry of two years, and in the case of defects in real estate, before the expiry of five years from the date on which the goods were handed over to the buyer.
If a defect becomes apparent within the above periods, a claim for the rectification of the defect or for the replacement of the sold thing with a defect-free item shall become time-barred one year from the date on which the defect became apparent. If the purchaser is a consumer, the limitation period may not end before the expiry of two years from the delivery of the goods or five years from the delivery of the property.
Within the limitation periods, the buyer may submit a declaration to withdraw from the contract or reduce the price due to a defect in the thing sold. If the buyer has requested that the item be replaced with a defect-free item or that the defect be removed, the period for submitting a declaration of withdrawal or price reduction shall commence upon the ineffective expiry of the period for replacing the item or removing the defect.
The expiry of the period for ascertaining the defect does not exclude the exercise of warranty rights if the seller has fraudulently concealed the defect.
Legal status as at 11.12.2024