Please make sure that you have read and understood the booking terms & conditions detailed below before you book.

Please note that the conditions vary slightly for UK and International Conservation Holidays. Please refer to the relevant sections below for payment conditions and insurance.

HOLIDAY RESERVATION & PAYMENT

Group bookings are encouraged by prior arrangement, please phone 01302 388 883 for further details.

We are unable to reserve places without payment.

Payment conditions for UK Natural Breaks and Action Breaks.

All UK Natural Breaks and Action Breaks must be paid in full at the time of booking.

Payment conditions for International Conservation Holidays

A £100 non-refundable deposit is required for each International Conservation Holiday booked. Please note that a 10% discount is offered to those who book two or more consecutive holidays at the same destination (except for Australia). The balance must be paid eight weeks before the holiday start date. All bookings made eight or less weeks prior to the start date of the holiday must be paid for in full.

Please note: Payment for all holidays can be made by cheque in sterling (if you wish to pay in Euros, £1.00 = 1.55 Euros), Visa, Mastercard, Access, Switch, American Express, Delta,JCB, Solo or postal order. Cheques should be made payable to 'The Conservation Volunteers'. All refunds will be made in sterling. Note that your deposit will be refunded if your application is unsuccessful.

INSURANCE

...for participants on UK Natural Breaks and Action Breaks

Under our insurance policy you have public liability cover and limited personal accident cover while engaged in practical conservation work. You are not covered by our insurance when undertaking other activities, during your free time. Personal belongings are not covered under our insurance.

The Conservation Volunteers do, however, offer an additional insurance package for participants on UK Natural Breaks and Action Breaks (for UK residents only) which includes: personal accident cover for the duration of your holiday; medical expenses; cover for personal belongings up to a maximum of £750; and a breakdown clause for your journey to the holiday/pick-up point. Costs are £5 for eight days and £10 for 9-17 days. Details are on the booking form but a leaflet containing more information about the policy will also be sent to you with your booking confirmation letter.

...for participants on International Conservation Holidays

You will be covered by our insurance policy for the duration of the holiday and whilst travelling directly to and from the holiday location. The policy also covers you for any medical and travel expenses incurred as a direct result of illness during your holiday and includes limited personal possessions cover. The costs of the policy are included in the price of your holiday. Please note that the excess for all insurance claims is £25.

Note that the policy does not cover you for independent travel before or after your holiday, nor does it cover you for cancellation or curtailment of the project due to strike, riot, disruption or civil unrest. We strongly recommend that you buy additional insurance to cover the costs of independent travel and also trip cancellation insurance (inc. flight costs).

Full details of insurance cover for International Conservation Holidays will be included in a leaflet in your holiday pack.

HOLIDAY TRANSFERS AND CANCELLATIONS

Please only apply for a holiday if you are certain you can attend. If you have no alternative but to transfer or cancel your booking, the following conditions are applicable:

...for UK Conservation Holidays

If you wish to cancel or transfer your booking, please inform us at least 21 days before the holiday start date. Your payment will be refunded or transferred, less a £10 administration fee. If you cancel or transfer your booking less than 21 days before the start date, no refund or payment transfer can be made.

...for International Conservation Holidays

If you wish to transfer your booking to a different International holiday, please inform us at least eight weeks before the start date of your original choice. We will transfer your payment minus a £25 administration charge. Failure to do so will result in cancellation charges.

If you need to cancel your booking, you must inform us IN WRITING. Other forms of cancellation cannot be accepted. If you cancel over ten weeks before the start of your holiday, we will refund your holiday payment minus the £100 non-refundable booking deposit. After that, it costs us to replace you and so you will have to pay a percentage of the total cost of the holiday as indicated below:

You will be sent an invoice for the outstanding balance.

you have to cancel your place on either a UK or International Conservation Holiday at the last minute, please use the emergency number supplied on the Final Details or call our Customer Administration Team.

On occasion, we are forced to cancel a holiday ourselves (for instance if bookings fall below the minimum number required or if a client/partner pulls out). We endeavour to let you know beforehand, when an alternative or full refund will be offered. We are not, however, responsible on such occasions for any non-refundable airline tickets, other tickets or payments and penalties that you may incur as a result.

GENERAL CONDITIONS OF APPLICATION

Valid passports and visas are entirely your responsibility. If you have to apply for a visa for your project, allow plenty of time and always ask for a tourist visa. Likewise, when you go through immigration, state that you are on vacation. Please note that we cannot organise work permits or visas for any overseas volunteer coming to the UK.

It is your responsibility to ensure that your tetanus inoculation is up-to-date and to ensure that you have declared any medical conditions, allergies and past injuries to us. Project Leaders will consider any such medical information confidentially.

The Conservation Volunteers and the host agencies take all care in programme planning but no responsibility will be accepted for any variation due to circumstances beyond our control. We will always endeavour to inform you of changes in advance, but this may not always be possible.

Non UK residents are welcome to take part in all our Conservation Holidays provided that you:

• are 18 or over
• speak sufficient English to understand instructions and safety information
• apply at least six weeks before the start of your holiday
• are prepared to make your own travel arrangements to the pick-up point given in the brochure

During the holiday you are required, both morally and legally, to follow safe procedures to ensure that you and others come to no harm. Our health and safety procedures are there to protect everyone, as well as to comply with the law. Your leader will explain them fully.

We regret that NO pets may be brought on any Conservation Holiday, UK or International, due to the nature of work sites, the unsuitability of the accommodation and out of courtesy to other volunteers.

RIGHT OF REFUSAL

The Conservation Volunteers reserve the right to refuse applications for its holidays. This is an unusual event, which may arise as a result of an applicant's failure to meet health requirements or in the interests of team compatibility. We will support the right of a Project Leader to send volunteers away from the project once it has started should their behaviour compromise the safety, project or general performance of the team.

DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998

The personal data we request from you during the booking process includes sensitive personal data, which we need in order to provide its service to you. Sensitive personal data is defined as information relating to any of the following: racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious beliefs, trade union membership, health, sexuality or sex life offences and/or convictions.

By reading and understanding these terms and conditions you have given your consent and are willing for us to process this data which will be used only within our organisation. If we need to disclose any of this data to any third party, we will seek your consent again.

COMPLAINTS POLICY

In the unlikely event of you having cause for complaint, you should notify the Project Leader during the project so that we can do its best to assist you. If the problem remains unresolved despite this and you wish to write to The Conservation Volunteers, this must be done within 14 days of the completion of the project. We will investigate the grievance and reply at the earliest opportunity and in accordance with our Volunteer Grievance Procedures.

A copy of The Conservation Volunteers' privacy statement is available online at www.tcv.org or by request.