blue o two and red sea divers booking conditions
For all Bookings made from 1st April 2010
Booking Terms & Conditionsblue o two and red sea divers are trading names of Blue O2 limited. Blue O2 limited arrange all the services offered in any of our literature and promotional materials. The following terms and conditions show you our commitments as part of your booking. These terms and conditions form the basis of the contract with you and Blue O2 limited.
To make a booking:
If you have any queries or wish make a booking, please telephone Red Sea Divers on ++44 (0)1334 65 65 77 or Blue o two on +44 (0) 1752 480 808 from inside or outside of the UK. It is at this stage that you will book your service and will be asked to pay a deposit of 25% of the total package price or full balance if date of departure is within 12 weeks.
A contract between us will only come into effect when we send you a written booking confirmation document (please note that any other e-mails received is not a written confirmation for this purpose - a contract will only come into effect when our formal booking confirmation document is sent to you). When the contract comes into effect, we become responsible to provide you with the holiday or flight you have booked, and you become responsible to pay for it, in each case subject to these terms and conditions.
Please note: it is important you check carefully the written confirmation when you receive it, or if booking late that all details are as you require them. Our obligation is to provide the arrangements you have booked as described on this website and confirmed to you. If you wish to change or cancel those arrangements later, you may have to pay an amendment or cancellation charge and additional costs (see below) which may be as much as the whole of the original price of your arrangements.
In parties of two or more people, the person who actually makes the booking is the person with whom we make the contract with and that person accepts responsibility for making all payments to us for all members of the party. Conversely, we will send all documents and other information to that person alone, who will be responsible for ensuring that all other members of the party are kept fully informed.
At the time of booking, we also require the following information from all party members:
Payment:
The total price of the arrangements you have booked is payable:
Single Supplement:
There will be an extra charge for single room occupancy for bookings on
any liveaboard. Please enquire for further details.
Special Requests:
If you have any special requests that do not form part of the holidays
described in our brochures (for example dietary or room requirements) please let
us know at the time of booking. These will then be passed on to the relevant
authority or supplier and we will do the very best we can to ensure these
requirements are met. Please note that we are not able to pre-allocate seat
numbers. Those with specific requirements should contact the airline directly.
Not all airlines offer a pre-book facility.
Before you travel:
Pre-Travel Advice:
The foreign and Commonwealth Travel Advice Unit may have issued
information about your travel destination. You are advised to check this
information on BBC 2 (Ceefax) page 470 onwards or on the Internet under the
address http://www.fco.gov.uk or alternatively you are able to contact the ABTA
information unit on 09068202520 (approx. 50p / minute).
Consumer Protection:
The air holidays and flights in this brochure are ATOL Protected, since
we hold an Air Travel Organiser's Licence granted by the Civil Aviation
Authority. Our ATOL number is ATOL 6589. In the unlikely event of our
insolvency, the CAA will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and will
arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking. For
further information, visit the ATOL website at www.atol.org.uk
Insurance:
It is a condition of booking with us that you take out travel insurance. Details
of the insurance that we recommend are shown on our website. This cover is, we
believe, adequate for most purposes. You must be covered by suitable
insurance arrangements covering at least the cancellation of your booking, and
providing medical cover for illness or injury while overseas; especially
covering any SCUBA diving activity. You must provide us with the name of your
insurers and your policy number when you book with us or as soon as possible
thereafter. If you have not provided us with the name of your insurer and policy
number within 14 days of booking (or 3 days before departure if booking late) we
reserve the right to cancel your booking and refund all payments you have made
to us.
Diving Insurance:
We recommend that at a minimum you get insurance that covers you for SCUBA
diving to 40m. However, it is your responsibility to make sure that you
have adequate insurance to cover all aspects of your holiday and it is your
responsibility to make the appropriate arrangements.
Diving Medical Form:
For daily diving or a liveaboard safari, all divers are required to complete a
self assessment medical form before diving. This is available in advance upon
request.
Airport Arrival and Flight Travel:
In light of increased airport security it has become necessary to extend
pre-flight check in times to 3 hours prior to the scheduled take-off time for
your flight. If you fail to check in on time the airline is within its rights to
refuse your travel. We cannot accept responsibility if this situation arises and
any costs or losses incurred will be your responsibility. You may of course make
a claim under the terms of your insurance policy. Similarly, blue o two can take
no responsibility if an airline refuses an individual travel due to intoxication
or aggressive behaviour.
Airline Baggage Allowance:
Baggage allowance is subject to airline conditions and can change at
the last minute in accordance with aviation security. Please check the airlines
website prior to travel for up-to-date allowances and restrictions. This may
mean that the baggage allowance stated on your printed ticket may have changed.
Children on Liveaboards:
Children under 18 years of age must not be left unsupervised on-board
or in the water. Parents and Guardians are responsible for the supervision of
children under 18 years of age. One parent/guardian must supervise children
during dives. This may mean that parents are not able to dive together. Guests
are not advised to bring children under the age of 12 on a liveaboard safari due
to the environment and the nature of the holiday.
Cancellations & Material Changes:
Name Changes:
For all bookings with blue o two, name changes and alterations are
charged at £50 per name. Some airlines charge in excess of this and in these
exceptional circumstances blue o two reserves the right to increase this charge.
Holiday Cancellations made by you:
You are entitled to cancel your holiday at any point. All cancellations are to
be made in writing and sent to the following address: blue o two, Western
Hangar, Lawrence Rd, Mount Batten, Plymouth, PL9 9SJ. Cancellation will take
effect from the day this notice is received and the following charges will
apply:
Number of days before departure on which notice of cancellation was received: Cancellation charges as a percentage of the total holiday price (excluding insurance premiums):
More than 56 days: 25%
Between 29 and 56 days: 75%
Between 0 and 28 days: 100%
If the holiday price depends on the number of persons booked into an accommodation and you wish to change that number of persons, the price will be calculated on the basis of the new party size. Any increase in price per person as a result of part cancellation is not a cancellation charge. It is a price adjustment resulting from the amendment to the number of persons travelling.
If you decide to cancel any part of your holiday/expedition during the course of your stay you must notify us or our agents immediately, in writing explaining the reasons for the cancellation.
Changes made by us:
It is unlikely that we will have to make any changes to your travel
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 and we will advise you or your
travel agent of them at the earliest possible date. If we make a major change,
you can either have a refund of all monies paid or accept an offer of
alternative travel arrangements of comparable standard from us, if available. If
it is necessary to cancel your travel arrangements, we will pay to you
compensation as set out in this clause.
We also reserve the right to cancel your travel arrangements. For example, if the minimum number of clients required for a particular travel arrangement is not reached, we may have to cancel it. However, we will endeavour not to cancel your travel arrangements, except for reasons of force majeure or failure by you to pay the final balance.
Please note that carriers such as Airlines may be subject to change. Such a change is deemed to be a minor change. Other examples of minor changes include alteration of your outward/return flights by less than 12 hours, changes to aircraft type, change of accommodation to another of the same standard or higher within the same resort area, this includes a change to the liveaboard vessel.
If we make a major change to your holiday, we will inform you or your travel agent as soon as reasonably possible if there is time before your departure. You will have the choice of accepting the change of arrangements, accepting an offer of alternative travel arrangements from us if available or cancelling your booked holiday and receiving a full refund of all monies paid. In all cases, except where the major change arises due to reasons of force majeure, we will pay compensation as detailed below.
Notification period Compensation per person
56 days and over nil
between 56 to 28 day £10.00
between 27 to 14 days £20.00
13 and 1 day or notice in resort £30.00
Major changes may include the following:
IMPORTANT NOTE: Compensation payments do not apply to circumstances beyond our control (force majeure). We can cancel your holiday in the following circumstances: war, threat of war, riots, civil strife or terrorist activity, industrial disputes, natural or nuclear disasters, fire, technical problems with transport, airport closures, bad weather conditions and similar events beyond our control.
Changes after the start of your holiday:
Very occasionally we have to change your holiday arrangements after you
arrive in the resort. If we do this, we will try to place you in accommodation
of the same or higher standard in the same or similar resort. We will pay you
compensation according to the scale shown in the section; Cancellations or
Material Changes made by us.
Our liability to you:
We accept responsibility for ensuring that your travel arrangements,
which you book with us, are supplied as described within our documentation to
you. If any part of your travel arrangements is not provided as promised, we
will pay you appropriate compensation if this has affected the enjoyment of your
holiday.
We cannot accept liability in the following circumstances:
We will of course use our best endeavours to offer our assistance if you suffer difficulty whilst on holiday. If you, or any member of your party, suffer illness, personal injury or death, through no fault of your own, during your holiday which arises out of an activity which is not part of the holiday arrangement, we will help you organise any claim you may have against anyone else. The extent of our assistance in this respect may include the provision of translation services, communicating with authorities and others in foreign resorts and recommending foreign lawyers if this is appropriate.
During your vacation:
Responsibility/ Supervision/ Behaviour/ Damage & Disturbance:
We cannot be held responsible for client(s) that do not have adequate travel insurance. Furthermore, we cannot be held responsible for costs arising due to failure of obtaining such a policy. All adults in the group shall be responsible for ensuring that local residents, other guests, holidaymakers, our agents or persons providing you with our service are not disturbed by unreasonable or unruly behaviour. If any equipment or property belonging to us or our suppliers is damaged or lost, we reserve the right to make a charge to make good the damage or loss. The members of the party will be deemed to be jointly and severable liable for any such damage and in certain cases (at our discretion) a damage deposit may be taken at the time of issue or occupation. You will be liable for any damage caused while using blue o two services.
Lost property:
If you leave any personal property in the resort and would like us to
assist you in retrieving it, a handling fee of £100 will be charged to cover
the cost of retrieving the item and returning it to you.
Swimming Pools:
You must always obey pool rules and accept that many organisations do not employ
a life-guard. Please ensure that children and non-swimmers are supervised at all
times and follow the local guidelines for using the facility. Individuals should
not enter the pool after the consumption of alcohol and we accept no liability
for accidents or for any activities carried out without proper regard for
safety.
Extra Beds:
When booking a room with more than 2 beds (triple room) any additional
beds will usually be of smaller size or even 'chair bed' style.
Water:
In many countries water is scarce so exercise conservative measures with ones
usage. In many countries it is only advisable to drink bottled water, if unsure
whether water is safe to drink, please drink bottled water.
Hot Water:
Many hotels and resorts use solar heating for the provision of hot
water supply. In light of this you must be prepared to use tepid water during
times of low sunlight or high seasons due to the increased demand.
Safety and Local Standards:
Safety standards vary throughout the world and are often regrettably
not to UK's standard. Therefore the standards of fire safety, emergency
procedures hygiene etc. may not meet your expectations. We make every effort to
ensure that health and safety standards are adequate and meet local laws and
regulations. However, we can accept no liability if they fall short of UK
regulations.
Balconies:
Exercise caution when using balconies and never leave children
unsupervised on a balcony.
Emergency/Safety:
Please observe all fire and emergency safety regulations and notices, ensuring
that you are aware of any action you need to take in the event of an emergency
situation. Always observe all the fire exits from your accommodation and
familiarise yourself with the correct evacuation procedures.
Beaches:
Swimming outside of beached areas is very dangerous as there may be
strong and unpredictable undercurrents. We recommend that you only swim in
recommended beach areas and away from rocky outcrops. Familiarise yourself with
local flag warning systems and seek local knowledge prior to entering the water.
Children should be supervised at all times. It is recommended that no person
should swim under the influence of alcohol, in low visibility conditions or
where the conditions prove to be hazardous or dangerous. We accept no liability
to you in this situation, or any swimming, bathing activity carried out without
proper regard for safety.
Alcohol consumption:
There are times when alcohol consumption is not responsible or
appropriate. Alcohol should be avoided prior to sunbathing or swimming as it
causes dehydration and increases the chances of an incident. Never drink if
hiring a car or if driving at any time and never dive under the influence of
alcohol. Drunken behaviour in accommodation or on an aeroplane may result in
disciplinary action being taken against you by the relevant authorities. In the
result of inappropriate behaviour caused as a result of alcohol consumption or
non-prescription drug use, we will have no further responsibility for you, and
at our discretion, we may repudiate our contract with you.
Pregnancy:
All females who are over 28 weeks pregnant must have a valid medical
fitness certificate prior to travel. Once 32 weeks of pregnancy has passed it is
no longer acceptable to travel by air. If you or a member of your party is
pregnant always seek doctor's advice on whether such a service is safe. If your
GP advises against taking such a service, then we accept no liability for you
throughout the trip. This also applies to any person whose GP advices against
participating in one of our services.
Diving Participation:
We reserve the right to require you to produce evidence of appropriate
insurance as above. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fit to dive
and may be required to fill out a questionnaire to this effect in resort. We
recommend that you undertake a diving medical on a yearly basis with a
recognised medical referee. When undertaking a diving service/holiday with blue
o two the local laws and regulations governing diving form part of the contract
and must be observed and respected e.g. maximum diving depth limits. Scuba
Diving is not recommended 24 hours prior to any flight. When choosing a diving
service from blue o two it is entirely up to you to make sure that diving is
suitable for you before your departure. We can not issue any refunds if you
decide not to participate in any diving activities.
Diving and Weather Conditions:
Unfortunately weather patterns are hard to predict. In light of this
you will have to accept that on some occasions at the discretion of the Dive
guide or Instructor it may not be suitable or safe to conduct diving activities
at your chosen diving location. On liveaboard boats an alternative itinerary may
be necessary if weather conditions prove too difficult for diving. We cannot be
held responsible or liable for weather patterns and the resulting loss of diving
days, courses or activities. You may of course make a claim under the terms and
conditions of your insurance policy.
Delays:
Delays to flights from or to your point of origin do occur whether the
cancellation or delay is caused by adverse weather conditions, re-scheduling by
the airline, airport authority and / or action by air traffic controllers,
mechanical breakdown or industrial action. Baggage can also be lost, stolen or
delayed by the airline carriers. We will always try and ensure that these
situations do not affect your holiday too greatly but you should check that
these eventualities are covered within your insurance policy.
Our Representatives:
Our representatives are carefully selected, fully trained and are on duty at
different times throughout your stay to offer advice and assist you with making
your stay more enjoyable. Liveaboard / Safari guests will be provided with a
dive guide where in most circumstances will act as our representative. In some
instances a representative may not be available. In this instance our ground
agents will act as our representatives.
Liability:
We will deal with any claims arising as a result of death, bodily
injury or illness to the signatory or a bone fide member of his/her group. Where
the service in question consists of carriage by air or sea, we shall be entitled
to limit its liability as provided by international conventions.
We cannot be held liable for any loss of the duration of your stay and diving days as a result of incidences beyond our reasonable control.
We have taken all reasonable and proper steps to ensure that arrangements have been made for all diving services and that suppliers of the various services are efficient, safe, and reputable and comply with the necessary local laws of the country of origin. However we cannot guarantee that these standards meet British or European safety standards.
Complaints:
If you have any complaints during the duration of your holiday, you
should report them directly to your representative, which would usually lead to
the complaint being resolved. If however, you are still not satisfied that the
complaint has satisfactorily been resolved, then please follow it up with a
letter to us within 30 days of returning from your holiday.
Company details:
Blue O2 Limited trading as blue o two and red sea divers
Registered address:
Western Hangar,
Lawrence Rd,
Mount Batten,
Plymouth,
Devon,
PL9 9SJ.
Telephone: +44 (0) 1752 480 808
Fax: +44 (0) 1752 482 008
Company Registration Number: 5080568
VAT Registration Number: GB 837 2396 06
Governing Law:
This contract and all claims arising from it shall be subject to the laws of
England & Wales