General Terms and Conditions

General Terms and Conditions (GTC) for expert services and appraisals Real estate appraisers.We are a company with less than 10 employees. For us, the protection of your privacy is of utmost importance.

‍

1. Subject matter of the contract

The legal relationship between the independent expert and his client shall be governed by the following contractual conditions.
Deviating terms and conditions of business of the Client shall only become part of the contract if they are expressly accepted by the Expert in writing.
The subject of the contract is the reporting task set out in the order placement order confirmation.
The reason for commissioning the expert shall be exclusively the intended use stated in the order. The client is obliged to provide the expert with precise information on the purpose of use and, in the event of a change, to inform the expert of this in writing without delay.

‍

2. Orders

The acceptance of the order as well as verbal agreements, agreements by telephone, assurances or subsidiary agreements require the written confirmation of the expert in order to be effective. As a rule, this will be done by e-mail.
The object of the assignment is any kind of expert activity.
The subject of the expert opinion and the intended use shall be confirmed in writing by the expert when the order is placed.

‍

3. Execution of the order

The assignment is carried out impartially and to the best of our knowledge and belief in accordance with the principles applicable to experts.
Insofar as the Expert provides services, the Parties agree that the Expert does not owe any specific success, but only services, and that it is solely within the Client's decision-making and risk area to make necessary decisions based on the services provided.
If the involvement of experts from other disciplines is necessary for the proper completion of the assignment, they shall be commissioned by the Client.
The expert opinion shall be drawn up within the agreed period of time, unless there are foreseeable reasons to the contrary (e.g. missing documents, illness).
Written elaborations are made available to the client by e-mail and in paper form.

‍

4. Obligations of the principal

The client shall support the valuer in his work and allow him access to the object of the valuation. The client is obliged to inform the valuer immediately and without being asked in writing of any changes that are relevant to the valuation.
The client shall provide the surveyor with all information and documents necessary for the execution of the assignment free of charge.
The expert shall not be bound by the instructions of the client if these lead to the incorrectness of the contents of the expert report.

‍

5. Confidentiality obligations of the expert

Pursuant to § 203 para. 2 no. 5 StGB (German Penal Code), the expert is subject to the duty of confidentiality. Accordingly, he is also contractually prohibited from disclosing, passing on or exploiting to unauthorised persons the expert opinion itself or facts, or documents, which have been entrusted or otherwise become known in the course of his expert activity. The duty of confidentiality includes all facts that are not in the public domain and applies beyond the duration.
The duty of confidentiality also applies to all persons working in the expert's company. The expert shall ensure that the duty of confidentiality is observed by the aforementioned persons.
The expert can only be released from the duty of confidentiality at the express written request of the client or if this occurs due to legal regulations and necessities.

‍

6. Liability

The Expert shall only be liable for intent and gross negligence, irrespective of whether the basis for the claim is contractual, non-contractual or statutory.
The expert shall only be liable for damage based on a defective expert report - irrespective of the legal grounds - if he or his vicarious agents have caused the damage through an intentional or grossly negligent breach of duty. This shall also apply to damage caused by the expert during the preparation of his expert opinion and to damage caused after subsequent performance has taken place. § Section 939 BGB remains unaffected. All claims for damages beyond this are excluded.
Should the client pass on the expert opinion to third parties, he/she shall assume personal liability for third party damages arising on the basis of the expert opinion. He/she shall indemnify the valuer accordingly against liability claims by third parties.
The market value is determined in accordance with the principles of the Real Estate Valuation Ordinance of 19 May 2010 (ImmoWertV, BGBl. I 2010, 639). The valuer shall not be liable for defects that are not recognisable or concealed, for defects in building components that have not been made accessible and for other property features that have not been ascertained (e.g. infestation by animal or plant pests, building components contaminated with pollutants and soil contamination, examinations regarding stability, sound and heat insulation). The market value in the expert opinion is determined roughly. Findings are only made insofar as they are important for the valuation.
In the event that the expert breaches a duty resulting in danger to health and life, the amount thereof shall be limited to an amount of Euro 500,000.00 for property damage and financial loss.

‍

7. Warranty

As a warranty, the client can initially only demand free rectification of a defective expert opinion.
If the defect is not remedied within a reasonable period of time or if the remedy fails, the client may demand cancellation of the contract or a reduction of the fee (abatement).
Defects must be reported to the surveyor in writing immediately after they are discovered, otherwise the warranty claim expires.
In the absence of warranted characteristics, a claim for damages remains unaffected.
Claims for damages shall become time-barred after 3 years. The limitation period begins with the receipt of the expert opinion by the client.

‍

8. Copyright protection

The expert shall retain the copyright to the report / expert opinion prepared by him.
The client may only use the prepared expert opinion, the report with all statements, calculations and other details for the purpose for which it is intended as agreed.
The client is only permitted to pass on the expert opinion to third parties or to use it in any other way with the written consent of the expert.
Publication of the expert report requires the written consent of the expert in every case. Reproductions are only permitted within the scope of the intended use of the expert opinion.

‍

9. Terms of payment

The expert shall be entitled to payment of a remuneration. The amount of the remuneration shall be based on the express agreement. The remuneration shall include the general office expenses of the expert. The fee is to be paid gross, exceptions are excluded. A transfer shall be deemed to be payment if it is credited finally and without deduction within 14 days. A set-off with a counterclaim or the assertion of a right of retention shall be excluded, unless the counterclaim or the counter right is undisputed or has been legally established.
In the event of late payment of the expert's invoice, the client shall be liable for the damage incurred by the expert as a result of this delay. Furthermore, the expert is entitled to demand the statutory default interest (§288 BGB). If the client is in arrears with the payment of the fee, the expert may, after setting a reasonable period of grace, withdraw from the contract or claim damages for non-performance. Subject to the assertion of further damages, interest on arrears in the amount of 2% above the respective discount rate of the Deutsche Bundesbank shall be payable in the event of default in payment, in each case plus the respectively applicable value added tax.
The expert is entitled to charge the client for the expenses incurred by him that are necessary for the preparation of the expert opinion. Incidental costs and expenses may be incurred in the amount actually incurred (against evidence) or in the agreed amount (without evidence) if the expert has to obtain documents.
If, at the request of the client, additional lines are to be drawn up on a time basis, the hourly rate of the expert shall be 100.00 Euros plus currently applicable VAT.
For journeys by motor vehicle, an additional flat rate of € 0.50 per kilometre travelled plus currently applicable VAT is to be taken into account.

‍

10. Appointments

The expert shall prepare the expert report in a time that is reasonable for him. Agreed deadlines shall only apply if they have been assured to the client in writing.

‍

11. Duty to provide information

The client has the right to demand information from the expert as to whether the expert opinion can be completed on time, whether further funds of the client are required in addition to the initially agreed expenses, and as to the latest status of the expert opinion.

‍

12. Cancellation

Termination of the appraisal contract is only possible for good cause. The termination must be made in writing.
Good cause for termination shall be deemed to exist if the Expert grossly violates the obligations incumbent upon him/her under the Rules of the Expert.
Another important reason for termination is if the client does not comply with his duty to cooperate, refuses his consent to the inspection or does not provide the expert with access. Furthermore, an important reason for termination is if the client obstructs the expert in his work or does not change his behaviour in breach of duty following a reminder from the expert.

‍

13. Final provisions

The place of performance for all claims of clients is the Hanseatic City of Hamburg.
In the event of claims of the expert against the client, the place of residence of the client shall be the place of jurisdiction.
If a provision of this contract is invalid due to legal regulations, the validity of the remaining provisions of this contract shall not be affected. Ineffective provisions may be replaced by such provisions that come closest to the intended purpose and are legally permissible. The contracting parties undertake to accept such a replacement provision.
Amendments or ancillary agreements to this contract must be made in writing.