GENERAL CONDITIONS OF SALES

Article 1 – General considerations

1.1. The present general conditions apply, to the exclusion of any other terms and conditions, unless otherwise explicitly agreed, to any order placed with the translator – Valérie DULLENS – (hereinafter referred to as « the Translator ») by the customer for a translation, proofreading or correction work, or any other work agreed between the parties.

1.2. Any derogation from the present general conditions of sales is possible only with the explicit prior authorisation of the Translator,  written in the form of specific conditions of sale.

Article 2 – Tenders, fulfilment of the agreement 

2.1. The tenders of the Translator are valid for 14 days.

The quotations and tenders of the Translator are not binding and without obligation. Tenders are for the sake of information only.

2.2. The agreement is made effective by the Translator accepting the order of the customer. 

This order shall be signed and sent to the Translator by ordinary mail or e-mail. If the Translator wasn’t able to consult the full text before issuing the quotation, she may still, even after her acceptance, modify or withdraw her tender. 

2.3. The Translator considers her customer whoever transmitted the order, unless the latter has explicitly mentioned he was acting under a mandate, in the name and on behalf of another party and on the condition that the name and the address of this party have been communicated at the same time to the Translator.

Article 3 – Modification/withdrawal of orders 

3.1. If, after the contract has been formed, alterations to the order are subsequently requested by the customer, the Translator has the right to modify the quoted price and/or term of delivery or refuse to execute the order after all.

3.2. Any cancellation, whether complete or partial, of the agreed performance of service must be stipulated in writing. In the event of a cancellation of an order by the customer, the customer is liable for payment of the already completed part of the order, of an allowance calculated on the basis of the hourly rate determined in the offer or failing that on the basis of the hourly rate of 50 euros for the research work already carried out for the not yet translated part, as well as a compensation for breach of contract equal to 25% of the order amount to cover fixed and variable costs and loss of profit, without prejudice to the Translator’s right to demonstrate a higher damage. The Translator makes the work already done available to the client. 

3.3. In the event of a cancellation by the client of an interpretation mission less than 48 hours before the date of the service, the client is liable for payment of a compensation for breach of contract equal to 50% of the basic amount of the agreed benefit, to cover fixed and variable costs and loss of profit, without prejudice to the Translator’s right to demonstrate a higher damage.

Article 4 – Orders fulfilment, confidentiality

4.1. The Translator will treat the information provided by the customer in strict confidence. 

4.2. Upon request and where possible, the customer will supply relevant information about the text to be translated, and also documentation and terminology, if available.

Such information and documentation shall be dispatched at the Customer’s expense and risk.

The Translator isn’t liable for the correctness of any information given by the customer.

Article 5 – Period and time of delivery

5.1. The given delivery period is an estimate only, unless otherwise explicitly agreed in writing.

The Translator is required to inform the customer without delay if delivery cannot be made within the agreed delivery time.

5.2. If the Translator exceeds the laid down time limit, and if the customer cannot reasonably be expected to brook any delay, the customer shall be entitled to cancel the contract, after having formally summoned the Translator to perform her contractual obligations within 24 hours. The Translator is not liable, in that case, for the payment of any compensation or damages.

5.3. Delivery shall be deemed to have taken place at the moment the translation is delivered in person or sent by post or e-mail.

5.4. Delivery of data by e-mail is deemed to have taken place at the time the medium confirms transmission.

Article 6 – Fees and payment

6.1. Fees are generally based on a word rate. For other works than translation ones, fees might be based on hourly rates. The Translator may also charge the customer, in addition to her fees, with the costs related to the order’s fulfilment.

6.2. As far as the translation of official or legal documents is concerned, fees may be based on a lump-sum base. 

6.2. The mentioned amounts exclude VAT. 

6.3. Invoices shall be paid within a maximum of 10 days from the invoice date, in the currency stated on the invoice, unless otherwise explicitly agreed. In the event of late payment, the Client shall be liable, without prior formal notice, to lateness interest at a rate of 12% per year from the invoice date, until full payment is received.

6.4. In case of- in due times, the customer shall be liable to a penalty clause of 15% of the gross amount, with a minimum of 75€. 

Article 7 – Claims and disputes 

7.1. Unless otherwise provided, the customer shall submit his potential claims to the Translator by registered mail at the latest 7 calendar days after the delivery of the work. The original documents and the disputed translation shall be joined. After this 7 days term,  the work is considered approved without reserve by the customer. Submitting a claim does not release the customer from its obligation to pay.

7.2. If he makes or has made any change to the work delivered or if he sends the work to a third party, the customer loses his right to submit a claim. 

Article 8 – Responsibility : safeguard

8.1. The Translator is only liable for damages that are the direct and demonstrable result of a mistake attributable to the Translator. 

8.2. The Translator shall not, in any circumstances, be held liable for claims justified by nuances of style. Within translation works, the Translator shall not be expected to write in a style different from the one of the source text. 

8.3. The ambigiuty of the source text exempts the Translator from any liability.

8.4. The Translator isn’t liable for the deterioration or the loss of documents, information or data medium made available for the order’s fulfillment. The Translator does not either accept any liability in case of damages resulting from the use of information technologies and modern means of communication.

8.5. The customer shall be obliged to safeguard the Translator against any claim of third parties resulting from the use of the delivered work. 

Article 9 – Dissolution

9.1. The Translator may dissolve the agreement or postpone its fulfilment without being liable to pay damages if the customer does not honour his obligations. And so it will be in the event of bankruptcy, judicial reorganisation procedure, debt arbitration or liquidation of the customer’s company. She also is entitled, in these cases, to demand immediate payment.

9.2. In the event of cancellation of an order by the customer, the Translator’s work will be charged in accordance with the provisions of article 3.2.

9.3. If the Translator should prove unable to meet her obligations due to circumstances beyond her reasonable control, she shall have the right to cancel the contract without being liable to pay damages. Such particular circumstances include but are not limited to : fires, accidents, illnesses, strikes, riots, wars, transport restrictions and delays, government measures, or others on which the Translator has no influence.

Article 10 – Intellectual property

10.1. Unless otherwise explicitly agreed in writing, the Translator still holds the copyrights on her translations, on possible changes on the texts and on the other texts written by the Translator. 

10.2. The customer shall be obliged to safeguard the Translator against any claim of third parties resulting from an alleged infringement of property rights, patent, copyright or other intellectual property right relating to the order’s fulfilment. 

Article 11 – Applicable law

11.1. For all legal relations between the customer and the Translator, Belgian law shall apply exclusively.

11.2. In the event of a dispute, the Liège (Belgium) law courts shall have sole jurisdiction.