Boking Terms & Conditions

Exmoor Cottage Holidays (ECH) are in the business of letting furnished holiday cottages at Town Tenement Farm, Challacombe, Devon EX31 4TS (the SITE).
ECH offer the cottages available for advance booking, and each separate booking (of a cottage for a holiday) is subject to these Booking Terms and Conditions (BTC).
You are at least 18 years old, and you agree to be bound by any and all of these BTC*.
The booking is for a short-term holiday only.*
You are booking as a consumer, not as a business; and you may not sub-let the booking to anyone else for financial gain.*
You are financially responsible for the booking and the holiday; and you agree to pay ECH any fees and BOND arising from the booking and the holiday, as and when ECH request.*
It is up to you who may stay overnight in the cottage during the holiday (your PARTY), but you must ensure that the total number of people in your PARTY (including children) does not exceed the bed-spaces in the cottage as below (plus one infant up to 14Kg in a travel cot).*
Wisteria Cottage: Sleeps 2 (+1 Cot)
Garden Cottage: Sleeps 4 (+1 Cot)
The Gatehouse: Sleeps 4 (+1 Cot)
Inglenook Cottage: Sleeps 5 (+1 Cot)
The Farmhouse: Sleeps 6 (+1 Cot)
You must ensure before the start of the holiday that every adult in your PARTY agrees to be bound by these BTC as if they were you.*
You are responsible for any breach of these BTC by anyone in your PARTY (and by their visitors) on SITE.

Booking Process

ECH have a comprehensive Website at www.exmoorcottageholidays.co.uk. This is checked and updated every year, but some images are several years old. If anything shown on the Website is especially important to you, please check with ECH before booking.
Information you provide to ECH pertinent to the booking and the holiday may be stored (digitally in a computer, and manually in a bookings book). ECH will only use it in connection with the booking; and will not knowingly share it with anyone else, unless legally obliged to do so.
The ECH Website shows current charges and the cottage availability, and from here you can submit a booking request to ECH (or you can submit a request by email). Please ensure your full name and address are correct (as ECH will use this for refunds); and include in your request the cottage, arrival & departure dates, and how many will be in your PARTY. You must include any pets (type & how many), as some breeds are not allowed in the cottage, and the total number of pets staying on SITE at any time is limited. You should also include items you would like to reserve (towel sets, travel cot, safety-gate, high-chair, fire-guard, BBQ), as these are available ‘first come first served’.
If the holiday dates are available, ECH will send you a RESERVATION email, confirming the booking details, the required Deposit (advance fees and refundable BOND), and your payment options. If the holiday is within 6 weeks, the full Deposit is payable immediately; otherwise just 25% is payable immediately, and the 75% balance is payable at least 6 weeks before the holiday. A RESERVATION is not a booking, and can be cancelled (by you or by ECH) at any time without penalty.
A booking is only confirmed when ECH send you an email with specific details relating to the BOOKING (including cottage, dates, your pets, Deposit required, payments received, and if a payment is due and when). The BOOKING is the basis of your advance agreement with ECH, please read it carefully (since any specific details take precedence over contrary information elsewhere) and contact ECH as soon as possible if you think anything is wrong. The email may also include other INFORMATION (not specific to the BOOKING) that you may find useful before the holiday (such as the facilities in the cottage, directions & arrival arrangements, and local information).
If the BOOKING shows that a payment of the Deposit is due, and ECH haven’t received payment in time, ECH may cancel the booking, and it will be considered your cancellation. On no account may anyone in your PARTY access the cottage before ECH have received full payment of the Deposit.
Additional fees may be charged for damages, breakages, missing items and extra cleaning arising from the holiday. Extra cleaning is only charged if the property is left very dirty & untidy; and/or to remove any new stubborn stains, pervasive smells, and excessive traces of pets. After the holiday the property will be cleaned by ECH staff, who will note how long it takes, and any problems they find (with photographs if possible). Additional fees will be determined according to the actual (or estimated) cost to ECH to put things right, including £18 per hour for ECH staff time. If any fee is disproportionate to the damage (for example to replace a carpet with a small burn, or a bath with a small chip) then ECH may at their discretion limit that fee to the BOND. Additional fees will be included with the final STATEMENT in (17), fully explaining why any fee has been charged, and how it has been calculated.
After the holiday, ECH will prepare a final Statement. This will consider all the fees arising from the booking and the holiday; and all your payments received (including any BOND). Normally, your payments exceed the fees, and you are due a refund; but if the fees are greater, then a payment is due to ECH. In either case, ECH will send you a STATEMENT email within 14 days of the holiday (and will have already paid you if a refund is due, which will be the extent of their liability). If the STATEMENT shows that a payment is due to ECH, you must pay this within 14 days of the STATEMENT date.

Cancellation

If you cancel the booking at least six weeks before the holiday, ECH will refund all your payments within 14 days (except £25 cancellation fee); if you cancel after this, and the Deposit is fully paid, then ECH will try to re-let the holiday dates, and if successful, the re-let proportion of the accommodation fee (as charged, less £25 cancellation fee) is refundable and will be credited in the final Statement.
If you cancel the booking after any of your PARTY have arrived on SITE, everyone in your PARTY must leave the SITE at once.
You may be liable for fees even if you cancel before you arrive. Holiday cancellation insurance (including for Covid) is widely available for consumers, and ECH strongly advise you have insurance appropriate for your needs. There is advice you may find useful at which.co.uk.
If ECH cancel the booking due to circumstances outside their control (if it is impossible for them to provide, or continue to provide, the cottage; or to do so would be disproportionately expensive); they will let you know as soon as possible. If ECH cancel before any of your PARTY have started the holiday, ECH will refund all your payments within 7 days, and this will be the extent of their liability. If any of your PARTY have started the holiday, they must leave the SITE as soon as possible; and the unused proportion of the accommodation fee will be credited in the final STATEMENT.

Arrival & Departure

Your PARTY may not arrive on SITE until after 4pm on the arrival date in the BOOKING; and must leave the SITE before 10am on the departure date in the BOOKING.
The cottage and garden will be clean and tidy when your PARTY arrive, and your PARTY agree to leave them much the same when they depart.

During the holiday

If any of your PARTY are on SITE they must always include an adult (at least 18 years old)*.
The cottage and grounds contain hazards for children, who must always be supervised on SITE by an adult (including use of internet & TV).*
Pets belonging to your PARTY (and their visitors) are only allowed in the cottage if they are included in the BOOKING, and they must never be left unattended in the cottage or grounds. Your PARTY will provide beds, bedding, and bowls for each pet; scoop their poop immediately from gardens and pathways; keep them off the play area; and vacuum and clean up after them in the cottage. Pets are not allowed on beds, bedding, chairs, sofas; or in other cottages on SITE.*
No-one in your PARTY may carry out any business or illegal activity on SITE (including when using the internet).*
No-one in your PARTY may cause a disturbance or nuisance to other guests or to ECH staff on SITE, for example aggressive or threatening behaviour, repeated loud music, late night parties, prolonged dog barking, or being rude or offensive.*
Smoking is not permitted in the cottage at any time.*
The car park on SITE has room for two vehicles per cottage (additional vehicles may have to park on the road). Electric vehicle charging is not permitted.
Your PARTY must let us know straight away of any damages, breakages, or faults in the cottage and grounds so that we can endeavour to put things right as soon as possible. We cannot be held responsible for utilities & services that are provided by (or rely upon) a third party to repair or replace (including faulty appliances, and the supply of internet, electricity & water).
The cottage is not connected to the mains sewer and your PARTY must only flush bodily waste and toilet paper into the WC (please no wet-wipes, even if they claim to be flushable). Please advise your PARTY not to use biological detergent or antibacterial hand soap (non-bio detergent and eco-friendly hand-wash are provided).
ECH and their agents may enter the cottage with reasonable cause (e.g. essential repairs, meter readings) but they will always try to let your PARTY know in advance and minimise any disruption.
ECH do not accept liability for any damage or loss to your PARTY (or their property) on SITE unless caused by ECH’s negligence.

Lost Property

If you think you have left anything behind that you want returning, contact ECH as soon as possible; If found, it will be be returned to you on receipt of £10 fee and the cost of postage & packing. Unclaimed items will only be kept for six weeks.

Coronavirus

The usual cancellation terms (18) to (21) still apply. If ECH cancel before the holiday because the cottage is in lock-down, they will refund all your payments in full (and this will be the extent of their liability). If you cancel because any of your intended PARTY are in lock-down, advised not to travel, have to self-isolate, or are not all in the same household group; you may still be liable for fees, and ECH strongly advise you have holiday insurance.
Anyone in your PARTY on SITE must observe any social distancing rules in force at the time.*
For guest safety, when ECH clean the cottage before arrival, most of the hard surfaces are also sanitised. Several items removed from the cottage (such as cushions, throws for leather chairs, and hot water bottles) are available on request. Bedspreads and extra blankets are stored in vacuum bags in the bedrooms, which may be opened and used (and must be left visible on departure so they can be quarantined).
For the safety of ECH staff, when your PARTY clean and tidy the cottage before departure, they must also wipe down hard surfaces, clear kitchen counters, vacuum the floors; and take recycling, rubbish, bin bags, and ashes from the fire, to the bin store beside the car park. Bedding should be left on the beds and not stripped, and some windows should be left open for ventilation (weather permitting).
*If you or anyone in your PARTY breaches any of the BTC above marked with an asterisk, ECH may cancel the booking immediately, and this will be considered your cancellation.

Exmoor Cottage Holidays
Town Tenement Farm, Challacombe, North Devon EX31 4TS
Website: http://www.exmoorcottageholidays.co.uk
Email: enquiries@exmoorcottageholidays.co.uk
Telephone: 01598 763320