Booking

Your Financial Security

Your contract is with Lynchpin Ireland Ltd., hereafter named “Lynchpin”. Lynchpin is registered in Northern Ireland, under No. 32478. We have arranged a clients’ account with the National Irish Bank, 2 Port Road, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal, Ireland. This means that when you book a holiday with us you can be entirely confident that all monies paid by you to us can only be used to pay our suppliers until you have completed your holiday.

Your Holiday Contract

As soon as we dispatch your holiday confirmation invoice, but not before, our contract with you takes effect. Once the contract is made, we are responsible to you to provide the holiday you have booked and you are responsible to us to pay for it subject to our advertised terms and conditions detailed elsewhere on these pages. Please note it is important to check carefully the written confirmation of your booking when you receive it, or, if booking late, that all the details are exactly as requested at the time of booking. Our responsibility is to provide you with the holiday you have booked as described in this programme and as confirmed to you. If you wish to cancel or change your booking you may have to pay cancellation or amendment charges. With parties of two or more people, the person who makes the booking accepts responsibility for making all payments to Lynchpin for all members of the party. We will send all documents and other information to that person, who will in turn, be responsible for ensuring that the other members of the party are kept fully informed.

Prices

All prices in this programme are in euros per Person. They include Value Added Tax (VAT) at the rates currently applicable in Ireland and the United Kingdom. As our programme is prepared many months before the start of the holiday season to which it relates, we reserve the right to raise or lower prices at any time before you book and to pass on any increases in VAT which either government may impose. If, at the time of booking your holiday, the price has changed from that shown in this programme you will be advised of the new price applicable to your booking before you confirm the holiday reservation.

Payment

Payment for your holiday is as follows – a) If you book more than 6 weeks before your holiday departure date, you are required to pay a deposit of at least €200/$250 per person. The full balance is payable 6 weeks before departure. b) If you book less than 6 weeks before departure, you must pay the full price of your holiday at the time of making the booking. Payment may be made by personal or banker’s check or with a credit card (4% surcharge will apply) acceptable by Lynchpin (MasterCard or Visa). We reserve the right to cancel your holiday if you fail to make payment on time. In this case, you would then owe Lynchpin the cancellation charges set out below.

Special Requests

If you have a special request, which does not form part of the holiday as described in the programme (for example, dietary requirements or room location), please let us know. We will always try to provide such requests but cannot guarantee to do so. Under no circumstances will such requests be accepted by us as forming part of our contractual obligations and there will be no liability on our part if they are not met. Any special request made after a booking is taken incurs an administration charge of €20/$25.

Holiday Insurance

It is a condition of booking that you take out holiday insurance. The cost of medical and other treatment overseas can be high, and, if no insurance is taken, we will not be able to assist you in any way. Please also ensure that you are fully protected against possible flight delays.

Charges, Hotel Ratings & Facilities

All accommodations and properties reserve the right to charge any facilities that they provide to their guests. Our programme simply displays the property’s facilities and guests should be advised that many of these may incur a local charge. For further information please ask at the time of booking.

If You Wish To Make Changes

Should you wish to change any of the details of your booking once the booking is confirmed by us, we will do our best to help. However, we have no obligation to make any change other than to allow you or any member of your party who is prevented from travelling to either cancel or to transfer their booking to someone else, provided you give us reasonable notice of the transfer. Any changes must be confirmed in writing by the person who made the booking. Please note that we cannot accept any changes communicated to us by any other person on the booking. If an amendment to the holiday is possible, a charge will be made as outlined in the scale below:

It is not possible to change your departure date to a later date without incurring charges as shown under ‘other changes’. If you wish to make any change whilst on holiday (e.g. upgrading your accommodation or extending your stay) all requests are subject to availability and any relevant additional costs must be paid for locally.

If You Cancel

In certain cases, we start to incur costs for your holiday from the time we confirm your booking. Should you cancel, the closer your departure date is, the less likely we will be able to re-sell the holiday. It follows, therefore, that if you cancel your holiday there will be a cancellation charge, and the later the cancellation, the higher that charge will be. If you wish to cancel your holiday, the cancellation must be in writing and authorised by the person in whose name the booking is invoiced.

These written instructions should be sent to us immediately, preferably by e-mail. Cancellation takes effect from the date we receive your e-mail. Cancellation charges will be calculated as set out in the table below and will be notified to you within 3 days of cancellation (please remember these charges also apply if you fail to make payment on time and, as a result, we cancel your holiday):

* Charges as % of total holiday cost.

If We Cancel or Make Changes

The Lynchpin programme is prepared many months before the holiday season to which it relates, so changes may be made to the information contained in it. If any material changes occur before you book, we will tell you at the time of booking. It may be necessary, even after we have confirmed your booking, to amend your holiday arrangements. Most changes will be of a minor nature and will have little effect on your holiday. We will inform you as soon as possible before your departure but will have no other liability to you.

Occasionally we may have to make a significant change (including cancellation) to your holiday after confirmation. Significant changes are as follows: change of resort area or change of accommodation where the new accommodation is of a lower official category (where applicable). If we have to make a significant change, we will notify you as soon as possible and you may then: a) Accept the change and the contract between us will be varied to incorporate the change. b) Purchase another available holiday from us at its advertised price. c) Withdraw from the booking completely in which case we will refund all monies paid to us.

Our Liability To You

We accept full liability for the proper performance of our obligations under our agreement with you for the provision of your holiday. If you have a justified complaint concerning any of the services forming part of the holiday we have confirmed, we will pay you compensation, as we deem reasonable. If you or any member of your party suffers damage by our failure to perform or our improper performance of our agreement with you for the provision of your holiday, we accept liability except in the following circumstances:

a) If the failure or improper performance is your fault or the fault of any member of your party
b) If the failure is the fault of someone else not connected with the provision of the services, which make up the holiday that we have confirmed to you
c) Any unusual and unforeseeable circumstance beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised
d) Any event where we or the supplier of any service, even with due care, could not foresee or forestall. We shall offer prompt general assistance to any client who, through mishap, suffers difficulty, illness, personal injury or death during their holiday with us and arising out of an activity which neither forms part of the holiday we have confirmed nor as a result of an excursion booked through us.

Complaints Procedure

If you have a complaint while you are on holiday you must inform our local representative or agent and the appropriate supplier immediately who, in turn, must inform our office. They will do their best to resolve the problem to your satisfaction. If you wish to pursue your complaint after your return, please write to us immediately. We regret we cannot accept telephone calls relating to complaints nor can we accept any complaint received more than 28 days after your return. Please note that compensation and/or refunds, where applicable, will be paid to the person in whose name the booking was made.

Indemnity

When you book a Lynchpin holiday you accept responsibility for the proper conduct of yourself and, where applicable, your party whilst on holiday. We reserve the right to cancel any holiday at any time. We also reserve the right to cancel or terminate your holiday and/or that of any member of your party due to misconduct. If your actions or those of any member of your party cause damage to the accommodation in which you are staying or cause delay to any coach travel or other means of transportation, you agree to fully indemnify us against any claim (including legal costs) made against us by or on behalf of the owners of such accommodation or other operator of such flight or other means of transportation.

Jurisdiction

The contract arising from any confirmed holiday booking is to be interpreted and is subject to the law of Northern Ireland. We agree to submit any dispute or claim under it to the Crown courts of Northern Ireland.

Subject to Availability

Please note that all holidays in this programme are subject to availability and that all offers are subject to availability and may be withdrawn without notice.

Passports & Visas

It is your responsibility to be in possession of a current and valid passport (and visa, if necessary), which will permit entry to Ireland and/or the United Kingdom.