Terms & Conditions
Conditions of website usage for www.snowside.co.uk
1. Definitions:
"ABTA" means The Association of British Travel Agents.
"Balance Due Date" means 32 days before the Departure Date.
"Booking Form" means the online booking form provided on Snowside’s website.
"Convention" means whichever of the following instruments as applicable to your holiday:
- the Convention for the Unification for Certain Rules Relating to International Carriage by Air, signed at Warsaw, 12th October 1929 (hereinafter referred to as the Warsaw Convention);
- the Warsaw Convention as amended at The Hague on 28 September 1955;
- the Warsaw Convention as amended by Additional Protocol N1 of Montreal 1975;
- the Warsaw Convention as amended at The Hague 1955 and by Additional Protocol N.2 of Montreal 1975;
- the Warsaw Convention as amended at The Hague 1955 and by Additional Protocol N.3 of Montreal 1975;
- the Warsaw Convention as amended at The Hague and by Additional Protocol N.4 of Montreal 1975;
- the Berne Convention of 1961 on Carriage by Rail;
- the Athens Convention of 1974 on Carriage by Sea;
- the Paris Convention of 1962 on the Liability of Hotel-keepers.
"Damage Deposit" means the deposit more fully described in paragraph 13.
"Departure Date" means the date on which you are due to depart on your holiday on transport provided to you by Snowside or the day on which you are due to check in to accommodation provided by Snowside, whichever is the earlier.
"Deposit" means the deposit payable by you to reserve transport and accommodation for your holiday.
"Force Majeure Event" means an event which renders Snowside's performance of this agreement in whole or in part not reasonably possible which includes (but shall not be limited to) acts of God, fire, flood, drought, avalanche, explosion, war, sabotage, terrorist act, embargo, riot, civil commotion, acts of local government and parliamentary authority, strikes, lock-outs and labour disputes of whatever nature, closure or congestion of airports or ports, Foreign Office advice and cancellation or changes of schedules by scheduled airlines.
"Major Change" means a change in resort, change of quality of accommodation, change of outward/return flights by more than 12 hours, change of Departure Date or such other changes as deemed by Snowside to be significant enough to have the effect of a Major Change.
"Relevant documents" means the documents that you are required to send to Snowside, as notified to you on the Booking Form.
"Total Holiday Cost" means the total cost of all the services that you request in your booking, including costs for services to be provided to other individuals included in your booking.
"Snowside" means Wasteland Ski Limited, company no. , whose registered office is at 17 Bourne Court, Southend Road, Woodford Green, Essex, IG8 8HD. Snowside’s business address is: Snowside, 9 Disraeli Road, London, SW15 2DR. t: f: e: Usual hours of business: 9am – 5pm.
Snowside trades under the names “Snowside” “Wasteland" and “SNOWSIDE”
"The Winter Sport Insurance Policy" means the insurance policy details of which are contained within Snowside’s website.
2. Agreement
2.1 Your holiday contract with the exception of flights is with Snowside. Snowside is a member of ABTA with membership number W1042. ABTA and ABTA Members help holidaymakers to get the most from their travel and assist them when things do not go according to plan. We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct. For further information about ABTA, the Code of Conduct and the arbitration scheme available to you if you have a complaint, contact ABTA, 68-71 Newman Street London W1T 3AH Tel: or www.abta.com
2.2 These terms and conditions together with the contents of the Booking Form and the e-mail confirmation that you receive from Snowside accepting your booking comprise your agreement ("the Contract") withSnowside. By completing the Booking Form, you acknowledge that you have read, understood and accepted all of these conditions and guarantee that you have the authority to accept and do accept all of these terms and conditions on behalf of your party.
2.3 The Contract will exist as soon as you receive an email from Snowside confirming receipt of your Deposit.
3. Payment
3.1 No contract will exist between you and Snowside until you have paid the Deposit.
3.2 By the Balance Due Date you must have provided Snowside with the following:
a) payment of the full amount that you owe Snowside for the services that you require to be provided to you by Snowside in connection with your holiday, and
b) a completed Booking Form, and
c) all Relevant Documents.
3.3 Non-payment of the full amount due to Snowside by the Balance Due Date will result in your Deposit being forfeited.
3.4 While we try and ensure that all prices on our website are accurate, errors may occur. If we discover an error in the price of a holiday or other products or services that you have ordered we will inform you as soon as possible and give you the option of reconfirming your order at the correct price or canceling it. If we are unable to contact you we reserve the right to treat the order as cancelled. If you cancel in these circumstances you will receive a refund for any payments that you have made for your holiday or other products or services.
4. Surcharges
4.1 All credit card transactions are subject to a 2.89% surcharge.
4.2 All debit card transactions are subject to a £2.89 surcharge
4.3 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.
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. The price of your holiday was calculated using exchange rates quoted by Barclays Capital on 15 May 2007 in relation to the United Kingdom Pound Sterling and the Euro.
5. Your alteration of the booking
5.1 Snowside reserves the right to charge £25 per alteration rising to £35 per alteration in the period of 13 days or less before your Departure Date, if you wish to change any details of the Booking Form that you have submitted. However, Snowside may not always be able to meet your request and have no obligation to do so. If we are unable to make the alterations as you have requested and you do not wish to continue with the booking, then our cancellation fees apply.
6. Your cancellation of your booking
6.1 If you want to cancel your holiday, you must advise Snowside in writing by post, e-mail or facsimile immediately. Verbal cancellations will not be accepted.
6.2 Cancellation periods are calculated from the date that written confirmation is received at Snowside 's Offices.
6.3 In the event of you canceling the holiday the following charges will apply:-
~~Period before Departure Date - Charge~~
On or before the Balance Due Date - Deposit of £100 and insurance including Insurance Premium Tax and any credit card/debit card charges.
From the Balance Due Date until and including the 14th day before the Departure Date - 60% of Total Holiday Cost.
13 days or less before the Departure Date - 100% of Total Holiday Cost.
7. Alteration of the booking
7.1 It is unlikely that Snowside will have to make any change to your holiday but occasionally small changes will have to be made due to unforeseen circumstances. We reserve the right to make such changes and will advise you of them as soon as practicable. If a Major Change is made, you will be given the choice of either accepting the changed arrangements, choosing another holiday from Snowside of the same cost as the one that you booked or cancelling your holiday and obtaining a full refund of all payments that you made to Snowside except for any payment that you made to Snowside for alterations made to the Booking Form at your request prior to us notifying you of the Major Change.
7.2 You must notify SNOWSIDE of your choice within three days of SNOWSIDE's offer of alternative holiday arrangements. If you fail to do so, you are deemed to accept the alternative arrangements offered. Whichever option you choose, you will be entitled to compensation as outlined in the table below subject to paragraphs 7.3 and 7.4.
7.3 Compensation will not be paid to a person travelling on a free place or reduced rate.
7.4 Compensation will not be paid if the Major Change is caused by a Force Majeure Event.
~~Period before Departure Date during which a Major Change is made - Compensation per person~~
Between 8 days and 35 days - £10
7 days or less - £20
8. SNOWSIDE Cancellation
8.1 SNOWSIDE reserves the right to cancel your holiday at any time and without compensation up to 35 days before the Departure Date.
9. Coach delays
9.1 SNOWSIDE will compensate you as set out in the table below if your coach is delayed.
Outward Delay Compensation
Up to 6 hours Nothing
From and including 6 hours to and including 14 hours £10
From but excluding 14 hours or more £20
Return Delay Compensation
Up to 6 hours Nothing
From and including 6 hours to and including 14 hours £10
From but excluding 14 hours or more £20
10. Flight Bookings
10.1 Flights will be booked with ATOL holders Satellite Travel Limited (ATOL 0488) for whom SNOWSIDE acts as agents, and flight bookings are subject to their booking conditions.
10.2 When SNOWSIDE accepts your flight booking SNOWSIDE will issue you with an ATOL receipt which confirms that the money for the flight is held by SNOWSIDE on behalf of Satellite Travel Limited. A contract will exist between you and Satellite Travel Limited once they issue a confirmation invoice, which SNOWSIDE shall send to you as soon as SNOWSIDE receives it. All other arrangements offered by SNOWSIDE are provided under a separate contract from the flight arrangements.
11. SNOWSIDE's liability to you
11.1 Wherever the Convention can apply to carriage under your holiday contract, your holiday contract will be subject to the Convention rules and limitations relating to liability.
11.2 Subject to paragraph 9 and to the extent not in conflict with paragraph 11.1, whether or not the Convention applies:
11.2.1 SNOWSIDE accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage caused to you where the failure to perform the Contract or the improper performance of the Contract is due neither to any fault on our part nor to that of our employees, agents, sub-contractor or suppliers because the failure:
(a) is attributable to you;
(b) is attributable to a third party unconnected with the provision of the services contracted for and is unforeseeable or unavoidable; or
(c) is due to:
(i) 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
(ii) an event which neither we nor any of our employees, agents, suppliers and subcontractors could not, even with all due care, have foreseen or forestalled.
11.2.3 SNOWSIDE is not liable for death, bodily injury or illness caused to you unless it is proved that it is due to the negligence of SNOWSIDE's employees, agents, suppliers or sub-contractors acting in the course of their employment and this is brought to SNOWSIDE's attention in resort and within 3 months of your return from holiday.
11.2.4 SNOWSIDE's liability in any claim that you bring against it (excluding that of personal injury, illness or death) will be limited to twice the cost of your holiday.
11.2.5 SNOWSIDE accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage to your luggage. WE URGE YOU TO TAKE OUT APPROPRIATE INSURANCE TO COVER THE COST OF LOSS OR DAMAGE TO YOUR BELONGINGS.
11.3 Without prejudice to paragraph 9, SNOWSIDE will not be responsible for any whole or partial failure to provide any of the products or services for which you contract to receive either at all or to a sufficient standard or for any failure to refund or for any failure to allocate free spaces correctly (or at all) or for any failure arising in connection with the treatment of Damage Deposits unless:
(a) as soon as any such failure arises you complete a complaint notification report form in resort and hand it to SNOWSIDE's head representative;
or, if the failure arises after you have left the resort
(b) within 28 days of your departure from resort you send written notice to SNOWSIDE's Offices setting out in full details of the failure.
A SNOWSIDE representative will provide you with a complaint notification report form on request.
12. Insurance
12.1 You are covered by SNOWSIDE's winter sports insurance policy (included in the price of your holiday, apart from Wasteland Chalet Travel holidays, private group bookings and some events, unless you have chosen insurance as an option) subject to you declaring that all health conditions and material facts have been disclosed on the Booking Form and subject to you having paid for the full cost of your holiday. Please note that insurers may also check the answers that you provide and they may seek information from other insurers to verify the information that you have provided - your permission is required for insurers to seek such information.
12.2 Please note that SNOWSIDE's winter sports insurance policy may not cover you to the extent that you require. Please pay careful attention to what you are and what you are not covered for - you may wish to take out further insurance.
12.3 You may opt out of receiving cover under SNOWSIDE's winter sports insurance policy. If you do so the price of your holiday will reduce. Please note, however, that if you decide not to receive cover under SNOWSIDE's winter sports insurance policy you must take out insurance that provides equal to or greater cover under all sections and you must fax a copy with sufficient details to SNOWSIDE to the following fax number: as soon as practicable and in any event no later than seven days before your Departure Date. SNOWSIDE is under no obligation to verify the adequacy of your insurance cover.
13. Damage Deposit
13.1 YOUR DAMAGE DEPOSIT, THE VALUE OF WHICH WILL BE NOTIFIED TO YOU ON THE BOOKING FORM, WILL BE POOLED WITH ALL OTHER CUSTOMERS OF SNOWSIDE AS YOU AND ANY OTHER INDIVIDUALS WHO TRAVEL WITH SUCH MEMBERS WHO ATTEND THE SAME RESORT FOR THE SAME PERIOD AS YOU TO FORM ONE SINGLE DEPOSIT FROM WHICH ALL DAMAGE AND EXTRA CLEANING CHARGES WILL BE DEDUCTED INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY DAMAGE TO COMMUNAL AREAS WITHIN APARTMENT BLOCKS, ANY DAMAGE TO PRIVATE BUSINESS OR RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY IN THE RESORT AND ANY DAMAGE TO OUTDOOR PUBLIC AREAS IN THE RESORT. ANY OUTSTANDING BALANCE ON YOUR GROUP BOOKING FORM WILL ALSO BE DEDUCTED FROM YOUR DAMAGE DEPOSIT.
13.2 WE WILL RETURN THE BALANCE OF YOUR DAMAGE DEPOSIT (IF ANY) DIRECTLY TO THE BANK ACCOUNT OF YOUR LEAD PASSENGERYOU SHOULD THEREFORE COLLECT ANY BALANCE DUE TO YOU FROM YOUR HIM/HER.
14. Behaviour
14.1 If in our reasonable opinion or in the reasonable opinion of any other person in authority (for example an accommodation owner or manager, an airline pilot, or coach driver, or a SNOWSIDE employee), you or any member of your party behaves in such a way as to cause or be likely to cause danger, upset or distress to any third party or damage to property, we are entitled, without prior notice, to terminate without notice and liability the holiday arrangements of the person(s) concerned. SNOWSIDE will not be liable to make alternative arrangements for accommodation or repatriation or have any further responsibility towards you, nor will SNOWSIDE cover any costs which you may incur or make any refunds.
15. Complaints
15.1 Disputes arising out of, or in connection with this contract which cannot be amicably settled may be referred to arbitration, if the customer so wishes, under a special scheme arranged by the Association of British Travel Agents and administered independently by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
15.2 The scheme provides for simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on documents alone with restricted liability on the customer in respect of costs. Full details will be provided on request or can be obtained from the ABTA website ( www.abta.com ).
15.3 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 that the arbitrator can award per person in respect of this element.
15.4 The application for arbitration and Statement of Claim must be received by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators within nine months of the date of return from the holiday. Outside this time limit, arbitration under the scheme may still be available if SNOWSIDE agrees but the ABTA code does not require such agreement.
15.5 For injury and illness claims, you may like to use the ABTA Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Mediation Procedure. This voluntary scheme requires SNOWSIDE 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 are from www.abta.com .
16. Force Majeure
16.1 SNOWSIDE shall not be responsible for non performance of its obligations or for any delay in performance of its obligations where such non performance or delay in performance is caused by a Force Majeure Event.
17. Passport and Visa Requirements
17.1 You are responsible for making sure that you have a valid visa and passport. Passports must be valid for at least a full six months after the date of arrival back in the UK. You do not need a visa for any of the ski and snowboard holidays that we offer PROVIDED YOU HOLD A BRITISH PASSPORT. If you do not hold a British passport please contact the relevant embassy or consulate.
French Consulate in London: http://www.consulfrance-londres.org Telephone:
Italian Embassy in London: http://www.amblondra.esteri.it Telephone:
Austrian Embassy in London: http://www.bmeia.gv.at/london Telephone:
Swiss Embassy in London: http://www.eda.admin.ch/london.html Telephone:
18. Health Requirements
18.1 Please check with your GP or travel clinic prior to travel for any health advice for the destination you are traveling to. Alternatively check for further information at either www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk or the UK Foreign Office advice at www.fco.gov.uk . The Department of Health leaflet ‘Health advice for Travelers’ can be obtained by calling or from their website at www.dh.gov.uk . It is also available at main post offices. This leaflet provides advice on reciprocal health care arrangements within Europe and the forms to apply for a European Health Insurance card (EHIC). UK Residents can obtain free or reduced cost state healthcare in many European countries if they possess an EHIC card. However, the EHIC should be obtained in addition to your travel insurance, not instead of it.
18.2 If you are travelling from the UK no vaccine certificate is required for any of the countries that we offer holidays to. If you are not travelling from the UK IT IS ESSENTIAL that you check with the relevant embassy the vaccination requirements that you may have to comply with to enter the relevant country.
19. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Travel Advice
19.1 The Foreign & Commonwealth Office produces up-to-date travel information to help British travelers make informed decisions about traveling abroad. Please note the availability of this advice on www.fco.gov.uk/knowbeforeyougo
20. Subject to Availability
20.1 All the holidays, products, packages and services shown on SNOWSIDE's website are subject to availability.
21. Disability and Special Requests
21.1 Please advise us at the time of booking if you have any special request. Although we will endeavour to pass any reasonable requests on to the relevant supplier, we do not guarantee any request will be met. Failure to meet any special request will not be a breach of contract on SNOWSIDE’s part. We do not accept any conditional bookings, i.e. any booking which is specified to be conditional on the fulfilment of a particular request. All such bookings will be treated as bookings subject to the above provisions on special requests.
21.2 If you or any member of your party has any medical problem or disability which may affect your holiday, please tell us before you confirm your booking so that we can advise as to the suitability of the chosen arrangements. In any event, you must give us full details in writing at the time of booking. If we reasonably feel unable to properly accommodate the particular needs of the person concerned, we may decline their reservation or, if full details are not given at the time of booking, cancel when we become aware of these details.
22. Image Release
22.1 In part consideration of receiving SNOWSIDE’s services you grant SNOWSIDE permission to use any photographs or moving images (Images) featuring you throughout the world for any of SNOWSIDE's commercial or non-commercial purposes in all and any media, including, without limitation, in SNOWSIDE’s printed publications, presentations, promotional materials, in the advertising of SNOWSIDE’s goods or services or on SNOWSIDE’s website (Specified Purposes), in their original format or edited or altered in any way which SNOWSIDE deems appropriate.
22.2 You do not object to SNOWSIDE:
(a) storing copies of the Images for the Specified Purposes or to us storing your contact details on our database in case we need to contact you; or
(b) transferring the Images and your contact details to a destination outside the European Economic Area (EEA) or storing them at a destination outside the EEA for the purposes set out above.
23. Miscellaneous
23.1 If any provision within these terms shall be prohibited by Law or judged by a Court to be unlawful, void or unenforceable, such terms shall to the extent required be severed and rendered ineffective as far as possible without modifying any remaining provisions within these Terms and Conditions and shall not in any way affect any other circumstances or the ability to seek an enforcement of these Terms and Conditions.
23.2 For the purposes of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 and notwithstanding any other provisions within these Terms and Conditions, these Terms and Conditions are not intended to and do not give any person who is not a party to them any rights to enforce any of them.
23.3 This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English Law.
23.4 The Parties irrevocably agree that the Courts of England are to have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute which may arise out of or in connection with these Terms and Conditions.
