General terms and conditions

1) Scope

Any commercial transactions concluded between “W.D.C. Online”, with its registered office in Remparden 33, 9700 OUDENAARDE, Belgium, VAT BE0695763776 (hereinafter “W.D.C. Online”) and the customer with its domicile/registered office in the European Union, Switzerland or another non-EU member state, as concluded via the webshop [www.equivita.eu] (hereinafter the “webshop”), shall be governed by these general terms and conditions. W.D.C. Online is a retail trader, specialised in cosmetics and food supplements based on natural ingredients (hereinafter the “products”) and aims to sell to consumers and professional customers via its webshop.

By placing an order at [www.equivita.eu] you warrant that you are at least 18 years old.

With its order/purchase the customer acknowledges having taken cognisance of and accepted the general terms and conditions of W.D.C. Online. These terms and conditions shall always have priority over any terms and conditions of the customer, even if these stipulate that they solely apply.

These general terms and conditions do not affect the mandatory rights granted to the consumer-customer by virtue of the Belgian legislation in respect of consumer protection.

Any nullity of one or more stipulations of these terms and conditions shall leave the applicability of all other clauses intact. In the event of nullity of one of the stipulations, W.D.C. Online and the customer, as far as possible and in accordance with their loyalty and conviction, shall negotiate to replace the void stipulation with an equivalent stipulation that answers the general tenor of these general terms and conditions.

If W.D.C. Online refrains from demanding the strict application of one of the stipulations of these terms and conditions, this shall not be considered to be an automatic surrender of the rights that W.D.C. Online has by virtue of these terms and conditions and it shall not prevent W.D.C. Online from demanding strict compliance with those stipulations later.

W.D.C. Online reserves the right to adapt or change its general terms and conditions at any time. It is the responsibility of the customer to consult these terms and conditions regularly.

2) Offer

Catalogues, newsletters, memoranda, folders and advertising announcements shall not be considered to be binding offers of the described or depicted products. W.D.C. Online offers shall be completely without obligation and shall only be considered to be an invitation for purchase or placement of an order by the customer, unless expressly stated otherwise. An offer shall only be valid for the specific order to which it relates and shall therefore not automatically apply for subsequent similar orders. An offer shall only comprise those products that are expressly stated in it.

3) Conclusion of an online purchase

The purchase shall only be concluded upon receipt by the customer of the confirmation mail from W.D.C. Online, even if this mail is received by the customer in the “spam” inbox of his email account. This confirmation mail shall only be sent by W.D.C. Online after correct payment of the order by the customer. Any changes or additions after the conclusion shall only apply after written approval by both parties e.g. in respect of the products purchases or execution times.

Insofar as the right of withdrawal does not apply, W.D.C. Online reserves the right, in the event of (even a partial) cancellation of an order or purchase, to charge 10% of the price of the cancelled order, exclusive of VAT, as compensation, without prejudice to the right of W.D.C. Online to claim compensation of loss actually suffered, if it can prove this.

W.D.C. Online reserves the right to demand additional information about the customer and his activities, for reasons of security and surety, and, failing these, to refuse execution of the order. In addition, W.D.C. Online may refuse to execute orders that prove that the consumer-customer intends to resell the products.

In the event that W.D.C. Online, for objective reasons, considers itself incapable of executing the purchase/order, such as, without limitation, when products are not or no longer in stock, W.D.C. Online shall inform the customer of this within 7 calendar days after the conclusion of the agreement. In that case, payments made already shall be repaid within 14 calendar days after the conclusion of the agreement. Under no circumstances may compensation be demanded from W.D.C. Online in such case.

W.D.C. Online reserves the right to cancel a purchase/order if it is based on incorrect information from the customer entered in the system of the webshop or when W.D.C. Online suspects that the customer purchases a product from W.D.C. Online for reasons that cannot be considered objectively as reasonable and acceptable. In such case, W.D.C. Online will be entitled to claim compensation for the loss suffered as a result. At any rate, W.D.C. Online shall in the first instance approach the customer with a view to obtaining more information.

4) Right of withdrawal

The consumer-customer has the right of withdrawal in respect of the products purchased via the webshop. Pursuant to Book VI Marktpraktijken & Consumentenbescherming van het Wetboek Economisch Recht [Market Practices & Consumer Protection of the Code of Business and Economic Law] the customer is entitled to cancel the agreement within a period of 14 calendar days without stating reasons. The term of withdrawal expires 14 calendar days after the day on which the customer or a third party designated by the customer, not being the conveyor, receives the physical possession of the good. To exercise the right of withdrawal, the customer shall inform W.D.C. Online (Remparden 33, 9700 OUDENAARDE, Belgium) of his decision to cancel the agreement via an equivocal statement by fax, post or email. The customer may also do so using the standard cancellation form but is not obliged to do so. The customer may also fill in the standard cancellation form or draft another clearly worded statement electronically and send it via our website [www.equivita.eu]. If the customer uses this option, W.D.C. Online shall send the customer acknowledgement of receipt of his cancellation without delay on a sustainable data carrier (e.g. by email). To comply with the terms of withdrawal it shall suffice that the customer sends his statement in respect of the exercise of the right of withdrawal before the term of withdrawal has expired. If the customer cancels the agreement, W.D.C. Online shall repay the customer all payments he has made up to that moment, including delivery costs (with the exception of any additional costs as a result of the choice of the customer for another manner of delivery than the cheapest standard delivery provided by W.D.C. Online), without delay and at any rate no later than 14 calendar days after W.D.C. Online was informed of the customer’s decision to cancel the agreement. W.D.C. Online shall then repay the customer using the same means of payment used by the customer for the original transaction, unless the customer has expressly agreed otherwise; at any rate, the customer shall not be charged costs for such repayments. W.D.C. Online will be entitled to postpone repayment until the products have been received by W.D.C. Online or until the customer has proven that he has returned the products, depending on which point of time is first. The customer shall return or hand the products to W.D.C. Online without delay, but at any rate no later than 14 calendar days after the day when he informed W.D.C. Online of his decision to cancel the agreement. The customer shall have acted in due time if he returns the products before the term of 14 calendar days has expired. The direct costs of returning the products shall be borne by the customer, including any custom levies if the goods are returned from Switzerland or any other non-EU member state, which shall be withheld from the amount that W.D.C. Online must repay, unless agreed otherwise. The customer shall only be liable for the decrease in value of the products due to the use of the products that goes beyond what is necessary to determine the nature, characteristics and effect of the products.

Repayment of the delivery costs by W.D.C. Online shall always be pro rata. (For example: the customer buys 2 products and sends 1 back, cancelling the agreement. In that case, W.D.C. Online needs only repay 50% of the delivery costs.) However, when W.D.C. Online uses fixed delivery costs, upon partial cancellation W.D.C. Online will not be obliged to repay any delivery costs.

The returned product shall not have been used and shall be in the same condition as at the moment of delivery. Moreover, the product shall be returned in the original packing in which the product was sent, whether opened or not and including all appurtenances supplied with the product, whereas the customer will not be entitled to remove the “seal” or to open the “blister”, so that W.D.C. Online will be able to sell the good still to a third party even after cancellation. In no case shall a professional customer have the right of withdrawal.

5) Price

All prices shall be expressed in the currency applicable in the country of delivery and shall be inclusive of VAT, but exclusive of any delivery, shipping or other administrative costs, unless expressly stated otherwise. Any costs for delivery shall always be stated separately.

The products shall always be sold at the prices stated in the webshop at the moment of the online purchase.

Insofar as the prices are based on the then prevailing amount of the cost of wages, the cost of ingredients, social contributions and government charges, transport costs and insurance premiums, the cost of materials and parts, rates of exchange and/or other costs, in the event of a raise or reduction of one or more of these price factors, W.D.C. Online will be entitled to raise or reduce, respectively, its prices accordingly in accordance with the legally permissible norms.

6) Delivery

The date of delivery stated shall always be an approximate date. Under no circumstance, except in the event of intention or gross neglect on the part of W.D.C. Online, shall excess of the term anticipated be reason for compensation of dissolution of the agreement at the expense of W.D.C. Online.

Changes in the order shall automatically cancel the terms of delivery stated. In no case shall W.D.C. Online be liable for delays occurred due to the default of suppliers, the customer and/or any other third party. Late delivery by W.D.C. Online shall not release the customer from his obligations. W.D.C. Online reserves the right to make partial deliveries in respect of any order whatsoever.

The products shall be supplied DELIVERED AT PLACE (Incoterms® 2010) at the delivery address specified by the customer or at the collection point chosen by the customer. The transfer of risk for damage, destruction and disappearance in respect of the products shall therefore pass on at the moment of effective delivery. In the absence of the customer upon delivery at the delivery address specified, the transport service shall leave a note at the delivery address stating that the customer may collect the order from the post office stated in the note.

If the customer rejects the order upon delivery or if it is not collected from the post office within the term stated in the note, the order shall be returned to the registered office of W.D.C. Online. The costs of returning the goods as well as the costs connected with this (such as, without limitation, customs charges, taxes, VAT, storage costs) shall be borne by the customer.

7) Payment

Orders via the webshop may only be paid online by the customer via a special payment module provided on the website of W.D.C. Online.

For the processing of these online transactions, W.D.C. Online uses external professional and specialised partners who manage a payment platform. The financial data of the customer entered in the framework of online payment shall only be exchanged between the external partner and the financial institutions concerned. W.D.C. Online shall not have any access to the confidential data of the customer.

Online payments take place using secured protocols. To all online payments shall apply the general terms and conditions of the external manager of the payment platform, who is the sole person responsible for the correct execution of all online payments.

We use PCI-certified providers and an SSL-connection (Secure Sockets Layer) for online payments. When you use our services, we encrypt every transmission of personal information. This means all your personal information is secure and inaccessible by other users. The most important protection, however, is your own password. Therefore, we urge you to never share your password with third parties and to avoid open access to your account.

8) Electronic invoicing

By ordering a product, the customer expressly agrees with the use of electronic invoicing by W.D.C. Online, except if agreed otherwise in writing between the parties.

The consumer-customer shall accept that W.D.C. Online states the full price in the order confirmation and that the package list – that will accompany the actual delivery of the product – does not state the price. If a consumer-customer nevertheless wishes to obtain an invoice, he shall inform W.D.C. Online of this beforehand and in writing, so that W.D.C. Online can provide this.

9) Visible/hidden defects and complaints

Upon delivery of the product, the customer shall immediately carry out a first verification. This obligation of immediate verification relates to, among other things: (a non-exhaustive summary) quantity and dimensions, conformity of the delivery, visible defects, correct location(s), etc. At the risk of forfeiture, the customer shall inform W.D.C. Online immediately, within 48 hours after delivery and at any rate before using the products, of verifiable variations in writing.

For consumers-customers the statutory guarantee shall apply for hidden defects of 2 years from the date of delivery of the products (delivery note). Such guarantee may only be relied on insofar as the consumer-customer can prove that the defect existed already at the time of delivery. Any complaints based on hidden defects shall be reported by the customer to W.D.C. Online, at the risk of forfeiture, within two (2) months after discovery thereof via the contact form on the website, by fax, post or email.

Professional customers shall inform W.D.C. Online of hidden defects within one (1) month of the date of delivery of the products (packing list), but at any rate within 48 hours of discovery thereof, via the contact form on the website, by fax, post or email.

If no complaints are submitted within these terms, the customer shall be considered to have approved and accepted the delivery. At the risk of inadmissibility of the complaint, the customer shall have to prove that he has kept the products correctly both before and after discovery of the defects.

After finding any defect, the customer shall immediately discontinue the further use of the product concerned and furthermore take all reasonable measures to prevent (further) damage and to keep the products correctly, at the risk of inadmissibility of the complaint. The guarantee or indemnification for hidden defects shall in no case apply if the damage has been caused by incorrect usage or incorrect maintenance of the product.

In no case will the customer be entitled to return the products to W.D.C. Online pursuant to this clause without the prior agreement of the latter. W.D.C. Online reserves the right to establish the defects on the spot together with the customer and look into the cause thereof. W.D.C. Online shall in no case be responsible for the loss of or damage to returned products until the moment they are accepted by W.D.C. Online in its warehouses.

Any claim of indemnification shall become ineffective upon processing, change or repair by the customer or by third parties or in the event of abnormal or extraordinary usage, burdening and/or wear and tear of the products or damage caused by force majeure.

No claim of indemnification by W.D.C. Online for hidden defects or non-conformity may be retained after expiry of the aforementioned terms.

In no case shall a complaint of the customer be based on failure to realise the effect of the products of W.D.C. Online (such as, without limitation: failure to achieve weight loss after consumption of W.D.C. Online products that state they stimulate weight loss).

The customer will be obliged to compensate the costs incurred because of unjustified complaints.

The guarantees that W.D.C. Online provides to the customer shall be limited, upon W.D.C. Online’s discretion and insight, to (complete or partial): (i) replacement (ii) acceptance of return of the products concerned, crediting the customer.

Disagreement with an invoice by the customer shall be submitted in writing by the customer within 7 days after invoice date.

10) Liability

With the exception of the indemnification by W.D.C. Online in accordance with the above guarantee stipulation, W.D.C. Online’s liability shall be limited to the invoice value (exclusive of VAT) of the products supplied by W.D.C. Online and shall at any rate be limited to the mandatory liability.

In no case will W.D.C. Online be obliged to compensate indirect damage (such as, without limitation, loss of income or damage to third parties).

W.D.C. Online shall not be liable either for defects that are caused directly or indirectly by an act of the customer or of a third party, irrespective of whether these are caused by an error or negligence.

Designation of products by the customer or by a third party shall be under the full responsibility and at the risk of the customer. In such a case, W.D.C. Online shall in no way be held accountable for direct or indirect damage resulting from this designation.

In no case shall W.D.C. Online be liable for the consequences of use of the product that is not in accordance with the directions for use that are supplied together with the product or for unintended and/or undesired interaction as a result of simultaneous use of the product with other products and/or medicines. Consequently, the customer shall always use the products in accordance with the directions for use and, if applicable, take precautions that may result from the available scientific information concerned stated on the product.

The customer shall be solely responsible for the use of the product and, more particularly, in respect of the composition/ingredients, allowed quantity, combination with other products/medicines or any doctor’s advice received and, for this purpose, shall take the initiative for a prior check, whereas W.D.C. Online shall not be responsible in this respect in any way. In addition, the customer shall also be responsible to judge if he is allergic to any ingredient of which the products of W.D.C. Online are composed.

The effect of the product is also dependent on personal facts and circumstance as well as of the correct use adapted to the individual situation of the customer. The effect of the product will not be guaranteed by W.D.C. Online to a customer whose personal facts and circumstances it does not know.

Finally, the customer shall recognise that W.D.C. Online provides no guarantee that the products satisfy the regulations or demands applicable in any territorial jurisdiction, except the regulations or demands applicable in Belgium as these apply at the moment of delivery of the product to the customer by W.D.C. Online, which is why W.D.C. Online cannot be held responsible for any later changes in legislation.

At any rate, W.D.C. Online guarantees that its food supplements are the subject of a notification of the Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FAVV) and that the cosmetics have been (approved by) reported to the Belgian FPS Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment and are the subject of a CPNP number. Theses notification numbers (food supplements and cosmetics) may be informed at any time upon the request of the customer.

11) Promotions

Promotional extras from W.D.C. Online, in whatever form (such as, without limitation, price reductions, discount vouchers, free shipment, etc.) shall always be used in accordance with the directives as expressly stipulated. At any rate, these may only relate to one order, cannot be accumulated and are person-specific.

If the consumer-customer uses the right of withdrawal for products that were part of a promotion campaign, W.D.C. Online reserves the right to recalculate the price of the products that were not part of the cancellation. For example: promotion campaign entailing that in case of purchase of product A, product B can be purchased for half the price. The customer cancels product A. This means that the promotion conditions are no longer fulfilled and the full price will have to be paid for product B. In that case, W.D.C. Online shall repay the money paid, in accordance with clause 4, deducting the additional part that must still be paid for product B.

Promotional offers are valid until the date indicated or otherwise until one month from the date of publication. Discounts cannot be used in conjunction with other promotional offers.

12) Force majeure/hardship

If, because of force majeure, W.D.C. Online cannot possibly execute its obligations or the execution thereof is made more difficult to an unreasonable extent, it will be entitled to suspend the execution thereof fully/partially and for the time being for the duration of this force majeure or definitely without being obliged to cancel the order beforehand or to pay any compensation. Conventionally, cases of force majeure shall be: war, blockade, insurrection, industrial action or lock-out, seizure, shortage of means of transport, general shortage of raw materials or products, limitations in respect of energy consumption, either at W.D.C. Online, or at one of its suppliers. In the event of hardship, W.D.C. Online aims to renegotiate the terms of the agreement. If no agreement can be reached between the parties, W.D.C. Online reserves the right to suspend the execution of the agreement entirely or partially for the duration of the hardship.

13) Compensation

In accordance with the provisions of the Financial Collateral Act of 15 December 2004,. W.D.C. Online and the customer shall automatically and by operation of law compensate and set off all actually existing and future debts with each other. This means that in the permanent relationship between W.D.C. Online and the customer, after the aforementioned automatic set-off, as a balance only the largest debt remains always. This set-off shall at any rate be enforceable against the receiver and the other joint creditors, who, therefore, will not be able to oppose the set-off implemented by the parties.

14) Intellectual property rights

W.D.C. Online guarantees that it has the necessary licences for offering its range of products. However, W.D.C. Online shall retain all copyrights or the rights granted to it of the product description, texts, designs, drawings, models, samples, photographs and products drawn up by it, so that the customer shall not copy or use e.g. the products for other purposes than for which they are intended without prior written permission from W.D.C. Online.

15) Personal data

The customer shall permit W.D.C. Online to enter the personal data provided by the customer in an automated database. W.D.C. Online shall act in this respect pursuant to the Belgian Act on the processing of personal data of 8 December 1992.

These data will be used with a view to conducting information and promotion campaigns in connection with the activities and/or products offered by W.D.C. Online in the framework of the contractual relationship between W.D.C. Online and the customer.

The customer may always request his personal data and correct them. If the customer no longer wishes to receive commercial information from W.D.C. Online, the customer shall inform W.D.C. Online accordingly. Costs for changes to the customer’s original data, at his request, shall always be charged.

16) Visual material

The customer shall permit W.D.C. Online to use visual material of the products supplied to the customer for: (non-exhaustive summary) general information, publicity purposes, publication on the website of W.D.C. Online, publication in folders, etc.

17) Choice of law and competent courts

Belgian law shall apply.

Disputes shall fall under the exclusive competence of the courts of the district where W.D.C. Online has its registered office, unless W.D.C. Online expressly states otherwise.

18) Language

Unless expressly agreed otherwise, the customer recognises that the language of these general terms and conditions shall also be the working language in all commercial transactions with W.D.C. Online. The original language of these terms and conditions is Dutch. Translations of documents drawn up in another language shall always only serve an informational purpose for the customer.