General conditions of hire

1 – Booking – Balance payment 

Your booking is final when Anjou Navigation sends you a written confirmation after they have received your booking form along with an instalment of 30% of the whole hire fee. The 70% balance should be paid one month before departure. Any bank charges must be paid by the hirer.

2 – Boat equipment – Loss of personal objects.  
The hirer undertakes to notify Anjou Navigation in case of a loss, theft or damage to the equipment, and may have to pay it back. Anjou Navigation cannot be held liable for any loss or damage occured to the hirers’ or the crew’s belongings.

3 – Deposit

The amount of the security deposit varies according to the boat. It is requested before boarding (cash, cheque, Credit Card) and includes :

• A part covers cleaning in case the boat is not returned properly cleaned. It ranges as follow :

  • 150€ for a boat which length is under 10 meters
  • 200€ for a boat which length is between 10 meters and under 15 meters
  • 250€ for a boat with a length of 15 meters

• The reminder covers loss, damage or destruction of the boat or its equipments ; refloating fees due to the renter or one of his/her passengers fault ; fees following replacement of any equipment missing or damaged ; delays in boat return ; fees following a boat abandon, fuel cost and other supplies.

The hirer already accepts that Anjou Navigation withdraws the fees stated above by a banking pre-authorization or by cashing the cheque the hirer gave as a deposit.

4 – Insurance
Third-party insurance and boat insurance are included in the hire fee. The amount of the deposit is equivalent to any compensation claim. The hirer, his/her crew and their belongings are not insured. The insurance of the hired boat includes accidental damage to the boat and third-parties caused by the boat. This insurance does not cover the crew, their belongings, their own liability insurance, the loss or damage to the equipment, neither a misuse of the boat by the hirer, the bikes and their use. The hirer remains his/her own insurer up to the amount of the security deposit. In any case the insurance will not cover the hirer’s liability insurance, nor any damage or loss or other expense resulting from -for instance- driving the boat when drunk, or under the influence of drugs, or by a failure to observe the rules stated in the “Code de navigation fluviale”.

5 – Fuel and others
Extra costs for the hirer are diesel, oil, gas for cooking and anything needed to use the boat during his/her stay. Prices may vary depending on the varying petrol prices. Extra costs for staying in ports are paid by the hirer and may vary.

6 – Bikes
The hired bicycles are under the responsibility of the boat hirer. In case of a theft, the hirer must make an official statement to the local Police authorities and must show the original documents given by the Police to the rental base. The hirer and anybody who uses the the bicycles remain responsible for any damage caused by using the bicycles.

7 – Cancellation scheme
Should the hirer cancel the booking, the cancellation scheme guarantees the refund of cancellation fees due to ANJOU NAVIGATION, following the conditions. This guarantee is valid up tu the departure date and is implemented under the following conditions : serious illness, serious accident, death of a crew member, parent or child, severe damage caused to your main house that isn’t due to your own negligence, redundancy, change of professional assignment involving moving, jury duty. This guarantee covers all crew members whose names have been written down on the registration form at the booking. Cancellation caused by any of the above reasons must be made by a letter along with the appropriate documents. The company will decide if the cancellation reason meets the requirements. The amount of the cancellation scheme insurance will not be refunded. Administrative fees of EUR 120 will be deducted from any potential refund.

8 – Cancellation fees
If the hirer has to cancel, fees would be as follows :

–  more than 4 weeks from departure = 30% of the rental amount

– 4 weeks ore less from departure = 80% of the rental amount

In case of unforseen circumstances, beyond the control of the rental company, the boat would not be available, everything will be done to supply the hirer with a boat of equivalent comfort and capacity. If this is not possible within the contractual period, the rental company will refund the rental charge, except any other costs, damages and interests.

9 – Unavailability
In case of unpredictable circumstances or situations beyond our control, if ANJOU NAVIGATION cannot provide the booked boat, we would do what is necessary to provide you a boat with equivalent comfort and capacity. If we cannot, all fees will be totally refunded, except any compensation whatsoever. If a river is forbidden to navigate, the departure base can be changed in the same region but the hirer cannot claim for any financial compensation.

10 – Delays, Restriction of navigation, case of force majeure Interruption
ANJOU NAVIGATION cannot be held responsible for any interruption, or restriction of navigation due to cases of force majeure (works, flood, drought, strike, etc…) or any administrative directive. In case of a cancelation of the whole rental before your departure, half of the paid ammount would be refunded ; the other half would be used as a credit for any booking made in the same year. Should such events happen during the rental, resulting as a complete interruption of the navigation, and the shortage of one or several days of navigation, those days would be refunded minus a deductible of 24h.

11 – Boarding – One-way
The place of boarding in the same region (Pays de la Loire) and the direction of a one-way can be changed. Also, a one-way can be turned into a round trip, for reasons that are not under the control of Anjou Navigation. In that last case, the one-way fees would be refunded. The customer would have to call 48h before the departure date to confirm. Those changes can not be viewed as a cause of cancellation.

12 – Breakdown – Damage – Accident
The hirer needs to contact A.N. immiediatly following any damage to himself or the boat, to fill in the accident report that needs to be completed and signed by any third parties involved. A free assistance is provided to the hirer by the bases, depending on the availibility of the staff and equipment, during the office hours and by a simple phone call. No reclamation can be done for any immobilisation lasting less than 24h. A breakdown due to the misuse of the boat by the hirer and leading to the inability to use it can not be a reason for a reclamation. The rental company allows itself to retain the deposit to cover any fees that could be charged to repair the boat. A breakdown that cannot be imputed to the hirer and lasting more than 24h will lead to a refund calculated on the time of the rental that would be lost.  The inability to use the boat following any damage or accident during the rental can not lead to any refund, whatever the cause might be, except if it can not be imputed to the hirer. In any case, a deductible of 24h would be applied.

13 – Return
The boat and its equipment should be returned to the base on the day and time scheduled ont the rental agreement. The crew chief will have to arrange a safety margin in order to be back at the time agreed on. He would be held responsible for any expense due to the delay he might cause. Every day of delay will lead to a fee calculated on the daily price of the rental along the expenses the rental company would have to pay to the following hirer.

14 – Juridiction
In case of disagreement, the Commerce Tribunal of the place will be the only competent authority. In the case of the 90-134 directive of the 13th June 1990 of the Council of the European Community, the rental can not be seen as a felon