What are the general conditions of sale for?

In the context of a commercial relationship between consumers or professionals regardless of the method of sale of the products, the law, defined by article L.441-1 of the Commercial Code, requires the seller to communicate the General Conditions of Sale (CGV) to customers. They bring together all the information that establishes the seller/buyer relationship.

They can be physical or online. In the latter case, the link which gives access to the general conditions of sale (CGV) must be visible and accessible to all buyers who wish it on each page of the website. In addition, the General Terms and Conditions must be accepted by the purchasing customer before concluding their purchase.

The General Terms and Conditions reflect the company’s commercial policy and must adapt to its activity. It is therefore not recommended to copy those offered by other companies.

What should the T&Cs contain?

For the general conditions of sale (CGV) to be valid, they must contain:

• The conditions of payment for products and services and the guarantees available to the buyer
• Information relating to the prices displayed on the goods or services offered by the company such as the inclusion of taxes in the price or not with the mention inclusive of tax or excluding tax, the type of invoicing to which the customer is subject, the payment and late payment terms
• Possible price reductions
• The terms concerning costs and delivery times with for example the list of cases of force majeure or delivery delays linked to errors on the part of the customer
• The right of withdrawal, return and refund in the event of lack of immediate execution of the contract or delay (no delivery on the part of the seller for example) or in the event of a change of mind on the part of the customer

The general conditions of sale (CGV) may also contain the essential characteristics of the good or service offered by the company as well as information relating to the identity of the company and its manager, the contact details of a consumer mediator in the event of a dispute etc.

T&Cs between professionals

The general conditions of sale (CGV) between professionals are governed by article L44-6 of the Commercial Code. The article states that: “Any producer, service provider, wholesaler or importer is required to communicate its general conditions of sale to any buyer of products or any applicant for the provision of services who requests them for a professional activity.” The General Terms and Conditions constitute the sole basis of commercial negotiation and must contain:

• conditions of sale
• price information
• the unit price scale if the company agrees to it. This scale represents the supplier’s base price, it must contain the date of application and the period of validity of the unit price scale
• price reductions
• the payment conditions including the payment terms offered to customers, late payment penalties, recovery costs as well as the discount conditions in the event of early payment.

What are the sanctions incurred in the event of absence of T&Cs

The law provides for an administrative fine of €15,000 for a natural person and €75,000 for a legal entity in the event of non-compliance with the obligation to provide or draw up the general conditions of sale (CGV).