In its ruling of January 18, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) decided that the unlawfulness of the binding HOAI minimum rates, as determined by the ECJ itself, does not preclude so-called actions for increases in the rates for contracts concluded before the HOAI 2021 came into force.

Against this backdrop, the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) today upheld the action of a planning office that had asserted a residual claim calculated on the basis of the minimum rates from a contract concluded in 2016.

Andrea Gebhard, President of the Federal Chamber of Architects: "I am very pleased with the ruling of the BGH, even though it could have been expected after the fundamental decision of the ECJ in January of this year. In addition, the BGH itself had already made it clear that it considers the application of the binding HOAI for so-called old contracts to be necessary. I assume that all other pending actions for topping up will now be upheld, provided that the only question is whether EU law precludes this. Irrespective of this, we are committed to ensuring that appropriate fee agreements continue to be reached in the future. We are therefore in favor of the HOAI 2021 being amended in this legislative period. The previous service profiles must be updated, but of course the fee values, which have remained unchanged for a good ten years, must also be put to the test, especially for area planning."

The President of the Federal Chamber of Engineers, Dr.-Ing. Heinrich Bökamp: "We expressly welcome the ruling of the Federal Court of Justice. Because in our view, the binding nature of the minimum and maximum rates of the former HOAI was and is an instrument of quality assurance. Quality is only available at a reasonable price - this also applies, and even more so, to design and construction. As we have already seen in other countries, the discontinuation of this binding nature threatens a price war, which can also be accompanied by a loss of quality. Therefore, we will continue to advocate for adequate fees and accompany the amendment of the HOAI 2021 with commitment in the sense of consumer protection, but also for the planners."

The service phases and fee rates of the HOAI have been established for decades as the basis for planning and building in Germany and provide a reliable framework for planners, clients and building contractors. However, this requires regular adjustments. The German government's coalition agreement took up the demand of planners' organizations to reform the HOAI.

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