Merely designating a private individual as the seller does not exclude consumer protection. The general definition in Section 52 of the Civil Code asks whether the trader acts in the course of business and the individual outside it; status is not determined solely by who pays the price. Specific rules on consumer sales, withdrawal rights or information duties may, however, have a narrower scope. Each agreement and each rule must therefore be assessed separately when purchasing from individuals, without assuming either full protection or its complete exclusion.
Businesses routinely buy used cars, machinery, stock and property from private individuals. Intuition suggests the non-business party is weaker and therefore protected even as seller. It is necessary, however, to distinguish general consumer status from the specific rights conferred by law for a particular type of agreement.
The definition centres on the parties’ purposes
A consumer agreement is any agreement, regardless of its legal form, entered into by a trader with a consumer.
— Section 52(1) of the Civil Code (unofficial English translation)
A trader acts in the course of business or a profession when entering into the agreement (Section 52(3)); a consumer is an individual acting outside business (Section 52(4)). This definition does not imply that the individual must always be the buyer. The general rules in Sections 52 to 54 are applied according to the parties’ purposes and the substance of their relationship. A particular institution—such as a consumer sale, an information duty or a right of withdrawal—may have a differently defined scope. For a straightforward purchase from an individual, each claimed protection must therefore be assessed separately.
Why you bear the burden of proof
Courts examine the substance of the relationship, rather than the agreement’s heading. In its order 4Cdo/44/2025 of 25 September 2025, the Slovak Supreme Court reiterated that neither a business identification number nor a signed declaration of purpose excludes consumer status: the actual purpose must be proved. It added a proposition relevant to every business buyer: where status is disputed, the trader must prove that the individual acted in the course of business. If that burden is not met, the individual is treated as a consumer. The court examines the relationship’s nature on its own initiative. This decision does not, however, directly determine the consumer status of a private seller in a straightforward purchase by a business.
For purchases from individuals, this means two things. First, where the purchase is combined with other elements, such as intermediation, a loan, security or a leaseback, part of the relationship may fall under consumer law, with each obligation and protective rule requiring separate assessment. Second, draconian terms face limits outside consumer law too: good morals, the prohibition of usury and invalidity protect everyone. We discuss this in when an agreement is invalid. Under Czech law too, the consumer-contract wording does not determine status solely by whether the business sells or buys; the specific conditions governing the protection in question must also be assessed there.
How to buy safely from a private individual
Draft the agreement to withstand scrutiny even through a consumer-law lens: proportionate sanctions, no waiver of the other party’s rights and clear language. Focus on seller representations about ownership and origin, encumbrances and third-party rights, condition and defects, and whether the item formed part of a business. A blanket ‘as is, where is’ clause will not protect you for a specifically identified item; we explain why in buying ‘as is, where is’. A specific condition description and sensible staging of the price work better.
How we can help
We prepare a purchase agreement tailored to buying from individuals through sale agreements for movable property, and assess the other party’s draft through contract review. For real estate purchases from individuals, we check the agreement and title entries through purchase agreement review. If you make such purchases regularly, we prepare a template and process that can withstand a dispute over the other party’s status.
Send us the agreement you use for these purchases. We will identify where it might fail in a dispute.
This answer provides general information on the law as at 10 September 2026. It does not constitute legal services or replace an assessment of an individual case. The details of your situation may differ. Book a consultation to discuss them.
