Terms &
Condit-ions
Contract
Your contract is with GB Travel Group Limited Ltd (Trading names of; GB Sports Tours, GB Ski Tours and GB Study Tours) of 2 West Walk, Bowes Offices, Lambton
Estate, Chester le Street, DH3 4AN, Company registration no 06054242, trading as GB Sports Tours.
The booking will exist once we have received your completed booking form with the required deposit and have issued our official confirmation invoice. The booking is made on the terms of these booking conditions. When signing the booking form, you guarantee that you have the authority to accept and do accept these conditions
on behalf of the group/entire party. All correspondence will be forwarded to the lead named person.
Financial Security
Security for any monies paid by you is provided under the terms of the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018.
We provide full financial protection for our tours, for flight-based tours by way of our Air Travel Organiser’s Licence number 7039, issued by the Civil Aviation Authority, Gatwick Airport South, West Sussex, RH6 0YR, UK, telephone 0333 103 6350, email claims@caa.co.uk, www.caa.co.uk/atol-protection. When you buy an ATOL protected flight or flight inclusive package from us you will receive an ATOL Certificate. This lists what is financially protected, where you can get information on what this means for you and who to contact if things go wrong.
We will provide you with the services listed on the ATOL Certificate (or a suitable alternative). In some cases, where we are not able to do so for reasons of insolvency, an alternative ATOL holder may provide you with the services you have bought or a suitable alternative (at no extra cost to you). You agree to accept that in those circumstances the alternative ATOL holder will perform those obligations and you agree to pay any money outstanding to be paid by you under your contract to that alternative ATOL holder. However, you also agree that in some cases it will not be possible to appoint an alternative ATOL holder, in which case you will be entitled to make a claim under the ATOL scheme (or your credit card issuer where applicable).
If we are unable to provide the services listed (or a suitable alternative, through an alternative ATOL holder or otherwise) for reasons of insolvency, the Trustees of the Air Travel Trust may make a payment to (or confer a benefit on) you under the ATOL scheme. You agree that in return for such a payment or benefit you assign absolutely to those Trustees any claims which you have or may have arising out of or relating to the non-provision of the services, including any claim against us, the travel agent (or your credit card issuer where applicable). You also agree that any such claims may be re-assigned to another body, if that other body has paid sums you have claimed under the ATOL scheme.
ABTOT
The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT) provides financial protection under The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 for GB Sports Tours ABTOT membership number 5532, and in the event of their insolvency, protection is provided for:
• Non-flight packages
ABTOT cover provides for a refund in the event you have not yet travelled or repatriation if transportation was included in your package. Please note that bookings
made outside the UK are only protected by ABTOT when purchased directly with GB Sports Tours.
In the unlikely event that you require assistance whilst abroad due to our financial failure, please call the 24/7 helpline on 01702 811397 and advise you are a customer of an ABTOT protected travel company.
Payments
When you make your booking, you must pay a deposit per person as detailed on your invoice. The requested deposit must accompany the booking form. No confirmation will be issued until this is received. The additional deposit payments, any interim payments and the balance of the price of your travel arrangements must be paid in accordance with the dates stated on the invoice. If any payment is not made by the required date, we shall cancel your travel arrangements. If the balance is not paid in time, we shall retain your deposit. In these circumstances any monies already paid will be forfeit and any additional charges will be immediately due.
Our standard deposits for ski tours are as follows:
European Coach Tours
£150 initial deposit followed by a second deposit of £150
Short Haul Air Tours
£250 initial deposit followed by a second deposit of £150
Long Haul Air Tours
£350 initial deposit followed by a second deposit of £350
The second deposit will usually become due between one and four months after the initial payment. We will advise the exact date of this when you confirm your tour.
NB: An increased deposit and/or interim payments may be required to cover low-cost airlines or other special circumstances. This will be communicated during the
booking process. The balance of your tour arrangements must be paid 12 weeks before departure date. For any bookings made within 12 weeks of the departure
date, full payment must be made at the time of booking.
We accept payment by bank transfer or cheque which currently carry no charges.
Pricing Policy
Each of our tours are priced individually and prices quoted are guaranteed once the booking form and deposit have been received with the following exceptions:
Changes in [the price of the carriage of passengers resulting from changes to the cost of fuel or other power sources] [the level of taxes or fees imposed by third
parties including tourist taxes, landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports and airports] or [exchange rates] mean that the price of your travel
arrangements may change after you have booked. However, there will be no change within 20 days of your departure.
We will absorb, and you will not be charged for, any increase equivalent to 2% of the price of your travel arrangements, which excludes insurance premiums and any amendment charges. You will be charged for the amount over and above that. If this results in an increase equivalent to more than 8% of the price of your travel
arrangements, you will have the option of accepting a change to another tour if we are able to offer one (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a
lower value) or cancelling and receiving a full refund of all monies paid, except for any amendment charges or insurance premiums. Should you decide to cancel: 1)
you must do so within the time period shown on your final invoice 2) We will provide a refund of insurance premiums paid to us if you can show that you are unable
to transfer or reuse your policy.
Should the price of your tour go down due to the cost changes mentioned above, then any refund due will be paid to you. We will deduct from this refund our
administrative expenses incurred. Please note that travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of your travel due to contractual and other protection in place.
Amendments made by you
If, after our confirmation invoice has been issued, you wish to change your travel arrangements in any way, for example your chosen departure date or accommodation, we will do our utmost to make these changes, but it may not always be possible. You will be asked to pay an administration charge of £25, and 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. Note: Certain travel arrangements may not be changeable after a reservation has been made and any alteration request could incur a cancellation charge of up to 100% of that part of the arrangements. Additions or reductions to the tour numbers may be possible however, this may impact on the overall tour cost per person. Amendments to flight-based tours may carry additional costs made by the airline such as name changes. These costs will be advised in advance of any amendments being made. On flight-based tours we cannot guarantee that additional flights will be available at the same price as the original booking and some additional costs may be applicable. All amendments must be made to us in writing by the lead name person who signed the booking form.
You can transfer your booking to another person, who satisfies all the conditions that apply to this booking, by giving us notice in writing as soon as possible and no
later than 7 days before departure. Both you and the new traveller are responsible for paying all costs we incur in making the transfer.
Cancellation by you
You, or a senior member of your organisation may cancel your travel arrangements at any time. Written notification must be advised to us. Since we incur costs in cancelling your travel arrangements, the following charges will apply for cancellations:
Up to 84 days prior
Deposits received or owing. including additional amounts for low-cost airlines
83 – 57 days prior
50%
56 – 29 days prior
75%
within 28 days
100%
Note: If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges.
Cancellation is calculated from the date of receipt of the cancellation not the date of posting. Proof of posting will not be accepted as proof of receipt. Air based tours may have differing levels of charges depending on where we source the flights from. Low-cost airlines offer no refunds on cancellations. As the level of cancellation will affect the group size, smaller group supplements may be imposed in some instances.
Cancellation or alteration by us
We reserve the right to cancel your booking. We will not cancel less than 8 weeks before your departure date, except for unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances, or failure by you to pay the final balance or because the minimum number required for the package to go ahead has not been reached. Unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances mean a situation beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken.
Occasionally, through events beyond our control, it may be necessary to change items relating to your tour. In these circumstances we will do our best to minimise
the inconvenience but in the event that these changes become significant we will offer the following compensation:
Up to 57 days before departure
Nil per paying passenger
56 -- 28 days before departure
£5 per person
15 – 27 days before departure
£10 per person
14 days or less
£15 per person
Should the change be significant, and we are not able to offer a suitable alternative you will have the right to cancel and receive a full refund of monies paid.
If your tour is cancelled, we will offer you alternative arrangements, and if the price of your alternative booking is of lower value than the original booking, we will
refund the difference to you. If you do not accept alternative arrangements, we will refund all payments you have made to us. We will also offer compensation if
appropriate, however, we will not offer compensation if we must cancel or change your travel arrangements in any way because of Force Majeure or where the minimum numbers to operate the departure has not been obtained.
Provision of necessary information
In order to arrange and operate your tour we require you to provide information for onward transmission to our suppliers in order that we can operate your tour smoothly and legally. This will include but not exclusively the following:
• Names of all passengers
• Passport and visa details where necessary
• Medical conditions
• Dietary requirements
• Room requirements
You will be provided with deadlines for those items relating to your tour.
Failure to adhere to these deadlines may result in the cancellation of your tour and the cancellation details in our terms and conditions will apply.
Force Majeure
We do not have any responsibility for changes due to those circumstances amounting to “Force Majeure“ including events where we or our suppliers could not have
foreseen or avoided, even with all due care, such as, but not limited to, war or the threat of war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial dispute, bad weather,
pandemic, disease and all similar events beyond our control. In the case of Force Majeure, we will not accept liability, and reserve the right to change and cancel
bookings. We regret that no compensation will be payable under these circumstances.
Travel Tickets and vouchers
Tickets are specific to the tours booked and are not transferable to other departures. No refund will be given for lost, unused or expired tickets. Lost air tickets may
incur charges for replacement.
Our Responsibilities
As assured members of the School Travel Forum (STF) we are rigorously assessed by external qualified auditors on all health and safety matters. All Assured Members of the STF are required to adhere to a rigorous Code of Practice and Safety Management Standards and be audited each year by an external health and safety Consultancy, to ensure continuing compliance.
Our Safety Management System (SMS) explains how we manage safety for the component parts of each tour we provide. Our policy has been devised to comply with
the minimum standards for best practice in the school travel sector to ensure that reasonable precautions have been taken and due diligence exercised.
Additionally, we have created a crisis management policy outlining our roles and responsibilities in the event of a major incident.
We make all the necessary checks to ensure that your tour runs trouble free. The descriptions, information and opinions are given in good faith in respect of our suppliers and the resorts visited and we cannot accept responsibility for errors and omissions made by third parties. We will not be liable where any failure to perform or improper performance of the travel services is due to: you or another member of your party; or a third party unconnected with the provision of the travel services in the package and is unforeseeable or unavoidable; or unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances, which means a situation beyond our control, the
consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken.
We accept responsibility for personal illness, injury or death caused only by the negligence of our employees whilst acting within the scope of their employment. We
also accept responsibility for those items and elements of your tour that are in our direct control. All obligations and responsibilities in respect of carriage by air, rail, sea or coach are limited in the manner provided in the relevant International Conventions. In any event our liability is limited to the cost of the tour. Should any of the group suffer injury or death, not caused by us, and require legal assistance we will offer help up to a maximum value of £5000 per tour. This amount is repayable on receipt of recompense from the insurance company or from any proceeds of a successful action against the third party.
Personal Property
All baggage and personal property is your own responsibility at all times. Travel insurance packages cover items to some degree but the policy in force should be
checked for exclusions omissions and claim limits. In resort valuables should be kept in hotel safe facilities, if available. Some hotels will make a charge for this facility. Any loss or damage to personal property must be reported to a member of hotel or resort staff and a written confirmation must be obtained in order not to prejudice any potential insurance claim. In instances of theft or burglary a police report must be obtained.
Supervision
Group leaders and other adults in any group agree to act “in loco parentis” at all times. They must provide adequate supervision at all times to all members of the group. Additionally, the named Group Leader has the responsibility to ensure the following:
Group leaders and other adults accompanying the group agree to adequately supervise all members of the group. It is the group leader’s responsibility to ensure that:
No group member under 18 consumes alcoholic beverages.
No group member smokes in any smoke free places or behaves in a way which may cause a fire hazard.
All group members wear the lap belts provided for all journeys by coach. This may not always be applicable to coaches sourced overseas.
No group member breaks UK or local laws.
It is expected that our clients will have consideration for other people during their tour. Groups must adhere to the behaviour policies of suppliers at all times. If your group behaves in such a way as to cause danger, upset, or damage to any third party or reasons for bad or disruptive behaviour, including but not limited to being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, we will be entitled, without prior notice, to terminate the tour. In this situation the group concerned will be required to leave the accommodation or other service and return home forthwith. We will have no further responsibility towards the group, including any additional return travel
arrangements. No refunds will be made, and we will not pay any expenses or costs incurred by the termination. Additionally, you agree to indemnify us against any
claim, including costs, made against us by any suppliers of accommodation, transport or services as a result of the above.
Tours by Air
Flights will be by either charter or scheduled airlines and will be detailed to you on confirmation. Baggage allowances vary between airlines and will be confirmed on
booking. Cancellation charges on flight-based bookings also vary from airline to airline and will be confirmed at the time of booking. Airline schedules are subject to change at any time. Any such changes will be advised to you in writing as soon as received from the airline.
Billeting
Provision of billeting (hosted home stays) is usually provided free of charge by host families. We have no control over such accommodation and as such we, and our local agents, cannot be held responsible financially should these arrangements be changed or withdrawn. We reserve the right in this event to pass any additional
costs incurred to the group. We will however work with the group to provide the most suitable, cost-effective alternative. Additionally, we cannot be held responsible
for meals, services etc, not provided by the host families.
Excursions
Excursions or other tours and activities that you may choose to book or pay for whilst you are on tour are not part of your package provided by us. For any excursion
or tour that you book, other than excursion pre-arranged with us and paid for in advance of travel, your contract will be with the operator of the excursion or tour and not with us. We are not responsible for the provision of these additional excursions or tours or for anything that happens during the course of its provision by the operator. Sometimes, entrance fees can only be paid locally in local currency and should be budgeted accordingly. Prices for these trips are correct at the time we quote but are subject to change. Those trips that are not pre-booked are subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed.
Event Tickets
All sports events and accompanying tickets carry their own terms and conditions. These will apply in all cases.
On occasions sports events may be cancelled or changed at very short notice. These cancellations or changes are entirely outside our control, and we accept no
responsibility to refund or pay compensation in the event that this happens.
Tournaments and sporting fixtures
GB Sports will, when requested arrange friendly fixtures on behalf of groups travelling. These fixtures, however, cannot be guaranteed and the opposition, timings
and locations may be changed at short notice. Teams playing in pre-arranged tournaments agree to adhere to the tournament rules and regulations. GB Sports has
no liability or control over these events. Teams may be in groups with other UK sides and with sides of varying degrees of ability. Whilst every effort will be made to
make alternative arrangements GB Sports cannot be held responsible for cancellations and amendments beyond its control. In the event of the cancellation of any of
the above, other than Force Majeure, GB Sports liability is limited to the cost of the entry fee or arrangement fee for the fixtures. It is every travelling team’s
responsibility to inform the appropriate sporting authorities and obtain approval for participating in tournaments and friendly games. Costs incurred due to the failure
of the travelling team to fulfil fixtures for any reason are the responsibility of the group. It is also the group leader’s responsibility to deliver onsite risk assessments
to determine suitability of facility and venue.
Special Requests
Special requests must be noted on the booking form. Whilst we will endeavour to fulfil these requests they are not guaranteed, and the company does not accept
liability if they are not met.
Travel Requirements
It is your responsibility to ensure all the travelling party comply with specific travel requirements included but not limited to; passport, visa, immigration, inoculation’s, vaccines (including testing) and country specific entry requirements at your own expense. You should confirm these with the relevant government websites, embassies and/or consulates. We do not accept any responsibility if you cannot travel because you or any of your party do not comply to country specific regulations.
Please check the following for further details https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice
Medical Matters and Insurance
Please note, adequate and valid travel insurance is compulsory for all bookings made with GB Travel Group Limited and it is a condition of us accepting your booking
that you will have obtained adequate and valid travel insurance for your tour. This cover should begin as soon as the tour is booked in order to protect you in the
event of cancellation. You must also ensure that the insurance is adequate for the activities that you will be taking part in, including sporting fixtures and excursions
where applicable. You must advise us with details of your cover.
Before your trip, check the latest country-specific health advice from the National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC) on the TravelHealthPro website.
Each country-specific page has information on vaccine recommendations, any current health risks or outbreaks, and factsheets with information on staying healthy
abroad. Guidance is also available from NHS (Scotland) on the FitForTravel website.
General information on travel vaccinations and a travel health checklist is available on the NHS website. You may then wish to contact your health adviser or pharmacy for advice on other preventive measures and managing any pre-existing medical conditions while you’re abroad. The legal status and regulation of some medicines prescribed or purchased in the UK can be different in other countries. If you’re travelling with prescription or overthe-
counter medicine, read this guidance from NaTHNaC on best practice when travelling with medicines. For further information on the legal status of a specific medicine, you’ll need to contact the embassy, high commission or consulate of the country or territory you’re travelling to.
The group leader is responsible for completion of medical formalities and for ensuring that all members of the party adhere to health requirements and that they are in possession of all necessary travel and health documents before departure. Any costs incurred in the obtaining of such documentation must be paid by you.
Complaints
If you have a complaint about any of the services included in your tour, you must inform us without undue delay, and we will endeavour to put things right. If your complaint cannot be rectified locally you must inform us in writing within 28 days of your return home. If you fail to follow the requirement to report your complaint in resort, we will have been deprived of the opportunity to investigate and rectify any issues and this may affect your rights under this booking.
Use of Images and Media
GB Travel Group reserves the right to capture photographs and video footage of your group during your tour. These images and videos may be used for promotional purposes across GB Travel Group’s marketing channels, including but not limited to brochures, websites, social media and other digital or print materials. By
confirming your booking, you acknowledge and consent to such use unless you notify us in writing prior to travel. GB Travel Group is committed to ensuring all media is used responsibly and will not publish content in a manner that may represent or defame individuals or groups. Additionally, GB Travel Group’s trusted third party partners may also use material for their own marketing and promotional purposes. Any media collected and shared by third parties will be handled in accordance with their own privacy policies and applicable data protection regulations.
Privacy Policy
In order to provide your tour, we need to use personal information relevant to the tour such as names, contact details, passport and visa information, medical and
dietary details and to pass these on to the suppliers of your arrangements, including but not exclusively, airlines, hotels and travel companies. We may also need to
share this information with public authorities such as customs and immigration. It is a condition of your booking that you consent to this information being shared.
Additional Assistance
If you’re in difficulty whilst on holiday and ask us to help we will provide appropriate assistance, in particular by providing information on health services, local authorities and consular assistance; and helping you to find alternative arrangements and any necessary phone calls/emails. You must pay any costs we incur if the difficulty is your fault.
Jurisdiction
This booking is governed by English Law, and the jurisdiction of the English Courts. You may however choose the law and jurisdiction of Scotland or Northern Ireland if you live there and wish to do so.
Ski Lessons
To comply with UK Health and Safety recommendations, it is a condition of accepting a booking that the party leader agrees that students will ski or snowboard only on marked and patrolled slopes and be supervised at all times while skiing, either by the contracted ski school instructors, or the party’s teachers providing they are competent skiers and suitably qualified to lead or teach children.
Lessons will be as per your quote and confirmation
Ratios of students to instructors will be as per your quote and confirmation. We reserve the right to adjust instructor numbers in line with appropriate
ratio.
It is a requirement of certain resorts that a release of liability form is completed by each student and signed by the parent or legal guardian in order for
them to participate in the ski school. Details will be provided when this is applicable.
The supervision of students remains the responsibility of a party leader at all times. The Party Leader should ensure that a group supervisory adult that is qualified to lead or teach on snow is present at all times where alternative formal supervisory arrangements (e.g. under the care of a Ski Instructor during ski lessons) are not in place. We also recommend that a supervisory adult (of suitable ski ability to stay with the group) accompanies each ski group whilst on the slopes. It is therefore also the responsibility of a Party Leader to undertake a Roll Call regularly to check that all students can be accounted for at all times.
Ski Equipment
The party leader must ensure the party attends the ski shop for ski fitting in resort.
Helmets are included for all our school groups. Failure to wear these can be subject to fines in certain countries. We will advise of the regulations on
confirmation.
Please advise us as soon as possible should you have any students/staff who require oversize clothing or equipment.
If members of your group (pupil or adult) have their own ski equipment or do not wish to participate in the ski lessons, we regret that there will be no reduction
made to the tour price. For those taking their own ski equipment, additional airline charges may apply. For coach based groups, own equipment is on request due to
available space.
Ski Passes
Most lift companies require a list of pupils with their dates of birth in along with a statement from the head teacher on school headed paper confirming that the group is a school party. As prices are based on the availability of this documentation, the party leader must ensure this documentation is provided as prices are based on its availability.
Some lift companies also require photographs for all party members or just adults and it is the responsibility of the party leader to provide these photographs on arrival in resort. We will advise details on confirmation.
Snowboarding
Snowboarding may be possible on a request basis and prices will be provided on application.
Groups will be in a ratio of 1 instructor to a maximum of 8 participants and each group will need to be of a similar level of competence. Any extra
instructors based on ability groups may be required at your own expense.
Ski and snowboarding groups cannot be combined.
Snow Conditions
The company cannot accept responsibility for snow and weather conditions which may affect your winter sports. If the ski school makes a decision on the
suitability of snow conditions, this is final. Your travel insurance may cover loss of ski time. Please check.
Après Ski Activities (evening entertainments)
If we have included après ski activities in your tour cost then the activities included will be detailed on your tour quotation and in your final tour information. If not included in your tour cost, we will be happy to pre-book and pre-pay evening activities on your behalf and add the cost of these activities to your tour account. If you choose not to pre-book any après ski activities, then anything you wish to do will be subject to availability when you arrive in resort. Please note that if we have prebooked (and pre-paid) activities on your behalf and you decide not to go for any reason, the provider will retain full payment as a cancellation fee and no refund or alternative will be offered.
Ski Bus Transfers for Flight Groups & Coach Groups
Full coach transfer details will be provided on confirmation of your booking.