GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR PROVIDERS
VERSION: August 16, 2024
1 SCOPE OF APPLICATION OF GTC, OPTION THIRD-PARTY PLATFORM & BOOKING AGREEMENT
Swiss Activities AG, Seestrasse 21, 8703 Erlenbach, Switzerland ("Operator") operates a platform for facilitating activities in Switzerland, under the website https://www.swissactivities.com and the app "Swiss Activities" (both "Facilitation Platform"), which allows providers of leisure activities in Switzerland (each a "Provider") to offer travel-related services and activities (the "Services") to potential customers (each a "Customer"). The facilitation platform serves as a mediation platform and the operator acts solely as an intermediary. These general terms and conditions for providers ("GTC") govern the contractual relationship between the operator and the provider conclusively when the provider registers on the facilitation platform and offers services through it. By registering as a service provider on the facilitation platform, these GTC are considered accepted by the provider.
In addition to offering the services of providers on the operator's facilitation platform, the operator also provides providers the opportunity to place their services on independent third-party distribution partner platforms ("Resellers"). Unless the provider instructs the operator otherwise, the operator is entitled to offer the services provided by the provider to resellers for offering on their third-party platforms. When selling services through third-party resellers' platforms (i) bookings of services are made by users of the reseller's third-party platform, (ii) the booking may be subject to the reseller's terms and conditions, (iii) the service fees may be collected by the reseller instead of the operator (see sections 4 and 5 of these GTC); (iv) the reseller may provide customer service to customers instead of the operator, including partial or full refund of the service fee (see section 3 of these GTC).
The offering of services always occurs directly to customers. When a customer books services from a provider through the operator's facilitation platform (or a reseller's third-party platform), a separate direct contract is established between the provider and the customer (the "Booking Contract"), for which the provider is solely responsible, and on which basis the provider delivers booked services to customers. Neither the operator nor resellers are parties to this booking contract; the provider is solely responsible for all rights and obligations under the booking contract and the provision of the service to the customer.
2 OBLIGATIONS & WARRANTIES OF PROVIDERS
The provider undertakes:
to keep confidential the password used for accessing the facilitation platform and to take responsibility for all transactions made through their user account; and
to provide complete and accurate descriptions of the services offered, terms of the booking contract, and account details for the transfer of service fees as per the operator's guidelines on the facilitation platform; and to promptly review any content (service descriptions, image and video material, texts, trademarks) revised by the operator;
to update the descriptions on the facilitation platform immediately if there are changes to the services or if the services are no longer offered; and
to keep service fees (e.g., prices) and availability information always up to date; and
to provide high-resolution image and video material on the facilitation platform, which may be used unrestrictedly by the operator and its contracting partners for advertising and marketing purposes at their discretion, including but not limited to promoting the facilitation platform, the resellers' third-party platforms, promotions of collaborations, including but not limited to offline and online marketing and social media channels, even beyond the duration of the contract pursuant to these GTC; and
to bear sole and full responsibility for the provision of the services in accordance with these GTC, industry standard practices, the booking contract, and all applicable laws and regulations; and
to comprehensively educate about all risks related to the services on the facilitation platform and to provide all information relevant to the services, such as prerequisites for customers and participants (e.g., age, weight, health condition, prior knowledge and/or license, footwear or equipment, identification, insurance) or access (e.g., travel routes, location details), etc.; and
to address all questions and complaints from customers directly and promptly; and
to obtain all necessary insurances (not only for high-risk activities) covering all offered services; and
to provide the operator with access to information and content relevant to the provision of services in the use of ticketing or reservation systems and to take responsibility for the availabilities and service fees indicated in the ticketing or reservation systems.
The provider assures and warrants that
the provider and their personnel involved in the delivery of the services possess all necessary permits, licenses, certificates as well as the necessary skills and training to deliver the services for customers according to the description and with necessary precautions; and
the provider has all rights to the content provided (service descriptions, photographs, texts, trademarks) and to the provided image and video material and that granting usage rights to the operator as per these GTC does not violate any third-party rights or applicable laws; and
the provider fully complies with applicable tax, social security, work permit, and accounting laws, including proper issuance and retention of invoices as well as timely disclosure and payment of taxes, social contributions, and fees; and
all information provided during the registration process is correct and up-to-date; and
if a provider offers multiple services in connection and thus falls under the package travel law, to ensure compliance with it and to indemnify the operator from claims and liabilities arising therefrom.
3 BOOKINGS & CANCELLATIONS & PREREQUISITES
Customers can view the description of the services of the providers on the facilitation platform (and the reseller's third-party platform if applicable). These are binding offers unless marked as "Booking on request". With a booking of services for a specified number of people, a specific date, and a specific time according to the displayed availability from a provider on the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable) and payment of the service fee by the customer a booking contract is conclusively established. Offers marked as "Booking on request" must be requested from the provider (a "Request"). The request is automatically forwarded to the provider. Unless otherwise stated by the provider, the request is binding for the customer for 24 hours, and the provider must confirm the request on the facilitation platform or via email to the customer within this time frame or inform the customer of a rejection. If the request is confirmed by the provider, the request is considered accepted and the booking contract concluded.
Unless otherwise specified by the provider, the customer can cancel the booking contract free of charge for a full refund of the paid service fees up to 24 hours before the scheduled start of the service. In case of a cancellation afterwards, no-shows, or late arrivals of the customer at the scheduled time Swiss time and place, the full service fee for the booked service remains owed.
The provider may set certain prerequisites for the customers and participants for providing the service (e.g., age, weight, health condition, prior knowledge and/or license, footwear or equipment, identification, insurance). The provider may refuse to provide the services due to the absence of these prerequisites if they are stated in the description of the services or the booking contract. In such a case, the full service fee for the booked service remains owed.
The provider may only cancel the services for reasons stated in the description of the services or the booking contract (e.g., insufficient number of participants or bad weather). In such a case, a full refund of the paid service fee is made to the customer.
In case of an unjustified cancellation by the provider, non-performance, or performance of the services in a significant deviation from the description, the customer can also demand a full or partial refund, and the operator is entitled to payment of the mediation commission despite a refund, as if the service had been provided and compensated.
4 SERVICE FEES & PAYMENT TERMS
The fees payable by customers to the provider for booked services, including applicable value-added tax and other fees (the "Service Fees") must be transparently indicated by the provider. The provider may not request any additional payments of any kind from the customer for the provision of the services.
The Service Fees payable by customers will be collected exclusively via the payment options available on the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable) and may not be claimed by the provider themselves. The provider may not accept any payments from the customer other than through the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable).
The Service Fees owed by customers to the provider via the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable) will be forwarded by the operator minus the mediation commission. The operator will provide the provider with a monthly overview and statement of the services performed and paid in the previous month. The payout to the provider will occur within 30 days after dispatch of the aforementioned overview and statement.
5 MEDIATION COMMISSION
The provider owes the operator a mediation commission for the service fees paid by customers to the provider through the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable) (the "Mediation Commission"). The amount of the mediation commission is calculated by the operator based on various factors and will be offered to the provider by the operator after their registration on the facilitation platform. With the subsequent uploading of services on the facilitation platform by the provider, the offered mediation commission is considered accepted by the provider. If the provider does not wish to accept the offered mediation commission, they may not offer services on the facilitation platform.
The mediation commission is directly deducted from the service fees that customers pay through the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable).
The mediation commission becomes due in the following cases as if the service fees were paid or were not supposed to be refunded:
If the payment of a service fee by the customer is revoked after the provision of the services (e.g., in the case of credit card payment), the provider is solely responsible for resolving the issue with the customer and the customer's payment service provider; and
if the service fee does not reach the provider due to incorrect account information provided by the provider; and
in case of unjustified cancellation by the provider, non-performance, or performance of the services in significant deviation from the description, and the provider must refund the service fee.
In these cases, the operator is entitled to deduct the mediation fee from any future service fee owed to the provider or to invoice the provider directly.
In the event of a justified cancellation by the customer up to 24 hours (or alternatively the maximum cancellation period specified by the provider) before the scheduled start of the service or by the provider for reasons specified in the description of the services or the booking contract, no mediation commission is owed.
6 COMMUNICATION WITH THE CUSTOMER
The provider may only communicate with the customer via the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable) and may not refer the customer to any other website of the provider or a third party in connection with the services or provide the customer with direct contact details. Any communication outside the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable) regarding the booking of services is prohibited. The operator may monitor the communication and delete any messages that aim to circumvent the messaging function of the facilitation platform (or the reseller's third-party platform if applicable).
Any direct marketing to the customer after the provision of services is also prohibited.
7 REVIEWS & MEDIA
Customers can rate the services of providers on the facilitation platform. The operator decides at their discretion about the deletion or anonymization of inappropriate reviews.
In the event of an accident related to a service booked via the facilitation platform, the operator and provider jointly agree on the communication to the public.
8 RESTRICTIONS
The following actions are prohibited for the provider:
using the operator's trademarks without prior written consent from the operator;
using the facilitation platform for purposes other than offering and selling leisure activities;
copying or commercializing any content of the facilitation platform or the software contained therein;
violating applicable law and good morals;
infringing on third-party rights;
actions that could harm or limit the facilitation platform and its functionality;
data mining, data harvesting, data extracting, or similar activities.
9 WARRANTY AND LIABILITY DISCLAIMER OF THE OPERATOR
The facilitation platform (or the third-party platform of a reseller if applicable) is provided "as is". The operator assumes no warranty concerning this facilitation platform, the frequency or extent of bookings through the facilitation platform, or the information and content contained therein.
Any liability of the operator is hereby excluded to the extent permitted by law.
10 LIABILITY AND INDEMNIFICATION BY PROVIDER
The provider is solely responsible for the descriptions of the services they offer on the facilitation platform (even if the operator has revised them due to their duty to control) as well as for the provision of the services and any claims or damages incurred in this context towards customers, based on the booking contract concluded with the customer, including accidents.
The provider indemnifies the operator from all liabilities, costs, claims, lawsuits, and damages (a) from customers in connection with the booking contract and possibly the package travel law, as well as (b) from third parties in connection with content, image and video material due to infringement of third-party rights.
The provider is responsible for liabilities, costs, claims, lawsuits, and damages arising from violations of these GTC.
11 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
The facilitation platform, the software contained therein, and the content published thereon (photographs, texts, etc.), trademarks, and data are the intellectual property of the operator, the provider, or their licensors, protected by copyright, trademark law, and other protective rights.
The provider is hereby granted the right to use the facilitation platform for offering and selling their leisure activities. Any use of the content for other purposes is prohibited.
The operator is hereby granted the right to use the content provided by the provider on the facilitation platform (service descriptions, image and video material, trademarks, photographs, texts) unrestrictedly and also beyond the term of the contract as per these GTC. The operator is entitled, but not obliged, to revise and supplement the content provided by the provider and then present it for approval again.
12 DATA PROTECTION
The data protection policy of the operator (https://www.swissactivities.com/datenschutz) is considered an integral part of these terms of use. The operator is responsible for the personal data of customers collected and processed via the facilitation platform.
The operator and the provider take appropriate organizational and technical measures to protect all personal data of customers and process them exclusively in accordance with the operator's data protection policy.
13 DURATION AND TERMINATION
These GTC apply for the entire duration during which the provider offers their services via the facilitation platform.
The operator and provider may terminate the contractual relationship at any time with a notice period of 30 days via email or through the platform. In the event of a violation of these GTC, the operator is also entitled, without observing this notice period, to block the provider's account taking into account all pending bookings and inquiries.
14 CHANGES
The operator reserves the right to change these GTC at any time. The operator will notify the provider in advance of changes via email. Unless the provider communicates in writing to the operator within 30 days after notification of the changes that they do not agree with the notified adjustments, the changes are considered accepted by them. In the case of rejection of the changes by the provider, the provider's user account will be blocked.
The operator also reserves the right to change the facilitation platform, its functionalities, and the services offered at any time without notifying the providers.
15 MISCELLANEOUS
There is no simple partnership between the operator and the provider; they are independent contracting parties. Any other appearance is to be avoided.
Communications from the operator are considered validly communicated when sent to the last postal or email address provided to the operator.
"Written" also includes email.
Neither party may assign their rights, obligations or claims under these GTC.
Should any provision of these GTC (in whole or in part) be found to be unlawful, invalid or otherwise unenforceable, that provision shall be replaced by a valid provision that comes as close as possible to the economic purpose intended by the original provision, while the remaining provisions remain valid in full.
16 APPLICABLE LAW AND JURISDICTION
The contractual relationship and these GTC are subject to material Swiss law, excluding international conflict of laws and international agreements.
Disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the ordinary courts at the operator's registered office. However, the operator is entitled to bring action against the provider at their residence or registered office.