First and Last Cottages - Terms & Conditions - self catering and bed and breakfast accommodation, Cornwall

General

First and Last Cottages act as agent for the owners of the property. The rental arrangements are made by First and Last Cottages and the contractual relationship is directly between the owners of the property and the guest. First and Last Cottages will, on request, provide the name and address of the owners of any property which the guest has booked.

Self-catering - a booking is only confirmed once we have received a deposit - we will then confirm your booking in writing. A provisional reservation will be held for 7 days and if we have not received a deposit within this time the reservation will lapse.

Bed and breakfast - a booking is only confirmed on receipt of a deposit. A provisional booking will lapse after 4 days if the deposit has not been received.

Deposit - can be paid by card or cheque

Self-catering - if a booking is made 6 weeks or more before the holiday starts, a deposit of 20% is payable. The balance is payable not later than 6 weeks before the start date. If your holiday begins less than 6 weeks from the time of booking, the full rent is payable. If the balance payment is not received by the due date, as set out in the confirmation letter, then the guest will lose their booking and the deposit will be forfeit

Bed and breakfast - a deposit of 50% of the value of the first night's booking is required. The balance is payable on arrival.

Cancellation

Self-catering - in the event of cancellation less than 6 weeks before a holiday begins the whole rent is payable unless we succeed in re-letting. With more than 6 weeks notice, only the deposit will be forfeit.

Bed and breakfast - in the event of cancellation the deposit will be forfeit, unless we are able to re-let the room. If the booking is cancelled with 48 hours notice or less, the full amount is due unless we are able to re-let the room.

Cancellation Insurance

Self-catering - traditionally people have not taken out insurance for UK holidays but it is strongly recommended that you do. You could use the following link to purchase insurance from World First but there is plenty of choice available on the internet.

Payment options

Payment can be made by cheque made out to First and Last Cottages, by debit or maestro card at no extra cost or by credit card which attracts a 1.5% surcharge.

Discounts

5% discount is offered for a repeat booking within 18 months

Overseas Bookings

Overseas guests may pay in sterling by cheque drawn on a UK bank, Mastercard, Visa, Maestro or by electronic transfer. Any charges for payments from overseas will be passed on to the guest.

Eligibility

Bookings will not be accepted from groups of single people under the age of 25 or from all male or all female parties of more than three people.

Arrival and Departure

Self-catering - all holidays start and finish on a Saturday for Treeve Moor Cottage, Stargazey, The School House, Flats 1-5 Mercury House, The Old Milking Parlour, The Burrow and Carn Scathe, a Sunday for Top Deck, Beachcomber and Cobweb Cottage and a Friday for Sundowner, Cara, Surfers Paradise, Shellseekers and Joppa Barn (except as agreed for out of season short breaks). Tenancies commence at 1600 on the first day and terminate at 1000 on the day of departure. If, for any reason, it's possible to get in earlier I will call you to let you know.

Bed and breakfast - arrival time preferably not before 1400, departure time is 1000, unless otherwise arranged.

Short Breaks

Available from November to March, apart from Christmas, New Year and February half-term. 3 nights minimum. 2/3 nights charged @ 70%, 4 nights @ 75% and 5 nights @ 80% and 6 nights @ 90%. Sometimes available at other times, please enquire. Please note the 5% repeat discount does not apply to short breaks

Parking

Self-catering - Treeve Moor Cottage has two parking spaces adjacent to the property. Stargazey, Top Deck, Beachcomber and Shellseekers have an allocated parking space in the car park opposite the side gate of Zodiac House. Please park to the left of the post marked "8" for Stargazey, to the left of the post marked "2" for Top Deck, to the left of the post marked "1" for Beachcomber and to the left of the post marked "9" for Shellseekers. A second space can be made available but please mention this when booking because otherwise it is used by us when going to the beach at Porthcurno! Sundowner and Surfers Paradise have two parking spaces adjacent to the properties. Parking for Flats 1-5 Mercury House is adjacent to the property. The School House has two parking spaces adjacent to the property. Cobweb Cottage has one space adjacent to the property. Joppa Barn has space for two cars adjacent to the property. Cara has two allocated spaces across the road from the property. Carn Scathe has one allocated parking space approximately 100 yards from the property. The Old Milking Parlour has one space next to the property and unrestricted parking in the road. The Burrow has parking for one car.

Bed and breakfast - there are two parking spaces adjacent to the property.

Smoking

Most properties are non-smoking - we would ask you not to smoke under any circumstances

Cots/Highchairs

Cots and highchairs can be made available but please mention your requirements when booking to ensure that they are available.

Camp beds

Bed and breakfast - it is possible to add a camp bed for a child into the double bedroom (not recommended in the twin bedroom because the floor space is taken up by a sofa).

Self-catering - at Treeve Moor Cottage it is possible to add a camp bed in the downstairs single bedroom although this leaves practically no space to move around. At Stargazey, Top Deck and Shellseekers it is possible to add a camp bed into either the double or twin room. In the case of the twin room you end up with 3 beds side by side but there is still space to move around the edges! There is room for a camp bed in two of the bedrooms in Sundowner and Surfers Paradise and all the bedrooms in Mercury House. There is room to add one in The School House

There will be a charge of £10 for linen for a camp bed.

Linen

Linen is changed between holidays and a change of linen is provided weekly during holidays.

Pets

Self-catering - pets are accepted at Treeve Moor Cottage, Sundowner, Cobweb Cottage, Joppa Barn, Cara, The Old Milking Parlour and Flats 1-5 Mercury House but not at Stargazey, Top Deck, Beachcomber, Surfers Paradise, Shellseekers, The Burrow, Carn Scathe or The School House.

Pets are only accepted on the understanding they are kept under strict control, exercised off the premises and are not permitted in the bedrooms or on the furniture. They should not be left in the property unsupervised. Please ensure your pet's flea treatment is up to date. The most common reason for owners to change their minds about accepting pets is failure to comply with these conditions.

Bed and breakfast - sorry, pets are not accepted due to the resident cat

Mobile phones

Most of the properties are in remote locations and do not have a reliable mobile phone signal. Please ask for more details if this is important to you.

Electricity, central heating, fuel for woodburner, linen and towels

Electricity and central heating are included in the rental. A starter pack of firelighters, matches and smokeless fuel is provided for the woodburner in Treeve Moor Cottage and The School House for a fire on the first evening. More fuel can be purchased from the local petrol station. Bed linen and towels (2 per person) are provided but not beach towels.

Tenant's Obligations

The tenant agrees:-

a. to pay for any losses or damage to the property unless the cost can be recovered under any household insurance held by the owner

b. to take good care of the property and leave it in a clean and tidy condition on departure. First and Last Cottages reserves the right to make a charge for extra cleaning if the property is not left in a satisfactory condition. Should the owner be dissatisfied with the condition of the property, they may refuse to take a booking from that guest again. If a guest has been excluded from two or more properties by owners then First and Last Cottages has the right to refuse any more bookings from that guest at any other property.

c. to permit the owners and their agents reasonable access to the property

d. not to part with possession of the property, or share it, except with members of the party listed when booking

e. not to exceed the total number of people stipulated in the property description

f. not to sell or transfer the booking to another party without First and Last Cottages' agreement

g. not to cause an annoyance or become a nuisance to occupants of adjoining premises

h. not to smoke in a non-smoking property

Non-availability of property

If for any reason beyond the owners control the property is not available on the date booked (owing, for example, to fire damage) or the property becomes unsuitable for holiday letting, all rent and charges paid in advance by the guest will be refunded.

Liability

First and Last Cottages shall not be liable for any loss, damage, expense, accident, injury or inconvenience, whether to person or property, which the applicant or any other person may suffer or sustain arising out of, or in respect of, any letting.

Breach of Contract

If there is a breach of any of these conditions by the guest or any of their party, the owners of First and Last Cottages reserve the right to re-enter the property and end the holiday and ask the guest and their party to leave.

If there is a breach of any of these conditions by First and Last Cottages or the owners, then the guests have the right to end their holiday and leave.

Governing Law

The contract embodied in the booking is governed by English law, and subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

Complaints

We try to take every care to prepare our properties to a standard whereby our visitors will enjoy their holidays. However, it is impossible to check every item (particularly things like washing machines) on each turnaround, so if a problem does arise please let us know immediately. Every effort will be made to assist you.

If First and Last Cottages or the owners are denied the opportunity of investigating the complaint within a reasonable time or denied the opportunity to put matters right during the holiday, then this may result in a reasonable reduction of any compensation which may be payable to the guest arising out of such a complaint.

If something goes wrong or gets broken whilst you are in the property we would really appreciate it if you could let us know straight away - often people leave a note on the day of their departure which then only gives us a couple of hours to fix the problem before the next people arrive.

Contact Liz Trenary, Treeve Moor House, Sennen, Penzance TR19 7AE, tel 01736 871284, info@firstandlastcottages.co.uk