General conditions

GENERAL TERMS AND SALES CONDITIONS

  1. Scope of Application
    The present General Terms and Conditions shall apply to all our offers, deliveries and work unless expressly agreed otherwise in writing, and signed by our duly authorised manager. All deviations shall be subject to strict interpretation. Our failure if any to object to different terms and conditions shall under no circumstances be interpreted as a tacit acceptance thereof.
     
  2. Unless otherwise stipulated, all our invoices shall be payable no later than 30 days following the date of the invoice and without any discount, at the registered office of the company, located at 3530 Houthalen.
     
  3. Offers, delivery periods and other terms
    All our offers are free of obligations. The delivery dates or other dates specified by us are only indicative, except where explicitly agreed otherwise by us in writing. Consequently, any failure by us to respect the same shall not confer on the buyer any right to cancel the order or to claim any damages. Force majeure shall in general mean and include all circumstances that prevent, diminish or delay the fulfilment of the order by us, or that cause us extraordinary hardship in the fulfilment of the obligations accepted by us, and shall relieve us of all liability, and furthermore shall place us in a position, depending on the case, to either terminate the agreement, or to suspend or reduce the scope of our obligations, without this constituting any ground to demand damage compensation from us in any form whatsoever. The following circumstances shall be deemed to constitute force majeure: war, strike, lock-out within our establishment/s or those of our suppliers, breakdown of machinery, fire, breakdown of means of transport, difficulties with supplies of raw materials, materials and energy, and restrictive measures imposed by the government. This list is non-exhaustive. No rights may be derived against us on the basis of orders and assignments, except where we have confirmed the same in writing.
     
  4. Order confirmation
    If the customer is unable to accept the contents of the order confirmation, he shall be bound to notify his objections to us in writing within 7 days after receipt thereof, failing which the order confirmation shall be deemed to fully conform to the agreement. No agreements, agreed arrangements or commitments that deviate from the contents of the order confirmation or these conditions shall be deemed to exist, except where we have accepted the same in writing.
     
  5. Cancellation of orders
    If the buyer cancels an order, he shall be obliged to pay all costs already incurred towards the fulfilment thereof.
     
  6. No guarantees shall apply to the fastness of the ink colours. No deviations shall constitute a ground for the rejection of the merchandise or any request for a price reduction. There may be variations in the shades and in the purity of polyethylene from one production run to another. We cannot offer any commitment to always supply polyethylene of the same shade and purity as that of the samples. A minor difference not exceeding 10%, in the shape, size, quality, or thickness shall under no circumstances constitute a ground for complaints or rejection of delivery. A length and width tolerance of up to 15 mm shall apply as a consequence of the elasticity of polyethylene.
     
  7. Of the total quantity of products manufactured by us, a quantity of 2% of substandard pieces is considered normal. The buyer shall also always be bound to accept a deviation of more or less 10% from the ordered quantities. In case of orders of 10,000 pieces or less, the aforesaid deviation shall be 20%. Products sold by weight shall be invoiced on gross for net basis.
     
  8. Our liability shall be restricted solely to the technical characteristics of the products ordered. The buyer shall be bound to give express notification in advance, of any special characteristics, such as, among other things, suitability for specific packaging purposes, and temperature resistance, at the time of placing the order. This list is non-exhaustive. We shall not be held liable for the consequences of any improper storage or use of the manufactured goods by the customer.
     
  9. We are entitled to assume that any client who places a printing or copy order with us, has a legitimate right to do so. Such customer shall, together with his principals and subject to the exclusion of the printer, be fully liable towards third parties in this regard. In accordance with the law of 30.06.1994, all designs, logos, drawings, compositions, layouts, etc. created by us are protected thereunder, and consequently, we are and shall remain owners thereof. The mere participation by the customer in the costs of the creation shall only confer a right of use on the customer, and under no circumstances shall the customer thereby acquire any right of ownership on the same. The aforesaid right of use shall not be transferred to third parties, and the designs, logos, drawings, compositions, layouts, etc. shall not be copied, disclosed to or executed by third parties, except with the written consent of ALPAGRO Packaging. This shall also apply to variants and equally to designs that are not created by ALPAGRO Packaging. If infringement is established, an invoice shall be raised, by operation of law, for the liquidated damages, estimated at €1,250 per design, etc.
     
  10. Such complaints shall be submitted by registered letter within eight days of receiving the delivered goods.
     
  11. Right of retention of title
    The goods shall remain our property until receipt of full payment of the invoice. All risks shall be borne by the buyer. We shall retain any advances paid to compensate for losses if any incurred by us on resale.
     
  12. Interest calculated based on the Belgian legal interest rate plus 2%, subject to a minimum interest rate of 12%, shall automatically and without the need to issue a notice of default, be applied on any amount remaining unpaid on its due date.
     
  13. In case of total or partial non-payment of the debt on the due date without serious reasons, a further levy of 14%, subject to a minimum of €50 and a maximum of €1,500, shall be applied on the outstanding balance if the customer has continued in default even after the issue of a notice of default, granting (a) grace period(s).
     
  14. The non-payment on the due date of a single invoice shall render immediately due and payable, by operation of law, all outstanding balances under all other invoices of the customer, including those that are not yet due.
     
  15. If in our view, the creditworthiness of the buyer is gravely impaired by acts of judicial execution and enforcement against the buyer and/or through other demonstrable events, which bring into question and/or render impossible confidence in the ability of the buyer to properly fulfil his commitments, we reserve the right to suspend the entirety or a part of the order and to demand suitable guarantees from the buyer, even if the whole or a part of the goods have already been dispatched. If the buyer refuses to accept this, we reserve the right to cancel all or part of the order. All of the above shall be without prejudice to our rights to all damages and interest.
     
  16. The competent courts of the judicial district of Hasselt shall have sole jurisdiction to take cognisance of any disputes or differences of opinion or of actions of any kind and irrespective of the reasons for the same, and without regard to the method of payment.
     
  17. Except where the goods are collected, we shall be constrained to charge an amount of €15 on all orders below €150, exclusive of VAT, in view of the continued increase in handling and shipping costs.