Terms of Service

§ 1 Scope

These Terms apply to all contracts concluded between EuropaRoots (the "Provider") and the customer for the provision of genealogical research services.

§ 2 Subject matter of the contract

The Provider performs genealogical research services using professional genealogical methodology. Research is carried out in digitized, online-accessible sources — including paid digital archives and databases (e.g. digitized parish and civil-registry records, local family books). Where a record relevant to the chronicle exists only offline in an archive or registry, the Provider points to that location as part of the research; retrieving such a document on site is not part of the standard research. For civil-status certificates from the competent registry office, the separately bookable certificate service is available (§ 9).

Legal advice, representation before authorities, and any assessment of legal claims — in particular as to citizenship, restitution or succession — are not owed. The Provider does not owe a particular research outcome.

The scope of services depends on the tier booked.

• Family Portrait (Basic): research covering up to 3 generations. Maximum period: 7 business days.
• Family Chronicle (Premium): research covering up to 5 generations. Maximum period: 14 business days.
• Family Legacy (Exclusive): research to the greatest possible depth, as far as the available sources substantiate it (typically back to the 17th/18th century); no specific number of generations is assured. Additionally included as physical heirlooms: a framed family-tree poster and a bound hardcover book of the chronicle. Maximum period: 28 business days.

The delivery date displayed at purchase is binding. If no date was displayed, the maximum period for the selected plan applies. The period starts upon receipt of payment and of the required starting data. The price is the amount displayed at purchase and stated in the order confirmation.

Customer information and data concerning living persons

The research relies on the information provided by the customer (starting data, documents). The customer submits, as starting data, exclusively data of already-deceased persons and their own data; the GDPR generally does not apply to data of deceased persons under Recital 27 GDPR. The customer is responsible for the accuracy and lawfulness of their information. The reference person whose ancestors are researched may be the customer themselves or another person.

Should the information submitted or the research results nonetheless concern data of living persons (e.g. because a researched person, contrary to assumption, is still alive, or because a reference person other than the customer themselves is still alive), the customer warrants that they are entitled to pass on that data and that they have — where required — obtained the consent of the persons concerned. The customer indemnifies the Provider against third-party claims arising from a culpable breach of this warranty.

Delays caused by missing, unclear or unusable materials do not extend to the delivery period.

Transcription and translation

At the fixed price the service covers a single document: one letter, one certificate, one postcard or one register entry, of up to two written pages. Longer items are not included; the Provider will provide a separate quote in advance.

The service consists of a transcription and, if ordered, a translation of the submitted document. A machine first draft is permitted; review and release are carried out against the submitted original or scan.

Delivery is made within 2 business days after receipt of payment and of a usable source document.

If, after professional review, the document cannot be transcribed in a usable form, the Provider will refund the price paid for this service in full. A document is unreadable only if no substantively usable text can be obtained from it. Uncertain readings or incomplete preservation alone do not give rise to a refund, provided the remaining text is documented.

§ 3 Formation of the contract

The contract is formed by the customer's order and the Provider's confirmation. Confirmation is sent by email after successful payment via the payment service provider Stripe.

§ 4 Prices and payment

All prices stated are final prices in euro. The Provider is a small business within the meaning of § 19(1) of the German VAT Act (UStG); invoices therefore do not show value-added tax. Payment is made in advance via the payment service provider Stripe.

Accepted payment methods: credit card (Visa, Mastercard, American Express), SEPA direct debit, and other payment methods offered by Stripe.

§ 5 Performance of the service

The processing time depends on the tier booked and starts once payment in full and all necessary documents have been received. The delivery periods are set out in § 2.

The processing times above relate to the digital family chronicle (web edition with PDF and file download). Where a tier additionally includes physical items — in the Family Legacy (Exclusive) tier the framed family-tree poster and the bound hardcover book — these are produced individually after the digital chronicle has been completed and follow separately by post. Delivery usually takes place within 2 to 3 weeks after completion of the chronicle (Germany and Austria); shipments to Switzerland may be delayed accordingly by customs clearance. Shipment requires a complete delivery address.

Missed delivery date

The binding date for delivery of the digital family chronicle is the specific delivery date displayed during the order process and stated in the order confirmation, provided such a date was shown. Otherwise the maximum period for the tier booked displayed during the order process applies.

If the Provider exceeds that date or that maximum period and the chronicle has not yet been delivered, the customer may cancel the order free of charge and receives a full refund of the price paid. This undertaking is in addition to the customer's statutory rights — in particular the right of withdrawal under § 7 as well as the rights in the event of delayed performance under §§ 320 et seqq., 323 BGB — and does not restrict them.

Shipping and transport damage

If a physical item is damaged in transit, the Provider supplies a replacement free of charge (subsequent performance under § 439 BGB). A photograph of the damage is generally sufficient as proof; returning the damaged item is not required for this. This undertaking is in addition to your statutory warranty rights and supplements — without restricting it — the exclusion of the right of withdrawal for individually manufactured goods under § 312g(2) no. 1 BGB (see § 7).

§ 6 Liability

The Provider is liable without limitation for damage arising from injury to life, body or health, and for damage based on intent or gross negligence, and further under the German Product Liability Act and to the extent of any guarantee given.

In the event of slightly negligent breach of a material contractual obligation (an obligation whose fulfilment is what makes proper performance of the contract possible in the first place and on whose observance the customer may regularly rely), the Provider's liability is limited to the foreseeable damage typical for this type of contract. Liability for slight negligence is otherwise excluded.

The results of the genealogical research are based on the available historical sources and make no claim to completeness (cf. § 8). Where a primary source is missing, the finding concerned is transparently marked as unconfirmed.

§ 7 Right of withdrawal for consumers

Consumers have a statutory right of withdrawal. A consumer is any natural person who enters into a legal transaction for purposes that predominantly can be attributed neither to their commercial nor to their self-employed professional activity (§ 13 BGB). The following statutory withdrawal instruction applies.

Withdrawal instruction

Right of withdrawal

You have the right to withdraw from this contract within fourteen days without giving any reason. The withdrawal period is fourteen days from the day the contract was concluded.

To exercise your right of withdrawal, you must inform us

Manuel Grahammer (EuropaRoots)
Reinhardtstraße 17
10117 Berlin, Germany
Email: kontakt@europa-roots.org
Phone: +49 177 8335128

by means of a clear statement (e.g. a letter sent by post or an email) of your decision to withdraw from this contract. You may use the attached model withdrawal form, which is not mandatory.

To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning the exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.

Consequences of withdrawal

If you withdraw from this contract, we shall reimburse to you all payments received from you without undue delay and no later than fourteen days from the day on which we receive notification of your withdrawal from this contract. For this reimbursement 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 reimbursement.

If you have requested that the service should begin during the withdrawal period, you shall pay us an amount which is in proportion to what has been provided until the time you inform us of the exercise of the right of withdrawal in respect of this contract, in comparison with the full coverage of the contract.

Early expiry of the right of withdrawal

In the case of a contract for the provision of services, the right of withdrawal expires where the Provider has fully performed the service and only began performing it after the customer gave their express consent to do so and at the same time confirmed their knowledge that they lose their right of withdrawal upon full performance of the contract by the Provider (§ 356(4) BGB). This express consent and confirmation is obtained separately during the ordering process.

Insofar as a tier includes physical items manufactured individually to the customer's specification (in the Family Legacy tier the framed family-tree poster and the bound hardcover book), there is no right of withdrawal for these individually manufactured goods (§ 312g(2) no. 1 BGB). The right of withdrawal for the remaining components of the service is unaffected by this.

Model withdrawal form

(If you wish to withdraw from the contract, please complete this form and return it.)

§ 8 Research result, coverage and refund (family chronicle)

Genealogical research is a source-dependent service. The Provider owes research carried out properly according to recognised genealogical methods, not a particular research success; historical sources may be incomplete or no longer exist due to war, fire or archive loss. Findings without a substantiating primary source are transparently marked as unconfirmed in your chronicle (cf. § 6).

The benchmark for assessment is coverage: the share of the digitally reachabledirect ancestors within the tier booked — online or via paid digital archives — that are substantiated by an evidenced primary source (e.g. a parish or civil-registry entry). Sources demonstrably available only offline, breaking off at a dead end, or lost or destroyed are left out of the assessment (cf. § 2); paid-digital sources do count. If coverage does not reach the tier promise, the Provider voluntarily applies the following graduated refund scheme:

• Coverage of 80 % or more: tier promise met — regular delivery, no refund.
• Coverage 50–79 %: regular delivery plus a cross-sell voucher of €49.
• Coverage 25–49 %: delivery of the partial result plus a 50 % refund of the tier price.
• Coverage below 25 %: 100 % refund of the tier price less a processing fee of €49; the partial result is still delivered on request.

This coverage-based refund scheme is an additional voluntary undertaking by the Provider and exists alongside your statutory rights (in particular the right of withdrawal under § 7 as well as any warranty and defect rights), which are not restricted by it.

§ 9 Certificate service (registry-office research)

The certificate service is an optional add-on in which the Provider requests copies of certificates from the competent registry offices on the customer's behalf. The service is initially aimed at Germany; requests in Austria and Switzerland are possible on enquiry.

Power of attorney and entitlement

By confirming the power-of-attorney link sent by email, the customer grants the Provider written authorisation to obtain the certificate copies. Requests are only possible for direct ancestors of the customer (parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc.), because the German Civil Status Act provides for blocking periods (birth register 110 years, marriage register 80 years, death register 30 years).

Tier scope

• Single: 1 certificate
• Line: up to 5 certificates
• Family: up to 12 certificates
• Premium chronicle add-on: Family bundle at −20%

The price payable is the price for the tier booked displayed during the order process and stated in the order confirmation; no other price is fixed in these terms.

The price includes registry-office fees, postage, application preparation and tracking. Notarial certifications, if required by a registry office, are not included in the price and are agreed separately in advance.

Processing time

Processing time at the registry office is typically between 3 and 8 weeks per certificate. The Provider undertakes a maximum processing time (SLA) of 12 weeks from submission of the application. After that, escalation or a refund follows under the scheme below.

Refund policy

• If a certificate ordered is reported by the registry office as untraceable (e.g. lost through wartime damage), the Provider refunds 80% of the pro-rata tier price for that certificate. Hard costs (fees, postage) are not refunded.
• If a registry office refuses disclosure despite a properly granted power of attorney (e.g. interpretation of a blocking period), the Provider refunds 100% of the pro-rata tier price including hard costs.
• If the SLA is not met (>12 weeks), the customer may reclaim the pro-rata tier price; certificates already delivered remain in their possession.

Verification and liability

The Provider does not independently verify the details of the target person — the basis is the information given by the customer about the family relationship. Intentionally false statements about the family relationship may have criminal and civil consequences and lie outside the Provider's liability.

§ 10 Final provisions

The law of the Federal Republic of Germany applies. The place of jurisdiction is, as far as legally permissible, the Provider's registered seat. This is without prejudice to any mandatory consumer-protection rights you may have under the law of your place of residence. Should individual provisions of these Terms be invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions is unaffected. This English text is a translation for convenience; the German original is authoritative.