General Terms and Conditions (GTCs)
1. Validity
1.1 These GTC shall apply to all legal transactions between the tour guide (hereinafter: FF) (hereinafter: AN) and the Client (hereinafter: AG).
1.2 These GTC shall apply without restriction to Clients who are entrepreneurs. If the Client is a consumer within the meaning of Section 1 (1) of the Austrian Consumer Protection Act (Konsumentenschutzgesetz), the GTC shall apply insofar as this Act does not provide otherwise.
1.3 If the Client does not book the Contractor's services for itself but for third parties (hereinafter referred to as ‘Participants’), the Client undertakes to instruct the Participants to comply with the rights and obligations set out in Section 6 of the GTC.
2. Conclusion of contract
2.1 A booking enquiry to the Contractor can be made by e-mail, web form, telephone or post.
2.2 After receipt of the booking enquiry, the Client shall receive a written offer within a period of 3 days, from which the agreed services and the fee to be charged can be seen. This must be confirmed in writing by the client. If the Client is an entrepreneur, the signature must be signed by the company. The contract is thereby concluded. The contractor is not obliged to accept a booking enquiry and may reject such an enquiry without giving reasons.
3. service content/limitation of the service
3.1 Services of the FF:
3.1.1 The FF offers guided tours of various kinds in order to show and explain to the AG and other participants the historical riches and the artistic and cultural heritage of Austria, the sights, the social, societal and political situation in national and supranational cohesion, as well as other cultural, sporting and social events.
3.1.2 The start and end of the tour as well as the exact meeting point, the contact details of the FF and the content of the services owed are set out in the written offer which the FF has sent or handed over to the Client.
3.1.3 In the absence of such an express agreement, the FF shall be responsible for agreeing the content of the guided tour with the client, an authorised representative of the client or the participants on site.
3.1.4 If no specific services have been agreed, the FF shall organise the content of the services at its own discretion within an agreed time and location framework.
3.1.5 Insofar as the FF presents (copyright) protected works or uses titles as part of its services, the client undertakes not to infringe the resulting rights.
3.1.6 The FF is entitled to exclude the client or individual participants from its services, to cancel or interrupt the tour if the provision of services is unreasonable for the FF due to the behaviour of the client or another participant or excessive alcohol or drug consumption by such a person.
3.1.7 Due to force majeure or weather conditions (e.g. black ice, heat, flooding, storm or weather warnings), the FF may restrict, modify or completely cancel the services at its own discretion.
4. Remuneration
4.1 The remuneration owed for the provision of the services is set out in the Contractor's written offer.
4.2 If no express fee arrangement has been made, a reasonable fee shall be deemed to have been agreed. An hourly rate of EUR 75 shall be deemed a reasonable fee.
4.3 Unless otherwise agreed in individual cases, the remuneration shall be due at the latest after the service has been rendered. If the due date for payment has been agreed prior to the provision of the service, the Contractor shall be entitled to exclude the Client and other participants from the provision of the service if the invoice has not yet been paid prior to the commencement of the services.
4.4 If the Contractor is subject to VAT, the Client shall pay the agreed remuneration plus VAT, unless otherwise agreed due to intra-Community exemption regulations.
4.5 If the Contractor is a small business within the meaning of Section 6 (1) no. 27 of the Value Added Tax Act, it must inform the Client of this in the order confirmation.
4.6 If the service is cancelled in whole or in part for reasons falling under 3.1.6, 3.1.7 or 7.1 to 7.2, this shall not affect the amount of the agreed remuneration. In such cases, any fees already paid are non-refundable.
5. Cancellation conditions
5.1 The client and the participants are generally bound to booked services. However, the Contractor shall grant the Client a limited right of cancellation.
5.2 The right of cancellation to which a consumer is entitled under the FAGG shall remain unaffected.
5.3 The Client shall not be required to pay the FF a cancellation fee if the Contractor receives written notification of the cancellation no later than 14 days before the agreed date of performance. In the event of a cancellation at such short notice, the FF can only accept an alternative order - if at all - with considerable effort.
5.4 If the Client cancels a tour between 3 and 14 days before the agreed date, half of the agreed fee shall be paid as a cancellation fee.
5.5 If the client cancels less than 3 days before the agreed tour date, the full agreed fee must be paid. In such cases, it is almost impossible to accept another order. At this point in time, the Contractor has already invested considerable effort in preparing the service. The preparation effort is individual for the booked services and cannot be used for another order.
5.6 The day of cancellation and the agreed day of performance shall count towards the calculation of the deadline. Decisive for the calculation of the deadline is always the receipt of the cancellation by the contractor.
5.7 The cancellation fees are lump-sum penalties that must be paid regardless of fault or actual damage incurred.
5.8 The cancellation fee shall be paid separately for each individual cancellation and per participant.
6. Obligations of the Contractor
6.1 The Client has the following obligations to co-operate and notify:
6.1.1 The written offer must be read carefully by the Client with regard to the fitness required and assumed for the booked service.
6.1.2 The FF shall explain the content, duration and procedure of the guided tour before it begins. If the client or a participant in the guided tour has concerns that they cannot or only want to participate in the guided tour or parts of it to a limited extent, for example due to personal restrictions, they must inform the FF immediately. The judgement as to whether the client or the participants in a guided tour are able to participate due to their own (physical) condition is the responsibility of each client and each participant. The FF assumes that the client and the participants can manage the planned route for the guided tour independently and without the physical assistance of the FF. Should the client or a participant feel unable to do so or should such concerns arise during a guided tour, the client and the respective participant are obliged to inform the FF accordingly. The same applies to personal fears of the client.
6.1.3 The instructions of the Contractor regarding safety precautions, keeping the group together and the behaviour of the Client and the other participants must be followed.
6.2 The Client shall be responsible for ensuring that the other participants also fulfil their obligations to communicate with the Contractor.
6.3 Personal sensitivities of the Client and the other participants shall be taken into account by the Contractor. There is no entitlement to reimbursement due to only partial or no utilisation of the service due to one's own fitness condition or due to personal fears.
7. Adherence to schedule
7.1 If the client or a participant is unlikely to arrive on time for the agreed start of the tour, the client or his authorised representative shall be obliged to inform the FF of the expected duration of the delay by telephone as soon as a reason for the delay becomes known.
7.2 The FF shall wait at least 15 minutes after the agreed start of the tour. The waiting time of the FF shall be included in the agreed tour duration in the cases of point 7.1.
7.3 If the FF is not informed within 15 minutes of the agreed start of the tour in accordance with point 7.1, the FF is not obliged to wait any longer. In this case, the FF is released from his obligation to perform and his claim to payment exists in full in this case.
7.4 If the FF is delayed, he shall inform the Client of the delay, provided that the Client has given him the telephone number of a contact person. In the event that the FF is late, the Client and the participants are obliged to wait at least 15 minutes for the FF. The Principal or its authorised representative is obliged to inform the participants of this waiting obligation.
7.5 The client or a person authorized by the client shall instruct the participants to comply with the time requirements of the tour (return times) and the organizational requirements of the FF (removal of dangerous objects, keeping the group together, compliance with public order and house rules, carrying ID cards, avoidance of danger spots) of the FF.
8. Representation and authorization
8.1 In the event that the Contractor is prevented from performing the agreed services, it shall be entitled to call in or arrange for a professionally suitable and authorized substitute. The Client and the other participants shall be informed of this and the name of the substitute in advance.
8.2 The Contractor shall be entitled to subcontract parts of the guided tour in museums, churches, other places of worship, gardens or zoos to other persons. To this end, the Client authorizes the Contractor to arrange and book admissions, trips, meals, demonstrations, performances or other events on behalf of and for the account of the Client.
9 Liability
9.1 The Contractor is not a sports instructor. If the tour is conducted with the aid of vehicles and means of transportation or sports equipment, the Client and the participants shall be briefed on their use prior to use. The client and the participants are obliged to follow the instructions and to strictly observe the operating instructions. Liability for non-compliance with instructions and operating manuals is excluded.
9.2 The Contractor shall not be liable for damage to the Client or participants resulting from the consumption of food or beverages and participation in tastings during the tour.
9.3 The contractor is not liable for (partial) impracticability or unplanned interruption or delay of the tour or trip if the reason for this is not within his sphere of responsibility. The FF is entitled to terminate or cancel the tour if it is not possible for the tour to be carried out or completed safely.
9.4 The risk that any onward journey not organized by the contractor is delayed after the tour lies exclusively with the client and the participants. The Contractor shall not be liable for any resulting disadvantages unless the Contractor is at fault for the delay.
9.5 The contractor does not conclude a tour operator contract and is not a tour organizer.
9.6 The Client and the participants shall observe the provisions of copyright law during the guided tours. Targeted film and sound recordings of the client during the guided tours are prohibited without the consent of the contractor.
10. Final provisions
10.1 The place of performance of the contract shall be the place where the guided tour is to be conducted.
10.2 The place of jurisdiction for disputes arising from this contract or in connection with it is the registered office of the contractor, unless § 14 KSchG is applicable.
10.3 It is agreed that Austrian law shall apply.