General Terms and Conditions for the provision of events, corporate entertainment and delivery services
1. Validity and contractual basis
1.1. Our contractual partners will herewith be referred to as Clients, the HOFFMANN Gastronomie Catering GmbH Co. KG as Contractor or HOFFMANN.
1.2. The following conditions are a component of all contracts and agreements concluded between Clients and Contractor. They are valid moreover for all future business relationships, even if they are not expressly agreed upon again.
1.3 All orders placed with HOFFMANN (see 1.1) will be laid out in the following order:
• The contents of a written contract entered into between the parties
• Confirmation of the order
• The offer
• These General Terms and Conditions
• The legal requirements of the German Civil Code
1.4 The General Terms and Conditions of the Client and any additional agreements as well as changes and subsidiary agreements are only valid insofar as HOFFMANN has expressly agreed to them in writing.
1.5. Accepting the services of the Contractor constitutes acceptance of these General Terms and Conditions.
1.6. Should a clause in the standard business conditions be or become ineffective this will not affect the overall validity of the remaining clauses.
1.7. The Client is aware that his data will be saved and automatically processed.
2. The offer, offer documents and contract conclusion.
2.1. Unless otherwise expressly agreed upon, offers are non-binding. All verbal and telephonic offers require a promt written confirmation.
2.2. If offers have been prepared on the basis of details provided by the customer and documents submitted by the customer, HOFFMANN shall not be liable for the correctness and the suitability of these documents insofar as it was not caused intentionally or through gross negligence.
2.3. Offers, plans, descriptions of concepts, etc. remain the sole property of HOFFMANN inclusive of all legal rights, unless otherwise agreed to in written form. The Client undertakes to refrain from any further exploitation in any form whatsoever, in particular copying and distribution and the passing on to third parties as well as any changes without the express agreement of HOFFMANN. In case of infringements, contractual penalties will be determined by the appropriate court.
2.4. A contract is only concluded when this is entered into in writing and the contract is legally effectively signed. A contract forwarded to the Client is to be sent back countersigned.
2.5 The Client has to submit his orders to HOFFMANN at least:
3 days before the event for up to 100 people
8 days before the event for up to 500 people
14 days before the event for over 500 people
During trade fairs, shorter order deadlines are possible, subject to request.
2.6. During events, HOFFMANN requires a binding notification of numbers of participants for set meals or buffets :
2.7. The Client undertakes to inform HOFFMANN as early as possible about any changes to the time schedule and/or the number of participants. All contractual changes and new offers are to be submitted in writing and subsequently confirmed.
2.8. Should the Client withdraw from the contract the following charges apply:
Cancellations of an order value up to 1,500.00 € net are possible within 4 working days before the event. This excludes food and drink ordered exclusively for the cancelled event. With cancellations over an order value of 1,500.00 € net, the following applies:
If the contracted services are cancelled up to 30 days before the event, HOFFMANN reserves the right to claim compensation of 10% of the agreed renumeration.
Up to 14 days before the start of the event 25% of the renumeration
Up to 7 days before the start of the event 50% of the renumeration
Up to 3 days before the start of the event 75% of the renumeration
Thereafter 100% of the renumeration.
3. Scope of services
3.1. The contractor´s services include, in particular, all materials and services that are essential to carry out the event described in the contract.
3.2. The exact object of the services provided arises out of the contract entered into by the parties.
3.3. The scope of delivery includes the delivery to the exhibition centre as well as the collection of goods after their use. With events held in restaurants, the cleaning of the function rooms is inclusive, unless nothing else has been agreed upon.
3.4. Goods supplied by HOFFMANN are produced, warehoused and delivered in accordance with the HACCP – concept produced, warehoused and delivered. With the handover of the goods, the purchaser assumes liability.
3.5. Delivery to the exhibition centre is included with stand catering. A lump sum of 20.00 € net per delivery day is considered as agreed. Stand service personnel are charged at 25.00 € per person, per hour.
3.6. It is considered as agreed that catering in conference rooms with up to 25 people is charged at a catering lump sum rate of 25.00 €. With over 26 people a conference catering lump sum of 1.00 € per person is charged.
3.7. With all other types of events, such as coffee breaks, receptions, major events etc., services provided are charged at 25.00 € per service personnel employed. The minimum time of our service personnel is 4 hours. Furthermore after 8p.m., we reserve the right to charge an appropriate night surcharge for the provision of services.
4. Prices
4.1. All prices and pricing are understood, even without explicit designation, to be in Euros, plus the appropriate Value Added Tax applicable on the day of the invoice.
4.2. Prices remain valid for up to four months after submission of an offer and 30 days for individual offers. (NOT SURE IF I UNDERSTAND THAT – think it means specific offers rather than à la carte ones CHECK WITH HOFFMANN) After expiry of this period, HOFFMANN has the right to pass on price increases from manufacturers, suppliers or wage increases to the client. The client may withdraw from the contract should the final price rise to more than 10% of the price at conclusion of the contract.
4.3. If the start or the ongoing progress of the provision of services is delayed for reasons which HOFFMANN is not accountable for, then HOFFMANN is entitled to separately invoice the additional costs incurred.
4.4. Services rendered that were not estimated in the original offer and that were carried out upon request of the client, or additional expenditure incurred due to erroneous details provided by the client or other third parties, or transport delays for which HOFFMANN is not liable for, unprofessional or delayed preparatory work carried out by the client or third parties, insofar that these are not agents or vicarious agents of HOFFMANN, will be additionally invoiced to the client.
5. Payments, arrears, charges
5.1. Invoices are payable net, immediately on receipt without any deductions.
5.2. Payment will only be accepted in EURO. Payments are only possible by bank transfer, in cash or by credit card. HOFFMANN will not accept payment by cheque.
5.3. In the case of major events, a down payment, that reflects the size of the order, is required when placing the order or at least 7 days before the start of the event. The balance is payable net, immediately on receipt of the final invoice.
5.4. If the client should default on payment, interest will be charged at a rate of 5% above the current official base interest rate of the European Central Bank. This does not affect your statutory rights.
6. Complaints
6.1. Complaints, especially about meals, are to be communicated to the restaurant manager or banqueting director on the day of the event. Late complaints cannot be accepted due to the impossibility to verify them.
6.2. In the event of hidden defects in delivered goods and services provided by HOFFMANN, the client has to immediately inform the responsible HOFFMANN employee verbally or by telephone and in writing 2 days after the discovery at the latest.
7. Passing on of risk and liability
7.1. Upon delivery of goods, it is the client's responsibility to check them. In the case of complaints, clause 6 applies.
7.2. When accepting goods according to clause 7.1 or services according to clause 3 of these conditions, the danger of loss, damage, impairment and deterioration shall pass to the client.
7.3. HOFFMANN will assume no liability for assets or objects of any art brought in whatsoever.
8. Place of performance and jurisdiction
Place of performance and legal domicile for all disputes between the contracting parties arising out of the contract is Munich, inasmuch as the customer is a general merchant, a body corporate, a public corporation or a federal special fund under public law. The contract shall be subject to the Law of the Federal Republic of Germany.