Last updated: 16 Nov 2023 20:10

Please read this Terms of Service ("Terms," "Terms of Service") carefully before using the https://www.volunteeringsolutions.co.uk website (the "Website") operated by Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd, a(n) Private Limited Company formed in England ("us," "we," "our") as this Terms of Service contains important information regarding limitations of our liability. Our company registration number is 12187940. Our address is Market House, 216-220 High Street, Sutton, SM1 1NU, United Kingdom. Our phone number is +44(0)203 830 600. Your access to and use of this Website is conditional upon your acceptance of and compliance with these Terms. These Terms apply to everyone, including but not limited to visitors, users and others, who wish to access and use the Website.

By accessing or using the Website, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you disagree with any part of the Terms, then you do not have our permission to access or use the Website.

Our offers and pricing

We offer services on this Website. The price of these services can be found listed on the Website. This price includes all applicable taxes and other fees.

Program Fee

Purchases

When you make a purchase on the Website, you will be able to choose the third party payment processor that will collect your payment information and process your payment. You may make purchases using the following third party payment processors: Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Stripe. We are not responsible for the collection, use, sharing or security of your billing information by these third party payment processors. The following payment method(s) are accepted by the third party payment processors: American Express, bank transfer, MasterCard, and Visa.

You hereby represent and warrant that you have the legal right to use the payment method(s) in connection with any purchase and that the information that you supply to us and to the third party payment processor(s) is true, correct and complete.

Travel

Volunteering Solutions does not arrange flights or make any travel arrangements to your program location. It is your own responsibility to arrange your own air fares and travel to the program location. Volunteering Solutions provides advice and pre departure information to you, it is your responsibility to obtain all necessary travel documents, such as visa, work permits etc.

You are responsible for ensuring your travel documents are complete and upto date for your travel. Volunteering Solutions cannot accept the responsibility if entry is denied to a country due to incorrect visa or travel documents.

Travel Insurance

Travel insurance is compulsory for all participants of Volunteering Solutions. All participants need to buy full comprehensive medical insurance for their time of stay in our project. It is your sole responsibility to purchase your own travel insurance.

Please ask us for details at info@volunteeringsolutions.co.uk for more details on how to buy Insurance from Volunteering Solutions. The Insurance is provided by a third party vendor and Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Limited does not take any responsibility towards claims or disputes with the Insurance provider with the client.

Our Responsibility to You

Cancellation policy

We offer cancellations on purchases made of the services offered on our Website. We offer cancellations upto 30 days before your program start date. Volunteering Solutions incurs a lot of charges in order to provide a suitable program to the client. You may cancel your order by contacting us..

Our cancellation policy for all programs is:

Refund of Application Fee

Cancellation of program by Volunteering Solutions

Program Change by you

Refund policy

We offer refunds on purchases made of the services offered on our Website. To qualify for a refund, you must submit your request to us anytime after your purchase by contacting us. We offer refunds on any purchases of the services offered on our Website for the following reason(s) only: the wrong product or service was provided. Please note that we do not offer refunds for any other reasons other than those listed above. Volunteering Solutions provides highly affordable programs and our application fee is amongst the lowest, as a result we do not provide a complete refund policy. Please read the details of application and program fee payments below.

Application Fee

Application fee is refundable up to only 60 days before the program start date. Refund requests must be received sixty (60) days prior the program start date through written confirmation via email, fax or post. Upon receipt of the request the volunteer will be notified immediately via email. If the volunteer does not receive confirmation they should assume that the request has not been received.

The application fee amount of £179/€199 would be refunded less the administration charges of £35/€40 which would cover bank charges and currency conversion charges. If you change your program start date, then the date considered for refund purposes would be the earliest date indicated by you in your online application.

No refund of Application Fee would be provided if you apply for a program within sixty (60) days of program start date, irrespective whether Booking Confirmation is provided or not.

Remedies

You agree that the remedy for breach of this Terms of Service as it relates to your purchase shall be reject the goods, services or digital products. You also agree that the remedy for breach of this Terms of Service as it relates to your purchase shall be to pursue dispute resolution as provided in the “governing law, severability, dispute resolution, venue and class action waiver” section below. To the extent permitted by law, these remedies intended to be your sole and exclusive remedies for any breach of this Terms of Service as it relates to your purchase.

Accounts

When you create an account on our Website, you guarantee that you are 18 years of age or older and that the information that you provide us is accurate, complete, and current at all times. Inaccurate, incomplete, or obsolete information may result in the immediate termination of your account on the Website.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account and password, including but not limited to the restriction of access to your computer and/or account. You must notify us immediately upon becoming aware of any breach of security or unauthorized use of your account.

We reserve the right to terminate your account anytime at our sole discretion. You can terminate your account by contacting us or through their account on the Website.

Use of Photos and Feedback

By agreeing to the terms and conditions you agree that Volunteering Solutions can use your photos and written feedback while at the project to post on its website www.volunteeringsolutions.com & www.volunteeringsolutions.co.uk Volunteering Solutions might use such material for marketing/promotion in form of brochure/emails/ or on any of its websites. Volunteering Solutions also uses photos and material from our partners and affiliations abroad and in India and is not responsible for claims arising towards that material/photos/content. This includes photos and videos posted on our Facebook page and other social media network sites.

Personal Risk

The volunteer acknowledges and accepts the responsibilities and risks associated with their agreement to travel to, temporarily live in and provide volunteer services in a developing country. Such travel and volunteer work can be often hazardous and involves a certain degree of risk, inherently dangerous activities and personal perils to the volunteer, both foreseen and unforeseen, all of which are fully accepted by and solely assumed by the volunteer. Therefore, Volunteering Solutions including any and all of its employees, managers, directors, shareholders, host families and host country partner organisations are not liable, to the maximum extent of the law, for any loss or harm the volunteer or associates may suffer, including but not limited to loss caused by: Personal injury, Accommodation, Transportation, Safety, Hygiene, Civil Unrest, Dangers associated with wild or other animals, Religious Activities, High Altitude, Food, Water, Emotional injury, Death, Illness or disease, War or Act of Terrorism, Damage to or loss of property, Accident or illness in remote regions without means of rapid evacuation or availability of medical supplies and facilities, Adequacy of medical attention once provided, Pandemic or Endamic situations globally.You accept and acknowledge and confirm that personal injury or illness, emotional trauma, property damage and death can occur by natural causes or activities of persons or animals, either as a result of negligence or because of other reasons. By applying for our programs online your confirm that you have read and agree to our terms & you are waiving us of any Liability that, amongst other things forever releases us, our owners, our directors, our shareholders, our employees and any persons or groups associated to us of all liability related to: Forever releases us, our owners, our directors, our shareholders, our employees and any persons or groups associated to us of all liability; Forever signifies that you are waiving any claims against us, our owners,our directors, our shareholders, our employees and any persons or groups associated with us, and expressly assuming all risks associated with participating in any of our programs. Any of our Local Partners´ negligent or willful acts, or failures to act including, without limitation, their partial or complete failure to deliver services to you; any personal injury or illness, emotional trauma, property damage or death which arises out of any service provided to you by our Local Partners; Any error, misrepresentation or mistake, whether intentional or unintentional, made by any of our Local Partners/Local Coordinators, local staff members, travel companies etc.

Vaccinations and Health

We may offer you a list of suggested immunizations and travel health tips based on such publicly available sources as the United States Center for Disease Control & Travel Aware UK. However you understand that we are not medical professionals and have no medical expertise whatsoever. We strongly recommend to all our participants that you visit a medical professional (GP) before your trip; however, it is your sole responsibility to arrange and determine any required immunizations and medical procedures that you may need before, during and after your time in the field with us. It is your sole responsibility to arrange and administer any vaccinations/immunizations required to be taken for travel to the country of your program.

Furthermore, you accept and acknowledge that we have no responsibility regarding the adequacy of any medical care, medical equipment, medical supplies and or any evacuation plan that may be provided to you before, during or after your program. You are solely responsible for your own welfare, and you accept and acknowledge any and all risks of personal injury or illness, emotional trauma, property damage and death that may occur as a result of you joining one of our programs.

Under 18 Volunteers

Volunteers who decide to participate in our programs who are under 18 at the time of starting the program, need to provide us with a Parental/Guardian consent in writing.

The Under-18 Volunteer is not entitled to participate in the program unless their parent or guardian has validly executed the consent form and any project-specific requirements of Volunteering Solutions or the Independent Local Team. Volunteers under-18 who are not travelling with a legal guardian must provide a printed copy of this signed consent form when arriving for their program.

The Under-18 Volunteer and their parent/guardian each acknowledge that whilst on a volunteer program, it is the Under-18 Volunteer’s responsibility to make all reasonable efforts to avoid any activity, environment, object or substance that may have an adverse effect on the Volunteer’s health or well-being.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Under-18 Volunteer and their parent/guardian release Volunteering Solutions (including all employees, shareholders and partner organisations) from any claim, suit, action or proceeding in respect of the removal, and/or entering, of the Under-18 Volunteer from or into the program in accordance with this Agreement.

Code of Conduct

Volunteering Solutions is a responsible tourism organisation and is committed towards ensuring good tourism practices. You agree that you would abide by the rules and regulations set out by our partner organisations in the home country. It also ensures that the organisations and people we work with are treated with respect and that consideration is given to other cultural aspects during your placement. Any breaches of the Code of Conduct may result in your placement being terminated without any refund.

• I agree that I will not hold Volunteering Solutions (including all employees, shareholders and partner organisations) liable for any loss or harm I may suffer including loss caused directly or indirectly by personal injury, emotional injury, death, illness or disease, damage to or loss of property.
• I agree that I have declared any medical/mental health conditions or physical limitations which may affect my ability to fully partake in the overall experience.
• I agree that I have been advised that a suitable travel insurance policy for the duration of my trip overseas is recommended. I have assessed the level of cover I require and have insured myself against all the activities I plan to partake in while abroad. I have ensured that all my travel dates have insurance cover including any travel before the Volunteering Solutions program or onward travel planned.
• I agree that I do not have a criminal background and have never engaged in any illegal activities. This will be outlined in an official document provided by myself at least 21 days before I travel.
• I acknowledge that Volunteering Solutions will do their best to cater for dietary requirements, but ultimately, I am responsible for communicating any dietary requirements to Volunteering Solutions and recognising if and when I may need to bring/purchase individual ingredients at my own expense to ensure I police my own requirements.
• I agree that outside of Volunteering Solutions organised trips, weekends are my own time for independent travel. When travelling, I acknowledge and respect that I am signed out of the Volunteering Solutions program until I return back to the participant accommodation after weekend travel and thus responsible for my own safety and wellbeing and will manage any accidents or incidents that may occur in this time.
• I agree that I will not drink excessive levels of alcohol overseas that could impede my overall judgement and safety.
• That Volunteering Solutions has a zero-tolerance policy towards the possession and use of illegal substances and will result in instant termination.

I acknowledge any breach of the Code of Conduct can result in potential disciplinary action and ultimately termination of the program with no refund or onward support applicable. Should I choose to leave the program early for whatever reason then Volunteering Solutions are not liable for any refunds for unused time/expenses for onward costs.

General Code of Conduct

I agree to:

• Follow the appropriate dress code as outlined by the local team and in line with the local culture.
• Maintain a positive and proactive approach through my experience.
• Follow the project schedule provided by project staff or the in-country team.
• Assess the risks of every activity I am involved in and seek further advice or guidance if in doubt.
• Ask permission from the project staff if I want to take any photos/videos of children/adults at the project location.
• Respect, and seek to understand, the culture of the country in which I am joining Volunteering Solutions.
• Inform the local team of any medical issues, which may arise during my time in-country.
• Speak to the local team directly in the event of any issues or complaints while in-country.
• Not engage in any sexual relationships with any project staff, local team members or local members of the public.
• Abide by the laws of their chosen destination.
• Ensure I have sought professional medical advice in regard to any potential vaccinations/anti-malarial medication required.
• To attend my project every day unless ill or unfeasible to attend.
• Recognise that HIV exposure risks can exist across some countries. I will follow the protocol of the local staff, look to ensure my own safety and wellbeing and take responsibility for establishing which children/adults are at risk. 
• Respect local customs and abide by the rules of the accommodation in which I am staying. This includes any dress code policy that may be in place across the accommodation.
• Not invite any outside visitors back to the accommodation.
• Be aware that there are no refunds if I decide to go on an independent trip or leave early.
• Maintain high levels of hygiene and cleanliness at all times.
• Be vigilant with my possessions and use safes/lockers to store any valuables where appropriate and will not hold Volunteering Solutions responsible for any losses incurred.
• Respect local policies on the consumption or possession of alcohol.
• Abide by any curfews within the volunteer accommodation.
• Not consume alcohol in the event I am under the legal drinking age at any time whilst on the program. (Please note this can vary between 18-25 across Volunteering Solutions destinations).
• Acknowledge and respect that outside of traditional program/working hours (unless there is an emergency) the in-country support teams have their own livelihoods and independent downtime.

Disclaimer

• User expressly agrees that use of Volunteering Solutions is at the user's sole risk. Neither Volunteering Solutions its affiliates nor any of their respective employees, agents, third party content providers or licensors warrant that Volunteering Solutions will be uninterrupted or error free; nor do they make any warranty as to the results that may be obtained from use of Volunteering Solutions, or as to the accuracy, reliability or content of any information, service, or merchandise provided through Volunteering Solutions.
• Volunteering Solutions is provided on an "as is" basis without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including, but not limited to, warranties of title or implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, other than those warranties which are implied by and incapable of exclusion, restriction or modification under the laws applicable to this agreement. 
• In no event will Volunteering Solutions or any person or entity involved in creating, producing or distributing Volunteering Solutions or theVolunteering Travel Solutions UK Limited software/content, be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages arising out of the use of or inability to use Volunteering Solutions. User hereby acknowledges that the provisions of this section shall apply to all content on Volunteering Solutions
• Volunteering Solutions does not take any direct responsibility for the use of third party online payment facilities. Stripe / Paypal / Merchant Account will not be responsible for any malfunction in their software for online payment. All disputes arising with Credit Card fraud will Directly be dealt with Stripe/Paypal/Merchant Account (Depending on the payment method you used for Payment).
• In addition to the terms set forth above, neither Volunteering Solutions, nor its affiliates, information providers or content partners shall be liable regardless of the cause or duration, for any errors, inaccuracies, omissions, or other defects in, or untimeliness or inauthenticity of, the information contained within Volunteering Solutions, or for any delay or interruption in the transmission thereof to the user, or for any claims or losses arising therefrom or occasioned thereby. None of the foregoing parties shall be liable for any third-party claims or losses of any nature, including, but not limited to, lost profits, punitive or consequential damages. Neither Volunteering Solutions nor its affiliates, information providers or content providers warrant or guarantee the timeliness, sequence, accuracy or completeness of this information. Additionally, there are no warranties as to the results obtained from the use of the information. 
• Volunteering Solutions does not take any responsibility of photos and documentation provided by our partners and affiliations abroad, who might supply such material to other businesses of similar nature as well. If anyone has any objection to any part of the site, will write to us formally, for us to take appropriate action.
• Volunteering Solutions will share the information submitted on the application form with its partners, branches and subsidiaries around the world. This information is not used for marketing or solicitation purposes, and it is never rented, sold, given or traded to other companies.
• Volunteering Solutions does not take any responsibility of any third party links from our site and will not be held responsible for content or service provided on those sites.
• Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Limited does not have any affiliation or ownership or any connection with www[.]volunteeringsolutionsafrica[dot]com (Volunteering Solutions Africa – VSA) This organisation is using our brand name and is copying content from our website, without our permission. 

Prohibited uses

You agree that you will use this Website in accordance with all applicable laws, rules, regulations and these Terms at all times. The following is a non-exhaustive list of prohibited uses of this Website. You agree that you will not perform any of the following prohibited uses:

1. Impersonating or attempting to impersonate Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd or its employees, representatives, subsidiaries or divisions;
2. Misrepresenting your identity or affiliation with any person or entity;
3. Sending or attempting to send any advertising or promotional material, including but not limited to spam, junk mail, chain mail or any similar material;
4. Engaging in any conduct that restricts or inhibits any person’s use or enjoyment of the Website, or which, as determined in our sole discretion, may harm us or the users of this Website or expose us or other users to liability;
5. Using the Website in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage or impair the Website or interfere with another party’s use of the Website;
6. Using any robot, spider or other similar automatic technology, process or means to access or use the Website for any purpose, including monitoring or copying any of the material on this Website;
7. Using any manual process or means to monitor or copy any of the material on this Website or for any other unauthorized purpose;
8. Using any device, software, means or routine that interferes with the proper working of the Website, including but not limited to viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs or other such materials;
9. Attempting to gain unauthorized access to, interfering with, damaging or disrupting any parts of the Website, the server(s) on which the Website is stored, or any server, computer or database connected to the Website;
10. Attempting to attack or attacking the Website via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack;
11. Otherwise attempting to interfere with the proper working of the Website;
12. Using the Website in any way that violates any applicable province, territory, state or country laws, rules or regulations.

To the extent permitted by law, this Website is provided “as is,” No express warranty shall apply to this Website. Note that you may have additional statutory rights provided to you under consumer protection laws. These rights are not affected by these terms.

Availability, errors and inaccuracies

To the extent permitted by law, we assume no liability for the availability, errors or inaccuracies of the information, products or services provided on this Website. We may experience delays in updating information on this Website and in our advertising on other websites. The information, products and services found on the Website may contain errors or inaccuracies or may not be complete or current. Products or services may be incorrectly priced or unavailable. We expressly reserve the right to correct any pricing errors on our Website. If you determine that there is an error on this Website, or any invoices or purchase orders sent to you by us, please inform us immediately using the contact information below. The inclusion or offering of any product or service on this Website does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation of such product or service by us.

Damages and limitation of liability

In no event shall Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd be liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, special or consequential damages arising out of, relating to or in any way connected with your access to, display of or use of this Website or with the delay or inability to access, display or use this Website, including but not limited to your reliance upon opinions or information appearing on this Website; any computer viruses, information, software, linked websites operated by third parties, products or services obtained through this Website, whether based on a theory of contract, tort, strict liability, consumer protection statutes or otherwise, even if Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd has been advised of the possibility of such damages. IF, DESPITE THE LIMITATION ABOVE, Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd IS FOUND LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE WHICH ARISES OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH ANY OF THE OCCURRENCES DESCRIBED ABOVE, THEN THE LIABILITY OF Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd WILL IN NO EVENT EXCEED THE SERVICE FEES YOU PAID TO Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd IN CONNECTION WITH SUCH TRANSACTION(S) ON THIS Website. THE LIMITATION OF LIABILITY REFLECTS THE ALLOCATION OF RISK BETWEEN THE PARTIES. THE LIMITATIONS SPECIFIED IN THIS SECTION WILL SURVIVE AND APPLY EVEN IF ANY LIMITED REMEDY SPECIFIED IN THESE TERMS OF USE IS FOUND TO HAVE FAILED OF ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE. THE LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY PROVIDED IN THESE TERMS OF USE INURE TO THE BENEFIT OF Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd. The aggregate liability of Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd arising out of or relating to this Website, whether arising out of or related to breach of contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise shall be limited to the amount of fees actually received by Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd from you.

Note that you may have additional statutory rights provided to you under consumer protection laws. These rights are not affected by these terms.

Links to third party websites

This Website may contain hyperlinks to websites operated by third parties and not by us. We provide such hyperlinks for your reference only. We do not control such websites and are not responsible for their contents or the privacy or other practices of such websites. Further, it is your responsibility to take precautions to ensure that whatever links you click on or software that you download, whether from this Website or other websites or applications, is free of such items as viruses, worms, trojan horses, defects and other items of a destructive nature. Our inclusion of hyperlinks to such websites does not imply any endorsement of the material on such websites or any association with their operators.

Intellectual property and DMCA notice and procedure for intellectual property infringement claims

All contents of this Website are ©2020 - 2024 Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd or third parties. All rights reserved. Unless specified otherwise, this Website and all content and other materials on this Website including but not limited to all logos, designs, text, graphics, pictures, information, data, software, sound files and arrangement thereof (collectively, “Content”) are the proprietary property of Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd and are either registered trademarks, trademarks or otherwise protected intellectual property of Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd or third parties in England and/or other countries.

If you are aware of a potential infringement of our intellectual property, please contact Luni Chhochoon at info@volunteeringsolutions.co.uk.

We respect the intellectual property rights of others. It is our policy to respond to any claim that Content posted on the Website infringes on the copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights of any person or entity.

If you believe in good faith that the Content infringes on your intellectual property rights, you or your agent may send us a written notice of such infringement titled “Infringement of Intellectual Property Rights - DMCA.” Your notice to us must include the following information:

1. An electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the intellectual property right’s interest;
2. A description of the work that you claim has been infringed, including the URL (i.e., web page address) of the location where the work exists or a copy of the work;
3. Your name, email, address and telephone number; and
4. A statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the owner of the work, its agent or the law.

Please note that we will not process your complaint if it is not properly filled out or is incomplete. You may be held accountable for damages, including but not limited to costs and attorneys’ fees for any misrepresentation or bad faith claims regarding the infringement of your intellectual property rights by the Content on this Website.

You may submit your claim to us by contacting us at:

Volunteering Travel Solutions UK Ltd
Luni Chhochoon
info@volunteeringsolutions.co.uk
+44(0)203 830 6000
Market House, 216-220 High Street, Sutton, SM1 1NU, United Kingdom
England

Governing law, severability, dispute resolution and venue

These Terms shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of England, without regard to its conflict of laws provisions. These terms shall not be governed by the United Nations convention on contracts for the sale of international goods, the Uniform Commercial Code, nor Incoterms.

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not be considered a waiver of that right or provision. If any provision of these Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable by a court, the remaining provisions of these Terms will remain in effect.

Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms including but not limited to the interpretation or breach thereof shall be resolved in a court of competent jurisdiction in England.

Changes to Terms of Service

We reserve the right to make changes to these Terms of Service at any time. We will notify you immediately of making any changes to these Terms of Service via by posting the updated terms of service to this website.

Complaints Procedure

In the unlikely event, If you have a complaint about us or the services we offer to you, please follow this procedure:

• Your local team at the host country is your first point of contact and should be contacted in case of any complaints
• If your complaint is not resolved or you are not satisfied, please contact the Volunteering Solutions head office at contactus @ volunteeringsolutions.com by sending an email. Please make sure we get your complaint within 30 days of finishing your program.

Volunteering Solutions is not liable in respect of any complaint where you have not followed the rules and code of conduct as laid out in the terms and other written materials.

Questions

If you have any questions about our Terms of Service, please contact us at info@volunteeringsolutions.co.uk.