Terms & Conditions

1 Your Holiday Contract

The following Booking Terms and Conditions and the contents of the booking form issued by us form your contract with Ski-Champoluc Limited, whose registered office is 53 Tyne Road, Oakham, Rutland, LE15 6SJ (company registration number 13579644) (“Ski-Champoluc”/”we”/”us”/”our”).

A contract on these terms and conditions is executed and exists as soon you have accepted them by Electronic Signature.

Electronic Signature means technology that allows you to electronically affix your signature or its equivalent to an electronic document, as and when agreeing to an online document containing our  Booking Terms and Conditions and the contents of the booking form issued by us.  This may include (without limitation) and at our discretion:

  1. you typing your name into the booking form issued by us; or
  1. you sending an email to us containing your acceptance of our Booking Terms and Conditions and the contents of the booking form issued by us; or
  1. you electronically pasting your signature into an electronic version of the booking form issued by us in the appropriate place;
  1. you accessing the booking form issued by us through a web-based platform and clicking an “OK” or an “Agree” button on a website through a digital prompt to demonstrate agreement or;
  1. you accessing the booking form issued by us through a web-based e-signature platform and clicking a tick box to demonstrate agreement or clicking to have your name in a typed or handwriting font automatically inserted into the agreement in the appropriate place.

When you make a booking you guarantee that you have the authority to accept and do accept on behalf of your party, these booking terms and conditions.

This contract is governed by English Law, and the jurisdiction of the English Courts.

2 Your Financial Protection and The Travel Trust Association (“TTA”)

We are a member of The Travel Trust Association (“TTA”), membership number Q9594.

The Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 require us to provide security for the monies that you pay for the package holidays booked with us.  We provide this security by ensuring that all monies paid over by you under or in contemplation of this contract for a holiday package are held in the United Kingdom by TTA as trustee for you until the contract has been fully performed or any sum of money paid by you in respect of the contract has been repaid to you or has been forfeited on cancellation by you.

3 Your responsibility for Flights

Your holiday package purchased from us does not include the provision of any flights.  Accordingly, we do not and are not required to either:

  1. provide any financial protection for monies that you may have paid in respect of any flights; or
  1. assume any legal responsibilities in the event that any flight arrangements that you have made are either changed or cancelled for whatever reason.

Note: Some flight tickets may not be changeable after a reservation has been made and any alteration request could incur a cancellation charge of up to 100%.  You will be responsible for such costs.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you reconfirm the departure date and times of all your flights at least 72 hours prior to departure and that any changes to this information are notified to us immediately.  This is particularly important in respect of subsequent journeys after you have left the UK.

4 Your Holiday Price

We reserve the right to alter the prices of any of the package holidays detailed to in our quotations or otherwise.  You will be advised of the current price of the package holiday that you wish to book before your contract is confirmed.  When you make your booking you must pay a deposit, which shall be confirmed to you at the time of booking.  The balance of the price of your holiday must be paid at least twelve (12) weeks before your departure date.

We only accept payment by debit card, Visa, Mastercard and Barclaycard (see further below).  Monies which may be paid directly to us by credit card may be subject to a surcharge to cover the cost of the card issuer fees which will be updated from time to time according to charges made by the card issuer and notified to you at the time of booking.  We will ask you to provide your credit card or debit card billing address and cardholder details when you book.  Please ensure that the details you give match those on your credit card billing statement.  We reserve the right to cancel holidays after issue if payment is declined or incorrect cardholder details and billing information have been supplied to us.  To help combat fraudulent activity, we reserve the right to conduct random checks, including checks of the electoral roll, and may request you to either fax or post to us proof of your address and a copy of the credit card and recent statement.

When we take direct payment for bookings from you via our website then these will be processed through our secure online payment provider.  Your credit card details are transmitted directly to the secure server of our online payment provider which processes card transactions from the Website, having the same high standard as internet banking.  At no time do our employees or any person within our company see any details of your credit card if processed through our online payment service.

We reserve the right to construe your failure to pay the deposit and/or the balance in time as a cancellation of the holiday by you.  In such circumstances we reserve the right to cancel your holiday and retain your deposit (if already paid).  Since we incur costs in cancelling your holiday, you will have to pay the applicable cancellation charges up to the maximum shown in the table below entitled CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS.

At any time prior to the booking being confirmed to you in accordance with Clause 1 we reserve the right to alter:

  1. any of the services offered by us in our quotations, on our website or otherwise; and
  1. the prices of the holiday(s) shown in our quotations or otherwise.

Any such changes will be advised at the time that you make your booking.

Once the booking has been confirmed by you signing the booking form issued by us, any increase in your holiday price will be as a result of changes in our costs of providing your holiday resulting from:

  1. transportation charges including the cost of fuel, dues, road tolls, taxes and fees, such as parking fees at airports, incurred in the provision of transportation;
  1. government action such as increases in VAT or any other Government imposed increases;
  1. currency fluctuations; or
  1. local taxes or fees per room/person or per night charged by accommodation providers or resorts.

Changes in such charges fall outside our control mean that the price of your holiday may change after your holiday booking has been confirmed to you by us.

We will absorb and you will not be charged for any increase equivalent to 2% or less of the price of your holiday 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.  If this means that you have to pay an increase of more than 10% of the price of your holiday, 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 standard you will not have to pay more but if it is of lower standard you will be refunded the difference in price), or cancelling and receiving a full refund of all monies paid, except for any amendment charges.

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 holiday arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of your holiday due to contractual and other protection in place.

5 If You Change Your Booking

If, after our booking form has been signed by you, you wish to change holiday in any way, for example your chosen departure date or accommodation, we will use reasonable endeavours to make these changes but it may not always be possible.  Any request for changes to be made must be in writing from the person who made the booking.  We reserve the right to charge you for any further cost we incur in making this alteration.  You should be aware that these costs could increase the closer to the departure date that changes are made and you should contact us as soon as possible.

If you are prevented from travelling on the holiday you booked by genuine circumstances (e.g. insurable risks or other circumstances beyond your control), you may transfer your booking to another person provided they meet all the requirements relating to that holiday, that the holiday arrangements remain the same and subject always to all suppliers relating to the holiday booked (e.g. accommodation providers) agreeing to accept the name change. If the suppliers relating to the holiday booking do not accept a transfer of the name to another person, then such request to transfer will be deemed to be a cancellation of the holiday and be subject to the cancellation provisions at Clause 6.  You must provide proof of why you are unable to travel at the time you request to transfer your booking.  The booking cannot be transferred within 28 days of the date of departure.  If the transfer is allowed, then we reserve the right to charge you an administration charge of £50 (plus any extra charges levied by suppliers).  Bookings may not be transferred to another person in any other circumstance.  In the event of you transferring your booking to another person, you are jointly and severally liable for payment of the holiday price and other associated expenses.  The person to whom the booking is transferred must agree to be bound by these Booking Terms and Conditions.

6 If You Cancel Your Holiday

You, or any member of your party, may cancel your holiday at any time.

Written notification from the person who made the booking on your behalf must be received by us.  Since we incur costs in cancelling your holiday, you will have to pay the applicable cancellation charges up to the maximum shown in the table below entitled CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS.

We are unable to guarantee the snow conditions in the resort at any time particularly during the winter season.  For the avoidance of doubt if you choose to cancel your holiday because of the weather or snow conditions you will have to pay the applicable cancellation charges up to the maximum shown in the table below entitled CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS.

Note: If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges.  You are advised to ensure that your policy has sufficient financial protection to cover you in the event of cancellation.

7 If We Change or Cancel Your Holiday

It is unlikely that we will have to make any changes to your holiday arrangements, but we do plan the arrangements many months in advance.  Occasionally, we may have to make changes and we reserve the right to do so at any time.  Most of these changes will be minor (for example change of accommodation to another of the same standard) and we will advise you of them at the earliest possible date.

If we make a major change to your holiday, we will inform you as soon as reasonably possible if there is time before your departure.  In these circumstances you will have the choice of either accepting the change of arrangements, accepting an offer of alternative holiday arrangements of comparable standard from us if available (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value), or cancelling your booked holiday and receiving a refund of all monies paid.

If we make a major change to your holiday, except where the major change arises due to reasons of force majeure, COVID or any other public health reasons (as described in clause 8 below) we will pay compensation up to the maximum shown in the table below entitled CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS.

If we cancel your holiday, except where the cancellation arises due to reasons of force majeure, COVID or any other public health reasons (as described in clause 8 below), we will pay you the amount shown in the table below entitled CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS.

CHANGES AND CANCELLATIONS

Period before departure within which notice of cancellation or major change is received by us or notified to youIF WE MAKE A MAJOR CHANGE TO YOUR HOLIDAY Compensation you will receive from usIF WE CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY Amount you will receive from usIF YOU CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY Amount of maximum cancellation charge
More than 84 daysNilDeposit onlyDeposit only
42 – 69 days£20100% of holiday cost +£2050% of holiday cost
28 – 41 days£30100% of holiday cost +£3075% of holiday cost
Less than 28 days£40100% of holiday cost +£40100% of holiday cost

The compensation that we offer does not exclude you from claiming more if you are entitled to do so.

8  Changes or Cancellation due to Force Majeure, COVID or any other public health reasons 

FORCE MAJEURE:

We will not pay you compensation if we have to cancel or change your holiday arrangements in any way because of unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control.  These can include, for example, war, riot, industrial dispute, terrorist activity and its consequences, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions.  In such circumstances we will inform you as soon as reasonably possible of the cancellation or change in holiday arrangements if there is time before your departure.

COVID, OTHER PUBLIC HEALTH REASONS AND GOVERNMENTAL TRAVEL ADVICE:

If the resort of Champoluc has to close due to lock-down for reasons associated with COVID or any other public health reasons, or if Her Majesty’s Government should issue advice against all but essential travel to Italy, we will inform you as soon as reasonably possible if there is time before your departure.

In such circumstances you will have the choice of either accepting an offer of alternative holiday arrangements of comparable standard from us if available at a future date or cancelling your booked holiday and we will pay you a full refund of all monies paid, less any costs which we have reasonably incurred in arranging your holiday.

However, for the avoidance of doubt if you or a member of your party should develop COVID or test positive for COVID or should have to isolate for reasons associated with COVID before travelling either to or from the resort and consequently cannot travel, we will not be responsible for or pay you any compensation because you have had to cancel or change your holiday arrangements in any way because of such circumstances.

9 If You Have a Complaint

If you have a problem during your holiday, please inform the relevant supplier (e.g., your hotelier) and our resort representative immediately who will endeavour to put things right.  If your complaint is not resolved locally, please follow this up within 28 days of your return home by writing to us by email at the address shown on the booking form giving your booking reference and all other relevant information.  Please keep your message 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.

Under the terms of our membership of TTA in the event of a breakdown in communication or a serious disagreement between a member and a client, the TTA is prepared to intervene to give help and impartial guidance and to refer the matter for arbitration.  The arbitration scheme is arranged by TTA and administered independently by 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 the TTA website.  The Scheme does not apply to claims for an amount greater than £2,500 per person.  There is also a limit of £10,000 per party or group booking.  Neither does it apply to claims which are solely in respect of physical injury or illness or their consequences.

10 Our Liability to you

If the contract we have with you is not performed or is improperly performed by us or our suppliers we will pay you appropriate compensation if this has affected the enjoyment of your holiday arrangements.  However we will not be liable where any failure in the performance of the contract is due to:

  1. you; or
  1. a third party unconnected with the provision of the holiday arrangements and where the failure is unforeseeable or unavoidable; or
  1. 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
  1. an event which we or our suppliers, even with all due care, could not foresee or forestall.

Our liability, except in cases involving death, injury or illness, shall be limited to a maximum of twice the cost of your holiday arrangements.  Our liability will also be limited in accordance with and/or in an identical manner to any relevant international convention (for example the Paris Convention in respect of the provision of accommodation), which limit the amount of compensation that you can claim for death, injury, delay to passengers and loss, damage and delay to luggage.

Our liability for refunding any monies that you have paid to us in the event of a change to your holiday does not cover the cost of any travel or hotel arrangements associated with the holiday but booked directly by yourself.

Note: Under EU law you have rights in some circumstances to refunds and/or compensation from your airline in cases of denied boarding, cancellation or delay to flights.  Full details of these rights will be publicised at EU airports and will also be available from airlines.

However, reimbursement in such cases will not automatically entitle you to a refund of your holiday cost from us.  Your rights to a refund and/or compensation from us are set out in clauses 6, 7 and 8.

11. Additional Assistance for Packages 

If the contract we have with you for your package holiday is not performed or is improperly performed as a result of failures attributable to a third party unconnected with the provision of the services that make up the package, 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 assistance as is reasonable in the circumstances, but shall not be liable to you.

12 Personal Injury Unconnected with Your Booked Travel Arrangements

If you, or any member of your party, suffer death, illness or injury whilst overseas arising out of an activity which does not form part of your package holiday arrangements or an excursion arranged through us, we shall at our discretion, offer advice, guidance and assistance.  Where legal action is contemplated and you want our assistance, you must obtain our written consent prior to commencement of proceedings.  Our consent will be given subject to you undertaking to assign any costs, benefits received under any relevant insurance policy to ourselves.  We limit the cost of our assistance to you or any member of your party to £5,000.

13 Passport, Visa and Immigration Requirements

Your specific passport and visa requirements, and other immigration requirements are your responsibility and you should confirm these with the relevant Embassies and/or Consulates.  We do not accept any responsibility if you cannot travel because you have not complied with any passport, visa or immigration requirements.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you are in possession of a valid passport and all necessary travel and health documents required for the entirety of your journey before departure, including any relevant visas or documentation (for example, health or vaccination certification) required for you to travel to and access areas to where you are travelling.  Any information supplied by us on these or related matters is given as general guidance and in good faith but we do not accept liability for any decisions made on the basis of the information supplied.

The passport, visa and health requirements at the time of booking can be viewed on The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (“FCO”) website (www.fco.gov.uk).  We do not accept any responsibility if you cannot travel because you have not complied with any passport, visa or immigration requirements.

FCO issues Travel Advisory Notices giving advice regarding travel, which you should consult.  If FCO advises against all travel to your destination we will have to cancel your holiday.  If FCO advises against non-essential travel to your destination you may decide to cancel your holiday, in which case the cancellation provisions in clause 8 will apply.

You are recommended to obtain a copy of the leaflet “Health Advice for Travellers” published by the Department of Health prior to travel.

14 Adequate Insurance Protection 

Travel insurance is your entire responsibility and an essential pre-requisite to booking a holiday with us.  You must ensure that you (and all members of your party) have sufficient travel insurance in place to cover you, together with your personal property, at all times and for all potential risks.  You must ensure that your insurance covers you for the full duration of your holiday including, but not limited to, medical expenses, injury, death, repatriation, cancellation and curtailment, and in respect of any sports or activities that you may wish to do whilst on your holiday.  You must also ensure that there are no exclusion clauses limiting protection for the type of activities included in your holiday.  Evidence of sufficient cover will need to be provided at time of booking.  If you do not have holiday insurance cover at the time of booking, you may personally be liable for cancellation charges.  It is imperative that you familiarise yourself with the details and conditions of your policy and that you notify your insurance company of any pre-existing medical condition.  Failure to do so can invalidate the insurance cover.

15 Data protection 

We treat the handling of personal data seriously.  The data protection and privacy statement set out below in this Clause 15 details how we will treat your personal data after it has been collected by us.  We assure you that it will only use your data as specified here and for its legitimate business reasons.  Unless otherwise provided in these Booking Terms and Conditions, we will not sell, rent or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes without your express written consent.  We will only pass your data to other third parties in accordance with these Booking Terms and Conditions, or if required to do so by law.  We may disclose your data to certain permitted third parties, such as third party service providers, our own professional advisers who are bound by confidentiality codes and when we are legally obliged to disclose your data.

We need your name, address and/or email address so that we can send out information to you and advise you of special offers and promotions we think may be of interest to you.  We also require this information about you, and others included in your group, in order to complete bookings made with us for your holiday, (e.g., to relevant hotels, activities providers, public authorities such as customs or immigration if required, etc).  This applies to any sensitive information that you give to us such as information relating to disabilities, dietary requirements and/or religious beliefs.  You have the right to ask us not to process your personal data for marketing purposes.  You also have the right to access information held about you by us.  Your right to access can be exercised in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, as amended from time to time, and any access request may be subject to a fee of £10 to meet our costs in providing you with details on the personal data we hold about you.  We operate in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, and any amendments thereto.

By disclosing your personal information to us, you consent to the collection, storage and processing of your personal information by us in the manner set out in these Booking Terms and Conditions.

16 Special requests 

If you have a special request for anything that is not automatically part of the holiday arrangements you book with us, please advise us when you book and we will pass this information on to the service providers we work with.  Our note of your request in documentation issued by us confirms we have received it and does not guarantee that we, or the relevant supplier, can meet with your request.  Where possible they will try to help you, but we cannot guarantee any request unless it is noted on your invoice/receipt and we also confirm the request separately in writing.  We must emphasise that verbal confirmations of special requests cannot be taken as a guarantee that they will be met e.g., special meal type or hotel room requests.  We will not pay compensation for failing to meet a special request that we have not confirmed separately in writing.

17 Disabled Travellers and Passengers with Reduced Mobility 

We cannot be held responsible if you fail to tell us about special needs/requirements that will affect your holiday experience and this means we will not compensate you.  For customers who require support or advice prior to booking, please carefully note the information below regarding different holiday arrangements.

If you have a medical / mobility problem / condition or disability which may affect your holiday, please tell us before you confirm your booking.  We and our suppliers may require a doctor’s certificate or other documentation, information or waiver relating to such disability, medical / mobility problem or condition or fitness to travel as we or our suppliers consider necessary.  In any event, you must give us full details in writing at the time of booking.

18 Information Accuracy 

Descriptions of accommodation we provide are based on information obtained from our suppliers.  Sometimes the facilities described will be withdrawn for reasons such as maintenance, bad weather or lack of demand from guests.  Where our suppliers advise us about significant changes to descriptions or about the withdrawal of any significant facility, we will tell you as soon as possible in accordance with these Booking Terms and Conditions.  There may be a charge for some facilities.  In some places there is a possibility you will be disturbed by noise from less considerate groups, so please bear this in mind when choosing your accommodation.  Any transfer times we quote for travel between airport and resort are approximate and, depending on circumstances, the journey time may be longer.

19 Your Responsibility 

We want all our customers to have an enjoyable and carefree trip.  But you must remember that you are responsible for your actions and the effect they may have on others.  If we (or another person in authority) believe your actions could upset other customers, our suppliers or our own staff, or put them in danger, your holiday / travel arrangements may be ended and this could mean we or our suppliers may either ask you to leave your booked accommodation.  If this happens, we will not pay compensation, make refunds, or cover any expenses you suffer as a result.  We cannot accept liability for the behaviour of others in your accommodation for any facilities/services withdrawn as a result of their action.

20 International Conventions 

If any International Convention applies to or governs any of the services or facilities arranged or provided by us, or provided by any of our suppliers, and you make a claim against us of any nature arising out of death, injury, loss or damage suffered during or as a result of the provision of those services or facilities, our liability to pay you compensation and/or the amount (if any) of compensation payable to you by us will be limited in accordance with and/or in an identical manner to that provided for by the International Convention concerned (in each case including in respect of the conditions of liability, the time for bringing any claim and the type and amount of any damages that can be awarded). International Conventions which may apply in respect of hotels include the Paris Convention 1962.  Any applicable Protocols or amendments shall apply to such International Conventions.  For the avoidance of doubt, this means that we are to be regarded as having all benefit of any limitations of compensation contained in any of applicable International Convention applicable to your holiday arrangements.

21 Your Accommodation

Any accommodation we arrange for you must only be used by those people named in your booking form, on your invoice or unless agreed in writing with us.  You are not allowed to share the accommodation with anyone not named in this manner, or to let anyone else stay there.  You are responsible for the cost of any damage caused to your accommodation or its contents during your stay.  These charges must be met by you and may have to be paid locally.

Published in January 2022.

How does the TTA protect my money?

When you pay us by card or bank transfer, the money is automatically deposited into a Trust Account.  Your money remains in the Trust Account is supervised by an appointed Trustee who is either a banker, chartered or certified accountant or a solicitor.   Before a supplier is paid, we must submit an invoice which is verified and checked by the Trustee before any payment is released from the account.

In addition to being held in trust, your monies are also insured.

A Stand Alone Safe Seat Plan policy is an insurance policy which is issued on your behalf by the Travel Trust Association member.

It is the combination of the Trust Account and the Stand Alone Safe Seat Plan that ensures all of the money which you have paid to us is safely protected and available to pay for those services which you have booked.

Please be aware that this is NOT a travel insurance policy. The Stand Alone Safe Seat Plan will only protect the money that you have paid to us   You will need to take out a separate travel insurance policy to provide cover for cancellation, medical expenses, lost baggage etc.