If you cancel
Tell me as early as you can. Plans change, and I would always rather know.
- More than 30 days before the start date: your deposit is refunded in full.
- 15 to 30 days before: the deposit is kept, and nothing further is owed.
- Less than 15 days before: the deposit is kept, along with any accommodation I have already paid for on your behalf and cannot recover.
Where I have prepaid a desert camp or riad for you, what can be recovered depends on their own policy. I will show you what was actually charged rather than estimate it.
If you cut a trip short
Days not travelled after a trip has started are not refunded, because the van, the dates and the bookings were held for you alone. If you have to stop for a medical reason, tell me — I will help you get where you need to be, and I will refund anything I can genuinely recover.
If you do not arrive
If you are not at the agreed pickup and I have not heard from you, the booking is treated as cancelled that day. Message me if you are delayed: a late flight is not a no-show, and I will wait.
If I cancel
This is rare, and I will do everything I can to avoid it. If I have to cancel for a reason on my side — illness, an accident, a vehicle problem I cannot solve in time — you choose between:
- A full refund of everything you have paid, including the deposit, or
- New dates at the same price, or
- An introduction to another driver I trust, with your money returned to you and paid to them directly.
Weather, roads, and things neither of us controls
Snow over the high passes, flooding in the gorges and road closures all happen. In almost every case I can reroute around the problem, and that is what I will do. If a trip genuinely cannot run at all, you will be offered new dates or a refund of everything I have not already spent on your behalf.
How refunds are made
Refunds go back the way you paid, to the person who paid, normally within 10 working days of being agreed. Any charges deducted by a bank or payment provider are outside my control.
Travel insurance
Insurance covers what this policy cannot — illness, missed flights, lost bags, and cancelling for personal reasons. I strongly recommend arranging it when you book.