Booking Terms and Conditions

These terms apply to direct bookings made with Lettoch Cottages. Please read them before confirming your booking.

We have tried to keep them straightforward, fair and in keeping with the way we run the cottages.

A large proportion of our bookings come from people who have stayed with us before, and we value that enormously. We want to create long-term relationships with our guests rather than treat every stay as a one-off transaction.

We therefore run Lettoch Cottages on the basis of trust and goodwill. We do not want guests to lose the value of a holiday simply because something genuine has gone wrong, and wherever reasonably possible we will try to find a fair solution.

We ask guests to treat us fairly in return. If you need to cancel or change a booking, please tell us as early as you can so that we have the best possible chance of re-letting the cottage or finding another solution.

If you have any questions, please contact us at stayatlettoch@gmail.com.

1. Your booking

A booking is confirmed when we have accepted it and received the required booking deposit or payment.

The person making the booking must be aged 18 or over and is responsible for ensuring that everyone staying at the cottage complies with these terms.

We do not accept guests under the age of 14.

Your booking is for the cottage, dates and number of guests shown in your confirmation.

The cottage must not be occupied by more people than the maximum number stated for the property unless this has been agreed with us beforehand.

2. Booking deposit

We ask for a £100 booking deposit when you make your reservation.

If you subsequently cancel, the booking deposit is not normally refundable in cash. However, we will hold its value as a credit towards another direct booking with Lettoch Cottages.

The replacement stay must normally take place within 18 months of the arrival date of your original booking.

Any future stay is subject to availability and the price applying to the new dates. If the new stay costs more, you will need to pay the difference.

3. Final payment

The balance of your booking is due four weeks (28 days) before your arrival date.

If your booking is made less than four weeks before arrival, the full price is payable when you book.

If payment has not been received when due, we will contact you before treating the booking as cancelled.

4. Our approach to cancellations

We appreciate that sometimes circumstances change.

Our cancellation terms are designed to protect the cottage business from genuine financial loss, not to profit from somebody else's misfortune.

If you have to cancel, we will always try to re-let the cottage and, where reasonably possible, help you preserve the value of your booking for a future stay.

5. If you cancel more than four weeks before arrival

If you cancel more than 28 days before your arrival date, you will not be required to pay the remaining balance.

Your 10% booking deposit will not normally be refunded in cash, but we will hold it as a credit towards a future direct booking with us.

The replacement stay must normally take place within 18 months of the original arrival date.

6. If you cancel within four weeks of arrival

If you cancel or postpone your stay 28 days or less before arrival, the full booking price is normally payable.

However, we will always make reasonable efforts to re-let the cottage.

If we are able to re-let all or part of your cancelled stay, we will refund the income we receive from the replacement booking, up to the amount you paid for the cancelled booking. Your 10% booking deposit will remain available as a credit towards a future direct booking.

If we can re-let only some of the cancelled dates, we will make a corresponding partial refund.

We will never make money twice from the same dates because you have had to cancel.

We strongly recommend that guests take out suitable travel insurance to cover circumstances in which they may unexpectedly have to cancel.

7. Cancellation because of illness or injury

We understand that sometimes circumstances are outside your control.

If you are unable to travel because of significant illness or injury affecting you or someone in your party, please contact us as soon as possible.

Rather than simply losing the value of your booking, we will normally allow the amount you have paid to be transferred towards another stay at Lettoch Cottages.

The replacement stay must normally take place within 18 months of the arrival date of the original booking and is subject to availability.

The price applying to the replacement dates will apply. If the new stay is more expensive, you will need to pay the difference. If it is cheaper, the unused balance will not normally be refunded or carried forward.

We may ask for reasonable evidence of the circumstances where appropriate.

This arrangement is intended to help guests who genuinely cannot travel for health reasons and does not replace travel insurance.

8. Changes to your booking

If you need to change your dates, please contact us as soon as possible.

More than four weeks before arrival, we will normally try to move your booking to alternative available dates.

Changes requested within four weeks of arrival will normally be treated under our cancellation terms above, except where our health-related provision applies.

Any change is subject to availability and to the price applying to the new dates.

9. If we have to cancel your booking

Very occasionally, circumstances outside our reasonable control may mean that we cannot provide the cottage you have booked.

If this happens, we will tell you as soon as possible and offer either:

alternative accommodation with us where suitable and available; or
a full refund of all money you have paid to Lettoch Cottages for the affected booking.

We will not cancel a confirmed booking without good reason.

10. Arrival and departure

Your booking confirmation will state the normal check-in and check-out times.

Please do not arrive before the agreed check-in time unless we have confirmed an earlier arrival, as the cottage may still be being prepared.

Likewise, please leave by the stated departure time so that we have sufficient time to prepare the cottage properly for the next guests.

If you would like an earlier arrival or later departure, please ask. We will accommodate this where we reasonably can.

11. Age restriction

Lettoch Cottages are intended as peaceful accommodation for adults and older teenagers.

We do not accept guests under the age of 14.

All guests aged 14–17 must be staying as part of a booking made and accompanied by an adult aged 18 or over.

12. No pets

Pets are not permitted at Lettoch Cottages.

If you use an assistance animal, please contact us before booking so that we can discuss your requirements.

13. No smoking

Smoking and vaping are not permitted inside any of the cottages.

If you smoke outside, please dispose of cigarette ends safely and considerately.

14. Parties and use of the cottages

The cottages are provided for holiday accommodation for the guests named on the booking.

Parties, events or gatherings involving additional people are not permitted without our prior agreement.

Please behave considerately towards neighbouring guests, residents and the surrounding countryside, particularly during the evening and at night.

15. Looking after the cottage

We do not expect guests to clean the cottage before leaving — that is our job.

We simply ask that you treat the property, furnishings and equipment with reasonable care and leave the cottage in a reasonably tidy condition.

Normal wear and tear is expected and is not a problem.

If something is accidentally damaged or broken, please tell us. We would much rather know about it than discover it later.

Where significant damage or loss results from negligence or unreasonable behaviour, we reserve the right to ask for the reasonable cost of repair or replacement.

16. Problems, faults and repairs

If something is not working properly or you find a problem with the cottage, please tell us as soon as you notice it rather than waiting until the end of your stay.

We genuinely want the opportunity to put things right for you.

Telling us promptly also allows us to fix the problem before it affects the next guests.

We will make reasonable efforts to deal with faults and repairs as quickly as possible.

Where access to the cottage is necessary to carry out an urgent repair or prevent damage, we may need to enter during your stay. Wherever practicable, we will contact you first and arrange a convenient time.

17. Complaints

If you are unhappy with any aspect of your stay, please contact us while you are at Lettoch so that we have a reasonable opportunity to investigate and resolve the problem.

If the issue cannot be resolved during your stay, please contact us afterwards and we will deal with it fairly.

We would much rather have the opportunity to solve a problem than learn about it for the first time after you have gone home.

18. Wi-Fi, utilities and services

Wi-Fi and normal household services are provided for guests' use.

Occasionally electricity, water, heating, internet or other services may be interrupted for reasons outside our reasonable control.

We will make reasonable efforts to resolve any problem for which we are responsible but cannot guarantee uninterrupted availability of third-party utility or telecommunications services.

19. Safety

Guests are responsible for taking reasonable care of themselves and other members of their party while staying at Lettoch.

Please follow any safety information provided in the cottage.

Please tell us promptly if you notice anything that you believe presents a safety risk.

20. Personal belongings

Please take reasonable care of your belongings during your stay.

We cannot accept responsibility for loss, theft or damage to personal possessions unless it results from something for which Lettoch Cottages is legally responsible.

Please check the cottage carefully before departure. If you leave something behind, we will make reasonable efforts to reunite you with it.

21. Circumstances outside our control

Neither you nor we can control every event.

Severe weather, utility failures, road closures, government restrictions and other exceptional events may occasionally affect a stay.

Where this happens, we will act reasonably and try to find a practical solution.

Nothing in these terms affects rights that you have under consumer law.

22. Bookings through third-party websites

If you book through HomefromHomePerthshire, Booking.com, Airbnb or another booking platform, that platform's booking and cancellation terms may also apply.

Our fundamental property rules — including occupancy, age restrictions, no pets, no smoking, care of the cottage and considerate behaviour — continue to apply during your stay.

Where there is a conflict concerning payment or cancellation between these terms and the terms of the platform through which you booked, the terms applicable to that particular booking will take precedence.

23. Privacy

We collect and use personal information in order to manage bookings and provide your stay.

Details of how we use, store and protect guest information are set out in our Privacy Policy, available on the Lettoch Cottages website.

24. Your legal rights

Nothing in these terms is intended to exclude or restrict any rights you have under UK consumer law or any liability that cannot legally be excluded.

25. Governing law

These booking terms and your contract with Lettoch Cottages are governed by Scots law.

Any dispute will be dealt with by the courts having jurisdiction under applicable consumer law.

If you have any questions about a booking or these terms, please contact:

Lettoch Cottages
Email: stayatlettoch@gmail.com