Award and contract regulations for construction work

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Book cover of the VOB 2002

The procurement and contract regulations for construction works ( VOB ) is a three-part set of clauses for the award and contract conditions for construction contracts drawn up and updated by the German procurement and contract committee for construction work . It is mandatory for construction contracts from the public sector in Germany, but is also often used for private construction contracts.

In Part A it contains general provisions for the award of construction works (by contracting authorities ) (abbreviated VOB / A ), in Part B General Contractual Conditions for the Execution of Construction Works ( VOB / B ) and in Part C General Technical Contractual Conditions for Construction Works (VOB / C) with trade-specific technical regulations on the execution and billing of the respective construction work.

General

The VOB is a set of rules developed equally by clients and contractors in the building industry, but not a law or ordinance .

Public clients are, however, obliged to award construction services in accordance with the provisions of VOB / A and to base the resulting construction contracts on VOB / B (and thus automatically also VOB / C). This arises for projects above the threshold values from the procurement ordinance , for projects below the threshold values ​​from circulars issued by the responsible federal and state ministries and local authorities such as cities and municipalities.

The VOB / B takes on the function of the general terms and conditions (AGB) in the construction contract in the sense of the BGB . With the VOB / B, general rules for private building law were drawn up because the general work contract law in the BGB did not sufficiently take into account the complex peculiarities of private building law. The VOB / B is therefore often agreed outside of the public sector in construction contracts between commercial companies or with private consumers , the latter assuming that it is explicitly mentioned as part of the contract and that its full text is transmitted.

In 2018, new contract types for construction services were introduced in the BGB ( construction contract , consumer construction contract , architect and engineer contract, developer contract), which are, however, controversial.

content

VOB / A: General provisions for the award of construction works

The VOB / A regulates the award of construction contracts from the public sector and from sector clients. It distinguishes between three areas: national procurement procedures, EU tenders and procedures in the area of ​​sector contracting authorities, for which different procedural rules apply. The possible types of award and the respective procedures are defined for these areas. With the 2019 edition in Part A, the focus is on the sub-threshold range. In the course of the 2016 reform of the procurement law, a number of significant changes were made in order to establish or maintain the desired synchronization between the various sections of the VOB / A.

VOB / B: General contractual conditions for the execution of construction works

The general terms and conditions for the execution of construction works are general terms and conditions for construction contracts. Since the principle applicable to construction contracts provisions of the Civil Code on the contract for work not provide specific solutions to many of the problems in construction law, there is often a need for additional rules. (The work contract law of the BGB is based on a static contract, but in building contract practice, adjustments to the contract to changed circumstances or wishes of the client are almost always necessary.) The VOB / B was developed for this purpose. This must be made part of the construction contract by the public client . In practice, the application of VOB / B is often agreed by private contracting parties in building contracts.

Parts of the VOB / B do not withstand the general terms and conditions control of the BGB, which would actually make them ineffective. However, since the VOB represents a balance between the interests of the two contracting parties, it is not subject to the general terms and conditions control in its entirety. With effect from January 1, 2009, however, § 310 Paragraph 1 Clause 3 BGB was introduced, which, when the VOB / B is applied to consumers in the sense of the BGB, determines the ineffectiveness of clauses that do not withstand a general terms and conditions control.

VOB / C: General technical contract conditions for construction work

The VOB / C is a collection of general technical contract conditions (ATV), which were also published as DIN standards . This includes DIN 18299 (or ATV DIN 18299) general regulations for all types of construction work as a general standard as well as a large number of special regulations for individual trades. An overview of the standards can be found in the list of DIN standards . The individual ATV each contain technical regulations for drawing up service descriptions, the scope, materials and components, execution, ancillary services and special services and billing. The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) decided in July 2006 that the provisions of VOB Part C contain essential interpretation criteria for the content of a building contract, so that VOB Part C is of particular importance in building law. According to § 1 Paragraph 2 No. 5 VOB / B, VOB Part C takes precedence over Part B in the event of contradictions.

In particular, the regulations for setting up the service description, ancillary services and special services and for billing ensure that the services for the company are reliable and calculable with a reasonable amount of effort and thus strengthen competition. VOB-compliant tendering texts are u. a. published by the Joint Committee for Electronics in Construction (GAEB) .

If the validity of the VOB / B has been agreed in the construction contract, the VOB / C will also become part of the contract according to Section 1 Paragraph 1 Clause 2 VOB / B.

history

The first edition dates from 1926. Since 1947, one of the statutory tasks of the German Contracting Committee (DVA) (today: German Awarding and Contracting Committee for Construction Services) has been to elaborate and develop, in particular, principles for the proper awarding and processing of construction contracts by updating the VOB.

The DVA is a non-legal association whose members include representatives of the public sector ( federal ministries , state ministries and central municipal associations ) as well as top organizations of contractors from the construction industry. Its activity should serve the goal of a fair balance between the interests of the client and the building contractor.

In the years 1952, 1973, 1979, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2002/2005 new editions or supplementary volumes to the respective edition of the VOB were published. The edition of 2000 and the edition of 2002, which in particular serve to adapt to the law on the modernization of the law of obligations , contain significant changes .

In 2006 a modified version of the VOB was published (announcement of March 20, 2006, Federal Gazette No. 94a of May 18, 2006 and announcement of September 4, 2006, BAnz. No. 196a of October 18, 2006). In the area of ​​VOB / A, this served to adapt the VOB to the EC directives 2004/17 / EC and 2004/18 / EC.

With the VOB 2009, Part A in particular was subjected to far-reaching changes. Another edition followed in 2012 and 2016.

The new VOB Complete Edition 2019 will replace the VOB 2016 after the publication of the introductory decree and is binding from the date specified. With the 2019 edition, changes in Part A and Part C will become effective.

renaming

In 2000, the DVA was renamed the German Procurement and Contract Committee for Construction Services . Accordingly, since the 2002 edition, the VOB has also been called the procurement and contract regulations for construction work .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Construction contract award. Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Home Affairs, accessed on February 6, 2020 .
  2. ^ Fries, Claudia: Architectural services tendering and awarding , Uni-Taschenbücher-Verlag, 2008, p. 23.
  3. ↑ Looschelders, Dirk (2011): Law of Obligations Special Part , Edition 6, Rn. 631, Munich: Verlag Franz Vahlen.