6 - What Delivery Must Include

Article 402

Art. 402 - Delivery consists of the seller or their representative making the sold thing available to the buyer, under conditions such that they can take possession of and enjoy it without hindrance.

Article 403

Art. 403 - Delivery takes place: 1 - for immovable property, by the relinquishment thereof by the seller, by the handing over of the keys if applicable, provided that at that moment the buyer does not encounter any obstacle to taking possession of the property. 2 - For movable property, by actual tradition or by the handing over of the keys to the building or safe that contains them, or by any other means recognized by custom. 3 - even by the sole consent of the parties, when the removal of the sold items cannot be carried out at the time of the sale, or when they were already, under a different title, in the buyer's possession. 4 - by the transfer or handing over of the deposit certificate, the bill of lading, and the waybill, when it concerns items that are in a public warehouse.

Article 404

Art. 404 - The delivery of incorporeal things, for example a right of passage, is effected by the handing over of the titles that attest to the existence of the right, or by the authorization given by the seller to make use of it, when nothing prevents such use. When the exercise of a right relating to an incorporeal thing involves the possession of a thing, the seller is required to enable the buyer to take possession of it without obstacle.

Article 405

Art. 405 - Unless otherwise stipulated, delivery must take place at the location where the sold thing was at the time of the contract formation. When the deed of sale states that the thing is in a place other than where it is actually located, the seller is required to transport the thing to the designated location if the buyer so demands.

Article 406

Art. 406 - When the thing sold is to be shipped from one place to another, delivery only takes place at the moment when the thing reaches the purchaser or their representative.

Article 407

Art. 407 - Delivery must take place at the time specified in the contract, or, if such specification has not been made, as soon as possible after the conclusion of the contract, except for the time limits resulting from the nature of the thing sold or from custom. The seller who has not granted a term for payment is not required to deliver the thing until the buyer pays the price. The offer of a guarantor or other security cannot substitute for payment of the price.

Article 408

Art. 408 - When several items have been sold in bulk, the seller has the right to retain all of these items, even if the price of each of them was established separately, until the payment of the entirety of the sale price.

Article 409

Art. 409 - The seller may not refuse to deliver the thing sold: 1 - if he has authorized a third party to receive the price or the remaining balance due on the price; 2 - if he has accepted an assignment on a third party for the payment of the price or the remaining balance due on the price; 3 - if, after the contract, he has granted a period for payment.

Article 410

Art. 410 - The seller is not required to deliver the sold thing, even if they had granted a payment deadline: 1 - if, since the sale, the buyer has become insolvent (an apparent and notorious state of insolvency of a civil debtor); 2 - if they were already in bankruptcy or judicial liquidation at the time of the sale, without the seller's knowledge; 3 - if they have reduced the securities they had provided for payment, such that the seller is in danger of losing the price.

Article 411

Art. 411 - When the seller exercises the right of retention established in the above articles, he shall be liable for the thing under the same conditions as a pledgee for the pledge he holds.

Article 412

Art. 412 - Unless otherwise stipulated or by usage, the following shall be borne by the seller: 1 - The costs of delivery, such as those of measurement, weighing, counting, and gauging; 2 - When it concerns an incorporeal thing, the costs of the acts necessary to constitute or transfer this right.

Article 413

Art. 413 - Unless otherwise stipulated or by usage, the costs of removal and receipt of the sold item (packaging, transportation, loading) as well as those related to payment of the price, exchange, and notary fees, registration, and stamp duties, with regard to the purchase deed, shall be borne by the buyer. The receipt costs include transit duties, octroi, and customs duties collected during transportation and upon arrival of the item.

Article 414

Art. 414 - The thing must be delivered in the state in which it was at the time of the sale. From that moment on, the seller may not change its state.

Article 415

Art. 415 - If, prior to delivery, the determined thing that is the subject of the sale is damaged or destroyed by the seller or due to his fault, the buyer has the right to demand the value of the thing or compensation corresponding to its depreciation, under the same conditions as he would have a claim against any other third party. When the object of the sale is a fungible thing, the seller is required to deliver a thing similar in quality and quantity to that which was the subject of the contract, without prejudice to the buyer's right to additional damages and interests if the case so warrants.

Article 416

Art. 416 - If the thing sold is deteriorated or destroyed before delivery due to the fault of the buyer or by his fault, the latter is required to receive the thing in the state in which it is and to pay the price in full.

Article 417

Art. 417 - Unless otherwise stipulated, all fruits and increments of the thing, both civil and natural, belong to the buyer from the moment the sale is perfected and must be delivered to him therewith.

Article 418

Art. 418 – The obligation to deliver the thing also includes its accessories.

Article 419

Art. 419 - The conveyance of a property also includes immovables by destination, which are deemed by law to be accessories.

Article 420

Art. 420 - The sale of an animal includes: 1 - that of its young which it is nursing; 2 - that of the wool and hair ready for shearing.

Article 421

Art. 421 - Unless otherwise stipulated, valuable items or precious objects found inside a movable object are not deemed to be included in the sale.

Article 422

Art. 422 - The seller is bound to deliver the property with the area as stated in the contract, subject to the modifications hereinafter expressed.

Article 423

Art. 423 - If the sale of a property has been made with an indication of its area, at a rate per unit of measurement, the seller is required to deliver to the buyer, if the latter so demands, the quantity indicated in the contract. If this is not possible or if the buyer does not make such a demand, the seller is required to suffer a proportional reduction in the price. If, on the contrary, it is found that the area is greater than that expressed in the contract, the buyer has the option to pay the additional price or to withdraw from the contract if the excess is one-twentieth above the declared area.

Article 424

Art. 424 - In the cases of the preceding article, if the deed of acquisition refers to the indications of the cadastral plan, there shall be no increase or decrease in the price unless the difference ascertained by the survey is in excess of the admitted tolerances.

Article 425

Art. 425 - If the sale is made of a certain and limited property or if it concerns distinct and separate funds, and it commences with the measurement or designation of the object sold followed by the measurement, the expression of this measurement does not give rise to any supplement of price in favor of the seller for the excess of measurement, nor in favor of the buyer, to any reduction of price for lesser measurement.

Article 426

Art. 426 - In all cases where the purchaser exercises the right to withdraw from the contract, the seller is required to refund to him, in addition to the price if it has been received, the costs of this contract.

Article 427

Art. 427 - The action for a supplement to the price by the seller, and that for a reduction in price or for the cancellation of the contract by the buyer, must be brought within one year from the date of the contract, under penalty of forfeiture.