These terms and conditions do not apply to bookings of Forest Holidays properties.
BEFORE MAKING A BOOKING REQUEST THROUGH US, PLEASE READ THESE BOOKING TERMS CAREFULLY.
WHEN YOU MAKE A BOOKING REQUEST THROUGH US (WHETHER BY THE SITE, EMAIL OR TELEPHONE),
THESE BOOKING TERMS ARE DEEMED TO BE ACCEPTED BY YOU. WE DRAW YOUR ATTENTION IN PARTICULAR
TO THE PARAGRAPHS HEADED 'OUR ROLE AND SCOPE OF OUR LIABILITY' (PARAGRAPH 3),
'WHAT WE ARE AND ARE NOT LIABLE FOR' (PARAGRAPH 16) AND 'OWNER'S
LIABILITY' (PARAGRAPH 17).
ALL KEY DEFINITIONS ARE IN THE 'WELCOME' PARAGRAPH.
1 Welcome
1.1 You and us: In these terms and conditions (which we call 'Booking Terms')
1.1.1 "we", "us", "our" means Sykes Cottages Ltd. Our full
details are in paragraph 21 below.
We own and operate www.sykescottages.co.uk (the "Site") and
1.1.2 "you", "your", means the holiday maker who is making a booking
request.
1.2 Bookings: These Booking Terms apply to any booking you make through us for use of a
holiday property
(which we call a "Property") featured on our Site (and we call that booking of a Property a
"Booking").
The Booking might be made on the Site, by email or by telephone.
1.3 Two contracts: When you make a Booking you are entering into two legally binding
contracts at the same time, as follows:
1.3.1 Contract 1: We arrange a Booking with you as agent for an owner of a
Property
(each of which we call an "Owner"). That means that when you book a Property through us,
you are entering into a contract directly with the Owner for the use of the Property and any related
services.
We call that use of the Property and any related services the "Rental Services" and we call
that contract you
have with the Owner the "Rental Contract". To be clear, we are not a party to the Rental
Contract
it is between you and the Owner (although we collect money from you on behalf of the Owner as the Owner's
agent).
The terms of the Rental Contract are:
1.3.1.1 these Booking Terms;
1.3.1.2 the dates (and time periods) for a Booking during which you will be entitled to use the Property
(which we call the "Holiday Period");
1.3.1.3 the other details specific to your Booking including the Property and any restrictions notified to
you during the Booking process (which we call the "Booking Details");
1.3.1.4 the charges payable by you to the Owner (which we collect on behalf of the Owner) for hiring the
Property
and any related services which are otherwise due to the Owner by you (which we call the "Rental
Charges"); and
1.3.1.5 any other special or additional conditions that we draw to your attention during the Booking process
before we accept your Booking on behalf of the Owner by providing you with a Booking Confirmation (as
defined below).
1.3.2 Contract 2: You are also entering into a second contract directly with
us for the services we
provide via the Site (or via our staff if you book using another method). We call this second contract the "Booking
Contract".
The services we provide you are of two kinds:
1.3.2.1 services we provide to you to allow you to make a Booking (which we call the "Booking
Services"); and
1.3.2.2 other services we may offer to you, including where we (not you) have engaged a third party to
provide
these services to you on our behalf (when the contract for those services is still between you and us),
such as a low deposit scheme (and we call these "Sykes Other Services").
1.4 Other contracts: Sometimes, during the course of what we do for you, we may offer other
services to you which are
neither Booking Services or Sykes Other Services. This will be a situation when we offer to you services
which will be
provided by a third party directly to you and all we have done is made you aware of those services, or
sometimes assisted in
facilitating the payments between you and the third party in respect of those services. If you take those
services provided by
a third party, the contract for those services will be between you and the third party providing those
services.
An example might be an insurance policy (as we do not provide insurance ourselves). We call these types of
services
"Third Party Other Services" but Rental Services are never within the definition of Third
Party Other Services.
1.5 Charges: For charges:
1.5.1 we charge you a non-refundable booking fee for the Booking Services that we provide to you under
the Booking Contract (which we call the "Booking Fee");
1.5.2 we may make other charges for the Sykes Other Services that we provide to you under the Booking
Contract
(which we call the "Sykes Other Services Charges"); and
1.5.3 we may collect on behalf of a third party providing the Third Party Other Services, charges for those
Third
Party Other Services (which we call the "Third Party Other Services Charges").
1.6 Site Terms of Use: Please note that additional terms apply to the use of and access to
the Site by you, for example the Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy and Terms of Use (if any in place at the
time you make your Booking).
1.7 All the legal terms: Before you use the Site, or make a Booking, please carefully read
these Booking Terms,
our Terms of Use (if any in place at the time you make your Booking) and all other polices we refer to in
those documents (including our Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, Low Deposit Policies
and any other policy that we may bring to your attention when you are making a Booking).
We recommend that you print or save a copy of these for your reference.
1.8 Changes to these Booking Terms: These Booking Terms were most recently updated on the
date that appears at the top of this page.
However, please be aware that we may update these Booking Terms from time to time. We may make these changes
by posting a copy
of them on the Site please check the latest version of these Booking Terms before you make a Booking to
ensure you understand
the legal terms that apply at that time. Any changes will take effect 15 days after the date on which we
post the modified
terms on the Site. If you continue to use the Site after that period has expired, it means that you accept
any such changes.
The modified Booking Terms will not apply to any Bookings for which we have sent you a Booking Confirmation
before
the date when the modified Booking Terms come into effect.
1.9 Questions? If you have any questions about these Booking Terms, please contact us using
the contact details at paragraph 21 below.
1.10 Other Definitions:In addition to the definitions above, to make these Booking Terms
easier to read,
we use a few other definitions which apply throughout. These are:
1.10.1 "Balance" means the balance of the Total Charges payable by you after payment of the
Deposit as set out in paragraph 4.
1.10.2 "Booking Confirmation" is defined in paragraph 2.6.
1.10.3 "Deposit" means the initial instalment of the Total Charges quoted to you during the
Booking process and payable by you when making a
Booking (and all collected by us, although some of this is due to the Owner and some may be due to us, or to
us on behalf of a third party).
Please note, where you cancel a Booking after we send you your Booking Confirmation (as set out in paragraph
2.7)
because you have changed your mind, your Deposit payment will be non-refundable.
1.10.4 "Guests" means holidaymakers other than you who are booked to stay at the Property
during the Holiday Period under your Booking and includes,
if the Owner has approved, any additional visitors that are permitted to attend the Property during the
Holiday Period.
1.10.5 "Total Charges" means the total charges that you owe to an Owner under a Rental Contract (i.e. the
Rental Charges),
that you owe to us under a Booking Contract (i.e. the Booking Fee and the Sykes Other Services Charges) and
that you owe to
a third party under your arrangements with them but that we have agreed to collect on their behalf
(i.e. the Third Party Other Services Charges).
1.11 How to read these Booking Terms:
1.11.1 Whenever you see a general phrase followed by words like “include”, “including”, “for example”,
“such as” or “in particular” (or anything similar) the general phrase stays as a general phrase – what
follows are just non-exclusive examples of the general phrase.
1.11.2 The bold headings at the start of each paragraph are just there as a “signpost heading” for what
the paragraph is about. However, it is what is in the full paragraph itself that counts in terms of these
Booking Terms. The signpost paragraph headings should be ignored for the purposes of working out legally
what the Bookings Terms say or mean.
2 MAKING YOUR BOOKING
2.1 To be eligible to make a Booking:
To be eligible to make a Booking (i.e. to enter into a
Booking Contract with us and Rental Contract with the relevant Owner):
2.1.1 you must be 18 years of age or over and have the legal
capacity to enter into legally binding agreements;
2.1.2 you must register with us on our Site
(in advance or when Booking) or by telephone by providing your full name,
telephone number, email address and any other information that we may
request in order to process your registration; and
2.1.3 you must possess a valid payment method such as a valid
debit or credit card, PayPal account or any other
digital option as accepted by our Site.
2.2 What you confirm: By submitting a Booking to us, you confirm that:
2.2.1 everything in paragraph 2.1 is true and accurate; and
2.2.2 you and the Guests agree to these Booking Terms.
2.3 How to make a Booking: You may make a Booking directly using our Site or by contacting
us by
telephone or by email using the details contained at paragraph 21. If you provide your Booking
details to us by email, we will send to you a link to the Site so that you can make a
Booking and pay us online or we shall arrange to call you and follow the telephone Booking
procedure outlined at paragraph 2.5.2.
2.4 What making a Booking means: By making a Booking through us you are making an offer to:
2.4.1 enter into a Rental Contract with the
applicable Owner in relation to the Property you have selected;
2.4.2 enter into the Booking Contract with us; and
2.4.3 pay us all amounts due in respect of the Deposit and Total Charges.
Please note that no Rental Contract creates any type of landlord and tenant relationship. A Rental Contract
only creates a temporary licence to occupy.
2.5 The Booking Process: The following steps must take place before a Booking can be
confirmed:
2.5.1 For Site Bookings:
2.5.1.1 You submit your Booking Details to us on the Site and provide your payment details
which will be used by us to process the payment of your Deposit or Total Charges.
Before submitting your Booking on the Site, the Booking process will give you the
opportunity to review your Booking, including these Booking Terms and the Booking
Details and, if you require, allow you to make any amendments to your Booking; and
2.5.1.2 you will receive an on-screen acknowledgement of your Booking and a receipt
for your payment by email at the email address you have provided us.
2.5.2 For telephone Bookings:
2.5.2.1 We will read to you your Booking Details and various other details for you
to confirm they are accurate and you are happy with these details. You may make any
required amendments at this point. After this, we will then request your payment
details and we will process payment of your Deposit or Total Charges in respect
of your Booking; and
2.5.2.2 we will verbally confirm your booking reference and will
send you a receipt for your payment by email at the email address you have provided to us.
2.6 Confirming your Booking: Provided we have successfully processed your
Deposit (and any other payment, if required) and the Property is available for the Holiday
Period, we will send you an email (or a letter if you have not provided us with an email address)
confirming your Booking together with a link to these Booking Terms and other details relating
to your Booking. We call this the “Booking Confirmation”. Please note that you must check your
emails and post regularly. If we do not hear from you within 24 hours of sending, we will take
it to mean you are happy with these details. Also, please let us know promptly about any change
to your postal or email address so that you inform us how to communicate with you.
2.7 When your Booking is confirmed and when contracts are formed: When we provide you with
the
Booking Confirmation (which will be at the point we send you the email or
post you a letter confirming your Booking), we are accepting your offer as
outlined in paragraph 2.4 (including accepting your offer acting on the
applicable Owner's behalf as its agent). It is at this point, when we send
you the confirmation email or letter, which is your Booking Confirmation,
that you enter into the legally binding Rental Contract with the Owner and the
legally binding Booking Contract with us.
2.8 Your responsibility to check the Booking Confirmation: Please check all the
details in your Booking Confirmation promptly after receiving the Booking
Confirmation and notify us as soon as possible, and in all cases within 24
hours of receipt of your Booking Confirmation, if you think there are
any mistakes or errors with your Booking. If you notice that it is you who
have made a mistake, we may be able to amend your Booking but you could incur
additional costs (see paragraph 10). If we have made a mistake with your Booking or
it contains any errors, which are our fault, you will need to contact us with
24 hours of receipt of your Booking Confirmation to confirm your correct
Booking Details to us so we can then reissue your Booking Confirmation.
You will not incur any additional costs for this.
2.9 When we may cancel after a Booking Confirmation and costs involved:
Even after we have sent you the Booking Confirmation, we on behalf of the Owner,
have the right to cancel a Booking where we reasonably believe that:
2.9.1 the Booking is not legitimate;
2.9.2 you have broken or are likely to break any of the Booking Terms relating to a previous or current
Booking;
2.9.3 any information you have supplied is incorrect or insufficient; or
2.9.4 you have behaved in an inappropriate, abusive or unlawful manner to us, our staff or any Owner.
If we cancel your booking in any of these circumstances we will tell you in writing and neither we nor the
applicable Owner will have any further responsibility to you and you may have to pay us and the Owner and
third parties (as applicable) all costs and expenses reasonably incurred in providing you with the Booking
Services, Sykes Other Services, Rental Services and Third Party Other Services respectively up to the date
we cancel the Booking.
2.10 Unavailability of the Holiday Period. We may also, acting on behalf of the Owner, have
the right
to cancel a Booking even after we have sent you the Booking Confirmation, where the Owner notifies
us that the Property is unavailable for your intended Holiday Period (and this is not due to an
Unexpected Event (when clause 13.1 applies) or for one of the reasons referred to in clause 12
(when clause 12 applies)). If this occurs, the Owner shall refund you: (i) the Rental
Charges that you have already paid for the Booking; (ii) the amount equivalent to the Booking Fee; (iii)
the Sykes Other Services Charges and the Third Party Other Services Charges that you have already paid for
the
Booking; and (iv) any other compensation that may be due to you (other than any low deposit charge you have
made
directly to us). In these circumstances, and sometimes in other circumstances too, the Owner may be liable
to pay us certain cancellation changes for failure to make the Property available for your Holiday Period,
but this
does not concern you, and you have no responsibility for such charges which are a matter between the Owner
and us.
2.11 Restrictions on Holiday Periods: There may be some restrictions on Bookings:
2.11.1 Maximum Holiday Periods: The maximum holiday period for any Booking is generally 28
consecutive days, and is
always subject to availability of the particular Property. However, certain Properties may have a shorter
maximum
Holiday Period, which will be clearly stated on the relevant Property description page on our Site.
You will not be permitted to make a Booking for a Holiday Period which is longer than this maximum period.
2.11.2 Minimum Holiday Periods: Certain Properties will only be available for Bookings of a
minimum holiday period. Again this will be clearly stated on the relevant Property description page on our
Site. You will not be permitted to make a Booking with a Holiday Period that is shorter than this minimum
period.
3 OUR ROLE AND SCOPE OF OUR LIABILITY
(SEE ALSO PARAGRAPH 16 “WHAT WE ARE AND ARE NOT LIABLE FOR”)
3.1 Our promises to you: We will perform the Booking Services and the Sykes
Other Services using reasonable care and skill.
3.2 Who we are in this process: To be clear:
3.2.1 we act as agent for an Owner by arranging Bookings on
behalf of the Owner and collecting Rental Charges from holidaymakers
(in this case, you) on behalf of the Owner for the Properties that appear
on the Site. We do not own any of the Properties, but an Owner has
authorised us to refuse any Bookings on the Owner’s behalf in accordance
with these Booking Terms. It is the Owner who supplies you with the
Rental Services;
3.2.2 we act on behalf of ourselves in supplying you with the Booking
Services and we act on behalf of ourselves when supplying you with the
Sykes Other Services;
3.2.3 we act on behalf of certain third parties when introducing to you
the Third Party Other Services, but we are not responsible to you for
the services which make up the Third Party Other Services (which is
the responsibility of the third party supplying those services); and
3.2.4 we collect:
3.2.4.1 the Booking Fee on behalf of ourselves;
3.2.4.2 the Sykes Other Services Charges on behalf of ourselves;
3.2.4.3 the Rental Charges on behalf of the relevant Owner; and
3.2.4.4 the Third Party Other Services Charges on behalf of other third parties.
3.3 Exclusion of liability: Our obligations to you are limited to those
in connection with the Booking Services and the Sykes Other Services. Accordingly,
we accept no liability for any defects or unavailability of Rental Services,
the Property or any other problems with your holiday. Your rights under these
Booking Terms and the Rental Contract for issues with Rental Services,
a Property or your holiday are only against the Owner (unless we have done
something wrong in relation to the Booking Services or Sykes Other Services
which caused that problem). Also, we accept no responsibility for the acts or
omissions of third parties who provide Third Party Other Services to you when
your contract is with the relevant third party and not ourselves.
3.4 Descriptions on the Site: We make every effort to ensure
that the descriptions relating to the Properties and Rental Services on our
Site are accurate and complete. These descriptions include details of the
Property and Rental Services including photos, the availability period of
the Property for rental, the Rental Charges, the facilities available at
the Property, maximum occupancy numbers, any accreditations and awards
or descriptions of quality relating to the Property including star or
tick ratings. If we discover a serious mistake or error relating to
this information we will use reasonable efforts to correct this
promptly on the Site and will contact you if that information relates
to a Booking that you have already made.
3.5 Limits of descriptions on the Site: Descriptions of the Property
and Rental Services and any ratings on the Site are not advice or
recommendations given by us. We do not independently verify accreditations,
awards or star or other quality ratings provided to us by Owners or
third parties. Such ratings are only there to give you a general idea of
what level of quality you can expect from a particular Property. We are not
responsible for inaccuracies or errors in these descriptions
that are provided by Owners, or the accommodation information
(as outlined in paragraph 3.4) as this information is also supplied
to us by Owners. If you are unhappy with any information relating to a
Property or Rental Services or believe that they contain any inaccuracies
or errors, please follow the complaints procedure set out in paragraph 19.
3.6 When services become unavailable or restricted: Unfortunately,
sometimes some services or equipment (including Rental Services
provided by the Owner or other third parties) or facilities
(including amenities or attractions near by) in relation to a Property,
which are detailed on our Site, may become unavailable or be restricted.
As this is outside of our control, we do not accept any responsibility
for any changes, unavailability or restrictions of these things. If such
services, equipment or facilities are not provided in circumstances when
you have paid additional amounts for them to us or directly to the Owner,
please follow the complaints procedure set out in paragraph 19.
3.7 Services for personal use only: Our Booking Services are available
for your personal, private and non-commercial use only. You may not offer
for resale any Booking Services, Sykes Other Services, Third Party Other
Services or Rental Services without our, or where applicable the relevant
Third Parties too, express written permission. To be clear, you and your
Guests are permitted to use the Property as private accommodation for work
or business trips.
3.8 Wi-Fi and Phone Reception: The Owner cannot (and does not) guarantee
the speed of any broadband at the Property (or what you will be able to
download or stream whilst there). If the description of the Property does
not state that Wi-Fi is included it is not. Please be aware that internet
and phone reception in rural areas can sometimes be poor. The Owner shall
not be responsible for such matters except, if the description of the
Property states that Wi-Fi is included, the Owner will be responsible for
ensuring that Wi-Fi has been set up at the Property.
3.9 CCTV: We are aware that many holiday property owners are
using CCTV systems for the safety and security of their property and guests.
You may be notified as part of the description of the Property or at the
Property itself that CCTV is in operation. If required, please contact the
Owner or their representative (including ourselves) for details such as
the purpose of the CCTV, the data being processed and how long any footage
is retained, if this information is not already apparent at the Property.
3.10 If the Property is in an agricultural area there will occasionally be
sounds and smells associated with countryside living that cannot be avoided.
In respect of any Property there may be traffic noise. Neither us or the Owner
shall be held liable for building work noise or disruption coming from
neighbouring properties.
4 CHARGES AND PAYMENT
4.1 What we tell you about the charges and when:
Before submitting your Booking to us, you will be presented with or
told the Total Charges payable for your Booking, together with a partial
breakdown of the Total Charges such as:
4.1.1 the Booking Fee. This becomes non-refundable once your Booking is
confirmed by us with a Booking Confirmation (other than as set out in
paragraphs 2.10 and 11); and
4.1.2 any additional charges quoted during the Booking process when you
make your Booking, for example, heating supplements, pet charges and
other services you have purchased which may be part of the Rental Services
and therefore part of the Rental Charge owed to an Owner; or which may be
part of the Sykes Other Services or Third Party Other Services (and therefore
part of the Sykes Other Services Charges owed to us or Third Party Other Services
Charges owed to us for a third party, which we may collect on behalf of a third party).
4.2 What we tell you about the Deposit and the Balance: If you are
paying a Deposit rather than the entire Total Charges when making your Booking,
you will also be presented with the date by which you will need to make payment to us
for the Balance. The date you are required to pay the Balance will normally be 6 weeks
before the start of your Holiday Period. Please note that we may (but are not obliged to)
contact you via the contact details you provide us with to remind you of the due date
for payment of the Balance. You should also take note of when the Balance is due for
your own reference. However, if the date the Balance would normally fall due for your
Booking has already passed, we will ask you at the time of the Booking to pay the
Balance too.
4.3 Forms of payment: We currently accept various forms of payment
including via credit and debit card, PayPal or some other digital options. Please
refer to our Site for details of the payment cards and other methods of payment
that we currently accept.
4.4 Price fluctuations: Charges may change from time to time due to changes in
demand, such as school holidays, but changes will not affect any Booking you
have made which we have confirmed with a Booking Confirmation
(subject to what we say in paragraphs 4.7 and 4.8).
4.5 Taking payments at the time of Booking: We take the payments due at the time of
Booking from your chosen payment method once you have entered or otherwise provided
your payment details and confirmed you wish to pay for the Booking, subject to
payment authorisation.
4.6 Taking payments after you receive your Booking Confirmation: If the Balance or
any other additional payments are due after you receive your Booking Confirmation,
then:
4.6.1 if you authorised us to take payment for these amounts from your chosen
payment method when you made your Booking, we will automatically take payment
using your original payment method. If there has been a change to the Total
Charges (for example, due to changes in exchange rates), we will contact you
before taking the changed payment (see paragraph 5.2 below); or
4.6.2 if you did not authorise us to take payment from your chosen payment method
for these amounts when you made your Booking, or your chosen payment method that
you authorised us to take payment from has expired or cannot be used by us and we
contact you to inform you of this, you will need to make these payments either by
using the payment feature within your account on the Site or by contacting us by
telephone using the number set out in paragraph 21.
4.7 Pricing errors found before a Booking Confirmation: We use our
best efforts to ensure that these stated charges are correct at the time when you
submit relevant information onto our systems. However, it is always possible that,
despite our best efforts, some of the charges on the Site may be incorrectly priced.
We will normally check these prices as part of our confirmation procedures so that:
4.7.1 where the actual Total Charges are less than those quoted to you at the
time you made your Booking, we will charge the lower amount when providing
you with the Booking Confirmation; and
4.7.2 where the actual Total Charges are higher than those quoted to you at
the time you made your Booking, we will contact you as soon as possible to
inform you of this error and we will give you the option of continuing to
book the Property at the correct (higher) charges or cancelling your Booking.
We will not process your Booking or issue the Booking Confirmation until we
have your instructions. If we are unable to contact you within a reasonable
time using the contact details you provided during the Booking process,
we will treat the Booking as cancelled, refund the amounts you have paid us,
and notify you in writing.
4.8 Pricing errors found after a Booking Confirmation: If we accept and process
your Booking where a pricing error is obvious and unmistakeable and could
reasonably have been recognised by you as a mispricing or we identify it within 48 hours of us
accepting and processing your Booking, we may cancel your
Booking, and refund you any sums you have paid to us.
4.9 If you think the amounts due are wrong: If you think any amounts of which
we notify you as due are wrong, please contact us promptly to let us know. You will
not have to pay any interest until the dispute is resolved. Once the dispute is
resolved we will charge you interest on correctly notified sums from the original
date that such payments were due (see paragraph 5.3 below).
4.10 VAT: Total Charges include VAT, where applicable, which you
shall be responsible for paying.
4.11 Total Charges are per Property: Total Charges quoted are per
Property (and not per person). It is your responsibility to check the total price
before completing the Booking process.
4.12 Good housekeeping bond: Please note some Owners may charge a
'good housekeeping bond', which will be included alongside the charges quoted to
you during the Booking process. If applicable to your Booking, the ‘good
housekeeping bond’ may be paid by you via the two different methods explained in
paragraphs 4.12.1 and 4.12.2 below:
4.12.1 Payment to the Owner: we will tell you during the
Booking process that the Owner will communicate directly with you to
collect and (if appropriate) return this bond. We have no control over
the payment or return of such bonds by the Owner. The Owner must, within
7 days of the end of the relevant Holiday Period return all or part of
the bond to you and, if retaining any part of the bond, notify you in
writing of the reasons for doing so; or
4.12.2 Payment deducted by us: we will tell you during
the Booking process that we will hold the payment details you used to
make your Booking in order to collect the ‘good housekeeping bond’
via this payment method (if appropriate) and you authorise us to take
this payment. If the payment details you have used to make your Booking
have expired or cannot be used by us to collect the ‘good housekeeping bond’,
then we shall contact you to arrange immediate payment of the bond from you.
If you cancel the payment method provided to us for this purpose you must
immediately provide us with an alternative payment method and authority
for us to use it. The Owner must, within 7 days of the end of the relevant
Holiday Period, notify us if they wish to claim all or part of the bond from you.
If the Owner fails to notify us within this period then we will not collect any
payment from you. If we do collect all any part of the bond, we will notify you
in writing of the reasons for doing so. We have no control over whether the Owner
instructs us to collect any part of the bond on their behalf, if you do not
agree with the bond payment made to the Owner or deducted by us on behalf of
the Owner, please follow the complaints procedure set out in paragraph 19.
5 CURRENCIES AND INTEREST PAYMENTS
5.1 Base currency:
Unless otherwise stated, all charges are quoted in British Pounds Sterling.
5.2 Different currencies: During the Booking process you
may be presented with an option to pay for your Booking in one or more
currencies. The payment currencies we accept for a particular Booking will
be notified to you during the Booking process. The exchange rate for all
payments will be based on exchange rates set by our internal systems, which
may increase or decrease based on changes in the market. If on the date your
Balance is due, changes to these exchange rates results in an increase of 5%
or more to the Total Charges we quoted at the time you made your Booking,
then we may increase the Balance to include this additional amount. If you do
not wish to pay this amount, you may end your Rental Contract giving notice
within 14 days of the date we notify you of the increase and we will refund
you as outlined in paragraph 11.4.
5.3 Interest for non-payment or late payment: If you do not
make any payment to us by the date that payment is due we and/or an Owner
may charge interest to you on the overdue amount at the rate of 4% a year
above the base lending rate of the Bank of England from time to time
(but at 4% a year for any period when that base rate is below 0%).
This interest shall accrue on a daily basis from the due date until
the date of actual payment of the overdue amount, whether before or after
judgment. You must pay us interest together with any overdue amount.
6 GIFT VOUCHERS
6.1 Ordering gift vouchers: You may order gift vouchers by
contacting us by email or telephone and we will send the vouchers using one
of the methods that we have said is available to you that you choose and
address that you specify in the form within 30 days of the date we receive
your form. If you have not received your gift voucher or code within the
applicable period, please contact us using the details set out in paragraph 21.
6.2 Denominations: Gift vouchers are available in denominations
of £25 and can be used to pay for Bookings in part or in full. Where the cost of a
Booking is less than the value of the gift voucher, the remaining balance of the gift
voucher remains valid and can be used for future Bookings (though it must be used before
the voucher’s validity period expires). No cash refunds will be given.
6.3 Redeeming gift vouchers: A gift voucher can be redeemed when
making a telephone Booking by providing us with the unique code that appears on
the gift voucher.
6.4 Validity period of gift vouchers: Gift vouchers are valid
for a period of 2 years from the date of purchase and can be used for any Booking
with a Holiday Period that starts before the voucher's validity period expires.
Any remaining balance on a gift voucher may no longer be used after expiry of
its validity period.
6.5 Bookings subsequently cancelled purchased with a gift voucher:
If a Booking is purchased with a gift voucher and that Booking is subsequently
cancelled, any refunded amount will be credited to the gift voucher, but the
original expiry date of the gift voucher remains the same.
6.6 Limits on use of gift vouchers: Gift vouchers cannot be
exchanged for cash, replaced if lost or damaged and are non-refundable.
We do not permit you or any third party to sell or trade our gift vouchers
unless we have given you our written permission to do so.
7 YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
7.1 Information you provide: You must make sure that all the information you
provide in connection with your Booking, including all Booking Details, are
true, accurate, current and complete.
7.2 Your responsibility for transactions made under your name or account:
You accept full financial and other responsibility for all transactions made under
your name or account that you hold with us. We will notify you of any payments that
are due and you shall be responsible for paying them within the timescales that we
specify.
7.3 Your promises to us and to Owners: You promise to us and to
each Owner (as applicable) that before, during and after the Holiday Period:
7.3.1 the number of people and pets occupying the Property will not exceed
the number stated in the Booking Confirmation;
7.3.2 you cannot arrange for additional visitors to come to the Property or
hold events (such as parties, celebrations or meetings) at the Property without
obtaining the written consent of the Owner in advance;
7.3.3 the Property will be used solely for the purpose of a holiday or private
accommodation by you and your Guests and will not be used for any commercial
or business purpose. To be clear, you and your Guests are permitted to use
the Property as private accommodation for work or business trips;
7.3.4 you will (and you will ensure that your Guests will) show all due
consideration and respect for the Owner, their representatives, neighbours
and other persons or parties that have a connection with the Property.
This includes refraining from abusing your right to use the Property or
Rental Services or participating in any illegal, dangerous, offensive,
inappropriate, violent or anti-social behaviour towards such people;
7.3.5 you will (and you will ensure that your Guests will) use the Property
and Rental Services lawfully, will not abuse or damage any facilities provided
as part of the Rental Services and will comply with any health and safety or
other policies or instructions notified to you by us or the Owner in connection
with the Property or Rental Services;
7.3.6 you will allow the Owner or any representative of the Owner (including any tradespeople)
to access the Property at any reasonable time during the Holiday Period provided the Owner
(or us acting on the Owner’s behalf) provides you with reasonable advance notice
(except where the Owner requires access to the Property due to an emergency, for example,
if repairs need to be carried out or the Owner becomes aware that you have breached,
or has reasonable suspicion to believe that you will breach these Booking Terms);
7.3.7 you will keep the Property and all furniture, utensils, equipment, fixtures and
fittings in or on the Property in the same state of repair and condition as at the
start of the Holiday Period and you will ensure that at the end of your Holiday Period
the Property is left in the same state of order and cleanliness in which it was found.
The Owner (or us acting on their behalf) may charge you for any additional, reasonable
charges for professional cleaning after the end of your Holiday Period where you have
failed to comply with this paragraph. These charges are necessary in order to return
the Property to its original state of cleanliness and tidiness for future bookings by
other customers;
7.3.8 you will report as soon as possible to the Owner (or to the Owner’s representative)
any breakages or damage caused by you or your Guests during the Holiday Period. Without
affecting any other remedies that the Owner has under the Rental Contract, you promise
to fully reimburse the Owner for the cost of replacement or repair for such breakages
or damage. We may facilitate the collection of such payments from you on the Owner's
behalf;
7.3.9 you will arrive at the Property no earlier than the time confirmed in your
Booking Confirmation on the first day of your Holiday Period and you will vacate
the Property by no later than the time confirmed in your Booking Confirmation on
the last day of your Holiday Period) or any other times as otherwise agreed with
the Owner in writing;
7.3.10 you will not allow any person other than you and your Guests to use the
facilities and amenities of the Property without the express permission of the Owner;
7.3.11 you will provide us or the Owners with any information that is reasonably
requested from you or your Guests;
7.3.12 you will keep the location of all keys/access cards for the Property,
which the Owner shall provide you (or otherwise provide you details of in
the Booking Confirmation), confidential and return all of them and other access
mechanisms at the end of your Holiday Period to the location requested by the Owner
in the Booking Confirmation or as the Owner may otherwise request from you; and
7.3.13 you will notify all Guests before the Holiday Period starts of your and
their obligations under this paragraph 7.3.
7.4 Your responsibility for Guests: You will be responsible for
all Guests staying at the Property and the things they do (and do not do) even
if you do not stay there yourself during the Holiday Period.
7.5 Your responsibility for travel and health documentation:
You will be responsible for ensuring that you, your Guests and any pets have
the relevant travel and health documents and requirements needed for visiting
the country in which a Property is located. These include any passport or
other identification documents, visa requirements and, in the case of pets,
any vaccines or microchips. We will not be liable for any expenses incurred
resulting from your missing, incomplete or incorrect documentation or any
non-compliance with such requirements.
7.6 Your responsibility to comply with the law: You will be
responsible to ensure that you and your Guests comply with applicable laws
(such as restrictions on travel or staying at properties due to health or
lockdown or due to inclement weather).
7.7 Failure to comply with anything in this paragraph 7:
If you or any Guest fails to comply, or is likely to fail to comply,
with any of the requirements set out in this paragraph 7, the Owner
(or the Owner’s representative) may refuse to allow you and your Guests to
enter and stay at the Property or can require you and your Guests to leave the
Property before the end of the Holiday Period. In either case, you will be
treated as having broken the terms of Rental Contract and your Booking will be
cancelled. In these circumstances, you will not receive a refund of any of the
Total Charges and neither we or the Owner shall be responsible for any other costs
and expenses you have to pay due to you not being able to stay in the Property,
such as the cost of finding any alternative accommodation or making alternative
travel arrangements. This may also affect our decision as to whether or not to
accept any future Booking from you.
7.8 Failure to comply with anything in these Booking Terms:
We shall also not be responsible for having to find alternative accommodation
for you if you have breached any of your obligations under these Booking Terms.
8 AN OWNER'S RESPONSIBILITIES
8.1 An Owner’s promises to you: An Owner will:
8.1.1 perform the Rental Services using reasonable care and skill;
8.1.2 provide an accurate, complete and up to date description of the
Property, and as soon as reasonably possible; notifying you in writing
of any changes to the description of the Property and/or Rental Services
relating to your Booking which would make our descriptions of the Property
inaccurate, incomplete or misleading;
8.1.3 subject to the exceptions in paragraphs 3.4, 3.5 and 3.6, ensure that
the Property is vacant, not make any use of the Property
(including conducting any viewings of the Property) and ensure that you and
your Guests have exclusive access to the Property and Rental Services for the
full period of the Holiday Period unless the Owner is entitled to refuse you
and your Guests access to or requires you to leave the Property in accordance
with paragraph 7.7;
8.1.4 ensure that the Property is properly maintained, clean, tidy and in
good repair at the start of the Holiday Period;
8.1.5 ensure that the Owner, the Property and the Rental Services will
comply with all applicable laws and regulations, in particular, relating
to fire, health, safety, utilities and planning and data protection;
8.1.6 ensure that the Owner has the right to provide the Rental Services,
let the Property and otherwise enter into the Rental Contract with you;
8.1.7 maintain, at the Owner's expense and with a reputable insurance company,
insurance policies to meet the Owner's liabilities under the
Rental Contract with you;
8.1.8 co-operate with you on all matters relating to the Rental Contract,
including providing the Rental Services and processing any refunds that may
be due to you (which we may facilitate);
8.1.9 provide Property access details to you (including all cards and access codes)
so you can make use of the Property for the Holiday Period and ensure that suitable
arrangements are in place for you to collect and return the keys/access cards for
the Property;
8.1.10 show all due consideration and respect to you and your Guests including
refraining from any dangerous, offensive, inappropriate, violent or anti-social
behaviour towards you and your Guests;
8.1.11 comply with the terms of the Rental Contract;
8.1.12 respond to queries, complaints and problems which arise during or after
the Holiday Period and use best efforts to resolve them (and we shall also
try and facilitate a resolution if the Owner requests us to, or the Owner
has previously authorised us to do so, on their behalf); and
8.1.13 if VAT forms part of the Total Charges, provide you with a VAT invoice
if you request one in writing.
9 PETS
9.1 Allowance for pets and extra charges: Pets are only
allowed at a Property where this is expressly stated in the applicable
Property description on the Site. There may be an additional charge for
bringing pets, which we will notify you of at the time of Booking.
9.2 Pets in a Property when they are not allowed:
If a pet is taken to a Property that does not allow pets, or the stated
number/size of pets is exceeded, the Owner (or the Owner’s representative)
has the right to:
9.2.1 refuse to allow you and your Guests to enter or stay in the Property; and/or
9.2.2 ask you and your Guests to leave the Property before the end of the Holiday Period; and you must
comply.
9.3 Pets in a Property when they are not allowed – and ending the Rental Contract:
If the Owner exercises their rights under paragraph 9.2, the Owner may end the Rental
Contract in accordance with paragraph 12.
9.4 Damage by pets, traces of pets – and extra charges:
You will be responsible for all damage caused by your and/or your Guests'
pets. For any pets allowed in the Property, you should remove all traces
(inside and outside) from the Property of pet occupation before you and
your Guests vacate the Property at the end of the Holiday Period.
The Owner may make an additional, reasonable charge for professional
cleaning after your Holiday Period due to any pets that have stayed
at the Property.
9.5 Pet rules: You must not allow pets on beds or on
furniture within the Property. Pets must not be left alone in the Property
(which include the garden and any outside areas) at any time.
9.6 Breaking the pet rules and ending the Rental Contract:
If you break the terms of paragraphs 9.4 or 9.5, the Owner (or their representative
or us on their behalf) may notify you that you have broken those terms and if you
continue to do so may end the Rental Contract and require you and your Guests to
leave the Property before the end of the Holiday Period.
9.7 Registered assistance dogs: Registered assistance dogs are
allowed in all Properties featured on our Site, even where the property
description states that pets are not allowed, provided that you comply with
the provisions in paragraph 9.4. You must notify us of the intended presence
of any assistance dogs before Booking so that we may make the Owner aware of this.
9.8 Allergy to animals: If you or your Guests have an allergy to
animals, please be aware that we and Owners cannot guarantee that an assistance dog,
or other animals, have not stayed in a particular Property recently. We, and
the Owners, cannot accept responsibility for any health condition which may
occur as a result of any animals having been present in a Property.
It is your responsibility to make specific enquiries before making a Booking
through us if you or your Guests have an allergy.
10 AMENDING, CANCELLING OR TRANSFERING A BOOKING AFTER A BOOKING CONFIRMATION
10.1 Amending a Booking after the Booking Confirmation:
If you would like to amend your Booking after the Booking Confirmation,
please contact us directly using the contact details in paragraph 21.
We will contact the Owner to see if the Owner agrees but we cannot guarantee
that the Owner will agree to meet your request. The Owner may or may not agree.
10.1.1 If the Owner does not agree, please remember that it is up to the
Owner and we act only as the Owner’s agent. Your contract is with the Owner.
10.1.2 If an Owner does agree to amend the Booking, there may additional
charges and an administration charge. The additional charges may be due
to the Owner under the Rental Contract (which could occur, for example,
if your Booking has been amended for a more expensive or longer Holiday Period)
or due to us under the Booking Contract (for example, to cover our costs of
making the amendment). However, we will always notify you of these charges
in advance and you will be responsible to pay them. If there are charges
due to the Owner we will collect them, as usual on behalf of the Owner.
10.2 Cancelling a Booking after you receive your Booking Confirmation
because you have changed your mind: If you change your mind after
you receive your Booking Confirmation:
10.2.1 you are not entitled to cancel the Booking Contract for a particular
Booking and obtain a refund for the Booking Fee as we will already have
supplied the Booking Services to you for that particular Booking;
10.2.2 if you wish to cancel the Rental Contract with the Owner more
than 6 weeks before the start of the Holiday Period, you will be entitled
to a refund of the Rental Charges you have paid minus: (i) the Deposit
(excluding any Third Party Other Services Charges which you may or may
not be entitled to a refund of pursuant to your arrangements with the
relevant third party); and (ii) all reasonably incurred charges for any
other services that the Owner provided to you up to the date you cancelled
the Rental Contract; and
10.2.3 you do not have a right to cancel the Rental Contract with the Owner
6 weeks or less before the start of the Holiday Period. You may, however
have the right to end the Rental Contract in accordance with paragraph 11,
under which you may be entitled to a refund for any Rental Charges you have
paid. You may also be entitled to a refund of the Booking Fee, Sykes Other
Services Charges and/or Third Party Other Services Charges payable under
the Booking Contract in certain situations in accordance with paragraph 11.
10.3 Transferring a Booking after a Booking Confirmation:
You may not transfer your Rental Contract or a Booking Contract to another
person. If you do not stay at the Property during the Holiday Period but
your Guests do, you will still be legally responsible for all your
obligations under the Rental Contract and these Booking Terms and your Guests'
compliance with them. Please see paragraph 7.4 for more details.
11 YOUR RIGHTS TO END A RENTAL CONTRACT
11.1 Your rights to end a Rental Contract other than where you change your
mind (as outlined in paragraph 10.2): You may immediately end a Rental Contract:
11.1.1 if the Owner has committed a serious breach of its obligations to you as set
out in these Booking Terms;
11.1.2 if we or an Owner have told you about a material error in the charges or
Booking Details or a significant error in the description of the Rental Services
relating to your Booking and you notify us that you do not wish to proceed; or
11.1.3 if we notify you about a change to the Total Charges due to changes in
the applicable exchange rate and you notify us that you do not wish to proceed
in accordance with paragraph 5.2.
11.2 What refunds you are entitled to if you end a Rental Contract in these circumstances:
If you end a Rental Contract for any of the reasons in paragraph 11.1.1 then within
14 days of the date you notify us that you wish to end the Rental Contract for
these reasons the Owner will refund to you (which we shall try and facilitate acting
as the Owner’s agent) the Rental Charges that you have already paid for the Booking
and the amount equivalent to the Booking Fee, the Sykes Other Services Charges
(excluding any low deposit charge you have made directly to us) and Third Party Other
Services Charges that you have already paid for the Booking.
11.3 If you end a Rental Contract for any of the reasons in paragraph 11.1.2 then
within 14 days of the date you notify us that you wish to end the Rental Contract
for these reasons:
11.3.1 depending on who is at fault for the error, either we or the Owner
will refund you (and we shall try and facilitate this acting as the Owner’s agent)
any of the Rental Charges, Sykes Other Services Charges and Third Party Other
Services Charges you have paid and any other amounts paid by you for the Booking
under paragraphs 1.3 and 1.4 less the amount under paragraph 11.3.2; and
11.3.2 although it has nothing to do with your Rental Contract, depending on
who is at fault for any error, either we will refund the Booking Fee in these
circumstances or the Owner will refund you an amount equivalent to the Booking
Fee in these circumstances.
11.4 If you end a Rental Contract for any of the reasons in paragraph 11.1.3
then within 14 days of the date you notify us that you wish to end the Rental
Contract for these reasons the Owner will refund to you (which we shall try
and facilitate acting as the Owner’s agent) any of the Rental Charges you have
paid less any costs the Owners have reasonably incurred in providing you with
the Rental Services up to the date of termination.
11.5 Your consumer rights: You have certain legal rights as a
consumer under the law and nothing in these Booking Terms, a Rental Contract,
a Booking Contract or your Booking affects these legal rights. Advice about
your legal rights in relation to the services we and Owners provide is available
from your local Citizens' Advice Bureau or Trading Standards office. For detailed
information please visit the Citizens Advice website www.adviceguide.org.uk or
call 03454 04 05 06.
12 OUR AND OWNERS’ RIGHTS TO CANCEL YOUR BOOKING OR END A RENTAL CONTRACT
12.1 Our and Owners’ rights to end a Booking or Rental Contract (no refund):
Without affecting any other right or remedy available to us or an Owner, an
Owner (or we, on an Owner’s behalf) may cancel your Booking or bring to an
end a Rental Contract if:
12.1.1 you do not make any payment when it is due and you still do not make payment
within 7 days of the date your payment is due (though we will send you a reminder
that your payment is due);
12.1.2 you do not, within a reasonable time of us asking for it, provide us with
information, including any Booking Details, that is necessary for us to provide
Booking Services or Sykes Other Services or for a relevant third party to provide
the Third Party Other Services or for the Owner to provide the Rental Services;
12.1.3 you fail to perform or comply with any of your obligations (when we consider
your failure to be serious or important) contained in the Rental Contract,
the Booking Contract or these Booking Terms, including if:
12.1.3.1 you or your Guests do not comply with the obligations set out in paragraph 7;
12.1.3.2 you do not comply with the applicable rules on pets in accordance
with paragraph 9; or
12.1.3.3 you fail to pay any good housekeeping bond on the date that payment of the
bond is due in accordance with paragraph 4.12; or
12.1.4 you are declared bankrupt, make any arrangement with or for the benefit of your
creditors, are unable to pay your debts or have a county court administration order
made against you.
12.2 Consequences if a Booking or Rental Contract ends in the circumstances of paragraph
12.1: If a Booking or Rental Contract ends for any of the reasons in paragraph 12.1,
then you will not be entitled to any refund of any Total Charges or other charges
that you have paid in connection with your Booking. Also, neither we nor the Owner
shall be responsible for any other costs or expenses you have to pay due to this
(such as the cost of finding any alternative accommodation or making alternative
travel arrangements).
12.3 Our and an Owner’s rights to end a Booking/ Rental Contract (as applicable) (refund):
Without affecting any other right or remedy available to us or an Owner,
we or we on an Owner’s behalf (as applicable) may cancel your Booking or bring
to an end a Rental Contract if:
12.3.1 we have ended our agency agreement with the relevant Owner before your
Booking for the relevant Property was made;
12.3.2 we become aware of any health and safety or quality-related issue
with the applicable Rental Services or Property or its immediate surroundings
(for example contamination to the Property's water supply).
The Owner may still be liable to us for cancellation charges in these circumstances
if the Owner is at fault (as this shall not be deemed an Owner’s right to cancel
in accordance the Rental Contract without the need to pay us any cancellation charges),
but this does not concern you, and you have no responsibility for such charges.
12.4 Consequences if a Booking or Rental Contract ends in the circumstances of paragraph
12.3:
If a Booking or Rental Contract ends for any of the reasons in paragraph 12.3, we:
12.4.1 may (but are not obliged to) arrange alternative accommodation for you
and your Guests of an equivalent type and standard in a similar location.
We will not be responsible for any costs associated with arranging alternative
accommodation and arranging this may be subject to the payment of additional
charges by you if the Total Charges for the alternative are higher than those
actually available to you under the cancelled Booking (which might not be all of
the Total Charges under the cancelled booking – see 12.4.2 below). We will always
get your approval in advance of arranging any alternative accommodation and notify
you of the additional costs; and
12.4.2 will try and facilitate the payment of a refund from the relevant Owner of
the Rental Charges, or if the Owner is in breach as regards the cancellation, the
Rental Charges and any other amounts paid by you under paragraphs 1.3 and 1.4 in
relation to the cancelled Booking, that in both instances the Owner may be liable
for. Please note, in these circumstances you will not be able to recover the Booking
Fee as this amount is non-refundable (we would have already completed the Booking
Services for your original Booking) or the charges for Sykes Other Services that
we have performed or for any Third Party Other Services that a third party has
performed from us.
13 EVENTS OUTSIDE OUR OR THE OWNER’S REASONABLE CONTROL
13.1 Force majeure leading to cancellation: We, acting on the Owner’s
behalf, and the Owner have a right, to end the Rental Contract and cancel
your Booking if an event occurs beyond your, our or the Owner’s reasonable
control (which is what we call an “Unexpected Event”). Examples of Unexpected
Events include any law, guidance or action taken by a national or local
government or public authority or any consequences of them; a fire or accident;
epidemic or pandemic; act of God, flood, adverse weather conditions or other natural
disaster, or any other event of any nature which prevents or is likely to prevent:
13.1.1 you and your Guests from staying at the Property for some or all of the Holiday Period; or
from the Owner complying with its obligations under its Rental Contract with you.
13.2 Alternatives after such a cancellation: If an Unexpected
Event happens that results in your Booking or Rental Contract being cancelled
by us on the Owner’s behalf or by an Owner, you may select one of the following
alternative options:
13.2.1 as part of our Booking Services under our Booking Contract with you,
we will try and help arrange alternative accommodation for you and your
Guests of an equivalent type and standard in a similar location. However,
we will not be responsible for any costs associated with arranging
alternative accommodation and arranging this may be subject to the
payment of additional charges by you if the Total Charges for the
alternative are higher than those actually available to you under the cancelled
Booking. We will always get your approval in advance of arranging any
alternative accommodation and notify you of the additional costs; or
13.2.2 the Owner will refund you the Rental Charges minus any cost and
expense the Owners have reasonably incurred in providing you with the
Rental Services up to the date of termination. Acting as the Owner’s agent,
we will try and facilitate this refund to you from the Owner.
13.3 Notification of options: If an Unexpected Event occurs, we will
notify you as soon as reasonably possible after we are aware of it
and inform you of the available options.
13.4 Consequences after an option has been provided:
After providing you with your preferred option under paragraph 13.2,
we and the applicable Owner shall have no further responsibility to
you in relation to your original Booking.
14 OTHER CONSEQUENCES OF A RENTAL CONTRACT ENDING FOR WHATEVER REASON
14.1 Consequences of a Rental Contract ending:
If the Rental Contract ends during or at the end of the
Holiday Period, you must:
14.1.1 leave the Property together with all Guests as soon as possible;
14.1.2 notify the Owner (or their representatives) and us that you and
your Guests have left the Property and, if relevant, the reasons for doing so; and
14.1.3 return the keys/access cards to the location instructed by the Owner.
14.2 Consequences of your decision to leave the Property before the end of the Holiday
Period: If you leave the Property before the end of the Holiday Period of your
own accord (and not due to an Unexpected Event or because you have ended the
Rental Contract with one of your rights under paragraph 11.1) no refunds for any
charges are payable.
15 INSURANCE
15.1 Some important advice: You are strongly advised to take out
travel insurance with a reputable provider before booking to cover your Booking.
If you do not do this then you are strongly advised at least to take out travel
insurance with a reputable provider before departing for your holiday. Any
insurance should ideally cover you for the total cost of your Booking
(and your stay if that is different). It is your responsibility to check that
your insurance cover is sufficient for your own purposes and any likely risks
that may affect you or your holiday.
16 WHAT WE ARE AND ARE NOT LIABLE FOR
(SEE ALSO PARAGRAPH 3 '“OUR ROLE AND SCOPE OF OUR LIABILITY”)
16.1 What we are always responsible for: We do not
exclude or limit in any way our responsibility to you where it would
be unlawful to do so.
16.2 We have no responsibility in connection with your Rental Contract with the Owner:
As we act as agent on behalf of the Owner in the Owner’s Rental Contract with you,
we are not responsible to you or any of your Guests under or in connection with
the Rental Contract for any acts or failure to act by the Owner (or the Owner’s
representatives), including the suitability and performance of the Rental Services
and the Property.
16.3 Our responsibility under the Booking Contract (and otherwise):
16.3.1 We are responsible to you under a Booking Contract for anything we say
in these Booking Terms that we will do under that Booking Contract.
16.3.2 Apart from the responsibilities under paragraphs 16.1 and
16.3, we do not give you the benefit of (i.e. we disclaim) any and
all other promises, warranties, conditions, or representations
relating to these Booking Terms, any Booking Contract and any Rental
Contract or otherwise, whether express, implied, oral or written, to the
fullest extent that we are able to do so under applicable law.
16.3.3 Apart from the responsibilities under paragraph 16.1
(where we have unlimited liability), our total liability to you for
any breach of the Booking Contract, however that may arise,
is limited to the total of the Booking Fee and any other charges
you have paid to us on our own account.
16.4 Our responsibility is limited to ‘foreseeable’ losses:
Within the limits of paragraph 16.3, where we are responsible to you,
we shall not be responsible to you for any losses unless they are a
‘foreseeable’ consequence of our failure to comply with a term of
the Booking Contract. Losses are ‘foreseeable’ where they were
contemplated by us at the time we sent you a Booking Confirmation.
16.5 Personal Belongings and Injury: You acknowledge
that personal belongings and vehicles (together with their contents)
belonging to you and your Guests are left at the Property entirely
at your and their own risk. We accept no liability for any loss,
damage or injury to you or your Guests, or your or their personal
property during the Holiday Period, except to the extent such loss,
damage or injury is caused by our negligence.
17 OWNERS' LIABILITY
17.1 What Owners are always responsible for: An Owner does not
exclude or limit in any way their responsibility to you where
it would be unlawful to do so.
17.2 An Owner’s responsibility is limited to ‘foreseeable’ losses: Where
an Owner is responsible to you, they shall not be responsible to you for
any losses unless they are a ‘foreseeable’ consequence of the Owner’s
failure to comply with a term of the Rental Contract. Losses are
‘foreseeable’ where they were contemplated by the Owner at the time
we sent you a Booking Confirmation.
17.3 Personal Belongings and Injury: You acknowledge that personal belongings and
vehicles (together with their contents) belonging to you and your Guests are
left at the Property entirely at your and their own risk. An Owner accepts no
liability for any loss, damage or injury to you or your Guests, or your or
their personal property during the Holiday Period, except to the extent such
loss, damage or injury is caused by the Owner’s negligence.
18 PRIVACY POLICY AND COOKIE POLICY
18.1 Privacy Policy: We take your privacy very seriously.
Please read our Privacy Policy to see how we use your personal
information, including the information you submit about yourself when making
a Booking. By submitting your personal information to us, you agree to our use of
that information in the ways described in our Privacy Policy, including sharing
your information with Owners for the purposes of their provision of the
Rental Services.
18.2 Cookie Policy: Like many online services we use a
feature called a 'cookie', which is a small data file that is sent to your
browser from a web server and stored on your device's hard drive.
References in these Booking Terms to 'cookies' also include other
means of automatically accessing or storing information on your access device.
By accessing the Site and/or entering into a Booking Contract with us,
you are providing your consent for us to use cookies in the ways described
in our Cookie Policy. However, you may delete any of these cookies
at any time if you wish - please see our Cookie Policy for detailed information
on the types of cookies we use on the Site, the purposes for which we use each
cookie, how you can disable and enable the use of certain cookies and the
consequences of doing so.
18.3 Recording telephone calls: We may record telephone calls
between us for monitoring and training purposes. If there is a dispute between us,
we reserve the right to review any recorded calls between us and to use those
recording in the process of that dispute.
19 COMPLAINTS
19.1 Complaints generally: If you have any complaint please contact us by
telephone or using our relevant contact details that we’ve provided on
the Site promptly. If the complaint:
19.1.1 is about the Booking Services, Sykes Other Services or Third Party
Other Services, we shall deal with it on our own behalf as it relates to
the Booking Contract between you and us; or
19.1.2 is about the Rental Services or the Property, we shall deal
with it on behalf of the Owner, as the Owner’s agent – and sometimes
we may need to refer it back to the Owner directly or take instruction
from the Owner – because the complaint relates to the Rental Contract
between you and the Owner. In that case:
19.1.2.1 Complaints while at the Property: If you are still staying
at the Property and wish to make a complaint about a Property or
Rental Service, we would suggest that in the first instance you
contact the relevant Owner (or the Owner’s representative locally)
as soon as possible (and during the Holiday Period) because your
Rental Contract is directly with the Owner (and not us).
This will give you and the Owner the best opportunity to
resolve your complaint during the Holiday Period (and will
hopefully assist in any issue, loss or damage either not being
suffered or it being reduced) and we encourage all Owners to
take complaints from holidaymakers seriously and to do their
best to resolve them, where possible during the Holiday Period.
19.1.2.2 If you are dissatisfied with how an Owner deals with your
complaint or wish to contact us directly: If having complained to
an Owner during the Holiday Period, you still wish to direct any
complaint to us and/or are dissatisfied with the Owner's response
to any complaint directly to the Owner, please contact us as soon
as possible (and if you can within 7 days of the end of the Holiday
Period for the relevant Booking, though if you fail to do so this
will not limit your ability to make a complaint) with full details
of your complaint and the Owner’s response (if any). Though please
note, you must provide us with evidence of your complaint
(including photographs), which shows us that the Owner had not
complied with its obligations under these Booking Terms. For
example, you must provide us with photographic evidence which
we can identify as showing the Property failing to comply with
paragraph 8.1.4 at the start of your Holiday Period. This will
help us to deal with your complaint on behalf of the Owner as
quickly and effectively as possible and to deal with it as
follows: We will use our reasonable efforts to contact an Owner
on your behalf to attempt to facilitate a resolution of your
complaint by the Owner. As we act only as an agent for the Owner,
we cannot accept any legal responsibility for your complaint.
If we help to sort out a complaint, we are doing so as an agent
only and have no legal responsibility to you for any refund or
compensation; but we will try and persuade the Owner to
act reasonably.
19.2 Your legal rights: Nothing in this Complaints paragraph 19 affects
your
legal rights or any right you may have to bring legal proceedings against
an Owner under a Rental Contract.
20 OTHER IMPORTANT TERMS
20.1 Electronic communications: You agree to receive communications
from us and Owners electronically and that electronic communications
will satisfy any legal requirement for communications to be in writing.
Where these Booking Terms say something is ‘in writing’ or similar,
it includes by email.
20.2 Transferring Rental Contract and Booking Contract: An Owner may
transfer his rights and obligations under the Rental Contract to a
purchaser of the Owner’s Property (New Owner) or to a member of the
same group of companies as itself (Owner Group Company). The New Owner
or Owner Group Company (as applicable), and not the Owner, will be
responsible for performing the Owner’s rights and obligations under
the Rental Contract from the date of transfer. We may transfer our
rights and obligations under the Booking Contract to a member of the
same group of companies as ourselves (Sykes Group Company).
The Sykes Group Company, and not us, will be responsible for performing
our rights and obligations under the Booking Contract from the date
of transfer. Any transfer of this nature that would be detrimental to
you is not permitted unless you agree otherwise. We will inform you of
all transfers of this nature. This may include us issuing you with a
revised Rental Contract on behalf of a New Owner or revised Booking
Contract. The only difference between the original Rental Contract or
Booking Contract and the new Rental Contract or Booking Contract is the
person your contract is with i.e. it is the New Owner, Owner Group
Company or Sykes Group Company rather than the Owner or us (as applicable).
We or an Owner may transfer our rights and obligations under the Booking
Contract or Rental Contract to a person or legal organisation who is not
a New Owner, Owner Group Company or Sykes Group Company. We or the Owner
will contact you to let you know if this is planned. If you are unhappy
with the transfer, you may contact us or the Owner to end the relevant
contract within 14 days of us or the Owner telling you about it and we
or they (as applicable) will refund you any payments you have made in
advance for services that have not been provided under the relevant
contract. Please note though that this refund will not include our
Booking Fee which will be non-refundable as we will have already
completed the Booking Services, our charges for the Sykes Other
Services that we have performed or any charges for Third Party Other
Services that are subject to your agreement(s) with a third party.
You have no similar rights to transfer a contract (see paragraph 10.3).
20.3 No third party rights: Each Booking Contract for the provision of
the Booking Services and Sykes Other Services is between you and us.
Each Rental Contract is between the you and the relevant Owner.
Each contract for Third Party Other Services is between you and the
third party providing those services. No other person shall have any
rights to enforce any of the terms of each respective contract.
20.4 Separate paragraphs: Each of the paragraphs of these Booking
Terms operates separately. If any court or relevant authority
decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining paragraphs
will remain in full force and effect.
20.5 Waiting to enforce a right: If we or an Owner do not insist immediately
that you do anything you are required to do under these Booking Terms,
or if we or an Owner delay in taking steps against you in respect of
you breaking a term of a Booking Contract or Rental Contract, that
will not mean that you do not have to do those things and it will not
prevent us or an Owner (as applicable) taking steps against you at a
later date. For example, if you miss a payment and we do not chase you
but continue to provide the Sykes Other Services, then we can still
require you to make the payment at a later date.
20.6 The law that applies to all this: Any Booking Contract and Rental
Contract (and all the relevant Booking Terms within them) are governed
by English law.
20.7 If you, we or an Owner ever need to go to court:
You can bring legal proceedings in respect of any Booking Contract or
Rental Contract in the English courts. If you live in Scotland, you
can bring legal proceedings in respect of any Booking Contract or
Rental Contract in either the Scottish or the English courts. If
you live in Northern Ireland, you can bring legal proceedings in
respect of any Booking Contract or Rental Contract in either the
Northern Irish or the English courts. If you are domiciled in a
country of the European Union (such the Republic of Ireland) you
can bring legal proceedings in respect of any Booking Contract or
Rental Contract in either the courts of the EU country where you are
domiciled or the English courts.
20.8 Resolving disputes without going to court:
Alternative dispute resolution is where an independent body considers
the facts of a dispute and aims to settle it, without you having to
go to court. If you are not happy with how we or an Owner has handled
any complaint, you may want to contact an alternative dispute resolution
provider. In respect of disputes concerning ourselves (and not those between you and an Owner),
we are a subscriber to the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution
(CEDR), an independent charity which is approved by the CAA, Chartered Trading
Standards Institute, the Gambling Commission and Ofcom to provide dispute
resolution for disputes between customers and businesses. CEDR can provide
the customers of travel businesses with access to legally binding arbitration,
provided the dispute is considered to be within scope of matters that they can
arbitrate on. You can view the details of what CEDR can arbitrate about, and
when to they can do this, by visiting their
website:
https://www.cedr.com/consumer/holidays/packageholidays/.