General Terms and Conditions (GTC)

§ 1 Scope of application and contracting parties

(1) These General Terms and Conditions (GTC) apply to all contracts for prep, warehousing and despatch services concluded between

(hereinafter: “Contractor”) and the respective client (hereinafter: “Client”).

(2) The version of these GTC in force at the time the contract is concluded shall be authoritative. Deviating, conflicting or supplementary terms of the Client shall not become part of the contract unless the Contractor has expressly consented to their application in text form. This applies also where the Contractor renders the service without reservation in the knowledge of such terms.

(3) These GTC apply exclusively vis-à-vis entrepreneurs pursuant to § 14 BGB (German Civil Code), legal persons under public law and special funds under public law.

(4) These GTC apply also to all future orders of the same Client without any need for further reference to them.

§ 2 Subject matter of the services and applicable legal regimes

(1) On the basis of the respective order confirmation, the Contractor provides logistics services for the preparation of goods for inbound delivery to Amazon FBA as well as related services, in particular:

• Goods receipt, inspection and placing into storage
• FNSKU labelling in accordance with Amazon guidelines
• Quality control and inspection
• Packaging services (polybag, bubble wrap, outer packaging)
• Bundling and multipacking
• Storage (short-term)
• Despatch for inbound delivery to Amazon (FBA shipment)
• Despatch to the Client's end customers (FBM)
• Returns processing

(2) The precise scope of services follows from the service and price overview applicable from time to time and from the individual order confirmation.

(3) The Contractor is entitled to have partial services performed by qualified subcontractors. He is liable for their selection in accordance with the statutory provisions.

(4) The Contractor's services comprise partial services which are to be classified differently in law. Unless expressly agreed otherwise, the following shall apply:

• a) Processing services (goods receipt, inspection, examination, labelling, packaging, bundling, returns processing): The provisions of the law on contracts for work and contracts for services apply (§§ 611 et seq., 631 et seq. BGB – German Civil Code).
• b) Warehousing services (placing into storage and safekeeping of goods): The provisions on the warehousing business apply (§§ 467 et seq. HGB – German Commercial Code), and as regards liability in particular § 475 HGB.
• c) Despatch services (arranging despatch to Amazon fulfilment centres and to the Client's end customers): The provisions on the freight forwarding contract apply (§§ 453 et seq. HGB). In this respect the Contractor owes the organisation of the despatch; the carriage itself is performed by carriers, parcel and forwarding service providers.

(5) The Contractor does not owe any legal, tax, customs or product compliance advice. Information on Amazon requirements is given without obligation and without warranty as to its currency; responsibility for compliance with the Amazon guidelines applicable from time to time lies with the Client.

§ 3 Conclusion of contract and placing of orders

(1) Offers of the Contractor are subject to change and non-binding unless they are expressly designated as binding.

(2) A contract is concluded when the Client places an order in text form (§ 126b BGB – German Civil Code, in particular by e-mail or via the contact form) and the Contractor confirms it in text form. The commencement of performance shall be equivalent to an order confirmation.

(3) When placing the order, the Client is obliged to provide complete and correct particulars of the goods to be processed (type, quantity, weight, dimensions, ASIN, FNSKU, target marketplace, etc.).

(4) The Contractor is entitled to reject an order without giving reasons, in particular where the goods do not meet the requirements of these GTC or the evidence required under §§ 6 and 7 is not available.

§ 4 Prices, payment and value added tax

(1) The prices shown on the Contractor's website at the time the order is placed shall apply. All prices are in euros, net, plus statutory value added tax.

(2) Invoices fall due for payment without deduction within 14 days of the invoice date unless otherwise agreed in text form.

(3) The minimum order value is EUR 25.00 net per individual order for prep services. If the order value falls below this, the difference is charged as a minimum order surcharge.

(4) New customers receive a discount on prep services of 10% on the first and 5% on the second delivery (maximum 2,000 units per delivery). Storage, shipping costs and third-party services are excluded from the discount. Any legal entitlement to the granting of discounts going beyond this exists only where agreed in text form.

(5) In the event of default in payment, the Contractor is entitled to charge default interest at a rate of 9 percentage points above the base rate of interest (§ 247 BGB – German Civil Code) and to assert a lump sum pursuant to § 288(5) BGB. The right to assert further loss caused by default is reserved.

(6) Reverse charge procedure. Vis-à-vis clients established in another Member State of the European Union who provide evidence of a valid VAT identification number, services whose place of supply is determined by the place of establishment of the recipient are invoiced without German value added tax; the tax liability passes to the recipient of the service in this respect (reverse charge), insofar as this is applicable by law. The Client is obliged to provide evidence of the validity of its VAT identification number on request, to notify changes without undue delay and to procure the service exclusively for its business. The Client is liable for additional tax assessments based on incorrect or late particulars provided by it.

(7) Services connected with immovable property. Services connected with immovable property, in particular the storage of goods on a specifically determined storage area allocated to the Client, are subject – by way of derogation from paragraph 6 – to German value added tax at the place where the property is situated; no transfer of the tax liability takes place in this respect. The Contractor shows such services separately on the invoice.

(8) The Client may set off against claims of the Contractor only with counterclaims that are undisputed or have been finally determined by a court. The Client is entitled to a right of retention only insofar as its counterclaim is based on the same contractual relationship and is undisputed or has been finally determined by a court.

§ 5 Obligations of the Client

(1) The Client is obliged to deliver, or to arrange for the delivery of, the goods intended for processing to the Contractor in proper condition and ready for despatch. Delivery takes place within the published goods-inwards hours (Monday to Friday, 09:00–17:00); different times require prior arrangement.

(2) The Client ensures that all goods delivered are free from defects in title, comply with the applicable import, customs, labelling and product regulations and do not infringe the rights of third parties (in particular trade mark, copyright and patent rights).

(3) All information necessary for processing (e.g. Amazon shipment IDs, labelling specifications, safety data sheets) is to be notified to the Contractor in good time before processing commences.

(4) The Client is solely responsible for the correctness of all Amazon-related particulars (ASIN, FNSKU, marketplace).

(5) Dangerous goods and goods subject to authorisation. Without prior express agreement in text form, the Client shall deliver no dangerous goods within the meaning of the Gefahrgutbeförderungsgesetz (German Act on the Carriage of Dangerous Goods) and of the ADR (including class 9 lithium batteries insofar as classified as dangerous goods), no explosive, radioactive, self-igniting, toxic or environmentally hazardous substances, no weapons or weapon parts, no medicinal products or narcotics, no live animals and no goods requiring refrigeration or temperature control or that are highly perishable. Goods which are subject to a special official authorisation, permit or supervision may likewise be delivered only after prior agreement in text form.

(6) If the Contractor obtains knowledge of a breach of paragraph 5, he is entitled to refuse processing and onward forwarding, to secure the goods at the Client's cost and risk, to return them or – in the event of danger to persons, property or the environment – to take the necessary immediate measures including proper disposal at the Client's cost. Any statutory duties to notify the authorities remain unaffected.

(7) The Client shall indemnify the Contractor against all third-party claims, fines and official measures including reasonable costs of legal action which are based on a breach of the obligations under this paragraph, unless the Client is not responsible for the breach of duty.

§ 6 Packaging Act, ElektroG and batteries

(1) Packaging Act (VerpackG). The Client is the producer within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz (German Packaging Act) in respect of the sales, grouped and shipment packaging filled with goods which it places on the market through the Contractor. It is obliged, before placing its first order, to register in the LUCID packaging register of the Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister, to participate in a dual system with regard to packaging subject to system participation, and to submit to the Contractor, before placing its first order, the LUCID registration number and evidence of system participation in text form. The evidence is to be updated annually without prompting; changes are to be notified without undue delay.

(2) Packaging material provided by the Contractor. The obligations under paragraph 1 apply expressly also to packaging material which the Contractor provides and uses on behalf of the Client (e.g. cartons, polybags, filling and cushioning material, adhesive tape, labels). In this respect the Contractor packs in accordance with instructions and for the account of the Client and does not thereby itself become a producer within the meaning of the VerpackG; the registration, system participation and reporting obligations for such packaging lie with the Client. On request, the Contractor shall notify the Client of the types and quantities of material used per consignment so that the Client can submit its quantity report.

(3) Where the evidence under paragraphs 1 and 2 is not available, is incomplete or is no longer current, the Contractor is entitled and obliged under § 7(7) VerpackG (German Packaging Act) to refuse performance or to discontinue performance already commenced; he may neither offer the goods concerned for sale nor place them on the market for the Client. The Client has no claims on account of any delay arising as a result.

(4) Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act (ElektroG). In the case of electrical and electronic equipment, the Client is the producer within the meaning of the ElektroG. It must have itself registered with the stiftung elektro-altgeräte register (stiftung ear) before placing the equipment on the market and must provide the Contractor, before placing its first order, with evidence in text form of the WEEE registration number for each brand and category of equipment as well as of an insolvency-proof guarantee, where required. Without proper registration, the equipment may not be offered for sale pursuant to § 6(2) sentence 2 ElektroG (German Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act); paragraph 3 applies accordingly.

(5) Batteries and accumulators. Paragraphs 1 to 4 apply accordingly to batteries and accumulators – including those contained in equipment or supplied with equipment. The Client shall provide evidence of registration under battery law as well as of participation in a take-back system (Batteriegesetz – German Batteries Act – or Regulation (EU) 2023/1542).

(6) Costs and indemnity. Costs incurred by the Contractor as a result of missing, incomplete or incorrect evidence under this paragraph (in particular standing times, additional storage costs, return shipment, disposal, subsequent licensing of packaging quantities) shall be borne by the Client. The Client shall indemnify the Contractor against all fines, administrative offence and administrative proceedings, third-party claims including warning letters and injunctive claims as well as the associated reasonable costs of legal action which are based on a breach of the obligations under this paragraph, unless the Client is not responsible for the breach of duty.

§ 7 Market surveillance, product safety and economic operators

(1) The Client ensures that, for every product which the Contractor processes, stores or despatches, an economic operator established in the European Union within the meaning of Art. 4(2)(a) to (c) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 (manufacturer, importer or authorised representative) is designated, and that that operator's name, registered trade name or registered trade mark as well as contact address are stated on the product, its packaging, the parcel or in an accompanying document. The same applies to the particulars required under Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety (GPSR), including the indication of a responsible person for products made available on the Union market.

(2) The Contractor assumes neither the role of importer or manufacturer nor that of an authorised representative or a responsible person within the meaning of the provisions referred to in paragraph 1. The designation by the Client of an economic operator pursuant to Art. 4(2)(a) to (c) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 is a precondition for excluding any subsidiary responsibility of the Contractor as a fulfilment service provider pursuant to Art. 4(2)(d) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020.

(3) The Contractor may not be designated as importer, manufacturer, authorised representative or responsible person in product labelling, packaging particulars, customs, import and shipping documents or in offers on online marketplaces. His address may not be used as an importer or customs address. Goods are to be delivered exclusively cleared through customs and with complete particulars of the Client; importation, customs clearance and import turnover tax are the sole responsibility of the Client.

(4) If the Client breaches paragraphs 1 to 3, the Contractor is entitled to discontinue performance immediately and to terminate the contract for cause. The Client shall indemnify the Contractor against all claims, fines, recall costs and official measures including reasonable costs of legal action arising from the Client having failed, contrary to paragraphs 1 to 3, to designate an economic operator or having identified the Contractor as importer, manufacturer, authorised representative or responsible person.

(5) The Contractor shall cooperate in measures of the market surveillance authorities to the extent required by law and shall inform the Client without undue delay of official enquiries concerning the Client's goods.

§ 8 Liability of the Contractor

(1) The Contractor is liable without limitation for damage caused intentionally or by gross negligence, for damage arising from injury to life, body or health, within the scope of a guarantee assumed by him, and under the Produkthaftungsgesetz (German Product Liability Act).

(2) In the case of slight negligence, the Contractor is liable only for the breach of material contractual obligations (cardinal obligations), that is to say those obligations whose fulfilment makes the proper performance of the contract possible in the first place and on whose observance the Client may regularly rely. In such a case liability is limited to the foreseeable loss typical of the contract.

(3) Processing services (§ 2(4)(a)). Liability for slight negligence in respect of damage to property in relation to goods delivered is limited, per occurrence of loss, to the evidenced value of the goods (purchase or replacement value) of the consignment of goods concerned.

(4) Warehousing services (§ 2(4)(b)). For loss of or damage to the goods in the period between acceptance for storage and delivery out, the Contractor is liable pursuant to § 475 HGB (German Commercial Code); accordingly he is not liable insofar as the damage could not have been averted even by the diligence of a prudent merchant. The provisions of §§ 467 et seq. HGB otherwise remain unaffected.

(5) Despatch services (§ 2(4)(c)). For arranging the despatch, the Contractor is liable pursuant to §§ 453 et seq. HGB. The following limitation of liability, which is specially emphasised in typographic terms, applies to loss of and damage to the goods in his custody:

(6) Instead of the provision in paragraph 5, the parties may agree in text form on the application of the Allgemeine Deutsche Spediteurbedingungen 2017 (ADSp 2017 – German Freight Forwarders' Standard Terms and Conditions 2017); these contain a corresponding limitation of liability of 8.33 Special Drawing Rights (SDR) per kilogram as well as supplementary maximum amounts per occurrence of loss and per damaging event. The Contractor shall make the full text of the ADSp 2017 available in text form on request.

(7) Documentation, duty to examine and to give notice of defects. The Contractor documents goods receipt by number of items and externally recognisable condition as well as goods issue, and shall make this documentation available to the Client in text form on request; he retains it for at least twelve months after delivery out. The Client must examine the goods receipt and goods issue documentation made accessible to it as well as returned goods without undue delay and must give notice of externally recognisable deviations, shortfalls or damage within five working days of receipt of the documentation or of delivery, in text form (§ 126b BGB – German Civil Code); damage which is not externally recognisable must be notified within five working days of its discovery. In all other respects the statutory provisions apply, in particular the notice of damage pursuant to § 438 HGB (German Commercial Code) as well as the statutory allocation of the burden of pleading and proof; this provision expressly does not entail any deviation from the statutory allocation of the burden of proof to the detriment of the Client.

(8) The foregoing limitations of liability apply also for the benefit of the Contractor's legal representatives, employees, vicarious agents and subcontractors.

(9) The Contractor points out that damage exceeding the statutory limits of liability or those agreed above may be covered by goods, transport or warehouse insurance taken out by the Client. At the Client's request in text form, the Contractor will examine the agreement of a more extensive liability or the taking out of additional insurance against separate remuneration.

§ 9 Storage, storage periods and realisation

(1) Short-term storage of goods is possible within the scope of the services ordered. The storage charges follow from the current price list. The manner and place of storage are within the reasonable discretion of the Contractor; a claim to a particular, specifically allocated storage area exists only where expressly agreed in text form.

(2) Termination and collection. If the Client stores goods for longer than 60 days without instructing delivery out, onward despatch or collection, the Contractor is entitled to terminate the storage contract in respect of the goods concerned upon 14 days' notice in text form (§ 126b BGB – German Civil Code) and to call upon the Client to collect the goods or to instruct a despatch. The right to terminate for cause as well as § 473 HGB (German Commercial Code) remain unaffected. Storage costs continue to accrue until the goods are actually taken out of storage, collected or realised.

(3) Realisation. If the Client does not comply with the request under paragraph 2, the Contractor is entitled, after a further warning in text form setting a reasonable additional period of at least 14 days, to realise the goods in accordance with the provisions on the self-help sale (§ 373(2) to (5) HGB). The proceeds of realisation are paid out to the Client without undue delay after deduction of the Contractor's outstanding claims arising from the business relationship and of the reasonable costs of realisation; where payment out is not possible, the amount is deposited with a court. The Contractor shall provide a statement of account in text form concerning the realisation and the set-off.

(4) Disposal. Only goods which are demonstrably incapable of realisation – in particular spoiled, damaged or expired goods, goods which are not legally marketable or which are for other reasons not marketable – may be properly disposed of by the Contractor after prior notice in text form. The disposal is documented (type, quantity, reason, time, photographs where possible, together with evidence of disposal) and evidenced to the Client on request. The costs of disposal are borne by the Client.

(5) Statutory liens and rights of retention of the Contractor (§ 10) remain unaffected by the foregoing provisions.

§ 10 Lien and right of retention

(1) The Contractor is entitled to the statutory liens, in particular the freight forwarder's lien pursuant to § 464 HGB (German Commercial Code) and the warehouse keeper's lien pursuant to § 475b HGB, in each case in respect of all claims arising under the relevant contract, over the goods in his possession and the associated accompanying documents.

(2) In addition, the parties agree a contractual lien and a contractual right of retention of the Contractor over all goods, packaging, documents and other items of the Client which come into the Contractor's possession, in respect of all matured claims arising from the entire business relationship. This agreement is necessary because the commercial right of retention under § 369 HGB applies only between merchants; it therefore applies also vis-à-vis clients which are entrepreneurs within the meaning of § 14 BGB (German Civil Code) but are not merchants within the meaning of §§ 1 et seq. HGB.

(3) The exercise of the lien and of the right of retention is permissible only insofar as it is proportionate having regard to the amount of the outstanding claim and to the legitimate interests of the Client. The realisation of the pledge is governed by the statutory provisions; it must be threatened to the Client beforehand in text form, setting a reasonable period.

(4) No acquisition of ownership. The Contractor acquires no ownership of the goods delivered and processed. Any processing, treatment, repackaging or combination is always carried out on behalf of and for the account of the Client; the parties agree that the Client remains the owner of the goods and that the Contractor merely keeps them as bailee (Besitzmittler) for the Client.

§ 11 Limitation of actions

(1) Claims arising from warehousing services and from arranging the despatch become time-barred after one year; in the case of intent or of fault equivalent to intent, the limitation period is three years. § 439 HGB (German Commercial Code), which applies accordingly to the freight forwarding and the warehousing business, governs in this respect; the statutory provisions apply to the commencement and suspension of the limitation period.

(2) The statutory limitation periods apply to claims arising from processing services.

(3) Claims arising from injury to life, body or health as well as claims based on intent and gross negligence remain unaffected; the statutory limitation periods always apply to these.

§ 12 Force majeure

(1) Events of force majeure release the parties from their performance obligations for the duration of the disruption and to the extent of its effect. Force majeure means unforeseeable events for which the affected party is not responsible and which cannot be averted even with reasonable care, in particular natural disasters, fire, flooding, war, terrorist attacks, epidemics and pandemics, sovereign measures and operational closures, cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, failure of energy and telecommunications networks, traffic closures as well as lawful industrial action.

(2) The affected party shall inform the other party without undue delay in text form of the occurrence, the expected duration and the effects of the event and shall make reasonable efforts to limit its effects. The Contractor's obligation to secure stored goods to the extent reasonable remains in place.

(3) If the disruption lasts longer than 60 days, either party is entitled to terminate the affected order in text form. Services already rendered are to be remunerated. There are no claims for damages on account of the delay or non-performance caused by force majeure, insofar as the affected party is not responsible for the disruption.

§ 13 Sanctions, embargoes and export control

(1) The parties undertake to comply with the applicable sanctions, embargo and export control provisions of the European Union, the Federal Republic of Germany and the United Nations as well as, insofar as applicable, of the United States of America.

(2) The Client warrants that neither it nor its shareholders, beneficial owners or the recipients designated by it are listed on any relevant sanctions list and that the goods are intended neither for a listed recipient, nor for an embargoed territory, nor for a prohibited end use (in particular armament-, nuclear- or weapons-related use). Changes are to be notified without undue delay.

(3) The Contractor is entitled to refuse or to suspend performance or to terminate the contract without notice where there are concrete indications of a breach of paragraph 1 or 2 or where rendering the service would expose him to a sanctions risk. In such a case the Client has no claims on account of the refusal to perform.

(4) The Client shall indemnify the Contractor against all detriments, fines and claims resulting from a breach of paragraphs 1 and 2, unless the Client is not responsible for the breach.

§ 14 Data protection and processing on behalf of a controller

(1) The processing of the Client's personal data takes place in accordance with our privacy policy.

(2) Insofar as, in the course of rendering the services, the Contractor processes personal data of end customers or other data subjects of the Client on the Client's instructions – in particular in the case of FBM despatch and returns processing – Annex 1 (Processing on behalf of a controller pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR), which forms part of these GTC, applies in addition.

(3) The controller within the meaning of Art. 4(7) GDPR is in this respect the Client. It is responsible for the lawfulness of the provision of the data and of the processing and ensures that it is entitled to transfer the data to the Contractor.

§ 15 Contract and negotiation language

(1) The contract and negotiation language is German or English.

(2) Where these GTC or contractual documents are made available in further language versions, these serve exclusively to facilitate understanding. In the event of any discrepancies or differences of interpretation between the language versions, the German version alone shall be authoritative.

§ 16 Final provisions

(1) The law of the Federal Republic of Germany applies, to the exclusion of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

(2) If the Client is a merchant, a legal person under public law or a special fund under public law, the exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from or in connection with these GTC is the Contractor's place of business. The Contractor is in addition entitled to bring proceedings at the Client's general place of jurisdiction.

(3) Should individual provisions of these GTC be or become wholly or partially invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions shall remain unaffected. The statutory provisions shall take the place of the invalid provision (§ 306(2) BGB – German Civil Code).

(4) Amendments and supplements to these GTC require text form (§ 126b BGB); this applies also to the waiver of this text form requirement.

(5) Priority of individual agreements. Individual contractual agreements always take priority over these General Terms and Conditions pursuant to § 305b BGB (German Civil Code). They are not subject to any form requirement; the text form clause in paragraph 4 does not restrict the priority of individual agreements.

Annex 1: Processing on behalf of a controller pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR

1. Subject matter, duration and binding nature of instructions

(1) The subject matter of the processing on behalf of the controller is the processing of personal data which the Contractor carries out on behalf of the Client in order to render the services described in § 2 of these GTC.

(2) The duration of the processing on behalf of the controller corresponds to the term of the underlying contractual relationship. It ends upon the termination of that relationship, at the latest upon the return or erasure of the data pursuant to section 8.

(3) The Contractor processes the data exclusively on documented instructions from the Client, unless he is required to process it under Union law or German law; in that case he shall inform the Client of those legal requirements before processing, unless the law prohibits this on important grounds of public interest. Instructions are to be given in text form. If the Contractor is of the opinion that an instruction infringes data protection law, he shall inform the Client without undue delay; he is entitled to suspend implementation until the Client confirms or amends the instruction.

2. Nature and purpose of the processing

Nature of the processing: collection, recording, storage, organisation, use, printing (shipping labels, delivery notes), transmission to transport service providers and marketplaces, alignment, erasure and destruction.

Purpose of the processing: picking, packing and despatch of goods to the Client's end customers, preparation of shipping documents and consignment tracking, acceptance and processing of returns including allocation to the original order, clarification of transport damage and complaints.

3. Type of data and categories of data subjects

Type of personal data: name and, where applicable, company name, delivery and invoicing address, e-mail address and telephone number (insofar as transmitted for delivery purposes), order, consignment and returns numbers, particulars of the contents of the consignment, communication content in connection with returns and complaints.

Categories of data subjects: end customers and purchasers of the Client, recipients of consignments, contact persons and employees of the Client.

Special categories of personal data pursuant to Art. 9 GDPR are not the subject of the processing and may not be transmitted to the Contractor.

4. Confidentiality

The Contractor processes the data in confidence. Persons authorised to carry out the processing are placed under an obligation of confidentiality insofar as they are not already subject to an appropriate statutory duty of confidentiality (Art. 28(3)(b) GDPR). The obligation continues to apply after the end of the activity. The Contractor is a sole proprietorship; access to personal data is as a rule exclusively by the proprietor.

5. Technical and organisational measures (Art. 32 GDPR)

The Contractor takes in particular the following measures and maintains them for the term of the contract:

• Physical access control: locked warehouse and processing building, access only for the proprietor and expressly authorised persons; deliveries and collections only when accompanied; no publicly accessible storage areas.
• System and data access control: password-protected, encrypted devices with up-to-date system maintenance; no third-party access to the systems and user accounts used; no shared access credentials.
• Transfer control: transmission of address and consignment data to marketplaces and transport service providers exclusively via encrypted connections (TLS).
• Data media and document control: shipping documents and delivery notes are not kept in the open; paper documents containing personal data are destroyed in a data-protection-compliant manner (shredder).
• Availability control: regular back-up of order and consignment data; protection against fire, moisture and unauthorised access.
• Separation control: client-separated filing of the data for each Client; no merging with data of other clients.
• Erasure concept: erasure or destruction of despatch and returns data upon expiry of the statutory retention periods under commercial and tax law (depending on the type of document, generally six, eight or ten years pursuant to § 257 HGB (German Commercial Code) and § 147 AO (German Fiscal Code)), and otherwise once the purpose has ceased to apply.

The Contractor reviews the measures as circumstances require, but at least annually, and adapts them to the state of the art. Changes may not fall below the level of protection.

6. Sub-processors

(1) The Client grants the Contractor general authorisation to engage further processors. Those currently engaged are in particular transport and parcel service providers as well as IT service providers for e-mail and data back-up. Insofar as transport service providers process the address data under their own responsibility for the purposes of delivery, they act as controllers in their own right.

(2) The Contractor shall inform the Client in text form of any intended changes concerning the addition or replacement of further processors. The Client may object thereto within 14 days on important data protection grounds.

(3) The Contractor imposes on sub-processors a level of data protection which corresponds to the requirements of this Annex (Art. 28(4) GDPR). Processing outside the European Union or the European Economic Area takes place only in compliance with Art. 44 et seq. GDPR.

7. Duties to provide assistance (Art. 28(3)(e) and (f) GDPR)

(1) The Contractor assists the Client by appropriate technical and organisational measures in fulfilling requests from data subjects for the exercise of their rights under Chapter III of the GDPR. If a data subject approaches the Contractor directly, the Contractor shall forward the matter to the Client without undue delay.

(2) The Contractor assists the Client in complying with the obligations under Art. 32 to 36 GDPR, in particular with regard to the security of processing, the notification of personal data breaches, data protection impact assessments and prior consultations with the supervisory authority.

(3) The Contractor shall notify the Client of personal data breaches without undue delay, and at the latest within 24 hours of becoming aware of them, in text form, stating the known circumstances, the categories of data affected and the measures taken.

8. Erasure and return upon termination

After the end of the provision of the processing services, the Contractor shall, at the Client's option, erase all personal data or return it and erase existing copies, unless there is an obligation to store the data under Union law or German law (Art. 28(3)(g) GDPR). On request, the Contractor shall provide evidence of the erasure in text form. Documents subject to retention obligations under commercial or tax law are kept in blocked form until expiry of the relevant period and are destroyed thereafter.

9. Evidence and audit rights

(1) The Contractor makes available to the Client all information necessary to demonstrate compliance with the obligations under Art. 28 GDPR and allows for and contributes to audits, including inspections (Art. 28(3)(h) GDPR).

(2) On-site audits take place after timely notice at reasonable notice periods, during business hours and without avoidable disruption of business operations, as a rule at most once a year and additionally as circumstances require where there are concrete grounds for suspicion. The Client bears the costs it incurs; reasonable compensation for the Contractor's expenditure may be agreed.

(3) The Contractor maintains a record of all categories of processing activities carried out on behalf of a controller pursuant to Art. 30(2) GDPR and shall submit the extract concerning the Client on request.

10. Relationship to the remaining provisions

In the event of contradictions between this Annex and the remaining provisions of these GTC, the provisions of this Annex shall prevail in respect of the processing of personal data on behalf of a controller. Liability is governed by Art. 82 GDPR and the statutory provisions; § 8 of these GTC remains unaffected as regards the remaining contractual claims.

Version: August 2026 · Zbranca MTZ World · VAT ID: DE360335852