COVID-19 Policy

Overview

Coronavirus has presented a broad range of challenges to small businesses over the last year.  This policy sets out how we, Highland Scramble Limited and Bikerbnb Limited (‘we’), (‘us’) aim to protect our customers, staff, hosts and affiliates from the risks posed by coronavirus this year.

We will operate if we are permitted to do so:

It is our firm intention to ensure that we are able to operate all events planned for the 2021 riding season as far as safely and lawfully possible.  However, we will have to comply with any legal obligations in force at the relevant time for each event, and this may result in some level of disruption or interference with our planned operations.  This disruption may include:

• Adjustments to sleeping arrangements and accommodations;
• Changes to routes or destinations;
• Restrictions in relation to dining arrangements;
• Cancellation or modification of planned activities; or
• Changing the dates of entire events, or cancelling them altogether.

We will only cancel or change the dates for events if we are not permitted to operate them as planned and there is no viable modification available.  Unless prohibited from doing so, in all other situations we will make every effort to operate booked events whilst minimising this disruption.

We will take sensible precautions during our events:

Although it is difficult to predict in advance what restrictions will be in place on the event dates we have scheduled, we will in any case take the following precautions throughout the season:

• We will endeavour to keep individual households or group ‘bubbles’ together for the purpose of sleeping accommodations with a view to minimising the indoor exposure of multiple households;
• We will strongly encourage the practice of additional hand washing throughout the events, especially around meal times;
• We will place sanitising hand gel around all accommodation facilities and supply the same to participants during the daytime;
• We will encourage the wearing of facemasks whilst indoors; and
• We will discourage participants from all unnecessary direct contact, and from sharing items of clothing or equipment.

We may have to take more onerous precautions, depending on the level of risk and government guidance at the relevant time:

Covid tests. In addition to the above, if we deem it necessary, we may require all participants to prove that they have received a negative coronavirus test within the seven days prior to the event start date, or that they have received a vaccination no later than two weeks prior to the event start date.  If we decide to do so, we will notify you in writing no later than one month in advance of the event start date, unless this becomes a legal requirement (in which case you will be notified whenever this takes effect).

Tiers. We might also have to make significant changes to our route.  At time of writing, the Scottish government has indicated that it plans to revert to a ‘tier system’ by county once the lockdown restrictions ease.  If this takes place, we may need to change:

• A section of the planned route which passes through a higher-tier region;
• The start or end locations of our routes;
• The overnight accommodation; or
• The lunch and dinner venues.

Travel.  If we do have to make such changes, it may become necessary for you to alter your travel arrangements to and from the start and end locations to avoid passing through particular higher tier level areas.  We will do the best that we reasonably can to minimise any such disruption wherever possible and to suggest alternative transport.

Accommodation.  In the event that new rules prevent the mixing of multiple households indoors, it may become necessary to request some participants to sleep in their own tents.  This is because some of our accommodation hosts do not have the facility to separately sleep all participants, and individual tents may be the only option to resolve this.  We will do our very best to ensure that these decisions are made in a way which is fair to all participants.  If we are able to agree any refunds from our accommodation providers for reduced occupation, we will endeavour to compensate you in proportion to any such repayments that we receive.

You may not be allowed to attend an event if it would be unlawful for you to do so:

If the rules in force at the time of an event are such that you would not be permitted to cross from a higher-tier area (in which you live or have recently visited) into a lower-tier area or to mix with others outside your household bubble even outdoors, you will not be able to attend the event as it would illegal to do so.  If this happens but the event takes place anyway, you will be offered a free rebooking onto another event of your choice at a future date.

We may have to cancel events if staff or participants become sick or display symptoms of coronavirus:

In the unfortunate event that any staff or participant on one of our organised events falls sick and we reasonably suspect that (i) they have coronavirus, and (ii) that it is likely that they have already spread the infection to others in our group, or (iii) if we decide that it is no longer possible to operate the event in a safe way, we may, as a last resort, take the decision to cancel an event.  If we do cancel the remaining part of an event for this reason, you will be given a choice of a free event rebooking or a pro-rata refund for any affected days scheduled for the event, starting with the day of the cancellation.  For example, if we cancelled an event on the third day of a four-day event, you would have the choice of a free rebooking or the issuance of a credit of 50% of the total price you paid for the event, being two affected days out of the total four scheduled.

Your responsibility to minimise the risk to others:

If you are booked to attend one of our events, it is your responsibility to ensure that you take all necessary precautions to minimise the risk posed to others.  We therefore request that you:

• Minimise unnecessary exposure to others outside of your household in the two weeks prior to an event;
• Always wear personal protective equipment when in an enclosed space outside your household, and especially in the two weeks prior to an event;
• Avoid travelling to ‘higher-tier’ areas, congested places, or areas known to have high infection rates for coronavirus; and
• Immediately inform us if you are diagnosed with coronavirus or if you reasonably suspect that you have coronavirus in the two weeks preceding any event.

Legal disclaimer and exclusion of liability:

We may update this policy at any time.  The latest version of this policy will be available at https://bikerbnb.com/covid-19-policy/, and it is your responsibility to check for any updates from time to time.  Although we make every effort to protect the safety of our staff and customers, it is impossible to prevent the risk of contracting coronavirus altogether.  You acknowledge and agree that by attending an organised group event during a pandemic, you are accepting this risk, and you hereby hold harmless Bikerbnb Limited and Highland Scramble Limited from and against any and all claims, liabilities, losses (including secondary and indirect losses), costs and expenses suffered or incurred by you arising out of, in connection with or relating to any coronavirus infection you or any third party may sustain during any of our events.  Save and except through our negligence or where it would be unlawful to exclude such liability, we shall not under any circumstances be liable to you or to any third party for any personal injury or other disruption suffered as a result of any coronavirus infection, or any rules or regulations in force which are outside of our control.