Rental Terms and Conditions

Sunwise Bonaire

Rental Terms and Conditions of Sunwise BV (Sunwise Bonaire)

As on Bonaire Dutch Law applies, our terms and conditions are in Dutch, but the text on this page is a literal translation. These terms and conditions apply to all our agreements. This version is valid since 14 February 2020.

1. Definitions

In these Terms and Conditions:

• “Sunwise B.V.” means the broker between landlord and tenant for a (vacation) rental.
• “(Vacation) rental” means each (vacation) home offered by Sunwise B.V., whatever its form and whatever its name. Also: “rented property”.
• “Tenant” means the tenant renting or wishing to rent a (vacation) home through Sunwise B.V. Also: “guest”.
• “Co-tenant” means the person staying at the (vacation) home together with the tenant.
• “Landlord” means the person who offered a (vacation) home for rent through the brokerage services of Sunwise B.V. Also: “homeowner”.
• “Manager” means the person in charge of management activities on behalf of the landlord of a (vacation) home, which person in most cases will be Sunwise B.V.

2. Applicability of Terms and Conditions

These Terms and Conditions govern all offers and quotes from, agreements with, deliveries and services by Sunwise B.V., and in particular all agreements entered into through Sunwise B.V.’s brokerage services. Any deviating clauses, accords, or arrangements shall apply only if and inasmuch as Sunwise B.V. expressly so confirms in writing, for example, in an overlying agreement.

3. Offers, Prices, and Fees

3.1 All Sunwise B.V.’s offers are non-committal and made subject to acceptance by Sunwise B.V and the homeowner / landlord. All Sunwise B.V.’s website and social-media postings and any (other) written statements are deemed to have been made in good faith and subject to interim modifications. Sunwise B.V. is not bound by any errors or omissions on its website, social media, or in any (other) written statement.
3.2 The tenant states to have read Sunwise B.V.’s description of the vacation home on the website and to dispense with a more detailed description. All prices include any sales tax due but do not include the costs of any (optional) cancellation and/or travel insurance. Additional costs, including costs for electricity, cleaning services, service charges, and local or governmental charges (such as tourist tax) shall be itemized separately.
3.3 All transactions are in United States dollars (US$). Prices on the Sunwise B.V. website and other booking websites are quoted in dollars, however, third party booking websites may display amounts in other currencies, beyond the responsibility of Sunwise B.V.

4. Reservations

4.1 Sunwise B.V. only processes reservation orders from persons of eighteen years of age or older. Consequently, reservations made by persons younger than such age are invalid.
4.2 A reservation is binding on the tenant / guest, at the time of booking and binding on Sunwise B.V. from the moment that Sunwise B.V. has received the required (down) payment. An e-mail confirming the reservation will be sent to the tenant within seven days after Sunwise B.V. receives the reservation.
4.3 As soon as Sunwise B.V. has received the reservation, the tenant will receive a reservation confirmation by e-mail within seven days.
4.4 If the tenant has not received confirmation or rejection of the reservation within seven days of the reservation, the tenant must contact Sunwise B.V. forthwith.
4.5 To facilitate proper booking and to avoid any misunderstanding, the tenant commits to verify after receiving confirmation of the reservation whether his reservation is correct and complete, and to inform Sunwise B.V. of any inaccuracies or errors within seven days of receipt. If the tenant fails to furnish such information within the applicable term, he shall not have the right to make any claim based on such inaccuracy or error in the reservation.
4.6 If upon formation of the agreement the tenant wishes to modify the agreement, the homeowner shall not be required to accept such modifications. Sunwise B.V. and the landlord are free to decide whether and to what extent they will accept any such modifications. If the landlord accepts the tenant’s modifications, Sunwise B.V. may charge modification fees to the tenant.
4.7 The agreement between the tenant and landlord is about the lease of one or more vacation homes, which by its nature is short term.
4.8 Preferences must be mentioned simultaneously with the reservation order to Sunwise B.V. Preferences can never be guaranteed and may not be used as preconditions.
4.9 Without stating its reasons for doing so, Sunwise B.V. reserves the right to reject or to impose special conditions on non-standard reservations, particularly group reservations.
4.10 Any discount codes (coupon codes) are issued only personally and conditionally and are not transferable, not to other persons and not on other accommodations as for which the code was issued.

5. Payments and Further Settlement

5.1 The tenant shall make all payments exclusively to Sunwise B.V. The tenant is not permitted to pay the landlord directly, unless with Sunwise B.V.’s express prior written consent.
5.2 The landlord/Sunwise B.V. shall at all times invoice rental fees to the tenant in U.S. dollars and the tenant shall bear any foreign transfer costs or currency exchange losses.
5.3 The tenant must pay a down payment of 25% of the total rental fee (including additional costs) within seven days of dispatch of the confirmation of reservation. The balance of the rental fee must be paid no later than six weeks before the lease term commences.
5.4 If the period between reservation and commencement of the lease term is shorter than eight weeks, the full amount must be paid at once with the reservation.
5.5 Payments can only be made by wire transfer to the Bonairean dollar account of Sunwise B.V. or credit card. The payment date shall be the date the rental fee is credited to Sunwise B.V.’s bank account.
5.6 If Sunwise B.V. so requests, the tenant shall submit proof of payment to Sunwise B.V.

6. Deposit

6.1 The deposit (as a rule, only in the case of long-term leases) must be paid when the balance of the rental fee is to be paid, unless the confirmation of reservation provides otherwise.
6.2 The deposit serves as security for the landlord and/or Sunwise B.V. for the costs of damage/loss/additional costs in the broadest sense of the word, which the landlord and/or Sunwise B.V. may suffer when the tenant and those accompanying the tenant fail to perform their obligations. Any damage or loss in or to the leased property, the tenant causes during the lease term shall be deducted from the deposit. Additional costs, such as additional cleaning costs due to excessive dirt, may also be deducted from the deposit.
6.3 Sunwise B.V. shall refund the deposit to the tenant by wire transfer within fourteen days after the stay, subject to deduction of any damage/additional costs. If the deposit is insufficient to cover the damage and costs, Sunwise B.V. shall charge additional damage and costs to the tenant afterwards.

7. Cancellation by Tenant

7.1 Cancellations must at all times be made by e-mail to Sunwise B.V. The following rules apply.
– 25% of the rental fee shall be charged in case of cancellation up to 43 days before the arrival date.
– 100% of the rental fee shall be due in case of cancellation between the 42^nd day (including) and the arrival date.
7.2 No restitution at all shall be made if the tenant does not use the accommodation or leaves before the lease term ends.

8. Liability

8.1 Sunwise B.V. exclusively acts as a broker on behalf of the landlord and does not accept any liability if the landlord fails to perform his statutory or contractual obligations.
8.2 If ownership of the property in question is transferred by the client in the interim, or if the commission to Sunwise B.V. is terminated in any other way, the client shall remain responsible for the execution of the existing bookings and the payment of the commission thereon to Sunwise B.V. Cancellation of these bookings shall not affect the right of Sunwise B.V. to the agreed commission.
8.3 Sunwise B.V. shall not be liable for any injury to the tenant, his co-tenant(s) or belongings caused by fire, leaks, accidents, or any other cause.
8.4 Sunwise B.V. and the landlord shall not accept any liability for any inconveniences caused by the work of third parties. Nor can Sunwise B.V. or the landlord be held liable for any outage in the supply of internet connection, gas, water, or electricity if such outage is caused by force majeure and/or third-party actions.
8.5 Sunwise B.V. and the landlord shall not accept any liability for any loss, theft, or damage of luggage or personal belongings nor for any costs incurred for arriving late at the vacation home due to delay.
8.6 Sunwise B.V. advises landlords to insure the vacation home and furniture against the usual risks and subject to the usual terms with a local insurance company. If they do, the properties belonging to the tenant shall not be covered by the insurance coverage. Therefore, Sunwise B.V. advises tenants to take out proper travel insurance.
8.7 The landlord at all times reserves the right to terminate the lease agreement due to special and/or personal circumstances. If a lease agreement is terminated at the landlord’s initiative, Sunwise B.V. shall not in any way be liable for such termination. In such case, the amount paid to Sunwise B.V. shall be reimbursed to tenant.
8.8 The tenant shall be liable for any damage in or to the rented property, including inventory and/or furniture, caused during the lease term by the tenant and/or his co-tenant(s) and/or by third parties that were granted access to or around the vacation home by or on behalf of the tenant and/or his co-tenant(s). Damage shall be repaired at the tenant’s expense.
8.9 The tenant and his co-tenant(s) shall be severally liable for any damage caused as referred to in article 8.4. Sunwise B.V. shall have the right to claim compensation for any damage on the landlord’s behalf, without prejudice to the landlord’s right to do so.
8.10 Sunwise B.V. shall not be liable for any damage caused by errors or inaccuracies in any offers it makes or any confirmation of reservation it sends on the landlord’s behalf. No performance or damages may be claimed from the landlord or Sunwise B.V. if errors or inaccuracies are stated in an offer or confirmation of reservation due to an apparent mistake.
8.11 Sunwise B.V. shall in any event be liable for no more than the amount of the rental fee paid by the tenant.

9. Accommodation

9.1 After receiving his (down) payment, Sunwise B.V. shall send the tenant a message with the landlord’s or the manager’s details. The tenant and the landlord or the manager shall make arrangements about the place and time to hand over the keys. Sunwise B.V. shall make every effort to have the rented property ready for check-in when the tenant arrives, but cannot guarantee check-ins before 3 P.M. Unless agreed to otherwise with the landlord or the manager, the rented property must be vacated on the date of departure before 10.00 A.M.
9.2 The rented property may not be used by more persons than stated in the confirmation of reservation or rental agreement. If there appear to be more tenants nonetheless, then the landlord and the manager have the right to deny access to the tenant and his co-tenant(s), or (if the rented property is a vacation home) to charge an amount per day for each additional person. The amount of this additional charge equals the additional charge for an additional person that would be charged when booking the vacation home in question.
9.3 Keeping or temporarily having pets in the rented property is not permitted without written permission. If this nonetheless happens, the landlord or the manager will have the right to deny the tenant and his co-tenant(s) any further access to the property.
9.4 Smoking is not permitted in the rented property. Smoking is permitted in the property’s outdoor areas.
9.5 The landlord must do maintenance of the rented property. Such maintenance shall be done as much as possible at times not falling within the lease terms; however, there will be periodic work which will also be performed during the lease term. Sunwise B.V. shall inform the tenant as much as possible.
9.6 The vacation home must be left broom clean on the date of departure, which in any case includes the following.
– The dishes must be washed clean.
– The trash container must have trash bags.
– A clean plastic bag must be placed in the bin.
– The bed linen and towels must be gathered at a central place.
– The refrigerator must be empty and clean.
– All food must be removed.
– The floor must be swept clean. 
9.7 The house rules available and/or given at the rented property are an inseverable part of the lease agreement and, as such, must be strictly complied with.
9.8 Road repairs or construction work may be taking place in the rented property’s vicinity. The tenant cannot claim any restitution of the rental fee from Sunwise B.V. or the landlord. Additionally, no liability shall be incurred for any (other) noise nuisance from third parties.
9.9 On Bonaire in some areas, in accordance with the zoning plan, no vacation rentals are possible, but since 2010 this is tolerated. If enforcement of this prohibition is going to take place and the homeowner cannot reasonably be expected to risk the announced sanctions, then Sunwise B.V. and the landlord reserve the right to dissolve the lease agreement.

10. Complaints

10.1 If the tenant has valid complaints about defects in the rented property and/or about the way it is cleaned, the tenant must contact Sunwise B.V. or the manager as soon as possible. The latter shall assess the tenant’s complaint and if valid and possible ensure the defects are corrected and the property is cleaned up.
10.2 If the tenant decides to repair any defect himself or to clean up the rented property, that will prevent him from being able to claim any compensation or discount on the rental fee.
10.3 If upon arrival at his accommodation the tenant has any complaints, he should report them no later than before 10 A.M. on the day after arrival. The landlord and the manager have the right not to process any complaints filed late.

11. Final Provision

11.1 The legal relationships between the landlord, tenant, and Sunwise B.V. shall be governed by the laws of Bonaire, Saint Eustatius, and Saba (“BES”).
11.2 Any disputes arising from the legal relationships set forth in art. 11.1 or these terms must be filed with the Trial Court for Bonaire.
11.3 Neither party may transfer its rights or obligations to third parties, unless the parties expressly provide otherwise in writing.
11.4 If and inasmuch as any provision of these terms is held to be void, the remaining terms shall remain in force and the void provision shall be deemed to have been converted so as to conform it to Sunwise B.V.’s apparent intention.

<– End of the Terms and Conditions of Sunwise BV (Sunwise Bonaire) –>