Booking Terms & Conditions

1. INTRODUCTION AND REFERENCES

Whisper-us.co.uk (‘The Agency’) is a website owned and operated by Whisper-Us Limited of 167-169 Great Portland Street West London, W1W 5PF who shall be referred to as ‘The Agency’ in these terms and conditions.

There are a number of further definitions which The Agency uses:

• ‘Booking Conditions’ means these terms and conditions
•  ‘Guest’ means the person who makes the booking and who the Owner rents the Property to under the Contract
• ‘Owner’ means the owner of the Property the Guest books through The Agency
• ‘Property’ means the property to be rented to the Guest by the Owner through The Agency
• ‘Property Brochure’ means the Property details as stated on The Agency website www.whisper-us.co.uk
• ‘Rental’ means the dates and days the Property is agreed to be let by the Guest When a Guest makes a booking through The Agency, The Guest is confirming that they and every accompanying Guest understands, agrees and accepts these Booking Conditions.
• Please read them carefully, particularly section 14 headed ‘Liability’.

2. CONTRACT

2.1 The Agency acts as agents for the Owners of the Properties. Therefore, any Contract for a Rental of a Property is between the Owners of the Property and the Guest. Any issues arising under the Contract for a Rental should be addressed by the Guest to The Agency, and The Agency will consult with the Owners. The Agency will provide the Guest the name and contact details of the Owner upon request.

2.2 A Contract for a Rental will be entered into when The Agency issues written confirmation (including by email) following receipt of payment of the Rental deposit.  The payment of the Rental deposit in respect of the Property and issuing a confirmation email will confirm acceptance of these Booking Conditions.  The Guest who pays the Rental deposit and agrees the Booking Conditions does so on behalf of all members of the group and binds them jointly to the Booking Conditions.

2.3 The Contract will be subject to all of these Booking Conditions.

2.4 The Contract and nothing in the Contract or these terms and conditions shall create the relationship of landlord and tenant between the Guest and the Owner.

2.5 This Contract is governed by English law with English courts having exclusive jurisdiction.

2.6 Once the booking is confirmed, it cannot be changed by The Guest, unless agreed by The Owner or by The Agency on the Owner’s behalf. If The Agency agree to make requested changes to the booking, the Guest will be required to pay £75 per change.

3. BOOKING DEPOSITS, BALANCE PAYMENTS AND INSURANCE

3.1 Deposit. A booking fee deposit of 30% of the total rent is payable to reserve the Rental dates to stay at the Property.

3.2 Balance. The remaining 70% of the total rent becomes payable 12 weeks before the start of the Rental. Should a booking be made within 12 weeks of the start of the Rental, the full Rental amount (deposit and balance) must be paid.

3.3 Payment Method. All payments must be made to The Agency. Payment can be made by electronic transfer, credit card or debit card.  For bookings made less than 8 weeks before the start of the Rental, payment must be made by electronic transfer as debit cards and credit cards will not be accepted.

3.4 Cancellation insurance is not compulsory, but The Agency strongly recommends purchasing coverage to protect the cancellation penalty.

4. CAUTIONARY DAMAGE DEPOSIT

4.1 A Cautionary Damage Deposit payment is required 1 week prior to the start of the Rental.  The Cautionary Damage Deposit is different for each Property and will be between £500 and £2,500; the amount will be advised to the Guest at the time of booking.

4.2 Access to the Property will be denied if full payment of the Cautionary Damage Deposit has not been made one week prior to your stay, the booking will be treated as a cancellation and no refund will be due or issued.

4.3 The Cautionary Damage Deposit will be refunded in full within 14 days of your departure from the Property if the Property is left in a satisfactory condition and all invoices have been paid as detailed in Clause 4.4.

4.4 The Guest hereby agrees to give The Agency authorisation to deduct from the Cautionary Damage Deposit an amount that The Agency considers appropriate in the event that the Guest or anyone in their group staying at the Property causes neglect or damage to the Property, damage or loss of contents, in breach of any of these Booking Conditions, leaves the Property in an unreasonable state, incurs a need for extra cleaning or leaves the Property without settling invoices for additional services or supplies received during their stay.

4.5 In the event the losses or damage caused by the Guest or anyone in their group exceeds the Cautionary Damage Deposit, The Agency will notify the Guest of any additional amount owing, the Owner reserves the right to pursue recovery of any additional cost over and above the Cautionary Damage Deposit.

5. GUEST CANCELLATION

5.1 Should the Guest need to cancel the Booking for whatever reason, The Agency should be notified in writing at the address set out at on the Website. Upon receipt of cancellation notice, The Agency and the Owner will seek to re-let the Property for the period of the booking.

5.2 If The Agency and the Owner succeeds in re-letting the Property for the whole or part of the period booked, a refund will be paid to the Guest equal to the amount of money paid or the pro-rata amount paid for partial re-bookings by the new Guest, less a £100.00 plus VAT administration charge.

5.3 If The Agency and the Owner are unable to re-let the Property, all monies paid or due by the Guest shall be forfeited to The Agency and the Owner.

5.4 The Agency strongly recommends Guests take out cancellation insurance as detailed in Clause 18.

6. CHANGE OF DATES

The Agency may consider a request from a Guest to change booking dates after confirmation has been issued. Such requests may be granted provided all of the following conditions are met:
(1) the Property Owner agrees to the change;
(2) the request is received more than 12 weeks prior to the start of the Rental;
(3) the Guest pays an administration fee of £50.00 plus VAT.

7. VAT

VAT is included in the Rental fee where applicable.

8. ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE

The Rental commences, unless otherwise notified, at 4.00pm on the day of arrival and terminates at 10.00am on the day of departure. Changes to these times can be requested prior to arrival and may incur a charge.

9. GUESTS RESPONSIBLIITIES

The Agency reserves the right to refuse entry to the entire Guest’s group if any of these conditions are not met:
(1)The number of Guests occupying a Property must not exceed the maximum number stipulated in the Property Brochure;
(2)The types of groups occupying a Property must comply with the Property’s restrictions as stated in the Property Brochure;
(3)The Property will be used for personal, domestic purposes only and cannot be sub-let to third parties and the Property shall not be used for any commercial purposes without the prior consent of The Agency and the Owner.

10. COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

10.1 If the Guest has any cause for complaint during the occupation of the Property, the Guest must notify The Agency or the Owner whilst still at the Property.

10.2 If the Guest is not satisfied with the response, the Guest should write to the Agency with full details of the nature of the complaint within 10 days of your return quoting the original booking reference.

10.3 It is the responsibility of the Owner and the Guest to resolve any disputes arising including those claims relating to any Cautionary Damage Deposit in accordance with Clause 4.4. as The Agency is not and cannot become responsible since the Contract is between the Guest and the Property Owner.

11. PROPERTY CARE

11.1 Guests shall take all reasonable and proper care of the Property, its gardens, furniture, pictures, fittings and effects in or on the Property, and shall leave them in the same state of repair and in the same clean and tidy condition at the end of the Rental as at the beginning.

In accordance with Clause 4.4, The Agency reserves the right to charge the Guest for any additional costs it or the Owner has incurred as a result of the Guest’s stay.

11.2 All The Agency’s Properties are non-smoking; Guests failing to adhere to these conditions may forfeit the Cautionary Damage Deposit.

11.3 Linen, bedding and towels can be damaged by sun cream, fake tan, hair dye and waterproof make up, all these products can cause permanent damage to bedding linen and towels and The Agency asks the Guest to take care when using these products as any damage or staining that cannot be cleaned may incur a charge under the Cautionary Damage Deposit Clause 4.4.

11.4 The Agency or the Owner shall be allowed the right of entry to the Property at all reasonable times for the purposes of inspection or to carry out any necessary repairs or maintenance during the term of the Rental or in the event of a breach of these Booking Conditions.

12. PETS

12.1 Dogs are only permitted at Properties where specifically stated in the Property Brochure (with an additional charge of £20 per dog) and with the prior consent of The Agency and the Owner.

12.2 Registered assistance dogs are allowed in all Properties. The Guest must notify The Agency of the intended presence of any assistance dogs, with evidence of registration, prior to making a booking.

12.3 If any Guest has an allergy to dogs, please be aware that neither the Owner nor The Agency can guarantee that a dog has not stayed in a particular Property. Neither The Agency nor The Owner can accept responsibility for any suffering which may occur as a result of such animals having been present in a Property.

The following dog terms apply:

• Dogs must be kept under strict control at all times while in or at the Property. Failure to comply with these terms may incur a charge under the Cautionary Damage Deposit Clause.
• Any fouling must be cleared up without delay.
• The dog owner must bring the dog's bed or basket for sleeping in.
• Dogs must not be left alone in or at the Property or elsewhere at any time.
• Dogs must not lie on beds or furnishings, and hair must be cleared up before departing.
• Dog owners must ensure that their pets are free from parasites and fleas before they occupy the Property. Failure to do so may incur subsequent charges.
• Young dogs (e.g. puppies less than 6 months’ old) must be declared to us at the time of booking and authorised by the Owner.
• The Guest will be liable for any damage caused by any Guest dogs. Any damage is to be reported to The Agency immediately. Any additional cleaning required, that may incur an additional charge, will be at the Owner’s discretion.

12.4 If The Guest breaks these terms, the Agency or Owner may notify the Guest that the terms have been broken and may cancel the booking with immediate effect without compensation, or that the Guest pays an additional reasonable charge.

13. WEBSITE AND LITERATURE

13.1 The Agency reserves the right to change the advertised or quoted prices as a result of errors or omission. The Guest will be notified of any changes resulting from errors or omissions as soon as possible. The prices quoted on the confirmation invoice will not be
subject to this clause.

13.2 The Agency does not accept any liability for misrepresentation or changes made by the Owner to the Property descriptions since the preparation of the descriptions, The Agency therefore reserves the right to change any of the facilities or services provided.

13.3 Whilst we keep our descriptions and photographs as up to date as possible, any descriptions and photographs displayed are for illustrative purposes only and subject to change.

14. LIMITATION OF LIABILITIES – please pay particular attention to this section.

14.1 The Agency, its employees and agents and the Owner shall not, except if caused by their negligence or breach of these Booking Conditions, be under any liability to the Guests or third parties for any accident, damage, loss, injury, expense, or inconvenience, which may be suffered, incurred or arise out of or in any way connected with the Rental. In all cases The Agency’s absolute maximum liability shall be the total price paid by the Guest for the specific booking related to any given complaint. In addition, The Agency accepts no liability for loss or damage to Guests possessions on the Owners Property or land.

14.2 No term of the Contract is enforceable under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 by a person who is not party to the Contract.

14.3 If the Property which the Guest has booked becomes unavailable or unusable for an unforeseen reason prior to the date of booking, then The Agency will:
(1) use its best efforts to find an alternative Property or failing which;
(2) reimburse the Guest any monies paid;
(3) in all cases The Agency and the Owner’s liability is limited to the total price paid by the Guest for the specific booking.

14.4 The Agency includes a number of suppliers on www.whisper-us.co.uk and within the Property details provided to the Guest at the time of booking. The Agency can accept no liability for any goods or services provided by these suppliers. The Guest should check and agree to the suppliers’ own terms and conditions before trading with them.

14.5 The Agency cannot accept any liability or pay compensation for events which The Agency or the Owner could not avoid. Such events include fire, explosion, flood, storms, earthquake or other natural disaster, droughts, subsidence, acts of God, war, terrorism, epidemic or pandemic, sabotage, nuclear or chemical or biological contamination, action of any governmental authority, embargo, strike or labour dispute, unavoidable technical problems, failure of telecommunications networks, closure or delays at airports, cancellation and changes by airlines and all travel disruptions.

14.6 The Agency may transfer their rights and obligations under these terms and conditions to another individual, but this will not affect your rights or our obligations under these terms and conditions.

15. WARRANTIES

The Agency does not warrant and is not responsible for the accuracy of any verbal information given or statements made by its employees or agents.

16. TERMINATION

The Agency and the Owner, acting on their own behalf or by their employees or agents reserve the right to terminate the Contract and require, without refund, the immediate departure of all persons from the Property in the event of a serious breach of the terms of the Contract and, for greater certainty, these Booking Conditions. The breach may include but is not limited to any of the following events:
1) serious damage to the Property which may exceed the Cautionary Damage Deposit;
2) a criminal or illegal act;
3) unreasonable or abusive behaviour;
4) excessive noise which could adversely affect the rights of The Agency or the Owner to be able to continue to operate the Property for rentals or involve authorities or police in any form of complaint or investigation;
5) exceeding the number of Guests as stipulated in the Property Brochure

17. DATA AND COMMUNICATION

 The Agency will use the personal information provided by the Guest to:
1) Provide the Property booked
2) Provide additional services through third parties requested by the Guest
3) Process payment for the booking
4) Inform The Guest of similar products or services that The Agency provides. The Guest may unsubscribe at any time.
5) The Agency will not give your personal data to any third party other than the Owner unless you have requested additional services from third parties during your booking.