We sincerely want you to have an enjoyable and memorable holiday, to want to come back, and to tell your friends. We would like to think of you as friends too, but the reality is that we probably do not yet know each other, so it is worth having a contract that we can both rely on. You are renting our property for a holiday and paying us for it. We are letting you into a home we have lovingly created. Terms like these are only really needed if something goes wrong, and they are written so that everyone knows where they stand if it does.

At a glance

1. Who you are dealing with, and who "you" means

The Kent cottages (Dairy Cottage, Willow Cottage and Little Apple Barn at Hamptons Farmhouse, Park Road, Hadlow, Kent TN11 9SR) are let by A.M.D.G. Limited, company number 03207887. Rose Barn and Hope Cottage at Sol du Mazel, 24170 Saint-Pompon, France, are let by Child Friendly Holidays (France) Limited, company number 09487205. Both companies are registered in England and Wales at Hamptons Farmhouse, Park Road, Hadlow, Tonbridge, Kent TN11 9SR. In these terms "we", "us" and "our" mean whichever company lets the property you book.

"You" means the person named as lead booker on the booking form. You must be at least 18, must be one of the people staying, and must stay for the whole booking. By signing the booking form you confirm that you have the authority of everyone in your party to accept these terms on their behalf, and you are responsible to us for everything your party does. "Your party" means everyone who stays at the property or visits it at your invitation.

The guest pack we send before you arrive, the house rules and safety signs at the property, and the property description on our website at the time you book all form part of these terms.

2. The contract

This is a short-term holiday letting. You have no right to stay beyond the dates booked, and the protections that the law gives to residential tenants do not apply.

Your booking is confirmed only when we have received your signed booking form and your deposit has cleared at our bank, and we have confirmed the booking to you in writing. Until then there is no contract and we may let the dates to someone else. We may decline any booking without giving a reason.

The booking is personal to you and your party. You may not transfer it, sell it, sublet the property or share it with anyone not named on the booking form without our written agreement.

These terms, your booking form, our written confirmation, the property description on our website when you booked and the guest pack are the whole of our agreement. Nothing said in conversation forms part of it unless we confirm it in writing. This does not limit any liability for fraud.

We may change these terms for future bookings at any time. The version in force when we confirm your booking is the one that applies to it.

3. Paying for your holiday

Kent cottages. For bookings made more than two months before arrival, a deposit of 50% of the rental cost is payable on booking and the balance two months before arrival. For bookings made less than two months before arrival the whole rental cost is payable on booking. The security deposit is due one month before arrival, or on booking if you book inside a month.

Sol du Mazel. A deposit of 35% of the rental cost is payable on booking. A further 35% is due three months before arrival and the final 30% two months before arrival. The security deposit is due one month before arrival. For bookings made inside three months, the instalments already due are payable on booking; inside a month, the whole rental cost and the security deposit are payable on booking.

All sums must reach our bank in full, in pounds sterling, by the due date. Bank and currency charges are yours. If you pay from abroad, instruct your bank accordingly. When we return the security deposit we will pay it in your preferred currency where we can, but exchange movements and bank charges mean you may not receive back exactly what you sent.

If the balance or the security deposit has not cleared by its due date, or by another date we have agreed in writing, we may treat the booking as cancelled by you on that date, and the cancellation charges in clause 6 apply. We are not obliged to make the property available until every sum due has cleared.

Prices may change until we confirm your booking. Once confirmed, the price is fixed for both of us. Any sum you owe us that is not paid when due carries interest at 4% a year above the Bank of England base rate from the due date until paid, accruing daily.

4. Security deposit

The security deposit is £250 for the Kent cottages and £500 for Sol du Mazel. It is held against the costs your party may cause and is refundable after we have inspected the property following your departure. We will return it, less any deductions, within 14 days, with an itemised note of anything we have deducted. It is usually returned much sooner.

We may deduct from it:

• breakages, damage, marks and stains to the property, its contents, gardens and equipment, beyond fair wear and tear;
• items missing at the end of your stay, including linen, towels, crockery and keys, charged at replacement cost;
• cleaning beyond a normal changeover, including specialist cleaning after smoking or pets;
• the cost of tradespeople or our staff called out to put right anything caused by your party, and of clearing a blocked septic system;
• late departure charges under clause 8, and the costs of over-occupancy or unauthorised visitors under clause 9;
• fines, charges or losses that your party causes us to incur, including any shortfall in a payment after bank charges;
• any other sum you owe us under these terms.

Where the cost exceeds the security deposit, or comes to light after we have returned it, you must pay the shortfall within 14 days of our written request, which will be supported by receipts or estimates. You are liable for the whole cost, not only the part covered by the deposit.

5. Your responsibilities

Enjoy yourselves, relax and have fun. Beyond that, you and your party must:

• take good care of the property, its contents and grounds, and leave it clean, tidy and as you found it. If you are not able to leave it clean, tell us at least a week before you leave. At Sol du Mazel there is a minimum charge of €60 for this, deducted from the security deposit; in Kent we charge the changeover team’s extra time;
• tell us at once about any damage, breakage or fault, however caused, so that we can deal with it;
• keep to the number of people the property is let for (clause 9), and hold no party, event, celebration or gathering beyond your booked party without our written agreement;
• keep noise to a reasonable level at all times and cause no nuisance to guests in the other cottages, to our family at Hamptons Farmhouse, to our neighbours or to the village;
• not smoke or vape anywhere indoors or in the pool enclosure, and dispose of cigarette ends properly;
• bring no pets or other animals, indoors or anywhere on the grounds;
• flush nothing but toilet paper. Both properties use septic tanks, and nappies, wipes and sanitary products block them;
• use the internet lawfully and reasonably, and do nothing unlawful at the property;
• follow the guest pack, the house rules and any signs at the property, and make sure every member of your party does too;
• remove rubbish to the bins described in the guest pack, run the dishwasher before you leave, lock up whenever you are out and at the end of your stay, and return the keys as instructed;
• at Hamptons Farmhouse: use the boats only with a responsible adult present; never swim or paddle in the ponds; supervise children on the zip wire and play equipment at all times; leave the solar panels alone; leave the Seven Dwarfs cottage and the gypsy caravan as you found them; and neither chase, worry nor feed the animals without checking with us first;
• allow us, and anyone working for us, access to the property on reasonable notice for cleaning, maintenance, safety checks or inspection, and without notice in an emergency.

You are responsible for any loss or damage caused by anyone in your party, whether or not you were present, fair wear and tear excepted.

6. If you cancel

Once we have confirmed your booking you are liable for the full rental cost. If you cancel, tell us in writing. The date we receive your written cancellation is the cancellation date, and the following charges apply:

• more than three calendar months before your arrival date: no charge, and we refund what you have paid;
• three months or less, but more than two months, before arrival: 50% of the rental cost;
• two months or less before arrival: 100% of the rental cost.

These charges reflect how hard the dates are to re-let at each stage and the costs we have already incurred. We will make the dates available again and use reasonable efforts to re-let them. If we do re-let them, we will refund you what the new guests pay for those dates, less a cancellation charge of 25% of the rental cost. Finding new guests is not our responsibility, and until the dates are re-let you remain liable for the balance.

There is no refund for arriving late, leaving early, or nights you do not use. There is no refund if you are unable to travel or choose not to travel for any reason that does not prevent us from providing the property, including illness, bereavement, weather, travel disruption, strikes, changes to your plans, or events beyond either of our control. The cancellation charges apply in each of these cases. These are exactly the risks that travel insurance covers, and we expect every party to hold insurance covering cancellation, curtailment, medical costs, personal liability and belongings.

For lets of a month or more, two months’ written notice is required to end the let early, and you remain liable for the rent to the end of the notice period whether or not you are at the property. If we re-let during the notice period you receive a pro-rata reduction less the 25% cancellation charge.

7. If we have to change or cancel

Occasionally events beyond our control may prevent us from providing the accommodation you have booked, even though you are willing and able to travel. Examples include official restrictions on travel or on letting the property, essential local services such as cleaning becoming unavailable, guests before you being unable to leave for reasons of health or official restrictions, or the property being made unusable by fire, flood, storm or other damage. If that happens we will tell you as soon as we can, and you may choose either a full refund of everything you have paid us, or to move your booking to other dates with credit equal to the amount paid. That refund or credit is the full extent of what we owe you in those circumstances.

If we cancel your booking for a reason within our control, we will refund everything you have paid us and, in addition, reimburse reasonable and unavoidable direct costs that you evidence to us, such as non-refundable travel, up to a further sum equal to the rental cost. We are not liable for any other loss.

If a facility at the property is temporarily unavailable, we will tell you where we can and work to restore it. Clause 12 says what we are and are not responsible for.

8. Arrival, departure and keys

The property is available from 4 pm on the day of arrival and must be vacated by 10 am on the day of departure so that the changeover team can prepare it for the next guests. Do not arrive early or leave late unless we have agreed it in writing.

Late departure costs us changeover time and can cost the next guests their arrival. At Sol du Mazel we charge £100 for each hour or part hour after 10 am. At Hamptons Farmhouse we charge the changeover team’s extra time and any cost of accommodating the next guests. Lost keys are charged at the cost of replacement, including any locks we consider it prudent to change.

9. How many people may stay

Each property is let for the number of people stated in its description, including infants under three in a cot. In Dairy Cottage that is two adults in the bedroom and two children in the hay loft, plus one infant. In Rose Barn it is six, plus one infant. Nobody beyond your booked party may stay overnight, and day visitors need our agreement in advance.

Over-occupancy strains the property and its septic system and is unfair to other guests. If more people are found at the property than are booked, we may charge for each extra person at our then current rate for each night, and we may end the stay under clause 13.

10. Facilities, safety and supervision

Both properties are family homes in the countryside, not supervised resorts. There are no lifeguards or attendants. The facilities are provided for your enjoyment on the basis that you take responsibility for using them sensibly and for supervising the members of your party.

You are responsible for the safety and supervision of everyone in your party, and in particular of children, at all times. That includes in and around the pool, near the ponds and open water, on the trampolines, climbing frames, zip wire, tree house and slide, around the animals, near stoves and fires, and on stairs, ladders and uneven ground. Children must never be left unsupervised near water or on play equipment.

Before you book, you must judge whether the property and its facilities are suitable for your party. Tell us before arrival if anyone in your party is a non-swimmer, has limited mobility, or has a medical condition or allergy that we should know about, so that we can advise you.

You must read the safety information in the guest pack and follow it, together with any signs and any instructions we give you, and make sure everyone in your party does the same. In particular:

• Swimming pool, Sol du Mazel. The pool is fenced to the French safety standard. The fence is not a substitute for supervision. Water is a hazard to anyone who cannot swim. Watch children and infants at all times, keep the gate closed, and do not dive in the shallow end.
• Ponds, Hamptons Farmhouse. A low fence surrounds the ponds but it is not an impregnable barrier. Never leave a non-swimmer unattended near them. No swimming or paddling. Never walk on ice. Float coats are available on request for the rowing boat, which is used at the risk of the person using it; children only with a responsible adult present.
• Trampolines and climbing frames. One person on a trampoline at a time, no somersaults, no jumping onto or off the trampoline. The climbing frame has a balustrade but it is possible to fall from it. Supervise children at all times.
• Zip wire, Hamptons Farmhouse. For children, not adults. Check the seat before launching and take care getting off, as it can spring up. Supervise children at all times. If in doubt, do not use it.
• Tree house and slide, Hamptons Farmhouse. Take particular care on the stairs and the slide. Supervise children at all times.
• Wood-burning stoves, Sol du Mazel. Take great care lighting them, keep children away, and remember that the stove and its surround become hot enough to burn. Never leave a fire unattended.
• Farm animals, Hamptons Farmhouse. Sheep, rabbits, horses and chickens live here. Treat them with respect, take care when petting them, keep children supervised, and wash hands afterwards.
• The hay loft in Dairy Cottage has two single beds reached by a ladder. It suits children old enough to use the ladder safely, which we suggest means six or older. You decide whether it is suitable for your children.

We inspect and maintain the facilities regularly. If anything looks damaged, worn or unsafe, do not use it and tell us at once so that we can check it. Do not use any facility that has been closed or that you have been told not to use, and do not move, adjust or dismantle any equipment or safety fitting.

We accept responsibility for injury or loss caused by our negligence. We are not responsible for injury, loss or damage that results from a failure to follow these terms, the guest pack, signs or our instructions; from lack of supervision; from misuse of equipment; from a risk that you or a member of your party chose to take; or from a condition that was obvious or that we had warned you about. Nothing in these terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, or for anything else that the law does not allow us to limit.

11. Your belongings and vehicles

Your belongings, money, valuables and vehicles are your responsibility throughout your stay. We are not liable for their loss, theft or damage unless caused by our negligence. Lock the property and your vehicles when you are away from them. Vehicles are parked at the property at the risk of their owners.

12. What we are responsible for

We will provide the property with reasonable care and skill, as described on our website when you booked. If we fail to do so we are responsible for loss or damage that you suffer as a foreseeable result of our failure or our negligence.

Our total liability to you and your party for everything arising from your booking, however it arises, is limited to the rental cost you have paid for that booking, except for the liabilities described in the last paragraph of this clause.

We are not responsible for loss or damage that was not foreseeable when the booking was confirmed, for loss caused by events beyond our control, for the cost of travel, flights, car hire or other arrangements you make, or for any business loss.

Utilities, internet, pool heating, hot water, heating and appliances are provided in good faith but can fail. We will act promptly to restore anything that fails. Where a failure materially affects your stay and we cannot fix it within a reasonable time, we will make a fair adjustment to the rental cost. That adjustment is subject to the limit in the second paragraph of this clause.

If something is wrong during your stay, tell us straight away, by phone or email, so that we can put it right. We cannot investigate or remedy a problem that we were not told about while you were at the property and could have fixed, and we will not consider a claim for such a problem unless it was not reasonably possible for you to tell us at the time.

Nothing in these terms limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for any matter for which the law does not allow liability to be limited, and nothing in them affects the rights the law gives you as a consumer.

13. Ending a stay early

We may end your stay immediately, without refund, and require your party to leave if there is a serious breach of these terms. Examples are a party or event, over-occupancy, pets, smoking indoors, dangerous behaviour, damage to the property, abuse of our family, our staff, other guests or neighbours, and unlawful activity. We will act reasonably and give you the chance to put things right where that is practical. You remain liable for any costs your party has caused.

14. Staying longer than booked

If illness or official restrictions mean that you need to stay beyond your booked dates, tell us at once and we will do what we can to help, including rearranging the guests due after you. You will be liable for the accommodation at our normal advertised rate for the extra period and for any costs directly caused by the extended stay.

15. The property description

We describe the property carefully and believe the description on our website is fair. Photographs show the property at a particular time and small things change: furnishings, equipment and planting are replaced from time to time. We will tell you before you arrive about any change that matters. Some facilities may be unavailable from time to time for maintenance, safety or the season.

Pool heating at Sol du Mazel. The pool is normally heated from 1 May to 30 September, except during parts of July and all of August when heating would make it unpleasantly warm. We may reinstate it during a cool spell. The pool is open air and its temperature depends on the weather. It may not reach 26°C, especially early and late in the season, and we do not guarantee the water temperature at any time.

Internet is provided as a convenience. We cannot guarantee that it will be available or at a particular speed throughout your stay.

16. A family home

Hamptons Farmhouse is our family home. The ordinary ebb and flow of family life goes on around the cottages, and the grounds and facilities are shared with our family, with guests in the other cottages and sometimes with our friends. We hope this adds to your stay.

17. Your details

We use your details to manage your enquiry and booking, and as described in our privacy notice on our website. We may ask for photographic identification of the lead booker before or on arrival.

18. General

If any part of these terms is found to be unenforceable, that part is treated as removed and the rest still applies. If we do not enforce a term on one occasion, we may still enforce it later. Only you and we have rights under this contract; nobody else may enforce it.

Formal notices between us must be in writing. Ours will go to the email or postal address on your booking form. Yours must go to the email or postal address on our website. Notices sent by email are treated as received when sent, unless a failure message comes back.

These terms and your booking are governed by the law of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have jurisdiction, except that if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland you may also bring proceedings in your local courts. Mandatory local safety and property laws in France apply at Sol du Mazel in addition to these terms.

If you have a complaint, raise it with us first, during your stay if at all possible, and in any event within 28 days of your departure. We will respond within 28 days of receiving it.