§ 32. What you pay when the price has not been agreed

This section answers what you must pay when the price is not entirely clear from the agreement. The starting point is the usual price, meaning what it was normal to charge for similar work when the agreement was made. This does not apply if that price is itself unreasonable. If there is no such usual price, you must pay what is reasonable based on what kind of work it is, how extensive it is and how it was done.

If the tradesperson has given a price estimate, it is a limit he cannot significantly exceed. In any case, the limit is 15 percent above the stated amount. This does not apply if you have expressly agreed a different limit, or if the tradesperson is entitled to a price supplement under § 33. Example: the invoice (regning) is much higher than the estimate, without any additional work (tilleggsarbeid) or other price limit behind it. In that case, the estimate determines what the tradesperson can charge.

If you disagree about what a price given means, it is the tradesperson who must prove whether it was a binding fixed price, a maximum price, an estimate or merely a non-binding indication. A price given is also treated as including VAT and other public taxes and charges, except where you must have understood that the tax was not included.

The fourth paragraph applies to a tradesperson who has not chosen the least expensive way of doing the job. It follows from § 5 (3) that when the price has not been agreed and the job can be done satisfactorily in several ways, he must choose the least expensive one unless he has been told otherwise. If he breaches this, the price is calculated as if he had done so. He can still claim costs not included in that calculation, to the extent that it is reasonable. The total payment can then not be higher than what the work is worth to you.

The link with the rest of chapter VI is clear. § 33 on price supplements builds on this section, since the supplement is calculated under § 32. § 36 on invoices requires the invoice to show how the price was calculated when no fixed price has been agreed. § 34 says that you only pay for preliminary inspections (forundersøkelse) if this has been notified in advance.