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General Terms and Conditions and a Service Level Agreement (SLA) complement each other: the general terms and conditions establish the legal framework (payment, liability, warranties), while the SLA makes concrete agreements regarding service quality (such as uptime and response times). IT companies, hosting providers, and logistics service providers, in particular, need both—and they must be well aligned. Below, you can read about the difference, how they work together, and why you should not draft them separately.
What are general terms and conditions?
General terms and conditions — the “fine print” — are the basic rules governing the relationship between your company and its customers or suppliers. In practice, a distinction is sometimes made between purchase terms and sales terms. Good general terms and conditions contain, in any case, provisions regarding:
- payments and payment terms;
- delivery times;
- warranties;
- liability;
- to be followed in the event of disputes.
They standardize your legal position and create clarity in advance regarding what parties can expect from each other.
What is a Service Level Agreement (SLA)?
A Service Level Agreement (SLA) goes a step further and focuses on the quality and reliability of the service provided. An SLA contains concrete, measurable agreements regarding performance levels, such as:
- availability (for example, an uptime of 99.9%);
- Response times and resolution times for incidents;
- quality standards for service provision;
- consequences of not meeting those standards, such as compensation or fines.
Why are general terms and conditions alone not sufficient?
General terms and conditions are essential, but they provide a broad framework. For specific services, they often lack the depth to guarantee quality and continuity. For this, you need an SLA. The two documents complement each other: the general terms and conditions lay the legal foundation, while the SLA regulates the concrete service agreements. Precisely for this reason, they must be well aligned.
How do General Terms and Conditions and SLA work together?
An example makes it concrete. Suppose you hosting and cloud storage services :
- The general terms and conditions state the timeframe within which payments must be made and the consequences of late payment (for example, the suspension of the service). They also contain a force majeure clause explaining what force majeure is.
- In the SLA, you guarantee, for example, 99.9% uptime, excluding downtime due to non-payment or force majeure.
The documents refer to one another in this way and must always be read together. If they contradict each other—for example, regarding what constitutes force majeure—then the very misunderstanding you wanted to avoid arises.
Frequently asked questions about general terms and conditions and SLA
As an IT company, do I need both general terms and conditions and an SLA?
As a rule, yes. The general terms and conditions regulate the legal basis, while the SLA covers service quality. Especially for IT, hosting, logistics, and maintenance services, both are necessary to meet expectations and prevent disputes.
Which document takes precedence in case of a conflict?
You determine this yourself with a ranking or priority clause. Specify which document takes precedence if the SLA and the general terms and conditions contradict each other. Without such a provision, ambiguity arises that could work to your disadvantage.
Can I use standard terms and conditions from the internet?
Unwise. Standard documents rarely align with your service and are often not aligned with one another, creating gaps or inconsistencies. Customization that aligns the SLA and the terms and conditions protects you much better.
Have General Terms and Conditions and SLA drafted
Because an SLA and the general terms and conditions must align, it is best not to draft them separately. The legal experts at MKB Juristen draft both documents in conjunction, tailored to your services — especially for IT, logistics, and maintenance contracts. View our expertise in contract law or schedule a no-obligation intake.
