Terms and Conditions

General conditions for the rental of vessels from Smûk Recreation.

1. Definitions

In these terms and conditions, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) lessor: Smûk Recreation:

(b) tenant: (natural or legal) person who on behalf of himself, or on behalf of a group, concludes the agreement with landlord;

(c) rental agreement: the agreement whereby the lessor undertakes to give the lessee the use of a vessel without crew for a certain pre-arranged duration in return for payment;

(d) vessel means the lessor’s vessel, including all built-in electronics and further accessories.

1. General

1. Landlord rents vessels for a day or parts thereof. In all cases, the vessels must be back at the rental location by 5:30 p.m. unless otherwise agreed in writing in advance.
2. A vessel may be crewed by a maximum of the specified number of persons at one time.
3. The minimum age to rent and/or drive a vessel from lessor is 18 years old.
4. It is forbidden to drive Landlord’s vessels under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, whereby the same rules apply as in road traffic.
5. The use of confetti, fireworks, rice, etc. is not allowed on board.
6. No trash should be thrown overboard. After the rental period, renter must remove trash from the boat and take care of responsible disposal to dumpster or bin. If the vessel is not left free of garbage by the lessee, the lessee will owe a cleaning fee of at least €50.
7. Tenant shall provide as little nuisance as possible to others on the water and to nearby residents. Live music and/or electrically amplified music on board is not permitted.
8. Night cruises are not allowed.
9. It is not permitted to leave the vessel unattended.
10. In case of bad weather (very dense fog, persistent rain, thunderstorm or storm), landlord reserves the right to cancel the agreement immediately (partially), landlord will compensate tenants half of the time of the duration of the rental that has not been sailed.
11. Landlord may immediately terminate the contract and take back the vessel immediately, if Tenant does not comply with the General Conditions. Tenant is also then obliged to pay the full rent for the pre-agreed period.

3. Sailing area and sailing rules

1. The vessels may be used on the waters surrounding Tjeukemeer.
2. Tenant should sail on the right side as much as possible.
3. Tenant shall comply with the Dutch Sailing Regulations.
4. Tenant must at all times show due consideration for fellow users of the water and especially at bridges, crossings and narrow sections. This also means not taking turns too wide.
5. It is forbidden to dock under and/or at bridges, at corners of waterways and at houseboats.
6. Tour boats, cargo vessels, other professional vessels and (other) vessels larger than 20 meters have priority at all times.

4. Obligations of landlord

1. At the start of the rental period, Landlord shall transfer the vessel to Tenant.
2. Landlord shall point out to Tenant any pre-existing damage to the vessel prior to the commencement of the rental period and record it by drawing or photograph.

5. Obligations of tenant

1. Tenant shall comply with Landlord’s instructions at all times.
2. Tenant is expected to have sufficient skills for caring and safe handling of the vessel.
3. Lessee shall use the vessel as a good skipper and in accordance with its purpose and these general conditions and shall not make any changes to the vessel.
4. Tenant shall not surrender the vessel for use without Landlord’s written consent.
5. The vessel and the inventory (such as charts, anchors, lines, fenders, cushions, etc.) that the lessee receives from the lessor must be delivered after the rental period in the same condition as they were at the start of the rental. In the event of loss or damage, Landlord will charge Tenant an amount equal to the replacement/repair value.
6. Tenant must verify before sailing that the inventory listed in the rental agreement is present, complete and sound. If this is not the case, Tenant must notify Landlord prior to sailing.
7. Tenant must check the vessel for any damage not recorded by Landlord prior to sailing. If Tenant determines that there is damage not recorded by Landlord, Tenant must notify Landlord prior to sailing.
8. Only if previously agreed in writing may lessee return the vessel to another location.
9. Should Tenant fail to meet the agreed upon time of return for any reason, Tenant must notify Landlord by telephone as soon as possible. If the vessel is handed over at the agreed place more than fifteen minutes later than the agreed time, Landlord shall charge Euro 30,- per quarter hour extra and Landlord shall be entitled to compensation for any further (consequential) damage, unless the late return cannot be attributed to Tenant.
10. In case of emergencies, Tenant should contact Landlord as soon as possible.

6. Liability damages

1. Landlord shall ensure that the vessel is insured for the benefit of Tenant for third-party liability (WA) and hull damage for sailing in the sailing area agreed upon between Landlord and Tenant. Per vessel, the lessee is subject to a non-redeemable excess of euro 250,- per case of third-party and hull damage.
2. The hirer is liable for all damage to the vessel as well as for damage caused by him and/or co-pilots to third parties in so far as not covered by the insurance, occurring during the time he has the vessel in his possession, with due observance of-and possibly with the exception of-the following.
3. In case of loss or theft of the vessel, the lessee is in all cases fully liable for the damage suffered by the lessor.
4. If there is serious incompetence, negligence, recklessness and/or failure to comply with instructions given by the lessor and/or its personnel, the lessor will not invoke the insurance, but the lessee will be fully liable for any and all (consequential) damage suffered by the lessor and/or third parties.
5. Tenant shall be in default if it appears that he fails to fulfill obligations under these general conditions. In case of non-compliance with this and/or reports of nuisance as a result, Tenant is fully liable for all (consequential) damages and costs incurred by Landlord and (consequences of) any claims made by third parties to Landlord.
6. Landlord shall not be held liable for personal injury or damage of any kind, regardless of cause, prior to, during or as a result of renting a vessel from Landlord. Damages also include consequential damages. The exception to this is the legal obligation to pay damages due to demonstrable intent or gross negligence by the landlord. Such statutory damages by Landlord to Tenant shall be up to the amount reimbursed by Landlord from its third-party liability insurance for the incident at issue.
7. Lessor explicitly notes the danger of trapping limbs between the vessel and other objects and the fact that the aluminum and/or polyester of which the vessel is made can become very hot in the summer. Landlord cannot be held liable for this either.
8. Children (up to 18 years of age) are the responsibility of the parents.
9. Landlord is not liable for theft and/or damage to property that Tenant brings on the vessel.
10. Tenant must report damage of any kind, or facts and/or circumstances that could reasonably lead to damage, to Landlord as soon as possible. Damage not reported (both to the vessel and third parties) will be recovered in full from the lessee and is not covered by the insurance.
11. Hirer is in all cases fully liable for the (consequential) damage caused by him if he uses the vessel outside the sailing areas mentioned in these general conditions as mentioned in Article 3.
12. If the vessel is not handed over by the lessee in the same condition in which he received it, the lessor is entitled to restore the vessel at the lessee’s expense to the condition in which it was at the start of the rental period. The latter does not apply when said costs are covered by insurance. Then the renter only owes the excess of euro 250,-.
13. Landlord’s insurance policies will be made available to Tenant for inspection upon request.

7. Reservations

1) Making reservations for one or more vessels is possible via the Internet or by telephone. Reservations are valid only after confirmation by landlord, via internet or in writing.

2) Payment shall be made, unless otherwise agreed in writing, when making the reservation, by Ideal (internet banking). If the lessee wishes to cancel the lease, he must notify the lessor in writing as soon as possible In case of cancellation, the lessee shall owe the lessor a fixed compensation in the amount of:

• 15% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to three months before the start of the rental period;
• 50% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to two months before the start of the rental period;
• 75% of the agreed rent in case of cancellation up to one month before the start of the rental period;
• 100% of the agreed rental price in case of cancellation within one month before the commencement of the rental period or on the commencement date of the rental period, all aforementioned compensation amounts with a minimum of € 70.00.

In case of cancellation by the tenant, he can request the landlord for substitution of a third party. In the event that the aforementioned third party is acceptable to the lessor, the lessee shall owe only 10% of the agreed rental price with a minimum of € 45.00 and a maximum of € 150.00. If the lessee is more than 1 hour late than the agreed upon starting time without prior telephone notice, the lessee will owe the entire rental amount and the lessor has the right to rent the vessel to someone else. Tenant is then not entitled to an alternative. In case of change of reservation by tenant, he can request landlord for substitution of a third party. If a reserved vessel is not available at the agreed location 1 hour after the start of the reserved rental period and the lessor is unable to offer the hirer a reasonable alternative, the hirer shall be entitled to reimbursement of the agreed rental, unless the lessor has notified the hirer of the unavailability of the reserved vessel at least two hours before the agreed time. Under no circumstances shall the Tenant be entitled to any additional (damage) compensation. If the lessee returns the vessel to the rental location earlier than the agreed rental period, there is no right to a refund of all or part of the rental fee paid.

8. On-site rental without reservation

It is also possible to rent a vessel without a reservation in some cases. Payment is then made on site before the rental agreement begins, by cash payment.

9. Deposit

Before the rental agreement can take effect, the tenant must agree to a one-time authorization at the same time as the reservation, unless otherwise agreed in writing in advance.

10. Complaints and disputes

1. In the event of complaints, the Tenant must notify the Landlord in writing within one week of the rental date, properly explaining and substantiating the complaint.
2. The rental agreement is governed by Dutch law. Only a competent court in Leeuwarden shall have jurisdiction to hear disputes.

If Tenant has received a version of these terms and conditions translated from Dutch and this results in differences in the texts, the Dutch text shall prevail.