Diet­rich GmbH, An der Sieg­tal­brü­cke 16, 57080 Siegen

A Scope of Appli­ca­tion
1. These Gene­ral Terms and Condi­ti­ons of Sale for Commer­cial Special Vehi­cles (“GTCSS”) apply to all contracts concer­ning the sale, deli­very, manu­fac­ture, assem­bly, comple­tion, inte­gra­tion, or other provi­sion of special-purpose vehi­cles, in parti­cu­lar tow trucks, reco­very vehi­cles, roadside assis­tance vehi­cles, trans­port vehi­cles, crane trucks, plat­form trucks, and other special-purpose vehi­cles.
2. The GTCSS apply both to the sale of finis­hed specialty vehi­cles and to custom-built specialty vehi­cles, special super­s­truc­tures, conver­si­ons, project vehi­cles, and vehi­cles or super­s­truc­tures marke­ted under our name or our brand (“Diet­rich Brand”).
3. Howe­ver, the GTCSS apply only if the buyer is an entre­pre­neur (Section 14 of the German Civil Code [BGB]), a legal entity under public law, or a special fund under public law within the meaning of Section 310(1) of the German Civil Code [BGB].
4. To the extent that indi­vi­dual provi­si­ons of these GTCSS, by their nature, presup­pose manu­fac­tu­ring, body­work, conver­sion, inte­gra­tion, provi­sion by the buyer, tech­ni­cal accep­tance, or distri­bu­tion under our Diet­rich Brand, such provi­si­ons shall apply only if such a compo­nent of perfor­mance has been agreed upon in the speci­fic case or actually beco­mes the subject matter of the contract.
5. Our GTCSS apply exclu­si­vely. Any devia­ting, conflic­ting, or supple­men­tary Gene­ral Terms and Condi­ti­ons (GTC) of the buyer shall become part of the contract only if and to the extent that we have expressly agreed to their vali­dity. This requi­re­ment for consent also applies if the buyer refers to its GTC in the order and we have not expressly objec­ted to them.
6. Unless other­wise agreed, the GTCSS shall apply as a frame­work agreement—in the version valid at the time of the buyer’s order or in the version most recently commu­ni­ca­ted to the buyer in writing—also to future contracts of the same nature, without our having to refer to them again on a case-by-case basis.
7. Indi­vi­dual agree­ments made with the buyer on a case-by-case basis, in parti­cu­lar those contai­ned in offers, order confir­ma­ti­ons, tech­ni­cal appen­di­ces, speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, payment sche­du­les, accep­tance reports, or other writ­ten agree­ments (inclu­ding ancil­lary agree­ments, supple­ments, and amend­ments), shall take prece­dence over these GTCSS. Subject to proof to the contrary, a writ­ten contract or our writ­ten confir­ma­tion shall be decisive for the content of such agree­ments.
8. Legally signi­fi­cant state­ments and noti­ces from the buyer regar­ding the contract (e.g., noti­ces of defects, setting of dead­lines, rescis­sion, or reduc­tion in price) must be submit­ted in writing, i.e., in writ­ten or text form (e.g., letter, email). Any addi­tio­nal statu­tory formal requi­re­ments as well as further evidence (if neces­sary, in cases of doubt regar­ding the declarant’s legi­ti­macy) remain unaf­fec­ted.
9. Where refe­ren­ces are made to the appli­ca­bi­lity of statu­tory provi­si­ons, it should be noted that such refe­ren­ces serve merely to clarify. The statu­tory provi­si­ons apply—even if no such clari­fi­ca­tion has been provided—to the extent that they are not modi­fied or excluded by these Gene­ral Terms and Condi­ti­ons of Sale.

B Subject Matter of the Contract and Scope of Services
1. The speci­fic subject matter of the contract is deter­mi­ned exclu­si­vely by the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing, inclu­ding any attach­ments expressly incor­po­ra­ted ther­ein.
2. In the case of a purely commer­cial tran­sac­tion, our sole obli­ga­tion is to deli­ver the special-purpose vehicle speci­fied in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing, in the condi­tion agreed upon ther­ein. Manu­fac­tu­ring, tech­ni­cal modi­fi­ca­ti­ons, inte­gra­tion, prepa­ra­tion for regis­tra­tion, or special suita­bi­lity test­ing are only requi­red if expressly agreed upon.
3. For project vehi­cles, custom bodies, conver­si­ons, custo­mer chas­sis, or vehi­cles under our Diet­rich brand, our scope of services is deter­mi­ned exclu­si­vely by the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing and the tech­ni­cal attach­ments expressly incor­po­ra­ted ther­ein.
4. Unless expressly agreed other­wise, we are not obli­ga­ted to achieve any speci­fic econo­mic result, any speci­fic opera­tio­nal success, any speci­fic utiliza­tion rate, any speci­fic usabi­lity, or any suita­bi­lity for a purpose not expressly commu­ni­ca­ted by the buyer and confirmed by us in writing.
5. For specialty vehi­cles, a distinc­tion may be made between the follo­wing service compon­ents: chas­sis, body, crane, winches, plat­forms, hydrau­lics, elec­tri­cal systems, controls, light­ing, warning, and safety systems, other third-party compon­ents, inte­gra­tion, and system tuning.
6. Unless expressly agreed other­wise, service compon­ents sold under our Diet­rich Brand refer to the body we offer, the body confi­gu­ra­tion, and/or the inte­gra­tion for which we are respon­si­ble. Chas­sis, cranes, and other third-party compon­ents remain the products of their respec­tive manu­fac­tu­r­ers unless they are expressly desi­gna­ted as our own services.
7. We are entit­led to procure any service compon­ents and other services from third parties or to have them manu­fac­tu­red, assem­bled, tested, or deli­vered by third parties.
8. To the extent that the buyer speci­fies certain manu­fac­tu­r­ers, compon­ents, equip­ment, tech­ni­cal solu­ti­ons, or suppli­ers, their use shall be based on these speci­fi­ca­ti­ons. We shall be liable for any disad­van­ta­ges, addi­tio­nal costs, delays, tech­ni­cal limi­ta­ti­ons, or appr­oval issues resul­ting from such speci­fi­ca­ti­ons provi­ded by the buyer only to the extent that we are respon­si­ble for them.

C Offer and Conclu­sion of Contract
1. Our offers are subject to change and non-binding unless they have been expressly desi­gna­ted as binding in writing. This also applies if we have provi­ded the buyer with cata­logs, tech­ni­cal docu­men­ta­tion (e.g., drawings, plans, calcu­la­ti­ons, cost esti­ma­tes, refe­ren­ces to DIN stan­dards), as well as other product descrip­ti­ons or docu­ments (inclu­ding those in elec­tro­nic form). We reserve all rights of owner­ship and copy­right in all docu­ments provi­ded to the buyer in connec­tion with the place­ment of the order. These docu­ments may not be made available to third parties unless we grant the buyer our express writ­ten consent to do so.
2. A sales contract is concluded only if the buyer has veri­fia­bly submit­ted a binding, signed purchase order to us and we confirm accep­tance of this order—within a period of no more than six weeks after receipt of the order—by our signa­ture.
3. In the event that we do not accept the buyer’s order within the time limit speci­fied in Section C.2, no sales contract is validly concluded, and all docu­ments provi­ded to the buyer must be retur­ned to us imme­dia­tely.
4. At our request, the buyer is obli­ga­ted to provide proof of finan­cing for the purcha­sed item (bank confir­ma­tion or purchase confir­ma­tion from a leasing company). If proof of finan­cing is not provi­ded within a reasonable period of time, we are entit­led to with­draw from the contract. Our right to claim dama­ges remains unaf­fec­ted by this.
5. Our repre­sen­ta­ti­ves have no autho­rity to conclude contracts; they act solely as inter­me­dia­ries. We are not bound by oral agree­ments made with our repre­sen­ta­ti­ves; special agree­ments that deviate from the writ­ten contract and these GTCSS are only valid in writing and require our express accep­tance.
6. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to comply with the appli­ca­ble export control and sanc­tions regu­la­ti­ons and laws of the Euro­pean Union (EU), the United States of America (US/USA), and other juris­dic­tions (“export control regu­la­ti­ons”).

D Tech­ni­cal Speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, Charac­te­ristics, and Inten­ded Use
1. The requi­red charac­te­ristics of the purcha­sed item are deter­mi­ned exclu­si­vely by the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing and the tech­ni­cal appen­di­ces expressly incor­po­ra­ted ther­ein.
2. Speci­fi­ca­ti­ons regar­ding dimen­si­ons, weights, axle loads, payloads, support loads, lifting capa­ci­ties, ranges, fuel consump­tion figu­res, speeds, colors, equip­ment, perfor­mance data, appli­ca­ti­ons, and other tech­ni­cal data are binding only if they have been expressly agreed upon as binding speci­fi­ca­ti­ons.
3. To the extent that tech­ni­cal speci­fi­ca­ti­ons are desi­gna­ted as “approx.”, “appro­xi­m­ately”, “expec­ted”, “as plan­ned”, “depen­ding on equip­ment”, “depen­ding on the chas­sis”, “depen­ding on accep­tance”, or simi­lar terms, they consti­tute non-binding plan­ning values.

4. Payloads, axle loads, gross vehicle weights, and other weight speci­fi­ca­ti­ons may vary, in parti­cu­lar, due to equip­ment, special requests, chas­sis confi­gu­ra­tion, cranes, winches, auxi­liary tanks, batte­ries, hydrau­lics, paint finish, lette­ring, regis­tra­tion requi­re­ments, and other tech­ni­cal modi­fi­ca­ti­ons.
   5. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to provide us, in full and in a timely manner, with infor­ma­tion regar­ding the inten­ded use, special opera­ting condi­ti­ons, indus­try-speci­fic requi­re­ments, cargo, typi­cal loca­ti­ons of use, desi­red payloads, special clima­tic or geogra­phic requi­re­ments, and any other circum­s­tances rele­vant to the tech­ni­cal design, to the extent that these circum­s­tances are signi­fi­cant for the design, deli­very, or usabi­lity of the purcha­sed item.
   6. Suita­bi­lity for a speci­fic inten­ded use shall be deemed agreed upon only if such inten­ded use has been expressly confirmed in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing.
   7. Public state­ments, adver­ti­sing, infor­ma­tion on the Inter­net, social media posts, brochu­res, images, videos, and presen­ta­ti­ons do not consti­tute an agree­ment regar­ding the quality of the goods.
   8. For commer­cial vehi­cles, public state­ments by the respec­tive manu­fac­tu­rer or upstream supplier shall be deemed a speci­fi­ca­tion of quality only to the extent that they have expressly become part of the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing or are requi­red by law to be taken into account.E Custo­mer chas­sis and supplied compon­ents
   1. If the buyer provi­des the chas­sis or other compon­ents (e.g., a crane), the buyer is respon­si­ble for ensu­ring that they are deli­vered on time, free of defects, complete, eligi­ble for regis­tra­tion, and suita­ble for the inten­ded assem­bly, inclu­ding any costs for main­ten­ance and repair.
   2. The buyer must ensure that the provi­ded chas­sis and other compon­ents are free from third-party rights or that all neces­sary appr­ovals for posses­sion, trans­port, assem­bly, modi­fi­ca­tion, proces­sing, inte­gra­tion, and subse­quent surren­der are in place.
   3. The buyer must provide us with all neces­sary vehicle docu­ments, tech­ni­cal docu­men­ta­tion, appr­ovals, inter­face infor­ma­tion, manu­fac­tu­rer speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, regis­tra­tion docu­ments, and other docu­ments in a timely manner.
   4. We inspect provi­ded chas­sis and compon­ents only for extern­ally visi­ble defects and obvious unsui­ta­bi­lity, unless a more exten­sive inspec­tion has been expressly agreed upon.
   5. We shall not be liable for defects, damage, delays, addi­tio­nal costs, tech­ni­cal adjus­t­ments, appr­oval issues, or func­tional impairm­ents attri­bu­ta­ble to charac­te­ristics, defects, pre-exis­ting damage, miss­ing appr­ovals, unsui­ta­ble speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, or modi­fi­ca­ti­ons to the chas­sis or other compon­ents provi­ded by the buyer, provi­ded that we are not respon­si­ble for these circum­s­tances.
   6. If a chas­sis or compo­nent provi­ded by the buyer proves to be unsui­ta­ble, incom­plete, defec­tive, or not available on time, we are entit­led to suspend work. The buyer shall bear any resul­ting addi­tio­nal costs, waiting times, storage costs, resche­du­ling costs, and other expen­ses to the extent that the buyer is respon­si­ble for the cause.
   7. As long as a chas­sis or other compon­ents provi­ded by the buyer remain in our posses­sion, the buyer is obli­ga­ted to insure them adequa­tely at its own expense against theft, fire, water damage, storm damage, vanda­lism, trans­port damage, and other property damage, unless expressly agreed other­wise.
   8. The buyer bears the risk of acci­den­tal loss and acci­den­tal dete­rio­ra­tion of provi­ded chas­sis and compon­ents, unless we are respon­si­ble for the damage.

   F Prices and Payment Terms
   1. The prices agreed upon in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing shall apply, plus any appli­ca­ble statu­tory value-added tax on the date of deli­very.
   2. Unless a fixed price has been expressly agreed upon, we reserve the right to make reasonable price adjus­t­ments due to chan­ges in labor, mate­rial, energy, freight, supplier, manu­fac­tu­rer, crane, chas­sis, body­work, customs, tax, or other procu­re­ment costs if deli­very or comple­tion is sche­du­led to take place more than three months after the conclu­sion of the contract.
   3. Payment shall be made exclu­si­vely by bank trans­fer to the busi­ness accounts desi­gna­ted by us.
   4. Cash discounts are permit­ted only if expressly agreed to in writing.
   5. We are entit­led to send invoices elec­tro­ni­cally.
   6. Unless other­wise agreed, the purchase price is due imme­dia­tely upon the item being made available for hando­ver, accep­tance, or deli­very.
   7. Even within the context of an ongo­ing busi­ness rela­ti­onship, we are entit­led to make a deli­very or provide a service, in whole or in part, only against advance payment or secu­rity. We shall declare such a reser­va­tion no later than upon our writ­ten confir­ma­tion of the purchase contract.
   8. We are entit­led to demand reasonable advance payments based on the progress of procu­re­ment, manu­fac­tu­ring, or the project.
   9. Unless a diffe­rent payment sche­dule is agreed upon in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing, the follo­wing payment sche­dule applies:
   a) If we deli­ver a complete vehicle (e.g., chas­sis, body, and/or crane): 50% of the gross order value upon conclu­sion of the contract, 30% of the gross order value upon provi­sion, orde­ring, or allo­ca­tion of the chas­sis or upon commence­ment of body­work, 20% of the gross order value prior to hando­ver, regis­tra­tion, accep­tance, or deli­very.
   b) If the buyer provi­des the chas­sis: 50% of the gross order value for the super­s­truc­ture, inte­gra­tion, and other services upon conclu­sion of the contract, 30% upon commence­ment of super­s­truc­ture, assem­bly, or inte­gra­tion work, and 20% prior to hando­ver, deli­very, accep­tance, or ship­ment of the vehicle.
   c) If indi­vi­dual compon­ents must be procu­red sepa­ra­tely: We are entit­led to demand, as an advance payment, all or part of the procu­re­ment costs requi­red for the chas­sis, crane, body, winches, plat­form, hydrau­lics, special parts, or other compon­ents prior to orde­ring or making a binding reser­va­tion for the respec­tive compo­nent.
   10. For commer­cial vehi­cles without custo­mer-speci­fic body­work or modi­fi­ca­ti­ons, the payment sche­dule set forth in Section F.9 applies only if it is expressly agreed upon in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing. In all other respects, Section F.6 applies.
   11. We are not obli­ga­ted to order, reserve, process, assem­ble, regis­ter, deli­ver, or release chas­sis, super­s­truc­tures, cranes, compon­ents, mate­ri­als, or other services until we have recei­ved in full all due advance payments or other due payments.
   12. Deli­very, comple­tion, and ship­ment dead­lines shall not commence until all payments due at the start of the dead­line have been recei­ved in full and the buyer has fulfil­led all neces­sary obli­ga­ti­ons to coope­rate.
   13. If the buyer defaults on a payment, deli­very, comple­tion, and ship­ment dead­lines shall be exten­ded by at least the dura­tion of the default plus a reasonable restart period.
   14. During the period of default, inte­rest shall accrue on outstan­ding amounts at the statu­tory default inte­rest rate. We reserve the right to claim further dama­ges.
   15. If, after the conclu­sion of the contract, it beco­mes appa­rent that our right to payment is at risk due to the buyer’s inabi­lity to pay—in parti­cu­lar in the event of late payment, a peti­tion for insol­vency, termi­na­tion of credit, dete­rio­ra­ted credit reports, or fail­ure to provide proof of financing—we are entit­led to refuse further perfor­mance, to demand advance payment or secu­rity, and to with­draw from the contract in accordance with statu­tory provi­si­ons.

   G Deli­very Time, Delayed Deli­very, and Supply from Suppli­ers
   1. Deli­very, comple­tion, assem­bly, accep­tance, and ship­ment dead­lines are binding only if we have expressly confirmed them in writing as binding. Other­wise, they are non-binding target dates.
   2. Agreed dead­lines are subject to correct and timely deli­very to us by chas­sis manu­fac­tu­r­ers, body manu­fac­tu­r­ers, crane manu­fac­tu­r­ers, compo­nent suppli­ers, tech­ni­cal services, govern­ment agen­cies, and other third parties, provi­ded that we have ente­red into a corre­spon­ding hedging tran­sac­tion and the delay is not attri­bu­ta­ble to us.
   3. Deli­very and comple­tion dead­lines shall commence no earlier than:
   a) receipt of the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing,
   b) receipt of all due advance payments,
   c) complete tech­ni­cal clari­fi­ca­tion,
   d) submis­sion of all requi­red docu­ments by the buyer,
   e) the provi­sion of any custo­mer chas­sis or other compon­ents,
   f) the gran­ting of neces­sary appr­ovals,
   g) the clari­fi­ca­tion of issues rele­vant to regis­tra­tion and permits.
   4. For commer­cial vehi­cles only, unless other­wise agreed, the deli­very period begins no earlier than upon receipt of the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing and receipt of any agreed down payment or advance payment.
   5. If, after the conclu­sion of the contract, the buyer chan­ges its order, tech­ni­cal speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, equip­ment, compon­ents, paint finish, lette­ring, inten­ded use, or other circum­s­tances rele­vant to the contract, any ongo­ing dead­lines shall be suspen­ded. They shall not resume until we have confirmed the change in writing and recei­ved any addi­tio­nal payments.
   6. We reserve the right to make chan­ges to design, work­man­ship, mate­ri­als, compon­ents, color, and shape, provi­ded that such chan­ges are tech­ni­cally neces­sary or appro­priate, are based on speci­fi­ca­ti­ons from manu­fac­tu­r­ers, autho­ri­ties, tech­ni­cal services, or suppli­ers, or do not signi­fi­cantly impair the utility value of the purcha­sed item.
   7. If we are unable to meet an agreed dead­line for reasons beyond our control, we will inform the buyer of this and provide a new esti­ma­ted dead­line.
   8. If deli­very or comple­tion beco­mes impos­si­ble or signi­fi­cantly impe­ded due to late supply from our own suppli­ers, supply chain disrup­ti­ons, force majeure, regu­la­tory delays, miss­ing permits, tech­ni­cal obsta­cles, strikes, lock­outs, war, embar­goes, energy shorta­ges, trans­por­ta­tion problems, cyber­at­tacks, pande­mics, or simi­lar circum­s­tances, we are entit­led to with­draw from the contract in whole or in part, provi­ded that we are not respon­si­ble for the circum­s­tances.
   9. Whether we, as the seller, are in default of deli­very is deter­mi­ned in accordance with statu­tory provi­si­ons. Howe­ver, a prere­qui­site for a default of deli­very on our part as the seller is a writ­ten demand for perfor­mance from the buyer, provi­ded that such a demand is not dispensable under statu­tory provi­si­ons. In the event of a delay in deli­very, the buyer may claim lump-sum compen­sa­tion for dama­ges resul­ting from the delay only after four full calen­dar weeks of the delay have elap­sed. Start­ing with the fifth full calen­dar week of the delay in deli­very, the flat-rate compen­sa­tion for each addi­tio­nal full calen­dar week shall amount to 0.5% of the net price of the delayed portion of the service, up to a maxi­mum total of 5% of the net price of that portion of the service. We reserve the right to provide evidence that the buyer has incur­red no dama­ges or only dama­ges less than the above-mentio­ned lump-sum amount. Any further rights of the buyer under these GTCSS and the appli­ca­ble statu­tory provi­si­ons remain unaf­fec­ted.

   H Deli­very, Trans­fer of Risk, Accep­tance, Default in Accep­tance
   1. Unless other­wise agreed, deli­very and trans­fer shall take place at our place of busi­ness or warehouse. This loca­tion shall also serve as the place of perfor­mance for deli­very and subse­quent perfor­mance.
   2. If the buyer requests ship­ment or trans­port to another loca­tion, the buyer shall bear the costs of trans­por­ta­tion, trans­fer, insu­rance, customs duties, taxes, and other expen­ses.
   3. The risk of acci­den­tal loss and acci­den­tal dete­rio­ra­tion passes to the buyer upon hando­ver, accep­tance, or default in accep­tance.
   4. In the case of ship­ment or trans­fer, the risk passes as soon as the goods are handed over to the freight forwar­der, carrier, trans­fer driver, or other trans­port agent.
   5. If accep­tance has been agreed upon, or if the vehicle is a manu­fac­tu­red, assem­bled, modi­fied, or custom-confi­gu­red vehicle, the buyer is obli­ga­ted to accept the purcha­sed item imme­dia­tely upon noti­fi­ca­tion of comple­tion.
   6. For commer­cial vehi­cles only, accep­tance shall take place only if it has been expressly agreed upon or is requi­red by law.
   7. The buyer may not refuse accep­tance due to minor defects.
   8. If the buyer fails to accept the purcha­sed item within seven calen­dar days of noti­fi­ca­tion of comple­tion or fails to pick it up, the buyer shall be in default of accep­tance, provi­ded that accep­tance or pickup is possi­ble and reasonable for the buyer.
   9. In the event of default of accep­tance, we are entit­led to charge storage costs, insu­rance costs, holding costs, inte­rest, and other addi­tio­nal expen­ses.
   10. In addi­tion, we are entit­led to demand lump-sum compen­sa­tion amoun­ting to 15% of the gross order value. The buyer reser­ves the right to prove that we have incur­red no damage or signi­fi­cantly less damage. We reserve the right to prove that the damage was grea­ter.
   11. With­hol­ding the purcha­sed goods due to outstan­ding claims, due advance payments, lack of secu­rity, or fail­ure by the buyer to coope­rate does not consti­tute a delay in deli­very on our part.

   I Certi­fi­ca­tion, Appr­ovals, Tech­ni­cal Inspec­tions, and Docu­men­ta­tion
   1. To the extent that regis­tra­ti­ons, indi­vi­dual inspec­tions, modi­fi­ca­ti­ons appr­ovals, type appr­ovals, multi-stage appr­ovals, tech­ni­cal inspec­tions, expert opini­ons, manu­fac­tu­rer appr­ovals, or offi­cial appr­ovals are requi­red for the purcha­sed item, the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing shall specify the services we are obli­ga­ted to provide.
   2. For commer­cial vehi­cles only, we are not obli­ga­ted to provide any regis­tra­tion, appr­oval, tech­ni­cal inspec­tion, or accep­tance beyond the exis­ting vehicle docu­ments and manu­fac­tu­rer docu­men­ta­tion, unless this has been expressly agreed upon.
   3. Unless expressly agreed other­wise, we are not obli­ga­ted to regis­ter the vehicle in the buyer’s name or to obtain any offi­cial appr­oval for a speci­fic loca­tion, coun­try, or special purpose.
   4. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to provide all docu­ments, infor­ma­tion, appr­ovals, powers of attor­ney, evidence, and details requi­red of them in a timely and complete manner.
   5. Delays, addi­tio­nal costs, or rejec­tions by autho­ri­ties, tech­ni­cal services, test­ing agen­cies, or manu­fac­tu­r­ers resul­ting from miss­ing, late, or inac­cu­rate infor­ma­tion provi­ded by the buyer shall be borne by the buyer.
   6. To the extent that regis­tra­ti­ons, accep­tances, or appr­ovals are compli­ca­ted by subse­quent custo­mer requests, custo­mer-supplied compon­ents, provi­ded chas­sis, or coun­try-speci­fic requi­re­ments, the buyer shall bear the resul­ting addi­tio­nal costs and delays.
   7. Opera­ting manu­als, main­ten­ance instruc­tions, manu­fac­tu­rer docu­men­ta­tion, test reports, confor­mity docu­ments, and other docu­men­ta­tion shall be provi­ded to the extent that they are custo­ma­rily made available by us or the respec­tive manu­fac­tu­r­ers, or as expressly agreed upon.

J Reten­tion of Title and Secu­rity Inte­rests
1. We reserve title to the deli­vered goods until full payment has been made for all of our current and future claims arising from the sales contract and any ongo­ing busi­ness rela­ti­onship (secu­red claims).
2. For the dura­tion of the reten­tion of title, we are entit­led to posses­sion of the Certi­fi­cate of Regis­tra­tion, Part II, or equi­va­lent vehicle docu­ments.

3. Until full payment of the secu­red claims has been made, the goods subject to reten­tion of title may neither be pled­ged to third parties nor trans­fer­red as secu­rity. The buyer must notify us in writing without delay in the event that a peti­tion for the commence­ment of insol­vency procee­dings is filed or in the event that third parties (e.g., through attach­ments) seize the purcha­sed goods belon­ging to us. To the extent that the third party is unable to reim­burse us for the judi­cial and extra­ju­di­cial costs of a lawsuit pursu­ant to Section 771 of the German Code of Civil Proce­dure (ZPO), the purcha­ser shall be liable for the loss incur­red by us.
   4. In the event of a breach of contract by the buyer, in parti­cu­lar fail­ure to pay the purchase price when due, we are entit­led, in accordance with statu­tory provi­si­ons, to rescind the contract and/or demand the return of the purcha­sed item based on the reten­tion of title. A demand for return does not simul­ta­neously consti­tute a decla­ra­tion of rescis­sion; rather, we are entit­led merely to demand the return of the purcha­sed item and to reserve the right to with­draw from the contract. In the event that the buyer fails to pay the purchase price due, we must have unsuc­cessfully set the buyer a reasonable dead­line for payment before asser­ting these rights. This applies only to the extent that setting such a dead­line is not dispensable under statu­tory provi­si­ons.
   5. Products crea­ted through the combi­na­tion, mixing, or proces­sing of our purcha­sed goods are subject to reten­tion of title for their full value, wher­eby we are deemed the manu­fac­tu­rer. In the event that the title of third parties to the purcha­sed goods is retai­ned upon combi­na­tion, mixing, or proces­sing with such goods, we shall acquire co-owner­ship in propor­tion to the invoice values of the combi­ned, mixed, or proces­sed purcha­sed goods. In all other respects, the same provi­si­ons apply to the resul­ting product as to the goods deli­vered under reten­tion of title. The buyer also assigns to us, for secu­rity purpo­ses, any claims against a third party arising from the combi­na­tion of the goods subject to reten­tion of title with real property. In this case, we accept the assign­ment.
   6. The buyer hereby assigns to us, as of this moment, in full or in the amount of our poten­tial co-owner­ship share pursu­ant to Section J. 5., for secu­rity purpo­ses, the claims against third parties arising from the resale of the purcha­sed item or the resul­ting product, in the amount of the final invoice amount agreed upon with us (inclu­ding value-added tax). We accept the assign­ment. The buyer’s obli­ga­ti­ons set forth in Section J. 3. also apply with respect to the assi­gned claims.
   7. The buyer remains autho­ri­zed, along­side us, to coll­ect the receiva­ble. As long as the buyer meets its payment obli­ga­ti­ons to us, there is no impair­ment of the buyer’s ability to pay, and we do not assert the reten­tion of title by exer­cis­ing a right under Section J, we under­take not to coll­ect the receiva­ble. If we exer­cise a right under Section J, we may require the buyer to disc­lose the assi­gned claims and their debtors, as well as to provide all infor­ma­tion neces­sary for coll­ec­tion, hand over the rele­vant docu­ments, and notify the debtors (third parties) of the assign­ment. Further­more, we are entit­led to revoke the buyer’s right to resell and to process the goods subject to reten­tion of title.
   8. In the event that the realizable value of the colla­te­ral exceeds our claims by more than 10%, we shall, at the buyer’s request, release colla­te­ral of our choice.
   9. To the extent that the buyer has provi­ded a chas­sis or other compon­ents, the buyer’s owner­ship thereof remains unaf­fec­ted. Howe­ver, with respect to our claims arising from body­work, modi­fi­ca­tion, assem­bly, inte­gra­tion, storage, trans­por­ta­tion, test­ing, prepa­ra­tion for regis­tra­tion, and other services, we are entit­led to a contrac­tual right of reten­tion as well as, to the extent permit­ted by law, a contractor’s lien on the items that have come into our posses­sion. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to inform third parties—in parti­cu­lar finan­cing banks, lessors, or secu­rity holders—of our secu­rity inte­rests, rights of reten­tion, and liens prior to the provi­sion of the chas­sis or other compon­ents, and to obtain the neces­sary cons­ents.
   10. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to treat the purcha­sed item with due care as long as owner­ship has not yet been trans­fer­red to the buyer. In parti­cu­lar, the buyer is obli­ga­ted to insure the item at its own expense against theft, fire, and water damage at repla­ce­ment value. If main­ten­ance and inspec­tion work must be perfor­med, the buyer must carry it out in a timely manner at its own expense.
   
   K With­dra­wal, Termi­na­tion, Cancel­la­tion
   1. A mutual termi­na­tion of the contract requi­res our consent.
   2. For commer­cial vehi­cles only, a flat-rate cancel­la­tion fee of 15% of the gross order value applies in the event of a mutual termi­na­tion of the contract, unless other­wise agreed. The buyer reser­ves the right to prove that no damage was incur­red or that the damage was signi­fi­cantly less. We reserve the right to prove that the damage was grea­ter.
   3. For custom-built special-purpose vehi­cles, special body­work, vehi­cles under our Diet­rich brand, or other project vehi­cles, the buyer may not cancel the contract without penalty.
   4. If a contract for a custom-built special-purpose vehicle, a special body, a vehicle under our Diet­rich brand, or any other project vehicle is resc­in­ded, cance­led, termi­na­ted, or rever­sed at the buyer’s request or for a reason attri­bu­ta­ble to the buyer, the buyer shall reim­burse all costs, expen­ses, and obli­ga­ti­ons incur­red up to that point. Reim­b­ursable items include, in parti­cu­lar: costs for chas­sis, costs for super­s­truc­tures, costs for cranes, costs for compon­ents and special parts, plan­ning and design costs, supplier and cancel­la­tion costs, dismant­ling and conver­sion costs, storage costs, trans­por­ta­tion costs, inte­rest costs, regis­tra­tion, test­ing, and apprai­sal costs, loss of value, redu­ced proceeds from alter­na­tive dispo­sal, and inter­nal project and proces­sing costs.
   5. In addi­tion, with respect to the contracts speci­fied in Section K.4, we are entit­led to claim a lump-sum mini­mum dama­ges amoun­ting to 20% of the net order value. The buyer reser­ves the right to prove that no dama­ges were incur­red or that the dama­ges were signi­fi­cantly lower. We reserve the right to prove that the dama­ges were higher.
   6. If the buyer defaults on a payment, an act of coope­ra­tion, an appr­oval, the provi­sion of mate­ri­als, or any other mate­rial contrac­tual obli­ga­tion, we are entit­led to suspend further perfor­mance of the contract.
   7. Upon the fruit­less expi­ra­tion of a reasonable grace period, we are entit­led to rescind the contract and claim dama­ges.
   8. The buyer’s right to termi­nate the contract pursu­ant to § 648 BGB is excluded to the extent permit­ted by law. In all other respects, the statu­tory requi­re­ments and legal conse­quen­ces apply.

L Buyer’s Claims for Defects
1. Unless other­wise speci­fied below, the statu­tory provi­si­ons apply to the buyer’s rights in the event of mate­rial defects and defects of title.
2. Our liabi­lity for defects is based exclu­si­vely on the agreed quality as set forth in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing and in the tech­ni­cal appen­di­ces expressly incor­po­ra­ted ther­ein.
3. For commer­cial vehi­cles only, the quality to be provi­ded is limi­ted to the vehicle speci­fied in the purchase agree­ment confirmed by us in writing, inclu­ding the expressly agreed-upon equip­ment and quality.
4. For chas­sis, cranes, winches, hydrau­lic, elec­tri­cal, elec­tro­nic, control, and other third-party compon­ents, the tech­ni­cal speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, opera­ting instruc­tions, main­ten­ance requi­re­ments, and warranty terms of the respec­tive manu­fac­tu­r­ers shall apply in addi­tion.
5. Warran­ties are valid only if they are expressly provi­ded in writing.
6. Manu­fac­tu­rer warran­ties for chas­sis, cranes, or other third-party compon­ents are provi­ded exclu­si­vely by the respec­tive manu­fac­tu­rer in accordance with its warranty terms.
7. Manu­fac­tu­rer warran­ties do not consti­tute a warranty on our part, unless we have expressly desi­gna­ted them as such.
8. We are not liable for defects that the buyer is aware of at the time the contract is concluded or fails to reco­gnize due to gross negli­gence.
9. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to inspect the purcha­sed item imme­dia­tely upon deli­very, hando­ver, or accep­tance.
10. Obvious defects must be repor­ted imme­dia­tely, no later than within seven calen­dar days, in writing or in text form.
11. The statu­tory obli­ga­ti­ons to inspect and give notice of defects pursu­ant to Sections 377 and 381 of the German Commer­cial Code (HGB) remain unaf­fec­ted.
12. Defects attri­bu­ta­ble to unsui­ta­ble or defec­tive custo­mer chas­sis, compon­ents provi­ded by the custo­mer, custo­mer speci­fi­ca­ti­ons, subse­quent modi­fi­ca­ti­ons by the buyer or third parties, impro­per use, over­loa­ding, incor­rect opera­tion, fail­ure to perform main­ten­ance, use contrary to the inten­ded purpose, or normal wear and tear do not give rise to any claims for defects against us.
13. In the event of justi­fied complaints regar­ding defects, we are entit­led, at our discre­tion, to either repair the goods or provide a repla­ce­ment. The buyer must grant us the time and oppor­tu­nity neces­sary for subse­quent perfor­mance. Subse­quent perfor­mance shall gene­rally take place at our place of busi­ness or at a loca­tion desi­gna­ted by us.
14. Trans­por­ta­tion, trans­fer, person­nel, and travel costs incur­red because the purcha­sed item was moved to a loca­tion other than the place of perfor­mance shall be borne by the buyer, provi­ded that the move did not corre­spond to the item’s inten­ded use or was not coor­di­na­ted with us.
15. If the remedy fails or is unre­asonable for the buyer, the buyer may reduce the purchase price or rescind the contract in accordance with statu­tory provi­si­ons.
16. Rescis­sion is excluded in the case of minor defects.
17. Claims for defects are subject to a statute of limi­ta­ti­ons of twelve months from the date of deli­very, accep­tance, or the occur­rence of a delay in accep­tance.
18. The shor­tened statute of limi­ta­ti­ons does not apply to dama­ges resul­ting from injury to life, limb, or health; in cases of willful miscon­duct, gross negli­gence, fraud, the assump­tion of a warranty, or manda­tory statu­tory liabi­lity.
19. Claims under the Product Liabi­lity Act remain unaf­fec­ted.

M Rights of Reten­tion
1. The buyer is entit­led to rights of set-off or reten­tion only if the buyer’s claim has been legally estab­lished or is undis­pu­ted, and the buyer’s coun­ter­claim is based on the same contrac­tual rela­ti­onship.
2. The buyer may not with­hold all due payments on account of minor defects.
3. A right of reten­tion exists only to the extent reason­ably propor­tio­nate to the defect asser­ted.

N Use, Main­ten­ance, and Opera­tion
1. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to use the purcha­sed item in accordance with its inten­ded purpose, in a profes­sio­nal manner, and in compli­ance with tech­ni­cal, legal, and regu­la­tory requi­re­ments.
2. In parti­cu­lar, the buyer must comply with permis­si­ble gross weights, axle loads, support loads, crane load charts, opera­ting instruc­tions, main­ten­ance inter­vals, inspec­tion requi­re­ments, load secu­ring regu­la­ti­ons, occu­pa­tio­nal safety regu­la­ti­ons, and other legal requi­re­ments.
3. Main­ten­ance, test­ing, upkeep, and inspec­tion work must be perfor­med in a timely and profes­sio­nal manner.
4. If such measu­res are not taken, claims for defects shall only exist to the extent that the buyer proves that the defect is not attri­bu­ta­ble to this fail­ure.
5. Modi­fi­ca­ti­ons, altera­ti­ons, soft­ware inter­ven­ti­ons, and inter­ven­ti­ons in the hydrau­lic, elec­tri­cal, or control systems, the crane, the super­s­truc­ture, or safety devices may only be carried out with our prior consent or in accordance with the speci­fi­ca­ti­ons of the respec­tive manu­fac­tu­rer.
6. In the event of unaut­ho­ri­zed modi­fi­ca­ti­ons, claims for defects shall be void to the extent that the defect is attri­bu­ta­ble to such modi­fi­ca­ti­ons.

O Other Liabi­lity
1. Unless other­wise provi­ded in these GTCSS, inclu­ding the follo­wing provi­si­ons, we are liable for brea­ches of contrac­tual and non-contrac­tual obli­ga­ti­ons in accordance with statu­tory provi­si­ons.
2. Under fault-based liabi­lity, regard­less of the legal basis, we are liable for dama­ges only in cases of willful miscon­duct and gross negli­gence. In cases of simple negli­gence, subject to statu­tory limi­ta­ti­ons on liabi­lity (e.g., due care in one’s own affairs; minor breach of duty), we are liable only:
a. for dama­ges resul­ting from injury to life, limb, or health.
b. for dama­ges resul­ting from a breach of a mate­rial contrac­tual obli­ga­tion (obli­ga­ti­ons whose fulfill­ment is essen­tial for the proper perfor­mance of the contract and on whose compli­ance the contrac­ting party relies and is entit­led to rely). In such cases, howe­ver, our liabi­lity is limi­ted to compen­sa­tion for fore­seeable, typi­cally occur­ring dama­ges.
3. The limi­ta­ti­ons of liabi­lity set forth in Section O.2 also apply to third parties and in cases of brea­ches of duty by persons for whose fault we are liable under statu­tory provi­si­ons. To the extent that a defect was frau­du­lently concea­led and a warranty regar­ding the quality of the goods was assu­med, the limi­ta­ti­ons of liabi­lity shall not apply. This also applies to claims by the buyer under the Product Liabi­lity Act.
4. The buyer may rescind the contract or termi­nate it due to a breach of obli­ga­tion that does not result from a defect only if we, as the seller, are respon­si­ble for the breach.
5. The buyer’s right to termi­nate the contract (in parti­cu­lar pursu­ant to Sections 650 and 648 of the German Civil Code (BGB)) is excluded. In all other respects, the statu­tory requi­re­ments and legal conse­quen­ces apply.
6. The buyer is obli­ga­ted to first file a claim with their insu­rance provi­der for any damage that is or would be covered by an insu­rance policy main­tai­ned by the buyer. To the extent that dama­ges are compen­sa­ted by such insu­rance or would have been compen­sa­ted had the insu­rance been properly main­tai­ned and the terms and condi­ti­ons complied with, our liabi­lity is limi­ted to the remai­ning and demons­tra­ble losses incur­red by the buyer, in parti­cu­lar an agreed deduc­ti­ble as well as demons­tra­ble addi­tio­nal premium char­ges. If an insu­rance bene­fit is not paid or is redu­ced for reasons falling within the buyer’s sphere of respon­si­bi­lity or risk, we shall be liable only to the extent that the buyer would have been liable had the insu­rance been in force and properly main­tai­ned. The fore­go­ing provi­si­ons do not apply in the event of an inten­tio­nal breach of duty or a breach of duty due to gross negli­gence on the part of our legal repre­sen­ta­ti­ves, nor in the event of dama­ges resul­ting from injury to life, limb, or health, or in cases of manda­tory statu­tory liabi­lity.

P Choice of Law and Juris­dic­tion
1. These Gene­ral Terms and Condi­ti­ons of Sale and the contrac­tual rela­ti­onship between us and the buyer are gover­ned by the laws of the Fede­ral Repu­blic of Germany, to the exclu­sion of inter­na­tio­nal uniform law, in parti­cu­lar the United Nati­ons Conven­tion on Contracts for the Inter­na­tio­nal Sale of Goods.
2. If the buyer is a merchant within the meaning of the German Commer­cial Code (Handels­ge­setz­buch), a legal entity under public law, or a special fund under public law, our regis­tered office at An der Sieg­tal­brü­cke 16, 57080 Siegen shall be the exclu­sive and inter­na­tio­nal venue for all dispu­tes arising directly or indi­rectly from the contrac­tual rela­ti­onship. The same applies if the buyer is an entre­pre­neur within the meaning of Section 14 of the German Civil Code (BGB).
3. We are also entit­led to file a lawsuit at the place of perfor­mance of the deli­very obli­ga­tion in accordance with these GTCSS or a prior indi­vi­dual agree­ment, or at the buyer’s gene­ral place of juris­dic­tion. This does not affect any over­ri­ding statu­tory provi­si­ons (exclu­sive places of juris­dic­tion).

GTCSS — Diet­rich GmbH — commer­cial – Special Trucks — Release 01.10.2026