Complaints Regulations Orechini, s.r.o.

  1. Introductory provisions
  1. Liability for defects in goods sold
    • The trader shall be liable for defects in the sold item at the time of delivery which manifest themselves within two years from the delivery of the item (§ 619 (1) of the Civil Code, § 613 (2) and (3) of the Civil Code),.
    • In the case of items sold for a lower price due to a defect, the trader is liable for the defects that the sold item has at the time of its delivery and which manifest themselves within two years from the delivery of the item, except for the defect for which a lower price was agreed (§ 619 (1) of the Civil Code).
    • In the case of second-hand goods, the trader is liable for defects in the sold item at the time of its delivery, which become apparent within one year of delivery (Art.619(1) and (3) of the Civil Code).
    • If the trader offers the consumer, when purchasing the goods, additional goods as a free gift in addition to the goods sold, it is up to the consumer whether to accept the gift offered. However, the gift is not the goods sold and the trader is therefore not liable for any defects. However, if the trader is aware of any defects in the gift, he is obliged to draw the consumer's attention to them when offering the gift (Section 629 of the Civil Code). If the gift has defects which the trader has not warned the consumer about, the consumer is entitled to return it (Art. 629 of the Civil Code). If the consumer has the right to withdraw from the contract of sale (refund), the consumer is obliged to return to the trader everything he received under the contract and also what he received from the gift contract as a dependent contract from the contract of sale, i.e. also the goods received as a gift (§ 457 of the Civil Code in conjunction with § 48(2) and § 52a(2), second sentence, of the Civil Code).
  2. Exercise of liability for defects (claims)
    • The consumer may complain about the defect of the sold item at the trader's establishment with another person, about whom the trader informed the consumer before the conclusion of the contract or before sending the order, or by means of remote communication at the address of the trader's registered office or place of business or at another address, about which the trader informed the consumer when concluding the contract or after the conclusion of the contract (Section 622(1) of the Civil Code).
    • The consumer may exercise the rights under liability for defects, including the right to refuse to pay the purchase price or part thereof, until the trader has fulfilled the obligations arising from liability for defects only if he has pointed out the defect within two months of discovering the defect, at the latest until the expiry of the period according to points 2.1. to 2.3. of the Complaints Procedure (warranty period). The right to refuse to pay the purchase price or part thereof pursuant to the preceding sentence shall only be granted to the consumer if the consumer himself is not in default in the payment of the purchase price or part thereof at the time of the defect, whereby the consumer shall pay the purchase price without undue delay after the fulfilment of the obligations by the trader. (Article 621(2) and (3) of the Civil Code).
    • The consumer shall be entitled to compensation from the trader for the costs reasonably incurred by the consumer in connection with alleging a defect for which the trader is liable and asserting liability rights for the defect. The consumer must exercise the right under the preceding sentence with the trader within two months of the delivery of the repaired or replacement item, the payment of a price discount or the refund of the price after withdrawal from the contract, otherwise the right shall lapse.
    • The trader shall provide the consumer with a written confirmation of the defect immediately after the defect has been pointed out by the consumer. The trader shall indicate in the acknowledgement of the defect a reasonable period within which the defect shall be rectified. The period notified under the preceding sentence may not be longer than 30 days from the date on which the defect was pointed out, unless a longer period is justified by an objective reason beyond the trader's control (Section 622(3) of the Civil Code). If the trader refuses liability for defects, he shall notify the consumer in writing of the reasons for the refusal. If the consumer proves the liability of the trader for the defect by an expert opinion or a professional opinion issued by an accredited person, an authorised person or a notified person, he may repetitively criticise the defect and the trader cannot refuse liability for the defect, in which case the procedure under the first sentence of this point does not apply to the repetitive criticism of the defect (§ 622 paragraph 4 of the Civil Code).
    • If the liability of the trader for the defect is proven according to point 3.4 of the Complaints Procedure, the consumer has the right to claim from the trader the right to reimbursement of the costs associated with the expert opinion and the expert opinion no later than within two months from the delivery of the repaired or replacement item, payment of a price discount or refund of the price after withdrawal from the contract, otherwise the right shall expire.
    • The written confirmation of the defect is a copy of the complaint report. If the consumer has made a claim by means of remote communication, the trader is obliged to deliver the confirmation of the claim to the consumer without undue delay by e-mail, if known to the consumer.
    • In the event that the consumer inquires about the method of handling the complaint, the trader shall provide the consumer with information about the method and status of the complaint. In accordance with the trader's pro-customer approach, the trader shall always provide the customer with the necessary assistance to ensure that his complaint is dealt with to the consumer's satisfaction in an orderly and timely manner.
    • The trader shall issue a written document of the complaint settlement, which is a copy of the complaint report with a filled-in box of the complaint settlement or a letter containing a written notification of the complaint settlement.
    • Even after the consumer has exercised his rights under liability for defects, he still has the right to compensation for the damage caused by the defect (§ 621(4) of the Civil Code).
  3. General conditions of complaint
    • When exercising the rights of liability for defects with the trader, the consumer is obliged to:
  4. present a proof of purchase or prove in any other way beyond doubt that the goods were purchased from the trader,
  5. ensure that the goods meet all other conditions for a warranty claim (physically undamaged, undamaged by an act of God, seals intact, etc.),
  6. to provide assistance in the completion of the complaint report by an authorised employee of the trader and to express his/her agreement with its contents by signing it.
  7. Method of complaint handling
    • The consumer has the right to choose to remove the defect by replacing the item or repairing the item. The consumer may not choose a method of removing the defect which is not possible or which would cause disproportionate costs to the trader in comparison with the other method of removing the defect, taking into account all the circumstances, in particular the value which the item would have without the defect, the seriousness of the defect and whether the other method of removing the defect would cause the trader considerable difficulties (Art.623(1) of the Civil Code).
    • The trader may refuse to remedy a defect if repair or replacement is not possible or would involve disproportionate costs having regard to all the circumstances, including those set out in 5.1 of the Complaints Procedure.
    • The trader shall repair or replace the item within a reasonable period, not exceeding 30 days, after the consumer has pointed out the defect, free of charge, at his own expense and without causing serious inconvenience to the consumer, taking into account the nature of the item and the purpose for which the consumer requested the item. The costs of taking the item for repair or replacement, as well as the costs of delivering the repaired item or replacement item, shall be borne by the trader. Where a defect is remedied by replacement, the trader shall not be entitled to compensation for damage caused by normal wear and tear and to remuneration for the normal use of the item before its replacement.
    • The trader shall deliver the repaired item or a replacement item to the consumer in the same or similar manner in which the consumer delivered the defective item to the trader, unless the parties agree otherwise. If the consumer does not take delivery of the item within six months of the date on which he should have taken delivery of it, the trader may sell the item. If the item is of greater value, the trader shall give the consumer advance notice of the intended sale and a reasonable additional period of time to take possession of the item. The trader shall, immediately after the sale, pay to the consumer the proceeds of the sale of the item after deducting the costs reasonably incurred by the trader in storing and selling the item, if the consumer exercises the right to a share of the proceeds within a reasonable period of time specified by the trader in the notice of the intended sale of the item. The trader may destroy the item at his own expense if it has not been sold or if the anticipated proceeds from the sale will not be sufficient even to cover the costs which the trader has reasonably incurred for the safekeeping of the item and the costs which the trader would necessarily have to incur for its sale (Art. 623(5) of the Civil Code).
    • The consumer has the right to a reasonable discount on the purchase price or may withdraw from the purchase contract without giving an additional reasonable period of time if

 

  1. The merchant did not repair or replace the item,
  2. the trader did not repair or replace the item in accordance with Article 623(4) and (6) of the Civil Code,
  3. the trader has refused to remedy the defect if repair or replacement is not possible or would involve disproportionate costs in all the circumstances,
  4. the item has the same defect despite the repair or replacement of the item,
  5. the defect is of such a serious nature as to justify an immediate reduction in the purchase price or withdrawal from the contract of sale; or
  6. the trader has declared or it is apparent from the circumstances that he will not remedy the defect within a reasonable time or without causing serious inconvenience to the consumer.
    • The consumer may not withdraw from the contract of sale pursuant to point 5.5 if the consumer has contributed to the defect or if the defect is insignificant. The burden of proving that the consumer has contributed to the defect and that the defect is negligible shall be on the trader.
    • If the contract concerns the purchase of several items, the consumer may only withdraw from the contract in relation to the defective item. In relation to the other items, he may only withdraw from the contract if he cannot reasonably be expected to have an interest in keeping the other items without the defective item.
    • The consumer, after withdrawing from the contract or part of it, returns the item to the trader at the trader's expense. After withdrawal from the contract, the trader shall refund the purchase price to the consumer no later than 14 days from the date of return of the item to the trader or upon proof that the consumer has sent the item to the trader, whichever is earlier. The trader shall refund the purchase price to the consumer or pay him a discount on the purchase price in the same way as the consumer used when paying the purchase price, unless the consumer expressly agrees to a different method of payment. All costs associated with the payment shall be borne by the trader. The trader shall not be entitled to compensation for damage caused by normal wear and tear of the item and to remuneration for the normal use of the item prior to withdrawal from the contract of sale.
    • If gifts are provided with the goods (including goods supplied at a nominal value if their delivery is presented to the consumer as a gift with the goods, which the consumer may return within 14 days without giving a reason), the consumer is obliged to return the related gifts provided together with the returned goods. In the event that these gifts are not returned with the returned goods, these gifts at their market value will be considered as unjustified enrichment of the consumer. This point does not apply in the case of a gift which takes the form of electronic content.
  7. Alternative dispute resolution
    • In the event that a dispute arises between the consumer and the trader arising from the exercise of liability for defects or if the consumer believes that the trader has infringed other consumer rights, the consumer has the right to apply to the trader for redress. If the trader replies in the negative, he shall inform the consumer of the relevant alternative dispute resolution bodies. If the trader responds to the consumer's request under the first sentence of this point in a negative manner or fails to respond to such a request within 30 days from the date of its dispatch by the consumer, the consumer shall have the right to file a petition for the initiation of an alternative dispute resolution pursuant to the provisions of Section 12 of Act No. 391/2015 Coll. The possibility to apply to the court is not affected.
    • If the consumer was not satisfied with the handling of the complaint by the trader or if the consumer contacted the trader with a request for redress and was not satisfied with the manner in which the trader handled his complaint or if the consumer believes that the trader has violated his rights, the consumer has the right to contact the trader with a request for redress. If the trader refuses such a request or fails to respond within 30 days from the date of dispatch of the request, the consumer has the right to bring an application for alternative dispute resolution before an alternative dispute resolution body. The competent body for alternative dispute resolution of consumer disputes with a trader is:

  1. Slovak Trade Inspection (SOI) Inspectorate SOI for the Bratislava Region, Bajkalská 21/A, P.O.BOX No. 5, 820 07 Bratislava, tel. 02/58 27 21 72
  2. or another competent authorised legal entity registered in the list of alternative dispute resolution entities maintained by the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic (the list is available at https://www.mhsr.sk/obchod/ochrana-spotrebitela/alternativne-riesenie-spotrebitelskych-sporov-1/zoznam-subjektov-alternativneho-riesenia-spotrebitelskych-sporov-1).