My guarantee was a bit hot!

My guarantee was a bit hot!

In May 2022, I bought a flat in a quiet, peaceful housing estate in Geneva. During the Easter holidays, I was shocked to discover that the oven installed by the general contractor was no longer working. I contacted the contractor, who told me that the "supplier's guarantee" had expired. However, I'm convinced that a five-year guarantee period was given, as the oven was built into the kitchen. Is the general contractor right? Would the situation have been different if I'd bought the oven directly from the supplier?

Adèle

Under Swiss law, art. 371 of the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO) provides for two types of warranty in respect of contracts for new buildings: one for movable property and the other for immovable property. The term "guarantee" is not expressly mentioned in this topical provision, which deals more specifically with "prescription of the master's rights in the event of a defect in the work".

Claims for defects in immovable property are subject to a limitation period of five years from the date of acceptance of the property. In the case of intentionally concealed defects, the limitation period is increased to ten years.

In the case of moveable property, on the other hand, the warranty period is only two years from the date of acceptance. This period is extended to five years if the defects originate from a building into which the movable property is incorporated, in accordance with its intended use.

In the situation you describe, if the warranty for your flat as a whole is five years, this period cannot be applied to your oven without further investigation, because an electrical appliance cannot a priori be considered as part of the building work, so the five-year limitation period cannot be applied.

The oven is a movable item, but if it turns out, for example, that it was a fault in the electrical installation carried out by the general contractor that caused it to break down, this appliance will benefit from the guarantee due on the construction of the flat.

That said, if you take delivery of the flat in May 2022, you will still benefit from the two-year warranty period for your oven, and the general contractor must respond to your request in any event.

For the sake of completeness, if you had purchased the oven directly from the manufacturer or supplier, the warranty period would still have been two years, but it would have started to run when the oven was delivered to your home, in accordance with art. 210 of the Swiss Code of Obligations.

For its part, the general contractor cannot normally take advantage of the possible expiry of the supplier's warranty if it had purchased the oven earlier. It must therefore take action, as it remains liable to you under the terms of your contract of enterprise. However, you must always ensure, as you have done, that you report the fault promptly, within three working days.