General Terms and Conditions for Hotel Accommodation Contracts

 

I. Scope

1.   These General Terms and Conditions shall apply to contracts for the rental use of hotel rooms for lodging purposes as well as to any other related services and deliveries provided to the customer by the hotel.

2.   Unless with the prior consent of the hotel, any subletting or re-letting of the rented rooms as well as their use for other than for lodging purposes shall not permitted, Section 540 subsection 1 clause 2 of the German Civil Code [BGB] not being applicable if the customer is not a consumer. If the customer transfers the room to a third party for use he or she shall be liable for any of such third party’s default while using the room, even if the hotel has given its prior consent to such transfer for use. As a general rule, consent to transfer for use shall be subject to the third party acceding the customer’s liabilities under this contract as additional party liable.

3.   Unless expressly agreed, none of the customer’s general terms and conditions shall apply.

 

II. Conclusion of Contract, Contracting Parties, Limitation Period

1.   The contract shall be deemed to be concluded by the hotel’s acceptance of offer (confirmation).

2.   The contracting parties shall be the hotel and the customer.

3.   Any and all claims against the hotel shall be time-barred one year after commencement of the statutory period of limitation. Claims for damages shall be time-barred after five years regardless of the awareness of their existence, unless such claims are based on any injury of life, body or health. Any of the latter type of claims for damages as well as claims arising due to willful or grossly negligent breach of duty by the hotel or its agents shall be subject to the statutory period of limitation.

 

III. Performance, Rates, Payment, Set-Off

1.   The hotel shall be obliged to provide the hotel rooms booked by the customer or alternatives thereof of equal value and to perform the services agreed.

2.   The customer shall be obliged to pay the rates agreed and/or normally charged by the hotel for the rental use of the room as well as for any further deliveries and services used by the customer. This shall also apply to any services and expenses of the hotel to third parties caused by the customer.

3.   The agreed rates include the respective statutory sales tax; Any city tax that may be incurred is not included in the agreed prices and is additionally due at the agreed prices.

4.   If the period of time between the conclusion of contract and the use of the service exceeds four months ad if meantime there is a rise of the normal rates charged by the hotel, the rate as agreed by contract may be subject to a reasonable increase, in any case not exceeding a maximum of 5%. For each further year of interval between conclusion and performance of contract beyond the said four months’ period, another 5% shall be added to the maximum limit of increase.

5.   Hotel invoices bearing no due date shall be due net for payment within 10 days of receipt of the invoice. The amount of interest for default shall be subject to the relevant statutory provisions.

6.   The hotel shall have the right to charge the customer 50% of the agreed rate two months prior to the use of the service, and 75% of the agreed rate if the customer has no legal residence in the country, as advance payment or security in the form of a credit card guarantee, a down payment or similar.

7.   If justified, e.g. by the customer’s late payment or the increase of the value of contract, the hotel shall have the right even anytime after conclusion of contract and up to the beginning of the stay to ask for an advance payment or security in terms of the preceding section 6 or for an increase of the advance payment or security agreed in the contract up to the full amount of the rate agreed.

8.   The booked rate shall be paid prior to the use of the service. Once the use of the service has started, the hotel shall in any case have the right to issue interim bills to be immediately settled by the customer at any time.

9.   The customer may not set off any of the hotel’s claims against any of the customer’s claims unless such claims are uncontested or based on a final court decision and/or exercise a right of retention with respect to the hotel’s claims.

 

IV. Customer’s Withdrawal

1.   Prior to the beginning of the stay, the customer shall have the right to cancel the contract concluded at any time, unless otherwise agreed in the individual case. This shall be without prejudice to the customer’s right of withdrawal for cause in case the customer cannot reasonably be expected to maintain the contract.

For any cancelations of contract, the customer shall be obliged to pay cancelation fees as follows:

The cancelation fees shall be charged without value added tax (so-called nontaxable liquidated damages). The customer shall be free to prove that the claim has not arisen or has not arisen in the amount as charged.

In case of an individual agreement that a cancelation right must be exercised within an agreed period of time, such right shall expire upon expiry of such period and the contract shall remain fully effective with the consequence that the customer shall be bound to pay the agreed consideration even if the customer does not use the ordered deliveries and services including but not limited to the booked rooms.

2.   If and to the extent to which does not use any uncanceled rooms, the hotel shall set off any proceeds from alternative rental as well as the value of any saved expenses. In any such case, the customer shall be obliged to pay 90% of the rate agreed in the contract, in each case plus statutory value added tax (the so-called no-show fee). The customer shall be free to prove that the so-called claim has not arisen or not arisen in the amount as charged.

 

V. Hotel’s Withdrawal

1.   If agreed by contract that the customer may cancel the contract free of charge within a given period of time, the hotel shall have the right to withdraw from the contract during such period of time whenever the booked rooms are requested by other customers if the first customer declines to waive his right of cancelation when asked to do so by the hotel.

2.   If the customer fails to make any advance or security payment due even within a reasonable grace period fixed by the hotel, the hotel shall also have the right to withdraw. In any such case, the withdrawal shall not exclude the hotel’s right to claim damages from the customer. The amount of such damages shall be calculated in accordance with the amounts set forth in section IV.1 hereunder.

3.   The hotel shall have the right to withdraw from the contract for a valid cause, a valid cause being deemed to be given by mutual agreement between the parties in any of the following events:

4.   In case of the hotel’s justified withdrawal, the customer shall have no right to claim damages.

 

VI. Provision, Delivery, Return of Rooms

1.   Unless expressly agreed in the individual case, the customer shall not acquire the right to be provided with any specific rooms.

2.   Booked rooms shall be available to the customer for check-in at 03.00 p.m. on the agreed date of arrival. The customer shall have no right to claim any earlier availability.

3.   On the agreed date of departure, the rooms shall be cleared and made available to the hotel by 12.00 noon at the latest. After this deadline, the hotel may charge for late clearing of the room and late check-out until 06.00 p.m. 50% of the full room rate (scheduled price), if after 06.00 p.m. 100%. This shall not result in the customer acquiring any contractual claims. The customer shall be free to prove that the hotel has no right to claim the rental fee charged, or only a much smaller amount of rental fee than the amount charged.

4.   The hotels have non-smoking rooms. For any additional cleaning cost due to smoking in non-smoking rooms, the guest shall be charged an overall amount of 120.00 €. The customer shall be free to prove that the hotel has no right to claim any cleaning costs, or only a much smaller amount of cleaning costs than the amount charged.

5.   The guest must not remove any of the hotel’s own furniture and equipment items including towels and bathrobes when checking-out from the hotel. Any infringement will be reported as theft and be liable to a civil claim for damages.

6.   The customer shall be obliged to treat any premises provided with due caution and care. Should any excessive wear, damage and/or littering be found in the rooms, the hotel shall have the right to have any of these promptly removed by any companies of its choice at the customer’s expense. The customer further undertakes to assume any and all costs for repair work and/or replacement purchases, handling fees as well as down time costs incurred due to such damage.

 

VII. Hotel’s Liability

1.   The hotel’s liability shall be limited to any damage caused by willful intent or gross negligence on the hotel’s part. This shall not apply to injury of the customer’s life, body or health not to claims arising from material breach of contract, i.e. any duties arising from the very nature of the contract and the breach of which would jeopardize the achievement of the purpose of the contract. Any breach of duty by the hotel’s legal representatives or agents shall be deemed tantamount to a breach of duty by the hotel. Customers shall be obliged on their part to reasonably cooperate in the removal of any disruptions or defects in order to mitigate any possible damage.

2.   For any objects carried by the customer, the hotel shall be liable to the customer subject to the relevant statutory provisions, i.e. in an amount of up to one hundred times the accommodation rate, however not exceeding 3,500.00 €. For valuables (cash money, jewelry etc.), such liability shall be limited to 800.00 €. This shall not apply if the loss, destruction or damage is caused by the hotel or its agents with willful intent or gross negligence. The hotel management recommends keeping any such items optionally either in the room safe or in the hotel’s central safe.

3.   If a parking space is provided to the customer in the hotel underground car park or on the hotel parking lot, even for a fee, this shall not be construed as being the conclusion of a contract of safe custody. The hotel shall not be liable in terms of paragraph 1 clauses 2 and 3 of this section for any loss of or damage to cars parked or maneuvered on the hotel’s premises and the belongings kept inside them.

4.   Wake-up calls will be executed by the hotel with the utmost care. Any liability in terms of paragraph 1 clauses 2 and 3 of this section shall be excluded.

5.   The hotel shall not be liable in terms of paragraph 1 clauses 2 and 3 of this section for any theft or loss of credit card details and electronic data.

 

VIII. Final Provisions

1.   Any modifications of and amendments to the order confirmation or these General Terms and Conditions must be made in writing. This shall in particular apply to any waiver of the written form requirement. Any one-sided modifications by the customer shall be deemed ineffective.

2.   The place of performance and the place of payment shall be the place of location of the hotel.

3.   The sole place of jurisdiction – even for disputes on checks and bills of exchange – shall be the place of location of the hotel in any case of commercial transactions. If one of the contracting parties is a consumer not having a general place of jurisdiction in the country, the place of jurisdiction shall be the place of location of the hotel.

4.   This contract shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Germany. Any application of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods or of private international law shall be excluded.

5.   Should any of the provisions of these General Terms and Conditions be ineffective, the effectiveness of the remaining provisions hereof as well as of the contract as a whole shall remain unaffected.

 

Place of jurisdiction is Berlin
Berlin, July 2014


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