Terms & Conditions
Reader Offers Ltd (“ROL”)’s Booking Terms and Conditions
THESE BOOKING CONDITIONS APPLY ONLY IF YOUR INVOICE SHOWS ROL/ATOL OR ROL TOURS. AT ALL OTHER TIMES THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE CRUISE LINE/SUPPLIER ROL – TOUR OPERATOR
IMPORTANT BOOKING CONDITIONS, PLEASE READ
1. CONTRACT
Your contract is with Readers Offers Ltd, company number 03036965 whose registered address is 4th Floor, 5-7 John Prince’s Street, London W1G 0JN. A contract will exist when we have accepted a deposit and issued our confirmation invoice. These Booking Conditions, together with any other information brought to your attention before you booked your package, form the basis of your contract.
Please read them carefully as they set out our respective rights and obligations and all bookings are accepted by us subject to these Booking Conditions. In these Booking Conditions references to “we” and “us” mean Reader Offers Ltd and "you" and "your" include the lead-named person on the confirmation invoice (who must be at least 18 years old at the time of booking) and all persons on whose behalf a booking is made.
We reserve the right to make changes to the details contained in any brochure or on our website before a contract is entered into. Any such changes will be communicated to you before a binding contract is concluded.
2. BOOKING CONFIRMATION AND YOUR RESPONSIBILITY
As the majority of bookings are made over the phone, there is a possibility that you or we could misinterpret what was said. Consequently we will send confirmation directly to you by post, fax or e-mail. The confirmation will contain the names of the Passengers, which MUST be correctly spelt (including the initial or first name), the dates and time of travel, departure and arrival cities and other relevant information.
As a condition of this contract, you are required to carefully check your written confirmation to ensure that it is correct and exactly matches what you booked. If it is not you are required to contact us within 24 hours of receiving your confirmation to inform us of any inaccuracy, and take a note of whom you reported it to. If you do not follow this procedure you have deprived us the opportunity of taking prompt corrective action and any consequential loss shall be your sole responsibility.
3. DEPOSIT AND PAYMENT
A non-refundable deposit of 25% of full booking value per person is required at the time of booking. Travel insurance must be paid for in full at time of booking in addition to the above deposit. Full payment must be received at least 13 weeks before departure or 18 weeks if World Cruise or sector of World Cruise. If the balance is not paid in time, we reserve the right to cancel the booking and retain the deposit.
The Cancellation Charges set out in Clause 8 will apply to the booking. All reservations made less than 13 weeks (18 weeks World Cruise and World Cruise sectors) prior to departure require full payment at the time of booking. Some promotional airfares will require full and non-refundable immediate payment in which cases you will be advised when booking.
4. ABTA
We are a member of ABTA, membership number W6277. We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct. We can also offer you an arbitration scheme for the resolution of disputes arising out of, or in connection with this contract. Further information on the Code and arbitration can be found at www.abta.com/consumer-services
5. PRICES AND SURCHARGES
Whilst we make every effort to avoid amending prices, we reserve the right to do so before your contract is confirmed. Changes in transportation costs, including the cost of fuel, dues, taxes or fees chargeable for services such as landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports and airports and exchange rates mean that the price of your travel arrangements may change after you have booked. However there will be no change within 30 days of your departure.
We will absorb and you will not be charged for any increase equivalent to 2% of the price of your travel arrangements, which excludes insurance premiums and any amendment charges. You will be charged for the amount over and above that, plus an administration charge of £1.00 per person together with an amount to cover agents’ commission. If this means that you have to pay an increase of more than 10% of the price of your travel arrangements, you will have the option of accepting a change to another holiday if we are able to offer one (if this is of equivalent or higher quality you will not have to pay more but if it is of lower quality you will be refunded the difference in price), or cancelling and receiving a full refund of all monies paid, except for any amendment charges and insurance.
We will consider an appropriate refund of insurance premiums paid if you can show that you are unable to transfer or reuse your policy. Should you decide to cancel for this reason, you must exercise your right to do so within 14 days from the issue date printed on your final invoice. Should the price of your holiday go down due to the changes mentioned above, by more than 2% of your holiday cost, then any refund due will be paid to you. However, please note that travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of your travel due to contractual and other protection in place.
6. YOUR FINANCIAL PROTECTION
We provide full financial protection for you through ATOL and ABTA. In the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA or ABTA will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and will arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking. For further information visit www.atol.org.uk and www.abta.com When you buy an ATOL protected air holiday package (and/or flights) from us, you will receive a Confirmation Invoice from us (or via our authorised agent through which you booked) confirming your arrangements and your protection under our Air Travel Organiser’s Licence (6010).
7. CHANGES MADE BY YOU
Should you wish to change any of the details of your booking after we have confirmed it, we will do our best to help, however we may not always be able to meet your request and we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Requests for changes should be made by the person who made the booking. Whenever requested changes are possible, the total itinerary costs will be recalculated, taking account into any seasonal flight or occupancy rates, cancellation charges or other supplements and a revised invoice will be issued. Additionally we will charge you £25 per person, per change up to a maximum of £100 per booking. Please note that changes to flights are often treated as cancellations by airlines.
Dependent on the flights booked, you may not be able to make any changes after we have confirmed the booking without you having to pay the full cost of the tickets originally booked. Where we are unable to assist you and you do not wish to proceed with the original booking we will treat this as a cancellation by you and cancellation fees will be payable.
8. CANCELLATIONS MADE BY YOU
Notice of cancellation must be made in writing directly to us. Your notice of cancellation will only take effect on the day it is received in writing at our offices. We recommend that you use recorded delivery, upon receipt of which the following cancellation charges will apply:
| World Cruise and World Cruise Sectors | Other | ||
| 126 days or more | Loss of Deposit | 91 days or more | Loss of deposit |
| 125 - 58 days | 50% of total arrangement | 90 - 45 days | 50% of total arrangement |
| 57 - 0 days | 100% of total arrangement | 44 - 30 days | 80% of total arrangement |
| 29 - 0 days | 100% of total arrangement | ||
Refunds, where applicable, are subject to the immediate return of all travel documents, such as tickets and vouchers. Unused services such as, but not limited to, insurance premiums, certain airfares partially used car rental or accommodation, are NON REFUNDABLE.
In addition to the charges shown above, many air tickets have no refund value whatsoever and therefore airlines may impose 100% cancellation charges and the costs of a new ticket. You will also be liable for these charges. We recommend that you take out appropriate travel insurance to cover such charges as you may be able to claim back the cancellation fees if the cancellation is covered by a suitable insurance policy.
9. CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS BY US
On occasion it may be necessary to amend or cancel your arrangements, which we reserve the right to do at any time. ‘Minor’ changes, if they occur, may not necessarily be advised and will not qualify for compensation. In the case of ’significant changes’ we will inform you as soon as is reasonably possible, if there is time before your departure.
A major change is one that we make to your arrangements before departure, such as changing your departure airport (except between Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stansted) dependent upon particular circumstances, or a difference of more than 12 hours in departure times, or a change in your cruise ship, resort area or an offer of a lower classification cabin or hotel accommodation. In these cases you have a choice of:
a) Accepting the changed arrangements as notified to you. b) Transferring to an alternative booking if we are able to offer one (please note that the price may differ from the original booking.) or c) Cancelling your arrangements and receiving a full refund.
You must notify us of your choice within 7 days of our offer of the alternative booking arrangements. If you fail to do so we will assume that you have chosen to accept the alternative booking arrangements.
In no case, except for reasons of force majeure or failure on your part to pay the final balance, will your booking be cancelled less than 13/18 weeks before departure. If, however, your booking is cancelled less than 13/18 weeks before departure, compensation will be payable as set out below. In addition, we will offer alternative arrangements of a comparable standard if available, or return all monies paid. (18 weeks relates to World Cruise or World Cruise sectors).
The above options are not available where any change is minor or where the changes or cancellation by us arises out of alterations to the confirmed booking requested by you. In addition if we make a significant change or cancel your booking within 91 days before departure we will pay you compensation in accordance with the with the scale and provisions set out below, subject to the following exceptions: no compensation can be paid where we are forced to make a change or cancellation as a result of an unusual or unforeseeable circumstance beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised. Such circumstances may include, but are not limited to those listed under ‘force majeure’ at clause 12 below. Period before scheduled departure within which a major change is notified to you.
Compensation per person:
| World Cruise and World Cruise Sectors | Normal | ||
| 126 days or more | Nil | 91 days or more | Nil |
| 125 - 58 days | £20 | 90 - 30 days | £20 |
| 57 - 0 days | £30 | 29 - 0 days | £30 |
10. IDENTITY OF CARRIER
In accordance with EU Regulation 2111/2005 we are required to advise you of the actual carrier operating your flight/connecting flight/transfer. We can confirm the carrier as detailed on the confirmation invoice.
Any changes to the actual airline after you have received your tickets will be notified to you as soon as possible and in all cases at check-in or at the boarding gate. Such a change is deemed to be a minor change for the purposes of clause 9 above.
11. FLIGHTS
a) Details of the relevant aircraft operator, routing and destination will be given to you before your booking is confirmed. Please note however, that it is sometimes necessary to change the carrier, aircraft type, routing (e.g. from direct non-stop to indirect with stops) after you book and, if this happens, you will not be entitled to cancel without penalty nor will compensation be paid.
b) As between you and any airline, the airline’s standard conditions of carriage will apply which may limit the airline’s liability to you in certain circumstances. Airlines rescheduling, flight timings and aircraft are subject to such matters as regulatory control, maintenance requirements, weather conditions and the ability of passengers to check in on time.
In the event of delay, responsibility for making special arrangements will rest with the airline concerned and the company will not be in a position to assist you. In extreme cases you may be entitled to compensation under your insurance policy. You are strongly recommended to contact the airline before commencing each flight to reconfirm its departure time.
Please note that a flight described as "direct" will not necessarily be non-stop. All departure/arrival times are provided by the airlines concerned and are estimates only. They may change due to air traffic control restrictions, weather conditions, operational/maintenance requirements and the requirement for passengers to check in on time. We cannot be held liable if there is any change to a departure/ arrival time previously given to you or shown on your ticket. It is for this reason that all clients are required to reconfirm their flights, with the airline, 72 hours prior to departure.
We are also unable to make any special arrangements for the client if the client is delayed; these matters are in the sole discretion of the airline concerned. When you receive your tickets and travel documents you should check them carefully as times may have changed since you made your booking.
You should also check for any errors. The information on the ticket is deemed correct unless we are advised by you of any errors within 72 hours of receipt. You must check in at least two hours before the stated departure time. We will not be liable for any costs you have to pay if you fail to meet this deadline.
12. FORCE MAJEURE
We cannot accept liability or pay compensation where the performance and/or prompt performance of our contractual obligations to you is prevented by or affected by "force majeure". In these Booking Conditions "force majeure" means any event which we or the supplier(s) of the service(s) in question could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. Such events are likely to include but are not limited to cancellation of a special event by the organisers, industrial dispute, terrorist activity, natural, nuclear, chemical or biological disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions, and all similar events outside our control.
13. PASSPORT, VISA AND IMMIGRATION REQUIREMENTS AND HEALTH FORMALITIES
It is your responsibility to fulfil the passport, visa and other immigration requirements applicable to your itinerary. We can provide general information about the passport and visa requirements for your trip. Your specific passport and visa requirements and other immigration requirements for you and your party are your responsibility and you should confirm these with the relevant Embassies and/or Consulates.
We can provide general information about any health formalities required for your trip but you should check with your own doctor for your own specific circumstances. We do not accept any responsibility if you cannot travel, or incur any other loss because you have not complied with any passport, visa, immigration requirements or health formalities. You agree to indemnify us in relation to any costs which we incur as a result of your failure to comply with any passport, visa, immigration requirements or health formalities.
Most countries now require passports to be valid for at least 6 months after your return date. If your passport is in its final year, you should check with the Embassy of the country you are visiting. Special conditions apply for travel to the USA, and all passengers must have individual machine readable passports. Please check www.usembassy.org.uk
For further information contact the Passport Office on 0870 5210410 or visit www.passport.gov.uk
It is your responsibility to check visa requirements for your destination. Up to date travel advice can be obtained from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, visit www.fco.gov.uk
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) provide up to date information on safety issues worldwide, visit www.fco.gov.uk/knowbeforeyougo
Non British Citizens, including other EU nationals, should contact the Embassy, High Commission or Consulate of your destination, for up to date advice on passport requirements.
14. HOW TO MAKE A COMPLAINT AND ARBITRATION
If you have a problem during your holiday, please inform the relevant supplier (e.g. your cruise line or hotelier) or our local agent/representative immediately who will endeavour to put things right, failing this please call us on +44 (0)1206 866863.
If your complaint is not resolved locally, please follow this up within 28 days of your return home by writing to our Client Services Department at Lexden House, London Road, Lexden, Colchester CO3 4DB, giving your booking reference and all other relevant information. Please keep your letter concise and to the point. This will assist us to quickly identify your concerns and speed up our response to you.
It is strongly recommended that you communicate any complaint to the supplier of the services in question as well as to our representative without delay and complete a report form whilst in resort.
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 in resort and this may affect your rights under this contract.
The arbitration scheme is arranged by ABTA and administered independently by IDRS, part of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. It provides for a simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on documents alone with restricted liability on you in respect of costs. Full details will be provided on request or can be obtained from www.abta.com
The Scheme does not apply to claims for an amount greater than £5,000 per person. There is also a limit of £25,000 per booking form.
Neither does it apply to claims which are solely in respect of physical injury or illness or their consequences. The Scheme can however deal with compensation claims which include an element of minor injury or illness subject to a limit of £1,000 on the amount the arbitrator can award per person in respect of this element.
The application for arbitration and Statement of Claim must be received by IDRS within nine months of the date of return from the holiday. Outside this time limit arbitration under the Scheme may still be available if the company agrees, but the ABTA Code does not require such agreement.
For injury and illness claims, you may like to use the ABTA / Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Mediation Procedure. This is a voluntary scheme and requires us to agree for mediation to go ahead. The aim is to help you resolve your dispute in a quick and cost effective way. Details on request or from www.abta.com
15. INFANTS
Please note that in accordance with Air Navigation orders, infants must be under 2 years of age on the date of their return flight, to qualify for infant status.
16. OUR OBLIGATIONS TO YOU
(a) Subject to the Clause set out in this agreement, we accept responsibility for ensuring that your travel arrangements, which you book with us, are supplied as described on our website or in our brochures. If, after departure, any part of your travel arrangements are not provided as promised, due to the fault of our employees, agents or suppliers, we will pay you appropriate compensation, if this has affected the enjoyment of your travel arrangements. However, our liability in all cases shall be limited to a maximum of twice the value of the element not supplied excluding flights. The level of such compensation will taking into account all relevant factors including the invoice price of the tour, any steps it was reasonable for the client to take to minimise the inconvenience or damage suffered and the extent to which the deficiency or improper performance can have affected the client's enjoyment of the package.
(b) Please note that we will not be liable for any injury, illness, or death or consequent losses suffered by you or any member of your party, unless you are able to prove that such injury or illness was caused by lack of reasonable care and skill on the part of ourselves or our suppliers in the performance of our obligations under our contract with you. It is a condition of the payment of compensation that you notify us of any complaint or claim strictly in accordance with clause 14 and, further, assign to us any rights that you may have against any third party in connection with your claim. You must co-operate with us and our insurers in this regard. If you suffer a personal injury, death or serious difficulties as the result of an activity which does not form part of the package you booked with us - including for example any additional services or facilities provided to you by a hotel or any other supplier which was not included as part of the original contract between us – we will not be liable to pay the client any compensation but will offer you such advice and guidance as is reasonable in all the circumstances provided we are advised of the incident within 90 days of the occurrence. We will not be responsible where you do not enjoy the holiday or suffer any other problems because of a reason which you did not make us aware of when the holiday was booked.
(c) And in all claims of whatever nature we will not be liable where the alleged loss or damage results from any of the following:
i. the fault of the person(s) affected or any members(s) of their party or ii. the fault of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday which we could not have predicted or avoided or iii. an event or circumstances which we or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not have predicted or avoided even after taking all reasonable care or iv. the fault of anyone who was not carrying out work for us (generally or in particular) at the time. Important notice in respect of limits on liability In respect of international travel by air, sea and rail, the extent of our liability will in all cases be limited as if we were carriers under the appropriate conventions, which include The Warsaw/Montreal Convention (international travel by air); The Athens Convention (with respect to sea travel); The Berne/Cotif Convention (with respect to rail travel) and The Paris Convention (with respect to accommodation arrangements).
You can ask for copies of these Conventions from our offices, please contact us. In addition, you agree that the operating carrier or transport company's own 'Conditions of Carriage' will apply to you on that journey. When arranging transportation for you, we rely on the terms and conditions contained within these international conventions and those 'Conditions of Carriage'. You acknowledge that all of the terms and conditions contained in those 'Conditions of Carriage' form part of your contract with us, as well as with the transport company and that those 'Conditions of Carriage' shall be deemed to be included by reference into this contract.
The promises we give to you regarding the services we have agreed to provide or arrange as part of the contract, and the laws and regulations of the country in which your claim or complaint occurred, shall be used as the basis for ascertaining whether or not the services in question have been properly provided. If the services in question which caused the claim or complaint complied with the local laws and regulations applicable to those services at that time, the services shall be treated as having been properly provided. Such shall be the case even if the services did not comply with the laws and regulations of the UK which would have applied if those services had been provided in the UK.
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 and your party is £25 per person in total. We strongly recommend that you and your party take out adequate travel insurance for your particular needs whilst on holiday and for the purpose of these Booking Conditions you and your party are assumed to have done so.
You can ask for copies of the transport companies' contractual terms, or the international conventions, from our offices at Lexden House, London Road, Lexden, Colchester CO3 4DB, Tel: 0845 458 1697.
17. PROMPT ASSISTANCE IN RESORT
If the contract we have with you is not performed or is improperly performed as a result of failures attributable to a third party unconnected with the provision of the services, or as a result of failures due to unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised, or an event which we or our suppliers, even with all due care, could not foresee or forestall, and you suffer an injury or other material loss, we will offer you such prompt assistance as is reasonable in the circumstances. If you or any member of your party suffers illness, injury or death arising during your contracted package arrangements we will, subject to our absolute discretion, advise and provide you and/or your party with reasonable advice and assistance.
18. SPECIAL REQUESTS
Requests for adjacent or non-smoking rooms, etc. should be made at the time of booking. Whilst making every effort to obtain such facilities, we cannot guarantee their provision and such requests form no part of the contract. To eliminate error, specific airline seating arrangements, meal requests and any wheelchair requests should be made by passengers at the time of booking. It should be noted that your air ticket provides you with transport from your city of departure to the city of arrival and is no guarantee of a particular seat aboard which the airline reserves the right to change, even after confirmation.
19. INSURANCE
It is a condition of your contract with us that you have insurance cover for the duration of your trip, and that it is adequate for your needs and the type of activities you will be undertaking as part of your holiday. We would be pleased to offer you a policy but if you choose to arrange your own insurance, please ensure that it provides adequate cover. We do not check insurance policies; however we reserve the right to request written details (insurer’s name, policy number and emergency contact number) of your policy. You are responsible for indemnifying us in full in the event that we incur any losses or expenses arising out of your failure to take out adequate insurance cover.
20. CUTTING YOUR HOLIDAY SHORT (CURTAILMENT)
If you are forced to return home early, we cannot refund the cost of any services you have not used, but you may be covered by your travel insurance. If you cut short your holiday and return home early in circumstances where you have no reasonable cause for complaint about the standard of accommodation and services provided, we will not offer you any refund for that part of your holiday not completed, or assist with any associated costs you may incur. Depending on the circumstances, your travel insurance may offer cover for curtailment and we suggest that any claim is made directly with them.
21. BEHAVIOUR
All guests are expected to conduct themselves in an orderly and acceptable manner and not to disrupt the enjoyment of other guests. If in our opinion or in the opinion of any other person in authority, your behaviour or that of any member of your party is causing or is likely to cause distress, danger or annoyance to any of our other guests or any third party or damage to property, we reserve the right to terminate your booking arrangements with us immediately. In the event of such termination our liability to you and/or your party will cease and you and/or your party will be required to leave your accommodation or other service immediately. We will have no further obligations to you and/or your party.
23. MEDICAL PROBLEMS
If you or any member of your party has any medical problem or disability which may affect your stay, please provide us with full details before you confirm your booking so that we can advise as to the suitability of your chosen arrangements.
We strongly recommend that you have appropriate personal travel insurance in place for all members of your party. You can arrange insurance through us. It is your responsibility to ensure that any insurance you purchase is suitable and adequate for your needs. Travel without adequate personal travel insurance is at your own risk. Please ensure that you read your policy details fully and take them with you on holiday.
24. DATA PROTECTION
For the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1998 we are a data controller. In order to process your booking and to ensure that your travel arrangements run smoothly and meet your requirements we need to collect certain personal details from you. These will include, where applicable, the names and addresses of party's members, credit/debit card or other payment details and special requirements such as those relating to any disability or medical condition which may affect the chosen holiday arrangements and any dietary restrictions which may disclose your religious beliefs.
If we need any other personal details, we will tell you before we obtain them from you. We must pass on your personal details to the companies and organizations who need to know them so that your holiday can be provided (for example your airline, hotels, transport companies, credit/debit company or bank). The information may also be provided to security or credit checking companies, public authorities such as customs/immigration if required by them, or as required by law.
We have appropriate security measures in place to protect the personal details you give us. Where your travel arrangements are to take place outside the European Economic Area, (EEA), controls on data protection in your destination may not be as strong as the legal requirements in this country. We will not however, pass any information on to any company and/or organisation not responsible for providing any part of your travel arrangements. Where you provide us with personal details relating to any special requirements such as those mentioned above, you consent to this information being passed onto any organisation or companies responsible for any part of your travel arrangements whether in the EEA or not.
If we cannot pass this information to the relevant suppliers, we cannot provide your travel arrangements. We are entitled to assume you do not object to our doing any of the things mentioned above unless you tell us otherwise in writing. You are generally entitled to ask us (by letter or e-mail) what details of yours are being held or processed, for what purpose and to whom they may be or have been disclosed.
We will charge a fee to respond to such a request. In limited circumstances we are entitled to refuse your request. Except where expressly permitted by the Data Protection Act 1998, we will only deal with the personal details you give us as set out above unless you agree otherwise. For example, if we wish to use any of your personal details for marketing purposes, we will tell you this when we ask for your details and give you the opportunity to say no if you do not want us to do so.
25. JURISDICTION
These Booking Conditions and any contract to which they apply are governed in all respects by English law. Any dispute, claim or other matter which arises out of or in connection with your contract or booking will be dealt with by the Courts of England and Wales.
FOR CORRESPONDENCE:
READER OFFERS LTD, Lexden House, London Road, Lexden, Colchester CO3 4DB
Client Services Tel: 0845 458 1697 Fax: 01206 836736 E Mail: admin@readeroffers.travel
