Terms and Conditions:

We hope that you appreciate that we really do want you to have a very enjoyable holiday in our beautiful cottages. Our owners have taken great care to try to provide an excellent standard of accommodation and presentation. Our booking conditions are there to protect the trust the owners have placed in us and you, their guests. If you have any worries or concerns regarding these please do not hesitate to contact us.

The Blakeney Cottage Company Limited (Blakeney Cottage Co or BCC) acts as an agent for the owner of the property that you will be occupying and the following conditions form the basis of the contract between the property owner (“owner” or “we” or “us”) and you the Tenant (”tenant” or “you” or “your”). The owner hereby agrees to let the property to you on the following terms and conditions:

1) ARRIVAL/DEPARTURE TIMES All bookings with BCC are based on an arrival time of between 4pm and 5pm on the day of arrival and a departure time of 10am at the latest on the day of departure unless arranged separately. The tenant must not arrive early, unless previously arranged, as time is needed to thoroughly clean the property between lets. The tenant and their guests must leave the property by 10am on departure day for the same reason. If the housekeepers are delayed due to late departure of the tenant and their guests a late leaving charge of £50 will be applied. Keys are usually collected from our office at Blakeney, from a key safe at the property or by separate arrangement. Keys must be returned either to the office or key safe on the day of departure. Where properties use parking permits for public car parks these permits will be handed to the tenants on arrival at our office in Blakeney and must be returned to our office on departure. The parking permits are subject to a £25 charge if not returned to BCC on the day of departure, or if they are returned in a significantly damaged state.

2) CLEANING / REFUSE You must leave the property in the same state of cleanliness as you found it on arrival. If you fail to do so, we will charge you for any necessary additional cleaning and rubbish removal at the rates of £20 per hour plus £10 per sack or similar of rubbish disposed of. The refuse collection works on an alternate weekly collection of wheelie bins. There is a green bin for recyclable products and a grey bin for non-recyclable rubbish. The Council will not take the bins if the lids do not close. A full explanation of this system is at the house, but you should dispose of any excess rubbish prior to your departure or this will be charged at the above rates and recycle all bottles and glass yourselves. If your booking is for more than 7 nights we will provide a mid-stay clean and linen change for you. There will be a note in the property on your arrival to let you know the date of the mid-stay clean. During High and Peak season mid-stay cleans will take place on Thursdays or Mondays due to the amount of turnarounds the cleaners have to perform on Fridays and Saturdays.

3) LINEN/BEDDING Unless otherwise specified, all bed linen and bathroom towels are provided. Towels will be laid out in the house ready for your use. Please do not take extra towels / linen out of the linen cupboards or this will be charged extra. Where properties have Zip and Link beds we require at least 2 weeks notice of your decision on how you would like these beds made up. If we receive less than 2 weeks notice charges may apply. Please note that the towels provided should not be taken out of the house and any stains on towels or linen not removable by normal laundering will result in replacement towels or linen which will be charged for. Swimming towels and Cot bedding & linen are NOT supplied so please bring your own even if Blakeney Cottage Co is supplying a cot. If you have any allergies/preferences relating to bedding you must let us know when you book. Whilst the owners of some properties do provide both synthetic and feather bedding this cannot be guaranteed. If the owners of the property do not provide the bedding you require it can either be rented from ourselves (charges apply and at least 2 weeks notice is required) or you can provide your own.

4) DAMAGE Other than minor breakages i.e. the odd glass or piece of crockery, all breakages, losses or damage and other extra costs will be charged for. Any damage or malfunction of any aspect of the house should be notified to BCC and noted in the breakages book in the property at once to enable rectification to be carried out. The Owner accepts no liability for loss or damage to Tenants property or belongings including cars and contents.

5) HOW TO BOOK / PAYMENT Having checked with us on prices and availability, you must send us a completed Booking Form together with a deposit of 25% of the Rental cost or 100% if booking within eight weeks of your arrival date. Subject to availability, we will then confirm your booking to you. The balance is due no later than eight weeks from the start of your holiday. If we do not receive all amounts due in full and on time, we have the right to treat your booking as cancelled by you. In this case, all monies paid and/or due at that time will be retained by/must be paid to us. We may however refund such monies if an alternative letting is achieved for the property, taking account any losses incurred. Payment can be either by UK Cheque, BACS or Credit Card. Where a cheque is given, you agree to pay any further costs incurred covered in these conditions on notification to you of those costs in writing by BCC and the owner (or BCC acting on behalf of the owner) reserves the right to pursue you for such amounts.

6) PRICES Rental prices may increase/decrease at any time but not after your booking has been confirmed. Prices may be different from those advertised on our website for periods such as Christmas where an extra charge is levied. Blakeney Cottage Co charges an insurance/administration booking fee of £45 which is in addition to the prices shown in our advertising/website. Unless otherwise stated, prices include heating, electricity and water, the use of the property and contents. Heating thermostats are set at appropriate temperatures for the time of year. If you alter these and an excessive amount of fuel /electricity is used, we reserve the right to charge you an appropriate amount for this. Where there is a telephone available unrestricted, these operate on an “honesty policy” so please leave cash for your calls when you leave. Excess calls will be charged for. Dogs are accepted in certain properties by prior agreement at £40 each. Where Dogs are allowed please bring your own dog beds, towels and all necessary equipment to protect the cottage. You are to ensure that the dog is not allowed onto any furniture or in the bedrooms and that they are never left unattended at the property. All evidence of their stay both inside and out must be cleaned up by the guest. In cottages which do not accept dogs, we cannot guarantee that pets have never been in the property, so any pet related allergies should be brought to our attention before booking.

7) CANCELLATION

By The Owner/BCC. Should the owner or BCC have to make a significant change to or cancel your holiday for any reason, you will receive a full refund of all monies paid and the opportunity to rebook other dates at a reduced rate.

By The Tenant. If you cancel your booking within eight weeks of your holiday, a cancellation charge of 100% (if more than eight weeks 25%) of the total Rental cost will be payable by you. However, if we manage to re-let the Property for the same period you have booked, we will refund all monies you have paid except that the Owner shall be entitled to retain from the monies you have paid (or pursue you for if you have not yet paid) the difference between the amount received from the new Tenant (if less than that paid or payable by you) and the amount payable by you for the original booking. In the case of any cancellation BCC shall retain its booking fee at the rate it was at on the date of booking.

8) RIGHT OF ENTRY The Owner or representative of BCC reserves the right to enter the property at reasonable times to inspect the property and carry out both emergency repairs and normal maintenance including gardening etc or at anytime if there is cause for concern that the booking conditions are being broken.

9) SAFETY/BEHAVIOUR Your safety whilst staying in our properties is important to us. Whilst the Owner has taken every care to provide a safe environment, no liability is accepted for Injury to persons staying in our properties save where this can be shown to be as a result of the negligence of the owner. Guests are expected to behave in a circumspect manner at all times with regard to their and others safety and to abide by any house rules especially concerning rowdy behaviour and excessive noise. Parents are primarily responsible for the safety of Children and letting this house does not negate Parental responsibility. Some of the cottages have steep stairs, narrow stair treads and/or period/listed features which form part of their character, but may be considered by some as unsuitable for children, the elderly or physically impaired. If any aspect of safety causes concern to you or any member of your party, please contact Blakeney Cottage Co as soon as you read these conditions. We can then explain more fully the specific area of concern and if necessary try to find suitable alternative accommodation. It will be the responsibility of the person making the booking and in whose name the booking is held to ultimately decide if the property is suitable for the members of their party. Where stair gates are supplied, these are the responsibility of the parents to check and use correctly. Where they are not supplied these can normally be rented from BCC (see prices above). The Owner reserves the right to take any appropriate action, including immediate termination of the Tenancy (when no refunds will be made and the Owner will have no further liability to you) if the property, contents or its grounds are abused or misused or if the number of persons staying at the property exceeds the number stated on your booking form or exceeds the number stated by BCC to be the capacity of the property. Parties or gatherings including guests not staying at the property to be by arrangement with BCC only. Parking caravans or pitching tents is not permitted. Damage to the property as a result of the fault or abuse (wilful, negligent or otherwise) of the tenant will be fully charged including consequential loss re future lettings.

10) TENANTS PROPERTY/LOST PROPERTY In the event that an item is left behind you in the property, the tenant should inform BCC straight away so that the housekeeper can be aware and attempt to locate the missing property for you. BCC accept no responsibility if the item cannot be found. If the item is found BCC will return left items by post on request, but a £15 minimum charge will apply to cover administration, packing & postage.

11) INTERNET AND TELEPHONE All BCC properties offer free wireless internet access and many properties have land line telephones. The availability of these services are entirely dependent on the supplier (e.g British Telecom) and cannot be guaranteed by either BCC or the owner. Events entirely out of the control of BCC or the owner can cause failure and therefore in the event of failure, neither BCC or the owners can be held responsible and will not be liable to make compensation payments.

12) COMPLAINTS If you have any complaints concerning the property or service received by BCC/property owner, please inform BCC/property owner immediately (within 24 hours) allowing the complaint to be corrected at the earliest opportunity. The tenant should always raise any complaints with BCC/property owner during their stay, as BCC/property owner cannot properly investigate any complaints made at a later time. Please check that the cleanliness of the cottage is to your satisfaction on arrival as cleaning complaints can only be responded to if notified within 2 hours of arrival. Whilst we make every effort to ensure that your stay is to your utmost satisfaction, we cannot accept responsibility for noise or nuisance caused by neighbouring properties including unsociable occupants, village events or building works where this is out of the direct control of BCC but we will make every effort to mitigate these where we can. Some of our properties are in a rural country area. Tenants must expect the presence of rabbits, pigeons, pheasants, insects and such like, the noise/smell of machinery tending to adjacent land and the occasional inherent noise/smell of rural agriculture/livestock. There is little that can be done to resolve such nuisance/inconvenience and must be accepted by Tenants as an inherent part of rural life. Our properties are constantly being improved by our owners so we cannot guarantee that furnishings, decoration and facilities will be exactly as per the photos or specification on our website/literature.

13) ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING Unless express permission is given by either the owner of the property or a Blakeney Cottage Company member of staff it is strictly forbidden to charge your electric vehicle using the mains supply at any property. Guests can pay a surcharge to charge their vehicles only at properties with designated EV chargers. These chargers will remain locked unless the surcharge is paid. The majority of our properties are fitted with smart meters so our owners are owners are able to monitor energy usage. If an abnormally high amount of energy is used during your stay there may be an additional surcharge levied to cover costs.

14) ENERGY USAGE In line with our owners ethical responsibility to run their properties in as energy efficient way as possible we ask that our guests please also play their part. Please ensure that lights are always switched off when not in use and that you run the heating at the property as efficiently as you can. If you go out for the day ensure the property is ‘shut down’ in regards to heating and lighting in order to prevent wasting energy. The majority of our properties are fitted with smart meters for both heating and power so our owners are owners are able to monitor energy usage. If an abnormally high amount of energy is used during your stay there may be an additional surcharge levied to cover costs.

15) FORCE MAJEURE Except where otherwise expressly stated in these booking conditions, the Owner or BCC can accept no liability where the performance or prompt performance of the Owners or BCC’s contractual obligations is prevented or affected by, or you otherwise suffer any damage or loss as a result of “Force Majeure”. In these Booking Conditions “Force Majeure” means any event which the Owner could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. Such events may include war or threat of war, riot, civil strife, actual or threatened terrorist activity, pandemic, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, adverse weather conditions, power outages, flooding, fire and all similar events outside our control.

16) NOTES Please note that unless dedicated parking is specified in the cottage details we cannot guarantee parking – there are usually spaces to be found either in the village car parks or on the lanes. Please also note that whilst North Norfolk is an unspoilt and peaceful holiday destination, it is also a ‘living village’ for those who live her all year round and there are occasional village activities; wedding celebrations, concerts, the yearly regatta and funfair etc which are all part of village life and we have no control over. Where properties have log burners/open fires fuel is not usually provided – do contact us for more details on individual properties where we will be glad to advise to the best of our knowledge. Please note – where mattress sizes are stated the width of them is as follows; Small single 75cm (2″6), Single 90cm (3″), Small double 120cm (4″), Double 135cm (4″6), King-Size 150cm (5″), Super King 180cm (6″).

17) SPECIAL OFFERS Please note that when we have more than one special offer on bookings available at any given time they cannot be used in conjunction with each other.

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