PREAMBLE
These General Terms and Conditions for the Provision of Services between Professionals (hereafter the "GCPSP") are concluded between:
1. The TROUVERMONARCHITECTE company, a simplified joint-stock company with a capital of 15,000 euros, registered with the Strasbourg Trade and Companies Register under SIREN number 849 878 723 with its head office located at 204 Avenue de Colmar in 67100 Strasbourg, in the person of its current legal representative, publishes and operates a platform called "Find My Architect", from which it offers a service for putting Users in contact with RIAI Architects, Non-Registered Architects, Interior Designers or Garden Designers (hereinafter the "SERVICE"), available on the website http://www.find-my-architect.com
Hereinafter referred to as "the Company"
And
2. all professionals and professional legal entities, under the conditions and according to the terms described below.
Hereinafter referred to as "the Client(s)".
Hereinafter referred to as "the Parties".
The GCPSP are applicable to the Services provided by the Company TROUVERMONARCHITECTE as described below.
They set out the conditions and obligations related to the use of the Website accessible at the following URL address: http://www.find-my-architect.com (hereinafter referred to as "the Website").
The terms used below in the GCPSP shall have the following meanings:
· "Subscription": means of registering for the Company's Services by the Client with a duration of twelve (12) months, renewable by tacit agreement in accordance with Article 6 of the GCPSP.
· “Clients” includes the following three designations:
a) “RIAI Architect”: any professional practising the profession of architect and duly registered as such with the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI), wishing to be referenced on the Website's Architect database.
b) “Interior Designer”: any professional practising the profession of Interior Designer in the United Kingdom, wishing to be referenced on the Website's Interior Designer database.
c) “Non-Registered Architect”: any professional practising the profession of Non-Registered Architect and who is not registered as such with the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI), wishing to be wishing to be referenced on the Website's Non-Registered Architect database.
d) “Garden Designer”: any professional practising the profession of Garden Designer in the United Kingdom, wishing to be referenced on the Website's Garden Designer database.
The General Terms and Conditions for the Provision of Services between Professionals constitute the sole basis of the business relationship between the Parties, in accordance with Article L. 441-1 of the French Code of Commerce. They apply without restriction or reservation to all the Services rendered by the Company to the Clients.
In accordance with the regulations in force, the GCPSP are systematically communicated to all Clients upon their subscription and to any Customer who so requests at any time.
The present contractual document sets out the rights and obligations of the Clients in the context of the use of the Website as well as the roles and responsibilities of the Company in the context of the management of the Website and provision of the Service.
The mere fact of using the Services implies the full and outright acceptance of the GCPSP, which the Client expressly declares and acknowledges. The GCPSP take precedence over all exchanges or documents dated before or after subscription to the Service unless an amendment is signed by the Parties. The GCPSP are accompanied by the GCU of the Website, which are accessible via the following link: https://www.find-my-architect.com/ie/en/conditions-generales-utilisation.
3.1. The Service allows the User to be put into contact with the Client by email or phone.
3.2. The Service includes the online publication of a Personal Account created by the Company using the information and images provided by the Client to the Company.
The Personal Account shall allow the Client to be indexed on the Website in its’ respective category (RIAI Architect, Non-Registered Architect, Garden Designer or Interior Designer) according to the different criteria provided by the Client to the Company, such as the Client’s geographic location, geographic range of intervention (regional, national and/or international), type of work offered, property types within their area of expertise, etc. The Personal Account does not make reference to the minimum surface area or minimum budget of projects sought out and accepted by the Client. It falls to the Client to evoke these points directly with the User.
The Personal Account of the Client may change in the context of the quarterly follow-up offered by the Company. Every 3 months, the Company shall contact the Client in particular to inform the Client of the number of enquiries received and to offer the opportunity to modify the criteria initially provided by the Client, which shall determine the nature and type of enquiries received.
The Website database makes Clients' contact details available to Users along with certain information on their professional activity such as described above (areas of expertise, geographic location, etc.), that determine their indexing on the Website.
The prior subscription of the Client to the Service is imperative before the provision of any access to the Service or listing on the Website.
4.1. The subscription to the Service is effective upon the receipt by the Company of the contract duly completed, dated and signed by the Client.
Upon reception of the aforementioned contract by the Company, the Client is responsible for providing the Company with all of the information necessary to create and publish the Client’s Personal Account.
The Client agrees to communicate accurate, complete and up-to-date information to the Company to validate the creation of their Personal Account. This includes the Client’s surname, first name, professional postal address, Company Registration Number, telephone number and email address. The Client is furthermore responsible for providing the Company with a portrait-style photograph of themselves as well as images of their work corresponding to the criteria according to which they wish to be indexed on the Website.
Failing this, the Company can in no way be held liable for the lack of receipt of these images and information and cannot be held liable for the lack of publication of the Client’s Personal Account on the Website.
All of this information and images must be provided to the Company at least 7 days before the date of publication of the Client’s Personal Account that they have requested. The desired date of publication shall be indicated on the contract by the Client. Failing the reception of this information within the specified time, the “Money Back Guarantee” (Article 5.4 of the GCPSP) shall in no case be applicable.
The Client acknowledges that the provision of any erroneous, incomplete, misleading or out-of-date information during their subscription may incur their liability with regard to the Company as well as third parties.
In the event that inaccurate information is provided or that all of the required images and information are not provided within the aforementioned time period, the Client shall remain bound by the terms of the contract, including the payment of the full price of the Subscription.
Furthermore, failing the reception of the aforementioned information and images necessary to the creation and publication of the Client’s Personal Account, or more generally any breach of the GCPSP on the part of the Client, the Company may decide to suspend or remove the Client's Personal Account with immediate effect and without notice in accordance with Article 10 herein.
The Company may, at its discretion, end the suspension or allow the republication of the Client’s Personal Account if it turns out that:
- the Client's breach has had no harmful consequences for the User concerned and/or the Company and/or;
- if the Client in question acted in good faith with no intention to defraud.
4.2. The transmission and provision to the Company of documents of any type (including photographs, etc.) in any format, presenting the work and/or services of the Client, entails the express authorisation given by the Client to the Company to use the aforementioned documents in the context of the Service offered and/or for any communications or advertising operation by the Company in relation to the Service.
4.3. Once the Personal Account has been published, a confirmation email will be sent to the Client.
4.4. It is expressly stated that the Client does not benefit from a right of retraction as provided for by the French Consumer Code in the context of contracts concluded remotely, the Client acting in a professional capacity and not as a consumer and not being considered a consumer within the meaning of the Consumer Code.
4.5. The Client may modify or add to the information published on their Personal Account at any time, subject to prior validation by the Company, by sending their request to the Company by email.
5.1. The price of the Subscription is the price in effect at the time of subscription to the Service by the Client.
The prices indicated, unless stated otherwise, are expressed in euros or in pounds sterling excluding tax.
The applicable rate of value-added tax (VAT) is the rate in effect at the time of subscription.
The Company reserves the right to modify its prices at any time. The new prices shall apply as of the following Subscription.
The Client retains the possibility of terminating the contract before the tacit renewal of the Subscription, in accordance with Article 11 of the GCPSP.
5.2. Payment for the Subscription can be made either in full in a single payment, or in three (3) triannual instalments, payable every four months beginning at the start of the Subscription period.
According to the choice made by the Client, all or part of the price is due at the time of the subscription.
The Client is required to pay the amount due at the time of subscription. The activation and continuation of the Subscription are conditional on the full payment thereof.
The Client may pay for the Subscription by direct debit, according to the bank details provided by the Client by phone or email.
To this end, the Client guarantees the Company that they have all necessary authorisations for using the bank account chosen at the time of validation of the subscription and that the bank account provides access to sufficient funds to cover all of the costs of the subscription.
5.3. In the event of total or partial late payment, or non-payment, the Company or its authorised representative shall notify the Client that they must regularise this situation.
The Company reserves the right to suspend the Service from the date of sending formal notice.
Late payment or non-payment shall result in all amounts due to the Company by the Client being immediately payable, without prejudice to any action that the Company may be entitled to initiate, on this basis, against the Client.
Late payment penalties calculated based on the interest rate applied by the ECB (at its most recent refinancing operation) plus ten points, as well as the fixed fee of 40 for recovery costs, shall be applicable as of right. In the event that the recovery fees incurred exceed the amount of the flat-rate indemnity, the Company shall be entitled to request additional compensation, upon justification.
Penalties shall be based on the sums due by the Client and shall be calculated based on the price (including applicable tax) indicated on the invoice.
If formal notice remains ineffective one month after sending, including in the event of refusal to pay by the Client's bank, the subscription will be terminated immediately at the exclusive fault of the Client.
5.4. If, at the end of their Subscription, the Client has not been put in contact with at least three (3) Users, the Client may request the refund of the price of their Subscription.
Putting in contact or targeted and qualified enquiry must be understood as any contact by the User with the Client by telephone or email, corresponding to the criteria/choices/categories that the User has previously entered on the Site consistent with the targeting requested by the Client (including type of property, style, type of work, geographic area), within the twelve (12) months from the date on which the Subscription took effect.
The request for a refund, as provided for in Article 6.3 herein, must be made by email sent to the address customerservice@find-my-architect.com within 30 days of the end of the Subscription.
Any Client who makes a refund request under the preceding conditions will be refunded the Subscription price via bank transfer to the bank account provided by the Client at the time of their subscription.
6.1. The Subscription shall be effective for a period of 12 months beginning on the desired date of publication indicated by the Client on the signed contract.
At the end of this period, the Subscription is renewable by tacit agreement for another 12-month period unless terminated by the Client under the conditions provided for in Article 11 herein.
6.2. The Client may decide to close their Personal Account and delete all of the data associated with it at any time. Such a request should be made by email with acknowledgement of receipt sent to the address customerservice@find-my-architect.com.
Any early closure of the Personal Account shall give rise to no refund and the Client must honour any remaining payments until the end of the Subscription.
7.1. The Client undertakes to pay the price of the Subscription according to the terms described in Article 5 of the GCPSP.
7.2. The Use of the Website entails certain standards of behaviour notably based on the respect of law and regulations and certain moral values such as respect for others, courtesy, good faith and loyalty.
7.3. The Client acknowledges that the information they disseminate on the Website is under their sole responsibility. The Client, therefore, undertakes to ensure that the information they disseminate on the Website does not contravene any legal or regulatory provisions in force and does not violate any duty to confidentiality.
To this end, the Company reserves the right to remove from the Website any content, data, information or offer that is obviously illegal or appropriate, of which it becomes aware, and to suspend or remove, definitively and without notice, the Personal Account of the Client in question.
7.4. Like any User, the Client is informed that they must not:
In general, the Client undertakes to comply with all legal and regulatory provisions as well as the GCPSP.
7.5. The Client guarantees the Company that it is a professional in the professional category in which it wishes to be listed (RIAI Architect, Non-Registered Architect, Interior Designer or Garden Designer) also undertakes to inform the Company immediately if it decides to stop practising its business as a professional.
7.6. It is specified that the Client is not authorised to give or sell to a third party any contact information or requests for services resulting from contact made through the Company.
Failing this, the Company may decide to suspend or remove the Client's Personal Account with immediate effect and without notice in accordance with Article 10 of the GCPSP. The Client also risks paying the price of an additional Subscription per transfer of a request for services resulting from connections made through the Company.
8.1. The Company declares that it holds the rights to all the components of the Website.
Any act of counterfeiting, or act likely to be qualified as such, by a third party of which the Client is aware must be reported to the Company, which will undertake any potential prosecution.
Any commercial or non-commercial use of images, texts, icons, drawings, graphics, photographs, programmes or other components without the prior written consent of the Company is strictly prohibited.
The Company shall not be liable in the event of any counterfeiting or copyright infringement proceedings brought by a third party against a Client.
8.2. The Client holds the rights associated with the content published on the Website via their Personal Account. As a consequence, the Client guarantees that they are the sole owner of the content and have the capacity to grant the licence of its use to the Company.
8.3. The Company cannot guarantee the Client any other use than that which it undertakes.
9.1. The Company has the sole role of technical intermediary. The Company in no way acts in the capacity of a Client and claims no authority in this respect. The Company provides no guarantee on the availability or the performance of the Website and the Client cannot hold the Company liable for any missed gain, loss of opportunity or loss of turnover.
The Client shall be liable for direct or indirect, material or immaterial damage caused to the Company.
The Client agrees to compensate the Company and its beneficiaries for all losses, costs, damage and expenses resulting from non-compliance with the GCPSP.
9.2. The Company hosts the Client’s online Personal Account on the Website.
In no case can the Company be held liable for the content of websites accessible from references, documents and links inserted by the Client or for any direct, indirect or other damages resulting from the use of third-party websites.
9.3. The Company shall not be held liable to the Client or any third party for any degradation, suspension or interruption to the functioning of the Website due to force majeure, the action of a third party or a User or another Client, nor for the inevitable hazards that may result from the technique and complexity of management of the Website.
In the case of force majeure, the obligations of the Company and the Client shall be suspended for its duration. Any non-performance related to a case of force majeure shall not incur the liability of the Company on the condition that it notifies the other party and the necessary is done to reduce the damage and remedy it as far as possible.
9.4. In accordance with Article 6 of the French Law no. 2004-575 of 21 June 2004 on confidence in the digital economy, the Company is not, however, bound by any general obligation to monitor the information and content accessible on the Website nor by any general obligation to look into the facts or circumstances revealing illegal activities.
In the event that an Client is aware of a breach of the law or any applicable regulations on the Website, in particular the presence of content supporting crimes against humanity, inciting racial hatred or violence, involving child pornography or, in general, violating human dignity, they undertake to immediately inform the Company of this by contacting Customer Service (customerservice@find-my-architect.com) and providing information to identify the offending content and/or its author.
9.5. All Clients undertake to guarantee and indemnify the Company against the consequences of any claim by a third party resulting from the Client’s failure to respect the GCPSP, current laws and regulations or intellectual property rights.
The Company can only be liable to the Client in the event of non-performance of its commitments under the GCPSP, proven fault or negligence, and limited to direct damage excluding all indirect damage of any nature whatsoever.
In order to assert their rights, the Client must, on pain of forfeiting any action relating thereto, inform the Company in writing of the existence of the alleged faults or negligence within a maximum period of 15 days of their discovery.
In any event, if the Company is found to be liable, the Company’s guarantee shall be limited to the amount (excluding tax) paid by the Client for their Subscription.
In the event of breach of the GCPSP or any illegal act, the Company shall be entitled to withdraw certain content from the Website immediately without notice and/or to suspend or cancel the Client’s Personal Account or to take other appropriate measures against them.
Any early cancellation of the Personal Account or lack of publication of the Client’s Personal Account due to the Client’s failure to communicate to the Company the information and images defined in Article 4 herein shall give rise to no refund to the Client if the Client has paid for the Subscription in full. In the event that they pay for their Subscription in monthly instalments, the Client must honour these payment instalments until the end of the Subscription.
The Client has the possibility of terminating their Subscription after a period of twelve (12) months beginning on the desired date of publication indicated by the Client on the contract.
In this case, the Client shall inform the Company of their wish not to renew their Subscription by email with acknowledgement of receipt at customerservice@find-my-Client.com at least 30 days before the date of the tacit renewal of the Subscription taken out by the Client.
The Client shall not have the right to terminate their subscription to the Services before the end of the Subscription. The Client must honour their payments as set out in Article 5 of the GCPSP.
The Company reserves the right to modify the GCPSP at any time and to change the characteristics of the Website as long as this does not result in substantial modifications.
The Client will be informed of modifications to the GCPSP by email or on their Personal Account. They will come into effect immediately.
13.1 Use of Personal Data
The Company is responsible for processing Personal Data and, therefore, declares this processing of nominative data to the French Data Protection Authority ("CNIL").
The Company undertakes to process all Personal Data in accordance with French Data Protection Act No. 78-17 of 6 January 1978 relating to IT, data files and civil liberties ("Loi Informatique et Libertés") amended by Law No. 2004-801 of 6 August 2004 and principles of loyalty and confidentiality.
In order for the Company to create the Client's Personal Account, the Client must provide certain personal data (including their name, email address, postal address, mobile phone number, landline phone number, date of birth, qualifications, professional experience etc.)
This personal data, including the photographs sent, is used by the Company for providing listing services, including to facilitate the User’s search for a Client. Personal data is also used to establish contracts and invoices.
13.2 Right to Access, Modification, Opposition and Deletion
Under the French Data Protection Act, the Client has a right of access, rectification, erasure and portability of the data concerning them, as well as the right to the oppose processing of their personal data for legitimate reasons by writing to the postal address of the headquarters of the Company or sending an email to customerservice@find-my-architect.com.
13.3 Information Collected
IP Addresses: The Company ensures the conservation and storage of IP addresses for each of the Client's actions for Website administration purposes and to end/resolve any abuse coming from a Personal Account. The processing of IP addresses is essential to the functioning of the Website.
Cookies: The Company may use cookies and/or invisible GIF files with the aim of obtaining information on the Clients or improving the performance and functionality of the Website.
In the event that the Client does not wish their Personal Data to be collected using cookies, they may disable them using their browser. This operation may, however, reduce the performance and functionality of the Website.
13.4 The Client's Obligations
Any Client who enters into contact with a User undertakes to comply with their obligations with respect to the User, under nominative data protection regulations such as those resulting from the French Data Protection Act. Every Client is responsible for the processing of data concerning the Users and declares that they comply with the provisions of the French Data Protection Act.
The Client undertakes to refrain from any use of the User’s Personal Data for any other purpose than making contact with the User, except with the express prior agreement of the User concerned. The Client is likewise informed that they are forbidden from communicating any personal data to a third party without the express prior agreement of the User concerned.
The Client undertakes to guarantee and indemnify the Company against the consequences of any claim resulting from a breach by the Client of their obligations under the applicable regulations in terms of nominative data protection and/or the terms of the Privacy Policy.
14.1 Invalidity
Any clause of the GCPSP that is declared null or invalid shall be rendered void without its invalidity affecting the other provisions of the GCPSP nor affecting the validity of the GCPSP as a whole or its legal effects.
14.2 Language
The GCPSP are written in English. However, in the event of a conflict of interpretation between the English language version and the French language version, the French language version shall take precedence.
14.3. Applicable Law
The GCPSP are subject to the application of French law in application of European Regulation N° 593/2008 of 17 June 2008.
14.4 Dispute Resolution
15.4.1 Amicable resolution, a compulsory prerequisite for any legal action
In order to find a solution together to any dispute that may arise in the execution, interpretation or termination of the Service described herein, the Parties agree to meet within 15 days of the sending of a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt notified by one of the Parties.
This amicable resolution procedure is a mandatory prerequisite for the initiation of legal proceedings between the Parties. Any legal proceedings initiated in violation of this clause shall be declared inadmissible.
However, if at the end of a 15-day period, the Parties are unable to agree on a compromise or solution, the dispute shall be submitted to the legal jurisdiction designated below.
14.4.2 Legal Resolution
Any dispute between the Company and the Client relating to the validity, interpretation, performance or non-performance of the GCPSP not resolved amicably (or through mediation having ended with a proposal accepted by both parties), shall fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Strasbourg.
The GCPSP are expressly approved and accepted by the Client, who declares and acknowledges having read them and, therefore, renounces recourse to any contradictory document.