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Control of Price Related Terms in Standard Form Contracts in Austria: Judicial Control and Other Means of Price Control

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Control of Price Related Terms in Standard Form Contracts

Part of the book series: Ius Comparatum - Global Studies in Comparative Law ((GSCL,volume 36))

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Abstract

This chapter describes and analyses the tension between freedom of contract and contractual justice with regard to price terms in standard contract terms. It focuses on the considerable body of judicial decisions by Austrian courts and provides general information about the Austrian legal framework with regard to price terms in standard contract terms. Thus, the chapter deals with general rules of private law as well as sector specific regulation in the field of consumer protection.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Canaris (2000), p. 284; Mankowski (2011), p. 154.

  2. 2.

    For an overview with many further references, see Atamer (2017), pp. 629–632.

  3. 3.

    VfGH 15 June 1990 (G 56/89) VfSlg 12.379; Griller (1983), p. 115.

  4. 4.

    Heindler (2015), p. 68.

  5. 5.

    See VfGH 19 July 2017 (G 428/2016, V 75/2016) immolex 2017, 227: upholding price caps for renting certain types of apartments; VfGH 11 March 2010 (V 56/09 et al) VfSlg 19.033: upholding restrictions to changing gasoline prices intraday; cf. VfGH 9 October 2018 (G 9/2018, G 10/2018) repealing the provision on free-of-charge use of ATMs as a violation of the right to property.

  6. 6.

    See Krejci (2007), p. 97.

  7. 7.

    See Entwurf Horten III 9, 25 and Codex Theresianus III 9, 57.

  8. 8.

    See Winner (2007), p. 25; Heindler (2016), p. 797.

  9. 9.

    See Bydlinski (1996), pp. 147–148.

  10. 10.

    OGH 5 July 1989 (1 Ob 9/89) SZ 62/130.

  11. 11.

    Translation by Eschig and Pircher-Eschig (2013).

  12. 12.

    Krejci (2014) § 879 para 366.

  13. 13.

    See Wilburg (1950).

  14. 14.

    Graf (2017) § 879 para 278.

  15. 15.

    OGH 11 May 2011 (7 Ob 173/10g) RdW 2011, p. 657.

  16. 16.

    Translation by Eschig and Pircher-Eschig (2013).

  17. 17.

    OGH 12 August 2004 (1 Ob 144/04i) SZ 2004/123; OGH 12 March 2008 (7 Ob 28/08f); OGH 28 November 2012 (7 Ob 93/12w) SZ 2012/132.

  18. 18.

    OGH 12 August 2004 (1 Ob 144/04i) SZ 2004/123.

  19. 19.

    Krejci (2014), para 367; OGH 13 April 1983 (1 Ob 581/83) JBl 1983, p. 534 (annotation by F Bydlinski).

  20. 20.

    OGH 4 June 1985 (5 Ob 541/85) JBl 1986, p. 373; OGH 13 June 2006 (10 Ob 145/05d) ecolex 2006, p. 754.

  21. 21.

    OGH 15 May 2014 (6 Ob 68/14i) ZFR 2014, p. 339.

  22. 22.

    Translation by Eschig and Pircher-Eschig (2013).

  23. 23.

    OGH 15 March 2016 (10 Ob 102/15w) ZFR 2016, p. 555.

  24. 24.

    OGH 4 June 1985 (5 Ob 541/85) JBl 1986, p. 373.

  25. 25.

    OGH 9 November 1988 (1 Ob 666/88) SZ 61/235; OGH 9 September 2008 (10 Ob 73/08w).

  26. 26.

    Council Directive 93/13/EEC of 5 April 1993 on unfair terms in consumer contracts, OJ 1993, L 95/29.

  27. 27.

    CJEU Judgment of 30 Mai 2013, Asbeek Brusse and de Man Garabito, C-488/11, EU:C:2013:341, paras 40–46.

  28. 28.

    OGH 13 November 2013 (7 Ob 143/13z) Zak 2014, p. 92; OGH 30 May 2017 (4 Ob 76/17f) Zak 2017, p. 254.

  29. 29.

    CJEU Judgment of 21 January 2015, Unicaja Banco and Caixabank, C-482/13, EU:C:2015:21, para 28.

  30. 30.

    OGH 20 January 2016 (3 Ob 132/15f) ecolex 2016/163; OGH 25 April 2018 (9 Ob 85/17s) ecolex 2019/86.

  31. 31.

    OGH 19 March 2014 (7 Ob 11/14i) ZFR 2015, 162 (annotation by U Palma).

  32. 32.

    Schauer (2012), pp. 639–641; Geroldinger (2013), p. 40; Bollenberger (2017) § 879 para 30.

  33. 33.

    Bielesz and Krepil (2018), p. 12.

  34. 34.

    OGH 13 January 1987 (2 Ob 523/85) EvBl 1987/107; OGH 27 May 2015 (8 Ob 58/14h) ZFR 2016, 84; OGH 27 June 2016 (6 Ob 17/16t) ZFR 2017, p. 85.

  35. 35.

    OGH 9 March 1999 (5 Ob 227/98p) SZ 72/42; OGH 30 September 2009 (7 Ob 91/09x) iFamZ 2010, 200 (annotation by W Faber); OGH 11 May 2011 (7 Ob 173/10g) RdW 2011, 657; OGH 23 January 2013 (7 Ob 201/12b) ZFR 2013, 202 (annotation by M Gruber); Kathrein and Schoditsch (2017) § 28 KSchG para 5; critical in consideration of the meaning and severity of this mode of applying § 28: Kellner (2013), pp. 37–39.

  36. 36.

    Kellner (2013), p. 38.

  37. 37.

    OGH 12 July 2005 (4 Ob 116/05w) JBl 2006, p. 48.

  38. 38.

    OGH 18 June 2013 (4 Ob 245/12a) JBl 2014, p. 267; OGH 16 November 2016 (2 Ob 1/16k) JBl 2017, p. 242.

  39. 39.

    OGH 20 July 2016 (6 Ob 23/16z) Zak 2016, p. 343.

  40. 40.

    CJEU Judgment of 25 January 2018, Schrems, C-498/16, EU:C:2018:37, para 42; on the international jurisdiction of Austrian courts for Austrian style collective actions relating to the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal, see OLG Linz 2 May 2019 (6 R 51/19s) <https://verbraucherrecht.at/cms/uploads/media/Beschluss_-_OLG_Linz.pdf> (accessed 3 July 2019).

  41. 41.

    See Graf (2015), pp. 301–302; Bollenberger (2015), pp. 396–397.

  42. 42.

    Heindler (2015), p. 797.

  43. 43.

    OGH 30 March 2016 (6 Ob 13/16d) EvBl-LS 2016/119.

  44. 44.

    Heindler (2015), p. 797; Schillig (2011), p. 936.

  45. 45.

    OGH 19 October 2005 (7 Ob 216/05y) ZVR 2009, p. 427 (annotation by M Schauer).

  46. 46.

    OGH 18 August 2004 (4 Ob 112/04f) EvBl 2005/47.

  47. 47.

    OGH 4 May 2006 (9 Ob 15/05d) JBl 2007, p. 42.

  48. 48.

    CJEU Judgment of 20 September 2017, Andriciuc and others, C-186/16, EU:C:2017:703, para 41.

  49. 49.

    Graf (2015), p. 303; Heindler (2015), p. 798; Krejci (2014), para 373.

  50. 50.

    CJEU Judgment of 30 April 2014, Kásler and Káslerné Rábai, C-26/13, EU:C:2014:282, paras 54–55.

  51. 51.

    OLG Innsbruck 12 November 2015 (2 R 140/15b).

  52. 52.

    HG Wien 19 October 2018 (60 R 80/18x).

  53. 53.

    OGH 28 January 2009 (10 Ob 70/07b) ÖBA 2013, p. 553 (annotation by B Koch).

  54. 54.

    OGH 24 February 2010 (3 Ob 268/09x) EvBl-LS 2010/106; OGH 11 March 2008 (4 Ob 5/08a) RdW 2008, 392.

  55. 55.

    OGH 22 June 2011 (2 Ob 198/10x) ZVR 2012, p. 166 (annotation by G Kathrein).

  56. 56.

    OGH 25 April 2018 (9 Ob 8/18v) RdW 2018, p. 567.

  57. 57.

    OGH 20 March 2007 (4 Ob 221/06p) ecolex 2007, p. 601 (annotation by G Wilhelm).

  58. 58.

    OGH 8 September 2009 (4 Ob 59/09v) ecolex 2010, p. 37.

  59. 59.

    OGH 7 August 2008 (6 Ob 253/07k) ZFR 2008, p. 233 (annotation by A Schopper).

  60. 60.

    OGH 30 March 2016 (6 Ob 13/16d) RdW 2016, p. 394.

  61. 61.

    See Heindler (2015), p. 798.

  62. 62.

    With further references Riss (2014); OGH 25 April 2019 (6 Ob 226/18f).

  63. 63.

    OGH 11 December 2006 (7 Ob 201/05t) RdW 2007, p. 469.

  64. 64.

    OGH 17 December 2002 (4 Ob 265/02b) ecolex 2003, p. 334 (annotation by M Leitner); OGH 20 March 2007 (4 Ob 227/06w) RdW 2007, p. 661.

  65. 65.

    OGH 21 March 2017 (10 Ob 13/17k) ecolex 2017, p. 825 (annotation by G Wilhelm); OGH 30 May 2017 (8 Ob 101/16k) ZFR 2017, p. 393.

  66. 66.

    OGH 17 July 2018 (4 Ob 113/18y), MR 2018, p. 194.

  67. 67.

    CJEU Judgment of 26 November 2015, Verein für Konsumenteninformation, C-326/14, EU:C:2015:782.

  68. 68.

    Directive 2002/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 22 on universal service and users’ right relating to electronic communications networks and services, OJ 2002, L 108.

  69. 69.

    Translation by RTR-GmbH (Austrian sector-specific supervisory authority), Federal Law Gazette I No. 70/2003, as amended by Federal Law Gazette I No. 44/2014.

  70. 70.

    OGH 13 October 2009 (5 Ob 138/09v) ÖBA 2010, p. 452 (annotation by B Koch).

  71. 71.

    For the opposite view, compare BGH 10 June 2008 (XI ZR 2011/07) NJW 2008, p. 3422; OGH 18 May 2016 (3 Ob 47/16g) ecolex 2016, p. 759 (annotation by G Graf), ÖJZ 2017, 284 (annotation by M Leitner); HG Vienna 31 July 2018 (17 Cg 55/17w).

  72. 72.

    OGH 28 June 2017 (9 Ob 35/17p) ZFR 2017, 550; OGH 30 May 2017 (8 Ob 101/16k) ZFR 2017, 393; OGH 30 May 2017 (8 Ob 107/16t) ecolex 2018, p. 129.

  73. 73.

    OGH 23 May 2019 (3 Ob 46/19i).

  74. 74.

    OGH 18 September 2013 (7 Ob 44/13s) ZFR 2014, p. 180.

  75. 75.

    OGH 10 November 2009 (5 Ob 129/09w) immolex-LS 2010/12.

  76. 76.

    OGH 29 June 2009 (9 Ob 68/08b) GesRZ 2009, p. 361 (annotation by M Oppitz).

  77. 77.

    OGH 10 June 2008 (4 Ob 91/08y) RdW 2008, p. 710.

  78. 78.

    OGH 29 May 2012 (9 Ob 69/11d) ecolex 2012, p. 965 (annotation by G Graf).

  79. 79.

    Regulation (EU) No 531/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2012 on roaming on public mobile communications networks within the Union, OJ 2012, L 172/10, and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/2286 of 15 December 2016 laying down detailed rules on the application of fair use policy and on the methodology for assessing the sustainability of the abolition of retail roaming surcharges and on the application to be submitted by a roaming provider for the purposes of that assessment, OJ 2016, L 344/46.

  80. 80.

    Directive 2014/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on the comparability of fees related to payment accounts, payment account switching, and access to payment accounts with basic features, OJ 2014, L 257/214.

  81. 81.

    With reference to the price cap, the Austrian Supreme Court of Justice repealed a contract term requiring a customer to pay €14 for an additional debit in card in case of name change, loss, or change to a debit card for people with eyeside problems, see OGH 24 January 2019 (9 Ob 76/18v) Zak 2019, p. 116.

  82. 82.

    Ordinance of the Austrian Minister of Labour, Social Affairs, and Consumer Protection to determine socially and economically exposed groups of consumers.

  83. 83.

    VfGH 9 October 2018 (G 9/2018, G 10/2018).

  84. 84.

    Explanatory report to motion 2284/A, 25th legislative period, 3; § 4 section 2 was upheld as constitutional.

  85. 85.

    See Heindler (2015), p. 83.

  86. 86.

    Ordinance of the Governor of Vienna dated 27 November 1997.

  87. 87.

    See ECtHR 10 January 2017, case 62864/09 Mečiar et al v Slovakia and case 44218/07 Riedel et al v Slovakia.

  88. 88.

    OGH 16 December 2015 (7 Ob 93/15z) ecolex 2016/173 (annotation by M Melcher); OGH 21 March 2017 (10 Ob 17/16x) immolex-LS 2017/35.

  89. 89.

    § 6(3) Any contractual provision included in the General Terms and Conditions or contractual form shall be ineffective if it is unclear or unintelligible.

  90. 90.

    CJEU Judgment of 20 September 2017, Andriciuc and others, C-186/16, EU:C:2017:703, para 43; CJEU Judgment of 30 April 2014, Kásler and Káslerné Rábai, C-26/13, EU:2C:014:282, para 68.

  91. 91.

    Translation by Eschig and Pircher-Eschig (2013).

  92. 92.

    OGH 5 February 2008 (5 Ob 247/07w) ecolex 2008, p. 528.

  93. 93.

    OGH 24 January 2019 (9 Ob 76/18v) Zak 2019, p. 116.

  94. 94.

    OGH 20 March 2007 (4 Ob 227/06w) RdW 2007, p. 661.

  95. 95.

    OGH 13 September 2001 (6 Ob 16/01y) JBl 2002, 178.

  96. 96.

    OGH 5 February 2008 (5 Ob 247/07w) ecolex 2008, p. 528.

  97. 97.

    CJEU Judgment of 6 July 2017, Air Berlin, C-290/16, EU:C:2017:523, para 23.

  98. 98.

    Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 September 2008 on common rules for the operation of air services in the Community, OJ 2008, L 293/3.

  99. 99.

    CJEU Judgment of 6 July 2017, Air Berlin, C-290/16, EU:C:2017:523, para 30.

  100. 100.

    CJEU Judgment of 18 September 2014, Vueling Airlines, C-487/12, EU:C:2014:2232, para 32.

  101. 101.

    CJEU Judgment of 18 September 2014, Vueling Airlines, C-487/12, EU:C:2014:2232, para 34; CJEU Judgment of 19 July 2012, ebookers.comDeutschland, C-112/11, EU:C:2012:487, para 14.

  102. 102.

    OGH 30 August 2012 (2 Ob 59/12h) RdW 2013, p. 190 (annotation by M Kellner).

  103. 103.

    OGH 14 January 2016 (6 Ob 234/15b) ecolex 2016, p. 869.

  104. 104.

    OGH 17 February 2016 (7 Ob 5/16k) ZFR 2016, p. 435.

  105. 105.

    OGH 11 October 2016 (10 Ob 31/16f) ZFR 2017, p. 246.

  106. 106.

    CJEU Judgment of 20 September 2017, Andriciuc and others, C-186/16, EU:C:2017:703, para 51.

  107. 107.

    Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, amending Council Directive 93/11/EEC and Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directive 85/577/EEC and Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, OJ 2011, L 304/64.

  108. 108.

    § 1 of the Ordinance on Professional Ethics Applicable to Operators of Gasoline Stations on the Time for Price Increases, promulgated by the Austrian Minister of Science, Research, and Economy.

  109. 109.

    http://www.spritpreisrechner.at.

  110. 110.

    http://www.stromrechner.at.

  111. 111.

    Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on cross-border parcel delivery COM (2016) 285 final.

  112. 112.

    OGH 30 March 2016 (6 Ob 13/16d) EvBl-LS 2016/119.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sigmund Freud University, Faculty of Law, Vienna, Austria

    Florian Heindler

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  1. Faculty of Law, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

    Yeşim M. Atamer

  2. Faculty of Law, Istanbul Bilgi University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Yeşim M. Atamer

  3. Faculty of Law, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland

    Pascal Pichonnaz

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Heindler, F. (2020). Control of Price Related Terms in Standard Form Contracts in Austria: Judicial Control and Other Means of Price Control. In: Atamer, Y.M., Pichonnaz, P. (eds) Control of Price Related Terms in Standard Form Contracts. Ius Comparatum - Global Studies in Comparative Law, vol 36. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23057-9_4

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