GENERAL TERMS
AND CONDITIONS OF ONLINE SALE
The
translation of our General Terms and Conditions of Sale into English is given
as a rough guide and is intended to facilitate comprehension of the document.
It has no legal value.
ARTICLE 1 –
Scope
These General
Terms and Conditions of Sale are agreed, on the one hand, by the company, Les
Jardins de Gaïa, with capital of 50,000 euro, having its registered office at
Wittisheim, enrolled in the trades and companies register of Colmar under
number RCSTI 398 560 375, hereinafter “the company Les Jardins de Gaïa” and, on
the other hand, by any and all actual person or legal entity wishing to make a
purchase through the Internet Site of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa,
hereinafter “the buyer”.
ARTICLE 2 -
Purpose
These General
Terms and Conditions of Sale are intended to define the contractual
relationship between the company Les Jardins de Gaïa and the buyer and the
terms and conditions applying to any and all purchases made by means of the
retail website of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa, whether the buyer is a
professional or a consumer. Consumer is taken to mean according to the
definition under French law as being an actual person who concludes a contract
that has no direct relationship with his or her professional activity.
The
acquisition of an item or service through this website implies the unreserved
acceptance by the buyer of these General Terms and Conditions of Sale.
These General
Terms and Conditions of Sale shall prevail over any and all other general or
special terms and conditions not expressly approved by the company Les Jardins
de Gaïa.
The company
Les Jardins de Gaïa reserves the entitlement to amend its General Terms and
Conditions of Sale at any time. In such cases, the terms and conditions
applying shall be the ones in force upon the date on which the order is placed
by the buyer.
Characteristics
of the items and services proposed: the products and services proposed are the
ones that appear on the website of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa.
Each product
comes with a description written by the supplier.
The
photographs shown on the website are as faithful and representative as possible
but cannot guarantee perfect similitude with the product proposed, particularly
as regards colours.
As all
articles are understood to mean as long as stocks last, the company Les Jardins
de Gaïa cannot guarantee the availability of all articles proposed on the
website at the same time. In the event that one of the articles ordered is out
of stock, the company Les Jardins de Gaïa shall substitute the missing product
with a product of equivalent or superior quality (at no extra cost to the
buyer) to obviate any and all delays in delivery, unless the buyer states
otherwise on order.
ARTICLE 3 -
Prices
The prices
published on the website are the prices in euro including VAT and take into
account the VAT applicable on the day of order. Any and all changes in the rate
may be reflected in the prices of products or services.
The company
Les Jardins de Gaïa reserves the right to modify its prices at any time, on the
understanding, however, that the price shown on the website on the day of order
shall be the only price applicable to the buyer.
For a
delivery made outside the European Union, the prices include the French VAT
applicable on the order date. Thus, prices shown include VAT.
The customer
can claim VAT refund provided he presents VAT payment receipt of the country of
delivery (please send it to our attention by e-mail or by mail).
For VAT
refund, the customer may choose between:
• a note
of credit valid on his future orders on the company web site;
• a
check, issued by a domiciled bank in France;
• a bank
transfer (after deducting banking fees). Please provide bank details.
ARTICLE 4 -
Discounts
The following
discounts are granted for the purchase of the following quantities of teas in
bulk (excluding special offers, infusions of plants, lapacho, maté and
Bio-campagne):
• For 500 g
of the same tea packaged in a single sachet: 5% discount;
• For 1 kg of the same tea packaged in a single sachet: 10% discount.
The prices
stated include the cost of order processing and product handling and packaging.
ARTICLE 5 -
Order
The buyer
wishing to purchase a product is obliged:
• To fill in the identification form on which he or she shall state any
and all details requested or provide his or her customer number should he or
she have one. The nominative data requested of the buyer (full postal address,
e-mail address and telephone number) constitute essential information. If data
is missing or incorrect, fulfilment of the delivery service may be compromised
and the deadline missed. In such a situation, the liability of company Les
Jardins de Gaïa may in no event be called into question and no compensation or
other indemnity shall be payable;
• To fill in the online order form, giving all of the references of the
products chosen;
• To confirm his or her order after checking it;
• To make payment under the terms and conditions laid down;
• To confirm his or her order and payment. Confirmation of the order
brings with it acceptance of these terms and conditions of sale and
acknowledgement of perfect understanding thereof and thereby waives any and all
recourse to his or her own terms and conditions of purchase or other terms and
conditions.
(Should an
order be placed by telephone, the buyer must confirm that he or she
“acknowledges that he or she is fully conversant with the general terms and
conditions of sale” by pressing a key on his or her telephone keyboard, which
is essential to go to the next step in his or her order. Otherwise, the
“self-evident” General Terms and Conditions of Sale known to the buyer, which
do not present a significant imbalance to his or her detriment remain
applicable.)
All of the
data provided and the confirmation registered constitute proof of the
transaction. The confirmation constitutes signature for and acceptance of the
operations performed.
The company
Les Jardins de Gaïa shall forward confirmation of the order registered by
electronic mail.
Products
remain the property of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa until receipt of payment
in full of the sum outstanding.
The company
Les Jardins de Gaïa reserves the right to cancel any and all orders from a
buyer who has still not paid for an earlier order.
ARTICLE 6 –
Costs and Delivery Delays
Deliveries
are made to the address stated on the order form by the buyer.
Orders are
delivered by La Poste (French postal services) in tracked parcels (Colissimo
Suivi) for which the buyer must sign.
The information
given by the buyer when placing his or her order is contractually binding.
It behoves
the buyer to check the condition of the goods on receipt; any and all anomalies
observed (parcel damaged, product missing or damaged) must be recorded on the
delivery form and the Company Les Jardins de Gaïa notified thereof within 3
days of receipt. Any and all claims presented after such time shall be deemed
inadmissible and the liability of the Company Les Jardins de Gaïa may no event
be called into question.
Should the
buyer be absent at the time of delivery of a recorded delivery parcel, he or
she shall receive notification of such attempted delivery and shall have 15
days to go and pick up his or her parcel at his or her local post office.
If the buyer
chooses delivery to the Post Office or Pickup point, they will have 10 working
days to recover their parcel. This period is reduced to three working days in
the case of a Pickup Station delivery.
After these
deadlines, the parcel will be returned to the Company, Les Jardins de Gaïa, and
it will only be sent again with a further payment of shipping costs, even if
the amount of the order is greater than or equal to € 50,00. The same principle
applies in the case of a parcel sent through the post which is too big to fit
through the letterbox.
Packages
returned to the company, Les Jardins de Gaïa, are kept for a period of two
months. After this period, and if the buyer has not been in touch, a credit note
will be issued for his attention at his request, up to the amount paid.
ARTICLE 7 - Costs
Metropolitan France and Monaco
For
orders to be delivered in France (Home with signature) and an
amount less than € 50,00 including tax, shipping fee is € 6,00.
For
orders to be delivered in France (Point of withdrawal: Pickup
relay, setpoint Pickup Station or Post Office) and an amount less than € 50,00
including tax, shipping fee is € 5,00.
For
all orders in excess of or equal to a sum of € 50,00 including tax, the
shipping costs are offered to the buyer.
Belgium,
Germany, Luxembourg and the
Netherlands
For
orders to be delivered in Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg and the
Netherlands (Home with signature) and an amount less than € 60
including tax, shipping fee is € 7.
For
orders to be delivered in Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg and the
Netherlands (Point of withdrawal: relay, setpoint or Post
Office) and an amount less than € 60 including tax, shipping fee is € 6.
For
all orders in excess of or equal to a sum of € 60,00 including tax, the
shipping costs are offered.
Europe
To
order for delivery in the Ireland, Italy, Spain
(excluding Islands), Portugal (excluding Islands), Switzerland and Austria and
an amount less than 100 €, the shipping fee is € 9,00. For all orders in excess
of or equal to a sum of € 100,00 including tax, the shipping costs are offered
to the buyer.
For delivery in Europe
in the countries listed below, a fixed rate contribution of postage of € 10,00
is requested: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Norway,
Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden.
For any order to be
delivered to the United Kingdom, a fixed rate contribution of postage
of € 20 including tax is requested, including the Brexit supplement per
package invoiced by Colissimo.
Any customs and excise
duties payable shall be charged to the buyer.
Rest of the World
For
the DROM-COM* (French overseas departments and communities), all other
countries outside Europe and in the rest of the World**, delivery shall be
invoiced at the actual cost of shipping according to the postal tariffs in
force on the day the order is placed. The amount of postage is calculated
automatically, after validation of the delivery address, depending on the
weight of your order.
Any
customs and excise duties payable shall be charged to the buyer.
* Includes the
supplement of € 5.00 excluding VAT applied to all overseas parcels, following
the increase in post-Covid air transport costs, since November 1, 2020.
** Includes the
supplement of € 5.00 excluding tax applied to packages destined for the United
States as a result of a new merchandise processing and control process
implemented by the American government.
ARTICLE 8 -
Deadlines
Those
products available in stock are delivered to the buyer within a period of 7
business days in Mainland France for any and all orders placed before 12 noon.
Regarding delivery times abroad, these correspond to the ones given by So
Colissimo handling the service and can be consulted on the following internet
site:
“https://www.laposte.fr/particulier/outils/calculateur-de-delais#help-calc-delai-int”. If delivery is late, excluding
instances of Act of God and events imputable to the buyer (nominative data
missing or incorrect), the latter is entitled to terminate the contract by
sending a letter by recorded delivery with acknowledgement of receipt to the
following postal address: Les Jardins de Gaïa – Customer Service – F-67820 Wittisheim.
The contract
shall be deemed terminated upon receipt by the company Les Jardins de Gaïa of
the letter sent by the buyer, provided that the products have not been
delivered by the company Les Jardins de Gaïa prior to receipt of said letter.
The buyer must exercise his or her right within 60 business days as of the date
of delivery given when the order is placed on the website.
Pursuant to
Article L 121-21-4 of the French Commercial Code, the company Les Jardins de
Gaïa agrees to reimburse the buyer for any sums paid at the earliest
opportunity and at the latest within 14 days of the date on which the company
is informed of the decision by the consumer to withdraw his or her order.
Nevertheless, the company Les Jardins de Gaïa may postpone the reimbursement
until the products have been recovered or until the buyer has provided proof of
dispatch of such products. The date used shall be the first of aforesaid cases.
ARTICLE 9 -
Payment Terms
The price is
payable upon order. No parcels shall be shipped prior to receipt of payment.
It is
possible to pay for the order by PayPal or by direct bank transfer.
By PayPal
This is a
secure payment method that enables payment by credit/debit card without
divulging its number to the retailer. One is not obliged to possess a personal
PayPal account to make payment. The General Terms and Conditions of Sale of
PayPal (and, more specifically, the Integral Evolution service) shall then
apply.
When paying
via PayPal, carefully check the address given on the “Details of the
Transaction” page, as they can in no event by amended at a later stage.
By direct bank transfer
The buyer
must contact the company Les Jardins de Gaïa to request full details of its
bank account.
The order
shall be processed by our relevant department upon receipt of the payment. The
articles shall be reserved for a period of 5 business days. After such time,
failing confirmation of payment on the part of the buyer, the order shall be
cancelled.
Inside the
parcel, the buyer shall receive a hard copy of the invoice showing the VAT.
Validation of
the payment triggers the dispatch of the parcel to the buyer.
Validation of
the payment shall be deemed effective after validation by the bank payment
centre and acceptance of the payment on the part of the company Les Jardins de
Gaïa.
Though
certain validations are done directly, the company Les Jardins de Gaïa reserves
the right to block any and all suspect orders in order to verify their
credibility. In such cases, an e-mail informing the buyer of such action shall
be sent and the order shall continue to be blocked until receipt of the
following supporting documents:
• A
recto-verso photocopy of a valid identity document;
• A
proof of residence.
If such supporting
documents are not received within 48 hours or the supporting documents are
deemed non-compliant, the company Les Jardins de Gaïa reserves the right to
decline validation of the payment.
The company
Les Jardins de Gaia reserves the right to suspend or cancel any execution of an
order, in the event that it suspects a fraudulent payment attempt on the part
of the buyer (report of the banking establishment ).
ARTICLE 10 –
Right of Return
Pursuant to
the provisions of Article L 121-21 of the French Consumer Code, the consumer
enjoys a retraction period of 14 days as of receipt of the product by the
consumer or a third party, other than the carrier, appointed by the consumer,
to have the product returned to the company Les Jardins de Gaïa for exchange or
refund without penalties except the return costs.
As these are
clear days, if they expire on a Saturday, a Sunday or a public holiday or other
non-working day, they are extended until the first subsequent business day,
date as confirmed by postmark.
Notification
of retraction is made by sending a letter by recorded delivery with
acknowledgement of receipt.
(On the other
hand, the company Les Jardins de Gaïa is not required to give a refund, and
shall not therefore give a refund, of the additional costs if the buyer has
expressly chosen a most expensive delivery method than the standard delivery
method offered by the company Les Jardins de Gaïa.)
It is
stipulated that a product having had the benefit of a special promotional price
shall be reimbursed at the price actually paid by the buyer or which would have
been paid if it no longer satisfies the relevant conditions.
We would
reiterate that the buyer bears the entire cost of return should he or she
choose to exercise his or her right of retraction.
To that end,
a standard retraction form is put at the disposal of the consumer by clicking
on the following link (Model Withdrawal Form), pursuant to Article L121-17 of the
French Consumer Code.
The buyer receives a refund on his purchase, after receipt of the product by
the company Les Jardins de Gaïa, within 14 days at most subsequent to the date
on which such right was exercised, by the means of payment corresponding to the
one used by the buyer for the initial transaction, unless the buyer expresses
an alternative wish.
Returns
should be sent to Les Jardins de Gaïa – Mail Order - Customer Service,
F-67820 Wittisheim in their original condition and complete (packaging
intact, tea unused), accompanied by a copy of the invoice.
Articles
returned incomplete, spoilt or damaged by the buyer shall not be taken back.
In no event
shall the mail order department of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa be required
to take back articles from the company Les Jardins de Gaïa purchased on another
online retail website or from an authorised retailer.
ARTICLE 11 -
Guarantee
Non-food
products provided by the company Les Jardins de Gaïa benefit as of right and
with no additional payment, in accordance with statutory provisions, from:
• a legal
guarantee of conformity, for products apparently defective, worn or damaged or
not corresponding to the order or the immediate purchase;
• a legal
guarantee against hidden defects resulting from a material, design or
manufacturing defect affecting the products delivered and rendering them unfit
for use.
In the event
of non-conformity of a product sold, it may be returned to the company Les
Jardins de Gaïa, which shall take it back, exchange it or provide a refund on
it.
Any and all
complaints or requests for exchange or refund must be made by post and
addressed to Les Jardins de Gaïa – Mail Order - Customer Service, F-67820
Wittisheim within 30 days of delivery.
ARTICLE 12 -
Liability
The company
Les Jardins de Gaïa, in the process of online retailing, is bound only by a
best efforts obligation; its liability may not be invoked for any damage
resulting from use of the Internet network, such as loss of data, intrusion,
virus, interruption in service or other involuntary problems.
The liability
of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa may not be invoked in the following cases:
• Failure
to abide by the legislation of the country to which the products are delivered,
which it behoves the buyer to verify;
• Late delivery caused by missing or incorrect data on the identification
form;
• Incorrect use, use for professional ends, negligence or lack of
maintenance by the buyer, such as normal wear of the Product, accidents or Acts
of God.
The guarantee
provided by the company Les Jardins de Gaïa is in any event limited to the
replacement of or refund on non-conforming Products or those suffering from a
defect.
Pursuant to
Article L. 138-4 of the French Consumer Code, the risk of loss or damage of
goods is transferred to the consumer at such time that a third party appointed
by the consumer other than the carrier proposed by the professional takes
physical possession of the goods. Conversely, where the consumer entrusts
delivery to a carrier other than the one proposed by the professional, the
transfer of risk comes into force upon submission of the goods to the carrier.
ARTICLE 13 –
Intellectual Property
All
components of the website of the company Les Jardins de Gaïa are and remain the
exclusive intellectual property of that company and are protected by French and
international laws on intellectual property.
No-one is
permitted to reproduce, exploit, broadcast or otherwise use components of the
website, even partially, be they software, visuals or sound effects, under
penalty of constituting an infringement of intellectual property rights.
Any and all
straightforward or hypertext links are strictly forbidden without written
permission from the company Les Jardins de Gaïa.
ARTICLE 14 –
Data of a Personal Nature
For more information, consult the
privacy policy of Les Jardins de Gaïa.
ARTICLE 15 –
Archiving – Proofs
The company Les Jardins de Gaïa
shall archive the order forms and invoices in a durable and trustworthy medium
constituting a faithful copy pursuant to the provisions of Article 1348 of the
French Civil Code.
The computer records of the
company Les Jardins de Gaïa shall be deemed by the parties as proofs of
communications, orders, payments and transactions occurring between the
parties.
ARTICLE 16 –
Settlement of Disputes
The company Les Jardins de Gaïa cannot
be held liable for damages of any kind, whether material or immaterial or
bodily, that may result from the incorrect use of products sold or their
abnormal use.
Pursuant to Article 3 of the Rome
I Regulation of 17 June 2008, where the company Les Jardins de Gaïa directs its
activities to the State in which the consumer usually resides, the
interpretation and execution hereof, as well as any and all acts that may be
subsequent thereupon or the consequence thereof, irrespective of the place of
delivery of products, the location in which the order is placed, the
nationality of the buyer and his or her address, shall be subject to French
law, provided that the latter is not prejudicial to the consumer, in compliance
with Article 6.2 of aforesaid Regulation.
In the event of litigation, within
the framework of the European Union and pursuant to Article 16 of the European
Regulation of 22 December 2000, the consumer may choose to bring the case
before the courts of the State in which he or she resides, or the courts of the
State in which the professional is domiciled. Article 17-1 of aforesaid
regulation further provides the possibility of inserting an attribution of
jurisdiction clause to another judge after the inception of litigation.
Conversely, where litigation concerns e-trading outside the European Union, the
terms and conditions of common law apply, to wit Article 42 of the French Civil
Procedure Code, which appoints the judge falling under the domicile of the
defendant.
The buyer is informed that, in
accordance with Article L534-7 of the French Consumer Code, he or she may in
any event seek voluntary mediation, in particular from the French Consumer
Mediation Commission or from existing sectorial mediation bodies or any and all
alternative ways of settling differences (conciliation, for example) in the
event of disputes.