Terms & Conditions

Swimming Pool

The pool is made available to you on the basis that you and your guests are entirely responsible at all times for your own safety. The following conditions of use are therefore the minimum considered necessary. They are not exhaustive and you may wish to add further safeguards for yourself and those accompanying you.

1.  You and your guests enter the pool at your own risk. The owners shall not, in any circumstances, be held liable for any injury, illness, accident or loss or damage to property however caused directly or indirectly in or out of the swimming pool. Only those individuals who have agreed to these Terms and Conditions and their invited guests may be admitted.
2. All accidents and incidents to be reported immediately or as soon as practically possible to the Estate Office on 01485 572855 or [email protected]
3. No one may swim on their own. Where only 2 guests are attending the swimming pool session, both guests must be over the age of 13 and a competent swimmer.
4. You may bring a maximum of 7 guests to any session. 
5. Children under the age of 7 years, and any non-swimmer of any age, must be accompanied in the water by an adult or by a competent swimmer aged 13 or over. In the latter case an adult must be present at the poolside at all times. Each adult may not have more than 2 children under 7 in their charge, or 1 non-swimmer.
6. In the interests of safety, swimmers must not run, jump or dive into the pool; it is only 1.5 metres deep. 
7. The front doors must remain shut and locked at all times and not wedged open.
8.  The owners reserve the right to exclude or refuse entry to the pool building or to terminate bookings mid session for any person who is (1) obstructive or (2) whose behaviour threatens the safety or enjoyment of other swimmers or (3) leaves the pool in an unacceptable condition. 
9. No smoking is allowed in any part of the building. 
10. No Pets are allowed in any part of the building.  
11. No electrical items are to be taken into the building, including speakers or sound systems. 
12. The pool building must always be left tidy. Please note: 

• (a) No outdoor shoes may be worn in the pool room.
• (b) Please do not sit on the padded chairs wearing wet costumes.
• (c) No food or drink is allowed in the pool room.
• (d) It is forbidden to use lilos, water pistols, and large inflatables.
• (e) Splashed water must be mopped up after use and the pool room must be left clean. 

13. Please change in the changing room provided. 
14. It is mandatory that all babies and toddlers wear swim nappies whilst using the pool and these are disposed of in the large bins provided near the driveway entrance/exit – Thank You.

Accommodation

In these booking conditions, ‘you’ and ‘your’ means all people named on the booking form
(including anyone who is added or replaced at a later date). ‘We’, ‘us’ and ‘our’ means The
Sedgeford Hall Estate.

Please read these booking conditions carefully and all the other information relevant to your
booking, including the property rental conditions (i.e any specific conditions or restrictions set
out on any website description of your chosen property/ies), and any other written information
we brought to your attention prior to confirming your booking.

All properties on our website www.sedgefordhall.com and other holiday cottage agents we use
are for the sole purpose of holiday lettings, unless expressly agreed otherwise in writing by us.
Accordingly you agree that your booking is for the sole purpose of holiday accommodation and
accept that you are not offered any rights to the property other than the right to occupy the
property as holiday accommodation for the period of your booking. No booking of any kind is an
‘Assured Shorthold Tenancy’ or protected under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.

We take payment of your deposit as confirmation that these Terms and Conditions have been
read and understood by the party leader.

Making your booking

• All bookings depend on the property and other arrangements being available. You, as the person in charge of the party (“the party leader”), must be at least 18 years old at the time of booking. All other members of the party must authorise you to make the booking on the basis of these booking conditions. By making the booking, you confirm that you are authorised to make the booking and that all other members of the party agree that the booking will be governed by these booking conditions. You, as the party leader, are responsible for making all payments due to us.
• As long as the property is available we will give you written confirmation as soon as reasonably possible. This confirmation will show your booking details and an invoice for the amount owed straight away for the deposit and the amount for the balance of the booking. Your binding contract with us will begin when we issue you with the written confirmation.
• We have the right to refuse any booking before we send you your written confirmation. If we do this, we will tell you in writing and promptly refund any money you have paid to us. In this case, we will not have any legal responsibility to you.
• As soon as you receive your confirmation, you must check the details carefully. If anything is not correct, you should tell us immediately.
• Where we offer the option of a provisional telephone booking, the property will be released for general sale after the agreed time period (usually 48 hours) unless you fully confirm the booking.
• Even if we have sent a written confirmation, we have the right to cancel a booking where there are reasonable grounds to believe that (i) it is not legitimate (ii) you are likely to breach any of our booking conditions (iii) information supplied by you in relation to your booking is incorrect.
• If we cancel your booking, we will tell you in writing and we will have no legal responsibility to you.
• You do not have the right to sell or transfer the booking to another party without our agreement.

Payment

• When you book, you must pay the deposit amount by BACS, or by sending us a cheque. This is due on receipt of invoice; payment needs to be made within 7 days of receipt. We must then receive the rest of the money owed no less than 1 month before the start of your stay. However, if you book less than 1 month before the start of your stay, we must receive full payment of the total cost of your booking.
• If you do not pay any payment due in relation to your booking by the appropriate date we are entitled to assume that you want to cancel your booking. If we do not have contact from you and no other arrangements are made, you risk losing your booking and forfeiting any deposit/monies paid.
• We only accept payment in pounds sterling. Post-dated cheques are not acceptable. Any charges raised against us by our bank for handling dishonoured cheques, bank transfers or any other payments will be passed on to the Guest who is liable to reimburse The Sedgeford Hall Estate within seven days of receipt of notification to us.
• Overseas Guests may pay in Sterling by cheque drawn on a UK bank or by international electronic transfer. Any charges for payments from overseas will be passed on to the Guest.

Pricing

• All prices quoted or otherwise given to you include all charges and any taxes or government charges which may apply to your booking at the time it is made. You may be required to pay any additional taxes that arise after your booking has been confirmed.
• We can pass on to you, in full, after we have confirmed your booking, all costs or charges which are connected with your booking, including any price increases due to changes in the exchange rates of currency.
• All accommodation prices are for the property named –or grouped – as a whole and are not on a per person basis.

Website details

• We aim to make sure that the information is presented accurately on our website, in brochures and other promotional literature or material we produce. It is intended to present a general idea of the arrangements. Not all details of the relevant facilities can be included on our website.
• Furthermore, there may be small differences between the actual property/arrangements and its description. This is usually because we are always aiming to improve services and facilities.
• Occasionally, problems mean that some facilities or services are not available or may be restricted. If this happens, we will tell you as soon as reasonably practicable after we become aware of the situation.
• We cannot accept responsibility for any changes or closures to local services or attractions mentioned in the brochure or on our website, by our advisers or advertised elsewhere. We make reasonable efforts to make sure that information we give you about your property and its facilities or services, as well as advertised travel and other services, is accurate and complete on the date given.
• We cannot accept responsibility for any inaccurate, incomplete or misleading information about any property/arrangements or its facilities and services, unless this was caused by our negligence.
• Please note that the provision of Wi-Fi is subject to availability and network conditions. It may not be available 24 hours a day and is provided for pleasure not for business purposes.
• Bookings are not accepted if they are wholly reliant on the uninterrupted, unlimited provision of Wi-Fi.

If you change or cancel your booking

• Changes
  • If you want to change any detail of your confirmed booking, we will do our best to make the changes. However, we must receive your notice in writing by post or email. We may agree to accept notice over the telephone, but this should be arranged with us first. Changes can only be accepted in accordance with the terms and conditions. Plus, where we can meet your change request, there may be a cost in facilitating this change for you depending on the change, ie. a change to your dates or property is seen as a cancellation of the original booking and so you may have to pay cancellation charges.
• Full cancellations
  • If you have to, or want to, cancel your booking after it has been confirmed, you must phone us on the number shown on your booking confirmation as soon as possible. The day we receive your notice by phone to cancel is the date on which we will cancel your booking. You will only receive a refund in the event that we are able to re-book your dates. This will include a refund of your 25% deposit in full. The balance will be refunded if the dates re-book, minus up to 20% off the total, to compensate for any discount in the rate we have allowed in order to re-sell the dates for compared to your original booking. If the dates do not re-book we will still refund you a goodwill set amount of £200.00. This will be refunded to you within 14 days after the start date of the original holiday booking.
  • We urge you to purchase holiday insurance and look for one that covers Covid-19 cancellations if possible.

Cancellations or changes by The Sedgeford Hall Estate

• We do not expect to have to make any changes to your booking. However, sometimes problems happen and bookings have to be changed or cancelled or mistakes in brochures or other details corrected. We have the right to do so. In the event of this we will contact you as soon as is reasonably practical. We will explain what has happened and let you know about the cancellation or change. However, we will have no further liability to you.

Events beyond our control

• Unfortunately we will not be legally responsible for any compensation if we are prevented from carrying out our responsibilities under this contract as a result of events beyond our control. This means an event we could not, even with all due care, avoid, including:
  • strike, lock-out or labour dispute; natural disaster; acts of terrorism, war, riot or civil commotion; malicious damage; keeping to any law or governmental order, rule, regulation or direction, including advice from the foreign office to avoid or leave a country; accident; breakdown of equipment or machinery; insolvency or bankruptcy of an owner or service provider; fire, flood, snow or storm; difficulty or increased cost in getting workers, goods or transport; and other circumstances affecting the supply of goods or services.

Our legal responsibilities to you

• We cannot be held responsible for noise or disturbance which comes from beyond the boundaries of the property or which is beyond the owner’s control. If we know about a problem before you arrive, we will contact you to let you know.
• We cannot be held responsible for the breakdown of mechanical equipment such as pumps, boilers, swimming-pool filtration systems, nor for the failure of public utilities such as water, gas and electricity.
• We will not be liable for any act, neglect or default of any person not within our employ or otherwise under our control, nor for any accident, damage, loss, injury, expense or inconvenience, whether to person or property, which you or any other person may suffer or incur arising out of, or in any way connected with the rental unless we are responsible. In addition, we accept no liability for loss of or damage to your possessions on our property or land.
• If we are denied the opportunity of investigating the complaint within a reasonable time or denied the opportunity to put matters right during your stay, then the guest will waive all rights.

Insurance

• We recommend that you take out enough travel insurance to cover you for your total stay.

Your property

• The following conditions apply to your stay at the property:
• Arrival and departure – you can arrive at your property at any time after 3pm (unless we tell you otherwise) on the start date of your rental period. You must leave by 10am on the last day. If your arrival will be delayed beyond 8pm on the start date of your rental period, you must contact the person whose details are given on the booking confirmation. If you fail to do so, you may not be able to get into the property. If you fail to arrive by 12 noon on the day after the start date of your rental period and you do not let the person whose details are given on the booking confirmation know you are arriving late, we may treat your booking as having been cancelled by you. In this situation, we will not refund any money you have paid.
• Behaviour – You and all members of your party agree:
  • To keep the property clean and tidy; to leave the property in a similar condition as you found it when you arrived; to behave in a way at all times while at the property which does not break any law; not to use the property for any illegal or commercial purpose; not to sublet the property or any part thereof or otherwise allow anyone to stay in it who we have not previously accepted on behalf of the owner as a member of your party; Not to behave in anti-social manner, breach the peace or otherwise act in a way which may disrupt or affect the enjoyment of others.
• Maximum occupancy – You also must not allow more people than the brochure or website states to stay overnight in the property. You cannot arrange for visitors to the property without the advance consent of the Sedgeford Hall Estate. You must not hold events (such as personal or corporate parties, celebrations or meetings,) at the property without our advance consent. If you do any of these things, we can refuse to hand over the property to you, or can repossess it. In the event of this, we will treat this as you cancelling the booking. In these situations you will not receive a refund of any money you have paid for your booking. And we will not be legally responsible to you as a result of this situation. (This will include, for example, any costs or expenses you have to pay due to not being able to stay in the property, such as the cost of finding other accommodation.) We are not under any obligation to find any alternative accommodation for you.
• Smoking – Smoking is not allowed inside any property on The Sedgeford Hall Estate. Smoking in the property could result in fees incurred for extra cleaning or possible compensation for the next guests may fall to you. Please use ashtrays / ensure cigarette butts are cleared up from the outside area.
• Pets – Pets are allowed in The Main Hall and Theatre, The West Wing and Park Cottage. If you bring a pet with you, it is not allowed upstairs, on beds or furniture, or in any shared facilities, such as the swimming pool. You must not leave any pets unattended in the property, including any garden, and you must keep dogs on a lead within the boundaries of the Estate. Dog mess must be cleared up and placed in an outside bin provided. If you or any member of the party has a pet allergy, we cannot guarantee that dogs, or other pets, have not been in the property, nor can we accept any responsibility for any subsequent health reaction.
• Fireworks – Fireworks are not permitted anywhere on The Sedgeford Hall Estate. Any fireworks set off could result in you and your party being removed from the property – see section 13

Damage

• You are responsible for and agree to reimburse us all costs incurred by us as a result of any breakage or damage in or to the property which is caused by you or any members of your party or any other persons invited into the property by you. We can ask for an extra payment from you to cover any such costs. We have the right to take this cost out of your security deposit, if one has been paid.
• We expect the accommodation to be left in a reasonable state on departure. If in our or our caretaker’s opinion, considerable additional cleaning is required, you will be liable for the cost of this cleaning.
• If you discover that anything is missing or damaged on arrival please notify a member of Sedgeford Hall Estate staff immediately.

Right of Entry

• We are allowed to enter the property (without letting you know first if this is not practical or possible) if special circumstances or emergencies happen (for example if repairs need to be carried out) or if you break any of these booking conditions or any other terms that apply to your booking and/or the property. We are allowed to enter the property to inspect it (including but not limited to where you have complained about the property). If this happens, you will be given reasonable notice first.
• You agree to allow The Sedgeford Hall Estate owners and staff (including workmen) access to the property as required by this clause.

Unreasonable behaviour

• We can refuse to hand over the property keys if the unreasonable behaviour of anyone in your party is likely to cause offence to other guests, to members of staff or to neighbours, or if we have reasonable cause to believe you or any member of your party will cause damage or loss to the property, its services or facilities. If this happens, the contract between you and The Sedgeford Hall Estate will end and you will not receive any refund and we will have no further responsibility to you.
• We can end a stay after the keys have been handed over, if the unreasonable behaviour of anyone in your party (including anyone invited into the property by you) is likely to spoil the enjoyment, comfort or health of other guests, residents, neighbours or members of staff or where you or any member of your party (or anyone invited into the property by you) has broken or is likely to break any of these booking conditions or any other terms and conditions applicable to the property which you have been told about. If this happens, you will have to leave the property immediately and no refund will be given. You may also be responsible for any costs we have as a result of your behavior.

Special requests

• If you have any special requests, you must let us know when you make a booking and confirm them in writing. These requests cannot be guaranteed. If we fail to meet any special request, it will not mean we have broken your contract.

Complaints

• If you want to complain it is essential that you contact us immediately if any problem arises so that( it can be sorted out) we can aim to resolve any issues as soon as reasonably possible as quickly as possible. It is often extremely difficult (and sometimes impossible) to sort out difficulties properly unless we are told promptly. If you discuss the problem with us during your stay at the property, it can usually be sorted out straightaway. In particular, complaints which would only be temporary (for example, complaints on how the property is prepared or the heating not working) cannot possibly be investigated unless registered during your stay.
• Governing law and jurisdiction
  • Any dispute, claim or other matter which may arise in relation to your booking will be governed by English law and you agree that any dispute will be dealt with exclusively by the courts of England and Wales.

Covid-19

• We must ask that you and your guests abide by any Covid-19 laws, restrictions and regulations put in place by the Government that are relevant during your holiday. We also ask that you follow any Government protocols should you become ill or symptomatic
• The most recent guidance can be found at – https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ & https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
• In the event that your booking with us cannot go ahead due to an existing Government Covid-19 restriction such as a lockdown or restriction of movement from different areas, then we are willing to transfer your payment(s) towards a new date. If the cost of the new date is more there will be a balance/increased balance to pay or if it is less there will be a reduced balance or refund for the difference. If a new date cannot be found then we are willing to offer a refund in the last scenario. We do ask that before this you contact your insurance to see if you are covered for this cancellation.