1) Agreement
The agreement is for the hire of the property for short term holiday letting and will be formally entered into between Acorn Holiday Rentals Ltd (AHRL) and the hirer when the required deposit payment has been received.
2) Payment
A deposit of £100 or other mutually agreed sum will secure the booking and needs to be made within 2 days of the date the booking is acknowledged by AHRL. The booking will be held for that time but not fully secured until the deposit is received. The balance of the total will be due for payment six weeks before the start of the holiday. If the booking is made within eight weeks of the start of the holiday the full amount for the booking must be paid, unless another mutually agreed time is given.
If the deposit is not paid within 2 days, the said day will automatically be made available again (unless you have advised the owner of the delay and the revised payment date). Failure to make full payment of the balance in the time period stated above will result in the booking being cancelled and the deposit being kept, unless another mutually agreed term is given.
Arrival details and other cottage information will also be sent by email once the final balance has been paid.
3) Booking changes
Changes to your booking may be considered up to 8 weeks prior to the arrival date. If a change of date is required and can be accommodated, a £40 admin fee will be charged. A change of date can only be permitted once.
4) Covid 19 Specific Conditions
If you or any member of your party develop symptoms before your holiday, please let us know straight away and DO NOT come to the accommodation.
If you or any member of your party develop symptoms during your holiday, please let us know and return home immediately. If you need to self-isolate and continue to stay at the holiday property, you will be charged for any bookings cancelled as a result.
If you or any members of your party develop symptoms 14 days after your departure, please let us know immediately.
5) Cancellation
If a cancellation is made up to 8 weeks prior to the arrival date, the hirer will forfeit their non- refundable deposit payment.
If a cancellation is made within 8 weeks of the arrival date, the hirer will forfeit the non- refundable deposit payment. The holiday will be readvertised and should AHRL be successful in securing a replacement booking, the hirer will receive a refund of the balance payment, less a £50 cancellation fee.
Please note AHRL will make all reasonable efforts to re-let any cancelled booking by promoting it through the website, social media outlets and all or our linked websites. Should it be necessary to reduce the price or length of the booking to obtain a replacement and it is therefore cheaper than the original booking, the cost of this will be retained along with the non- refundable deposit.
If a cancellation is made within 8 weeks of the arrival date and AHRL are unable to secure a replacement booking, the hirer will forfeit the full payment of the booking.
If you have to cancel your booking because of the recent UK government public health measures mean it is unlawful to travel to the accommodation, or AHRL have to cancel your stay due to government restrictions or lockdown relating to Coronavirus or health measures/pandemic, you may choose to:
Transfer your booking to a later date free of any admin charges, subject to availability. You will be required to pay any difference in price, should the cost of the new booking be higher than the original holiday. If a new booking is lower in price than the original holiday, no refund will be given.
WE STRONGLY ADVISE GUESTS TO TAKE OUT THEIR OWN TRAVEL INSURANCE. This is will then cover for any cancellations made due to illness and restrictions, resulting in you or a member of your party having to self- isolate.
Should it be necessary for AHRL to cancel a booking for reasons other than the above mentioned, the hirer will receive a full refund.
6) Hirer’s Responsibilities
The Hirer is responsible for the property hired and is expected to take care of it. Please leave all equipment and utensils etc, and the property itself, clean and tidy at the end of your stay. All damages/breakages should be reported as soon as they occur. AHRL reserves the right to charge for any serious damage/breakages/extra cleaning which is deemed outside the normal wear and tear and Hirers are deemed jointly and severally liable. See damage deposit above.
The Hirer is required to observe and adhere to the requests and instructions in the properties and in the terms and conditions sent out by the owner. Any act committed by the hirer or their dogs, causing damage to the property, will result in the termination of the contract and from the accommodation. In this case the hirer will not be entitled to a refund and will lose the cost of their holiday in full. The no smoking policy in any property must be adhered to.
The Hirer must not use the property or allow its use for any dangerous, offensive, excessively noisy, illegal or immoral activities there any act that may be a nuisance or annoyance to the property neighbours. This would be deemed a serious breach of the terms of the Agreement and AHRL has the right to terminate the agreement with immediate effect in this instance.
7) Owner’s/Manager’s Responsibilities
The owner is responsible for ensuring the property is supplied to the Hirer clean, warm and with all appliances/devices/furniture in proper working order. The owner/manager is also responsible for dealing with any problems, equipment malfunction as they occur and will make best efforts to remedy any problems that occur during your stay. Owner/manager details are included in the information folder of each property.
8) Arrival and Departure
The properties will be ready for your arrival after 4pm and need to be vacated by 10am on your day of departure to allow for a full clean and changeover, unless otherwise agreed with AHRL. Earlier arrivals and later departures are sometimes possible and we will do our best to accommodate.
9) Fuel and Electricity
Electricity charges are included in the cost of renting the properties.
10) Smoking
Both accommodations are scrictly No Smoking properties and do not allow smoking inside any of the rooms. You are welcome to smoke in your patio area.
11) Number in your party
The total number in your party must not exceed the capacity of the accommodation as advertised by us. Babies under 2 are not normally counted as members of your party. The Owner must be notified of any guests arriving at a later time/date than those greeted by the owner. Such guests must fill in a guest registration form. Under no circumstances may more people stay at each property than there are beds. This is an important insurance requirement. The number of guest in the original booking confirmed by AHRL cannot be exceeded without Prior notification of the hire period.
The Owner has the right to refuse to hand over the accommodation to any party exceeding these limitations, or to terminate the holiday of anyone exceeding these limitations at any time during the holiday.
12) Activities and facilities
Your accommodation Owner reserves the right to alter or withdraw amenities or facilities or any activities without prior notice where reasonably necessary due to repairs, maintenance, weather conditions and circumstances beyond his/her control.
13) Unreasonable behaviour
The Owners of all accommodation have the right to refuse to hand over accommodation to anyone who, in the reasonable opinion of the Owner is not suitable to take charge of it. In such cases all hire charges paid will be refunded in full as quickly as reasonably practicable, the contract will be terminated and the Owner will have any further liability.
While we welcome families with older children into our 2 bedroom lakeside lodges, we do ask for parents to supervise their children at ALL times, due the danger of deep water.
The area around the lake is peaceful and relaxing and it is important for all guests to enjoy their holiday here at Church Farm. Anti-social behaviour, breach of the peace or any act, causing disruption or affects the enjoyment of others may result in the person/s being asked to leave the site.
The Owners of the accommodation reserve the right to terminate a holiday after the keys have been handed over, if the unreasonable behaviour of anyone in your party is likely to cause danger or significant annoyance to others or damage to property. In these circumstances, no refund will be given. Please note that unreasonable behaviour specifically includes smoking by any member of your party in any part of the property, or surrounding grounds where smoking is prohibited. Please ensure you read all information on the property carefully to familiarise you and your party with the rules.
14) Damage to the property
You are liable to the Owner for any damage caused in the property during the period of hire. The accommodation Owner has the right to enter any accommodation (without prior notice if this is not practical or possible) if special circumstances or emergencies arise (for example if repairs need to be carried out) quickly as reasonably practicable, the contract will be terminated and neither we nor the Owner will have any further liability.
15) Party Type
Groups, organisations, charitable institutions and multi-accommodation bookings: If your party includes unrelated members from an organisation or has been funded/organised on behalf of a third party such as a local authority, charitable, religious or NHS Trust, we, on behalf of the Owner, need the following information when you book:
16) Security Deposits
You will be required to pay a £100 security bond per accommodation. ( An explanation can be given of how to make payment). The accommodation will NOT be handed over to any party refusing to leave this deposit. In such circumstance the contract will be terminated and the Owner will have any further liability. Guests are required to take good care of the property and its contents and leave the cottage clean and tidy on the day of departure. This includes the oven and oven trays. The deposit will be returned to you by cheque within 10 days of departure by the Owner or within 48hours if paid by Paypal. A deduction will be made for any damage done to the property, or if it is not left in an acceptable clean and tidy condition, including correct disposal of rubbish/waste and dog mess.
17) Force Majeure
Neither we nor the Owner can accept responsibility or pay any compensation where the performance or prompt performance of the contract is prevented or affected by reason of circumstances which amount to “force majeure”. Circumstances amounting to “force majeure” include any event which we or the owners could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. Such circumstances include the destruction or damage of your accommodation (which cannot reasonably be remedied to a satisfactory standard before the start of your holiday) through fire, flood, explosion, storm or other weather damage, break-in, criminal damage, riots or civil strife, industrial action, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions, war or threat of war, actual or threatened terrorist activity, epidemic and all similar situations beyond the owner’s control.
18) Pets
Guests must not allow any pets in the Holiday Accommodation unless it has notified the owner that they will be taking a pet. Where pets are permitted in the Holiday Accommodation:-
(a) they must not be left unattended in the Holiday Accommodation at any time;
(b) Not all of our guests bring dogs or are in fact dog owners. With this in mind we ask guests to be respectful and please do not allow their pets onto the beds. The removal of muddy paw prints and dog hair is a challenge and could result in the extra cleaning charges being deducted from the security bond.
Dogs are very welcome to make themselves comfortable on the sofas… Please feel free to bring some throws if you dog/s like to get comfy of the sofas.
(c) they must be under strict control at all times.
If a garden is described as enclosed it does not mean that it is ‘escape-proof’ for pets. Guests must exercise their dogs in the areas permitted and not use the patio ‘or decking area’ as a doggy toilet as it makes it smelly especially in the warmer weather! Please be aware that there may be other guests in the other cottage so please don’t allow your pooch to disturb other guests.
Please note- there will be a charge if the patio area has to be sanitised or the gardens cleared due to dog fouling.
19) Hot Tub
The hot tub is for the private use of registered Cottage guests only. The water in the hot tub will be shown to you on arrival – and it should be clear and clean. The water quality must be the same on your day of departure.
In accordance with Health and Safety guide lines, the quality of the water and Ph levels will be checked in accordance with the manufacturer instructions daily by a member of the Cottage team. These checks usually take just a few minutes, if you would like them to be carried out at a specific time of day please discuss this with us, and we will try to be accommodating as possible. If you have any concerns about the hot tub – please notify us immediately.
It is important for your safety and enjoyment of the hot tub that you read the following safety guide carefully and adhere to all of the rules. Failure to do so may result in monies being deducted from your security deposit:
20) Your Vehicles
Your vehicles, their accessories and contents are left entirely at your risk. Neither the Owner nor we as agent are responsible for any loss or damage from or to any vehicle from any cause whatsoever.
21) Comments or concerns
You must notify any shortcomings with your accommodation to the Owner or his/her representative immediately so that remedial action, if appropriate, can be taken. If a significant problem is not resolved to your satisfaction, please contact us as soon as possible during your holiday and we will liaise with your Owner. It may affect the investigation of your complaint and may impact on the level of compensation that you may be entitled to if you fail to notify the Owner or his /her representative and we of any complaint or claim during your holiday and write to us with full details within 28 days after your holiday had ended.
22) Complaints
In the unlikely event of a complaint it must be brought immediately to the attention of the owner/manager who will endeavour to rectify the problem as soon as possible, to ensure the continued enjoyment of your holiday. Should this not be possible please contact the owner as soon as possible and in all instances before the end of your period of hire. Complaints cannot be addressed if notified after the hire period.
