The Act on Consumer Rights, which became
effective on 25 December 20142, amended regulations on sales, mainly with regard to
consumer sales. The amendments also covered the
provisions of Section III Title XI of the Civil Code on
guarantees. The title of the section was changed
from Quality Warranty to Sales Warranty, which
means that under the new regime warranty may
include other than quality properties of goods.
Warranty is a separate agreement concluded
between the warrantor (seller, manufacturer,
importer, or distributor of the goods being sold)
and the buyer, comprising a warranty statement,
laying down the obligations of the warrantor and
the rights of the buyer in case the goods sold do not
have the properties specified in the statement.
Under the amended regulations, the warranty
statement can be made in an advertisement.
The warranty statement is required to meet the
following requirements (however, failure to meet
the requirements does not affect the validity of the
statement and does not deprive the buyer of his
rights): it must be worded in a clear and intelligible
manner and, if the type of information permits, use
a universally understood graphic form. In the case
of goods placed on the market in Poland, the
statement must be in the Polish language (only
names, trademarks, trade names, goods origin
designation, and customary scientific and technical
terms can be retained in the original foreign
language).
The warranty statement should include basic
information necessary in order to exercise rights
under warranty, including without limitation the
name and address of the warrantor or of its
representative in
Poland,
the term
and
geographical area of warranty protection, buyer’s
rights in the event a defect is identified, as well as
a statement to the effect that the warranty does
not exclude, limit, or suspend the rights of the
buyer arising under the provisions on statutory
warranty for defects of a thing sold (rękojmia za
wady).
The warrantor sets forth its obligations in the
warranty statement; these can include without limitation refund of the price paid, replacement or
repair of the product, and provision of other
services. In the case of the quality warranty, if
there is any doubt, the guarantor is deemed to be
under an obligation to remedy a physical defect or
to provide a defect-free product if the defect is
identified within a period specified in the warranty
statement; the warranty term—unless specified
otherwise—is two years from the date on which the
goods were released to the buyer. The guarantor is
required to fulfil its warranty obligations within the
period prescribed in the warranty statement, and—
if no such period is prescribed—forthwith, no later,
however, than with fourteen days from the date of
delivery of the goods by the warrantee and deliver
the goods at its own expense to the location
designated in the warranty or to the location where
the goods were originally released upon purchase
(and, in some cases, to the location where the
defect was identified).
The warrantee (buyer) may request the guarantor
to issue a warranty document, i.e. a warranty
statement printed on paper or fixed on another
durable medium. When releasing the thing sold to
the buyer, the seller is required to attach a
warranty document, verify the markings on the
product for compliance with those in the warranty
document, and check any fixed seals and other
security features attached to the product.
Enforcement of rights under warranty does not
affect the seller’s liability under statutory
warranty. However, if the buyer decides to enforce
its rights under warranty the running of the time for
enforcement of rights under statutory warranty is
suspended as of the date on which the seller is
notified of the defect. The running of the time is
reinstated as of the date on which the warrantor
refuses to satisfy its obligations under warranty or
the deadline for satisfaction thereof expires
without effect.
While the amendments under review have
expanded the scope of warranty regulations,
warrantors continue to have a lot of room to refine
specific warranty conditions. Specifically, they
should bear in mind the need to detail the type of
warranty being provided (“quality warranty”),
buyer’s rights (including cases when the buyer forfeits these rights), warrantor’s obligations,
defect notification procedure, term of warranty,
and the period in which obligations arising under
warranty must be fulfilled.
MILLER, CANFIELD,
W. BABICKI, A. CHEŁCHOWSKI I WSPÓLNICY SP.K.
ul. Batorego 28-32
81-366 Gdynia
Tel. +48 58 782-0050
Fax +48 58 782-0060
gdynia@pl.millercanfield.com
ul. Nowogrodzka 11
00-513 Warszawa
Tel. +48 22 447-4300
Fax +48 22 447-4301
warszawa@pl.millercanfield.com
ul. Skarbowców 23a
53-125 Wrocław
Tel. +48 71 780-3100
Fax +48 71 780-3101
wroclaw@pl.millercanfield.com
Disclaimer: This publication has been prepared for clients and professional associates of Miller Canfield. It is intended to provide only a summary
of certain recent legal developments of selected areas of law. For this reason the information contained in this publication should not form the
basis of any decision as to a particular course of action; nor should it be relied on as legal advice or regarded as a substitute for detailed advice in
individual cases. The services of a competent professional adviser should be obtained in each instance so that the applicability of the relevant
legislation or other legal development to the particular facts can be verified.