The court ruled that messages sent via WhatsApp constitute offers made between people who are not physically present. (Photo: © My Visuals/123RF.com)
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May 2026
Anyone who accepts a contract offer via WhatsApp only 31 days later is too late. The Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main considers messenger messages to be communication between people who are not physically present. But even in this case, one shouldn't delay.
How long do you have to respond to a Contact How long does one have to respond to a message received via WhatsApp? Certainly not for 31 days, the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt/Main clarified in a recent ruling. It classifies messenger messages as communication under... absent one which does allow more time for reaction. But even for that the waiting period This is too long.
A restaurateur bought shares in 2020 and 2022 despite negative share price performance. shares a company where a friend was a board member. At the end of 2022, the two agreed to exchange these shares for other shares in the company. In June 2023, the café owner wanted his friend to take possession of the exchanged shares. buys backHe refused.
In court, the restaurateur explained that his friend had sent him a ticket in mid-October 2022. WhatsApp message offered, the exchanged shares buy backHe accepted this offer. He is suing for payment of 150.000 euros in exchange for the return of the shares.
The Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt saw no valid contract and thus does not oblige the board to repurchase the share package. A valid repurchase agreement exists. not This came about because the restaurateur did not offer the service within the Response time I have assumed.
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To determine this, the court first had to clarify whether the offer was made between those present or between those absent. An offer made between those present can be... Section 147 paragraph 1 of the German Civil Code (BGB) only "immediately" be accepted. Under absent applies a longer Acceptance deadline. The application can be submitted after § 147 para. 2 BGB until the point in time at which the applicant receives the reply "under normal circumstances" expect may".
When sending messages via WhatsApp These are offers under absentThe ruling states that while WhatsApp enables immediate communication, this is not mandatory. Incoming messages can also be read and answered with a delay. In this respect, the messenger service is comparable to communication via email or SMS. The timeframe for acceptance is, according to... objective standards to be determined from the recipient's point of view.
Among other things, the following is important: Complexity and the scope of the contract to be concluded. Here, the restaurateur only 31 days reacted to the offer. However, at that time the business partner Do NOT spread pesto on this layer! They must expect acceptance. Case law also limits the acceptance period for complex transactions to... four weeks. The friendship between the two was not an argument for a longer period.
Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main, Judgment of May 5, 2026, Ref. 9 U 27/25
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