Terms & Conditions 2019
Summary of Payment Requirements:
- Deposit payment of 33% on booking, balance payable six weeks before arrival.
- Full amount due on booking, if booking within six weeks of arrival.
- Returnable damages deposit of £250 required before arrival (can be enabled on card).
1. General
1.1 House By The Beach is the trading name of Sally and Mike Dyer. The company is based at House by the Beach, Gorran Haven, Cornwall, UK.
1.2 Customers renting property through House by the Beach are referred to as 'the Guest'.
1.3 House by the Beach acts as agent for the owners of the property (hereafter referred to as 'the Owners' or 'the Owner'). The rental arrangements are made by House by the Beach, on behalf of the Owners and the contractual relationship is directly between the Owners of the property and the Guest.
1.4 House by the Beach will, on request, provide the name and address of the Owners of any property which the Guest has booked.
2. Duration of rental
2.1 Rentals are for a maximum of four weeks and commence at 4pm on the first day of the rental and end at 10am on the day of departure unless otherwise notified. This period is hereafter referred to as 'the Holiday'.
2.2 The period booked will be stated on the Booking Confirmation provided to the Guest when they book and cannot be exceeded unless House by the Beach give written approval. The Guest will be liable for any cost of whatever nature incurred because of an unauthorised extension.
3. Deposit
3.1 If a booking is made six weeks or more before the Holiday is due to start, a deposit of one-third of the rent is payable.
3.2 If a booking is made less than six weeks before the Holiday is due to start, the full rent, plus any additional charges, must be paid at the time of booking.
3.3 Should House by the Beach not accept or reject a booking request, the rent and any additional charges paid by the Guest will be refunded immediately.
4. Final Payment
4.1 Unless otherwise agreed by House by the Beach in writing, the price for the Holiday shall be the rent for the property as set out on the House by the Beach Web site at the time of the booking.
4.2 Subject to condition 6, as soon as the booking is received and accepted by House by the Beach, the Guest is liable for payment of the balance of the rent, along with any additional charges.
4.3 Payment of the rent and additional charges are payable to House by the Beach six weeks before the start of the Holiday ('the Due Date') and non-payment by the Due Date may be treated as a cancellation.
4.4 If payment is not received by the Due Date, then the Guest will lose their booking and the deposit will be forfeit.
4.5 House by the Beach shall not be responsible for sending reminders of the Due Date. The Due Date will be set out on the Booking Confirmation.
5. Changing a Booking
5.1 Once a booking has been accepted by House by the Beach, the booking can only be changed to another property by treating the original booking as a cancellation (see condition 6).
5.2 The dates of the Holiday may be changed providing the property is available for the new dates and the Owners accept the change.
6. Cancellation
6.1 A booking can only be cancelled prior to the start of the Holiday.
6.2 A Guest who wishes to cancel the Holiday must notify House by the Beach in writing (‘Cancellation Notice’).
6.3 In the event that a cancellation is made, then a cancellation charge is payable depending on the number of days before the Holiday start date the Cancellation Notice is received by House by the Beach. The amount payable is set out below:
Number of days before Holiday start date that notification is received Cancellation Charge (as a percentage of the rental cost of the Holiday):
0 - 13 days 100%
14 - 27 days 75%
28 - 55 days 60%
56 days or more Deposit
7. Optional Extras
Where the property being rented has optional extras, they are listed on the Website and will be charged at the rates shown.
8. Discounts
Discounts may be available during the off peak seasons or for late bookings.
9. Price Changes
House by the Beach reserves the right to amend prices quoted on the Web site due to errors or omissions but such changes shall be notified to the Guest as soon as possible and the Guest shall be able to cancel the booking if the amended price is significantly higher than the original price quoted.
10. Method of Payment
10.1 Payments may be made by cheque, Postal order, electronic bank transfer, Paypal or cash.
10.2 Cheques or postal orders should be made payable to 'House by the Beach' and can only be accepted up to two weeks prior to the holiday.
10.3 Cash should always be sent by special delivery post. Post-dated cheques are not acceptable. Any charges raised against House by the Beach by their bank for handling dishonoured cheques, bank transfers or any other payments will be passed on to the Guest who is liable to reimburse House by the Beach within seven days of receipt of notification from House by the Beach.
10.4 All payments by Paypal will attract a surcharge of 3% of the transaction value which is non-refundable.
11. Overseas Bookings
Overseas Guests may pay in Sterling by cheque drawn on a UK bank, or by international electronic transfer. Any charges for payments from overseas will be passed on to the Guest.
12. Eligibility
We reserve the right to refuse bookings from:
1. groups of three or more single people under the age of 18;
2. all male or all female parties of more than four people.
13. The Holiday
The Guest has the right to occupy the property for a holiday only (within the meaning of Schedule 1, Paragraph 9 of the Housing Act 1988).
14. The guests obligations
The Guest agrees:
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1. to pay for all gas, electricity, fuel and telephone charges incurred during the Holiday unless included in the rent;
2. to pay for any losses or damages to the property caused by the Guest or a member of their party (reasonable wear and tear excluded), unless the cost of making good such loss or damage can be fully recovered under any householder's insurance policies maintained by the Owners;
3. to take good care of the property and leave it in a clean and tidy condition at the end of the Holiday. A cleaning service is not provided during the Holiday unless otherwise specified. Should the Owner be dissatisfied with the condition of the property upon the Guest's departure, they may refuse to take a booking from that Guest again. If a Guest is excluded from two or more properties by different Owners, then House by the Beach have the right to refuse any more bookings from that Guest, at any other property;
4. to permit the Owners and House by the Beach reasonable access to the property;
5. not to part with possession of the property, or share it, except with members of the party shown on the Booking Form;
6. not to sell or transfer the booking to another party without House by the Beach' agreement;
7. not to exceed the total number of people stipulated in the property description – a cot may only be occupied by a child aged 24 months or less;
8. not to cause an annoyance or become a nuisance to occupants of adjoining premises;
9. not to smoke at a non-smoking property.
10. not to exceed broadband download rate if requested by owner.
15. Non Availability of Property
If for any reason beyond the Owners’ control the property is not available on the date booked (owing, for example, to fire damage) or the property becomes unsuitable for holiday letting, all rent and charges paid in advance by the Guest will be refunded.
16. Liability
16.1 House by the Beach will not be liable for any act, neglect or default on the part of the Owners or any other person not within their employ or otherwise under their control, nor for any accident, damage, loss, injury, expense or inconvenience, whether to person or property, which the Guest or any other person may suffer or incur arising out of, or in any way connected with the rental unless House by the Beach is responsible. In addition, the Owners and House by the Beach accept no liability for loss of or damage to the Guest's possessions on the Owners' property or land.
16.2 Nothing in these conditions excludes or limits the liability of House by the Beach or the Owners:
1. for death or personal injury caused by House by the Beach' or the Owners’ negligence;
2. for any matter which it would be illegal for House by the Beach or the Owners to exclude or attempt to exclude their liability.
16.3 Failure of Technology - House by the Beach and the property owners cannot guarentee that external services such as broadband, telephone and television reception will be available and will not be liable for their failure. On rare occasions where there is a failure, every effort will be made to ensure service is restored at the earliest time but external faults (eg. BT line problems) may not be restorable during the holiday and are beyond our control.
17. Website Descriptions
Some of the information on this Website relates to matters beyond the properties such as shops and public houses. Closure of such premises and other changes to external facilities are outside House by the Beachs' control. If House by the Beach is aware of any material changes to the Web site at the time of the Guest's booking, then it shall endeavour to inform the Guest of these changes.
18. Complaints
18.1 All complaints must be notified to House by the Beach as soon as reasonably practicable, as House by the Beach may be required to carry out an on-the-spot investigation and if necessary, request the Owner to take remedial action. Guests have a legal obligation to mitigate their loss.
18.2 If House by the Beach or the Owners are denied the opportunity of investigating the complaint within a reasonable time or denied the opportunity to put matters right during the Holiday, then the guest will waive all rights.
19. Pets
19.1 Pets are only permitted with the prior consent of House by the Beach and the Owners and where pets are permitted, they are to be kept under control and exercised off the premises.
19.2 Pets are not permitted in the bedrooms or on the furniture and neither House by the Beach nor the Owners can accept responsibility for their safety. Pets must not be left in the property unsupervised as this can result in considerable damage to the property and distress to the pet. A weekly charge will be made for each pet.
19.3 Where the description of a property states 'Regret no pets' or otherwise restricts the keeping of pets at the property, House by the Beach or the Owners cannot guarantee that there have been no pets previously kept at the property.
20. Inventory
Where an inventory is provided, any discrepancies are to be reported to the Owner or the Housekeeper within 24 hours of arrival, otherwise the inventory will be deemed to be correct.
21. Bed Linens and Towels
Linen and towels are changed between Holidays and a fresh set may provided weekly during Holidays on request.
22. VAT
Many of the Owners of properties on the House by the Beach Website are not registered for VAT, in which case no tax is payable. Where VAT is payable the tax is included in the weekly rent.
23. Breach of Contract
23.1 If there is a breach of any of these conditions by the Guest or any of their party, the Owners or House by the Beach reserve the right to re-enter the property and end the Holiday and ask the Guest and their party to leave.
23.2 If there is a breach of any of these conditions by House by the Beach or the Owners, then the Guests have the right to end the Holiday and leave.
23.3 Ending the Holiday by either House by the Beach, the Owner or the Guest does not affect that party's other rights and remedies.
24. Governing Law and Jurisdiction
Any dispute will be governed by the non-exclusive law and jurisdiction of the English or Scottish Courts.
25. Authority to Sign
The person who completes the Booking Form certifies that:
1. he or she is authorised to agree the Booking Conditions on behalf of all persons included on the Booking Form, including those substituted or added at a later date;
2. the signatory is over eighteen years of age;
3. they agree to take responsibility for the party occupying the property, and to notify House by the Beach if they are not a member of that party.
26. Discrepencies
In case of a discrepancy between these Booking Conditions and any other contents of a House by the Beach Web site, these Conditions shall prevail, but this shall not limit House by the Beachs' liability for failure to supply the accommodation as described on the Web site.
27. Previous Websites
This Web site and these Booking Conditions replace and supersede all previous Web sites and Booking Conditions.
28. Validity Clause
In the event that a court finds that a condition in these Booking Conditions is illegal or void, the illegal or void provision will be severed from the remainder of the Booking Conditions, which will continue to be valid and have full force and effect.