Principle: Acceptance only when the work is fully completed and finished
In private construction law, the principle applies that acceptance can only be considered if the work is fully completed and finished on the acceptance date.
Restrictions of this principle by supreme court rulings
In some older decisions, the BGH expressly differentiated between a defective and an unfinished work. According to the BGH, acceptance could only be considered when the work is completed, even if it still has defects (BGH NJW 1964, 647; BGH NJW 1979, 650).
On the other hand, the BGH had already determined at that time that, although acceptance could only be considered upon completion, it was nevertheless possible if individual services were still outstanding (BGH BauR 1973, 192).
In more recent decisions, the BGH has become clearer. In its opinion, it does not prevent the contractor from demanding acceptance if insignificant remaining work is still missing, which is irrelevant for the customer's decision as to whether he wishes to accept and approve the performance as fulfillment (BGH NJW 2000, 2818, 2819). Outstanding minor remaining work that is insignificant for the usability of the work would not prevent acceptance.
In the literature, it is also generally assumed that the contractor's claim is not precluded by the fact that insignificant remaining services are still missing, which are insignificant and unimportant for the client's decision as to whether he wants to accept and approve the service as fulfillment.
Conclusion on the required degree of completion
After all, it can be regarded as established law that the actual complete performance of the work is not a prerequisite for readiness for acceptance, but that insignificant residual work may still be missing.
Whether outstanding work is to be regarded as essential or immaterial is - as with the determination of the materiality of a defect - a question of the individual case.
As a rule of thumb , you as a plant manufacturer can remember the required degree of completion as a prerequisite for acceptance:
Remaining work that is still open and can be classified as insignificant does not prevent acceptance.
