LAW OF OBLIGATION ACT, PART 3, CHAPTER 21

Chapter 21

CONTRACT OF LOAN FOR USE 

  • 389. Definition of contract of loan for use

By a contract of loan for use, one person (the lender) undertakes to grant the use of an object to another person (the borrower) free of charge.

  • 390. Liability of lender

(1) The lender shall be liable for any damage caused to the borrower by violation of the contract of loan for use only if the lender acts intentionally or with gross negligence.

(2) If the lender intentionally does not notify the borrower of the rights of a third party to the object or of the defects of the object, the lender shall compensate the borrower for the damage caused thereby.

  • 391. Costs of preservation of object

(1) The borrower shall bear the expenses necessary for preservation of the object granted for use.

(2) The borrower may demand the reimbursement of expenses other than those specified in subsection (1) of this section only pursuant to the provisions regarding negotiorum gestio. The borrower may remove improvements made to the thing by the borrower if this is possible without damaging the thing.

  • 392. Use of object

(1) The borrower may use the object only in the manner prescribed in the contract or, in the absence of an agreement, in a manner arising from the nature of the object or the purpose of use thereof.

(2) The borrower shall not transfer use of the object to a third party without the consent of the lender.

(3) The borrower shall not be liable for any alterations to or deterioration in an object lent if such alterations or deterioration are caused by the contractual use.

  • 393. Obligation to return

(1) The borrower shall return the lent object upon expiry of the term for use.

(2) If the term for use of the object is not specified, the object shall be returned after the purpose of the contractual use of the object has been attained. The lender may also demand that the object be returned earlier if the period during which the borrower could have attained the purpose of use has passed.

(3) If the term of use of the object is not specified and does not derive from the purpose of use of the object, the lender may cancel the contract and demand the return of the object at any time after entry into the contract.

(4) If the borrower transfers the use of the object to a third party, the lender may also demand that the object be returned by the third party after expiry of the contract.

  • 394. Extraordinary cancellation of contract by lender

The lender may cancel the contract of loan for use, regardless of the provisions of § 393 of this Act, and demand the return of the lent object if:

1) the lender needs the object due to unforeseeable circumstances;

2) the borrower uses the object contrary to the provisions of § 392 of this Act, in particular by unjustifiably transferring use of the object to a third party or if the object is seriously endangered due to violation of the obligations of the borrower;

3) the borrower is a natural person and dies or the borrower is a legal person and is dissolved.

  • 395. Expiry of claims

(1) Claims of lenders for compensation for damage on account of alterations to or deterioration in a lent object shall expire within six months as of the return of the object.

(2) Claims of borrowers for reimbursement of expenses or removal of improvements shall expire within six months as of the expiry of the contract.

(3) The limitation period for a claim for return of a lent thing begins to run upon termination of the contract.