Terms of service

§ 1  Scope and customer groups
1. These General Terms and Conditions (“Terms”) apply to contracts with FAM Kaffeetechnik GmbH (“FAM”) concerning diagnostics and cost estimates, maintenance, servicing, repairs, restoration and complete overhauls, as well as installation and commissioning of coffee machines, espresso machines, coffee grinders and other equipment expressly agreed upon.
2. These Terms apply both to consumers within the meaning of section 13 of the German Civil Code (BGB) and to entrepreneurs/business customers within the meaning of section 14 BGB. Where individual provisions apply only to consumers or only to business customers, this is expressly stated.
3. Long-term maintenance or service agreements are additionally governed by the individually agreed contractual terms. In the event of a conflict, the individual agreement takes precedence.
4. Unless expressly agreed otherwise, these Terms do not govern loan machines, purchase or sale contracts for equipment, powder coating or other custom finishing services.
5. Individual agreements with the customer take precedence over these Terms. Any deviating terms and conditions of the customer apply only if FAM expressly agrees to their inclusion.
§ 2  Contracting party and contact details
The contracting party is FAM Kaffeetechnik GmbH, Jagdweg 1–3 (entrance: Rosenstraße 92), 01159 Dresden, Germany, represented by Managing Director Jens Voigt. Contact: info@fam-kaffeetechnik.de, phone +49 351 48618817. Commercial Register: Local Court (Amtsgericht) Dresden, HRB 48127. VAT ID No.: DE463120519.
§ 3  Enquiry, order and repair approval
1. A customer enquiry is initially non-binding. The specific scope of the order is determined by the respective order confirmation, quotation, cost estimate or other individual agreement.
2. If diagnostics are commissioned first, at this stage the contract only covers the diagnostics and, where agreed, preparation of a cost estimate. A repair order only arises following separate approval.
3. Approval may be given in particular by email, in text form or via a designated electronic acceptance function. The decisive factor is that the customer clearly approves the chargeable repair.
4. FAM does not carry out repairs without the customer’s prior approval. The only exception is work expressly agreed in advance as part of a commissioned maintenance or service scope.
5. If FAM cannot accept or continue an order for technical, safety-related or spare-parts-related reasons, the customer will be informed.
§ 4  Handover of equipment and customer information
1. The customer should describe the fault, observed symptoms and, where known, previous repairs, modifications or special operating conditions as precisely as possible. The more accurate the fault description, the more targeted the diagnostic process can be.
2. Accessories required for testing must be supplied by prior agreement. Unnecessary loose items, coffee beans, water and other contents should, where possible, be removed before shipment or handover.
3. FAM may document the externally visible condition of the equipment upon receipt. Existing signs of use, corrosion, limescale, contamination, prior damage or defects outside the commissioned scope are not part of the service owed by FAM unless expressly agreed otherwise.
4. Equipment presenting an identifiable safety or health risk may be rejected until the matter has been clarified.
§ 5  Shipping, return shipping, collection and delivery
1. By prior arrangement, equipment may also be shipped to FAM and returned to the customer after completion of the work.
2. Where the customer organises shipping, the customer is responsible for packaging suitable for transport and appropriate to the weight and sensitivity of the equipment. Mandatory statutory rules on liability and transfer of risk remain unaffected.
3. Collection and delivery services may be offered to business customers by agreement. Travel or call-out charges may be agreed for these services; the amount will be agreed with the customer in advance.
4. Return shipping and transport charges will be agreed transparently in advance or as part of the order confirmation unless already included in the quotation.
5. Visible transport damage should, where possible, be documented immediately and reported to FAM and, where appropriate, to the carrier. A delayed report does not exclude the customer’s statutory rights.
§ 6  Diagnostics and cost estimate
1. Where diagnostics are required to assess a defect, the diagnostic service is chargeable. Diagnostics comprise technical inspection within the agreed scope and serve as the basis for the cost estimate.
2. For private customers/consumers, the diagnostic fee is EUR 59.95 gross, including statutory VAT.
3. For business customers, the diagnostic fee is EUR 99.95 net plus statutory VAT.
4. If the repair based on these diagnostics is subsequently carried out by FAM, the relevant diagnostic fee is credited in full against the repair invoice. No cash payout or transfer to another order is possible.
5. If the customer declines the repair after receiving the cost estimate, the diagnostic fee remains payable. Only any additionally agreed shipping, transport or third-party costs will be charged.
6. A cost estimate is based on the condition identifiable at the time of diagnosis, the spare-parts situation then known and the current prices. It is not a fixed price unless expressly designated as a binding fixed price.
7. If it becomes apparent that the repair can only be completed with a significant increase over the cost estimate, FAM will inform the customer and agree the next steps before carrying out additional work.

§ 7  Approval, repair and additional defects
1. Following approval, FAM carries out the agreed work professionally within the approved scope.
2. If further defects or damage become apparent during the repair that were not identifiable during the original diagnostics, or only identifiable with disproportionate effort, FAM will inform the customer where they result in relevant additional costs or a material change to the scope of repair.
3. Additional work is only carried out after renewed approval. If the customer declines the extension, the order will be completed within the originally approved and technically reasonable scope or, where this is not technically possible, discontinued following consultation.
4. In restorations and complete overhauls, further wear, corrosion or limited spare-parts availability may only become apparent once older equipment has been dismantled. Here too, substantial additional work is only carried out after consultation.
5. FAM owes the agreed repair or service, not the elimination of all unrelated defects that existed beforehand or arise later.
§ 8  Spare parts and materials
1. Wherever possible, FAM uses original spare parts from the respective manufacturer.
2. If original parts are unavailable, discontinued or cannot be procured on commercially reasonable terms, FAM may use suitable alternative spare parts with the customer’s prior approval.
3. Spare parts sourced or supplied by the customer are generally not installed by FAM.
4. Spare-parts availability partly depends on manufacturers and suppliers. Supply shortages or discontinued parts for older equipment may affect repair times or technical feasibility.
§ 9  Installation and commissioning
1. For installation and commissioning, the installation site must meet the technical requirements of the respective manufacturer. Depending on the equipment, this may include suitable electrical supply, water connection, water quality, drainage, adequate space and accessibility.
2. Work on the building’s electrical, water or drainage installations is only included if expressly commissioned and offered by FAM.
3. If commissioning cannot be completed as planned because the required site conditions are missing or unsuitable, the next steps will be agreed with the customer. Additional services or further visits are only charged by agreement.
§ 10  Appointments and performance times
1. Stated processing or completion dates are non-binding planning estimates unless expressly agreed as binding deadlines.
2. Actual duration may depend in particular on the diagnostic scope, spare-parts availability, supplier lead times, additional defects, manufacturer information or necessary customer queries.
3. FAM will inform the customer of foreseeable material delays. The customer’s statutory rights in the event of delay remain unaffected.
4. Any special emergency service or response-time arrangements are not governed by these Terms and require a separate agreement.
§ 11  Cancellation or termination of an order
1. The customer’s statutory rights of termination remain unaffected.
2. If the customer merely declines the cost estimate after diagnostics, no cancellation fee applies. In that case, the agreed diagnostic fee and, where applicable, agreed shipping or third-party costs will be charged.
3. If the customer cancels a repair, restoration, complete overhaul or other workshop order that has already been expressly approved, FAM will charge the services and expenses actually incurred up to the time of cancellation. These may include work already performed, necessary dismantling and reassembly, documentation, shipping and third-party costs, and parts specifically ordered for the particular job where they cannot be cancelled or used elsewhere without disadvantage.
4. In addition, a cancellation handling fee of EUR 50.00 net plus statutory VAT may be charged for the additional organisational and technical work caused by the cancellation, insofar as that work is not already included in the other amounts charged. For consumers, the corresponding gross amount will be stated.
5. The customer is expressly entitled to prove that no additional expense or a substantially lower additional expense arose as a result of the cancellation.
6. The cancellation handling fee does not apply if continuation of the order becomes impossible for a reason for which FAM is responsible.
§ 12  Prices, payment methods and due dates
1. Prices for consumers are stated inclusive of statutory VAT. Prices for business customers are, unless expressly stated otherwise, net plus statutory VAT.
2. The specific remuneration is determined by the order, quotation, cost estimate or invoice.
3. Depending on the customer and agreement, payment methods may include debit/card payment, PayPal, payment processing via Stripe and payment by invoice. There is no entitlement to a particular payment method unless expressly agreed.
4. Payment terms may vary depending on the customer and order. The applicable payment term is stated in the quotation, order confirmation or invoice. In the absence of a special agreement, the statutory due-date rules apply.
5. Agreed shipping, transport, call-out or travel costs are charged in addition unless already included in the agreed total price.
§ 13  Completion, acceptance and return
1. Upon completion, FAM informs the customer of the available collection, delivery or return-shipping options.
2. The statutory rules on acceptance of work apply. The customer is obliged to accept work that has been completed in accordance with the contract where acceptance is required by the nature of the service.
3. Upon collection or return, the customer should report any apparent irregularities as soon as reasonably possible. Statutory warranty rights are not shortened by this request.
4. Return shipping or delivery is governed by the individually agreed terms and costs.
§ 14  Warranty rights for consumers
1. Consumers are entitled to the statutory warranty rights.
2. If the customer identifies a potential issue after a repair or maintenance service, we ask them to contact FAM promptly so that the cause can be examined and, where appropriate, remedied. This does not restrict any statutory rights.
3. Normal operational wear and tear does not constitute a defect in FAM’s work. The same applies to damage or malfunctions not caused by FAM’s service but arising in particular from incorrect operation, unsuitable operating conditions, insufficient cleaning or maintenance, limescale, unsuitable water quality, third-party intervention or subsequent external influences.
4. Statutory warranty rights remain applicable to wear parts if a part installed by FAM, or the installation itself, was defective. Only normal use-related wear is excluded.
§ 15  Special warranty provisions for business customers
1. For business customers, the limitation period for warranty claims arising from work performed by FAM and parts installed by FAM is twelve months from the statutory commencement of the limitation period, generally from acceptance, insofar as legally permissible.
2. This shortened period does not apply to claims arising from intent or gross negligence, injury to life, body or health, fraudulent concealment of a defect, expressly assumed guarantees or any other cases in which a shortened limitation period is prohibited by law.
3. Normal wear and tear, including wear of typical wear parts, does not constitute a defect. This does not exclude warranty claims where a wear part installed by FAM was already defective at the time of installation or where the installation itself was defective.
4. Warranty claims do not apply to damage or malfunctions caused by incorrect operation, insufficient maintenance or cleaning, unsuitable water quality, limescale, unauthorised modifications, third-party intervention or other circumstances caused by the customer or a third party.
5. FAM is liable for consequential loss resulting from such customer- or third-party-caused circumstances only in accordance with the general liability provisions of these Terms and applicable law.
§ 16  Liability
1. FAM has unlimited liability in cases of intent and gross negligence and for damages arising from injury to life, body or health. The same applies in cases of mandatory statutory liability, fraudulent concealment of a defect and within the scope of any expressly assumed guarantee.
2. In the event of a slightly negligent breach of a material contractual obligation, FAM is liable for the foreseeable loss typical for the contract. Material contractual obligations are obligations whose fulfilment is essential for the proper performance of the contract and on whose compliance the customer may regularly rely.
3. In all other respects, liability for damage caused by slight negligence is excluded insofar as legally permissible.
4. FAM is not liable for damage or consequential loss insofar as it is caused by pre-existing damage for which FAM is not responsible, normal wear and tear, incorrect operation, insufficient cleaning or maintenance, unsuitable operating conditions, third-party intervention or unauthorised modifications.
5. The above liability provisions apply accordingly for the benefit of FAM’s legal representatives and vicarious agents.
§ 17  Right of withdrawal for consumer contracts
1. If a contract with a consumer is concluded exclusively by means of distance communication or away from FAM’s business premises and the statutory requirements are met, the consumer is entitled to the statutory right of withdrawal.
2. The consumer will be informed separately about the right of withdrawal in accordance with the statutory requirements. Such withdrawal information is not replaced by these Terms.
3. If, at the consumer’s express request, FAM is to begin providing the service before the expiry of the withdrawal period, this will only take place subject to the statutory requirements. If the consumer withdraws after performance has begun, compensation for the value of services provided up to the time of withdrawal may be payable where permitted by law.
4. The right of withdrawal may expire prematurely after complete performance of the service if the statutory requirements are met and the consumer expressly agreed to performance beginning and acknowledged the possible loss of the withdrawal right.
5. If the contract is concluded at FAM’s business premises, there is generally no statutory right of withdrawal solely by reason of that conclusion; mandatory statutory exceptions remain unaffected.
§ 18  Consumer dispute resolution
FAM is neither willing nor obliged to participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board. Nevertheless, our objective is always to resolve concerns directly and fairly. Customers are therefore invited to contact us first at info@fam-kaffeetechnik.de or +49 351 48618817.
§ 19  Applicable law and place of jurisdiction
1. German law applies. For consumers, this choice of law applies only insofar as it does not deprive the consumer of mandatory consumer protection provisions of the country in which the consumer has their habitual residence.
2. If the customer is a merchant, a legal entity under public law or a special fund under public law, Dresden shall, insofar as legally permissible, be the exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from the contractual relationship. The same applies where a business customer has no general place of jurisdiction in Germany.
3. If individual provisions of these Terms are or become wholly or partly invalid, the remaining provisions remain valid. The statutory provisions apply in place of any invalid provision.