I – Scope of validity and service provision

I.1 – These General Terms and Conditions (GTC) govern the conclusion, content and processing of contracts between the European Federation of Churches of Christ (hereinafter referred to as “EFCC”) and its customers (hereinafter referred to as the “Customer”) in connection with the sale of goods or services via their website pages (hereinafter referred to as “thefederation.eu”). Services can be, but not limited to, registration to an event organized by EFCC, use of a tool developed or proposed by the EFCC, or get work time from a consultant or an employee of the EFCC.

I.2 – If goods or services are offered in thefederation.eu by third parties, the Customer’s purchase contract is concluded directly with the respective supplier. In such cases, the responsibility of EFCC is limited to organizing the conclusion of the contract and the transportation of the goods on behalf of the individual supplier. The sales or servicing offers of the third party suppliers are based on their individual delivery terms and conditions. Unless governed by other regulations, the following principles apply as the basis for processing the individual sales transactions.

I.3 – These GTC and the principles that apply to the respective purchase transaction and the framework conditions of the individual goods or servicing suppliers are deemed to have been approved upon acceptance of the purchase order by the Customer.

I.4 – EFCC will provide such services as permitted by its operating resources and will take all reasonable and economically and technically feasible measures to safeguard its data and services. EFCC may transfer the provision of services to third parties.

II – Sales offer

II.1 – The sales offers are published by EFCC on thefederation.eu, and the respective goods or service provider is indicated. Any deviation from the published offer is possible and do not entitle the Customer to withdraw from purchase transactions

II.2 – Subsequent changes to the offer may be implemented at any time, including correction of any errors either on the price or the date of the event or in the product description and declaration. Errors in the published offer do not entitle the Customer to claim the delivery of the goods or the service as it was previously described or stated.

II.3 – Product or services can be delivered abroad. In all cases, the taxation and customs regulations of the respective destination country to which the goods are being delivered apply

III – Registration and ordering of goods

III.1 – The Customer is obliged to provide truthful information when ordering goods or services. Purchase orders made under a specific username are allocated to the respective Customer.

III.2 – Persons under the age of 18 years or persons who do not have full legal capacity confirm with their order that they have obtained the consent of their legal guardian to conclude the respective transaction.

III.3 – Orders may be placed by registered and non-registered customers. Customers must register in accordance with the relevant guidelines of EFCC. Registered customers may benefit from special terms and framework conditions in accordance with the respective sales offer.

III.4 – The Customer acknowledges that some goods or services may be offered only for a specific destination area or country. The Customer is obliged to take account of and comply with any corresponding notices when placing an order.

III.5 – EFCC’s records of orders made by the Customer shall be deemed to be correct unless any investigations undertaken in this regard suggest transmission errors.

IV – Conclusion of the contract and right of revocation

IV.1 – The offers published by EFCC on on thefederation.eu do not constitute contractual offers. Orders made by customers are deemed to be an offer vis-à-vis EFCC. The contract is concluded upon delivery of the products or provision of the service. This remains subject to section II.2 -.

IV.2 – The Customer has the right to revoke the order in writing within fifteen days. The revocation period begins when the Customer places the order. The deadline is considered to have been met if the revocation is communicated to EFCC in writing or electronically on the fifteenth day. The Customer is obliged to provide proof of revocation. The Customer will be responsible for the cost of returning the goods as well as for any costs incurred by EFCC.

IV.3 – Revocation is excluded for contracts

• relating to audio and video recordings and software that can be downloaded or accessed by customers,
• relating to customized products, i.e. with individual pictures and/or texts, where the Customer’s payment does not exceed CHF 100,

In the other cases of goods delivery, revocation is excluded if the goods are no longer in their original packaging but have been opened (unsealed).

V – Delivery of goods or services ordered

V.1 – Orders will be processed in the sequence in which they are received by EFCC. In individual cases, particularly in respect of events with a limited number of participants, the organizer reserves the right to cancel orders fully or reduce them by a proportionate amount.

V.2 – The goods are distributed while supplies last, without any possibility of delivery of inspection items or reservation of goods in advance. The products remain the property of the respective supplier until they have been fully paid for.

V.3 – Ordered goods are provided directly by the respective supplier or the shipping partner it has engaged. A guideline delivery period of 2-5 working days applies to goods shipped from a warehouse, although no specific delivery times can be guaranteed. If goods are not in stock, a delivery period of max. 30 working days applies. Advance order periods for selected offers remain reserved.

V.4 – Ordered services are provided directly by the organizer or the respective supplier. A guideline period of 5-10 working days applies to confirm the registration to the event or the service.

V.5 – Unless stated otherwise, orders are executed in the same way as any previous orders placed by the Customer and are delivered to the last address communicated to EFCC.

V.6 – A waybill is included with every delivery of goods. Subsequent deliveries are made as soon as the goods arrive. Registered customers are generally able to check the delivery status of outstanding goods online.

V.7 – In the event of delivery delays, the Customer will be informed without delay. If the goods or service are no longer available, the order will be cancelled. If it is not possible to adhere to the maximum delivery period of goods of 30 working days or the confirmation of event registration of 10 days, the Customer has the option of withdrawing from the contract with immediate effect by submitting written notice. In the event of cancellation or withdrawal, any amounts already paid by the Customer will be reimbursed. Any other claims by the Customer, especially claims for compensation owing to delayed delivery or non-performance and any consequential damages and lost profits, etc. are excluded.

VI – Complaints and repair or exchange of goods

VI.1 – Complaints should be made immediately. The complaint must include the nature and exact location of the defect and – depending on the goods – any equipment used. The defective goods must be returned to the respective contact address after the complaint has been made, subject to prior consultation with EFCC. The Customer will bear the cost of returning the goods.

VI.2 – Upon the unreserved acceptance of a goods delivery all claims of the Customer in respect of the supplier or the forwarder will lapse, except in cases of intentional fraud or gross negligence. Any damage not evident on the outside of the goods must be reported in writing within seven days of receipt. The same applies to complaints regarding incomplete delivery.

VI.3 – The individual regulations of the respective supplier apply to the exchange of goods. EFCC will replace sold products, providing the required quantity of replacement items is available. EFCC reserves the right to reject requests for replacement if no evident quality shortcomings are established. No claim against EFCC beyond the replacement of products or the cancellation of individual orders shall be admitted in any case.

VII – Cancelation of services

VII.1 – In case of cancellation of an event or service, EFCC shall reimburse the amount paid by the Customer. No claim against EFCC beyond the reimbursement of the service shall be admitted in any case.

VII.2 – In some specific case, EFCC can propose a registration to a similar event or services. In this case, the difference of price if any, shall be paid by the Customer or reimbursed by EFCC.

VIII – Prices and payment terms

VIII.1 – The Customer must pay the price as published on thefederation.eu for the purchase of a product or a service at the time the contract was concluded or within the deadline specified in the contract (for a service). He or she may use the payment methods accepted by the respective provider. For deliveries outside Switzerland, VAT and customs duties are calculated at the rates prevailing in the respective country of destination (the recipient’s domicile).

VIII.2 – A small-volume surcharge or a contribution to the transaction costs may be applied. In any case, this surcharge or contribution shall be indicated and Customer acceptance is deemed to have been approved upon acceptance of the purchase order by the Customer.

VIII.3 – The invoice amount of an order can be seen on the EFCC invoice and the corresponding waybill. No other documents such as a copy of the waybill, performance certificates, etc. will be issued.

VIII.4 – For payment by credit card, the purchaser must always provide their name and address as well as the credit card company, number and expiry date of the credit card. Any changes, particularly a new expiry date, must be communicated in writing to EFCC in good time. Upon placing the order, the Customer authorizes EFCC to assign its claims to the corresponding credit card company in line with the relevant credit card agreement.

IX – Data protection and security

IX.1 – EFCC will adhere to the legal data protection requirements when processing data. Data records are passed on to third parties in anonymous form only. The transfer of provision of the service to third parties is subject to section I.4 -; these third parties must be governed by the same obligations with regard to data protection as EFCC itself.

IX.2 – The application thefederation.eu uses Google Recaptcha, a web analysis tool provided by Google Inc. (“Google”) that protects the application regarding spams. Further information is available at https://developers.google.com/recaptcha/.

IX.3 – The owner of the data collected is EFCC. We only process personal data when you decide to send it to us; for example, by filling out an online form or sending us a message via a contact form. In any case, we only ask the Customer to provide the personal data we require to perform the service that EFCC provides. The information provided by the Customer is recorded in the IT system of EFCC internet provider and EFCC electronic records.

IX.4 – In case of a registration to an event or program organized with the support of the EFCC, the information provided by the Customer will be transferred to the team that is in charge of the event or the program. By sending the registration page, Customer authorizes the transfer of his/her personal data to this organization team and to any third party that is involved in the organization of this event / program.

IX.5 – In the event that EFCC works with third parties to provide the services. Customer authorizes EFCC to make available to these third parties the data necessary for this purpose. Apart from this, any personal data is not transferred to third parties or otherwise transmitted without express consent of Customer. This excludes the transmission of personal data to governmental institutions and authorities as well as to private persons with the right thereto on statutory regulations, court orders or regulatory decisions, as well as its transfer to governmental institutions and authorities for the purposes of taking legal actions or prosecution should EFCC legally protected rights be challenged.

IX.6 – Personal data will be retained for no longer than necessary and it will remain confidential. EFCC will use appropriate technical and organizational precautions in order to protect personal data from loss and manipulation as well as from unauthorized access by third parties.

IX.7 – For any questions regarding the processing of his/her data, Customer can contact EFCC by post mail or email. By using email, Customer is aware that the texts are transmitted in an unencrypted form and will therefore be susceptible to the security risks typically associated with such methods of communication.

X – Warranty and liability

X.1 – For the warranty for goods, the individual provisions of the respective supplier apply.

X.2 – During the warranty period, defective goods are repaired free of charge or – if the defect cannot be repaired – the goods are replaced with equivalent goods. There is no entitlement to replacements while the repair is being carried out.

X.3 – If the defect cannot be repaired or if an equivalent replacement cannot be provided, the Customer is entitled to withdraw from the contract and to request reimbursement of the purchase price against return of the goods, subject to appropriate compensation for use. If other contracts were signed in connection with a sales transaction (e.g. telephone subscriptions, etc.), the latter remain in force in the event that the Customer withdraws from the contract owing to defective goods.

X.4 – The warranty does not include damage to operating equipment and consumables such as case parts and light bulbs. Likewise, there is no warranty for damage caused by normal use, improper care or failure to observe the instructions for use, or caused by the Customer or a third party or by external factors (especially moisture, contact with liquids, impact, etc.). In such cases, the Customer must bear the cost of identifying and repairing the damage. These guarantees apply instead of the guarantee and related compensation claims set out in the Swiss Code of Obligations.

X.5 – EFCC does not assume any liability for late product deliveries, defective product descriptions and pictures or prices, or for damage attributable to improper installation, use of the goods or to thefederation.eu, or for the omissions or improper actions of third-parties. Nor shall liability be accepted for compensation claims or any other claims by third parties or for consequential damages and lost profits of any kind.

X.6 – The Customer shall be liable to EFCC for damages arising from the non-fulfilment or poor performance of his or her contractual obligations, unless the Customer can prove that he or she is not at fault.

XI – Other provisions

XI.1 – EFCC can revise the present GTC at any time.

XI.2 – If one or more of these provisions becomes ineffective or void, the other provisions remain binding. In this case, EFCC will replace the void or ineffective provisions with other provisions that serve the same business purpose. The same applies to filling in any gaps in the contract.

XI.3 – These General Terms and Conditions are issued in English and French. In the event of contradictions, the English version is authoritative.

XI.4 – Swiss law is exclusively applicable; the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) shall not apply. Geneva (Switzerland) is the exclusive place of jurisdiction and place of performance. These conditions are subject to any contrary and mandatory provisions of the law.

© EFCC, April 2019