1. Preamble

These General Terms and Conditions of Sale (hereinafter the “Terms”) govern all sales concluded between AAACOM, VAT number BE 1041.969.842, whose registered office is at Avenue de la Closière 48, 1410 WATERLOO, Walloon Brabant, Belgium (hereinafter “Apex Studio”), and any natural or legal person making a purchase on the site apexstudioworks.com (hereinafter “the Customer”).

Any order placed on the site implies full and unreserved acceptance of these Terms, which prevail over any other document, including any terms issued by the Customer. Apex Studio reserves the right to amend the Terms at any time. The applicable Terms are those in force on the date of the order.

2. Scope

These Terms apply to any order placed on the site apexstudioworks.com, to the exclusion of any other terms, in particular those applicable to sales through other distribution channels.

3. Nature of the products

Apex Studio designs and sells steering wheels made to order, according to the choices, information and specifications provided by the Customer through the interactive configurator available on the site.

Unless otherwise stated in writing, the products are designed to retain the original components of the Customer's vehicle (airbag, controls, paddles, electronics), without modification of the safety system.

The visuals, renderings, photographs and descriptions on the site are provided for guidance only and are not contractual. Minor variations may occur owing to the artisanal and personalised nature of the products.

4. Compatibility — Customer's responsibility

The Customer is solely responsible for the accuracy of the information provided when ordering, in particular:

• Make, model, year and generation of the vehicle
• Exact type of original steering wheel
• Presence or absence of paddles, controls and specific options

To retain the functioning of the equipment present on the original steering wheel, the Customer must select the corresponding options during configuration.

Failing to select an option that is nonetheless present on the original steering wheel may result in the loss of access to, the malfunction of, or the absence of the function concerned. The Customer acknowledges having been informed of this and accepts that functions not selected will not be retained on the steering wheel delivered.

Any error, omission or inaccurate information provided by the Customer may not engage the liability of Apex Studio, even where Apex Studio carries out a compatibility check before production is started.

Generation changes, retrofits, adaptations not provided for by the manufacturer and any modification of the safety system are strictly excluded, save exceptional prior written agreement from Apex Studio.

5. Order — Validation — Manufacture

Every order is manually validated by Apex Studio before being sent to production. Validation of the order, whether through the site, by written exchange or by payment confirmation, constitutes final and irrevocable acceptance of the configuration.

Apex Studio reserves the right to refuse any order on legitimate grounds, in particular in the event of a previous dispute, suspected fraud, a non-compliant request or a technical inconsistency.

6. Price — Payment — Retention of title

Prices are shown in euros (€), all taxes included, on the basis of the Belgian VAT rate in force. Apex Studio reserves the right to amend its prices at any time. The applicable prices are those in force at the time the order is validated.

For orders shipped outside the European Union, local taxes and customs duties may apply on receipt. These charges are payable exclusively by the Customer.

Payment in full is required before any manufacture is started, including in the case of instalment payment. The products remain the exclusive property of Apex Studio until the price has been paid in full.

The accepted means of payment are the following: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Bancontact, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Shop Pay. Transactions are secured by the SSL protocol. Apex Studio retains no banking data.

7. Production times

Production times run from the confirmation of payment and the validation of the configuration by Apex Studio.

These times are provided for guidance only and do not constitute a firm commitment. No refund, cancellation or compensation may be demanded in the event of a reasonable overrun. Delays connected with suppliers, transport, customs or any external event may not engage the liability of Apex Studio.

8. Delivery

Deliveries are made to the address given by the Customer when ordering. It is for the Customer to check the accuracy of that address before validation.

On receipt, the Customer is required to check the condition of the parcel in the presence of the carrier. Any apparent anomaly must be reported to the carrier on the delivery note, then confirmed to Apex Studio by email at info@apexstudioworks.com within 24 hours of receipt. After this period, no claim relating to transport will be accepted.

For deliveries to the United Kingdom, customs duties and local taxes are payable exclusively by the Customer (post-Brexit regulations). For orders below £135, UK VAT may be collected at the time of the order. Above that, the charges are paid by the Customer to the local customs authorities.

For deliveries to the United States and outside the EU generally, local taxes and import duties are payable exclusively by the Customer.

9. Installation

Apex Studio offers an at-home installation service available exclusively in Belgium, at a flat rate of EUR 150 incl. tax. This service is optional and booked separately. An appointment is agreed with the Customer after receipt of the steering wheel.

The installation covers the fitting of the steering wheel on the Customer's vehicle and is carried out by Apex Studio directly. Any issue connected with a prior modification of the vehicle (airbag removed, modified steering column, non-standard adapter) must be reported before the appointment. Apex Studio reserves the right to refuse the installation where safety conditions are not met, with no obligation to refund the flat rate if the visit has already taken place.

For Customers outside Belgium or not using the Apex Studio installation service, installation must be carried out by a qualified professional. To benefit from the warranty on electronic components, the Customer encloses with their claim the installation invoice issued by that professional. Any non-compliant installation engages the sole responsibility of the Customer.

10. Right of withdrawal

The Customer expressly acknowledges and accepts that manufacture may begin before the expiry of the statutory withdrawal period, and waives that right by ticking the dedicated box at payment.

In accordance with the regulations, the statutory withdrawal form is provided below for information, although it does not apply to Apex Studio products:

11. Returns and refunds

No return is accepted outside the following cases:

• Established manufacturing defect covered by the warranty (Article 12)
• Product received damaged as a result of transport, reported within 24 hours of receipt (Article 8)
• Non-conformity of the product with the configuration validated by the Customer

In these cases, the Customer contacts Apex Studio at info@apexstudioworks.com with photographs and a description of the problem. No return will be accepted without prior written agreement from Apex Studio. Return costs in the case of an established defect are borne by Apex Studio.

The refund, where granted, is made to the payment method used for the order, within 14 days of receipt of the returned product and validation of the defect.

12. Warranties

Apex Studio grants the following commercial warranties, without prejudice to the mandatory statutory warranties:

The materials warranty covers manufacturing defects in the context of normal and compliant use. It does not cover:

• Normal wear of the product: friction at contact points, gradual discolouration over time
• Damage caused by an accident, impact, or unsuitable cleaning products
• Damage connected with incorrect installation carried out by the Customer or a third party
• Modifications made to the product after delivery
• Damage connected with use in competition or on a track
• Incompatibilities resulting from incorrect information provided by the Customer

The electronics warranty applies where installation is carried out by Apex Studio or, failing that, by a qualified professional with a supporting invoice. It does not cover damage occurring after a retrofit carried out on the vehicle, whatever its nature or origin.

To claim under a warranty, the Customer contacts Apex Studio at info@apexstudioworks.com with photographs and a description of the defect. Apex Studio has 5 working days to acknowledge receipt and propose a solution.

Statutory warranty of conformity. In accordance with Articles 1649bis et seq. of the Belgian Civil Code, the Customer benefits from a statutory warranty of conformity of 2 years from delivery.

Statutory warranty against hidden defects. In accordance with Articles 1641 et seq. of the Belgian Civil Code, the Customer benefits from the statutory warranty against hidden defects in the product sold.

13. Liability — Disputes — Chargebacks

The liability of Apex Studio is strictly limited to the product delivered and may not exceed the amount of the order concerned. Apex Studio may not be held liable for indirect damage, immobilisation of the vehicle, loss of opportunity or non-material damage.

Apex Studio may not be held liable for damage resulting from incorrect installation carried out by the Customer or a third party, or from use that does not comply with the purpose for which the product is intended.

Any dispute must be sent in writing to Apex Studio before any chargeback procedure or claim with a payment provider. Any abusive chargeback may give rise to the communication of these Terms, of the evidence of order validation and of the written exchanges to the body concerned.

14. Use — Regulatory compliance

The Customer is solely responsible for the use of the product and for its compliance with the regulations applicable in their country. Apex Studio carries out no specific type approval and undertakes no administrative formalities connected with the road use of the vehicle.

15. Commercial tolerance

Any tolerance granted exceptionally by Apex Studio — a gesture of goodwill, an extension granted, a one-off derogation — may not constitute an acquired right nor be relied upon for subsequent orders.

16. Force majeure

Neither party may be held liable in the event of an event of force majeure within the meaning of Article 5.226 of the Belgian Civil Code, preventing or delaying performance of the contract. Apex Studio undertakes to inform the Customer as soon as possible should such an event occur.

17. Intellectual property and content protection

All the elements of the site apexstudioworks.com — texts, visuals, 3D renderings, the structure of the product configurator, software, personalisation methods and interfaces — are protected by intellectual property law and belong to AAACOM. Any unauthorised reproduction, extraction or use is prohibited and constitutes infringement.

Content uploaded through the configurator

The product configurator allows customers to upload personal files (logos, images). By uploading a file, the customer declares that they hold all the necessary rights in that content. AAACOM may not be held liable for an upload infringing the rights of third parties. Any report of unlawful uploaded content must be sent to info@apexstudioworks.com.

Reporting an infringement and DMCA procedure

If you consider that content on apexstudioworks.com infringes your intellectual property rights, you may send a report to info@apexstudioworks.com (subject: “Copyright infringement report / DMCA Notice”). Your notification must precisely identify the protected work, the URL of the disputed content, your full contact details and a sworn statement as to the truthfulness of the information provided.

AAACOM will handle any report within a reasonable time and will remove the disputed content where the infringement is established.

Consequences of an infringement

Any unauthorised reproduction or use of the content of the site — texts, visuals, product renderings, the structure of the configurator or source code — constitutes infringement punishable under Articles XI.293 et seq. of the Belgian Code of Economic Law (CEL), under European Directive 2001/29/EC, and, for users outside the European Union, under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA, 17 U.S.C. § 512) and the applicable national laws.

AAACOM reserves the right to bring any appropriate legal proceedings, to file takedown requests (DMCA takedown) with the search engines and platforms concerned, and to claim damages. Infringers are exposed to civil and, where applicable, criminal proceedings.

18. Personal data

The data collected when ordering is processed in accordance with the site's Privacy policy, pursuant to the GDPR (EU Regulation 2016/679) and the Belgian law of 30 July 2018.

19. Prohibited uses of the site

It is prohibited to use the site apexstudioworks.com or its content, in particular:

• For unlawful purposes or to incite third parties to commit unlawful acts
• To infringe the intellectual property rights of Apex Studio or of third parties
• To transmit viruses, malicious code or any software liable to affect the operation of the site or of the configurator
• To collect personal data of other users
• To scrape, crawl or automatically reproduce the content of the site without written authorisation
• To impersonate someone or to provide false or misleading information

Apex Studio reserves the right to refuse access to the site to any person infringing these prohibitions.

20. Severability

Should any provision of these Terms be held unlawful, void or unenforceable by a competent court, that provision will be severed from these Terms without affecting the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions, which will continue in full force and effect.

21. Mediation and disputes

In the event of a dispute, the Customer is invited to contact Apex Studio first at info@apexstudioworks.com in order to seek an amicable solution.

Failing an amicable resolution, the Customer may refer the matter to the Consumer Mediation Service, a qualified entity recognised in Belgium. Apex Studio will examine in good faith any request for out-of-court settlement submitted to it.

The mediation request must be preceded by an attempt at direct resolution with Apex Studio. The procedure is free of charge for the consumer and the Mediation Service may refer the file to the competent entity where a sector-specific service exists.

The European Commission provides information on the out-of-court settlement of disputes. These Terms are governed by Belgian law. Failing an amicable resolution, the Belgian courts have sole jurisdiction.