The New Sales Law: Stricter Warranty Rules

The changes to sales law that took effect in January strengthen consumer rights. Since the start of the year, consumers have been able to cancel contracts more easily. This applies to all businesses that sell goods or provide services. Your tax advisor in Düsseldorf and Oberhausen explains what has changed.

Warranty Period Under Sales Law

Following the delivery of goods, the statute of limitations for claims regarding defects remains two years. However, buyers could previously miss the deadline for filing a claim if they only noticed the defect in the purchased item shortly before the two-year period expired. This has changed since the start of the year. The statute of limitations does not begin until four months after the defect first became apparent. This means that, particularly in cases where the defect arises shortly before the end of the warranty period, the buyer has more time to assert their warranty claims.

Change in Subsequent Performance

Another change has taken effect regarding subsequent performance, intended to protect the consumer. This applies when the seller remedies the defect by repairing or replacing the goods. Here is what changes: If a defect is remedied by a company through subsequent performance, the statute of limitations is suspended for two months. This period begins from the time the goods are returned to the consumer. The purpose of this procedure is to allow the seller to verify that the goods have been properly repaired. It is also intended to prevent the statute of limitations from expiring while the goods are with the seller for subsequent performance.

Contract withdrawal for private buyers

If defects were found in a particular item, private buyers previously had no choice but to set a deadline for subsequent performance. This is because, until now, buyers could only return the goods, seek a price reduction, or claim damages if a deadline for subsequent performance had been expressly set for the seller and had passed without result. Here, too, the law has changed. The buyer is no longer required to set a deadline for rectification. Once the defect is reported, a fictitious, reasonable deadline for the seller to rectify the contract is automatically established. If the seller allows this deadline to pass without fulfilling the obligation, the buyer may immediately withdraw from the contract. In that case, the purchase price may be reclaimed.

Stricter Burden of Proof for Defects

The reversal of the burden of proof for defects in purchased goods previously took effect after the sixth month. Specifically, this meant that in the first six months after purchase, the seller had to prove to the consumer that the goods were free of defects at the time of purchase. Starting in the seventh month, the burden of proof shifted, and the consumer had to prove that the defect in the goods did not arise from their own careless handling. This deadline has now been extended. Here, too, the law changes in favor of buyers. The seller must now prove, up to twelve months after delivery, that the purchased item was free of defects. However, providing such proof is time-consuming and difficult. The new regulation can therefore be perceived as a significant tightening of the rules at the expense of sellers.

Tax Advisors in Düsseldorf and Oberhausen

Please feel free to contact your tax advisor in Düsseldorf and Oberhausen if you have any questions regarding sales law. New regulations regarding the definition of a defect are also coming into effect, which were not addressed in this article. To this end, the legislature has created a new type of contract: the consumer contract for digital products. Special warranty rules apply to this contract.