Our Policies

Corpwest Holdings Pty Ltd as Trustee for The Heritage Family Trust trading as Synergy Travel is a licensed travel agent and member of the Travel Compensation Fund. License No. WA 9TA01572

Booking and Advisory Services – Terms and Conditions

WHAT WE PROVIDE TO YOU

Please read the following terms and conditions carefully. You must not make any booking unless you understand and agree with the following terms and conditions. References to “us”, “we” and/or “our” in these booking terms and conditions shall mean Synergy Travel.

These terms and conditions apply to bookings you make with our consultants (in-store, over phone, mobile consultation or by email) as well as online bookings you make on our website.

Passports & Visas:

All travellers must have a valid passport for international travel and many countries require at least 6 months validity from the date of return and some countries require a machine-readable passport. Synergy Travel assumes that all travellers on bookings have a valid Australian passport unless advised otherwise. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have valid visas and re-entry permits which meet the requirements of immigration and other government authorities. If you need information regarding visas, passports and other travel document requirements for your trip, please let your consultant know. Our consultants can obtain more specific information from external visa advisory service providers on your behalf (if you wish, we can assist you to obtain visas through this external service, fees will apply). We do not warrant the accuracy of information provided by any external service and accept no liability for any loss or damage which you may suffer in reliance on it (except to the extent caused by fault on our part).

If you are travelling to the United States please see https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov for important information regarding compulsory pre-registration for their visa waiver program (“ESTA”). Australian passport holders will not be able to enter the United States without a valid ESTA (or visa). Please note, you may not meet the eligibility requirements of ESTA and may be required to obtain a visa.

Travel Insurance:

We strongly recommend that you take out appropriate travel insurance to cover your travel arrangements. We are an authorised representative of Cover More Travel Insurance Services Pty Ltd, Australian Financial Services Licence No. 241713. You must obtain a Financial Services Guide/Product Disclosure Statement relating to the travel insurance product you are considering purchasing and should read that document before making any decision about whether to acquire the product. To purchase travel insurance through us, contact your consultant. In order for us to arrange your insurance, you must confirm that you have read and understand the applicable Financial Services Guide/Product Disclosure Statement, and understand the limits on your cover and your duty of disclosure to the insurer. If you decline travel insurance, you may be required to sign a disclaimer.

Travel Advice:

We recommend that you contact the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or visit their website at www.smartraveller.gov.au for destination travel advice (including safety travel alerts) relating to the destination you wish to visit. You can also register your travel plans with DFAT, so that you may be more easily contacted in an emergency.

Health:

You must ensure that you are aware of any health requirements and recommended precautions relevant to your travel and ensure that you carry all necessary vaccination documentation. In some cases, failure to present required vaccination documentation (e.g. proof of Yellow Fever vaccination) may deny you entry into a country. We recommend that you consult with your local doctor, travel medical service or specialist vaccination clinic before commencing your travel. General health advice for the destination you wish to visit is also available from DFAT see www.smarttraveller.gov.au and the Centre for Disease Control’s website http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/list/

Prices:

All prices are subject to availability and can be withdrawn or varied by suppliers without notice. Prices are only guaranteed once paid for in full by you. Please note that prices quoted are subject to change until full payment is made. Price changes may occur due to matters outside our control which increase the cost of the product or service. Such factors include adverse currency fluctuations, fuel surcharges, taxes and airfare increases. Please contact your consultant for up-to date prices.

Our Change and Cancellation Fees:

Subject to your refund and remedy rights under Australian Consumer Law, booking, change and cancellation fees may apply to all bookings (including online bookings and consultant bookings).

A fee schedule is available on request. Fees will vary based on client requirements and we will always ensure we offer the most competitive fees available in the market to our valued clients.

Supplier Change and Cancellation Fees:

Cancelled bookings may incur supplier penalties & fees, which can be up to 100% of the cost of the booking. Supplier fees may also apply where a booking is changed and when tickets or documents are reissued.

Where we incur any liability for a supplier fee for any booking which changed or cancelled, you agree to indemnify us for the amount of that fee. Where you seek a refund for a cancelled booking for which payment has been made to the supplier, the funds will be returned to you only after they have been received from that supplier.

Payments by Credit Card:

Bank credit card merchant fees of 1.5% for Visa and MasterCard and 2.5% for American Express will apply when paying by credit card. You authorise us to charge all fees incurred by you in relation to the services provided to the credit card designated by you. If payment is not received from the card issuer or its agents for any reason, you agree to pay us all amounts due immediately on demand.

Taxes:

Airline taxes are subject to change and are confirmed at the time your airline ticket is issued. There may also be a local tax charged at some airports and arrival and departure taxes imposed by some countries which are payable at the respective airports.

Service guarantees:

Our booking and advisory services come with a guarantee that:

• They will always be provided with due care and diligence;
• They will be reasonably fit for the specified purpose;
• They can reasonably be expected to achieve the desired result; and
• They will be provided within a reasonable time frame.

Agency:

We act as an agent only for, and sell various travel related products as agent on behalf of, numerous transport, accommodation and other service providers, such as airlines, coach, rail and cruise line operators, as well as all of our wholesalers. Any services we provide to you are collateral to that agency relationship. Our obligation to you is to (and you expressly authorise us to) make travel bookings on your behalf and to arrange relevant contracts between you and travel service providers.

We exercise care in the selection of reputable service providers, but we are not ourselves a provider of travel services and have no control over, or liability for, the services provided by third parties. All bookings are made on your behalf subject to the terms and conditions, including conditions of carriage and limitations of liability, imposed by these service providers. We can provide you with copies of the relevant service provider terms and conditions on request. Your legal rights in connection with the provision of travel services are against the specific provider and, except to the extent of fault on our part, are not against us. Specifically, if for any reason (excluding fault on our part) any travel service provider is unable to provide the services for which you have contracted, your rights are against that provider and not against us.

Liability:

To the extent permitted by law, Synergy Travel or any of its related bodies corporate, directors, employees or agents accept no liability in contract, tort or otherwise for any injury, damage, loss (including consequential loss), delay, additional expense or inconvenience caused directly or indirectly by the acts, omissions or default, whether negligent or otherwise, of third party providers over whom we have no direct control, force majeure or any other event which is beyond our control or which is not preventable by reasonable diligence on our part.

Our liability will also be limited to the extent that any relevant international conventions, for example the Montreal Convention in respect of travel by air, the Athens Convention in respect of travel by sea, the Berne Convention in respect of travel by rail and the Paris Convention in respect of the provision of accommodation, limit the amount of compensation which can be claimed for death, injury, or delay to passengers and loss, damage and delay to luggage. Under circumstances where our liability cannot be excluded and where liability may be lawfully limited, such liability is limited to the remedies required of us under applicable law (including the Australian Consumer Law). This liability clause is subject to your rights under the Australian Consumer Law and nothing in these terms and conditions is intended to limit any rights you may have under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth).

Special Requirements:

Please advise your consultant regarding any special requirements you may have for your travel arrangements such as special meal and seating requests, room type or disabled access. We will ensure that we enter all advised requirements into your booking, but as a third party cannot guarantee that the end provider of the service will acknowledge and act accordingly to provide and fulfil such requirements.

Frequent Flyer:

When booking with one of our consultants, please let them know your frequent flyer membership details (or other applicable loyalty program details) for inclusion in your booking. Please check your frequent flyer program (or other applicable loyalty program) for the specific terms of your membership. We cannot guarantee that the supplier will credit you with points for your booking.

Travel Documents:

Travel documents include (without limitation) airline tickets, hotel vouchers, tour vouchers or any other document (whether in electronic form or otherwise) used to confirm an arrangement with a service provider. Travel documents may be subject to certain conditions and/or restrictions including (without limitation) being non-refundable, non-date-changeable and subject to cancellation and/or amendment fees. Travel documents cannot be transferred to another person to use. All airline tickets must be issued in the name of the passport/photo identity holder. An incorrect name (or spelling of name as per passport) in a booking may result in an inability to use that booking, denied boarding at airports and the booking being cancelled. Please review your travel documentation carefully and advise us immediately of any errors in names, spelling of names, dates or timings. If you have booked with a consultant, it is your responsibility to collect all travel documents from us prior to travel.

As a general rule your travel documents will be available for collection 2 weeks prior to departure, however this will depend on your individual arrangements. Please contact your consultant to confirm when your travel documents are ready for collection.

Schedule Changes:

We recommend that you contact the airline to confirm your scheduled departure time 24 hours prior to your flight.

Monies Not Held On Trust:

All monies paid by you to us will be the property of Synergy Travel and will be a debt due and payable to the travel service provider of the services to which the money relates (except for monies paid for flights with an IATA airline, which might be held on trust for that IATA airline). You agree and acknowledge that such monies will not be held by us on trust for and on behalf of you and we may hold such monies in any account as we see fit, including with our own and/or other customer monies.

Governing Law

If any dispute arises between you and us, the laws of Western Australia will apply. You irrevocably and unconditionally submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Western Australia, and waive any right that you may have to object to an action being brought in those courts.

Acknowledgement

I acknowledge that I am 18 years of age or older and that I understand and agree with the above terms and conditions when I make any bookings and/or utilise any services provided by Synergy Travel.