Shopmat General Terms and Conditions of Sale
1. DEFINITIONS
1.1. The Vendor is the PLC SHOPMAT, having its registered office at Rue d'acoz154,6200 Châtelet and of which the business identification number is BE 0650.933.346 – e-mail: info@shopmat.be.
1.2. The Buyer is any person or entity which places an order with the Vendor via the Website www.shopmat.be (hereafter referred to as the "Website") and which is physically based in Belgium or the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
1.3. The General Terms and Conditions are those contained in the present text.
2. GENERAL
2.1. The purpose of these General Terms and Conditions is to define the terms and conditions under which the Vendor sells its products and provides its services. They apply to all agreements reached between the Vendor and the Buyer, as well as to all business relations between these two parties.
2.2. The Buyer expressly acknowledges that he/she/it has read the General Terms and Conditions which have been communicated to him/her/it (via a hypertext link, a PDF file or any other means) by the Vendor during the offer of sale, and that he/she/it accepts them, to the exception of all others. All of the General Terms and Conditions shall remain applicable throughout the duration of the contractual relationship and developments thereof.
2.3. The acceptance of conditions that run contrary to the General Terms and Conditions can result only from an express, written agreement between the parties. Furthermore, anything which is not expressly stipulated in contrary conditions which have been expressly accepted by the Vendor shall remain governed by these General Terms and Conditions.
3. CONCLUSION OF THE CONTRACT
3.1. To place any order via the Website, the Buyer is required to first identify him/her/itself. To this end, the Buyer shall complete a form, in accordance with the instructions provided online, in which they shall provide the necessary information for identification, such as last name, first name, telephone number, mailing address, e-mail address, and billing and delivery address. All information shall be presented to the Buyer in French, English and Dutch.
3.2. The Buyer who has chosen products or services presented shall definitively confirm the order by clicking on the "Confirm order" button to indicate its commitment to and acceptance of the General Terms and Conditions. At that point, the order is recorded and an order number is sent to the Buyer, as well as confirmation provided onscreen and/or via e-mail. The data recorded by the Vendor shall constitute proof of the nature, contents and date of the order.
3.3. The Vendor reserves the right to refuse any order from a Buyer with which an outstanding dispute exists. In such a case, it shall notify the Buyer as soon as possible by e-mail.
3.4. The contract between the Vendor and the Buyer is considered to have been concluded at the Vendor's registered office, i.e. the location where acceptance of the offer is received.
4. VENDOR'S PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
4.1. The products and services offered for sale by the Vendor are listed on the Website. The Vendor reserves the right to modify this Website as well as the products and services offered at any time.
4.2. The products are offered for sale until stocks are exhausted. For products which are not in stock in the Vendor's warehouses, offers shall be valid subject to availability with the latter's suppliers. If an order is placed for an unavailable product, the Buyer shall be notified as soon as possible via his/her/its customer account, which is accessible on the Website, and/or by e-mail.
5. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
5.1. The Website is the Vendor's exclusive property, as are all the rights pertaining thereto.
5.2. Any full or partial reproduction is systematically subject to the Vendor's authorisation. However, hypertext-type links to the Website are permitted without any specific request.
6. BUYER'S GENERAL OBLIGATIONS
6.1. The Buyer hereby agrees to provide any information of use to the Vendor and is solely responsible for its accuracy. The Vendor shall under no circumstances be responsible for the information communicated by the Buyer or for any damages that may result therefrom. The Buyer shall reimburse the Vendor for all expenses pertaining to any damages resulting, directly or indirectly, from incorrect information provided by the Buyer.
6.2. The Buyer hereby agrees to maintain valid e-mail and postal addresses and to notify the Vendor of any changes to his/her/its contact details or legal status.
6.3. The Buyer guaranties that he/she/it has all necessary rights and/or authorisations to place an order.
7. VENDOR'S OFFERS AND PRICES FOR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
7.1. The Vendor's offers are made without commitment and may be revised at any time without advance notice.
The Vendor thus reserves the right to change its prices at any time without advance notice. The products and services shall be invoiced for on the basis of the prices applicable at the time of confirmation by payment of each order.
7.2. Unless expressly stipulated otherwise, the sales prices are specified exclusive of taxes. Any new fiscal, customs or transport expense that might increase the price indicated during processing of a transaction or an order shall be added to the agreed price (the Buyer is aware that VAT also applies to these taxes).
Insofar as possible, the taxes and fees shall be listed on the Website, although the Vendor does not guarantee the exhaustiveness, up-to-date character or accuracy of this information.
7.3. The price indicated in the order confirmation is the definitive price, inclusive of all taxes. In particular, this price includes the price of the products or services, handling and packing costs for the products, plus transport and delivery costs.
7.4. The Vendor cannot be held responsible in the event of computer problems of any nature that, without its knowledge, modify the price of one or more items and/or the order. The Vendor thus reserves the right to cancel an order if the amount does not correspond to the normally defined prices for the products or services and/or delivery costs.
8. DELIVERY
8.1. When placing their order, the Buyer agrees to specify an address located in Belgium or the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, at which delivery may be made during regular business hours.
In the event of absence during delivery, the carrier shall leave a notice of attempted delivery specifying pick-up at the Post Office OR with a view to a second attempted delivery.
8.2. Delivery shall be made at the address specified by the Buyer when placing the order. It may be made only after the order has been validated and payment has been made in full in compliance with Article 10 of these General Terms and Conditions.
Delivery costs shall be calculated according to the price of the goods to be delivered and may be consulted at any time in the delivery conditions.
8.3. The quantities delivered shall necessarily correspond to the standard packaging quantities, which are known to the Buyer.
8.4. Unless stated otherwise, the products are delivered at the Buyer's expense and risk from the moment they leave the Vendor's warehouses, regardless of the mode of transport.
8.5. The Buyer shall benefit from a period of fourteen (14) business days from the order’s delivery date in which to return unsuitable products.
In the event of the Buyer exercising his/her/its right to cancel, the return shall take place at the Buyer's sole expense and under his/her/its sole responsibility. Any risk associated with the return of the product (deterioration, breakage, theft, etc.) shall be the Buyer's sole responsibility. The full procedure for returns is available on the Website in the "Returns and Warranty" tab.
8.6. Upon delivery, the Buyer should check the good condition of the products and, in the event of visible damage or missing products being detected, shall specify any reservations on the delivery note.
Nevertheless, in the event of non-visible damage at delivery, any claim concerning quantities or quality shall only be admissible if the claim is made within forty-eight (48) hours of receipt of the package. Furthermore, all claims must be made by registered letter, complete with all supporting documentation attesting to the alleged flaws (particularly photos).
8.7. In the event of flaws with the delivered product, the Vendor's warranty shall be limited, regardless of the consequences of this defect, to the price of the product.
Within the limits laid down by the applicable legislation, the Vendor shall not be liable for any other damage, whether incurred by the Buyer or by any third party, even in the case of bodily damage.
8.8. The delivery times are provided by the Vendor for information only and do not commit the Vendor in any restrictive manner.
These times shall be during regular business hours, except in cases of routing problems and depending on product availability.
No product delivery delay can result in the cancellation of the order or give rise to any compensation.
Furthermore, in cases of force majeure or related events such as adverse weather, strikes, interruption, disturbances or difficulties with transportation or supply, accidental production stoppage, any economic troubles or any cause that places the Vendor in a situation where it is impossible or very difficult to fulfil its obligations, the delivery process shall be automatically suspended and the delivery deadline extended. Furthermore, the Vendor shall be released from all liability.
8.9. The Vendor cannot under any circumstances be held responsible for shipping delays caused by the carrier. As such, no compensation or reimbursement may be requested from the Vendor in case of a delay due exclusively to the carrier's failure.
8.10. Orders may be delivered anywhere in Belgium and Luxembourg.
8.11. Any order cancellation accepted by the Vendor, irrespective of the reason, shall give rise to reimbursement only of the sums actually paid. No compensation may be sought pertaining to this cancellation.
9. SPECIFIC CONDITIONS CONCERNING USE OF THE WEBSITE
9.1. The use of the Website implies acceptance of the General Terms and Conditions.
9.2. The Vendor does not guarantee that the external appearance of products that ordered from the Website corresponds exactly to that of the products shown in the photos posted on the Website.
9.3. The passwords and user names (referred to together as "the Codes"), issued to the Buyer placing orders via the Website, are strictly personal. The Buyer is responsible for the use made of his/her/its Codes. Any order placed using a Buyer's Codes cannot be cancelled unless specific provisions are made in this regard within this document. If there is any suspicion that the confidentiality of his/her/its Codes has been breached, the Buyer shall immediately notify the Vendor so that the appropriate measures may be taken.
9.4. The Vendor declines any responsibility in the event of damage caused to the Buyer or to his/her/its computer system following use of the Internet ordering system.
10. INVOICING AND PAYMENT CONDITIONS
10.1. The Vendor's invoices, including down payments, shall be payable at the time of ordering by bank card.
10.2. The Buyer agrees to receive invoices by electronic means only.
11. PERSONAL DATA AND PRIVACY
11.1. In compliance with the law of 8 December 1992 pertaining to privacy protection as regards the processing of personal data, the personal data of the Vendor's Buyers (information provided by the Buyer, e-mail address, IP address, etc.) is included in the Vendor's databases and is processed: with a view to customer management (e.g. the issue, collection and verification of invoices, during e-mail exchanges as part of the contractual relationship or in the event of dispute), the performance of market studies, with a view to the contract’s fulfilment and with a view to completing informational or promotional operations on the Vendor's products or services. The Buyer accepts that the Vendor may send the Buyer promotions, in particular, coming from the Vendor's suppliers. Under no circumstances may the Vendor be held responsible for the legality and proper performance of said promotions.
11.2. A Buyer who does not wish to be solicited by the Vendor as part of marketing actions may ask to be removed, free of charge, from its mailing list by submitting a request (to info@shopmat.be).
11.3. Upon proof of identity, the Buyer may obtain from the Vendor, free of charge, by means of a dated and signed written request, the communication of his/her/its personal data as well as, if applicable, the rectification of any data that might be inexact, incomplete or irrelevant.
12. TERMINATION CLAUSE
12.1. In the event of non-fulfilment by the Buyer of the obligations stipulated in this document or in any other contract signed with the Vendor, the Vendor shall have the right to terminate the contract, with the consequences of said termination being borne by the Buyer, without prejudice to the Vendor's right to claim compensation.
Furthermore, all other outstanding sums, as well as bills of exchange still outstanding and recovery costs, shall become immediately due.
12.2. Without prejudice to claims for damages and interest, any valid agreement reached by the Vendor and Buyer may be terminated as of right in cases of insolvency (cessation of payments, poor credit, major financial difficulties, etc.), bankruptcy proceedings or any similar or comparable proceedings involving one of the parties, or an interruption to the business activity of either party. The contract may be terminated with immediate effect and without prior formal notice by means of simple notification sent by the other party.
13. MISCELLANEOUS CLAUSES
13.1. The Vendor declines any liability in the event of products or services provided by it on the basis of the Buyer's data being covered by a patent, registered design or any other form of intellectual property.
13.2. If one of the clauses of the present contract is declared null and void, this shall not affect the validity of the other clauses.
13.3. The General Terms and Conditions may be amended at any time by the Vendor. They shall be applicable to all orders placed once the Buyer has been notified of the new general terms and conditions or, for orders placed on the Website, after their posting on the Website.
14. DISPUTES AND APPLICABLE LAW
14.1. In the event of any dispute, the Courts of the Charleroi district shall have sole jurisdiction.
14.2. These General Terms and Conditions are governed by Belgian law.
14.3. In case of an extrajudicial arrangement of the dispute the Ombudsman Service for Consumers by the FOD Economics is competent to receive every request for extrajudicial arrangement of consumer disputes. The Service will either treat the request or transfer it to the qualified entity. You can reach the Consumer Service through the following link: http://www.consumerombudsman.be/en
For disputes of a transboundary nature you can call on the Online Dispute Resolution platform of the European Union through this link: http://ec.europa.eu/odr