If any surcharge is greater than 8% of your tour price (excluding insurance
premiums and any amendment fee), you will be entitled to cancel your booking
and receive a full refund of all monies you have paid to us (except for any
amendment fee) or alternatively purchase another tour from us – see clause 14.
You have 14 days from the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice to tell us if
you wish to cancel or purchase another tour where applicable. Otherwise, we are
entitled to assume that you do not wish to do so and will pay the surcharge. Any
surcharge must be paid with the balance of the tour price or within 14 days of the
issue date printed on the surcharge invoice, whichever is the later. Please note that
travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent
changes have no impact on the tour price due to contractual and other protection
in place. A refund will only be payable if the decrease in our costs exceeds 2% as set
out above. Where a refund is due, we will pay you the full amount of the decrease in
our costs. No surcharge will be levied within 20 days of departure. No refund will be
payable if any decrease in our costs occurs during this period either.
Variation or cancellation by us
13. We start planning the tours we offer many months in advance.
Occasionally, we have to make changes to and correct errors in the details of
advertised tours both before and after bookings have been confirmed and
cancel confirmed bookings. Whilst we always endeavour to avoid changes
and cancellations, we must reserve the right to do so. Due to the nature of our
itineraries, which are dependent on the safe navigation of national and international
waterways over which we have no control, it is therefore not always possible for
our vessels to sail or call at all ports as planned or foresee when this may occur.
Unfortunately this is an inherent risk in sailing which you must accept. The captains
of all the vessels we use retain the ultimate right to deviate from or change any
particular itinerary where they believe it necessary to so, for example in the interests
of the health and safety of passengers.
14. Most changes made to a confirmed tour are insignificant. Examples of what we
both agree to be insignificant changes are changes of vessels to one of the same
class for the whole or part of your tour, changes to vehicles used for transfers and
excursions, changes to planned excursions, changes to hotel accommodation
to that of an equivalent standard including the substitution of accommodation
to on-board our vessels or vice versa, changes to berthing or dock location,
changes to sailing times, and the substitution and/or removal of ports of call, or
the replacement of sailing with the use of motor coaches. Occasionally, we have
to make a significant change to or cancel a confirmed tour and we must reserve
the right to do so. A significant change is a change made before departure which,
taking account of the information you give us at the time of booking or which we
can reasonably be expected to know as a tour operator, we can reasonably expect
to have a significant effect on your tour. If we have to make a significant change
before the start of your chosen arrangements (including an increase of the price of
your arrangements above 8%) then you will be entitled to accept the changes or
cancel without paying a cancellation fee and receive a full refund within 14 days. We
will inform you without unnecessary delay in writing of any such rights along with:
(a) the proposed changes and, where appropriate, their impact on the price of your
chosen arrangements;
(b) how long you have to inform us of your choice in writing to either accept the
changes or cancel without paying a cancellation fee;
(c) the consequences of your failure to respond within the period referred to in
paragraph (b); and
(d) any substitute package, of an equivalent or higher quality, if possible, offered to
you and its price.
If you chose to take a substitute package or accept amendments to your
arrangements which result in a lower overall quality or cost, you are entitled to an
appropriate price reduction. If you do not inform us within the time we specify
of your choice to accept the changes or terminate the contract we will write to
you again to remind you, if you still do not respond we may treat your booking as
cancelled and refund all payments due to you. Please note, the above options are
not available where any change made is an insignificant one. A change of flight
time of less than 12 hours, airline (except as specified in clauses 42 to 44 “Flights”),
type of aircraft (if advised) or destination airport will all be treated as insignificant
changes.
15. If we have to make a significant change to or cancel a confirmed tour, we will in
addition to the options set out in clause 14 pay you compensation depending on
the circumstances and when the significant change or cancellation is notified to
you subject to the following exceptions. Compensation will not be payable and no
liability beyond offering the options set out in clause 14 can be accepted where (a)
we are forced to make a change or cancel as a result of unusual and unforeseeable
circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which we could not have
avoided even with all due care or (b) we have to cancel because the minimum
number of bookings necessary for us to operate your tour has not been reached
– see clause 2. No compensation will be payable and the options set out in clause
14 will not be available if we have to cancel as a result of your failure to comply
with any requirement of these terms and conditions entitling us to cancel (such as
paying on time) or where a change is an insignificant one.
16. Very rarely, we may be forced by Force Majeure (see clause 28) to change or
terminate your tour after departure but before the scheduled end of your time
away. This is extremely unlikely but if this situation does occur, we will be unable
to make any refunds (unless we obtain any refunds from our suppliers which we
do not use to pay for alternative services), pay you any compensation or meet any
costs or expenses you incur as a result.
Amendment or cancellation by you
17. If any member of your party is prevented from travelling, the person(s)
concerned may transfer their place to someone else (introduced by you) providing
we are notified not less than 7 days before departure. Where a transfer to a person
of your choice can be made, all costs and charges incurred by us and/or incurred
or imposed by any of our suppliers as a result together with an amendment fee
of £50 per person must be paid before the transfer can be effected. Any overdue
balance payment must also be received. For flight inclusive bookings, you must pay
the charges levied by the airline concerned. As most airlines do not permit name
changes after tickets have been issued for any reason, these charges are likely to be
the full cost of the flight.
18. If you wish to make any amendments to your confirmed booking you must
notify us in writing as soon as possible. It may not always be possible to make such
amendments. Where we can, an amendment fee of £50 per person per booking
will be payable together with any costs incurred by ourselves and any costs or
charges incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers. A change of tour dates will
normally be treated as a cancellation of the original booking and rebooking in
which case cancellation charges will apply. Changes may result in the recalculation
of the tour price where, for example, the basis on which the price of the original tour
was calculated has changed.
19. You may cancel your booking by notice to us in writing and payment of the
applicable cancellation fee as shown below. Cancellation notifications are not
effective until received by us in writing (if received by us on a weekend day or
public holiday the notification will be treated as having been received by us on the
next working day).
The following cancellation fees apply to each person(s) cancelling and where
shown as a percentage are based on the total cost of the arrangements which are
being cancelled excluding any insurance premiums, amendment fee or previously
incurred cancellation charges which are all non-refundable in the event of your
cancellation:
Cancellation Fees
Period before your tour commences within which written notification of
cancellation is received by us
Cancellation period
Fee per person
120 days and over
Loss of Deposit
119 to 91 days
50% of tour price
90 days or less
100% of tour price
Depending on the reason for cancellation, you may be able to reclaim these
cancellation charges (less any applicable excess) under the terms of your insurance
policy. Claims must be made directly to the insurance company concerned.
Where any cancellation reduces the number of full paying party members below
the number on which the price, number of free places and/or any concessions
agreed for your booking were based, we will recalculate these items and re-invoice
you accordingly.
Our liability
20. We will ensure that the tour arrangements we have agreed to make, perform
or provide as applicable as part of our contract with you are made, performed or
provided with reasonable skill and care. This means that, subject to these terms and
conditions, we will accept responsibility and pay you appropriate compensation
if, for example, you suffer death or personal injury or your contracted tour
arrangements are not provided as promised or prove deficient as a result of the
failure of us, our employees, agents or suppliers to use reasonable skill and care in
making, performing or providing, as applicable, your contracted tour arrangements.
Please note, it is your responsibility to show that reasonable skill and care has
not been used if you wish to make a claim against us. In addition, we will only be
responsible for what our employees, agents and suppliers do or do not do if they
were at the time acting within the course of their employment (for employees) or
carrying out work we had asked them to do (for agents and suppliers).
21. We will not be responsible for any injury, illness, death, loss (including loss of
enjoyment or possessions), damage, expense, cost or other sum or claim of any
description whatsoever which results from any of the following: -
- the act(s) and/or omission(s) of the person(s) affected or any member(s) of their
party or
- the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party not connected with the provision of
your tour and which were unforeseeable/unavoidable or
- unavoidable or extraordinary circumstances or force Majeure as defined at clause
28 below.
22. We cannot accept responsibility for any services which do not form part of our
contract with you. This includes, for example, any additional services or facilities
which any hotel or other supplier agrees to provide for you where the services or
facilities are not advertised in our tour brochure as part of your tour and we have
not agreed to arrange them as part of our contract and any excursion or other
services you purchase during your tour. Where any such excursion or services
are purchased through or with our assistance, please note that we act only as
booking agent. Your contract will be with the operator or provider of the excursion
or services in question. We have no liability in relation to the same. In addition,
regardless of any wording used by us on our website, in any of our brochures or
elsewhere, we only promise to use reasonable skill and care as set out above and
we do not have any greater or different liability to you.
23. The promises we make to you about the services we have agreed to provide or
arrange as part of our contract and the laws and regulations of the country in which
your claim or complaint occurred will be used as the basis for deciding whether
the tour arrangements in question had been properly provided. If the particular
arrangements which gave rise to the claim or complaint complied with the then
applicable local laws and regulations, the services will be treated as having been
properly performed or provided. This will be the case even if the arrangements
did not comply with the laws and regulations of the UK which would have applied
had those arrangements been provided in the UK. The exception to this is where
the claim or complaint concerns the absence of a safety feature which might lead
a reasonable tour participant to refuse to take the tour in question. Please note,
however, our obligation is to exercise reasonable skill and care as referred to in
clause 20. We do not make any representation or commitment that all services will
comply with applicable local laws and regulations and failure to comply does not
automatically mean we have not exercised reasonable skill and care.
24. As set out in these booking conditions, we limit the maximum amount we may
have to pay you for any claims you may make against us. Where we are found
liable for loss of and/or damage to any luggage or personal possessions (including
money), the maximum amount we will have to pay you is £1,000 per person
affected unless a different limitation applies to your claim under this clause or
clause 25 below. For all other claims which do not involve death or personal injury,
Call us on 0808 296 3399 visit emeraldyachtcruises.co.uk or contact your local travel agent
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