The Hoxton Special Terms & Conditions (Reviewed FEB 2021) 

BOOKING POLICY:

  1. The Booking – All bookings form the basis of your contract with us. When booking a lesson, lessons, rental  or hire a contract is made when we receive either full or part payment. The person making the booking is accepting full responsibility for all persons who form part of that booking and for the full payment. It is your responsibility to ensure all participants have read and understood these terms and conditions. 
  • So what this means is you know who we are and we know who your group leader is. Simply because if you are a larger group or family you need that one person to take charge or it becomes an admin and logistics nightmare! 
  1. Payments – All lessons/rentals need to be paid in full before they take place. This includes a £40 non-refundable deposit. If booking in advance (advised) then you can book your lessons online. If your lessons/rentals come to less than £40 then we will hold the total cost of the booking as the deposit.
  • So lots of previous customers book a long way in advance to ensure they get the dates, times and the instructors they prefer. Paying in full in advance and having a non-refundable deposit means that we are fully committed to you and gives everyone the piece of mind they want.
  1. Changing a booking – We will make every effort to accommodate changes to your lesson date or time but this is subject to availability, tides and many other factors. If unable to agree a suitable alternative date then a credit note will be issued. No refunds will be issued. 
  • So changing a booking happens and in 99% of situations we can work something out to suit you. But sometimes be it tide, availability etc. It just isn’t possible and in that case you will be issued a credit note. Refunds don’t happen because instructors are paid in advance for lessons and you can’t take the money back off them, that’s just mean! 
  1. Cancelling a booking – All payments are non-refundable, unless… Cancelling a lesson up to 30 days from the start date will see a full refund minus a £40 non- refundable deposit. When booking you paid in full, a proportion of your payment was the £40 deposit and this will not be refunded. However a credit note for the full amount can be issued if you prefer so you can re-book your lessons another time. If cancelling a booking less than 30 days and up to 24 hours from the start date then a credit note will be issued for the full amount, no refund will be given. If cancelling less than 24 hours prior to the start of your lesson then no refund will be given and no credit note issued. 
  • It’s always a tough one and travel insurance does cover pretty much everything if you have it. But again instructors are paid in advance, lessons get fully booked a long way ahead and quite often we are turning people away at peak times, so you can see how last minute cancellation on a small seasonal business could be ruinous in peak season. Credit notes are the fairest way to ensure nobody loses out (all explained below).

 

  •  Bookings / Credit notes / Gift Vouchers – All credit notes and vouchers are valid for 12 months from the time of issue. All you need to do is call or email to check availability and your name / details will come up on our system and then we can book your lesson(s). They cannot be exchanged for goods, refunded or extended. 
  • So they are pretty straight forward to use, just call or email to book. They can’t be exchanged for shop goods or cash as it’s super complicated for the bookkeeper, VAT etc. They can’t be extended as it’s an admin nightmare to have people using them from years before, especially if their contact details have changed, we have to keep it fair and workable.
  1.  Lesson Participants and Liability – The activity of surfing, kayaking, paddleboarding (S.U.P) and kitesurfing all carry a degree of risk, even if enjoyed under professional supervision. These activities require the participants to have a reasonable level of fitness and swimming ability. It is the responsibility of the person making the booking to ensure all members of their booking have a suitable level of fitness / health to undertake the activities booked. It is also the responsibility of the person making the booking to ensure at the time of booking that all medical conditions, medication, allergies and disabilities are disclosed to our bookings staff. Failure to disclose any of this information at the time of booking can lead to the participant being removed from the lesson with no refund. 
  • So, in general all these activities are deemed as low risk (kitesurfing is low to medium) by all governing bodies, but like everything in life sometimes things don’t go to plan. All staff are trained to the highest levels and the surf school has the highest UK safety rating possible. We need to know about meds, disabilities, health conditions etc. because it does make a difference to lesson safety. For example if someone is asthmatic or diabetic, it doesn’t mean they can’t be in the lesson at all, but it does mean we can cater for their needs and carry their meds. 
  1. Lesson Restrictions – Group lessons have a lower age limit of 8 and no upper limit. If a child is under the age of 8 they can have a surfing lesson but on a private lesson basis. An exception can be made by the head coach to include a younger person in a group lesson but this decision is made on an individual basis and is totally at the head coaches’ discretion before the booking is made. Some medical conditions can prevent you from safely being a group member in a group lesson, but you may be able to participate in a private lesson, this is the importance in divulging all information at the time of booking to ensure your safety and the group’s safety. 
  • So, lower age limits generally mean under 8’s have private lessons because they need extra assistance changing into wetsuits or carrying equipment and extra assistance in the water. But some big, competent, younger children who have previous surfing experience may be suitable to join a group lesson. Medical information that makes a difference for example is pregnancy or heart conditions etc. But again it’s all decided on an individual basis by the head coach, so don’t book it and hope, tell us and let’s book you the best lesson for you. 
  1. Lesson Content – All lessons are planned in advance and based on the information we are given at the time of booking. A lesson will always consist of a beach safety talk, beach tuition, followed by supervised activity in the surf. Lesson content and timings will vary based on the conditions, level of the group and the coach’s decision. The maximum duration of a lesson is 2 hours, the minimum is 1 hour for SUP. For kitesurfing a minimum if 1.5 hours and no maximum. All coach’s aim for the maximum lesson time possible, however if this time is reduced slightly but above the 1 ½ hour lesson time then this is deemed as a normal lesson. If a lesson is under the 1 ½ hours minimum time then a credit note will be issued for the remaining time to be added to another lesson which is paid in full. 
  • So let’s say your lesson starts off in the sunshine, but half way through it begins to rain and get colder. The coach will always judge the general condition of the lesson as a fluid process, so if after 1 ½ hours its low tide, the wind is increasing and the group looks cold, then the coach will end their session at that point, because it is the right thing to do for everyone. Next day is sunny and warm then it will be 2 hours. But it’s all to make sure you are enjoying it! 
  1. Late arrival – All lesson participants must arrive a minimum of 20 minutes before their lesson start time. This ensures everyone is changed and ready to start on time. If you or a group member feels they will need more time then please arrive earlier so you do not hold up the lesson. If your lesson has left the school when you arrive due to lateness, then subject to a spare member of staff being available we will walk you down to your lesson when changed. If the lesson has entered the water you cannot join the lesson. In this event we will book you onto the next available lesson, which subject to availability may or may not be on the same day. No refund or credit note will be issued for late arrivals. 
  • Ok always tricky, so if it is a private lesson then we do have a little more flexibility on arrival times – but not finish times. However with a mixed group it is unfair to make the group members who arrived on time miss part of their lesson waiting for late arrivals, hence we always run on time. If you are running late and we can catch the group up, and we have a spare team member to escort you, then we will, but we cannot legally allow anyone to wander down unaccompanied to the lesson. Who would know if you didn’t make it? If we get you there and the lesson is in the water then there is nothing we can do, you cannot join the lesson. It is a requirement for everyone to be briefed on safety, conditions, and weather factors before entering the sea. The coach cannot abandon the rest of the lesson group while they brief you, the coach would need to get the group out of the water and make them go through it again, and that’s unfair on them as they are now missing out on their lesson time. Simple answer if you are running late call us, and then we can make a plan or re-book your lesson for a later time. 
  1. Surf & Weather Conditions – In the event the head coach has deemed the surf or weather conditions unsuitable then we will give you as much notice as possible as to the cancellation of your lesson. We will leave a voicemail and send an email if we cannot speak to you in person. This is deemed as notice given as we cannot be held responsible if you have no signal or do not check your messages. Most of the time a lesson can be rescheduled for earlier or later in the same day/week to obtain better / safer conditions. If you choose not to attend the rescheduled time then we will issue you a credit note. If we cannot reschedule within a 24 hour period then we will offer you a credit note or a full refund for any remaining lessons less any discounts for bulk bookings and the non-refundable deposit (£40) It’s important to understand that all our activities are weather dependent, so we may offer you another activity that can happen at the original time as an alternative option. At the end of the day we are here to try and make your stay as awesome as possible and doing an alternate activity is better than sitting in front of the telly.

 

  • Ok, it’s complicated and a broad subject. Firstly 99.8% of lessons go ahead on schedule as booked. The exceptions can be for various reasons such as high winds, big surf, small surf or a combination. But … and this is the important bit, if we reschedule it is for your benefit. We are lucky enough to have some extremely experienced instructors (less than a handful in the U.K). This means your lessons are overseen by the best there is, and if he has decided it is too windy, then it’s too windy end of matter. So sometimes visitors, non-surfers, cannot see or understand why a lesson is rescheduled, but trust us please, it is always for your benefit and based on years of professional training and experience. Equally if we say that a lesson is good to go then we expect you to turn up, again please trust our instructors, if we think there is enough wind then there most likely is.

ONLINE SHOP 

OUR AGREEMENT

When you place an order to purchase a product from thehoxtonspecial.com, we will send you an email confirming a receipt of your order. The email confirmation will be produced automatically so that you have confirmation of your order details.

DELIVERY AND SHIPPING

  • All orders placed Monday – Friday (not including Bank Holidays) are usually dispatched within 24 hours
  • Orders placed on Saturday, Sunday or on Bank Holidays are usually dispatched the next working day
  • Shipping is only available to residents of the UK
  • FREE delivery on all UK orders above £50.00
  • All UK orders are shipped using the Royal Mail 2nd Class service (3-5 working days) unless stated otherwise

PAYMENT

All payments made through our shop are processed using the secure online payment system Stripe.

RETURNS POLICY

Whatever the case if you’re dissatisfied with your order you can return any item within 28 days of receipt. In all cases, the items returned must be in their original condition, which includes any packaging. When returning items please use the returns form on your invoice and include your reason for return.

We do not offer a refund on any product that has had the cellophane or vacuum packaging removed, as this cannot be resold ‘as new’. All our wetsuits and accessories can be tried on for fit and returned as long as they still have tags attached and have not been worn in the water.

If you have lost your invoice please send your items and order number to:

The Hoxton Special

The Former Life Guard Hut

Beach Road

Marazion

TR170EW

United Kingdom

PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS AND AVAILABILITY

Every care has been taken to ensure that all descriptions, specifications, colours and prices are correct. However, sizes are approximate as sizing varies across manufacturers supplying our products. All photographs and pictures are indicative of the product, but in some cases minor or subtle differences between the product and photo supplied by the manufacturer can occur.

All items and offers are subject to availability at the time of ordering. If a product ordered is found to be out of stock we will notify you as soon as possible.

EVENTS OUT OF OUR CONTROL

The Hoxton Special cannot be held responsible for any delay or failure to comply with our obligations under these conditions if the delay or failure arises from any cause that is beyond our reasonable control.

OUR DETAILS

The Hoxton Special

The Former Life Guard Hut

Beach Road

Marazion

TR170EW

United Kingdom

Tel: 07572432402

Email: info@thehoxtonspecial.com

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