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AGENCY RENTAL AGREEMENT

Definitions: ‘Us’, ‘Our’ or ‘We’ – Wild Oyster Holiday Homes Limited (WOHH), trading as Wild Oyster Holiday Homes. ‘You’ or ‘Your’ – the owner of the Property shown above or business responsible for the management of the Property shown above or a collection of Properties referred to under the grouped name shown above. ‘Property’ – this will be the holiday home, cottage, log cabin, lodge or apartment shown above. ‘Guest’ – person or persons who enquire about rental of the Property or who place a booking or who stay at the Property. 

 

1. Appointment: this agreement shall remain in effect ongoing until terminated pursuant to any sub-clauses 1 (1) to (3) below – 

1) you agree to an initial minimum listing period of 24 months. During the first 12 months you agree to a commission to WOHH of 13%. During the following 12 months you agree to a commission to WOHH of 18%. From the 19th month three months’ notice will be required to terminate the agreement. After the initial 24 month period and you remain with WOHH we will charge 18% commission with a release of contract of 3 months notice. Commission rates do not include VAT, VAT will be added accordingly. 

2) the agreement may be terminated otherwise by mutual agreement. 

3) we reserve the right to terminate this agreement without compensation for any breach of agreement. 

4) On termination of this agreement any existing bookings are to be honoured. 

 

2. Our services include: advertising on the Wild Oyster Holiday Homes and third party websites, dealing with enquiries, securing rental bookings, processing payments and advising of departure as well as liaising with guests regarding satisfaction surveys. You will benefit from access to our management section of the online booking system where you can view booking information and guest payment details as well as adding your own owner bookings. 

 

3. Marketing limitations: We are to act as sole agent although we understand that you may require use of the property which is covered in clause 4. For bookings we supply that you are unable to accommodate, if you have not updated our availability calendar, or for any other reason, you will still be liable to pay commission at the standard rate. You acknowledge and agree that we do not have an obligation to conduct background checks on any guests on your behalf for your rental property. 

 

4. Listing fee: listing fee of £199 pa will apply to each property listing which can be offered on credit with no additional fees for this or interest. This fee covers your introduction onto Wild Oyster Holiday Homes website (and exposure to third party Wild Oyster Holiday Homes preferred websites) however, this is conditional that the property calendar is not booked out by you for a short assured tenancy or lengthy owner bookings are placed, greatly restricting dates made available to us. Lengthy owner bookings are defined as more than 50% of any rolling 3 month period being booked out by you and not made available to us. As an example this would equate to March to May = 92 days – availability for WOHH to work with as 45 days. 

 

5. Fees: 1) You agree to pay us a commission fee, agreed separately from this agreement document, unless agreed in section 1, based on the total rental charged to guests via websites minus additional charges. Changes in commission may be due to multiple properties managed by WOHH. 

2) We may charge the guest for services we provide them and may charge a booking fee. 

3) where appropriate additional VAT is due on our supplies to you the owner of the property. 

4) Without affecting the specific terms of clause 5, we may take any amount due to us under this agreement from any amount due to you from us. 

 

6. UK Tax: 1) We do not apply VAT to the rental fee charged to the Guest. Our commission is applied to the total rental and it is up to you to deal with VAT contributions due to HMRC if you are VAT registered. 

2) If you are considered a non UK resident for tax purposes then it is your responsibility to contact HMRC to disclose that you are receiving rental income from WOHH, acting as your agent, and to request exemption to receive rental income without tax deducted as per the Non-Residents Landlords Scheme. We will be unable to make any payments to you until we receive an exemption letter from HMRC if you are a non UK resident. 

 

7. Payment terms: We will market your property on our own website(s) and with third party reputable booking partners. Guests will either pay us directly or when booked via a third party may pay them directly. We may schedule payments to owners once or twice a month, at the start of the month (usually 1st) for cottage type rental property or in the month and in the middle of the month 

1) Some third party sites collect payment directly from guests and pay us 48 hours after the guest has arrived; in this instance we will schedule a payment to either in the middle of the month or at the start of the following month subject to the funds having cleared our bank account. 

2) For late notice bookings, booked and paid for, after any payments made to you at the start of the month we will pay you either in the middle of the month or at the start of the following month subject to the funds having cleared our bank account. 

3) We cannot guarantee that we can collect all amounts due from guests but will take reasonable steps to do so by seeking payment prior to their stay. 

4) You must not collect payments from guests in connection with renting your property, unless agreed with us in advance. 

5) We are entitled to take an agency fee from you, and booking fee and card process fees (if applicable) from the guest and deduct this from rental price we collect. 

6) Chargebacks – should the guest request a chargeback from their card issuer for any part or full payment of a booking, should this be for a claimed breach of terms of rental relating to the property or otherwise, we will appeal this when appropriate. In the event of an unsuccessful appeal we reserve the right to reclaim any credited amount from you. 

 

8. Accommodation standards: health & safety and your obligations: you agree to be responsible for – 

1) ensuring the Property is maintained to a serviceable standard for holiday rental purposes. This includes – maintenance to the interior and exterior fabric of the building, equipment, fittings and fixtures, ensuring continued supply of utilities such as electricity, gas, heating oil and water, emptying of septic tanks (where applicable). 

2) arranging for a full clean and servicing of the property before the start of each rental. 

3) arranging refuse collection following each rental and maintenance of outside areas around the Property. 

4) making suitable arrangements for arrival of guests via a meet or greet or local key collection and appointing a responsible person as point of contact for guests during their stay. WOHH highly recommends the professional fitting of bluetooth digital key boxes to eliminate the key collection process but stress this is the responsibility of the owner. WOHH does not hold keys to properties. 

5) notifying us and guests at least 14 days in advance of any building work or maintenance or servicing work to take place in the Property or its grounds. We stipulate that there are no works to be carried out during booked periods unless the periods relate to owner bookings. 

6) complying with all relevant statutory regulations and guidance including, but not limited to – 

a. ensuring appropriate measures are taken with regard meeting obligations under the Fire Safety Law (known as Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005) including the correct installation and maintenance of smoke alarms. 

b. confirming that all electrical, gas and oil equipment, installations and appliances are and will be regularly checked and are of a standard and condition in accordance with legislative requirements and in line with Health & Safety Executives requirements (HSE). This includes CP12 Certificate (landlord’s gas safety certificate), ECIR and PAT testing carried out at appropriate intervals, you have a duty of care to ensure all your electrical appliances, circuits and fixed installations in your property are safe. If you fail to maintain electrical installations and appliances you could be accountable. 

c. The Furniture & Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988. 

d. ensuring that the Property will be adequately and appropriately insured for the purposes of holiday letting. This should include public liability insurance and occupier’s liability insurance if appropriate. A copy of your insurance cover for the Property will be provided by you to us on request at no cost to us. 

e. Installation and maintenance of a suitable carbon monoxide alarm in the room should it house a combustion appliance, including open fires or stoves, per Repairing Standards for Private Landlords legislation. 

f. Ensuring you have an appropriate regime for managing risks of Legionella in water systems, showerheads, hot tubs, etc. If we reasonably consider that the accommodation does not meet the requirements of 8.1-6 above we may stop offering the accommodation for bookings, refuse to accept new bookings and cancel existing bookings or move them to alternative accommodation until you have made necessary changes to the accommodation and we are satisfied that the accommodation meets the requirements. If we take action referred to above, you will not be entitled to compensation. Also, you must pay back any monies you have been paid out for future bookings and pay us for any costs arising as a result of the accommodation not meeting the necessary requirements, including any compensation we pay to guests for finding alternative accommodation. You must pay any amount due to us in this respect within 14 days of us asking for them. 

g. Should you have television/s in your holiday let you will be required to apply for a Hotel and Mobile Units Television Licence (hotel license). 

I. We strongly recommend you seek specialist advice for insurance cover providing adequate insurance (Holiday Let Insurance) to cover the building and contents against accidents, damage and loss of earnings. It is highly recommended you have public liability with at least £2,000,000 level of cover which you should discuss with your insurance company for advice. 

 

If we reasonably consider that the accommodation does not meet the requirements of 8.1-5 above we may stop offering the accommodation for bookings, refuse to accept new bookings and cancel existing bookings or move them to alternative accommodation until you have made necessary changes to the accommodation and we are satisfied that the accommodation meets the requirements. If we take action referred to above, you will not be entitled to compensation. Also, you must pay back any monies you have been paid out for future bookings and pay us for any costs arising as a result of the accommodation not meeting the necessary requirements, including any compensation we pay to guests for finding alternative accommodation. You must pay any amount due to us in this respect within 14 days of us asking for them. 

 

9. Other events: 1) if you make the property unavailable for occupancy, for whatever reason including during or after any termination of the agreement period, then you agree to honour any existing confirmed bookings. Should this not be possible and it is necessary to provide alternative accommodation for the guest, this should be to at least the same standard, in the same geographic location and at the same cost. If this is not possible then any price difference above that agreed with the guest will be required to be paid by you as well as the commission due on the original booking and any transport costs incurred by the guest to reach the alternative accommodation. The guest may agree to a cancellation without provision of alternative accommodation in which case any monies received from the guest will be refunded in full. The commission for the booking will still be due to us. Should the guest not be able to access the property within the agreed arrival times then it may be necessary to provide alternative accommodation on the same terms as detailed in 9 (2). 

2) should it not be possible to continue with a guest booking due to a problem with the Property or any appliance(s) or equipment our standard fees relating to any cancelled or short stay period may not be refunded and we will be unable to assist with any financial compensation to guests in the event of a claim. We advise that you consider appropriate holiday home rental insurance as most policies cover costs relating to loss of income and compensation due to these types of situations. We will assist in identifying alternative accommodation for guests where possible; we will not be liable for any costs incurred in providing alternative accommodation, refunds or compensation. 

3) If you want to sell the property you must tell us in advance of the property being put on the market. You must not display a ‘for sale’ sign on or around the property and must make sure that no viewings take place during any bookings made through us. If you agree to a sale of your property and have existing bookings to fulfil and cannot accommodate these prior to the completion date, then the guest will need to be moved and we will consider the property not meeting requirements as per clause 8 and you will be required to pay any due compensation per clause 8 and clause 4. If any new owner of the property wishes to continue lettings through us, we may enter into a separate agreement with them. 

 

10. Marketing activity: 1) We secure bookings by marketing the Property on the WOHH website with additional exposure to reputable recognised websites and by direct marketing through use of the WOHH database. Although you enter into a contract with the Guest on confirmation of a booking this will not entitle you to use the Guest information for your own future marketing as we will own all information about the Guest including names’ addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. 

2) For guests originally supplied by us any additional nights booked or subsequent repeat bookings should be processed through us and will be subject to our standard charges. We reserve the right to charge commission for any repeat guest bookings, from guests originally supplied by us, and end our agreement with charges applying as per clause 4 & 15, if repeat bookings are placed by you as an owner. 

3) Unauthorised use of guest data by any other party would breach our privacy agreement with Guests and may also be contrary to the Data Protection Act 1998 and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2018. 

4) Any content and/or photographs we use on our website(s) or on other marketing channels are subject to copyright, intellectual property rights and/or Trademark and may not be used without our permission. 

 

11. Pricing: 1) We will agree with you on the rental amounts to be advertised on our website. 

2) We may list the property with third party travel agents either online travel agents (OTA’s) or offline travel agents who charge a commission or fee per booking. At our discretion we may add a premium onto the rental charge on some bookings generated or provided by a third party to part or fully cover their fee. There will be no additional cost to you. Our commission will be charged on the standard rental amount once the OTA fee has been deducted. 

3) You grant us the right to promote the property by offering discounts of up to 20%, at our discretion, of the standard rental price detailed on the website from time to time for all available dates within 28 days of the weekly start date (late availability offer), or other as otherwise agreed. 

4) We may market the property on non-UK based websites. Pricing is converted from that shown on our website at the time of listing into a foreign currency and sold at that price. Due to fluctuations in currency markets, when payments are transferred to us there may be variances in the achieved rental from that shown in Pounds Sterling on our website. 

5) If you fail to meet property standards as per clause 8 this may affect how we market your property, including the rental price that we charge on your behalf. You will not be entitled to any compensation if we make any such changes. 

 

12. Guest feedback: guests who have stayed at the Property will be asked by us to comment on their stay and to provide a score for certain aspects of their stay on our and our preferred third party websites. We reserve the right to post these comments and scores. You agree to acknowledge that we are a distributor (without any obligation to verify) and not a publisher of these comments. We will undertake to use our best efforts to monitor and review Guest reviews in respect of obscenities or the mention of an individual’s name. We reserve the right to refuse, edit or remove unfavourable reviews in the event that such reviews include obscenities or mention an individual’s name. We will not enter into a negotiation with a Property owner in respect of (the content of, or consequences of the publication or distribution of) a Guest review. We shall not have and disclaim any liability and responsibility for the content and consequences of (the publication or distribution of) any comments or reviews howsoever or whatsoever. 

 

13. Bookings cancelled by the guest: The cancellation policy agreed to by the guest may vary depending on which marketing channel the booking came through. In the main the standard policy guests agree to on the WOHH website is that once booked the guest is liable for the full cost of the booking. Once the cancellation is confirmed the dates will be released so another booking can be taken. If re-let, the original guest will receive a refund up to the value of the new booking once a discretionary administration fee of £60 and any booking fee, due to us, is deducted. 

 

14. Bookings cancelled by you: if you cancel a confirmed booking or refuse to accept a guest for any reason other than breach of contract by the guest you must refund any amount we have already paid you in connection with the booking. You must also pay our agency fee as per clause 5 plus an administration fee of £60 (inc VAT). If we have to pay compensation to the guest, or if there is any cost of finding the guest alternative accommodation, you must pay us those amounts. You must make all of these payments within 14 days of us asking for them. 

 

15. Ending the agreement: 1) If you want to end the Agreement, you must notify us in writing and serve notice as per clause 1. 

2) When an agreement ends you must honour all existing bookings we have taken. If you do not honour bookings, we have taken this will be treated as cancellation by you as per clause 14. 

3) We may end the Agreement at any time by giving you three months’ written notice. 

4) We may suspend the Agreement at any time if you break the Agreement. If we suspend the Agreement, we may find alternative accommodation for the Guest and you must pay all costs incurred in doing this. 

5) If you break the Agreement, and this cannot be resolved, we may write to you giving you 30 days’ notice to put this right. If you cannot, or will not, do so we will end the Agreement immediately and any future booking may be cancelled. These will be seen as bookings cancelled by you as per clause 14. 

 

16. Ownership: You have informed WOHH that you own the property or are authorised by the owner to enter into an Agreement with us and that there is nothing restricting you from entering into an Agreement with us. You must not transfer your rights, obligations or responsibilities under the Agreement to anyone else unless you have our prior permission. 

 

17. Complaints: Should a guest wish to make a complaint the process is detailed on the terms of bookings which can be viewed on the Wild Oyster Holiday Homes website. If a complaint is made during a stay in the property you must try to settle the complaint during their stay. Should it not be possible to resolve any problem during the guest’s stay, the guest may write to us when they return home. We will pass this to you when we receive any complaint. Although the booking contract is between you and the guest and you are primarily responsible for settling complaints we may, as a matter of goodwill, work with both you and the guest to try to settle the complaint. In this case, we may take action we consider reasonable. Complaints may result in us taking action to move guests into alternative accommodation to limit the potential of any claim for compensation. You will be responsible for all costs that arise should this take place. If we are involved in any complaint, we do so as Agent only and cannot accept any legal responsibility or liability. 

 

18. Relationship & Liability: You acknowledge that by entering into any lettings of the Property, we act as your Agent and all contracts of lettings will be between you and the Guest and not with Wild Oyster Holiday Homes and you agree that at all times you will keep us fully indemnified in respect thereof and not hold us liable for any loss or damage caused at the Property in any way whatsoever. You agree that the responsibility for injury or harm caused to guests and members of their party howsoever arising, including injury or harm caused as a result of any defect in the fabric of the property and/or equipment within the property, shall not fall upon us. Further you will indemnify us against any claims that may arise out of injury, loss or damage suffered by the guest or any third party (including legal fees and costs incurred) resulting from a breach by you of this agreement. We shall not be liable for changes, cancellations, or any other effect on any booking, due to any event, which with all due care could not be foreseen or avoided. 

 

19. Governing Law: In the unlikely event that a resolution cannot be found in a dispute between you and us then any subsequent dispute continuation will be dealt with under UK Law in accordance with the law in England and Wales. Place of jurisdiction is the domicile of us to the extent allowed by law.