General Terms and Conditions

Terms and conditions for the use of expertist’s services.

Section 1 - General provisions

These General Terms and Conditions (‘the Terms and Conditions’) apply to all contracts concluded in connection with Expertist’s performance.

(1) The conclusion of a contract with Expertist takes place exclusively via the online platform and only with customers and service providers registered there (hereinafter:”Users”).

(2) The registration is exclusively open to natural or legal persons or legal entities. Partnerships, which are registered in the exercise of their commercial or industrial activities and accordingly entrepreneurs within the meaning of § 14 of the German Civil Code (BGB). The registration and the use of the online platform by a person, who is using the platform predominantly neither for its commercial nor its self-employed purposes, is inadmissible. Equally inadmissible are the registration and the use by minors.

Registration on the online platform is free of charge for users. The fees for using the online platform are based on the price table available at the time. Costs are only incurred by the customer if a consultancy contract is concluded between Expertist and the customer in accordance with the provisions of section 3 of these GTC. The price displayed to the customer includes the fee charged by the service provider plus an agency fee charged by Expertist in accordance with Expertist’s current price list available online.

Before submitting his request for advice to Expertist, the customer can choose the procedure by which the service providers indicated to him for selection are determined. He can choose between the online negotiation procedure according to § 5 of these GTC and the direct search procedure according to § 6 of these GTC.

(1) In accordance with these GTCs, online negotiation is defined as a temporary process that enables service providers to determine an appropriate remuneration for a specific request for advice from the customer and subsequently make a corresponding offer.

(2) Expertist examines the requests for advice before they are activated for the service providers’ applications. The customer is not entitled to have his request for advice activated.

(3) Only those registered service providers who have applied to participate and have been selected by the customer are entitled to participate in an online negotiation and thus to submit offers. Expertist examines the service providers’ applications to participate in the online negotiation before they are made available to the client for final selection.

(4) The service provider has no right to be notified of a request for advice or to be given the opportunity to participate in the online negotiation.

(5) Users shall be notified of the start of the online negotiation. It shall last at least 48 hours from the time indicated in the notification. This is followed by a so-called freeze period, which lasts at least another 48 hours. At the end of this period the online negotiation is finished.

(6) After the beginning of the online negotiation and until the beginning of the freeze period, the service providers can change and withdraw their offers completely at any time.

(7) After the start of the freeze period, service providers may no longer change or withdraw their offer. In exceptional cases, where the service provider is not at fault, Expertist may cancel the offer without acknowledging any legal obligation. Expertist may refuse cancellation if the reasons given are not sufficiently explained and proven. Only an Expertist can amend or withdraw the offer in such a case.

(8) Furthermore, the service providers may ask the customers questions about their request for advice during the period under § 5 No. 6. Both the questions and the customer’s answers are visible to all service providers participating in the online negotiation. Expertist checks the questions before they are forwarded to the customer for answering. The service providers have no right to have their questions forwarded to the customer. The service providers have the obligation to check the questions also asked by other service providers for possible effects on their offer and to adjust or withdraw their offer if necessary.

(9) The conclusion of the consultancy contract between Expertist and the customer in the online negotiation process is governed by §27 of these GTC, the conclusion of the contract between Expertist and the service provider by §32 of these GTC.

(1) In accordance with these General Terms and Conditions, direct search is understood to be the process by which Expertist directly selects and contacts those service providers on behalf of the customer who are eligible to provide the consultancy service described in the customer’s consultancy application. Expertist obtains an offer from these service providers and displays it to the customer. The customer decides on the basis of the offers made to him by Expertist, who Expertist should use to provide the consultancy service.

(2) Expertist examines the requests for advice before Expertist contacts the service providers in question. The customer has no right for Expertist to contact specific service providers.

(3) The service provider is not entitled to be selected by Expertist to submit a tender.

(4) After the offer has been submitted to Expertist, it cannot be changed or withdrawn by the respective service provider. In exceptional cases, where the service provider is not at fault, Expertist may cancel the offer without acknowledging any legal obligation. Expertist may refuse cancellation if the reasons given are not sufficiently explained and proven. Only an Expertist can amend or withdraw the offer in such a case.

(5) The conclusion of the consultancy contract between Expertist and the client is based on the direct search procedure according to § 28 of these GTC, the conclusion of the contract between Expertist and the service provider according to § 33 of these GTC.

It is prohibited to use the online platform in any way other than as described here and for any purpose other than set out in these General Terms and Conditions. In particular, it is forbidden:

  • to circumvent the technical precautions for protection against misuse;
  • to manipulate or agree on the prices of own or third-party offers by using several user accounts or in cooperation with other users;
  • to systematically read out and store the information about users available on the online platform or to use it for any purpose other than to initiate a contract with Expertist;
  • the use of the online platform with the intention of circumventing the commission fee for Expertist:

(1) Expertist does not offer services that are immoral or violate the rights of service providers or the law. Furthermore, Expertist does not offer any services which require a special legal or professional license. This includes in particular (according to the corresponding definition of the respective valid version of the respective law or professional chamber):

  • Extrajudicial legal services within the meaning of the Legal Services Act;
  • Services of a lawyer within the meaning of the Federal Lawyers’ Act;
  • Services provided by an auditor within the meaning of the auditing regulation;
  • Services provided by a tax consultant within the meaning of the Tax Consultancy Act;
  • Services provided by a notary within the meaning of the Federal Notary Code;
  • Services of a patent attorney according to the Patent Attorney Regulations;
  • Services of an architect;
  • Services of a consulting engineer (if bound by professional law).

(2) The customer shall not be permitted to tender any of the services referred to in paragraph 1.

(3) It is also inadmissible for the service provider to offer or advertise such a service.

(4) Expertist reserves the right to make the admissibility of services subject to conditions that exceed those referred to in paragraph 1.

(1) As of the first naming of a contact (that can be another user, a service provider or a customer) the user commits himself neither directly nor indirectly to bypass the rules of Expertist, to close agreements or to close contracts with that contact.

(2) This obligation shall also apply to all affiliated companies.

(3) This obligation applies to all services commissioned via Expertist.

(4) The duration of this obligation shall be determined individually for each published contact. The obligation ends one year after the start of a project between the user and Expertist, in which Expertist either uses this contact as a vicarious agent (if the user acts as a customer in this project) or sells the services of the user (if the user acts as a service provider in this project). If no project comes about, the obligation ends after three years.

(5) An exception exists for already known or otherwise known users. The burden of proof that the contact has been established admissibly lies with the user referring to it.

(6) If a user contacts a contact by circumventing this customer protection, the user has to pay a contractual penalty of EUR 1,000.00 immediately as a result of contacting this address. The contractual penalty is immediately due without the need for a reminder. The right to claim further damages is reserved.

The user indemnifies Expertist against all claims asserted against Expertist by other users or other service providers due to infringement of their rights by services advertised or offered by the user via the online platform or due to the user’s other use of the online platform. The user assumes the costs of the necessary legal defense of Expertist including all court and attorney fees at the statutory rate. This does not apply if the user is not responsible for the infringement. The user is obligated to inform Expertist without delay, truthfully and completely about all Expertist information necessary in the event of using Expertist for service providers which are important for the examination of the claim and its defense.

(1) Expertist shall not be liable for damages resulting from a slightly negligent breach of duty by Expertist or his vicarious agents, as far as their occurrence within the scope of the respective contractual relationship could not reasonably have been calculated. Occurrence of damage do not normally have to be taken into account if it is only indirectly due to a breach of duty.

(2) Para. 1 shall not apply to damages resulting from injury to life, body or health.

(3) If the damage of a user is based on a breach of duty by another user, Expertist assigns to the injured party as a precaution all own claims against the injured party as a precautionary measure, which originate from the respective uniform life situation. A claim against Expertist by the injured party shall only be permissible after prior judicial recourse of the damage by the customer, and only to the extent that the proceedings against the harmful party have not provided remedy and this is not due to a culpable omission on the part of the aggrieved party.

(4) Expertist is not obliged to perform and may withdraw from the contract if Expertist, for his part, fails to contract, even though carefully selected contract partners had been contracted.

(1) If, according to this contract, Expertist is liable for the performance of a work, the customer must examine this work immediately after delivery with reasonable thoroughness and, if a defect becomes apparent, notify Expertist immediately. If such a defect appears later, the notification must also be made to Expertist immediately after discovery.

(2) If the customer has not notified the defect within 5 working days from the reasonable possibility of gaining knowledge of the defect, the notification shall be deemed delayed. The date on which Expertist receives the customer’s declaration together with a description of the defect is decisive.

(3) If the customer fails to notify Expertist immediately, insofar as this is necessary, the assertion of the defect shall be excluded, unless Expertist fraudulently concealed the defect.

(4) Without prejudice to paragraphs 1 to 3, the work shall be deemed to have been approved after 14 days at the latest, except for minor defects.

(5) If a work performed by Expertist is defective and if the customer remedies the defect himself, Expertist shall, notwithstanding paragraphs 1 – 4 only to the extent that the customer’s expenses are compensated, as the expert has agreed to the self-payment in advance. Expertist shall not refuse its consent if this would be disproportionate after weighing the interests of the parties.

(6) In the event of a defect in the work, Expertist shall always have the right, at his discretion, to remedy the defect or to produce a new work. The customer’s withdrawal from the contract, the reduction of the remuneration owed by the customer or the claim for damages due to a defect is not permissible until the subsequent performance has failed a second time or Expertist has failed the subsequent performance.

Deviating, conflicting or supplementary general terms and conditions or terms of use of the contractual partners shall not apply.

Expertist reserves the right to change these GTC at any time and without giving reasons, with effect for the future. Expertist will inform the users of the intended changes by e-mail at least four weeks before they come into effect and make the changed GTC available to the users. The changes shall be deemed approved if the user does not notify Expertist in writing within four weeks after receipt of the changes. The notification shall contain a corresponding reference to this period and to the consequences of failure to object. The receipt of the objection by Expertist is decisive for compliance with the time limit. In the event of a timely opposition, both parties shall have the right to terminate the contracts concerned.

Should individual provisions of these General Terms and Conditions be or become void or ineffective in whole or in part, this shall not affect the effectiveness of the remaining provisions. In place of any provisions of these GTC that are not included or ineffective, statutory law shall apply. If such legislation is not available (legal gap) or would lead to an unacceptable result, the parties shall enter into negotiations to replace the ineffective or unenforceable provisions which comes as close as possible to it economically.

(1) Expertist collects, processes and uses personal data in accordance with the applicable statutory data protection provisions, in particular the Telemedia Act and the Federal Data Protection Act. The data protection regulations of Expertist apply, available at: www.expertist.de/en/privacy-policy/,. The collected data will not be passed on to service providers outside subsidiaries/parent companies of Expertist.

(2) The user agrees to the disclosure of his personal data to other users in the orderly course of business by Expertist.

(3) The user may object to the use of the data in accordance with the statutory provisions. An informal declaration to Expertist is sufficient for this purpose. The contact details can be found at www.expertist.de/en/contact/.

The contracts concluded in connection with the use of the online platform shall be governed exclusively by German law, to the exclusion of the norms of international private law and the German law of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods.

The exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from contractual relationships that arise in connection with the use of the online platform or a contract concluded thereon shall be Hamburg. This shall not apply if, in accordance with the statutory provisions, a different exclusive place of jurisdiction is established.

Section 2 - Platform Usage

The provisions of this section supplement those of section 1 and regulate the use of the online platform by the users.

(1) The contract for the use of the online platform offered by Expertist is concluded when the user registers on the online platform with consent to these GTC and the data protection declaration.

(2) There is no entitlement to a contract of use.

(1) To use the services of Expertist, the user must register on the online platform and create an account.

(2) The registration is only completed successfully when Expertist has received and checked the data on the master data form and the user has received a confirmation of the release.

(3) The data requested in the master data form must be provided in full and truthfully by the user.

(4) Upon receipt of the confirmation and release by Expertist, the user shall be granted access to all essential functions of the online platform.

(5) Expertist reserves the right to delete accounts of users who have not completed the registration completely after a reasonable period of time.

(1) The user shall be obliged to keep his account information up to date at all times. The user is required to update the information immediately in the event of a change.

(2) The users must keep their password secret and secure sufficient access to their user account on the online platform. They must inform Expertist without delay if there is evidence that their account on the online platform was being abused by service providers.

(3) An Expertist account is not transferable.

The platform usage contract between Expertist and the user is concluded for an indefinite period of time.

(1) The user may terminate in writing or by e-mail the platform usage contract at any time without notice and without giving reasons.

(2) Expertist may terminate the platform usage contract at any time without giving reasons with a period of notice of 14 days to the end of the month.

(3) By the termination the user loses the access to his account.

(4) Termination of the platform usage contract does not affect contracts which have been concluded via the online platform.

(1) If there are justified indications that a user violates these GTC, statutory regulations or rights of service providers, Expertist may, depending on the severity of the violation:

  • exclude the respective user from the further course of an online negotiation and/or
  • block their user account or individual functions for a limited time or permanently and/or
  • terminate the platform usage contract without notice.

(2) Expertist reserves the right to take legal action.

(3) After the platform usage agreement has been terminated by Expertist, the renewed registration, even under another name, is prohibited.

(1) Expertist does not guarantee the permanent, uninterrupted operation of the online platform and does not guarantee anything that is beyond the existing state of the art in the field of facilities and precautions.

(2) Expertist may temporarily restrict the services offered on the online platform, if this is necessary with regard to capacity limits, the security or integrity of the servers or for the implementation of technical measures and the proper or improved functioning of the services provided (maintenance work). In these cases, Expertist takes into account the legitimate interests of users, for example by announcing the measure in good time.

Section 3 - Additional regulations as customer

The provisions of this section supplement the generally applicable sections and relate to the user who, as a customer, concludes contracts via the platform.

(1) The consulting contract between the notified contractual partner and the customer within an online negotiation shall come into force as follows:

a) The request for advice submitted by the customer to initiate online negotiations represents a legally non-binding invitation to Expertist to make offers to the customer.

b) After the request has been examined by Expertist, it will be displayed to service providers registered on the online platform in a legally non-binding manner.

c) After the end of the online negotiation, Expertist will inform the customer in a legally non-binding manner about some or all service providers that come into question for the customer as well as the remuneration to be paid in each case (including agency fee).

d) The customer may choose one of these service providers within four working days from the end of the online negotiation. By selecting the service provider, the customer makes Expertist a legally binding offer to enter into a consultancy agreement with Expertist under the conditions resulting from the customer’s request for advice, the specification of the same by the customer’s answers to questions posed by the service providers during the online negotiation and the total remuneration demanded by Expertist (sum of service provider remuneration and agency fee). The customer is bound to his offer for five working days after delivery and cannot revoke it during this period.

e) If the customer carries out step d), a contract is concluded upon receipt of a corresponding declaration of acceptance by the Expertist. Acceptance by Expertist is always subject to the proviso that an effective contract is concluded between Expertist and the service provider selected by the customer.

(2) The customer has neither a claim that Expertist will provide him with a service provider at all, nor that Expertist will provide him with a specific service provider to choose from. This also applies in particular if the service provider demands a lower remuneration than another service provider.

(3) Verbal ancillary agreements shall not become part of the contract.

(1) The consultancy contract between Expertist and the client is concluded in the direct search procedure as follows:

a) The customer’s request to Expertist to select and contact eligible service providers for the performance of the consultancy service described in the customer’s request for advice constitutes a legally non-binding request to Expertist to make offers to the customer

b) Expertist shows the customer in a legally non-binding manner some or all of the offers obtained by Expertist from the service providers as well as the respective remuneration to be paid by the customer (including agency fee). This represents an invitation to the customer to make an offer to Expertist.

c) The customer can select one of these service providers by Expertist within four working days of receiving the legally non-binding offers from the service providers. By selecting the service provider, the customer makes Expertist a legally binding offer to conclude a consultancy contract with Expertist under the conditions resulting from the customer’s request for advice and from the total remuneration demanded by Expertist (sum of service provider remuneration and agency fee). The customer is bound to his offer for five working days after delivery and cannot revoke it during this period.

d) If the customer carries out step c), a contract is concluded upon receipt of a corresponding declaration of acceptance by Expertist. Acceptance by Expertist is always subject to the proviso that an effective contract is concluded between Expertist and the service provider selected by the customer.

(2) The customer has neither a claim that Expertist will provide him with a service provider at all, nor that Expertist will provide him with a specific service provider to choose from. This also applies in particular if the service provider demands a lower remuneration than another service provider.

(3) Verbal ancillary agreements shall not become part of the contract.

The term of the consultancy contract between Expertist and the customer depends on the content of the agreed consultancy service. The contract ends with the complete provision of the service described in detail in the consulting contract.

(1) Unless otherwise agreed, Expertist shall invoice the services rendered on a monthly basis.

(2) The customer must pay Expertist the price stated in the consultancy contract within 20 days of receipt of the invoice.

(3) The customer is in default without further reminder after a period of 30 days after notification of the invoice amount.

Section 4 - Additional rules as a service provider

The provisions of this section supplement the generally applicable sections and concern the user who concludes contracts via the platform as a service provider or recruiter.

(1) The contract betweenExpertist and the Service Provider is concluded in the online negotiation procedure as follows:

a) After the customer’s request for advice has been reviewed by Expertist, Expertist places the legally non-binding request for advice on the online platform. The request for advice is then displayed to the registered service provider.

b) At the end of the online negotiation, the service provider informs Expertist of the remuneration he/she will receive for the activity described. This declaration represents a legally binding offer to Expertist to conclude a consultancy contract with Expertist under the conditions resulting from the customer’s request for advice, the specification of the same by the customer’s answers to questions posed by the service providers during the online negotiation and the remuneration demanded by the respective service provider. The service provider is bound by this offer for seven working days from the end of the online negotiation and cannot revoke it during this period.

c) The contract between Expertist and the service provider is concluded upon receipt by the service provider of a corresponding declaration of acceptance by Expertist.

(2) The service provider shall not be entitled to be one of the service providers displayed to the customer for selection, even if he demands lower remuneration than another service provider.

(3) Verbal ancillary agreements shall not become part of the contract.

(1) The contract between Expertist and the service provider is concluded in the direct search procedure as follows:

a) After the customer’s request for advice has been reviewed by Expertist, Expertist individually selects service providers that are suitable for providing the service described in the customer’s request for advice and invites them in a legally non-binding manner to submit offers to Expertist for the provision of the service described in the request for advice.

b) The service provider submits an offer to Expertist to perform the service described in the client’s request for advice, including the remuneration requested by the client. This declaration represents a legally binding offer to Expertist to conclude a consultancy contract with Expertist under the conditions resulting from the client’s request for advice and from the remuneration charged by the respective service provider. The service provider is bound by his offer for seven working days from the time he submits his offer to Expertist and cannot revoke it during this period.

c) The contract between Expertist and the service provider is concluded upon receipt by the service provider of a corresponding declaration of acceptance by Expertist. Acceptance by Expertist is always subject to the proviso that an effective contract is concluded between Expertist and the respective customer.

(2) The service provider is not entitled to have his offer forwarded to the client by Expert, even if he demands lower remuneration than another service provider.

(3) Verbal ancillary agreements shall not become part of the contract.

(1) The service provider undertakes on behalf of Expertist to provide the service described in more detail in the service description in the manner described therein to the client for the agreed fee.

(2) Expertist undertakes to pay the service provider the remuneration specified in the service description in accordance with para. 1.

The duration of the service contract between Expertist and the service provider depends on the duration of the consultancy contract between Expertist and the customer. The contract ends with the complete provision of the service described in detail in the consulting contract.

Expertist pays the fee specified in the consultancy contract to the service provider in monthly instalments 14 days after invoicing.

Affiliate Program of Expertist GmbH

Expertist GmbH, Große Elbstraße 42, 22767 Hamburg (‘The Expertist’) operates the online platform www.expertist.de, where its consulting-seeking customers (‘customers’) can set up applications for consulting services. Two methods are available on the online platform by which customers can receive offers from consulting service providers (‘service providers’). The Affiliate Partner (hereinafter referred to as “Partner”) introduces new users to Expertist and in return receives a share of the turnover from online negotiations.

These Terms and Conditions for the Affiliate Program (hereinafter referred to as the “Terms”) apply to all contracts concluded between the Partner and The Expertist. To the extent applicable, the Expertist’s General Terms and Conditions, in particular Section 1 – General Provisions, also apply. The general terms and conditions of Expertist are available on the website www.expertist.de.

(1) Access to the affiliate program is open to registered and verified users of Expertist. There is no claim to admission to the affiliate program.

(2) The Partner can download an individualized link via the Expertist platform or have it sent to interested parties via Expertist. By downloading the customized link, Expertist invites the partner to find new users for Expertist.

(3) The Partner sends the individualized link to interested third parties. If these third parties register as users via this individualized link, they are assigned to the partner. If these new users conclude a contract with Expertist for the provision or use of consulting services within the first two years after registration and the contract is paid in full, the Partner is entitled to remuneration.

(4) The claim for remuneration exists in the amount of the commission offered by Expertist at the time of the conclusion of the contract between the new user recruited by the Partner and Expertist. The amount of the commission will be published on the Expertist website at www.expertist.de/en. At the request of the Partner, Expertist shall provide a truthful list with the amount of remuneration awarded for the respective periods. The point in time of the conclusion of the contract between the new user and Expertist relevant for the amount of the remuneration is usually the time of the end of the online negotiation.

(5) Expertist reserves the right to change the amount of the remuneration over time unilaterally and without the consent of the Partner. Expertist reserves the right to set the compensation claim to zero.

(6) Expertist will distribute the remuneration at least once a year. In the case of payments on account by the new customer, the date of the last instalment is decisive.

(1) The Partner’s claim to remuneration shall only arise if the Partner canvasses a customer who is not yet economically in contact with Expertist. This is particularly the case if the customer

  • is not already registered with Expertist under the same or a different name/company/company
  • is not already registered with Expertist with an affiliated company (within the meaning of § 15 ff AktG)
  • is not already registered with Expertist through a person/company that exercises significant influence over an existing customer.

(2) The partner’s claim for remuneration only arises if the new customer actually pays the invoices issued by Expertist. In particular, Expertist is not obliged to legally pursue invoices issued in order to collect outstanding remuneration.

(3) Expertist has the right to offset the remuneration claim of the Partner against outstanding claims of the Partner. This also includes claims that are disputed by the partner, not yet due and already time-barred.

(4) Expertist has the right to suspend payment of the remuneration until any objections to payment have been resolved. In this context, the Partner undertakes to provide Expertist information promptly and truthfully.

Expertist will not give the Partner any instructions regarding the acquisition of new customers, the intensity of his efforts or the type of advertising. The partner does not receive detached support for his efforts from Expertist, Expertist is not accountable and is not integrated into Expertist’s business operations.

(1) The Partner undertakes to present Expertist in accordance with his self-portrayal and not to deliberately deceive interested third parties about Expertist’s circumstances.

(2) The partner will not present himself as part of Expertist or give the impression that he is associated with Expertist or can make declarations of intent on Expertist’s behalf.

(3) The Partner shall comply with the obligations of these terms and conditions and, if there is a justified reason, provide Expertist with truthful information about the customers he has recruited.

Expertist reserves the right to block, terminate and/or completely or partially shut down the Partner’s account in the event of violations of these conditions by the Partner or only in relation to the individualised links.

The offer to the partner is made with unlimited duration. Expertist reserves the right to terminate the affiliate program with 7 days notice. This shall not affect the claims for remuneration already effectively accrued at that time.

Expertist reserves the right to change these conditions at any time and without giving reasons, with effect for the future. Expertist will notify its partners of the intended changes by e-mail at least four weeks before they take effect and make the changed conditions available to the partners. The changes are deemed to be approved if the Partner does not object in writing within four weeks of receipt of the notification. The notification shall contain a corresponding reference to this period and to the consequences of failure to object. The receipt of the objection by Expertist is decisive for compliance with the time limit. In the event of a timely opposition, both parties shall have the right to terminate the contracts concerned.

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