GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF HIRE AND RENTAL
ARTICLE 1 – DEFINITIONS
The amounts mentioned in these General Terms and Conditions are inclusive of VAT. In these terms and conditions, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
- Entrepreneur: Natural or legal person who concludes an agreement concerning the provision of a rental object against payment.
- Consumer: natural person who is not acting in the course of a profession or business and who enters into a contract with regard to the use of a rental object for payment.
- Rental object: an object that is equipped to stay and move on the water, intended for sports or leisure purposes, including the equipment and inventory forming part thereof.
- Open sail and motor boat: rental property without cabin accommodation.
- Rental agreement: the agreement whereby the entrepreneur commits himself to give the consumer, against payment, a rental object without crew in use.
- Electronic: by e-mail or website.
- Inventory list: list of objects belonging to the rental object.
- Condition list: list on which the parties record the condition of the rented object, in particular any damage, before departure.
ARTICLE 2 – APPLICABILITY
- These General Terms and Conditions apply to all contracts for the hire of rental property concluded between the entrepreneur and the consumer.
- These conditions may have been translated from Dutch into a foreign language. In the event of possible differences in the texts as a result of this translation, the Dutch text shall prevail.
ARTICLE 3 – THE OFFER/QUOTATION
- The entrepreneur makes the offer orally, in writing or electronically.
- A verbal offer must be accepted immediately, otherwise it shall lapse, unless a period of time is given for acceptance at the same time.
- The written or electronic offer shall bear a date and shall be irrevocable for the period indicated or, in the absence of a period, for ten working days after the date.
- The offer contains a complete and accurate description of the rented object and states in any case: – the rental period and the port of departure/arrival; – the rental sum with any additional costs and the method of payment.
- The offer is accompanied by a copy of these General Terms and Conditions.
ARTICLE 4 – THE AGREEMENT
- The agreement comes about by acceptance of the offer by the consumer. In case of an electronic order, the entrepreneur sends an electronic confirmation to the consumer.
- The agreements shall preferably be made in writing or electronically.
- A copy of a written contract shall be given to the consumer.
ARTICLE 5 – THE PRICE AND PRICE CHANGES
- The rental price and any additional costs the consumer has to pay are agreed upon in advance, as is any authority for an interim price change.
- Changes in taxes, duties and similar governmental levies can be passed on by the entrepreneur at any time.
ARTICLE 6 – PAYMENT TERMS
- Payment of the hire charges must be made within ten working days of receipt of the invoice, and in any case on the date of commencement of the agreed hire period, at the office of the proprietor or by transfer to a bank account specified by the proprietor.
- The consumer is in default once the payment date has passed. The entrepreneur sends a payment reminder after the date has passed and gives the consumer the opportunity to pay within fourteen days of receiving this payment reminder. If there is still no payment after the date stated in the payment reminder and the consumer cannot invoke circumstances beyond his control, the entrepreneur has the right to charge interest from the date of payment. This interest is equal to the statutory interest plus 3% on an annual basis over the amount due.
- If the consumer remains in default of paying the amount owing after the payment reminder has been sent, the proprietor also has the right to increase the amount referred to in paragraph 2, by adding the collection charges. Extrajudicial costs include all costs the proprietor has to charge for the services of lawyers, enforcement agents and anyone else he requires for the recovery of the amount due. The extrajudicial costs are determined as follows: 15% over the first € 2500 of the amount due; 10% over the next € 2500 of the amount due; 5% over the next € 5000 of the amount due; 1% over the next € 15,000 of the amount due.
- Complaints about invoices should be submitted to the Entrepreneur, preferably in writing and adequately described and explained, within a reasonable period of receipt of the invoice in question.
ARTICLE 7 – CANCELLATION
- If the consumer wishes to cancel the hire agreement, he must inform the proprietor as soon as possible in writing or electronically.
In the event of cancellation, the consumer owes the entrepreneur a fixed compensation amount: - 15% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to three months before the start of the rental period;
- 50% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to two months before the start of the rental period;
- 75% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to one month before the start of the rental period;
- 100% of the agreed hire price in the event of cancellation within one month before the start of the hire period or on the starting date of the hire period, all the above indemnification amounts with a minimum of € 68.
- Contrary to the previous paragraph, in the event of cancellation by the consumer of a hire agreement in which the hire price is less than or equal to € 250, a fixed compensation is payable of € 250:
- 0% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to one week before the start of the rental period;
- 50% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to two days before the start of the rental period;
- 100% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation within two days before the start of the rental period.
ARTICLE 8 – THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE ENTREPRENEUR
- At the start of the hire period, the proprietor makes the hired object available to the consumer. The proprietor ensures that the hired object is in good condition, that it can be used for the purpose for which it is intended and that it is provided with safety equipment that is suitable for the area agreed upon.
- The proprietor is required to adequately insure the hire object for the benefit of the consumer, against third-party liability, hull damage and theft, for sailing in the area agreed upon between the proprietor and the consumer.
- The proprietor cannot allow the consumer to leave due to bad weather conditions (wind force 5 Bft or more) and/or excessive use of alcohol and/or drugs.
- The proprietor is required to sign the list of conditions in agreement before departure. The proprietor hands over a copy of the signed list of conditions to the consumer.
- If necessary, the proprietor shall provide the consumer with an inventory list before departure.
ARTICLE 9 – THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE CONSUMER
- The consumer should have sufficient skills. If the consumer does not have sufficient skills, this at the proprietor’s discretion, then the consumer should at least be aged 18 years. This age limit of 18 years does not apply to open sailing boats.
- The consumer is obliged to check the inventory, as stated on the inventory list given by the proprietor to the consumer, and the safety equipment that belongs to the rented object for the area in question.
- Before departure, the consumer must sign the list of conditions for approval.
- If the inventory does not correspond to the inventory stated on the inventory list or if the safety equipment is incomplete or defective, the consumer should inform the proprietor of this before departure.
- The consumer uses the rented object as a good family man and good driver and in accordance with the destination. The consumer may not make any changes to the rented object. The consumer is not allowed to hand over the rented object for use without written permission from the proprietor.
- When the consumer goes swimming, the engine must be switched off at all times.
- At the end of the hire period, the consumer hands the hire item over to the proprietor at the agreed time and place and in the same condition as he received it.
- The costs directly related to the use of the rented object, such as toll, harbour, bridge, quay, lock and mooring fees and costs for fuel are at the expense of the consumer.
- The consumer requires permission from the entrepreneur before carrying out repairs. The entrepreneur reimburses the consumer for the cost of repairs if specified invoices are submitted.
- The costs of normal maintenance and repair of defects shall be borne by the entrepreneur.
- The consumer must report damage of any kind, or facts and/or circumstances that can reasonably lead to damage, to the entrepreneur as soon as possible.
- The consumer must comply with the instructions of the proprietor in order to preserve the rented object and to maintain the rights of the proprietor.
ARTICLE 10 – LIABILITY
- The consumer is liable for damage and/or loss of the rented object, insofar as not covered by the insurance, occurring during the time that he has the rented object in his possession. The consumer is not liable if he can demonstrate that the damage and/or loss was not caused by him or one of his fellow hirers, or cannot be attributed to him and/or his fellow hirers. Damage is also understood to be consequential damage.
- The consumer is fully responsible for any (consequential) damage caused by him that is not covered by insurance on the grounds of the insurance referred to in Article 8, in the event that he uses the rented object in an area not agreed upon between him and the proprietor. For the Aira 22’s, the Maxima sloops and the Tiny Houseboats the sailing area is limited to the Friesian inland waters with the exception of the IJsselmeer and the Wadden Sea. The IJsselmeer and the Waddenzee belong to the sailing area of the Hanse 315.
- The consumer is fully responsible for damage and costs, which are not covered by insurance on the grounds of the insurance referred to in Article 8, and which are the result of not following the instructions given by the proprietor in order to preserve the hire property and to retain the rights of the proprietor as referred to in Article 9, paragraph 10.
- The entrepreneur is not liable for damage to goods or for any physical injury/accident unless that damage and/or that injury/accident is the direct consequence of a defect in the hire object made available by the entrepreneur.
- For the excess, a deposit is provided by the consumer. The amount of the deposit is agreed upon at the time of booking. The deposit for the Falcons will be provided by signing a one-off direct debit mandate. For the other boats, the deposit must be paid before the start of the rental.
- A deposit received will be refunded to the consumer’s bank account within 5 working days unless there is damage.
ARTICLE 11 – NON-PERFORMANCE OF THE AGREEMENT
- If the proprietor does not meet his obligations arising from the hire agreement, the consumer can consider the hire agreement to be terminated without recourse to the courts. The proprietor must then immediately repay all amounts already paid.
- The consumer is also entitled to compensation for any damage he has suffered, unless the shortcoming on the part of the entrepreneur cannot be attributed to him.
- The above does not apply if the entrepreneur offers an alternative that is reasonable for both parties.
- If the rented object is returned to the agreed location later than the agreed time, the proprietor is entitled to a proportional increase in the rental price and to compensation for further (consequential) damage, unless the late return cannot be attributed to the consumer.
- If the consumer does not hand over the rented object in the same state as he received it, or if he has not acted in accordance with Article 9 of these Terms and Conditions, the proprietor is entitled, at the expense of the consumer, to restore the rented object to the state in which it was at the commencement of the hire period. The latter does not apply if the aforementioned costs are covered by insurance.
ARTICLE 12 – COMPLAINTS
- Complaints about the implementation of the contract should be made known to the entrepreneur in writing or electronically and clearly described and explained, within a reasonable time after the consumer has discovered or could have discovered the defects.
- Failure to submit the complaint in time may result in the consumer losing his rights in the matter, unless the failure to meet the deadline cannot reasonably be attributed to the consumer.
- If it has become clear that the complaint cannot be resolved by mutual agreement, it is called a dispute.
ARTICLE 13 – DEVIATION FROM THE CONDITIONS
Individual deviations from these General Terms and Conditions, including additions or extensions, must be recorded in writing or electronically between the entrepreneur and the consumer.
ARTICLE 14 – CHOICE OF LAW
All disputes relating to this agreement are governed by Dutch law.