Cactus Language Training Terms and Conditions
Monday, 1st January 2007
Definitions and Interpretations in these Conditions
The ’Company‘ shall mean Cactus, or Cactus Language, or Cactus TEFL, or Cactus Language Training, or Cactus Worldwide Limited. ‘The client’ shall mean the person in whose name the booking is made and shall include the person or persons on whose behalf the same is made. ‘Force Majeure’ shall mean any event outside the Company’s control which prevents the prompt performance of its obligations, including war and civil strife, etc.
Package Holiday Bookings
Where a UK client books more than one element of their holiday with the Company i.e. a course + accommodation or a course + flight, their holiday automatically becomes a package and is there fore insured through a Total Payment Protection Policy (TOPP) taken out by Cactus Worldwide Limited.
Where a client books only the course element of their holiday with the Company, their holiday is not regarded as a package and theirbooking is
Please note that travel insurance is not included as a contributing element to a package.
Accommodation
Where accommodation is shown for one week, this means 6 nights from Sunday to Saturday, unless otherwise indicated. However, if you spend less than 6 nights in your accommodation in any particular week, you will not receive any discount. For arrival or departure dates (not on Saturdays or Sundays), a supplement may be payable.
Courses
Where the number of course lessons is shown, this corresponds to the particular school’s practice and one lesson may last from 40-60 minutes - the number of minutes per lesson is usually shown in the brochure or on the website. The exact number of hours shown in the brochure may be somewhat reduced due to the initial level test which usually takes place on the first Monday of the course (sometimes no classes are missed, often the first 2 lessons are missed, and occasionally the whole of the first Monday is missed). There may also be some missed hours due to evaluation testing during the course (often on Fridays every 2 or 4 weeks). The company does not accept any liability for lessons missed due to these reasons and no refunds will be given where lessons are missed due to testing. In the rare event that you are the only student of your level, and you are enrolled on a group course, the school may offer you individual tuition up to the value you have paid for group classes, rather than put you in a class at the wrong level.
Materials and Transfers
Course materials, examination fees, airport transfers, and the cost of activities and excursions are not included except where specifically stated. The company will not refund any monies to a client who applies for a course requiring a specific level and is then found to be unable to join the course after the initial level test. In this case, the client will be offered a suitable alternative by the school and any difference in price (if the alternative course is less expensive) will be refunded by the company. In cases where there are insufficient numbers to run a group class, a reduced number of individual classes may be offered or the course may be offered at another school of similar standard. Please note that this does NOT apply to foreign language courses in the UK: if there are insufficient numbers to ensure that one of our evening language courses in the UK is able to run, the company will issue a full refund to you.
Activities and Excursions
Descriptions of activities and excursions which accompany the language courses are for guidance only, unless specifically noted in the confirmation invoice. Some activities may not run at all or may be substituted by other activities. In low season, there may be no activities organised at all.
Public Holidays
Where a course takes place during a public holiday, no lessons will take place on that day and no reduction in price will be given except where specifically stated. Individual classes are usually rescheduled (but not always) but group classes are usually forfeited. Please consult the accompanying list of public holidays (although it is the client’s responsibility to check these since they are often subject to change).
Booking and Payment
No contract is made between the company and the client and no booking is valid until the company has issued a confirmation invoice by post, fax or e-mail. (An e-mail acknowledging receipt of an order does not constitute a confirmation invoice.) The company will issue this confirmation invoice after it has received a completed booking form, a £175 course deposit (£250 for English courses and £300 for teacher training courses) and correct travel costs and insurance premium if required. If the full balance of the holiday price is not paid by the due date shown on the initial confirmation/invoice (8 weeks prior to departure), the company reserves the right to cancel the client’s booking and to impose the cancellation charges, stated below.
Prices and Surcharges
The charges which make up the total holiday price plus any applicable supplements and surcharges will be as stated on our website (prices in any printed brochure supplements, advertisements or other materials are for indication only). The prices are valid for holidays until further notice but are subject to change at any time (prices for an online order may also be subject to change if they are not accompanied by full payment or a deposit - once a deposit or full payment is made, the prices will not change, even if they are changed on the website). For foreign language (non-English) courses in the UK, VAT may not be already included (this is clearly stated in the brochure or on the website). If your company requires a VAT invoice, this should be indicated at the time of booking.
For guidance, your holiday price may increase because of surcharges on the following items: governmental action, increases in scheduled airfares and adverse currency fluctuations. Even in this case the company will absorb an amount equivalent to 2% of the holiday price (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges). The company will absorb any charges arising after receipt of the final balance. Should there be a favourable currency fluctuation, the company reserves the right to leave prices unaltered.
There are standard booking fees on credit card and non-UK debit card payments. These are fees that we are charged by our bank to process a payment with these cards, and we therefore need to pass these fees on to our clients. The reason why we have to charge more for USD, Euro and American Express payments is that the bank charges us a much higher amount to take payment with these cards. We do not add these fees to further our profits in any way.
Booking fees are as follows:
GBP Credit Card: 2.75%
USD Debit/Credit Card: 2.75%
EUR Debit/Credit Card: 2.75%
GBP Amex: 3.5%
Alterations by the Company
The company will do its utmost to provide the arrangements that have been confirmed, but it must reserve the right to modify or cancel any holiday, flight schedule, carrier or aircraft type, accommodation or itinerary if unforeseen circumstances arise. If the company cancel or significantly alter an essential element of the client’s holiday for reasons of force majeure, on or before the date when the payment of the balance becomes due, the company shall inform the client as soon as possible and shall offer them the choice of an alternative holiday of at least comparable standard if available. If the company is unable to offer an alternative of similar price, the company will offer the nearest available alternative and will refund the difference paid by the client. If force majeure occurs while the holiday is in progress, the company will try to make reasonable alternative arrangements. The airline and types of aircraft which are likely to be used for the holidays are subject to change and the company is obliged by the CAA to state that it cannot give the client any certain information about the airline or the type of aircraft on which the client will travel. Clients should also be aware that where airlines hold codesharing agreements, the flight may actually be provided by an operator other than that which issued the ticket.
Language Courses in the UK: Please note that Cactus needs a minimum of 4 students to run an evening language course in the UK. In the event that we do not have enough students to run your class at your chosen centre, we reserve the right to cancel your course up to 48 hours prior to the start of your course. Alternatively, we may ask you to move to another centre as close as possible to your chosen location, to join a class that is definitely running.
Liability of the Company
The company accepts responsibility for ensuring that all parts of the holiday are supplied as described and that all services shall reach reasonable standard. However the company shall not be liable for the failure or improper performance of these services where such failure or improper performance is attributable to a) the fault of the client, b) the unforeseeable or unavoidable actions of an unconnected third party, c) unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond the company’s suppliers control, including force majeure (or delay, overbooking or cancellation by an airline, bus, train, car hire or ferry company). The obligations and responsibilities of the company shall also be limited where international conventions in respect of air or sea carriers apply. The company strongly recommends that clients pay an additional £5.00 for Special Delivery (within Mainland UK) of their flight, rail or coach tickets. If tickets are lost when regular post is used, there may be a charge for re-issue and in some cases no re-issue will be possible and the flights will be forfeited. The company cannot be held responsible for tickets after they are posted.
Alterations by the Client
If the client wishes to change their booking in any way after the confirmation invoice has been issued, they must inform the company immediately, in writing, and the company reserves the right to charge £50 per person per change to cover the additional administration involved, plus any additional charges imposed by schools, airlines or other suppliers (details available on request). All airline tickets and other travel products (train, coach, bus tickets) issued are non-flexible (except where the company explicitly specifies otherwise) which means that any changes including date, time, destination, and name on a ticket will normally be treated by any airline as a cancellation and re-booking, and 100% cancellation charges may apply.
Cancellation by the Client and Visa Problems
If the client wishes to cancel their booking this must be done in writing by the person who signed the booking form or who made the online order. The date of cancellation will be taken as the date that the company receives the letter.
The cancellation charges are:
- 43 days or more before departure = deposit only + any non-flexible travel products
- between 28-42 days before departure = 40% + any non-flexible travel products
- between 8-27 days before departure = 60% + any non-flexible travel products
- between 1-7 days before departure = 100% + any non-flexible travel products
After a course has started there isno refund for any course, accommodation or other item booked.
Where a client has made a reasonable attempt to obtain a visa for the destination country within a reasonable timescale but is unable to obtain the visa, all money and deposits will be returned subject to a £75 administration charge (£175 for English courses) on receipt of written confirmation from the relevant consulate detailing the visa rejection (only original documents will be accepted). No refunds will be given for flights or other travel products. Notification of visa rejection must be made to the company in writing (or e-mail) at least 2 weeks before the start date of the course or accommodation booking.
In the case of cancellation or visa problems, the client will also be subject to the following charges, depending on the method used to provide the refund: £25 for a bank transfer, £7.50 for an international cheque, £1 for a UK cheque or a refund to a UK debit card, or 2.5% of the total to a credit card.
It is the client’s responsibility to claim any insurance monies due as the company cannot claim on behalf of the client, which is why insurance should always be taken out at the time of booking.
Descriptions
The company honestly believes that all statements made in its brochure or website are factual and correct. Every reasonable effort has been made to describe the schools and environs and to provide the amenities described. The company cannot therefore be held responsible for any changes that become known after the brochure was produced (up-to-date information can be found on the website), nor can the company accept liabilities for happenings outside its reasonable control. The company undertakes to advise the client of any material changes known to it prior to the client’s departure.
Special Requirements
Any special requests must be advised to the company in writing.
Insurance
The company reserves the right to refuse to accept bookings from clients who are not adequately insured against holiday risks. The standard holiday insurance organised by the company is strongly recommended. Clients not taking this insurance must provide evidence of adequate alternative insurance at the time of booking.
General Information
General information is included in this brochure and website for help and guidance to the client. Please read it carefully. The contract incorporating these conditions shall be governed by English law and any matters arising out of it shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales.
Language Courses UK Refund Policy
· More than 7 days before course start date: Cactus can offer you a full refund of your course up to one week before the advertised start date.
· Less than 7 days before course start date: You can transfer your booking to the next course at no extra charge OR you may have a refund of the course fee minus a £50 administration fee.
· After the first lesson: You can transfer your booking to the next course at no extra charge OR you may have a refund of the course fee minus a £50 administration fee.
· After the second lesson: You may have a refund of the course fee minus £50 administration fee.
· After the third lesson: You will not be entitled to any refund and you will NOT be able to transfer your booking to the next course.
· Claiming a refund: You must contact Cactus at the time of cancellation, following the stages indicated above, in order to claim any refund. We cannot offer any refunds at all once the third lesson has passed. Those who do not attend the rest of their course after the second lesson cannot claim for a refund at any later stage if they have not advised us of their cancellation at the time.
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