General conditions
GENERAL CONDITIONS of TMB ANTWERP – CULTURAL SERVICES GCV & TOUR MANAGEMENT BELGIUM FV (FROM THIS POINT ON REFERED TO AS “TMB’)
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Quotes, rates
The rates and programmes published by TMB are only valid for the period(s) indicated in the publication, and are current to price and programme changes.
Prices are given in Euro. Programmes and prices contained in personal quotes are valid for 30 days after the date of quote, errors and omissions excepted.
TMB is entitled to revoke the quote in whole or in part as long as no written acceptance of the quote has been received.
If not specifically stated otherwise, the rates given in the quote are net, with the provision that no commission will be paid on the rates quoted.
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TMB programme concepts
Unless expressly agreed otherwise and agreed in writing in advance, programmes and ideas remain the intellectual property of TMB. The counterparty for whom a programme or idea has been developed is not entitled to use or permit the use of that concept by third parties if the TMB concept does not result in an agreement with the counterparty, on penalty of having to reimburse the time spent by TMB on the production of the concept at a standard rate.
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Bookings
The agreement is concluded by acceptance of TMB’s quote by the counterparty.
No reservation charge is made for groups (persons travelling together with an identical programme) of 20 persons or more. The number of persons to be booked and units or services required (including number and type of hotel rooms, number of travel units, guides, restaurant places etc.) must be finalised and notified in writing to TMB at least 35 days before the group’s arrival.
The numbers notified can be reduced free of charge up to 10 days before arrival if the reduction is less than or equal to 10% of number of units booked. Any increase in the ‘price per person’ arising from the reduction will be charged on by TMB. An increase in the number of persons booked will be agreed on the basis of availability at the price agreed in the agreement insofar as the increase does not affect the number of service units to be supplied which are shared by several members of the group.
All changes to the programme and in the number of persons and units must be confirmed to TMB by the counterparty in writing as soon as possible. A written list of names and room allocations must be in our possession no less than 14 days before arrival.
Individual bookings (for travellers not travelling in a group) will only be accepted if made in writing (fax, telex, letter, e-mail). Unless agreed otherwise, booking can only be made with the provision of: details of the counterparty, name(s) of passenger(s), specified services required (package, hotel, excursion, transfer, restaurant etc.). Unless agreed otherwise, individual bookings will be confirmed by TMB.
In the event of TMB or its suppliers being unable to provide the requested accommodation or service, the best available alternative will be offered. If the alternative offer is accepted, this must be re-confirmed to TMB in writing within 48 hours.
A reservation charge of Euro 25.00 per booking may apply to individual bookings.
The counterparty must pay TMB a service charge of 15 % of the billed amount for agreements resulting from direct contacts between the counterparty and third parties which are billed through TMB.
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Obligation to provide information
The counterparty will provide TMB with the information required for the conclusion and implementation of the agreement without delay. This relates to all details concerning the group or passengers which may affect the performance of the services, together with other programme components (direct or through third parties) already booked and to be booked which may affect the performance of the services to be supplied by TMB or its suppliers. Any of the aforementioned information which only becomes known after conclusion of the agreement must be notified to TMB immediately. The counterparty undertakes to simultaneously provide TMB with a copy of all written information provided to the passengers relating to the services to be performed or commissioned by TMB. For individual bookings from the same programme, it is sufficient to provide a single copy of the travel brochure containing the package and any general travel information provided to passengers.
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Payments
Payment must be made in the currency in which the quote is given. For “all inclusive” (group) packages an advance payment of 90% of the total travel cost must be paid six weeks (42 days) before the group’s date of arrival, and the remainder must be paid within 21 days of the date of invoice, but no later than 14 days before arrival. If the final programme and number of passengers have not yet been finalised 6 weeks before arrival, TMB will calculate the most accurate possible estimate of the invoice amount to be paid, on the basis of which the advance payment should be made. The fact that the programme or the number of passengers have not been finalised cannot constitute grounds for postponing payment.
For (group) packages with an estimated total invoice amount of more than Euro 25.000,00 a 5% deposit (with a minimum of Euro 2.000,00) must be paid at the time of booking. Payments for individual bookings must be made at least 4 weeks before the passenger’s arrival.
For organisations with which separate contractual agreements have been made on the grounds of regular individual bookings, bookings will be billed (twice) monthly after the passengers’ departure. In these cases, TMB demands payment within 21 days of the date of invoicing, and it may be agreed that the counterparty maintains a transaction account credit with TMB to a sum to be stipulated to cover bookings made, or provides TMB with a bank guarantee. Alternative payment terms or periods may be stipulated for any booking. If the payment terms applicable to the booking are not met, TMB reserves the right to suspend or cancel the agreed provision of services (including those of third parties), without reimbursement of moneys already received. The resultant cancellation costs will be borne entirely by the counterparty.
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Taxes
Our quotes include an itemised statement of all applicable taxes relevant to the counterparty.
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Cancellations
Cancellations of bookings (in whole or in part) will only be accepted in writing (fax, telex, letter, e-mail), quoting the name(s) of the passenger(s) or group name, travel dates, services to be cancelled (incl. hotel name where applicable) and the reference/booking number quoted by TMB at the time of booking. Different cancellation terms (periods and charges) may apply to various services. Any cancellation charges payable in the event of cancellation after the “cancellation deadline” will be charged on to the counterparty by TMB on the basis of the cancellation charges charged by the service providers. Cancellations also cover those cases where passengers fail to use the services provided without prior notice (no-show).
If the cancellation terms are not stipulated when the agreement is concluded, it is the counterparty’s responsibility to enquire about these terms.
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Vouchers
Vouchers issued by the counterparty will be honoured if the duplicate vouchers in TMB’s name are received by our office in time.
Vouchers issued by third parties (incl. the counterparty) must clearly state: “Geboekt en betaalbaar via TMB” or in English: “Booked and payable through TMB”.
Agreements relating to the use of vouchers must be made in writing. TMB will thereby receive a specimen of a voucher to be issued from the relevant issuer.
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Barring of passengers
Passengers who cause or could cause such nuisance or disruption that proper performance of the services is thereby seriously impeded or could be impeded can be barred by TMB or those providing services to the counterparty and/or its passenger (“suppliers”) from further participation if they cannot be reasonably expected to comply with the agreement. All resultant costs will be borne by the counterparty, if and insofar as the consequences of nuisance or disruption can be attributed to the passenger. If and insofar as the cause of the barring cannot be attributed to the passenger, the sums already paid or a portion thereof – insofar as this is possible in view of the nature of the agreements with suppliers – will be reimbursed.
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Liability
TMB merely acts as an agent on behalf of its counterparty and/or passengers with regard to suppliers, even if TMB contracts with a suppliers on behalf of another party, and is therefore not liable for loss resulting from the failure to fully comply with their obligations by persons or companies which provide services to the counterparty and its travellers.
If despite the above TMB should nevertheless be liable, its liability is limited to the amount of the gross profit (the “fee”) which TMB makes with regard to the programme during the implementation of which the liability arose.
Taking account of the above, the counterparty indemnifies TMB for liability with respect to the counterparty’s passengers.
TMB’s liability is in any case limited to sum paid out by TMB’s business liability insurance in the case in question.
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Complaints
Any shortcomings in the implementation of the agreement should be notified to the supplier concerned as soon as possible, so that they can find a suitable solution. If the shortcoming is not resolved within a reasonable space of time, it must be reported to TMB forthwith. If a shortcoming is then still not resolved satisfactorily and gives rise to a complaint, this must be notified to TMB in writing by the counterparty within 7 days of the end of the trip.
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Confidentiality and assignability
All programmes, prices, quotes and agreements are held to be strictly confidential between the counterparty and TMB and are only valid between these parties.
The counterparty is not permitted to assign the rights and/or obligations arising from the agreement to third parties in full or in part.
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Applicable law and text
Belgian law applies to all agreements and preparatory actions for the purposes of concluding an agreement and to the implementation of the agreement.
In the event of conflict between the various language versions in which these general terms are produced, the version in the Dutch language will be considered definitive and final.