Wegweiser Consumers · Your rights when buying and contracting Deutsch

🧾 Guarantee and complaints

A guarantee is voluntary and comes from the manufacturer or retailer. The statutory warranty is mandatory. They are not the same thing.

Guarantee Manufacturer's guarantee Statutory warranty (Gewährleistung) Complaint Goodwill (Kulanz) Guarantee terms Proof of purchase Repair

In brief

A guarantee is an additional promise, for example "3 years guarantee". The seller does not have to give one. The statutory warranty remains in any case.

  • Read the guarantee terms: who is liable, what is excluded?
  • You usually need the proof of purchase.
  • You may choose whether to rely on the guarantee or the statutory warranty.

Step by step

  1. Find the proof and the termsProof of purchase, guarantee card, guarantee terms.
  2. Make your claimContact the guarantor or seller in writing and describe the fault precisely.
  3. Check the statutory warranty in parallelThe seller is liable regardless of the guarantee.
  4. Ask for goodwillOnce the deadlines have passed, accommodation is voluntary.

Deadlines

As stated in the guarantee declaration
The guarantor sets the duration of the guarantee§ 443 BGB
2 years
The statutory warranty continues to run independently§ 438 Abs. 1 Nr. 3 BGB
Watch out – common mistakes
  • A guarantee can have conditions (manufacturer's workshop only, proof of servicing).
  • Under § 476 Abs. 1 BGB, warranty rights cannot be restricted to the consumer's detriment by agreement; § 443 is expressly named.
  • Not every repair offer is a guarantee. Clarify whether costs apply.
In depth · legal basis, figures and practice – for advisers and professionals

Guarantee and statutory warranty

§ 443 BGB regulates the guarantee. § 476 Abs. 1 BGB lists § 443 among the provisions from which no deviation to the consumer's detriment is allowed. The guarantee supplements the rights under §§ 437 ff. BGB; it does not replace them. Content and duration are determined by the guarantee declaration.

Guarantee declaration, § 479 BGB

Para. 1: The guarantee declaration must be simple and comprehensible and must contain a reference to the statutory rights in case of defects, the guarantor, the procedure, the goods and the conditions. Para. 2: It must be made available to the consumer on a durable medium at the latest on delivery. Para. 3: For a manufacturer's durability guarantee, cure follows §§ 439, 475. Para. 4: A formal breach leaves the guarantee valid.

Manufacturer's repair obligation

Regulated in §§ 479a ff. BGB (Annex II of Directive (EU) 2024/1799).

Who is responsible
  • Guarantor (manufacturer or retailer)
  • Seller
  • Verbraucherzentrale in a dispute
Further reading
Statutory warranty and defectsAdvice and contact points

Quick questions

Worum geht es bei „Guarantee and complaints“?
A guarantee is voluntary and comes from the manufacturer or retailer. The statutory warranty is mandatory. They are not the same thing.
Which deadlines and figures matter?
  • As stated in the guarantee declaration: The guarantor sets the duration of the guarantee (§ 443 BGB)
  • 2 years: The statutory warranty continues to run independently (§ 438 Abs. 1 Nr. 3 BGB)
What should I do first?
  • Find the proof and the terms: Proof of purchase, guarantee card, guarantee terms.
  • Make your claim: Contact the guarantor or seller in writing and describe the fault precisely.
  • Check the statutory warranty in parallel: The seller is liable regardless of the guarantee.
What do I need to watch out for?
  • A guarantee can have conditions (manufacturer's workshop only, proof of servicing).
  • Under § 476 Abs. 1 BGB, warranty rights cannot be restricted to the consumer's detriment by agreement; § 443 is expressly named.
  • Not every repair offer is a guarantee. Clarify whether costs apply.
Evidence
  • gesetze-im-internet.de, § 476 BGB (naming § 443), retrieved 20 September 2026
  • gesetze-im-internet.de, § 438 BGB, retrieved 20 September 2026
  • gesetze-im-internet.de, §§ 479, 479a ff. BGB, retrieved 20 September 2026
As of

September 2026 · Sources and method

A question about your situation that this page does not answer? Write to us or use the contact form – we will tell you which office is responsible and what to bring. Free of charge, without individual legal advice.