Agreeing on the price of services
Before purchasing services, you should always agree on their price in writing. The price may be based on either a price estimate, a fixed price, an indicative price range or a maximum price. If the price has not been agreed, you must pay any reasonable price the company asks for.
Agree on the price of services in writing
You should always agree in writing on the price of services, such as renovation work and repairs. For example, the parties may agree on either a price estimate, a fixed price, an indicative price range or a maximum price.
If there is a dispute over whether the price set down in the contract meant a price estimate or an indicative price, the company must be able to justify their claim.
If you have not agreed a price
If you have not agreed a price, you must pay whatever price the company asks for the service. However, this price may not be unreasonably high.
To determine if a price is reasonable you should, among other things, look at the content and scope of the work, current prices or the typical method of calculating the price used at the time when the contract was concluded, and if the work has been performed in the most economically feasible way.
Price determination
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If the work is carried out for a fixed price, the amount you pay will be the same even if the company spent more time doing the work than they expected, or the cost of supplies changed.
This means that the company cannot charge an amount higher than the fixed price you agreed on. On the other hand, the company does not need to reduce the price if doing the work costs less than expected.
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In renovation work and repairs it is usual that, rather than stating a fixed price, the company gives a price or cost estimate when they have examined the site or device to be repaired. When giving a price estimate, the company must tell the customer clearly if the price estimate only includes the work or if materials or spare parts are also included. If the price has not been broken down, the price estimate is expected to cover the total price of the service.
The company has the right to charge a fee for giving you a price estimate, but they must inform you of this in advance. The company may not change the price estimate, but for justified reasons it may be exceeded by 15%. On the other hand, the company may not charge the estimated price if the final price is lower.
Any additional work not covered by the original order is not included in the price estimate, and the company must agree on it separately with the customer.
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An indicative price is often given before the company has examined the site or device to be repaired. In this case, the customer must be prepared for the possibility that the work will cost more than the stated price.
If it seems likely that the cost of the work will be significantly more than the indicative price, the company must inform the customer immediately and stop the work if necessary.
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The maximum price is the upper limit of the price charged for work. The company may not charge more than the agreed maximum price for the work even if its costs were higher than the stated price. The price may be reduced, however, if the costs of the work or supplies turns out to be lower than expected.
What you should do if you find contract terms unfair
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If you think that a contract term is unfair, you should first negotiate with the company on adjusting it and making it more reasonable. An unfair or unjustifiably changed contract term may concern, for example, price, duration of the contract, delivery time, payment, invoicing, penalties for errors or termination of the contract.
Often the problem can be resolved when you notify the company as soon as possible.
If the company does not react as you would like, submit a written complaint to the company with a detailed description of the problem and a list of your demands.
Justify your demands and provide evidence to support your claim, if possible. For example, photographs, documents, e-mail correspondence, and other evidence (such as fault diagnoses) may help.
You can use our Complaint Assistant to file a complaint. The Complaint Assistant also provides information about your rights and helps you assess what kind of demands you can make.
Complaint Assistant – Filing a complaint with a company
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If the opposing party is willing to resolve the issue, try to find a satisfactory solution through negotiation.
Consider carefully whether you can accept the service provider’s proposal. Often there is not just one right solution. However, reconciliation is usually a better and more economical solution than a prolonged dispute.
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If the complaint and the negotiation procedure do not lead to an amicable solution, you can contact the Consumer Advisory Services for instructions.
The processing of your case usually requires information about the opposing party’s view.