Article 1 – General Provisions
These general terms and conditions of sale govern the relationship between the company LABOSEM (SAS), hereinafter referred to as “LABOSEM,” and its clients, hereinafter referred to as “Clients.” These relations concern the provision of services, analyses, and training, hereinafter referred to as “Services.”
Any order implies the Client’s full and unconditional acceptance of these general terms and conditions of sale, regardless of any clauses that may appear on the Client’s documents, including its own general terms and conditions of purchase.
LABOSEM reserves the right to modify these terms and conditions. In accordance with applicable regulations, these General Terms and Conditions of Sale (GTCS) are systematically provided to any Client upon request.
Article 2 – Orders
Clients may place orders for Services either by requesting a quotation or directly by sending the samples or products concerned, accompanied by a Service Request Form (available on the LABOSEM website) specifying the identification of the samples or products, the Services to be performed, the address(es) for delivery of results or return of products, and the billing address.
In the absence of specific instructions from the Client, LABOSEM will apply the analytical methods or techniques it deems most appropriate, without its liability being called into question.
Samples or products received by LABOSEM must be in good condition. LABOSEM shall not be held responsible for sampling, representativeness, packaging, or transport of samples or products, which remain entirely under the Client’s responsibility.
If a product presents any hazard, the Client must inform LABOSEM prior to shipment and specify the nature of the hazard. When seed treatment has been applied, the Client must notify the laboratory.
An order is considered final once the Client-approved quotation has been received by the laboratory. However, if the characteristics of the received samples or products differ from those described by the Client in the quotation request, LABOSEM reserves the right to revise the quotation.
In the absence of an approved quotation, the order is deemed final once the samples or products and the Service Request Form have been received, verified, and registered in the laboratory’s information system.
LABOSEM informs its Clients that result reports not issued under accreditation are neither presumed to comply with the reference standard nor covered by international recognition agreements. Moreover, Clients are not authorized to use the accreditation mark other than on the full result report.
Any subsequent modification to an order is subject to LABOSEM’s prior approval. LABOSEM reserves the right to refuse any order for justified reasons.
Article 3 – Pricing
A catalogue of the main analytical Services is published annually, providing reference prices. Upon request, LABOSEM will communicate the price of any Service not listed in the catalogue by any means convenient to the Client.
The prices of the Services sold are those in effect on the date of performance. They are expressed in euros, exclusive of tax, and will be increased by VAT or any other applicable taxes at the time of invoicing.
Shipping costs for sending or returning samples or products are always borne by the Client and may be invoiced in addition to the Service cost.
LABOSEM reserves the right to modify its prices at any time. However, it undertakes to invoice Services at the price indicated at the time the order was registered.
Article 4 – Delivery of Results and Return of Products
LABOSEM will make every effort to minimize the turnaround time for results or product returns and to respect the deadlines agreed upon with the Client. However, these timeframes are provided for information only, as they depend on factors such as order volume, sample preparation quality, additional information requests, or the need to repeat an analysis.
Delays in delivery of results or products shall not give rise to any penalty, compensation, or order cancellation.
Results are provided in printed report form, sent by post, except for Clients who have opted for electronic delivery under a digital evidence agreement. The laboratory may issue either a provisional report or a final report.
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The provisional report is a partial report that communicates preliminary results (e.g., cleaning, purity, counts, TSW, moisture content) pending completion of the germination test. The heading “Provisional” appears at the top of the report.
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The final report provides the full results of all analyses performed on the same sample. The heading “Final” appears at the top of the report.
Note: A final report will always be issued including germination results when a provisional report has been released. It will reproduce all previously issued results and add the germination outcomes.
Upon request, the laboratory may issue a duplicate of a result report. The requester must be listed as an authorized recipient of the original report. The duplicate will be an exact copy of the original and may be sent by the same or other agreed means, documented in the laboratory’s records.
For information purposes only, results may be communicated by phone or digitally; such communications are purely informative. Only the final report is legally binding. Reproduction of the report is authorized only in its entirety.
Unless explicitly requested and approved by LABOSEM, samples submitted for analysis will not be returned. Requests for return of samples will incur additional fees.
If the Client requests the full return of a sample, the Client waives any right to claim thereafter.
For Services requiring product return, LABOSEM will choose a transport mode appropriate to the volume and weight unless a specific method has been pre-agreed with the Client. Products travel at the Client’s risk; upon request, shipments can be insured for a declared value communicated before dispatch.
LABOSEM shall not be held liable for any errors committed by the transport company.
Article 5 – Invoicing and Payment
Any Service initiated, even if cancelled during performance at the Client’s request, will be invoiced.
Invoices must be paid by cheque or bank transfer within 30 days from the invoice date.
No discount will be granted for early payment.
In case of late payment, penalties will be applied at three times the legal interest rate, plus a fixed recovery fee of €40, in accordance with the French Commercial Code.
Payment delays may lead to suspension or cancellation of ongoing orders or refusal of new ones, without compensation.
LABOSEM may require advance payment for future orders in case of recurrent late payments or may refuse new orders altogether.
In the event of total or partial non-payment, LABOSEM reserves the right to refer the matter to the competent court to enforce performance under daily penalty.
Article 6 – Confidentiality
LABOSEM undertakes to treat as confidential all data, results, and reports related to the Services entrusted by the Client and shall not disclose them to third parties other than those designated by the Client without prior consent.
LABOSEM also undertakes to treat as confidential all technical or commercial information identified as such by the Client.
If LABOSEM is legally required to disclose confidential information, the Client or concerned party will be informed, unless prohibited by law.
Article 7 – Claims
Any claim may be submitted to LABOSEM by post, email, or telephone. It should include, where possible, the reference of the concerned Service and a detailed description of the complaint.
A description of the complaint-handling process is available upon request.
Article 8 – Limitation of Liability
LABOSEM provides services and is therefore bound only by an obligation of means.
In case of failure to perform a Service, LABOSEM’s liability shall only cover direct and immediate damages resulting from intentional breach of contractual obligations, and shall be limited to the invoiced amount of the concerned Service.
The Client has four months from the date of result or product delivery to report in writing any defect.
LABOSEM shall not be liable for unsatisfactory results or results unsuitable for the Client’s intended use.
LABOSEM’s liability shall also not be engaged in case of non-performance or delay attributable to the Client, or resulting from force majeure as defined in Article 1148 of the French Civil Code, or any circumstance beyond LABOSEM’s control.
Article 9 – Jurisdiction
Any dispute relating to the interpretation or execution of these General Terms and Conditions of Sale is subject to French law.
Failing amicable resolution, the dispute shall be brought before the Commercial Court of Angers.
