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Sunsail Sailing Schools Booking Conditions

These Booking Conditions apply to any booking that you make with us and should therefore be read carefully. They contain some exclusions and limitations of liability. If any part of these Booking Conditions is found to be invalid or unenforceable, then the remainder of these Booking Conditions will not be affected and will remain valid and enforceable.

1. YOUR CONTRACT
Your contract is with Sunsail Ltd, The Port House, Port Solent, Portsmouth, PO6 4TH for courses outside of the UK and your contract is with Sunsail Worldwide Sailing Limited, The Port House, Port Solent, Portsmouth, PO6 4TH for any courses in the UK. When making your booking you guarantee that you have the authority to do so and accept on behalf of your party the terms of these booking conditions. When you or your travel agent make an enquiry about a booking, if we accept it we will book the course and send you a Booking Confirmation Form. It is upon the issue of this Confirmation that the contract between us exists. You should check the details of your Confirmation carefully to ensure that it accurately reflects the booking you have requested and immediately inform us of any discrepancies. If the departure date of the course is less than 14 days from the date of issue of the Booking Confirmation Form this should be done within 24 hrs of that date. Otherwise we would expect any outstanding information to be completed and returned on the Confirmation Form, or online as described on the Form within 7 working days. This information forms part of the contract between us. This contract will be governed by English law and dealt with by English courts. If however, you booked your course in Scotland or Northern Ireland any disputes may be dealt with in the local courts in Scotland or Northern Ireland and will be subject to the law of those countries. By accepting this Contract you, the Lead Name, are confirming that you and/or members of your party are capable and competent to participate in the booked course.

2. YOUR COURSE PRICE
The prices in this brochure are in pounds sterling. Prices are accurate at the date of publication, but could have since changed. Prices in this brochure supersede all other prices in other material printed at an earlier stage. Once you have made your booking and paid a deposit of £150 per person or £50 per person for the UK, the cost of your course will not normally be subject to any change. This does not apply to invoice errors or omissions. Once a booking has been made, offers and discounts cannot be applied retrospectively. The balance of the price of your course must be paid at least 10 weeks before your departure date. If the balance is not paid in time, we may cancel your booking and retain your deposit. If you book through an agent, all contact with you will be via them. If you make your deposit or balance payments with a credit card or charge card this will be subject to a 2% surcharge. (Capped at £50) This does not apply to payments made by cheque or debit card.

3. IF YOU CHANGE YOUR BOOKING
If, after our confirmation invoice has been issued, you wish to change your booking in any way, for example your chosen date or destination, we will do our utmost to make these changes, but it may not always be possible. If you or any member of your party is unable to proceed with the course, you can transfer the booking to a substitute person, providing they satisfy all the conditions applicable to the original booking and your request is received by us at least 14 days prior to departure. Any request for changes to be made must be in writing signed by the Lead Name or your travel agent. You will be asked to pay an administration charge of £20 per person and any further cost we incur in making this alteration. Please check whether your personal insurance will cover any changes or increased costs resulting from a change. Should you request a major alteration within 10 weeks of departure date (such as a change of date or area) then this will be treated as a cancellation and re-booking. For flight inclusive courses, clients wishing to add to a party after the initial booking will only be able to do so if sufficient flight seats are available. This should not be automatically assumed to be possible and you should ring the office to check first. The price of your course may increase or decrease to reflect the changes requested by you. For example, increasing the length of your course may mean that aircraft seats go empty and we may have to buy extra seats. We are not able to reserve flight seats without payment of deposit.
NB: Certain travel arrangements (e. g. Apex tickets) cannot be changed after a reservation has been made and any alteration will incur a 100% cancellation charge. Changes from a brochured booking to late availability or other special offers will not be permitted. Requests for changes to your booking should be sent to your travel agent, or if you booked directly with us, to our Sales Department.

4. IF YOU CANCEL YOUR COURSE
You or any member of your party may cancel your course arrangements at any time. Written notification from the Lead Name or your travel agent on your behalf must be received by our Sales Team. Cancellation will be effective on the date which it is received by Sunsail together with any travel documents already issued to you. Sunsail will then issue a cancellation invoice.
Note: If the reasons for your cancellation are covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges. Whole party cancellations accrue the charges as detailed in the next column.

 

Period before departure within which notice of cancellation or major changes is received by us.	Amount of cancellation charge
	Europe, UK & Med	Worldwide
+ 70 days	Deposit only	Deposit only
70 - 43 days	50% of total holiday cost	50% of total holiday cost
42 - 15 days	70% of total holiday cost	70% of total holiday cost
14 days and under	100% of total holiday cost	100% of total holiday cost

N.B. Certain travel arrangements (such as APEX tickets) incur a 100% cancellation fee which will be added to your cancellation fees.

5. IF WE CHANGE OR CANCEL YOUR COURSE
The arrangements for courses in this brochure are made many months in advance and it is sometimes inevitable that changes or cancellations may need to be made. We reserve the right to make such changes should they become necessary. Most of these changes will be minor and we will advise you or your travel agent of them at the earliest possible date. We also reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel your travel arrangements. For example, for some courses in this brochure a minimum number of people need to book to enable the course to take place. We shall assess whether the minimum number has been achieved and inform you as soon as possible. Occasionally we may need to make a major change which includes, but is not limited to the following:
a) a change of your UK departure airport
b) a significant change of destination
c) a change of accommodation to a significantly lower standard
d an alteration to your schedule time of departure or return by more than 12 hours; and
e) a change from a day to a night flight where the departure time changes by more than 4 hours

If we are unable to provide the booking and have to cancel any element before the course is due to start, you can either:
(a) Accept our offer of a replacement course of equivalent or higher value (subject to availability)
(b) Accept our offer of a replacement course of lower value (subject to availability) and we will refund the difference in cost
(c) Accept a full refund of the money you have paid.
(d) Allow Sunsail to hold over your monies for use on a future booking.
If you accept a major change, or if we have to cancel your course then in addition to any refund, we will pay you as a minimum, compensation in accordance with the amounts noted below. For children in respect of whom reduced rates have been charged, credit/compensation will be paid on a pro-rata basis of the adult rate. In all cases, except where the major change arises due to reasons of Force Majeure, we will pay compensation as detailed below:

Period before departure within which a major change is notified to you or your travel agent.	Compensation per person
More than 70 days	Nil
70 - 43 days	£10
42 - 15 days	£20
14 days and under	£40

No compensation will be paid where the change or cancellation is due to Force Majeure, or because the number of persons who have booked is less than that required for the package. Force Majeure means unforeseeable and unusual circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised. Such circumstances or events include (but are not limited to) war or threat of war, riot, civil strife, industrial dispute, unavoidable technical problems with transport, closure or congestion of airports, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear disaster, fire and adverse weather conditions. Carriers such as airlines detailed in the price list may be subject to change. Such a change is deemed to be a minor change.

Other examples of minor changes include: alteration of your outbound/inbound flights by less than 12 hours, changes to aircraft type and change of yacht to one of a similar size (within 2ft). If after you have travelled we have to make changes to your course and such changes prove to be significant, we will make suitable alternative arrangements and compensate you if appropriate. If it is impossible to make suitable alternative arrangements or these are not accepted by you for good reason we will return you to your point of departure and if appropriate compensate you.

6. COURSE TERMINATION AND INDEMNITY
You must accept responsibility for the proper conduct of yourself and any members of your party. Sunsail cannot be held responsible for under age consumption of alcohol. We reserve the right in our absolute discretion to terminate without further notice the course arrangements of any client who refuses to comply with the reasonable instructions or orders of the company staff, agent or other responsible person whose behaviour in their opinion is likely to cause distress, damage, danger or annoyance to other customers, staff, any third party or to property. Animals, restricted items and illegal goods will not be permitted on board. Upon such termination our responsibility for your course ceases and we shall not be liable for any extra costs incurred by you.

Disruptive passengers on overseas courses: The captain has authority over the aircraft and passengers at all times when they are boarding or on board. He/she may prevent you from travelling if you are considered to be unfit to do so, or if you pose a danger to the aircraft or passengers. The captain will exercise this right if, for example, you are found to be drunk before or after boarding, if you smoke on board or use threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour. In those circumstances, we or the airline may, at our reasonable discretion, terminate your holiday, and we will not be responsible for completing your booking arrangements. Nor will Sunsail or the airline be liable for any refund, compensations or any other costs you have to pay.

7. IF YOU HAVE A COMPLAINT
If you have a problem during your course, please inform a relevant member of Sunsail staff immediately, who will endeavour to put things right. If your complaint is not resolved locally, please follow this up within 35 days of your return home by writing to our Customer Relations Department, giving your booking reference. It is strongly suggested that you communicate any problem to our base staff without delay and complete a report whilst at the base. If you fail to follow this simple procedure we will have been deprived of the opportunity to investigate and rectify your complaint whilst you were on your course and this will reduce your rights to compensation.

8. OUR LIABILITY TO YOU
Subject to the limitation of liability set out below, our liability to you for any loss or damage which you may suffer (other than personal injury resulting from the non-performance or improper performance of the services involved in the course) is limited to three times the price of your course. Carriers (the providers of transport) have their own conditions of carriage which form part of your contract with us and these conditions of carriage, together with the provisions of certain international conventions, generally limit the liability of carriers. Copies of the conditions of carriage and the international conventions referred to are available on request from Sunsail or your travel agent. We accept responsibility for any death, bodily injury or illness caused to you as a result of the proven negligent acts and/or omissions of our employees, agents, suppliers and sub-contractors and their servants and/or agents while acting within the scope of, or in the course of, their employment. We also accept responsibility for any damage caused to you as a result of any failure to perform, or improper performance of the services we have agreed to provide to you, except where such failure or improper performance is not our fault or that of our suppliers because:
(a) such failure is attributable to you or a member of your party.
(b) such failure is attributable to a third party unconnected with the provision of the services to be provided to you and is unforeseeable or unavoidable.
(c) such failure is due to Force Majeure. (See the Definitions section in paragraph 5).
(d) or an event which could not be foreseen or prevented even with all due care. In respect of transport by aircraft, ship, train or coach or as a result of the use or operation of any pleasure craft, the amount of compensation we will pay is limited in line with the Montreal convention (transport by air), the Athens Convention (transport by ship), the Berne convention (transport by rail), the Geneva convention (transport by road), the London convention (applies to the use or operation of pleasure craft) and any other Conventions that might be applicable from time to time. Sunsail accepts no responsibility for the acts or omissions of its clients whether negligent or otherwise and shall not be held liable for any claims made against them (or as a result of their actions) either by other clients of Sunsail or third parties. Sunsail does not accept liability for losses that were actually unforeseeable to those involved at the time of booking, losses that were not caused by any breach on the part of Sunsail or its supplier and any business losses or similar to the client as a result of unforeseeable circumstances.

9. PERSONAL INJURY UNCONNECTED WITH YOUR BOOKED TRAVEL ARANGEMENTS
If you, or any member of your party, suffer death, illness or injury whilst overseas arising out of an activity which does not form part of your package travel arrangements or an excursion arranged through us, we shall at our discretion, offer advice, guidance and assistance. Where legal action is contemplated and you want our assistance, you must obtain our written consent prior to commencement of proceedings. Our consent will be given subject to you undertaking to assign any costs and benefits received under any relevant insurance policy to ourselves. We limit the cost of our assistance to you or any member of your party to £5,000. If your claim is successful then you must repay the amount of any financial assistance we have given you as soon as you recover it.

10. EQUIPMENT AND YACHT INSURANCE COVER
Our equipment and yachts are comprehensively insured. Our policy provides full cover for the equipment and yachts and no less than $10m US third party cover for your skipper and crew. Sunsail cannot be held responsible for any loss which you may suffer as a result of the insurers failing to indemnify any risk through you providing incorrect information of previous sailing experience when requested. Should damage or loss to yachts and equipment be caused as a result of wilful damage or gross negligence by a client, a client under the influence of alcohol or drugs or as a result of not obeying the company staff’s instructions, then he or she will be liable for the full amount of repair or replacement and any resulting costs. Adults will at all times be responsible for minors in their charge.

11. SAFETY
As with other activity based holidays, watersports activities contain an element of risk. It should be understood that participation in these activities is your decision and at your risk. The skipper of a yacht has primary responsibility for the safety of the crew and craft at all times. In the interests of safety, Sunsail’s staff may order a change to your itinerary, decide whether or not conditions are safe to use a craft or make a passage and whether this should be under power or sail. By accepting this contract you, the lead name is confirming that you and/or members of your booking are capable and competent to participate in the course.
The course participants must take note of safety information contained in any written material or delivered to the yacht and in chart briefings.

12. WHAT IF MY YACHT IS NOT AVAILABLE?
Should your yacht not be available when you arrive through no fault of Sunsail (e.g. having been damaged by a previous client) Sunsail may substitute another yacht if necessary of a different type and in a different area but of similar or larger dimensions and facilities. If a yacht is not available then accommodation will be provided for you free of charge in a hotel of Sunsail’s choice while repairs are carried out or an alternative yacht is provided. Should this happen you will be compensated under the “Sunsail Four Hour Guarantee”.

13. CONDITIONS OF CARRIAGE
The contractual terms of the companies that provide the transportation for your travel arrangements will apply to the contract. These may contain terms which affect your rights to compensation. You must comply with the conditions of carriage applied by land, sea and air carriers. The provisions of the Warsaw Convention 1929 (as amended) concerning the carriage of passengers and their luggage by air, and the airlines’ conditions of carriage, may apply to you and your party during your flight, and during boarding and disembarkation. These provisions and conditions may limit or exclude liability for death or personal injury, or loss of or damage to luggage, and may make special provisions for valuables. We will supply a copy of the conditions of carriage applicable to your holiday, and of the Warsaw Convention, if you request them. The Athens Convention, and the carriers’ conditions of carriage, may limit or exclude liability for death or personal injury, or loss of or damage to luggage, and make special provisions for valuables. A copy of the conditions of carriage applicable to your holiday, and the Athens Convention referred to above, can be supplied on request.

14. PHOTOGRAPHY
An essential part of the success of our brochures is using photography that gives clients a true idea of the product, rather than using models. Photographers are occasionally in our cruising areas. If you have any strong objections to close up photography of yourself and your party, please indicate your feelings to the photographer at the time.

15. BROCHURE ACCURACY
The brochure is prepared from information gathered prior to publication. Every care is taken to ensure that this information is still correct at the time of going to press (December 2006) but it has to be remembered that facilities may be withdrawn from Sunsail and booking particulars altered as a result. These circumstances are regrettably beyond our control and we are unable to accept liability. Our Yachts Reservations Team are instructed to advise enquirers of amendments which the company regard as significant. Sunsail shall be entitled to make any modifications it feels appropriate to the routes, yachts and the equipment provided at any time, without prior notice. Our Yachts Reservations Team are often asked for information not contained in the brochure. However, whilst every effort is made to ensure that all information given is correct, Sunsail cannot however be held responsible if this should prove inaccurate, unless requested and answered in writing. Building work: From time to time, expansion, redevelopment, building work and associated noise is unavoidable at our bases. Wherever possible we will notify you in advance and if we consider the work will have a significant effect on the enjoyment of your charter, you will be entitled to exercise the options outlined in the section headed “If we Change or Cancel your Charter”.

16. DATA PROTECTION
To ensure that your course runs smoothly, we need to use information such as your name and address, special needs, dietary requirements, etc. We will apply appropriate security measures to protect this data. However, we must pass it to suppliers of your travel arrangements, including airlines, hotels and transport companies. We may also supply it to security or credit checking companies, and to public authorities such as customs and immigration. If your charter is outside the European Economic Area (EEA), controls on data protection in your destination may not be as strict as in the UK. We will only pass data, including sensitive information regarding disabilities or dietary and religious requirements, to people responsible for your holiday arrangements. If we cannot pass this information to the relevant suppliers, in the EEA or elsewhere, we cannot provide your booking. When you make this booking, you consent to this information being passed to the relevant people. We can supply a copy of your information held by us; there is a small charge for providing this.

We may wish to contact you to get your feedback or to provide details of other products and offers from Sunsail and our sister companies. If you would prefer not to be contacted, please write to: Sunsail Database, The Port House, Port Solent, Portsmouth PO6 4TH.

NOTICE OF LIABILITY LIMITATIONS
This is a notice required by European Community Regulation (EC) No. 889/2002. This notice cannot be used as a basis for a claim for compensation, nor to interpret the provisions of the Montreal Convention or the Regulation. It does not form part of the contract between the carrier(s) and you and no representation is made as to the accuracy of the contents of this notice.

Compensation in the case of death or injury
There are no financial limits to the liability for passenger injury or death. For damages up to 100000 SDRs (approximately £80,000) the air carrier cannot contest claims for compensation. Above that amount, the air carrier can defend itself against a claim by proving that it was not negligent or otherwise at fault.

Advance payments
If a passenger is killed or injured, the air carrier must make an advance payment, to cover immediate economic needs, within 15 days from the identification of the person entitled to compensation. In the event of death, this advance payment shall not be less than 16000 SDRs (approximately £13,000).

Passenger delays
In case of passenger delay, the air carrier is liable for damage unless it took all reasonable measures to avoid the damage or it was impossible to take such measures. The liability for passenger delay is limited to 4150 SDRs (approximately £3,300)

Baggage delays.
In case of baggage delay, the air carrier is liable for damage unless it took all reasonable measures to avoid the damage or it was impossible to take such measures. The liability for baggage delay is limited to 1000 SDRs (approximately £800).

Destruction, loss or damage to baggage
The air carrier is liable for destruction, loss or damage to baggage up to 1000 SDRs (approximately £800). In the case of checked baggage, it is liable even if not at fault, unless the baggage was defective. In the case of unchecked baggage, the carrier is liable only if at fault.

Higher limits for baggage
A passenger can benefit from a higher liability limit by making a special declaration at the latest at check-in and by paying a supplementary fee.

Complaints on baggage
If the baggage is damaged, delayed, lost or destroyed, the passenger must write and complain to the air carrier as soon as possible. In the case of damage to checked baggage, the passenger must write and complain within seven days, and in the case of delay within 21 days, in both cases from the date on which the baggage was placed at the passenger’s disposal.

Liability of contracting and actual carriers
If the air carrier actually performing the flight is not the same as the contracting air carrier, the passenger has the right to address a complaint or to make a claim for damages against either.

If the name or code of an air carrier is indicated on the ticket, that air carrier is the contracting air carrier.

Time limit for action
Any action in court to claim damages must be brought within two years from the date of arrival of the aircraft, or from the date on which the aircraft ought to have arrived.

Basis for the information
The basis for the rules described above is the Montreal Convention of 28 May 1999, which is implemented in the Community by Regulation SP. (EC) No 2027/97 (as amended by Regulation (EC) No 889/2002) and national legislation of the Member States.