GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR THE SALE OF TOUR PACKAGES
1. LEGISLATIVE SOURCES
The sale of tour packages, having as its purpose services to be supplied either within the Italian territory or abroad, is regulated by the provisions as applicable of Law n. 1084 of 27/12/1977 ratified and implemented by the International Convention relative to travel contracts (CCV) signed in Brussels, on 23/4/1970, as well as by the binding regulations applicable in the field of the protection of consumer rights (directive 90/314/EEC and Legislative Decree no. 206 dated 6 September 2005) and by the state regulations for the tourism system and market (Legislative Decree no.79 dated 23 May 2011, henceforth “The Tourism Code”).
2. ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION
The organizer and the intermediary agency providing tour packages must be authorized to perform their tasks according to the applicable regional and national rules. According to art. 18, paragraph VI of “The Tourism Code”, the use in company name of the words “travel agency”, “tourism agency”, “tour operator” or other words and phrases, also in a foreign language, similar in nature, is allowed only to authorized companies referred to in the 1st paragraph.
3. DEFINITIONS
The following terms will be used in this contract:
a) travel organizer: the subject which is committed in his own name and upon lump sum payment, to provide holiday packages to third parties, combining the services mentioned in the following art. 4 or offering the customer the possibility to combine and buy the said services , also through a remote communication system;
b) intermediary agency: the subject which, even on a non-professionally or non-profit basis, sells or provides tour packages realized pursuant to art. 4, upon lump sum payment;
c) customer: the buyer, the transferee of a tour package or any person even not yet appointed, who meets all the conditions required for the use of the service, and for whom the principal contractor agrees to buy a tour package without remuneration.
4. DEFINITION OF TOUR PACKAGE
The concept of tour package (article 84 of the Consumers Code) is defined as follows:
“tour packages have as their purpose travel, holidays and all inclusive tours resulting from the pre-established combination of at least two of the elements indicated hereunder, sold and offered for sale at a fixed sum, having duration of more than 24 hours, extending for a period of time including at least one night: a.) transportation; b.) accommodation; c.) tourist services not connected with transportation or accommodation, according to art.36, that constitute a significant part of the “tour package” (art.34 Consumers Code)
The customer is entitled to receive a copy of the tour package sale contract (according to art.35 of the Tourism Code). The contract gives entitlement to access the Fund of Guarantee referred to on the following art.21.
5. INFORMATION TO THE CUSTOMER – ORGANIZER DETAILS
Stile italiano Tours SRL – Via Bruno Colombo 18 – 22040 Lurago d’Erba – Como
Authorization Nr. 218945 issued by Provincia di Milano on 23rd October 2014
Civil liability policy nr.197082 issued by Aga International S.A.
The methods and conditions for the customer replacement are regulated by the following article 12
6. RESERVATIONS
Reservation requests should be drawn up using the proper contract form, in electronic format if applicable, filled-in in all parts and signed by the consumer who will be supplied with a copy. Bookings made via the Internet (“on line”) are offered for sale in and the contract is deemed to be concluded in Italy. Reservations will be considered final following confirmation by the organizer, even via e-mail, to the consumer at the intermediary travel agency or directly to the consumer if no intermediary agency is involved in the sale process.
Information relative to the tour package not contained in the contract documents, on the website or other forms of written communication, will be supplied in time by the organizer prior to the tour starting date in compliance with its duties as envisaged by art. 37 paragraph 2 of the Consumers Code. The tour package includes the services mentioned at the time of the booking confirmation, further services bought by the customer, such as air travel, are not included in the tour package and the organizer cannot be held responsible for them.
According to art. 32, paragraph 2 of the Consumers Code, in case of contracts stipulated at a distance or outside business premises (as defined by art. 50 and 45 of Legislative Decree 206/2005), the organizer reserves the right to communicate in writing the non-existence of the withdrawal right as seen in art. 64 and following of the Legislative Decree 206/2005.
7. PAYMENT
Upon booking, that is upon receiving a written confirmation that a reservation has been made, a deposit is required. The balance is due within 30 days prior to the tour starting date.
For reservations made within 30 days prior to the tour starting date, full payment is due upon booking. Lack of payment of the above mentioned sums on the established dates constitutes grounds for cancellation of reservations and determines the right to terminate the contract by the organizer and/or intermediary agency. If not booking via an intermediary agency, payments must be done in Euros via bank transfer on the account provided by the organizer upon booking confirmation.
8. PRICE
The applicable price of the tour package is determined in the contract, with reference to what is stated on the website or printed programme and on any updates of these programmes even if revised at a later stage. Prices are inclusive of VAT but they do not include the city tourist tax, which must be settled directly at the hotel.
Any price increase will not be applicable to customers who have already paid the required deposit.
The applicable price is expressed in Euros, the currency converter available on the official website of Stile Italiano Tours is intended to facilitate prices evaluation by foreign customers.
9. MODIFICATION OR CANCELLATION OF THE TOUR PACKAGE BEFORE DEPARTURE BY THE ORGANIZER
The organizer is not obliged to accept change requests of reservations already made and confirmed. Whatever significant modification made by the organizer or intermediary agency of the tour package or of one of its essential elements must be communicated in writing to the customer and it is subject to his acceptance according to the article 91 of the Consumers Code. In case of non acceptance, the customer can request a refund or book a different tour package according to paragraph 2 and 3 of the following article 10. The customer can exercise his above mentioned rights also in case of cancellations by the organizer due to lack of the minimum requested number of participants or due to circumstances beyond one’s control, related to the purchased tour package. In case the minimum number of participants is not reached and subsequently the tour is cancelled, the customer must be informed by the organizer at least 20 days before the starting date of the tour package. For cancellations different from the ones caused by circumstances beyond one’s control, fortuitous events, and by not reaching the minimum number of participants as well as by those different from the consumer’s non-acceptance of the offered alternative tour package, the organizer is obliged to refund the customer of twice the amount paid by and collected from the customer (art.33 letter E Consumers Code). Such amount cannot exceed twice as much he should have paid if he had cancelled his reservation according to the following article 10.
10. WITHDRAWAL
The customer can withdraw from the contract, without penalties, in case of significant modifications involving one or more elements of the contract, proposed by the organizer after contract completion but prior to departure and not accepted by the consumer, which might significantly and objectively alter the tour package.
In the above mentioned case, as an alternative the customer has the right:
– to benefit of an alternative tour package, without extra charges or with refund of the excess price should the second package have a lower value than the first;
– to the refund of the sum already paid. Such refund will be due within 7 working days from receipt of the application for refund.
The customer must give notice of his/her decision (to accept the modification or to withdraw) within and no later than 2 working days from the date when the notice of modification is received. In failing to meet the above mentioned deadline, the offer proposed by the organizer is considered as accepted.
If withdrawing from the tour package contract, beyond the above mention circumstances and period of time, the customer is liable for the payment of the cancellation penalties mentioned in the contracted programme.
11. CHANGES AFTER DEPARTURE
Should the organizer, after the tour starting date, be unable to supply an essential part of the services listed for whatever reason, except for ones depending on the customer, he/she must arrange for alternative solutions, without increase of price for the contracting party and, should the performances supplied be of lower value compared to those foreseen, refund him/her the difference.
If no alternative solutions are possible, or if the solution proposed by the organizer is rejected by the customer for serious and justified reasons, the organizer will provide without additional charges a mean of transportation equivalent to the means of transportation originally expected for the return to the location of the tour starting place or to a different location agreed upon, in accordance with the availability of the given means of transport and available seating/space and the customer will be refunded of the difference between the services expected and those received up to the time of earlier departure.
12. SUBSTITUTIONS
A customer who decides to withdraw from the contract may ask another person to substitute him/her provided that:
a) the organizer is informed in writing at least 4 working days before the tour starting date, receiving at the same time information explaining the reasons of the substitution together with the personal details of the assignee;
b) the assignee meets all the conditions for benefiting from the service (art. 39 of the Tourism Code) in particular the requirements relative to passport, visa and health certificates;
c) the same services or other alternative services can be provided in case of substitution;
d) the substitute refunds the organizer for all the additional expenses incurred for the replacement, such costs will be notified to the customer before the replacement takes place.
The assignor and the assignee are jointly responsible for payment in full of the price as well as for the amounts referred to in letter d) of this article.
13. CUSTOMERS OBLIGATIONS
During the negotiations, and at any rate before the completion of the contract, Italian citizens are provided with general written information relative to the health obligations and to the documentation necessary for expatriating. Foreign citizens must apply for equivalent information through their diplomatic representatives and/or through their official government information channels.
In any case, customers must, prior to departure, ensure such information is valid with an enquiry addressed to the relative enforcement bodies (for Italian citizens the local Police Headquarters or the Department of Foreign Affairs – website www.viaggiaresicuri.it – Call Centre tel. no. 06.491115), acknowledging any changes prior to the trip. The intermediary agency or the organizer shall not be liable for failed departure of one or more customers in the case that such check is not performed.
Customers must inform the intermediary agency and the organizer about their citizenship and, on departure, finally check that they are carrying their vaccination certificates, their own passport and any other document valid in all the Countries included in the itinerary, as well as the stay and transit visas, and any required health certificates.
In addition, in order to assess the degree of the health conditions and the level of safety of the Countries of destination, and hence the objective usability of the services already purchased or to be purchased, the customer must (using the sources of information listed in paragraph 2) refer to the Department of Foreign Affairs for general official information stating if the destinations are formally currently unadvisable.
Customers must also comply with the rules of common sense and due diligence, as well as with the specific rules currently in force in the destination countries of the trip, with all the information supplied by the organizer, and with the administrative and legislative regulations and provisions pertaining to the tour package. Customers are liable for all the damages which may affect the organizer and/or the intermediary agency, also due to non-compliance with the above mentioned obligations.
The customer must supply the organizer with all the documents, information and elements in his/her possession useful for enabling the latter to exercise the right of subrogation against third parties, responsible for the damage, and will be held responsible towards the organizer for being detrimental to the right of subrogation.
At the time of booking the customer must also inform the organizer about any specific request which might be object of special agreements involving the terms of the trip, on condition they are feasible.
The customer must always inform the intermediary agency and the organizer about any personal specific requirement or condition (pregnancy, food intolerance, disability, etc…) and clearly specify his/her request for relative customized services.
14. HOTEL CLASSIFICATION
The official classification of the hotels provided in the programmes is based on the specific and formal indications supplied by the Italian enforcement bodies.
The organizer reserves the right to provide a personal description of the accommodation in the programmes, in order to allow the customer to asses and consequently accept the same.
15. OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO YOUR HOLIDAY
The organizer is held responsible for any damage caused to the customer in case of total or partial non-fulfillment to supply services due by contract, both if the services should be rendered personally or by third service suppliers, unless he/she is able to prove that the event resulted from a fact ascribable to the customer (including initiatives the latter might undertake during the performance of the touristic services), or on the part of a third party, to circumstances beyond the services foreseen by the contract, fortuitous events, force majeure, or to circumstances that the organizer could not, despite meeting professional standards, reasonably foresee or solve.
The intermediary agency which made the reservation for the tour package is in no case liable for obligations arising from the organization of the tour but is exclusively responsible for obligations arising from his/her role as an intermediary, hence within the limits of responsibility foreseen by the current laws regulating such subject, except for those stated in art. 46 of the Tourism Code.
16. LIMITS OF INDEMNITY
Indemnity according to articles 44, 45 and 47 of the Tourism Code and relative terms of prescription are governed by the limits stated, of C.C.V., of the International Conventions that rule for damages can by no means exceed the limits that concern tour packages stated by art. 1783 and 1784 of the civil code.
17. ASSISTANCE OBLIGATION
The organizer is required to provide assistance to the customer according to the criteria of professional standards and with reference to the obligations of his/her job under the provisions of the law or contract. The organizer and the intermediary agency are exonerated from their respective responsibilities (art. 15 and 16 of these General Conditions) when failure of or inexact carrying out of the contract is ascribable to the customer or is dependent on a third party in an unforeseeable or inevitable way, or in the case of fortuitous event or circumstances beyond one’s control.
18. CLAIMS AND COMPLAINTS
Any failure in carrying out the terms of the contract must be notified without delay to the organizer, his local representative or tour director, to enable him/her to promptly solve the issue. Failing to do so will result in compensation decrease or cancellation pursuant to art. 1227 of the Civil Code.
The customer must send the organizer or intermediary agency a written complaint via registered mail with return receipt or other means that guarantee proof of its arrival, within and no later than ten working days from the date of the tour end. Failing to do so within the required time will result in claim or complaint forfeiture.
19. INSURANCE COVER
It is recommended to stipulate at the time of booking a travel insurance covering expenses arising from cancellation of the tour package, accidents and, if applicable, baggage mishandling. It is also advisable to extend the insurance cover to expenses for early return to the country of origin for illness, accidents, fortuitous circumstances and events beyond one’s control. Customers will exercise rights inherent the insurance contracts exclusively in respect of the contracting Insurance Company, according to the conditions and in the manner provided by these policies.
20. DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
According to the purpose of Art. 67 of the Tourism Code, the organizer may propose alternative dispute resolution modalities to the customer. In this case the organizer will indicate the type of alternative resolution suggested and the effects that such adherence involves.
21. GUARANTEE FUND (article 51 Tourism Code)
The National Guarantee Fund established to safeguard the consumers holding a contract, guarantees the refund of the sum paid by the customer in case of insolvency or bankruptcy declared by national intermediary agencies or by the organizer.
The conditions of intervention of the Fund are set forth in Prime Ministerial Decree no.349 of 23/07/99, and instances of repayment to the Fund are not subject to any limitation period. The organizer and national intermediary agencies contribute to supply the Fund to the extent established by paragraph 2 of art. 51 of the Tourism Code through the payment of the mandatory insurance premium that it is compulsory to enter into, a portion of which is paid to the Fund in the manner provided by art. 6 of Ministerial Decree 349/99.
ADDENDUM
GENERAL SALES CONTRACT CONDITIONS OF SINGLE TOURIST SERVICES
A) LAW PROVISIONS
Contracts having as their object the offer of the sole service of transport, of the sole service of accommodation, or of whatsoever other separate touristic service, cannot be considered negotiable in point of travel or tour package, but rather are governed by the following CCV provisions: article 1 no.3 and no.6; articles 17 to 23, articles 24 to 31, (limited to the parts of those provisions that do not relate to the organizer’s contract) and other agreements concerning the sale of the single service contract.
The seller who undertakes to provide via third parties, including electronically, a disaggregated touristic service, is required to issue the customer documents relating to this service, that will indicate the amount paid for the service, and cannot in any way be considered travel organizer.
B) CONTRACT CONDITIONS
These contracts are also subject to the following clauses of the above mentioned general sales contract conditions of tour package: art. 6 paragraph 1; art. 7 paragraph 2; art. 13; art.18. The application of these clauses does not determine the configuration of related services as tour packages. The terminology of the said clauses regarding the tourist package contract (organizer, travel, etc.) can be understood with reference to the corresponding figures of the contract of sale of single touristic services (seller, accommodation, etc.).
COMPULSORY INFORMATION
According to Art.17 of Law 38/2006.
The Italian Law punishes with the penalty of imprisonment crimes related to prostitution and child pornography, even if they are committed abroad.