§ 3. The agreement takes precedence over the law

What you have agreed — in writing or orally — takes precedence over the Sale of Goods Act (Kjøpsloven). The same applies to established routines between you from earlier dealings, and to trade custom (handelsbruk) in the industry. The law is just a safety net that fills the gaps where the agreement is silent.

Sale of Goods Act·LOV-1988-05-13-27

Machine-translated from Norwegian. The Norwegian text is the one that applies. Read the original in Norwegian.Norsk English العربية Polski Українська

The text of the law (unofficial translation)

The provisions of the Act do not apply insofar as otherwise follows from the agreement, established practice between the parties, or trade custom or other usage that must be considered binding between the parties.

Source: Lovdata — Kjøpsloven (the Sale of Goods Act) § 3

What does this mean?

The Sale of Goods Act is a so-called "non-mandatory" law. This means that those of you doing business can agree on rules other than those set by the law — and then the agreement applies.

Three things can override the law:

  1. The agreement between you. What you agreed on when the purchase was made.
  2. Established practice between you. If you and the same supplier have traded for five years and always done it a certain way, that way becomes binding — even if you have never written it down.
  3. Trade custom or usage. In industries that trade a lot among themselves, fixed customs develop. If a custom is so common that "everyone" in the industry follows it, it can bind you even if you have never discussed it.

Important difference from a consumer purchase (forbrukerkjøp): Under the Consumer Purchases Act (forbrukerkjøpsloven) you cannot agree to set aside the buyer's (kjøper) rights. Under the Sale of Goods Act you can. That is why it is especially important to read the contract when you sell or buy privately or as a company.

Examples

Sara sells her old Volvo to Marius via Finn.no. The ad says "sold as is, test drive recommended". Marius test drives the car, buys it for NOK 45,000 and later discovers that the clutch is wearing out. "As is" («som den er») is a contract clause, and the Sale of Goods Act accepts such reservations (see § 19). Marius cannot claim as much as in a standard purchase — he can only claim a defect (mangel) if the car is in significantly worse condition than the price suggested, or if Sara has withheld information.

Lars runs a small café and has bought coffee beans from the same roastery for three years. They have always agreed that Lars can complain about bad beans within 7 days. It is not in any contract — it is just how it has been. This practice is binding under § 3, even though the Sale of Goods Act has other deadlines. The roastery cannot suddenly say "you must complain within 24 hours" — the new rule must be agreed anew.

Common mistakes

  1. Believing oral agreements do not count — they do, but they are harder to prove
  2. Forgetting to read the contract before signing
  3. Believing trade custom also applies to consumers (forbruker) — it normally does not when it is at the expense of the consumer's rights
  4. Treating "we usually do" as the same as "we have agreed" — practice must have lasted a while and be clear

What should you do?

If you do not read the contract carefully enough and sign something that weakens your rights, you are normally bound by it. You cannot say afterwards "I thought the Sale of Goods Act applied". Only if the agreement is clearly unreasonable (cf. the Contracts Act (avtaleloven) § 36) can it be set aside.

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All sections of the Sale of Goods Act →
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