Updated: 4/7/2025
1. GTC scope of application
1.1. These general terms and conditions (GTC) shall apply to all declarations of intent, contracts, and legal or legal-like transactions of Vogel Event Solutions GmbH, Max-Planck-Straße 7/9, 97082, Würzburg (hereinafter “VES”) with participants (hereinafter “participant(s)”)who attend events hosted by VES. “Events” means any form of in-person, digital, or hybrid event (e.g. fairs, seminars, trainings, etc.)
1.2. Terms and conditions of the participant that deviate from or contradict these GTC shall only apply if accepted in writing by VES. This also applies if VES performs services without any reservation in full knowledge of said GTC.
1.3. VES may change these GTC for good cause, whereby this right to change does not apply to essential contractual obligations. The participant shall be notified electronically or in writing of any changes. The participant may object to the updated version within (2) weeks after said notification. Continuing the contractual relationship without objection after receiving said notification shall count as acceptance of the changes. An unjustified objection to the GTC may constitute grounds for termination without notice in individual cases.
1.4. These GTC are valid in their most recently updated form at the respective point in time of the legal transaction being concluded or the contractual-like relationship being entered. As long as nothing else has been agreed and the participant is entrepreneur within the meaning of § 14 BGB (German Civil Code), they shall also apply to any future legal transactions or contractual-like relationships, even if not expressly agreed upon again.
2. Conclusion of contract and registration
2.1. Offers from VES constitute a request to the participant to themselves make an offer for the conclusion of a contract.
2.2. All events require an online registration in advance via the booking portal with mandatory consent to these GTC. The participant must submit their registration for an event to VES in the form provided for this purpose and this registration is a binding offer to conclude a contract regarding the respective chosen event. When prompted to provide information during the registration process, participants are to do so truthfully
2.3. The contract is concluded for the chosen event by VES sending the participant the booking confirmation. VES reserves the right to deny the participant admission to the booked event if, for example, there are personal reasons for denying admission of the participant. The participant has no claim to admission in such a case. The affected participant shall be informed of the denied admission and the reasons for it in writing.
3. Contractual relationships and contents
3.1. The participant can book services or contents of the respective event at VES. The scope and content of the services owed by VES shall be determined in the registration confirmation.
3.2. The services and content owed by VES according to section 3.1 are hereinafter also jointly referred to as “services” or “subject of performance“. VES does not guarantee any commercial success.
3.3. VES is entitled, at its own discretion, to perform the services itself, to use competent third parties as proxies for the performance of services, and/or to substitute such services.
3.4. The contractual agreements between the parties correlate as follows:
- Registration confirmation including potential attachments,
- these GTC, in the version applicable at the time,
- legal provisions.
In the event of any contradictions, the contractual bases shall apply in the order listed.
4. Participation
4.1. The participant’s booking confirmation for an event provided by VES only applies to the registered participant. When personally unavailable, the participant may designate a replacement participant who, given VES’s consent, may replace the original participant at the event.
4.2. The approval may be revoked by VES if it was granted on the basis of false or incomplete information or if the requirements for approval subsequently cease to apply.
4.3. The participant pledges to observe and comply with the house rules of the operator of the respective event venue.
4.4. If a legal entity registers for an event, a colleague of the legal entity may participate in the event.
5. Cancellation, changes
5.1. Cancellation of training events Vogel Akademie (in-person seminars, hybrid events, live web-based seminars, web-based seminars, e-learning offers):
Unless otherwise stated in the booking confirmation or otherwise agreed, the participant has the right to cancel their participation in the event in writing. A lump sum compensation shall be paid by the participant to VES in case of cancellation according to the following gradients:
- Cancellation up to 21 days prior to the seminar: 25% of the participation fee
- Cancellation up to 14 days prior to the seminar: 50% of the participation fee
- Cancellation less than 14 days prior to the seminar: 100% of the participation fee.
5.2. Cancellation of in-house seminars and individual offers (consultant hours, keynote booking, consulting solutions):
Unless otherwise stated or agreed in the commission or in the commission confirmation, the participant or client is entitled to cancel their participation in the event in writing. A lump sum compensation shall be paid by the participant to VES in case of cancellation according to the following gradients:
- Cancellation up to six (6) months prior to the seminar: 50% of the agreed remuneration,
- cancellation between three (3) and less than six (6) months prior to the seminar: 75% of the agreed remuneration,
- Cancellation less than 3 months prior to the seminar: 100% of the agreed remuneration.
5.3. Cancellation of all other charged events:
Unless otherwise stated in the registration confirmation or otherwise agreed, the participant has the right to cancel their participation in the event in writing. A lump sum compensation shall be paid by the participant to VES in case of cancellation according to the following gradients:
- Cancellation up to three (3) months prior to the event: 79.00€ plus VAT or, alternatively, 100% of the participation fee if the fee is less than 79.00€ plus VAT.
- Cancellation less than three (3) months prior to the event: 50% of the participation fee
- Cancellation less than two (2) days prior to the event or no-show on the day of the event: 100% of the participation fee.
5.4. In all cases of sections 5.1, 5.2, and 5.3, the participant or client retains the right to prove that VES has not suffered any damage at all due to the cancellation or that the damage is lower than the lump sums listed above.
5.5. Furthermore, VES has the right to change the event for important reasons (e.g. changes to the program, the format (in-person, hybrid, or digital), timing, schedule, location, venue, or lecturer), provided this does no cause the participant an undue disadvantage. VES will notify the participant separately in text form of any substantial changes. Any changes shall also be published on the website. Thus, the participant must inform themselves in good time about such changes.
6. Special right of cancellation
6.1. In case of significant violations of the contractual provisions, or the house rules, or in case of significant disturbance of public safety and order, VES may cancel the contractual relationship without notice following a verbal or written warning. A warning is not required if such a warning offers no prospect of success in an individual case and waiting any longer cannot reasonably be expected of VES.
6.2. If VES announces the special cancellation during an event, the participant is obligated to immediately clear or leave the event, and, in case of virtual participation of a hybrid or digital event, to leave the event platform. If the participant fails to comply with this request, VES is entitled to carry out the evacuation at the expense and the risk of the participant.
6.3. Any extraordinary right of termination of the participant remains unaffected.
7. RIGHT OF REVOCATION for CONSUMERS
Is the participant consumer within the meaning of § 13 BGB (German Civil Code), the following right of revocation applies:
Revocation policy
Right of revocation
You have the right to revoke this contract within fourteen days without giving reasons. The revocation period is fourteen days from the day of entering into the agreement.
To exercise your right of revocation, you need to send us (Vogel Event Solutions GmbH, Max-Planck-Straße 7/9, 97082 Würzburg, via telephone at 0931418-0, via e-mail to events@vogel.de, or using the following contact form https://contact.vogel.de/) an unambiguous statement (e.g. a letter sent by mail or an e-mail) of your decision to revoke this contract. You can use the attached sample revocation form for this, however, using said form is not mandatory.
In order to comply with the revocation period, it is sufficient to send the notification of the exercise of the right of revocation before the end of the revocation period.
Consequences of revocation
If you revoke this agreement, we shall refund all payments we have received from you immediately and at the latest within fourteen days of the day on which we receive notification of your revocation of this agreement. For this refund, we will use the same means of payment that you used for the original transaction, unless expressly agreed otherwise with you; in no event will you be charged any fees for this refund.
If you have requested the services commence during the revocation period, you shall pay us a reasonable amount corresponding to the proportion of the services already provided by the time you inform us of you exercising your right of withdrawal with regard to this contract compared to the total scope of the services provided for in the contract.
Sample revocation form
If you want to revoke the contract, please fill out this form and send it back.
- To (Vogel Event Solution GmbH, Max-Planck-Straße 7/9, 97082 Würzburg, E-Mail: events@vogel.de):
- I hereby revoke the contract entered by myself regarding participation in the event [please specify]:
- Ordered on (date of registration): /received on (date booking confirmation was received):
- Consumer name
- Consumer address
- Consumer signature (only for messages on paper):
- Date:
8. Payment maturity
8.1. The agreed participation fee is due in advance upon receipt of the invoice.
8.2. If the client fails to pay within thirty (30) days after receipt of the invoice, VES may exclude them from participating in the event. The obligation to pay the agreed fees remains unaffected by this.
8.3. The CP shall bear the costs for travel to and from the event, overnight stays, and comparable costs. The aforementioned costs cannot be claimed from VES as damages in the event of an event being canceled.
9. Online services for hybrid and digital events
9.1. Access to the online event platform, system requirements
9.1.1. Generally, the provision of access to the event platform, and the use of the functionalities of the event platform, and, if applicable, the provision of storage space for the data made accessible by the participant on the event platform to the agreed extent is the subject of booking services in connection with digital events or the digitally conducted part of hybrid events.
9.1.2. VES does not provide the participant with an access software. Generally, access is granted via a browser supported by the event platform and meeting the system requirements of VES, or via download-able software. Unless noted otherwise in the specification of services of the respective event service package, VES’s system requirements apply: Details on system requirements can be found at system requirements – Legal Cockpit
9.1.3. The system requirements are part of the contract provisions. The participant must check in due time before their participation in the digital or hybrid event whether the connection to the event platform can be established, and, if applicable, quickly solve any technical malfunctions for which they are responsible. If a technical connection to the event platform cannot be established, VES shall be informed in due time.
9.1.4. VES does not owe the participant the provision and/or functionality of the browser.
9.1.5. The participant shall take the necessary precautions to prevent access to the event platform by unauthorized parties.
9.2. Availability of the event platform, additional service levels
9.2.1. VES guarantees the participant availability of the event platform including accessibility and reachability necessary for a successful participation in the respective event.
9.2.2. VES shall not be liable for any malfunctions, interruptions, or failures on the event platform that
a. VES is not responsible for, in particular impairments based on failures and/or malfunctions of technical systems and/or network components outside the area of responsibility of VES; this includes
- failures caused by incoming cyber-attacks. This does not apply if VES is obligated to use virus protection programs, and these were not up-to-date at the time of the cyber-attack;
- Failures caused by incorrect use of software or hardware on the part of the participant, and
b. maintenance work agreed with the participant or unexpectedly required maintenance work for which VES is not responsible or agreed workarounds (e.g. use of another event platform as an alternative).
9.2.3. The participant shall immediately notify the designated contact person of VES or the designated support contact person of VES responsible for the respective event of any disruptions, availability restrictions, or availability failures they notice. In the event of disruptions, VES assures to react within an appropriate and reasonable period of time and to find a solution, given the disruption be within their responsibility.
9.3. Duties of the participant, liability for illegal content, compliance with legal frameworks
9.3.1. The participant shall be liable for ensuring that, within the scope of the functions and digital presentation options available to them on the event platform, no racist, discriminatory, pornographic, youth-protection-endangering, politically extreme, or any other unlawful incident, or incidents violating official provisions or requirements occur, or that corresponding data are created by them and/or stored on the server of the operator of the event platform. In particular, the following actions on the event platform are forbidden for the participant:
- Posting, distribution, offering, and advertising of pornographic content, services and/or products that violate the Youth Protection Act, data protection laws, and/or other laws and/or are fraudulent;
- Use of content that may insult or defame VES or third parties or may damage VES’s reputation;
- Use, provision and distribution of content, services and/or products that are protected by law or protected by third-party rights (e.g. copyrights) without being expressly authorized to do so.
9.3.2. Furthermore, the following activities are prohibited for the participant irrespective of any possible violation of the law, when posting their own content via the features of the event platform, and when communicating with other participants and/or moderators (e.g. by sending personal messages, by participating in forum discussion, or by writing guestbook entries):
- Distribution of viruses, Trojans, and other malicious data;
- Sending junk or spam e-mails and chain letters;
- Spreading lewd, offensive, sexually oriented, obscene, or defamatory content or communication, and content or communication that is/are likely to promote or support racism, bigotry, hatred, physical violence, or illegal acts (both explicitly or implicitly);
- Harassing other participants, and/or moderators, e.g. by repeatedly contacting them personally without permission or contrary to the reaction of the person contacted, and encouraging or supporting such harassment;
- Soliciting other customers, participants, and/or moderators to disclose passwords or personal data for commercial or unlawful purposes;
- Distribution and/or public reproduction of content available on the event platform, unless the participant is expressly permitted to do so by the respective author.
9.3.3. The participant assures to own all rights, in particular all copyrights, rights of use, and ancillary copyrights to the contents posted by them. If the participant is not the author of the content posted by them, they assure the ownership of the unrestricted right of use to said content. The participant assures the ownership of unrestricted exploitation rights, the non-existence of third-party rights for the submitted content, and that no personal rights have been violated in the representation of people. The participant assures to have acquired the rights of all authors, ancillary copyright owners, trademark owners, and other rights holders mandatory for publication, exploitation, and making available to the public, in particular that people depicted have given their express consent to the exploitation and evaluation of the image as part of the application via the participant’s profile.
9.3.4. The participant adheres to applicable data protection provisions. In accordance with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the participant is the controller of any personal data processed by them, e.g. additional event participants added by them (if agreed). It is brought to the participant’s attention that for online participation in an event and in individual cases, they may have to separately consent to usage and privacy policies depending on the event platform.
10. Warranty
If VES’s services have the character of a contract for services, the following provisions shall apply:
10.1. The participant has to notify VES immediately in writing of any defective service. As far as a rectification of defects is possible and feasible with reasonable effort, VES has the right to rectify defects for which it is responsible.
10.2. A defect exclusively exists if the subject of performance does not have the contractually agreed quality or is not suitable for the contractually required use. Negligible deviations shall not constitute a defect.
10.3. In the event of refusal, impossibility, failure, or unreasonable delay in the rectification of defects, the participant may, at their discretion, demand the rescission of the contract or the reduction of the remuneration.
10.4. Warranty claims of the participant shall become time-barred within a period of six (6) months after acceptance of the respective services.
10.5. The participant’s right of self-remedy is excluded.
10.6. VES shall be liable for consequential harm caused by a defect only in accordance with the liability provisions set forth in these GTC. This exemption from liability shall not apply if a warranty of quality was given which covers the consequential damage caused by a defect and if the damage caused by the defect stems from the lack of such quality.
11. Liability
11.1. If not differently regulated in the other provisions, VES shall be liable to the participant for damages due to breach of contractual or non-contractual obligations only in case of intent and gross negligence.
VES is only liable for slight negligence in the event of a breach of an essential contractual obligation (cardinal obligation), whereby liability is limited to the foreseeable damage typical for the contract. Cardinal obligations are obligations which are essential to be fulfilled for the proper performance of this contract and on the observance of which the other party may regularly rely.
11.3 In case of atypical and unforeseeable indirect damages, liability is limited to the sum of the contractual fees that the participant has paid to VES for the period of two (2) years prior to the occurrence of the damaging event within the framework of the specific contractual relationship. In the case of consequential damages and loss of profit, liability shall be limited to the foreseeable damage typical for the contract.
11.4 The limitations of liability also apply to legal representatives, executives, and proxies of VES.
11.5 The limitations specified in sections 11.1 to 11.4 do not apply to liability for injuries to life, body, or health.
11.6 VES shall not be liable for the factual information about the participant’s products contained in the subject matter of the performance or the protectability under copyright, design, trademark, or brand law of the ideas, proposals, concepts, drafts, etc. delivered within the scope of the commission.
12. Confidentiality and data protection
12.1. The participant authorizes VES to process the data received in connection with the business relationship in accordance with applicable data protection laws.
With their registration to a VCG event, the participant consents to their address information (role, first name, last name, company name, company address) be included in a list of participants that may be given out during the event. The list of participants shall solely be provided to event participants for the purpose of networking. The participant can revoke their consent at will.
12.2. Our business model includes our events being financed through sponsors and cooperation partners. In turn, said partners and sponsors receive participants’ data that is usually publicly accessible. In detail:
- First and last name,
- Role,
- Company name and company address
- Career level
- Company division
- Industry.
A constantly updated list of all partners and sponsors receiving participants’ data can be found on the registration page of the booked event. It is brought to the participant’s attention that for responsible recipients with company headquarters outside of the EU, a lower level of data protection might exist.
The participant has the right to inform Vogel Event Solutions GmbH, events department, Max-Planck-Straße 7/9, 97082 Würzburg, e-mail: events@vogel.de of their objection to the use of their data for information purposes or change their address information at any time in writing, stating their full address and the event/training offer in question.
13. Cession and offset
The participant may only transfer the rights and obligations arising from this contract given the express written consent of VES. The participant may only offset claims of VES against undisputed or legally established claims.
14. Force majeure or other occurrences
Force majeure or other unforeseeable, inevitable, or unavoidable events for which VES is not responsible, and which make it substantially more difficult or temporarily impossible to provide the contractual services, including pandemic, strike, lockout, and regulatory actions, shall allow VES to postpone the performance of their services for the duration of the hindrance plus a reasonable start-up period. VES will immediately inform the participant of the occurrence of such hindrances to performance. If the delays resulting from an event in accordance with sentence 1 above exceed the period of six (6) weeks, and if an adjustment of the contract is not possible and not reasonable for either party, both parties are released from their performance obligations agreed upon in the commission. Services delivered by VES are to be remunerated by the participant according to their share. Damage claims are excluded in such a case.
15. Form
Text form is required for all agreements, additions and amendments between VES and the participant, unless otherwise stipulated in the respective order or in these GTC.
16. Data-Mining
VES expressly reserves the right to use its content for commercial text and data mining within the meaning of section 44b UrhG (Act on Copyright). For the acquisition of a corresponding right of use, please contact datenschutz@vogel.de
17. Self-promotion
VES and its affiliated companies within the meaning of §§ 15 et seqq., AktG (Stock Corporation Act) are permitted to use work results or excerpts from the events, and also the name and brand of the participant, free of charge for the purpose of self-promotion, particularly for the purpose of reference advertising, also after the end of the contract term.
18. Consumer arbitration process
VES are neither willing nor obliged to partake in arbitration proceedings of a dispute resolution authority.
19. Place of execution, place of jurisdiction, and severability clause
19.1. Place of execution is Würzburg.
19.2. Place of jurisdiction for any potential legal disputes between VES and the participant shall be Würzburg, given the participant be merchant, legal entity / special fund under public law.
19.3. Solely the law of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply, excluding the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. In the event that the participant is a consumer, this shall only apply to the extent that the protection granted is not withdrawn by mandatory provisions of the law of the state in which the consumer has their habitual residence.
19.4. Should one or more provisions of these GTC be or become invalid or void, the validity of the remaining provisions of these GTC shall remain unaffected. This accordingly applies to gaps in the contract.
19.5. The invalidity of individual provisions of these GTC shall not affect the validity of the remainder of the commission.