1. Scope of application
1.1 These terms and conditions apply to contracts for the rental of hotel rooms for accommodation (the ‘Accommodation’) as well as all other services and deliveries provided by Hotel Haus Hammersbach Betriebsgesellschaft mbH (the “Hotel”) to the booked customer and their fellow travellers (the ‘Customer’) within the scope of the Accommodation.
1.2 The subletting or re-letting of the rooms provided, as well as their use by third parties for purposes other than the agreed accommodation purposes, requires the prior written consent of the Hotel, whereby § 540 (1) sentence 2 BGB (German Civil Code) is waived if the Customer is not a consumer.
1.3 The Customer's terms and conditions shall only apply if this has been expressly agreed in writing in advance.
2. Conclusion of contract, contracting parties; limitation period
2.1 The contract shall come into effect upon acceptance of the customer's application or booking by the hotel. The hotel is free to confirm the room booking in writing.
2.2 The contracting parties are the hotel and the customer. If a third party has made the booking on behalf of the customer, they shall be liable to the hotel together with the customer as joint and several debtors for all obligations arising from the hotel accommodation contract, provided that the hotel has received a corresponding declaration from the third party.
2.3 All claims against the hotel shall become time-barred one year after the start of the statutory limitation period. Claims for damages shall become time-barred after five years, regardless of knowledge. The shortened limitation periods shall not apply to claims based on an intentional or grossly negligent breach of duty by the hotel or for damage to life, limb or health.
3. Services, prices, payment, offsetting
3.1 The hotel is obliged to keep the rooms booked by the customer in the category available for the agreed booking period and to provide the agreed additional services. A claim to a specific room in the booked category in the hotel only exists if this has been confirmed in advance by the hotel in writing.
3.2 The customer is obliged to pay the agreed or currently applicable hotel prices for the provision of the room and the additional services used by him. This also applies to services and expenses incurred by the hotel to third parties at the customer's request. The agreed prices include the respective statutory value added tax. Pets are only allowed with the prior consent of the hotel. The hotel may charge a separate fee for cleaning costs for pets brought along.
3.3 The hotel may make its consent to a subsequent reduction in the number of rooms booked, the hotel's services or the customer's length of stay requested by the customer dependent on an increase in the remaining price for the rooms and/or other hotel services.
3.4 Hotel invoices are payable without deduction upon departure or, by agreement, within 10 days of receipt of the invoice. The hotel may demand immediate payment of outstanding claims from the customer at any time. In the event of late payment, the hotel is entitled to charge statutory interest in accordance with Section 247 of the German Civil Code (BGB). The hotel reserves the right to prove higher damages. In the event of refusal to pay, the hotel has a lien on the items brought in by the guest in accordance with § 704 BGB.
3.5 The hotel is entitled to demand a reasonable advance payment or security deposit from the customer upon conclusion of the contract or before handing over the room, up to the amount of the agreed room price for the accommodation provided by the hotel. The amount of the advance payment and the payment dates can be agreed in writing in the contract. In the case of advance payments or security deposits for package tours, the statutory provisions remain unaffected.
3.6 In justified cases, e.g. default of payment for previous bookings, the hotel is entitled, even without a separate agreement, to demand an advance payment or security deposit within the meaning of No. 5 above or an increase in the advance payment or security deposit agreed in the contract up to the full agreed remuneration until the customer's stay begins.
3.7 The hotel is also entitled to demand an appropriate advance payment or security deposit from the customer at the beginning of and during their stay for any additional services offered for food, drink or the use of the hotel's facilities and services within the scope of the accommodation, insofar as these have not already been paid for in accordance with sections 5 or 6 above.
3.8 The customer may only offset, reduce or exercise a right of retention against a claim by the hotel with an undisputed or legally established claim.
4. Cancellation by the customer Non-utilisation of the hotel's services
4.1 The customer's withdrawal from the contract concluded with the hotel requires the hotel's written consent. If this is not given at the time of booking, the agreed price from the contract must be paid even if the customer does not make use of the agreed services or leaves early. In this case, the corresponding invoice shall be issued with VAT shown. If the hotel gives its written consent to the customer's withdrawal on the condition that the customer pays compensation for the rooms not used, the corresponding invoice shall be issued without VAT shown.
4.2 The provisions of the preceding paragraph shall not apply in the event of a breach of the hotel's obligation to take into account the rights, legal interests and interests of the customer, if the customer can no longer be reasonably expected to adhere to the contract as a result, or if the customer is entitled to any other statutory or contractual right of withdrawal.
4.3 If a date for withdrawal from the contract has been agreed in writing between the hotel and the customer, the customer may withdraw from the contract free of charge until that date. The customer's right of withdrawal expires if he does not exercise his right of withdrawal in writing to the hotel by the agreed date, unless there is a case of withdrawal in accordance with Clause IV. Section 2.
4.4 In the case of rooms not used by the customer as part of a package tour (§ 651 i BGB), the hotel shall offset the income from renting the rooms to other parties and the expenses saved. If the rooms are not rented to other parties, the hotel may demand the contractually agreed remuneration and apply a flat rate deduction for the hotel's saved expenses. In this case, the customer is obliged to pay at least 90% of the contractually agreed price for accommodation with or without breakfast, 70% for half-board and 60% for full-board arrangements. The customer is free to prove that the aforementioned claim has not arisen or has not arisen in the amount claimed. Otherwise, the hotel's cancellation conditions apply.
5. Cancellation by the hotel
5.1 If it has been agreed in writing that the customer may withdraw from the contract free of charge within a certain period, the hotel is entitled to withdraw from the contract during this period if other customers have made enquiries about the contractually booked rooms and the customer does not waive his right of withdrawal upon enquiry by the hotel.
5.2 If an agreed advance payment or security deposit or a deposit demanded in accordance with Section III, Nos. 6 and/or 7 above is not made, the hotel shall also be entitled to withdraw from the contract.
5.3 Furthermore, the hotel is entitled to withdraw from the contract for objectively justified reasons, for example if
• force majeure or other circumstances beyond the hotel's control make it impossible to fulfil the contract;
• rooms are booked under misleading or false statements of material facts, e.g. regarding the identity of the customer or the purpose of their stay;
• the hotel has reasonable grounds to believe that the use of the hotel's services may jeopardise the smooth running of the business, the safety or the public image of the hotel, without this being attributable to the hotel's sphere of control or organisation.
• there is a violation of section I.2 above.
5.4 In the event of justified withdrawal by the hotel, the customer shall not be entitled to claim damages.
6. Provision, handover and return of rooms
6.1 The customer shall not be entitled to the provision of specific rooms in the booked category.
6.2 Booked rooms shall be available to the customer from 3 p.m. on the agreed day of arrival.
6.3 On the agreed day of departure, the rooms must be vacated and made available to the hotel by 11 a.m. at the latest. In the event of late departure, the hotel may charge 50% plus additional costs for late cleaning for use beyond the contractual period until 6 p.m., and 100% of the full accommodation price (list price) from 6 p.m. onwards. The guest is free to prove that the hotel has incurred no or a significantly lower claim for usage fees.
7. Liability of the hotel and customer's rights in respect of defects
7.1 The hotel shall be liable for its obligations under the contract with the diligence of a prudent businessman. Claims for damages by the customer are excluded. This does not apply to damages resulting from injury to life, limb or health if the hotel is responsible for the breach of duty, and other damages based on an intentional or grossly negligent breach of duty by the hotel. A breach of duty by a legal representative or vicarious agent is equivalent to a breach of duty by the hotel. Should disruptions or defects occur in the hotel's services, the hotel will endeavour to remedy the situation upon becoming aware of it or upon immediate complaint by the customer. The customer is obliged to contribute what is reasonable to remedy the disruption and minimise any possible damage.
7.2 The hotel is liable to the customer for items brought into the hotel in accordance with the statutory provisions of Sections 701–704 of the German Civil Code (BGB) up to one hundred times the room price for one night, up to a maximum of £3,500, and for money, securities and valuables up to £800. Money, securities and valuables can be stored in the hotel or room safe up to a maximum value of €7,500. The hotel recommends that guests make use of this option. The right to compensation expires if the guest does not report the damage to the hotel immediately after becoming aware of the loss.
7.3 If the customer is provided with a parking space in the hotel garage or on a hotel car park, even for a fee, this does not constitute a safekeeping agreement. The hotel shall not be liable for loss of or damage to motor vehicles parked or manoeuvred on the hotel premises and their contents, except in cases of intent or gross negligence. This also applies to the hotel's vicarious agents. The above clause 1, sentences 2 to 4, shall apply accordingly.
7.4 If defects in the booked room and its facilities or other hotel services become apparent during the stay, the guest must notify the hotel immediately and give the hotel the opportunity to remedy them or provide the guest with an adequate replacement room. If the guest has not reported the defects immediately, subsequent reductions in the agreed price are excluded.
7.5 Wake-up calls shall be carried out by the hotel with the utmost care. Messages, mail and goods deliveries for guests shall be handled with care. The hotel shall take care of the delivery, storage and, upon request, forwarding of the same for a fee. The above clause 1, sentences 2 to 4 shall apply accordingly.
8. Final provisions
8.1 Amendments or additions to the contract, the acceptance of the application or these terms and conditions for hotel accommodation must be made in writing. Unilateral amendments or additions by the customer are invalid.
8.2 The place of performance and payment is the registered office of the respective hotel.
8.3 The exclusive place of jurisdiction – also for disputes concerning cheques and bills of exchange – in commercial transactions is the Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Germany. If a contractual partner fulfils the requirements of Section 38 (2) of the German Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO) and has no general place of jurisdiction in Germany, the place of jurisdiction shall be the registered office of the hotel.
8.4 German law shall apply. The application of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and conflict of laws provisions shall be excluded.
8.5 Should individual provisions of these General Terms and Conditions be or become invalid or void, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions. The same shall apply in the event of an unintended loophole. In all other respects, the statutory provisions shall apply.