IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL PASSENGERS
WE KINDLY REQUEST THAT ALL PASSENGERS READ AND BE REMINDED TO TAKE NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING PROVISIONS WHICH CONTAIN THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS EXEMPTING, EXCLUDING AND/OR LIMITING THE LIABILITY OF SEA LAS PERLAS, S.A. IN RESPECT OF, AMONG OTHERS, DEATH, PERSONAL INJURY AND LOSS OF OR DAMAGE TO ALL PROPERTY, INCLUDING BAGGAGE. THESE PROVISIONS SHALL FORM PART OF THE PASSAGE CONTRACT BETWEEN THE PASSENGER AND THE COMPANY AND APPLY TO ALL PASSAGES ON-BOARD THE COMPANY’S FERRIES AND BOATS, AND THE COMPANY RESERVES THE RIGHT TO AMEND THESE PROVISIONS FROM TIME TO TIME WITHOUT NOTICE TO PASSENGERS.
1. Applicability
All carriage of passengers on the Company’s ferries and boats and all services undertaken by the Company are subject to the provisions herein.
2. Definitions
- “Baggage” includes the passengers luggage, hand-held baggage, checked-in baggage or any item contained in the Baggage.
- “Passenger” / “Passengers” includes all passengers and/or persons traveling on-board the Vessel, not in the capacity of an officer or crew member of the Vessel, including all infants, children and/or persons traveling with the Passenger whether or not named in the reservation and confirmation list or such other document issued by the Company.
- “Company” means SEA LAS PERLAS, S.A. and includes the Master and crew of its vessels, agents, servants, employees and representatives.
- “Passage Contract” means the contract between the Company and the Passenger for the passage specified in any document issued by the Company for the purpose, and includes the Reservation or Booking Form (on-line or otherwise), and the ferry ticket to which these provisions shall apply.
- “Property” means all other articles, items, goods, effects apart from Baggage, belonging to or brought on-board the Vessel by, with or for any Passenger, of any kind and description.
- “Vessel” means such boat, ferry and vessel employed or used by the Company to perform the Passage Contract.
3. Fares
Current fares are as displayed on the Company’s website and at all its ticketing locations. All fares quoted are subject to change without prior notice. Adult fare (as specified on the Company’s website) is payable by Passengers aged 12 years and above and child fare (as specified on the Company’s website) is payable by Passengers aged below 12 years. All fares are exclusive of the levies, charges and fees collected by the respective authorities. All levies, charges and fees are subject to change by the respective authorities.
4. Booking of Seats
The name, passport number, date of birth, date of passport expiry, gender, nationality and country of residence shall be provided by the Passenger at the time of booking. Booking is on a first-come-first-served basis and is subject to availability of seats.
Amendments to booking:
- Amendments may only be made to change departure date or time at least 24 hours prior to departure.
- Ticket is transferable.
- Any change in name of passenger must be notified at least 24 hours prior to departure.
- Amendments are at the sole discretion of the Company.
Charges for Amendments:
- A $5.00 administration fee will be charged for each amendment.
- All amendment charges are payable by cash.
5. Refunds
- All sales are final, there will be no refunds of the ticket fare.
- There will be no refund or date extension for expired or unused tickets.
6. Group Bookings
- “Group Booking” means a one-time booking of 10 or more Passengers traveling together on the same trip.
- Ferry tickets will be issued only upon receipt of full payment. The Company reserves the right to cancel any Group Booking if full payment is not received.
7. Check-in & Booking
Passengers shall Check-in at Port and collect boarding passes at the Company’s ticket counter at least 1 hour before the scheduled ferry departure. The Company reserves the right to cancel confirmed bookings if any Passenger Checks-in less than 45 minutes before departure. The departure gate will close 15 minutes before departure.
- A sum of $5.00 is payable by any Passenger for the replacement of a lost boarding pass.
- Subject to availability of seat, a Passenger may request for a transfer to the next ferry timing within the same day. A $5.00 administrative fee per Passenger is payable at the Company’s ticket counter.
8. Travel Documents
The Passengers shall comply with all travel and immigration requirements necessary in the country. No passage fares will be refunded in the event a Passenger is refused embarkation.
9. Baggage and Property
- Baggage is separately checked-in at the baggage counters (“Baggage Counters”).
- Passengers are required to check-in their baggage at least 30 minutes before departure.
- Each Passenger is entitled to carry on-board 1 hand-held item not exceeding 70 cm x 51 cm x 34 cm and 10 kg and a sling bag (e.g. a woman’s handbag, a light document bag).
- Each passenger is entitled to a total check-in baggage allowance of 20 kg (the “Baggage Allowance”). Excess baggage, up to a maximum of 20kg, will be charged in accordance with rates levied by the respective Ferry.
- Check-in baggage must be properly contained and fastened.
- No Property except personal effects/belongings is allowed on-board the Vessel.
- Animals/pets are allowed on-board the Vessel with their kennels and with previous notification.
- No dangerous goods such as explosives, firearms, drugs, inflammable material, are allowed on-board the Vessel.
- The Company reserves the right to reject any Baggage or Property to be loaded onto the Vessel if such Baggage or Property is deemed to be hazardous, to be a nuisance or to create an inconvenience to, or is dangerous to life or safety to the passengers and Vessel. This includes bicycles, surfboards or any bulky items as the Company may deem fit to reject.
- The Company shall not be liable or responsible for any Baggage.
10. Change or Variation of Passage Services
The Company reserves the right to cancel or vary its passage services in any manner at its absolute discretion, without incurring any liability to the Passenger whatsoever.
In particular, the Company may for any reason whatsoever and at any time:
substitute the scheduled Vessel with another Vessel, whether or not the substitute Vessel is owned by the Company or of the same condition as the scheduled Vessel;
permit the Vessel to proceed by any route or proceed to or stay at any place or port;
delay the scheduled date and hour of sailing or disembarkation; or
provide seating to the Passenger different from that already assigned or provided to the Passenger.
11. Termination of Passage Contract
The Company may at any time for any reason whatsoever terminate the Passage Contract of any Passenger before departure of the Vessel and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing may so terminate owing to the unavailability of the Vessel or seats, whether through charter or overbooking of seats or otherwise, and the Company’s only liability will be to refund to the Passenger the amount it has received from him for the Passage Contract, but only if the termination giving rise to a refund was not caused by or in any way attributable to any breach by the Passenger of any of the terms and conditions herein or any act, neglect or default on his part.
12. Exclusion/Limitation of Liability
The Company shall be exempt from all liability in respect of any:
detention, delay, loss (whether direct, consequential, economic or otherwise), expense or damage of or to any Property and Baggage, whenever or wherever occurring, however and by whomsoever caused and whether due to any act, neglect or default of the Company or otherwise; and/or
death, personal injury, illness, detention, delay, loss of or to any Passenger whenever and wherever occurring, howsoever and by whomsoever caused and whether due to any act, neglect or default of the Company.
Exclusion/Limitation of Liability for loss of and/or damage to Baggage or Property:
The Company shall not be liable for any loss of cash kept in Baggage or Property.
The Company shall not be liable for any loss of and/or damage to any gold, silver, silverware, jewelry, ornaments, watches, precious stones, works of art, or other valuables kept in Baggage or Property placed on-board the Vessel with no prior declaration to and acceptance by the Company of value made.
Limitation of Liability for Death or Personal Injury to the Passenger:
Further to and without derogating from or in any way depriving the Company of the benefit of any exemptions and/or exclusions contained herein or under any applicable law, if for any reason whatsoever, the Company does not rely, is unable to rely or is precluded from relying on any of the provisions of Clause 12(a) above, in the event of death or personal injury to the Passenger, the Company shall be entitled to limit its liability in accordance with its P & I insurance policy.
d. Occurrences Not On-board the Vessel/Passage Services Performed by Independent Contractors:
The Company accepts no responsibility or liability for the acts and/or omissions of independent contractors who are not its agents or employees.
The Passenger agrees that the Company shall not be liable whatsoever for injury, loss of and/or damage to any person, Baggage or Property as a result of any act, omission or negligence of any of these contractors or any other person providing any of the offship services relating to the passage and the Passenger hereby releases and discharges the Company from any claims for such injury, loss or damage.
e. Benefit of Exclusion/Limitation of Liability Clause:
It is hereby expressly agreed that no servant, agent, employee or representative of the Company (including every sub-contractor of the Company) shall be under any liability whatsoever to the Passenger for any loss, damage or delay of whatsoever kind arising or resulting directly or indirectly from any act, neglect or default on his part while acting in the course of or in connection with his employment or agency and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions of this Clause, every exemption, limitation, condition and liberty herein contained and every right, exemption from liability, defence and immunity of whatsoever nature applicable to the Company or to which the Company is entitled herein shall also be available to the Company’s servants, agents, employees and representatives.
13. Notice of Claim
Any claim for death or personal injury shall be notified in writing to the Company immediately.
Any claim for loss of and/or damage to Baggage or Property shall be notified in writing to the Company (or the ferry terminal’s baggage handling agent) on the Company’s prescribed Loss Report (the “Loss Report”) as soon as the loss of and/or damage to Baggage or Property is discovered at the time of disembarkation.
Where no notice of loss of and/or damage to Baggage or Property is received by the Company before or at the time of disembarkation, it shall be prima facie evidence that the Passenger has received the Baggage and/or Property in good order and condition and in the same quantity as when it was placed on-board the Vessel and the Company shall not be under any liability whatsoever for any loss of and/or damage to the same.
The Loss Report shall be handed to the Company’s terminal office (or the ferry terminal’s appointed baggage handling agent).
14. Time Limits for Actions
Any claims arising out of the death or personal injury to a Passenger or for the loss of and/or damage to Baggage or Property shall be time-barred and the Company shall be discharged from all liability whatsoever after a period of three months, such period being calculated as follows:
in the case of personal injury, from the date such personal injury occurred or from the date of disembarkation of the Passenger, whichever is later;
in the case of death of a Passenger occurring:
before the time of disembarkation, from the date on which the Passenger should have disembarked; or
after disembarkation, resulting from personal injury occurring during carriage, from the date of death, provided that this period shall not exceed three months from the date of disembarkation; or
in the case of loss of and/or damage to Baggage or Property, from the date of disembarkation of the Passenger to whom the Baggage or Property belongs.
Subject to Clause 15 below, in no case shall an action or claim in tort be brought after the expiration of a period of three months from the date of disembarkation or from the date on which the Passenger should have disembarked, whichever is later.
15. Jurisdiction and Choice of Law Clause
The courts of the City of Panama shall have the exclusive jurisdiction to hear and adjudicate on any claim brought herein and these provisions shall be governed by and determined in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Panama.
16. Indemnities
Where the Passenger books or reserves the passage or otherwise deals with the Company through a sales agent, travel agent, tour operator or other intermediary (hereinafter referred to as a “Travel Agent”), the Passenger agrees and acknowledges that: –
the Travel Agent acts solely as the Passengers agent and is fully authorized to act for and on his behalf in any matter whatsoever including but not limited to entering into a Passage Contract with the Company, collecting any ticket issued by the Company, making, amending or cancelling any reservation, signing any document whatsoever and paying and receiving any funds;
all the terms and conditions herein shall form part of any Passage Contract concluded by the Travel Agent for and on the Passenger behalf;
the Company shall not be liable for any act, neglect or default of the Travel Agent;
the Company shall not be liable to refund any monies paid by the Passenger to the Travel Agent for onward transmission to the Company or for other purposes, which the Travel Agent failed to do or to re-issue any ticket, which has already been issued and delivered to the Travel Agent, and
in the event the Travel Agent fails to remit to the Company any monies paid to it by the Passenger for whatever reason, the Passenger shall be and will remain liable for the sums due to the Company.
The Passenger shall reimburse and fully indemnify the Company and hold the Company harmless against all or any liabilities, losses, claims, damages, costs, expenses and/or delay of whatever nature, sustained or incurred by, or made upon the Company, whether directly or indirectly by reason of the Passengers negligence, breach of duty or failure to comply with these terms and conditions.
17. Force Majeure Event
The Company shall not be liable for any loss (whether economic, consequential or otherwise), delay, expense, damage (whether direct or indirect) whatsoever arising from the Company’s inability to perform the Passage Contract or any part thereof by reason of the occurrence of a Force Majeure Event.
“Force Majeure Event” means any event, occurrence or circumstance reasonably beyond the control of the Company, including but not limited to the following occurrences: acts of God, including but not limited to storms, lightning, rain and flood; strikes, lockout, stoppages or restraint of trade or labour, industrial action or labour difficulties or shortages from whatever cause, whether partial or general and whether or not the Company is party to these events; explosion, fire, collision, stranding or foundering of the Vessel or breakdown or failure of or damage to the Vessel or her hull, fitting, furnishings, machinery or equipment howsoever and wheresoever arising; acts of terrorism, civil commotion, riot, insurrection, war, civil war, government restraint or requisition, political disturbance, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, military or usurped power, invasion, act of foreign enemies; acts, restrictions, regulations, bylaws, refusal to grant any licences or permissions, prohibitions or measures of any kind on the part of any governmental authority, or inability to secure supplies including fuel; breakdown, failure or irregular functioning of or damage to any electrical or electronic hardware, equipment, machinery, components, including programmes or software employed by the Company, and import or export regulations or embargoes.
18. Passengers’ Conduct
The Passenger represents and warrants that he/she will not in any way be a nuisance to other Passengers or persons and/or that his/her conduct will not in any way cause any inconvenience, endanger or undermine the health, safety or reasonable comfort of any person or persons whether on-board the Vessel or not, or endanger the safety of the Vessel and/or her fittings furnishings, machinery, equipment or any part thereof. In the interest of security and safety at sea and in the public interest, the Passenger agrees and hereby consents to a reasonable search being made of the Passengers person and Baggage and Property whether physically, by way of screening, scanning or otherwise and to the confiscation of any item which may, in the opinion of the personnel conducting such screening or search, inconvenience or endanger or undermine the health, safety or reasonable comfort of any person or persons whether on-board or not, or endanger the safety of the Vessel and/or her fittings, furnishings, machinery or equipment or any part thereof.
The Company and/or its agents shall be entitled at any time without giving reasons, to refuse passage to any Passenger, who, in the opinion of the Company, is likely to inconvenience or endanger or undermine the health, safety or reasonable comfort of any person or persons whether on-board the Vessel or not or endanger or impair the safety of the Vessel and/or her fittings, furnishings, machinery, equipment or any part thereof, without incurring any liability whatsoever.
19. Fitness of the Passenger to Travel
Passengers who are pregnant or have any form of sickness, disease, injury, infirmity, disability or illness, whether mental, physical or otherwise, which could affect their fitness for travel shall: disclose their pregnancy and the stage thereof, sickness, injury, infirmity, disability or illness, as the case may be, to the Company at the time of reservation of passage; submit to the Company prior to sailing a medical certificate certifying their fitness for travel; if necessary, be accompanied and assisted by an able bodied person of their choice and costs, who shall be responsible for their health and safety at all times including the period of transit, and reimburse and fully indemnify the Company and hold the Company harmless against any losses, claims, damage, costs, expenses and or delay, of whatever nature sustained by the Company, whether directly or indirectly, and arising out of or in connection with their pregnancy, sickness, disease, injury, infirmity, disability or illness, as the case may be.
Passengers who are more than 26 weeks pregnant are prohibited from traveling on-board the Vessel unless a medical certificate certifying fitness to travel is provided. Passengers who require special assistance or special arrangements to be made while on-board the Vessel shall inform the Company at least 72 hours prior to departure. The Company will take all reasonable steps to accommodate the Passengers request but the provision of special assistance/arrangements is solely subject to availability and at the Company’s discretion.
The Company shall be entitled at any time, without giving reasons, to refuse passage to any Passenger who is pregnant, or has any form of sickness, disease, injury, infirmity, disability or illness, whether mental, physical or otherwise or to cancel any reservation made by or for such Passenger, without any liability whatsoever to such a Passenger.
20. Amendments of Terms and Conditions
The Company may at any time amend these provisions without prior notice to Passengers.
21. Entire Agreement Clause
These provisions are deemed part of the Passage Contract and all prior understandings and agreements heretofore entered into between the Passenger and the Company whether written or oral, is superseded by these provisions, which alone fully and completely express the agreement between the Passenger and the Company.
22. Severability
Each paragraph, sub-paragraph, clause, sub-clause, article, provision contained in these provisions shall be severable and should any such paragraph, subparagraph, clause, sub-clause, article or provision shall be held to be invalid, void, unenforceable or inapplicable, the remaining paragraphs, sub-paragraphs, clauses, sub-clauses, articles and provisions shall nevertheless have full force and effect.
23. Language of Passage Contract
The Passenger and Company agree that the English language is the official language for the purpose of this contract.
24. Contact Information
Sea Las Perlas, S.A.
Brisas de Amador, Office No. A-101
Panama City, Panama
Republic of Panama