General terms and conditions of rental
The term ‘the tenant’, used hereafter to designate the person who will be renting the gîte, regardless of gender, has been adopted for the sole purpose of reducing the length of the document.
Article 1 – Purpose : These terms and conditions concern the rental of the gîte « Le Benouchon® », a holiday apartment for a maximum of 6 persons, located at 1142 Route de la Devise, 71470 Romenay, France, on the first floor of the house owned by Joanna and Joël Allimann, SIRET number 913 450 516 00012 (registered to the name of Joël Allimann), APE code 5520 Z, not subject to VAT.
Article 2 – Conclusion of the contract : The booking is confirmed as soon as the tenant has sent the owners a signed copy of the rental contract (previously sent by email) along with a deposit equal to 25 % of the rental price, and the owners have returned the contract signed by them by email. The balance of the rental price must be received by the owners no later than 10 days before the scheduled arrival date. If the booking is made less than 30 days before the start of the stay, the tenant must pay the full rental price in one go. The booking becomes final once the full rental price has been paid. Payment can be made by credit card via a secure link provided by the owners’ bank (sent by email or SMS), or by french cheque sent to the owners together with the rental contract signed by the tenant.
Last‑minute bookings are only possible in exceptional cases. In such a case, the tenant must pay the full rental price in one go by credit card (via a secure link as described above) and return the signed contract by email no later than 8 pm on the day before arrival.
Article 3 – Duration : This is a fixed‑term rental contract. Under no circumstances may the tenant claim any right to remain in the premises at the end of the contract. Nor may the premises be used as a primary or secondary residence, or for any commercial or artisanal activity. In addition, the premises may not be used as a principal or secondary residence, and the tenant cannot conduct any commercial or artisanal activity in the premises.
The minimum stay is 2 nights in low and mid‑season, and 7 nights in July and August.
Article 4 – Arrival and departure times : Arrival is possible from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. on the day specified in the rental contract (unless otherwise agreed). For better organization, the tenant must inform the owners of the arrival time. On the day of departure, the tenant must leave the premises by 10 a.m. at the latest (unless otherwise agreed).
Article 5 – Cancellation of the contract
a) By the tenant :
If the tenant cancels his stay
- more than 4 weeks before the scheduled date of arrival, the deposit will be refunded in full ;
- between 4 and 2 weeks before the scheduled date of arrival, 50 % of the deposit will be refunded ;
- less than 2 weeks before the scheduled date of arrival, the deposit paid by the tenant will be forfeited to the owners, and the gîte will be at the owners disposal.
All cancellations must be notified to the owners in writing (email or postal mail). In the event of cancellation less than 48 hours before the scheduled date of arrival, no‑show or a shortened stay without valid justification (extraordinary circumstances - ’force majeure’ - excepted), the owners reserve the right to retain the full rental amount, or to claim the balance that has not yet been paid.
Refunds by the owners will be made within 10 days.
b) By the owners :
The owners may only cancel the contract in the event of a ’force majeure’. Should this happen, the tenant will receive a full refund of all sums paid.
Article 6 – Security deposit : On arrival, the tenant will be asked to pay a security deposit of €200 (cash or french cheque), An inspection of the premises is carried out by the owners at the time of the tenant’ departure and/or in the hours that follow. If there is nothing to report, the deposit will be refunded in full to the tenant within a period of no more than 10 days.
Please note that end-of-stay cleaning, included in the rental price for normal use of the gîte (indicative cost of cleaning: 50 euros), does not include washing and putting away the dishes, nor cleaning the coffee makers, ovens and hob, which is a matter of course after use and must therefore be carried out by the tenant. If this has not been done, a supplement of 30 euros will be deducted from the security deposit by the owners.
In the event of abnormal use of the premises or excessive dirt, or in the event of damage or items missing from the inventory during the stay or after the tenant's departure, the owners will use the security deposit to restore the gîte to its pre-rental condition and/or replace any items missing from the inventory (supporting documents will be provided to the tenant). If the amount of the security deposit is insufficient, the tenant will be billed for the excess. Any remaining security deposit will be refunded to the tenant within a period of no more than 30 days.
Article 7 – Use of the premises and liability
a) In general : The tenant agrees to take good care of the premises and the equipment provided and to use them in accordance with their intended purpose. The tenant is responsible for any damage caused by himself or by any person accompanying him. The tenant must be insured (a ‘holiday’ type insurance policy).
b) Occupants : The owners do not accept more overnight guests than the stated capacity of the gîte. The owners must be informed of any day visits by persons not mentioned in the contract, and reserve the right to refuse entry if the number of people exceeds the size of the gîte and would disturb the peace and quiet of the area. Parties are forbidden.
c) Smoking : it is forbidden to smoke inside the premises.
d) Noise : No noise disturbance at night (between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.) will not be tolerated. The tenant shall use good judgement so as not to disturb the peace and quiet of the premises (with regard to the owners who live on the premises, and also their neighbours).
e) Dogs / Cats : the number of pets allowed depends on their size (please contact us before booking if you wish to bring your four-legged friend(s)).
Dogs must be clean and well behaved, i.e. they must not relieve themselves indoors or bark all day/night, so as to maintain the peace and quiet of the site. tenants who brings dog(s) must comply with the following conditions: they must not allow dogs in the bedrooms or on the sofa (unless they bring their own bedsheets and a protective cover for the sofa); as the private garden is fenced off, dogs are free to roam there; on the rest of the property they must be kept near the tenant, so as not to frighten the owners' chickens, sheep and ponies; dog excrement must be collected by the tenant (bags and bin provided for this purpose).
Cats are permitted if they are clean, not destructive, and do not scratch curtains or furniture; the tenant must provide a litter tray.
Article 8 – Police registration form for tenants of foreign nationality : in accordance with articles R814-1, R814-2 and R814-3 of the French Code of Entry and Residence of Foreigners and Right of Asylum, rental owners are obliged to have tenants of foreign nationality (including European Union nationals) complete a police registration form. This form must be kept by the owners for six (6) months and sent to the police or gendarmerie only at their request.
Article 9 – Gift vouchers : These numbered vouchers are non-refundable, non-exchangeable, and cannot be converted into cash. They are “value” vouchers, usable only as a deduction from the price of a stay at the gîte “Le Benouchon®”. They lose all value after their expiry date. Their use is subject to these terms and conditions. The owners reserve the right to refuse a booking made by a voucher holder if contractual formalities (sending back the signed contract and paying any balance) are not respected.
The voucher value is deducted from the total rental price, as stated in the rental contract. Any difference must be paid by the tenant in accordance with Article 2. If the voucher is not used in full, the remaining amount may be used until the expiry date indicated on the voucher.
The general cancellation conditions (Article 5) apply ; the voucher value will be considered when determining the amount retained or refunded. Depending on the case, the voucher will cover all or part of the amount due to the owners. The voucher, possibly with a reduced value, remains valid until its expiry date. Exceptionally (depending on the reason for cancellation), the expiry date may be extended once, for a duration set by the owners on a case-by-case basis.
In case of cessation of activity, the owners commit to notifying, within a reasonable time frame, those who purchased valid vouchers, so that the holders may use them before closure.
Article 10 – Use of the electric charging station : A 22 kW charging station for electric vehicles is available to the tenant. The station can be used autonomously (via QR code and credit card). The rate is €0.30/kWh.
Article 11 – Disputes : Any dispute relating to the rental of the gîte ‘Le Benouchon®‘ or these general terms and conditions (including validity, interpretation or performance) is subject to french law and, in the absence of an amicable resolution, shall be submitted to the competent french courts. The governing language for any dispute is french.
Article 12 – Mediation : In accordance with Articles L 616‑1 and R 616‑1 of the French Consumer Code, a consumer mediation service is proposed.
The chosen mediation entity is : Médiation Consommation Développement / Med Conso Dev. In case of dispute, you can submit your complaint on its website https://www.medconsodev.eu or by post at the following address : Centre d'Affaires Stéphanois SAS, Immeuble l’Horizon – Esplanade de France, 3 rue J. Constant Milleret, 42000 Saint-Etienne.
Article 13 – Language : In the event of differences of interpretation due to the wording of this document in different languages, only the french version shall prevail.
GTC drafted in Romenay, on 01.08.2023, by Joanna Allimann (last updated on 03.12.2025)
