Hometime Guest Terms and Conditions

2.1 Our role

We offer you the right to use the Platform to search for, and Book Properties. We also facilitate and manage accommodation bookings at properties on behalf of the Owners or other persons in legal control of the Properties via our Platform. We do not own any Property listed on the Platform.

When Owners accept a Booking, they are entering into a contract directly with you. We are not and do not become a party to any contractual relationship between you and the Owner. We are not acting as an agent for you or the Owner except for where we act as a collection agent for any payment made via the Platform.

2.2 Glossary and definitions

2.3 How these Terms apply

These Terms consist of the following additional terms, which also apply to your use of the Platform and any Bookings you make:

Where there is any inconsistency between these Terms and the applicable Booking Terms and Conditions, the Booking Terms and Conditions prevail to the extent of the inconsistency.

If the Property is located in New South Wales, you acknowledge and agree to comply with your obligations under the NSW Short-Term Rental Accommodation Industry Code of Conduct which is published by NSW Fair Trading and available online here.

We may make changes to all or part of these Terms at any time by updating the terms on the Platform. Where our changes materially impact your rights, we will provide you with reasonable notice of those changes where possible. Your continued use of the Platform indicates your acceptance of the updated Terms.

3.1 General information about our Services

Our Services are available for your personal, non-commercial use only. You may not offer for resale any Booking for any Properties that appear on the Platform without our express written permission.

Once we have accepted a Booking, a legally binding agreement is formed between you and the Owner of the Property under which the Property will be made available to you. We only provide the Services. We will not be a party to your agreement with the Owner. Each Property listing will include the relevant booking agent identification number or property licence number.

3.2 Property and rental service descriptions

We make every effort to ensure that the descriptions (including Booking Charges and availability) relating to the Properties on the Platform are accurate and complete, however, images of the Property are to be taken as a general indication of the appearance of the Property. If we are advised of or discover a mistake or error relating to this information, we will promptly correct this on the Platform and will contact you if that information relates to a Booking that you have already made using the Platform.

No responsibility or refunds for minor or non-material differences will be accepted. In the event of minor faults and/or malfunctions of appliances or inclusions, there is no obligation to compensate or provide a discount to you.

The Property descriptions do not constitute advice or recommendation given by us. We do not independently verify accreditations, awards, review stars or other quality ratings and such ratings are only indicative of what level of quality you can expect from a particular Property. We are not liable for inaccuracies or errors in this information or the accommodation information as this information is supplied to us by the Owners.

Charges shown in the search listings on the Platform are per Property, per night (and not per person). It is your responsibility to check the total price before completing the Booking.

We do not accept responsibility for any changes or closures to amenities or attractions mentioned in the Property descriptions on the Platform.

3.3 Making a booking

To be eligible to make a Booking, you must:

If you are making a Booking on behalf of others, you warrant that you have conveyed these Terms to them.

3.4 Travelling with pets

Pets are only allowed at Properties where this is expressly stated in the Property description. If you take a pet to a Property that does not allow them or exceed the stated number/size of pet(s), the Owner and we, have the right to:

If the Owner or we exercise our rights under section 3.4 (Travelling with pets), we, or the Owner may cancel the Booking under the Owner's right to cancel a Booking as set out in section 5 (Cancellations & Amendments Policy).

You will be liable for all damage caused by you and your Guests' pets. If you are allowed a pet(s) at the Property, you should remove all traces (inside and outside) from the Property of pet occupation before you and your Guests vacate the Property at the end of the Booking Period. We and the Owner may make an additional charge for professional cleaning after your and your Guests' occupancy due to any pets that have stayed at the Property. If you break the terms of this section, we or the Owner (or their representative or us on their behalf) may notify you that you have breached those terms and may cancel the Booking and require you and your Guests to leave the Property before the end of the Booking Period.

Registered assistance dogs are allowed in all Properties featured on the Platform, even where the property description states that pets are not allowed, subject to your compliance with these Terms.

You must notify us of the intended presence of any assistance dogs before Booking. We may request evidence from you that your assistance dog is appropriately registered. If you have an allergy to dogs, please be aware that we and the Owners cannot guarantee that an assistance dog has not stayed in a particular Property recently. We and Owners cannot accept responsibility for any person suffering which may occur as a result of such animals having been present in a Property.

4.1 General information about fees, charges and payments

The fees quoted on the Platform, unless otherwise stated, are quoted in Australian Dollars and include GST (where applicable).

The fees may change from time to time, but changes will not affect any Booking that we have confirmed with a Booking Confirmation.

Before submitting your Booking online, you will be presented with details of the total charges payable for your Booking together with details of any amounts payable to us at or following the time of your Booking, which may include:

Once you have submitted your Booking, we will confirm this via a Booking Confirmation which will be sent to the email that you gave us when registering with the Platform.

The timing and structure of payments will be as specified in the applicable Booking Terms and Conditions or your Booking Confirmation.

4.2 Deposits

Where a Deposit is required, we will charge the Deposit to your chosen payment method at the time of Booking or as otherwise specified in the applicable Booking Terms and Conditions. Upon confirming your Booking, we will provide you with your Booking Confirmation which will include your Payment Schedule. You authorise us, via a third-party payment provider, to automatically debit the relevant amounts from your chosen payment method in accordance with the Payment Schedule.

4.3 Additional Payments

If the Balance or any other additional payments are due on or after you make your Booking, then:

4.4 Security Deposit

We may place a pre-authorisation charge on your chosen payment method for the Security Deposit at or before the time specified in the applicable Booking Terms and Conditions or your Booking Confirmation. This is not a charge, and no funds will be debited from your account. In some circumstances, this pre-authorisation may expire during the course of your stay. If this occurs, you authorise us to place a new pre-authorisation charge on your chosen payment method for the Security Deposit for the balance of stay.

The total amount of the Security Deposit and the timing of the charge will be detailed on the listing for the Property at the time of booking.

If we are unable to pre-authorise your payment method for the Security Deposit, you'll be notified by email and will have 24 hours to try another payment method.

If we are unable to obtain a pre-authorisation equal to the Security Deposit after two (2) attempts, then we may cancel your Booking.

The Security Deposit will be released within 72 hours, once we, or the Owner have confirmed that the Property has been returned in an acceptable condition, less any amount payable to us or the Owners pursuant to section 6.2.

4.5 Extension of a Booking

If you extend a Booking Period and fail to make payment for the extended period, you authorise us to debit the cost of the extended period from your chosen payment method. Any extension of a Booking Period is conditional on payment for such period being received in advance of the extended period.

4.6 Payment Reminders and changing your Payment Method

We will endeavour to send you a payment reminder 72 hours before the balance of the Booking Charge is due (if not already paid). You will be able to nominate a different payment method at this time if you choose. Please note that if you nominate a different payment method that this will be the payment method used for any future payments. Where your replacement payment method rejects any payment, and without limiting any other rights that we have, you authorise us to attempt to recover such payment from any prior payment method we have received.

4.7 Credits and Vouchers

Subject to your rights under the Australian Consumer Law, credits or vouchers will be issued at our sole discretion.

Where the cost of a Booking is less than the value of the credit or voucher, no cash refunds will be given for the balance.

Credits or vouchers, when issued, are valid for three (3) years from the date of purchase or issuance and can be used for any Booking with a Booking Period that starts before the validity period expires. Any remaining balance may no longer be used after the expiry of its validity period.

If a Booking is purchased with a credit or voucher that is subsequently cancelled, any refunded amount will be credited as a credit or voucher. Any credited amount will retain the original period of validity.

Subject to your rights under the Australian Consumer Law, credits and vouchers cannot be exchanged for cash and are non-refundable.

5.1 Amending a booking

Please notify us as soon as possible if you think we have made any mistakes or errors with your Booking.

You may not transfer your Booking to another person. If you do not stay at the Property during the Booking Period but your Guests do, you will still be legally responsible for all your obligations under the Booking and responsible for your Guests' compliance with them.

Subject to your rights under the Australian Consumer Law, the cancellation or amendment of bookings may attract cancellation, amendment fees and/or difference in the Booking Total. The precise amount of these fees may be different for each Property and are subject to change. We will notify you of these fees when you contact us to request a cancellation or amendment.

5.2 Cancellation by you

Any cancellations will be determined in accordance with the cancellation policy provided in your Booking Confirmation and subject to your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. Please review this cancellation policy carefully before Booking. Any cancellation policy applicable to a Property is deemed incorporated into these Terms.

5.3 Cancellations of your booking by us

We reserve the right to cancel your Booking at our sole discretion. We will use reasonable efforts to provide reasonable notice to you, along with the reasons for the cancellation.

Reasons for us to cancel a Booking include but are not limited to:

Where we cancel your Booking, we may (but are not obliged to) assist you in arranging alternative accommodation of an equivalent type and standard in a similar location. This is in addition to your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

6.1 Your responsibilities

You must make sure that all the information you provide to us in connection with your Booking is true, accurate, current and complete. If any of your details change (e.g. email address, postal address), you must promptly update them.

You accept financial responsibility for all transactions made under your name or account.

You warrant that:

It is your responsibility to ensure you, your Guests and any pets have the relevant travel and health documents and requirements needed for visiting the country in which a Property is located. These include any passport or other identification documents, visa requirements and, in the case of pets, any vaccines or microchips. We will not be liable for any expenses incurred resulting from your missing, incomplete or incorrect documentation or any non-compliance with such requirements.

If you or any Guest fails to comply with the requirements set out above, the Owner (or their representative) can refuse to allow you and your Guests to enter and stay at the Property or can require you and your Guests to leave the Property before the end of the Booking Period. In either case, you will be treated as having broken the terms of Booking and the Booking can be cancelled without any refund to you. In addition, you will be liable for any loss we or the Owner may suffer as a result of your breach of the above warranties.

6.2 Damage to Property

You are responsible for:

If we or the Owner find that the Property is damaged or not returned in a state of an acceptable nature, or we or the Owner suffer any loss as a result of (a) to (d) above, we or the Owner will contact you within four (4) days after the date of checkout or otherwise promptly upon us or the Owner becoming aware of the relevant loss or damage. Details and relevant documentation of all damage, missing items or other circumstances that require reimbursement will be provided to you together with our assessment of the amount you are required to pay to remedy such damage or loss.

On assessment of the amount you are required to pay to remedy such damage or loss, we may deduct such amount from any Security Deposit we hold. Where no Security Deposit was taken, or where the Security Deposit is insufficient, you authorise us to charge the balance to any payment method we have on file. Where we are unable to make such deduction or charge, you must pay such amount within 48 hours of us giving notice demanding payment.

If you disagree with our calculation of the amount you have to pay, you should contact us immediately by providing details of the reason for your objection and any relevant documentation that supports your objection.

6.3 Our liability

Our services come with guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law which can't be excluded. These guarantees include that the services:

If we don't meet any of these guarantees, you have rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, we won't be liable for and disclaim any other promises, warranties, conditions or representations relating to the Services, whether express, implied, oral or written. In particular, we don't warrant and aren't liable for:

We do not conduct any checks on Owners or their Properties and the inclusion or offering for sale of rental services does not constitute an express or implied endorsement or recommendation by us of such services.

We do not guarantee the accuracy of, and disclaim liability for, any inaccuracies relating to the rental services offered for sale through us. You agree that we are not liable for:

When Booking certain Properties only, we may provide you with the option to use the Services to also purchase other services. We are not liable for the cancellation or provision of these services unless stated otherwise. Where we provide other services, these come with additional terms and conditions which shall be incorporated into these Terms.

You acknowledge and agree that:

6.4 Indemnity from you

To the maximum extent permitted by law, you agree to defend, release, indemnify and hold us harmless from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses and expenses, including, without limitation reasonable legal and accounting fees (Losses), arising out of or in any way connected with:

except to the extent that the losses are directly caused or contributed to by our negligent act or omission.

8.1 Access to data

We and Owners will have access to personal and other data about your and your Guests which you provide to us when using our Platform or interacting with us or the Owner. This information is necessary for the performance of the Platform as well as aggregated information about searches, bookings and the performance of an Owner's Property listing. Our privacy policy sets out the categories of personal data and other data we collect, how we use, process, disclose and retain it, and how you can access it and exercise your data rights. Our privacy policy is available on our Platform and can be found here https://www.hometime.io/privacy-policy.

8.2 Content

Parts of the Platform enable you to provide feedback, text, photos, audio, video, information and other content (Content). By providing Content, in whatever form and through whatever means, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, sub-licensable and transferable license, to access, use, store modify, distribute, publish and otherwise exploit in any manner such Content to provide and/or promote the Platform. If Content includes personal information, such Content will only be used for these purposes if such use complies with applicable data protection laws and in accordance with privacy policy. You are solely responsible for all Content that you provide and warrant that you either own it or are authorised to grant us the rights described in this section. You are responsible and liable if any of your Content violates or infringes the intellectual property or privacy rights of any third party.

9.1 Notices

You agree to receive communications from us and Owners electronically, and that electronic communications will satisfy any legal requirement for communications to be in writing.

9.2 Our reliance on these Terms

We and each Owner intend to rely on these written Terms and any document expressly referred to in them concerning the subject matter of any contract made under them. We, you and each Owner will be legally bound by these Terms.

9.3 Interpretation

References to 'including' and other similar expressions. In these Terms, words that appear after the expression 'include', 'including', 'other', 'for example', 'such as' or 'in particular' (or any similar expression) will not limit the meaning of the words appearing before such expression.

9.4 Subcontracting

We may transfer this contract to someone else. We and each Owner may transfer our rights and obligations under these Terms to another organisation or person. We or the Owner will contact you to let you know if this is planned. If you are unhappy with the transfer you may contact us or the Owner to end the relevant contract within 14 days of us or the Owner telling you about it and we or they will refund you any payments you have made in advance for services that have not been provided.

9.5 Force majeure

If we or an Owner is prevented or delayed from complying with any obligations under these Terms by anything you (or anyone acting on your behalf) does or fails to do, or due to events or circumstances beyond our or an Owner's reasonable control, the inability or delay in performing those obligations won't be treated as a breach of these Terms. Examples of such events include fire, flood and other acts of God, strikes, trade disputes, lockouts, restrictions on imports or exports, restrictions of movement by government, riots, accidents, disruption to energy supplies, civil commotion, acts of terrorism, pandemics or war.

9.6 Third-party rights

Other than you, us and the Owner, nobody else has any rights under these Terms or the Contract. No other person shall have any rights to enforce any of the terms of the Booking.

9.7 Severability

If a court finds part of these Terms or any contract to which they apply illegal, the rest will continue in force. Each of the sections of these Terms operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining sections will remain in full force and effect.

Even if we or an Owner delay enforcing a contract made under these Terms, we or the Owner can still enforce it later. If we or an Owner do not insist immediately that you do anything you are required to do under these Terms, or if we or an Owner delay in taking steps against you in respect of you breaking a contract made under them, that will not mean that you do not have to do those things and it will not prevent us or an Owner taking steps against you at a later date. For example, if you miss a payment and we, or an Owner, do not chase you but continue to provide the Services, they can still require you to make the payment at a later date.

9.8 Linked websites

The Platform may contain links to other websites. Such links are provided for convenience only and we're not responsible for the content or privacy practices associated with any linked websites.

9.9 Intellectual property rights statement

All intellectual property rights in the Platform, including design, text, graphics, logos, icons and all software relating to the Platform belong to or are licensed to us. When you access the Platform, we grant you a limited, non-exclusive, revocable, non-assignable and non-transferable right to licence to use the Platform in the form provided. This licence is subject to your compliance with these Terms and any territorial restrictions that may apply from time to time. Any attempt to otherwise access, copy, distribute or create derivative works from the Platform content is expressly prohibited and is unlawful.

Except as otherwise set out in this section, you must not adapt, modify, upload, reproduce (other than for the purpose of viewing the Platform in your browser), store, modify, distribute, print, upload, display, perform, or publish post frame within another website, remove any credits, or create derivative works from any part of the Platform, or commercialise any information obtained from any part of this Site without our prior written permission, or, in the case of third party material, from the owner of the intellectual property rights in that third party material.

9.10 Governing law

The laws of New South Wales, Australia govern these Terms, and each party irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New South Wales, Australia and courts competent to hear appeals from those courts.