Delays with the general contractor, no deadline set according to § 650 Building Code

Of course, a completion date must be stated in the contract, among other things because if this date is exceeded, a contractual penalty applies. However, this is probably not regulated in your contract either. Do you have a performance bond? You have been entitled to this since 1.1.18 (5% of the net contract amount). What have you already paid to the general contractor?

You are right, penalty clauses have also not been defined. A performance bond has not been defined either. I understand this to mean that the contractor must guarantee over 5% of the amount in this case? Payment to a trust account? The question is whether we can still do something or if the contractor has already cleverly circumvented the requirements of the BGB.

What have you already paid to the general contractor?

So far, only 5% of the total amount for the sample selection.

It seems to me that your construction company has not yet internalized the requirements according to § 650 (consumer construction contract). If you are not managing, a withdrawal might possibly still be an option.

Is there a cancellation clause in your contract? In my opinion, it is now too late to cancel. However, if the contract does not contain a cancellation clause, it is invalid. The contractual guarantee (from a bank or insurance) would have to be handed over to you in paper form, and that before your first payment. Although I have a perfect contract, I still got screwed because the general contractor is simply incompetent. Now the legal route follows. But with a contract like yours, it would be futile. I would advise you to have the contract reviewed by a construction law attorney and if the general contractor is unwilling to make appropriate changes and fix a completion date, to terminate the contract before you waste more time and money. The 5% would then have to be reclaimed.

The contract does not automatically become invalid due to a missing cancellation policy. It can be revoked at any time until either a proper instruction is given or the contract can be regarded as fulfilled. Services already rendered must still be compensated, although it could certainly be debated whether the service of sampling can already be considered properly performed. It also does not become completely invalid due to the missing legally required points (there will surely be a severability clause), it is only to be regarded as invalid (overridden) in the points where it contradicts the legal minimum requirements. WARNING I am a layperson! This is not legal advice but reflects my opinion on the matter after consulting the Building Code and commentaries.