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General Terms and Conditions

  1. General Information

    1. KW automotive GmbH (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Seller’) sells and delivers exclusively in accordance with its Terms and Conditions of Sale and Delivery set out below. Our terms and conditions of sale and delivery shall be deemed to have been accepted by the customer/buyer upon placing an order or accepting the delivery. Any general terms and conditions of our customers that conflict with these are hereby expressly rejected. Such terms and conditions shall only be valid if we expressly agree to their validity in writing. For legal certainty, declarations, undertakings and deviating agreements with traders are only binding if they are concluded in writing.
    2. These General Terms and Conditions shall apply from 1 January 2010. Upon their publication, all our previous terms and conditions of sale and delivery shall cease to be valid.
    3. A customer who enters into a contractual relationship with us as a trader within the meaning of Section 14(1) of the German Civil Code (BGB) must inform us immediately prior to the conclusion of a new contractif they are no longer a trader within the meaning of Section 14(1) of the German Civil Code (BGB) or do not wish to conclude the contract within the scope of their commercial or self-employed professional activity.
  2. Quotation and Conclusion of Contract

    1. Our written offers are subject to change. The sending of our price lists, catalogues, brochures, etc. does not oblige us to deliver.
    2. The customer’s order constitutes a binding offer. The seller may, at its discretion, accept this offer within two weeks by issuing an order confirmation or by dispatching the ordered goods.
    3. We reserve the right to make minor changes or deviations, in particular those that do not affect usability, without prior notice; the same applies to the use of alternative materials. In the event of errors in the catalogue, price lists, brochures, quotations, order forms, invoices and other statements relating, for example, to minor tolerances in quality, quantity and weight, we are entitled to make corrections and, where applicable, to issue additional charges and/or credit notes without prior notice. The seller accepts no liability for printing errors.
  3. Delivery

    1. We are entitled to make partial deliveries.
    2. An obligation to meet agreed delivery deadlines shall only be assumed provided that business operations proceed without disruption; in particular cases of force majeure and other disruptive events affecting the seller, its suppliers or the transport companies, such as operational or traffic disruptions, fire, flooding, labour, energy or raw material shortages, strikes, lockouts or official measures, shall release the seller from the obligation to deliver on time and shall also entitle the seller to suspend delivery without being liable for damages and without any obligation to make subsequent delivery. Claims for damages arising from delayed delivery or the suspension of delivery are excluded, unless they are based on wilful misconduct or gross negligence. The buyer retains the statutory right to withdraw from the contract.
    3. The filing of insolvency or composition proceedings, the submission or application for the submission of an affidavit regarding a statement of assets, the occurrence of significant financial difficulties, or a change in ownership of the buyer’s business arising in connection with financial difficulties, shall entitle the seller to suspend delivery immediately and to refuse to fulfil ongoing contracts without further obligations, unless the customer provides security in the amount of the relevant purchase price prior to the seller’s own performance. If the customer fails to provide such security within a two-week period set by the seller, we shall be entitled to withdraw from the contract of sale and may also release ourselves from further delivery obligations towards the customer in question.
  4. Warranty and Complaints

    1. Complaints regarding obvious defects – or, in the case of transactions between traders, defects that are recognisable – must be notified to the seller in writing without delay, but at the latest within one calendar week of acceptance. If this is not done, any claims against us arising from these defects are excluded. Timely dispatch of the written notice of defects shall be sufficient.
    2. The warranty period is – unless longer warranty periods have been agreed with the buyer for individual products – two years from the date of handover of the goods in the case of new goods, and one year from the date of handover of the goods in the case of second-hand goods.
    3. If the goods delivered are defective, the seller shall initially have the right to remedy the defect by either rectifying it or supplying goods free from defects.Only if subsequent performance fails repeatedly shall the customer be entitled to the remaining warranty rights, such as withdrawal from the contract or a reduction in the purchase price. The seller is entitled to refuse subsequent performance if this would entail disproportionate costs for the seller.
    4. The warranty is excluded under the following circumstances:
      - In the case of goods that have been altered, modified or had defects rectified by a third party without the seller’s consent, unless the customer can prove that the defect is not causally attributable to the alteration, modification or rectification;
      - Where the installation of goods is carried out outside an authorised specialist workshop, unless the buyer proves that the defect is not causally attributable to the installation;
      - Where statutory installation and handling instructions, or those issued by us or our suppliers, have not been followed.
      - In the case of goods that have been fitted despite recognisable defects or an incomplete or incorrect delivery.
    5. Returns of goods subject to a complaint must always be notified in advance. The seller will issue a reference number which must be clearly displayed on the outside of the parcel when it is returned. The customer must ensure the goods are adequately packaged. No warranty can be accepted for goods damaged during return shipment due to inadequate packaging. The seller will arrange for the goods to be collected via its parcel service, or the buyer must return the goods carriage paid.
  5. Liability

    Our liability – regardless of the legal basis – is limited to damage caused by us or our vicarious agents through wilful misconduct or gross negligence. Our liability and that of our legal representatives, vicarious agents and employees is excluded for damage resulting from slight negligence, unless material contractual obligations have been breached or the damage relates to injury to life, limb or health. In cases of slight negligence, the extent of our liability is limited to the amount of damage typical for comparable transactions of this kind, which was foreseeable at the time the contract was concluded or, at the latest, at the time the breach of duty occurred.

  6. Returns of goods

    1. Returns of goods require the prior consent of the seller and must be made within 12 months of the date of purchase, unless the buyer effectively withdraws from the contract in accordance with the seller’s General Terms and Conditions set out herein.
    3. All returned goods must always be sent to us carriage paid and must bear a processing number issued by us that is clearly legible from the outside. Shipments must be complete and adequately packaged. Following an inspection to check the condition and completeness of the goods, only goods free from defects will be credited for further settlement, subject to a processing fee of up to 15 per cent of the purchase price. If the above conditions are not met, the goods will, at our discretion, either be repaired at the customer’s expense or returned to the sender carriage forward, stating the reasons.
  7. Duty of care

    The customer must ensure that all modifications and conversions to the vehicle, where it is used on public roads, are entered in the vehicle documents (certificate of registration and vehicle registration document) in accordance with statutory provisions. If necessary, the customer must present the vehicle to the relevant Technical Inspection Association (TÜV). Responsibility for the TÜV registration of modified vehicles or their parts lies with the buyer.

  8. Retention of title

    The seller retains title to the goods sold by it, as well as to all fitted accessories and spare parts, until full payment has been made of the claims to which it is entitled under the contract. If the buyer is a trader and purchases the goods in the course of their commercial business, the retention of title serves to secure all claims to which the seller is entitled against the buyer arising from their business relationship. In the event of the buyer’s breach of contract, in particular in the event of default in payment, the seller is entitled to withdraw from the contract and to demand the return of the goods subject to its retention of title.

    The buyer may resell the goods in the ordinary course of business. The buyer hereby assigns to the seller, with all ancillary rights, any claims arising from the resale of the goods subject to retention of title. Provided the buyer duly meets their payment obligations to the seller, they are authorised to collect these claims on behalf of the seller. If the authorisation to collect is revoked, the buyer is obliged to provide the seller with all information necessary for collection and to hand over the relevant documents.

    If the buyer is a trader and has purchased the goods subject to retention of title from the seller in the course of their commercial business, the seller and its authorised representatives shall be entitled to enter the customer’s business premises, inspect their documents to verify the claims assigned to the seller, and to extract from their business records the documents necessary to enforce the claims assigned to them or to make copies thereof.

    If the goods subject to retention of title are resold together with other goods not belonging to the seller, or invoiced together with services, the Buyer’s claim against its customers shall be deemed assigned to the Seller only up to the amount of the individual sum or sums (including VAT) which the Buyer has invoiced to its customer. If, when invoicing their customer, the buyer does not distinguish between the seller’s goods subject to retention of title, other goods and/or services provided in connection therewith—that is, if they charge their customer only a total price—the entire claim against their customer shall be deemed to have been assigned to the seller. The buyer hereby assigns to the seller all claims for compensation against third parties which he may acquire in the event of the loss of or damage to the goods subject to retention of title. These claims for compensation serve as security for the seller. The provisions of this section shall apply to them mutatis mutandis.

    If the value of all existing security exceeds the Seller’s claims against the Buyer by more than 10 per cent, the Seller shall, at the Customer’s request, be obliged to release security of its choice to that extent. If the customer, for their part, sells goods subject to an extended retention of title customary in the trade, the resulting claims shall be excluded from the assignment of security to us in the event of a conflict with security assignments in the trade, insofar as these are or may in future be legitimately invoked. The buyer must give immediate notice in the event of the goods subject to retention of title being seized by third parties. Any pledging or transfer of ownership by way of security of these goods in favour of third parties is prohibited without the seller’s consent.

  9. Prices and Terms of Payment

    For new customers, goods are dispatched on a cash-on-delivery or prepayment basis, unless another method of payment has been agreed with the customer. The prices listed in the tables as ‘Net Wholesale’ are net wholesale prices for traders, excluding VAT. The prices listed as ‘Retail price incl. VAT’ are non-binding recommended retail prices including VAT. Both prices exclude all ancillary costs, such as postage, customs duties, insurance and packaging costs. If delivery charges are incurred because the customer requests the goods to be dispatched, the customer shall bear these costs. Payment must be made without deduction upon acceptance of the goods, or at the latest within one week of completion and handover or dispatch of the invoice. Set-off against disputed or non-legally binding counter-claims is excluded. In the event of late payment, without prejudice to any further rights, interest on arrears shall be charged at the rate actually incurred, but at a minimum of 5% per annum above the respective base rate of the European Central Bank. The buyer reserves the right to prove a lower base rate, and the seller reserves the right to prove a higher base rate.

  10. Information pursuant to the Packaging Ordinance – VerpackV

    KW automotive GmbH hereby confirms that it fully complies with its obligations under the Packaging Ordinance in the version dated 1 April 2009. In particular, it has joined a system for the nationwide take-back of sales packaging generated by private end-users (see Section 6(3) of the Packaging Ordinance). All sales, outer and transport packaging placed on the market by KW automotive within the scope of the Closed-Loop Economy and Waste Management Act is reported to our contractual partner (system operator) in accordance with the regulator’s requirements; this partner fulfils the obligations under the VerpackV (recovery).

  11. Place of jurisdiction and governing law

    1. For all disputes arising out of or in connection with contracts between the Seller and traders, as well as between the Seller and persons whose place of residence or habitual abode is not within the scope of the German Code of Civil Procedure, the place of jurisdiction shall be the Seller’s registered office.
    2. The legal relationships between the Seller and the Buyer arising from or in connection with this contract shall be governed by the law of the Federal Republic of Germany, to the exclusion of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).
  12. Final Provisions

    Should one or more provisions be wholly or partially invalid, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions. The invalid provisions shall be replaced retroactively by a provision that is as similar as possible in substance and comes closest to the intended purpose of the provision in question; if no such provision can be found, the statutory provision shall apply.

    Fichtenberg, 1 January 2026
    KW automotive GmbH