General terms and conditions of business
General terms and conditions for renting holiday accommodation
Holiday accommodation / Landlord
Villa Pauline, Lindenallee 1, 37242 Bad Sooden-Allendorf
Holiday apartment “Champagne”, apartment “Bordeaux”, holiday apartment “Alsace”, holiday apartment “Brittany” and holiday apartment “Provence”
Owner: Meret Rhenius, Oberste Straße 11, 37242 Bad Sooden-Allendorf
The following terms and conditions apply to the use of the above-mentioned holiday accommodation:
1) Scope
The general terms and conditions apply to the rental of the holiday accommodation for lodging purposes as well as all other services provided by the landlord to the guest.
2) Booking and conclusion of contract
The rental agreement for the holiday apartment described in the rental agreement becomes legally binding when the rental agreement has been signed by the tenant and received by the landlord. A rental agreement also becomes legally binding when the guest receives a booking confirmation following the online booking.
By booking, the guest also accepts the present general terms and conditions as well as the house rules, which were made available to the guest in advance.
The holiday apartment is rented to the tenant exclusively for holiday purposes for the specified contract period and may only be occupied by the maximum number of persons specified in the rental agreement.
3) Tenant's obligations
The tenant agrees to treat the rented property and its contents with due care. The tenant is liable for any damage to furnishings, rented premises, or the building, as well as any facilities belonging to the rented premises or the building, if and to the extent that such damage was caused by the tenant, their companions, or visitors through negligence or intent.
The tenant must immediately notify the landlord or the contact person named in the lease of any damage occurring in the rented premises, unless the tenant is obligated to repair the damage themselves. The tenant is liable for any consequential damages resulting from failure to provide timely notification.
Waste, ashes, harmful liquids, and similar substances must not be thrown or poured into sinks, washbasins, showers, bathtubs, or toilets. If blockages occur in sewage pipes due to non-compliance with these regulations, the responsible party will bear the costs of clearing or repairing the blockage.
In the event of any malfunctions in the systems and equipment of the rented property, the tenant is obliged to do everything reasonably possible to contribute to remedying the malfunction or to minimize any damage that may occur.
The tenant is obligated to adhere to the maximum occupancy. If the tenant exceeds the maximum occupancy agreed upon in the lease, the landlord is entitled to terminate the lease without notice. In this case, the tenant must reimburse the landlord for all expenses already incurred and lost profits (see section 5b).
During your stay, the house rules sent to you for your review apply. In case of violations of the terms and conditions or the house rules, the landlord is entitled to terminate the rental agreement immediately and without notice. There is no legal entitlement to a partial refund or compensation.
4) Rent and additional costs
The agreed rental price includes all flat-rate additional costs (e.g., for electricity, heating, water).
If a down payment of 10% of the total price has been agreed upon, it is due upon conclusion of the contract. If the down payment is not received by the landlord in a timely manner despite a reminder, the landlord is entitled to withdraw from the contract without notice. The tenant is then obligated to reimburse the landlord for any expenses incurred and lost profits.
The remaining payment is due no later than 14 days before the start of the rental period.
5) Resignation
The tenant may withdraw from the rental agreement before the start of the rental period by giving written notice to the landlord. The decisive factor is the date on which the notice of withdrawal is received by the landlord.
If the tenant withdraws from the lease agreement, he must pay a lump sum compensation for the expenses incurred by the landlord and the lost profit in the following amount:
Cancellation up to 15 days before the start of the rental period: 20%
Cancellation up to 8 days before the start of the rental period: 50%
After that, and in case of no-show: 90%
The tenant retains the right to prove that the landlord suffered no damage or significantly less damage.
If the tenant withdraws from the contract, they may nominate a substitute tenant who is willing to assume the existing contractual relationship. The landlord may object to the substitute tenant if they appear financially or personally unreliable. If a substitute tenant assumes the lease, they and the original tenant are jointly and severally liable to the landlord for the rent and any additional costs incurred as a result of the substitute tenant's entry into the lease.
The landlord is obligated in good faith to rent out any unused accommodation to someone else and must credit the resulting savings against the cancellation fees he claims.
The tenant is advised to take out travel cancellation insurance.
6) Landlord's liability
The landlord is liable for the accuracy of the description of the rental property and is obligated to properly provide and maintain the contractually agreed services throughout the entire rental period. The landlord is not liable for defects that were known to the tenant at the time of signing the rental agreement.
If there are defects in the rented property, the tenant must inform the landlord or the designated contact person of these defects immediately. If the tenant fails to report the defects, they are not entitled to any claims for non-performance of contractual obligations (in particular, no claims for rent reduction).
The landlord's liability for property damage is excluded, unless it is based on an intentional or grossly negligent breach of duty by the landlord or their agents, or on a negligent breach of essential contractual obligations (so-called cardinal obligations) by the landlord. The landlord is not liable in cases of force majeure (e.g., fire, flood, etc.).
7) Right of termination
There is no right to ordinary termination.
Both contracting parties may terminate the contractual relationship without notice and for good cause in accordance with § 543 BGB or under the conditions of § 569 BGB.
A significant reason for termination by the landlord exists, in particular, if the tenant uses the holiday apartment in breach of contract (material breach of contract) or disregards the house rules. In the case of a material breach of contract, the landlord must give the tenant a short period to remedy the situation or issue a warning, unless this is unlikely to succeed or there are exceptional circumstances that justify waiving this right. In this case, the landlord can demand compensation from the tenant for expenses incurred up to the point of termination and for lost profits (see section 5).
The landlord also has the right to withdraw from the contract or to terminate it without notice if the tenant fails to make the agreed payments (down payment, final payment, security deposit) on time despite prior warning. In this case, the landlord can demand compensation from the tenant for expenses incurred up to the point of termination and for lost profits (see section 5).
An important reason for the tenant exists in particular if the landlord does not grant the tenant the contractual use of the holiday apartment.
Furthermore, the statutory regulations regarding the right to extraordinary, immediate termination apply.
8) Termination of the contract due to exceptional circumstances
The lease agreement can be terminated by either party if the fulfillment of the contract is significantly hindered, jeopardized, or impaired due to force majeure that was unforeseeable at the time of its conclusion. Both parties are released from their contractual obligations. However, they must reimburse the other party for any services already rendered.
9) Amendment of the contract / Side agreements
Any side agreements, amendments and additions to the contract, as well as all legally relevant declarations, must be in writing.
10) Severability Clause
Should any provision of these terms and conditions be or become invalid or unenforceable, the validity of the remaining provisions shall not be affected. The invalid or unenforceable provision shall be replaced by a valid and enforceable provision that most closely approximates the economic objectives intended by the parties with the invalid or unenforceable provision.
11) Choice of law and jurisdiction
German law applies.
For all disputes arising from this contractual relationship, the local court in whose district the defendant has his general place of jurisdiction shall have jurisdiction.
For legal actions brought by the landlord against merchants, legal entities under public or private law, or persons who do not have a general place of jurisdiction in Germany, or who have moved their residence or habitual abode abroad after conclusion of the contract, or whose residence or habitual abode is unknown at the time the action is brought, the landlord's place of residence is agreed as the exclusive place of jurisdiction.
Bad Sooden-Allendorf, June 2023
