Booking Terms & Conditions
Invoice due 4 weeks prior to first session.
Deposit must be paid 8 weeks before first session.
Terms and Conditions
1. General
1.1 BASE SNOWSPORTS is the trading name under which a group of independent, self-employed professional ski and snowboard instructors (“the Instructors”) have decided to offer their snow sports instruction services, as more fully described on the Wesbite www.thesnowbase.com (“the Services”);
BASESNOWPORTS Limited is a UK limited liability company registered at Companies House under number SC819181, having its head office at 1 Campsie Drive, Bearsden, Glasgow, G61 3HY (“the Company”)
The Instructors have decided to appoint the Company to act as agent and have assigned to it the provision of certain organisational duties on their behalf:
- promotion of the above-mentioned instructors,
- management services such as lesson scheduling (bookings, instructor schedules) and
- marketing of various lessons,
in all things the Company acts as agent for the ski and snowboard instructors, all of whom are independent professionals, themselves part of joint operating agreements and are registered with the relevant authorities of the countries in which they operate (in particular URSSAF in France), and have taken out civil liability insurance in this capacity.
They Instructors are solely and entirely responsible for performance of the Services;
These general terms and conditions of sale apply to all bookings for ski and/or snowboard instruction services which are made by a consumer or non-professional (the “Client”) with BASESNOWPORTS
Any booking or order for Services implies the Client’s express acceptance of these terms, of which the Client acknowledges receipt (they are available on the Website and/or disclosed to the Client prior to any reservation or booking).
2. Prices
The prices indicated on our website are expressed in sterling and are expressed as being from a certain price. The actual price will vary according to various factors:
- The dates/high/low season etc
- The number of people in the lesson
- Number of lessons booked
- Lesson type eg. On-piste, off-piste, telemark
Prices may be modified without notice in the event of rate increases imposed by suppliers, or in the event of economic disruption. These price adjustments shall not apply to:
- Services already booking and confirmed with the Client by the Client paying a deposit.
- Proposals for Services sent by the Company in the previous 10 days.
3. Booking - Payment – When is a booking final
A Client may request to book Services in one of the following ways:
- E-mail,
- Directly with one of our instructors;
- Contact form on the Website
- Sending a booking enquiry via our shopping cart on our Website,
Please note, these are all REQUESTS for lesson and DO NOT automatically lead to a confirmed booking until the following steps have been completed.
i) the Company will send an acknowledgement to the Client’s stated e-mail address either confirming the availability of the lessons and indicating the final price or if the lessons requested are not possible proposing an alternative.
ii) the offer of Services, in terms of Instructor chosen, date, time, frequency and price and payment conditions, detailed in this document is valid for a period of 10 days or if issued less than 10 days prior to the proposed start date of the Services any alternative time indicated on such offer.
iii) Client confirms the booking of the Services by payment:
- in full if the start date of the Services is less than 6 weeks away
- Of a deposit of a minimum of 20 % of the total cost of the Services booked.
Services may be paid for using credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex), bank transfer, cheque or cash.
If Client does not confirm booking of the Services within 10 days (or such other time indicated on the offer of Services, the Company shall be free to accept alternative bookings.
iv) Where Client has not paid in full a final invoice will be sent by the Company 6 weeks prior to the start date of the Services, this invoice shall detail a date for final payment, usually 4 weeks (28 days) prior to the start of the Services. If payment is not received by the date indicated the Company reserves the right consider that the Client wishes to cancel and shall be entitled to seek an alternative booking without the Company being required to a) chase Client for payment or b) refund the deposit paid.
It is an essential and determining condition of this contract, that full payment of the cost of the Services must be made before performance of the Services begins, under the above-mentioned terms.
If the Client fails to pay the amount owed by the stated deadline, the Company reserves the right to sell the reserved places and retain the entire deposit.
4. Cancellation
4.1 By Client
If the Client cancels the ordered Services upon notice to the Company in writing:
- at least 6 weeks (42 days) prior to the start of the Services, all amounts paid shall be reimbursed to the Client less, at the Company’s discretion, a 10% administration fee;
- less than 6 weeks (42 days) but more than 4 weeks (28 days) prior to the start of the Services, the Client shall be entitled to a 50% refund of the total cost;
- less than 4 weeks (28 days) prior to the start of the Services, the amount due by the Client (deposit and balance of the payment for the Services) shall be owed by the Client, who shall not receive any reimbursement.
Cancellations of in-resort bookings are non-refundable and postponement remains at the discretion of the Instructor.
4.2. By the Company /Instructor
The Company and instructors recognise the particular nature of the Services, which means that many Clients only wish to have the Services provided by a particular instructor and at the times chosen. Accordingly, the Company will use all reasonable endeavours to avoid cancellation of a booking. However, occasionally this may be necessary due to injury, illness or other factors out of our control in which case the Company shall:
- first of all seek to offer a suitable alternative, time, instructor, place, etc.
- If the Client does not accept the alternative or the Company cannot propose one the Client shall receive a refund in full of all sums paid but no additional sum.
Notwithstanding the above, if the Company is forced to cancel:
- due to a lack of participants a reimbursement or conversion to private lessons will be offered where possible.
- due to weather conditions (insufficient or no snow, too much snow, weather conditions leading to closure of the piste or creating a risk to the Client), the amounts paid by the Client shall be retained by the School and/or the Company, and shall not result in any reimbursement or additional payment and the Company shall provide a certificate to assist the Client to seek repayment via his/her insurance.
5. Modification of Services
Given the organisation and planning required for each instructor to provide the Services, it is often difficult to accommodate modifications once Services have been confirmed.
All requests for modifications should be made as early as possible and require individual approval by the Company.
No modification shall lead to a refund of any sums already paid.
6. Liability
The applicable instructor must properly perform the Services.
However, the Client acknowledges that ski and/or snowboard Instruction Services are sold through the Company on behalf of the independent professional instructors responsible for proper performance of the services, and who are solely and entirely responsible for their execution and are properly registered with the appropriate authorisations permitting them to exercise their profession in the performance of the Services and having individual professional indemnity insurance.
Neither the Company nor the instructor shall be held liable for changes to the Services that are justified due to safety issues, weather conditions or the Client’s’ technical skills.
7. Force Majeure –Third party interventions
Neither the Company nor the instructors shall be deemed liable or in default for any breach of performance of the Services following the occurrence of a case of force majeure.
Nor shall they be held liable for the act of a third party not involved in providing the Services under the Contract, or improper performance of the Contract attributable to the Client.
8. Performance of Services
8.1 Late arrival
For performance of the Services, the Client must appear at the place, date and time stated on the booking confirmation, or as indicated by the instructor.
Instructor will wait for 20 minutes in respect of a private lesson and 5 minutes for a late arrival for a group lesson but thereafter Client may not claim partial reimbursement if the Client arrives late and the Instructor has already left.
8.2 Interruptions conditions and participation
Interruptions in respect of ski lift operation or other elements outside of the Company’s control and impact the proper performance of the Services are unfortunate but do occasionally happen and shall not result in any reimbursement or compensation by the Company to the Client.
The Client should note that the fact of “too much” or “insufficient” snow shall not be attributed to the Company and/or the instructor. In general, neither the Company nor the instructor shall be held liable for weather conditions or snow cover, and the Client shall not be entitled to any compensation, discount or reimbursement. If desired, the Client should directly take out “snow insurance /weather cover”.
The instructor has the absolute right to refuse participation to any Client under the influence of alcohol or drugs or where the instructor does not deem the Client fit to safely participate. No refund or credit is offered in this instance
9. Composition of group lessons
9.1 The maximum number of participants in “group” lesson is set out on our website for different products:
However, on rare occasions some lessons may exceed this number, due to the Client’s over/underestimation of skiing ability at the time of booking.
This may also occur in the following situations:
– Injured or ill instructor requiring placement of students in another lesson;
– For technical or safety reasons, the need for an instructor to transfer a Client to a higher or lower level;
– Client fatigue or stress that requires transfer into a lower instructional level.
Group lessons taking place in the morning or afternoon may be combined after their start date if the technical levels are comparable and the groups contain few participants.
Every effort shall be made to ensure that the number of students is returned to the above-mentioned number.
However, the fact that there are excess students in the lesson shall not entitle the Client to seek a discount, reimbursement or compensation.
Places booked in group lessons are nominative and are not transferable without our approval.
We have a specific policy to ensure that children’s lessons happen in the best possible manner for all concerned, these will be sent with all booking of Services for children.
9.2 Private lessons booked for a number of people to share an instructor should unless the instructor approves otherwise, be limited to a maximum of 6 people of the same level.
10. Helmet use
Because snow sports entail risks, use of a helmet is required for minors (under the age 18), and is highly recommended for all participants. Helmet use is mandatory in snowboard lessons, regardless of age.
11. Insurance
Clients are not covered by the Company’s civil liability insurance for Services.
We strongly recommend that ALL PARTICIPANTS in Services have appropriate insurance for the risks of this kind of sporting activity.
12. Accidents
The Services are non-refundable in the event the Client suffers an accident that makes it impossible to use the Services. The Client is responsible for taking out any specialised insurance policy, such as “cancellation insurance”.
If necessary, at the Client’s express request, the Company shall provide any supporting documentation to enable the Client to obtain compensation from its insurance company, in the event an accident occurs during performance of the Services.
13. Personal information
The Client’s personal information is subject to processing for the purpose of handling orders for the Services.
In accordance with relevant Data Protection Acts, the Client has a right to access, correct or delete any applicable personal data as well as a right to oppose processing of the information and may exercise these by contacting the Company.
14. Claims – Mediation
Any claim or dispute relating to the Services or this Contract should be raised with the Company as soon as possible in order to find a mutually satisfactory solution.
Any issue of dispute raised once Client has left resort should be submitted by the Client to the Company by registered letter with acknowledgement or receipt sent to the Company’s head office.
15. Domicile – Applicable law –Jurisdiction
The School and the Client choose as their domicile, their head office and residence, respectively. By express agreement of the parties, the contract arising from a final order is subject to the laws of Scotland, England and Wales.