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TERMS AND CONDITIONS
(Copyright © Somme
Battlefield Tours Ltd 2010)
Abbreviations and meanings
For the purposes of these booking conditions terms such as ‘us’, ‘we’
and ‘our’ shall mean Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd (the tour ‘organiser’).
‘Tour’ refers to both Self-Drive and Conducted Tours unless otherwise
stated. The term ‘you’ refers to the person making the booking. ‘Party’
and ‘group’ means those persons travelling with you, on behalf of whom
you are making the booking.
How to book
Please contact us by ‘phone or e-mail to make a booking and/or to seek
clarification on any aspect of the tours offered. We are
committed to clearly explaining what is and what is not included in your
tour, as well as outlining our tour itinerary.
No contract shall exist between you and us until your booking is
confirmed in writing by us, such confirmation including our standard
‘Terms and Conditions’ which, together with our letter, shall form the
basis of the contract between you and us. You may cancel a tour within 7
days of receipt of your tour confirmation letter and receive a full
refund should you not agree with what is stated (but subject to the
conditions outlined under ‘Cancellations’ below).
Payment
Deposit
A deposit of £80 per person or 25% of the total tour cost,
whichever is the greater, is payable on booking either a self-drive
tour.
Payments can be made either by credit card or by cheque. Cheques/Postal
Orders should be made payable to ‘Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd Trust
Account’. All credit card payments are paid direct to our Trust
Account (see Security of Payments).
All payments must be made in GB Pounds Sterling (credit card payments
for those living outside the UK are usually converted automatically).
Final balance
If you do not pay in full when booking your tour, your outstanding
balance is payable not less than 56 days prior to your date of
departure. If the balance has not been paid by 48 days prior to
departure, we have the option to cancel your booking and levy the
cancellation charges set out below under ‘Cancellations’. Self-Drive
Battlefield Guide(s) will be forwarded on receipt of the final balance.
Security of
Payments
We fully comply with the provisions of the Package Travel, Package
Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 (EEC Directive 90/314). In
accordance with these regulations, all payments made to Somme
Battlefield Tours Ltd., either as deposit or final settlement (including
all credit card payments), are held in a separate trust account
(Barclays Bank plc, Wimborne, Dorset A/c No. 40812048) and in accordance
with the above regulations cannot be released to Somme Battlefield Tours
Ltd. until the specified tour has taken place. This regulation
guarantees a full refund of all monies paid in the most unlikely event
of us failing to provide the tour booked.
Cancellations
In the unlikely event of us having to cancel a tour, for whatever
reason, we will inform you as soon as possible. You will have
the choice of accepting either an alternative tour or having an
immediate full refund of all monies paid (including deposit).
Should it be necessary for either you or any member of your party to
have to cancel a booking, then the person making the booking must notify
us in writing. The cancellation will be effective from the date this
written communication is received by us. You may substitute another
person in the place of any of your group at no extra charge.
The following scale of
cancellation charges shall apply to all tours (clear days relative to
date of departure):
More than 56 days tour deposit
56 - 28 days 40% of tour price
27 - 8 days 70% of tour price
7 days or less 100% of tour price
‘Force Majeure’
We accept full responsibility for ensuring that the services we contract
to provide are to a reasonable standard, subject to the provisions of
‘force majeure’. This provision means that we do not accept
liability for any damage, losses or additional expenses suffered by you
or any member of your group, as the result of causes beyond the
reasonable and foreseeable control of us, such as war, riot, accident,
civil strife, industrial dispute(s), crime, natural or nuclear disaster,
disease, Acts of God, adverse weather conditions, or such similar
occurrences.
Travel Insurance
Clients must be insured for travel to Belgium and France (and UK for
non-UK residents), in respect of cancellation, medical cover and
repatriation, as a condition of travelling with Somme Battlefield Tours
Ltd.
Passports
You must ensure that you and all members of your group are in possession
of a valid passport and Visa (where applicable) for travel to France and
Belgium (and UK for non-UK residents). We will not be liable for the
consequences of any failure to comply with this important requirement.
Accommodation
We will confirm which hotel(s) you will be staying at when you book your
tour. If for any reason we can not reserve the hotel you requested, we
will suggest an alternative and it will be your choice as to whether you
accept or decline this option. We only use two, three and four star
hotels (and guest house options for self-drive tours to the Somme or
Ypres battlefield) situated either on or very close to the
battlefield(s), such as close to the principal battlefield towns of
Albert (France-Somme) and Ypres (Ieper-Belgium), rather than the larger
hotels used by some other tour operators some distance away. All
hotel/guest house rooms have en-suite facilities unless otherwise
stated. You will not be expected to share accommodation with persons not
in your personal group.
Eurotunnel (liability
for excess charges)
If you arrive within 2 hours
of the booked departure time, the booking will be
exchanged without charge.
If you arrive more than 2
hours but no more than 24 hours after the booked
departure time on your outward journey, the booking will be
exchanged but you will
be required to pay any
difference between the
price SBT paid and the
price applicable to the
departure for which your booking is exchanged.
For bookings of 3 or 4 days’
duration: if you arrive
more than 24 hours
after the booked departure time on your return journey, your booking
will not be exchanged;
For bookings of 5 days’ duration:
if you return after midnight
on the day of booked departure time on your return
journey, your booking will not
be exchanged;
Vehicles fitted with LPG
LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) and dual powered vehicles (i.e. vehicles
fitted with an LPG tank as an alternative fuel) cannot be accepted
for transport by Eurotunnel. Vehicles fitted with LPG containers to
power domestic services e.g. cooking, refrigeration, heating and water
heaters are accepted as long as the containers are switched off, weigh
no more than 47kg and are not more than 80% full. If your vehicle is
fitted with such a container, you must declare this at Check-In.
Self-Drive Tour Costs
We undertake to arrange your ferry/tunnel travel, and bed and breakfast
hotel/guest house accommodation. We will also provide you with a
comprehensive tour pack as described in the appropriate section of our
website (www.battlefield-tours.com).
The tour cost does not include lunch and evening meal as experience has
shown that travellers usually wish to have freedom of choice regarding
where and what to eat, as opposed to being tied to a hotel.
The tour price does not include additional costs such as car hire,
cabin/room upgrades, newspapers, telephone calls, additional food and
beverages, wine/beers/spirits etc..
Driving in France and Belgium
Somme Battlefield Tours Ltd shall not be liable or in any way
responsible for the need for self-drive clients to fully comply with all
road traffic and other associated requirements, laws, rules and
regulations, including all licence, equipment, vehicle construction and
use, insurance and documentation requirements, when driving in the
United Kingdom, France and Belgium. Furthermore, will not be
responsible or liable for any penalties, financial or otherwise, imposed
by any governing or regulatory body, organisation or country for any
failure to comply with any rules, regulations or laws that may be
incurred whilst participating in a tour arranged or provided by us.
There are many helpful websites where advice can be obtained, such as
those provided by motoring organisations such as the RAC and AA.
Disruptive Behaviour
Client(s) behaving in a disruptive manner may, after warning and/or at
the discretion of us (or hoteliers in the case of self-drive tours), be
required to leave the tour or hotel premises without recompense for
termination of residence/booking/tour contract. Under such circumstances
we shall not be liable for any additional costs (eg travel,
accommodation etc), nor refund for termination of stay/residence/tour
contract etc.
Disability and other
Special Requirements
Having regard to the nature and size of our organisation, we are
committed to taking all reasonable steps to accommodate persons
experiencing most forms of disability. It is important that you tell us
in advance if you (or any of your group if appropriate) have any
disability, dietary requirement, or other condition/special need. It is
also important that we have advanced notification of any cemetery,
memorial or other battlefield location that you may wish to visit (and
not already included in the itinerary) as it may be possible, at the
discretion of SBT, to make a small diversion to our usual route to cater
for such requests.
Complaints
Any complaint about our failure to fulfil our commitment to you, or the
inadequate performance of our contract with you, should be made not more
than 28 days following your tour.
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SOMME BATTLEFIELD
TOURS LTD
