Special requirements for contracts concluded by telephone

If the trader makes a telephone call to the consumer with a view to concluding a distance contract, the trader must provide the consumer with the following information at the beginning of the conversation:

• his/her name or company name
• if applicable, the name of the person on whose behalf the trader is acting
• the commercial purpose of the telephone conversation

If the consumer is called by the trader and a distance contract for a service is negotiated in the course of that telephone call, the consumer is bound by the negotiated contract only under the following conditions:

• The trader must provide the consumer with confirmation of the offer of a contract on a durable medium (e.g. email, paper).
• The consumer must send the trader a written declaration of acceptance of that offer of a contract on a durable medium (e.g. email, paper).

If one of the above conditions is not met, the consumer is not bound by the contract. From a legal point of view, the contract is ‘provisionally ineffective’. This means that the consumer can decide for himself/herself whether to adhere to the contract and require the trader to perform it or whether to refuse to conclude the contract.

Information on the topic of Package travel − safeguards for travellers can be found at oesterreich.gv.at.

Legal basis

Fern- und Auswärtsgeschäfte-Gesetz (FAGG)