Skip to content
Buch der Suche
DE EN

Terms and conditions

Last updated: November 2026

These terms and conditions are also available in German. The version in the language in which you place your order is the binding one (§ 3(2)).

§ 1 Scope, contracting party

(1) These General Terms and Conditions (“Terms”) apply to all contracts concluded via the online shop at https://buch-der-suche.de, in the version valid at the time of the order.

(2) Your contracting party is:
VALOXX GmbH, Buch der Suche
Baluschekstraße 1, 01159 Dresden, Germany
Register court: Amtsgericht Dresden, HRB 40747
Managing directors: Maik Scheibenstock, Justin Meißner
Phone: +49 173 5235060, email: info@buch-der-suche.de
(hereinafter “we” or “us”).

(3) A consumer is any natural person who enters into a legal transaction for purposes that are predominantly outside their trade, business or profession (Section 13 of the German Civil Code, BGB). A trader (“Unternehmer”) is a natural or legal person or a partnership with legal capacity who, when concluding the contract, acts in the exercise of their trade, business or profession (Section 14 BGB). Lodges that order as an association (e.g. a registered association, “eingetragener Verein”) are not consumers.

(4) Deviating, conflicting or supplementary terms and conditions of the customer do not become part of the contract unless we expressly agree to their validity in text form.

§ 2 Conclusion of the contract

(1) The presentation of products in the online shop does not constitute a legally binding offer, but a non-binding invitation to place an order.

(2) The ordering process consists of the following steps:

  • selecting and configuring the desired goods on the product page;
  • adding them to the cart using the “Add to cart” button;
  • reviewing and, if necessary, changing the cart, then proceeding to checkout;
  • entering the customer data (name, address, email address and, for the “Personalisation for Masons”, also the phone number) and selecting the shipping method; a customer account is neither required nor offered;
  • reviewing all details in the order summary and correcting them using the editing options provided there;
  • submitting the order using the “Order with obligation to pay” button;
  • redirection to our payment service provider Stripe, selection of the payment method and completion of the payment process.

(2a) Gift vouchers are ordered in a separate ordering process, not together with goods (§ 7a(1)). It follows the steps described in paragraph 2; instead of a delivery address and shipping method, the customer only provides their name, billing address and email address.

(3) By clicking the “Order with obligation to pay” button, the customer submits a binding offer to conclude a purchase contract for the goods or gift vouchers listed in the order summary. Until then, the customer may correct their entries at any time or cancel the ordering process. If the customer cancels the subsequent payment process at Stripe or if the payment is declined, no contract is concluded.

(4) The contract is concluded when we declare acceptance of the offer by email (order confirmation). We send the order confirmation automatically as soon as Stripe notifies us that the payment process has been completed successfully. The payment process is completed successfully when the payment has been authorised; in the case of SEPA direct debit, the granting of the direct debit mandate is sufficient. If the customer does not receive an order confirmation within five working days of submitting the order, the customer is no longer bound by their offer; in this case we will refund any payments already made without undue delay.

(5) If a payment is not honoured or is reversed after conclusion of the contract, in particular in the case of a returned direct debit, we are entitled to withdraw from the contract in accordance with the statutory provisions. We only begin production once receipt of payment has been confirmed.

§ 3 Contract text, contract language

(1) We store the contract text. With the order confirmation, the customer receives the order details, these Terms and the withdrawal policy by email. As we do not maintain customer accounts, past orders cannot be accessed online by the customer. The current Terms are available at any time at https://neu.buch-der-suche.de/en/terms and can be printed or saved there.

(2) The contract can be concluded in German or in English. The contract language is the language in which the customer places the order: German for orders placed via the German version of the online shop, English for orders placed via the English version. Only the version of these Terms and of the withdrawal policy in the contract language is binding; the version in the other language is provided for information only. The customer receives the order confirmation, these Terms and the withdrawal policy in the contract language.

§ 4 Prices and shipping costs

(1) All prices are total prices in euros and include statutory VAT. They apply equally to deliveries to all countries of the European Union; where VAT is governed by the law of the country of delivery, only the tax portion included in the price changes, not the total price. For deliveries to Switzerland, the same amounts apply as net prices: the delivery is exempt from VAT in Germany as an export delivery, so no German VAT is charged. Import charges in Switzerland are governed by § 6(1a).

(2) Shipping costs are charged in addition. Their amount is stated on the “Shipping and payment” page (https://neu.buch-der-suche.de/en/shipping-and-payment) and is shown in the cart and in the order summary before the order is submitted.

(3) The stated price for the “Personalisation for Lodges” is charged once per lodge; it covers the preparation of the artwork and the production of the embossing die.

(4) Gift vouchers are multi-purpose vouchers within the meaning of Section 3(15) of the German VAT Act (UStG). No VAT is therefore charged on the purchase of a gift voucher; the purchase price equals the value of the voucher and is the total price, and no shipping costs apply. VAT only arises upon delivery of the goods paid for with the voucher and is governed by paragraph 1. For the purchase of the voucher, the customer therefore receives an order confirmation but no invoice showing VAT; we issue the invoice for the goods paid for with the voucher when they are shipped.

§ 5 Payment

(1) Payment is processed by our payment service provider Stripe Payments Europe, Limited, 1 Grand Canal Street Lower, Grand Canal Dock, Dublin, D02 H210, Ireland (“Stripe”). The available payment methods are displayed during the ordering process. For individual payment methods arranged via Stripe (such as PayPal or Klarna), the terms and conditions of the respective provider, to which reference is made there, apply in addition.

(2) The purchase price is due immediately upon conclusion of the contract.

(3) In the case of SEPA direct debit, the amount is collected no earlier than upon conclusion of the contract. The period for advance notice (pre-notification) is shortened to one day. The customer bears the costs of a returned direct debit insofar as the customer is responsible for it.

(4) The customer may only set off counterclaims that are undisputed or have been finally established by a court. The customer is only entitled to a right of retention insofar as the counterclaim is based on the same contractual relationship. The statutory rights of consumers remain unaffected.

(5) Orders for goods can be paid for in full or in part with a gift voucher; details are set out in § 7a.

§ 6 Delivery, delivery time, transfer of risk

(1) We currently deliver to delivery addresses in all member states of the European Union and in Switzerland (delivery area). Excluded are territories that do not belong to the VAT territory of the European Union, in particular the Canary Islands, Ceuta, Melilla, the French overseas territories, the Åland Islands, Mount Athos, Livigno, Campione d'Italia, Büsingen am Hochrhein and Heligoland. The shipping costs for each country are stated on the Shipping and payment page.

(1a) Deliveries to Switzerland are exports from the European Union. Import charges (in particular Swiss VAT and customs duties) and fees charged by the delivery service for customs clearance may apply. These costs are not charged by us and must be paid by the customer upon delivery.

(2) Our diaries are handmade after receipt of the order and shipped by our bookbindery directly to the delivery address provided. The delivery time is stated for each product; this statement is decisive and applies to deliveries within Germany. For deliveries to other countries, it is extended by the additional shipping time stated for the country of delivery on the “Shipping and payment” page, which is also shown in the order summary. The delivery time begins on the day after conclusion of the contract or, in the case of SEPA direct debit, on the day after receipt of payment. If the period ends on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday at the place of delivery, it is replaced by the next working day.

(3) For the “Personalisation for Masons”, the delivery time only begins when we have received the customer’s documents; for the “Personalisation for Lodges”, it only begins when we have approved the artwork in accordance with § 7(4).

(4) If ordered goods are not available through no fault of our own, we will inform the customer without undue delay and refund any payments already made without undue delay.

(5) If the customer is a consumer, the risk of accidental loss and accidental deterioration of the goods only passes to the customer upon handover, even in the case of shipment. Otherwise, the risk passes to the customer when the goods are handed over to the carrier.

(6) We deliver gift vouchers by email in accordance with § 7a(2); paragraphs 1 to 5 do not apply to them.

§ 7 Personalisations

(1) The “Personalisation for Masons” and the “Personalisation for Lodges” can only be ordered together with a diary; the “Personalisation for Lodges” only with at least ten diaries in the same order.

(2) Personalisation for Masons. We bind the customer’s existing documents (e.g. lodge passport) in approximately A6 format into the customer’s diary. Before carrying out the work, we agree the binding with the customer by phone; a phone number is therefore required. The customer sends the originals to the address we provide after conclusion of the contract; we recommend sending them by registered mail. We return the finished diary with the bound-in documents by registered mail. The customer warrants that they are entitled to dispose of the documents and to have them bound. If our review shows that the documents cannot be bound in, we will return them and refund the price of the personalisation.

(3) Personalisation for Lodges. Instead of the eye, the lodge’s jewel (bijou) is embossed on the cover; for this purpose, the customer uploads an image of the jewel during the ordering process. The customer warrants that they are entitled to use the artwork, and to have it used, for this purpose and that this does not infringe any third-party rights. The customer indemnifies us against third-party claims arising from such an infringement insofar as the customer is responsible for it. The embossing die is kept for repeat orders by the lodge and used exclusively for books of that lodge.

(4) We can only check whether the artwork can be embossed after conclusion of the contract. If embossing is not possible, we will inform the customer without undue delay. The customer can then choose either to receive the diaries with the eye, in which case we refund the price of the personalisation, or to withdraw from the entire contract, in which case we refund all payments without undue delay.

§ 7a Gift vouchers

(1) We offer gift vouchers with a value of 25, 50, 75, 100 and 150 euros. Gift vouchers can only be ordered in a separate ordering process and not together with goods. They cannot be paid for with a gift voucher. Price and VAT are governed by § 4(4).

(2) After conclusion of the contract, we send the customer the voucher as a PDF file with a voucher code by email to the email address provided or, in the case of SEPA direct debit, after receipt of payment. Vouchers are not sent by post.

(3) The voucher can only be redeemed in our online shop, for orders of goods to be delivered within the delivery area under § 6(1). The voucher code is entered at checkout; one voucher can be redeemed per order. The voucher value is credited against the total amount of the order including shipping costs; the customer pays any amount exceeding it using one of the payment methods offered. Any unused balance remains available until the end of the validity period and can be used for further orders. The balance cannot be paid out in cash or to an account; paragraph 6 and § 9(3) remain unaffected.

(4) The voucher is valid until 31 December of the third year after the year in which it was purchased; the expiry date is stated on the voucher. After that date it can no longer be redeemed.

(5) The voucher is transferable and can also be redeemed by a person other than the purchaser. We may accept redemption by any person who enters the voucher code at checkout, unless we know that this person is not entitled to do so. If the purchaser informs us that the voucher code has been lost, we will block it and transfer the balance not redeemed by that time to a new voucher code.

(6) If an order paid for in full or in part with a voucher is cancelled, withdrawn from or otherwise reversed in full or in part for any other reason, we credit the amount paid with the voucher back to the voucher; we refund any amount paid with another payment method via that payment method. If only part of the price is refunded, we first refund the amount paid with the other payment method and only credit the exceeding amount back to the voucher. If the voucher is no longer valid at the time of the credit, we refund the amount in money instead.

§ 8 Retention of title

The goods remain our property until paid in full.

§ 9 Right of withdrawal

(1) Consumers have a statutory right of withdrawal. The details are set out in our withdrawal policy (https://neu.buch-der-suche.de/en/withdrawal).

(2) Pursuant to Section 312g(2) No. 1 BGB, there is no right of withdrawal for goods that are produced according to the customer’s specifications. This applies to diaries ordered with a “Personalisation for Masons” or “Personalisation for Lodges”, including the personalisation itself. The right of withdrawal applies to diaries in the standard versions offered and to the box. We point out the exclusion on the product page and in the order summary.

(3) Consumers also have a right of withdrawal for the purchase of a gift voucher. In this case, the withdrawal period begins with the conclusion of the contract; the details are set out in the withdrawal policy for gift vouchers (https://neu.buch-der-suche.de/en/withdrawal). Upon receipt of the withdrawal, we block the voucher code.

§ 10 Liability for defects

(1) The statutory provisions on liability for defects apply.

(2) If the customer is a trader or a legal person, the limitation period for claims based on defects is one year from delivery of the goods; for merchants, the duty to inspect and give notice of defects under Section 377 of the German Commercial Code (HGB) applies. This reduction does not apply to claims for damages under § 11(1), to fraudulently concealed defects, to claims under a guarantee or to recourse claims under Sections 445a and 478 BGB.

(3) If goods are delivered with obvious transport damage, we ask the customer to complain to the delivery service and to inform us. This request has no legal consequences; the customer’s statutory rights remain unaffected.

§ 11 Liability

(1) We are liable without limitation for intent and gross negligence, for damage resulting from injury to life, body or health, within the scope of a guarantee we have given, in the case of fraudulent concealment of a defect and under the German Product Liability Act (Produkthaftungsgesetz).

(2) In the case of a slightly negligent breach of an essential contractual obligation, our liability is limited to the foreseeable damage typical for the contract at the time the contract was concluded. Essential contractual obligations are obligations whose fulfilment makes the proper performance of the contract possible in the first place and on whose observance the customer may regularly rely. For the “Personalisation for Masons”, this includes the careful handling of the originals provided.

(3) Otherwise, our liability for slight negligence is excluded.

(4) These limitations of liability also apply in favour of our legal representatives, employees and vicarious agents. This does not change the burden of proof to the customer’s disadvantage.

§ 12 Consumer dispute resolution

We are neither willing nor obliged to participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board.

§ 13 Applicable law, place of jurisdiction

(1) The law of the Federal Republic of Germany applies, excluding the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). If the customer is a consumer, this choice of law only applies insofar as it does not deprive the customer of the protection afforded by the mandatory provisions of the law of the country in which the customer has their habitual residence.

(2) If the customer is a merchant, a legal entity under public law or a special fund under public law, the exclusive place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from this contract is Dresden, Germany. Otherwise, the statutory places of jurisdiction apply.

§ 14 Final provisions

Should individual provisions of these Terms be or become invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions remains unaffected. The invalid provision is replaced by the statutory provision.