It is in the company's own interests to include general conditions with their documents.
Thanks to these general sales conditions, the company may choose, within certain limits, a more favourable legal context guaranteeing better management of its debts.
General conditions must meet two conditions:
- The other party must accept them;
- they must be valid (they cannot be undue).
Acceptance of the general conditions
The general conditions do not only concern an abusive situation towards the buyer or an imbalance between the parties but also demonstrate that your creditor has knowledge of said conditions and that they have understood and accepted them.
The creditor must have had the opportunity to consult the content of the general conditions before or no later than the time of concluding the contract.
It is assumed that the customers are aware of the general conditions if the latter are mentioned on the purchase order, the quote, or any other document provided to them before the conclusion of the contract.
In addition, the creditor must have accepted the general conditions either expressly or tacitly
The validity conditions of the general conditions
The clauses of the general conditions may not be illegitimate.
The law protects the consumer, which is to say: any individual or legal entity who decides to acquire the products or services or to use them, outside of any professional activity.
For this reason, it is strictly prohibited to use a contractual clause which will create a clear imbalance between the rights and duties of the parties. If such an illegitimate clause is included in the general conditions, the contract between the retailer and the consumer will be considered as null and void.
For example, it is prohibited to set out relatively short delays for a defect to be notified to the seller, to require the consumer to waive all recourse against the seller, to fluctuate prices depending solely on the wishes of the seller.
