TERMS AND CONDITIONS

INTRODUCTION
Volunteer Compass is a legal and ethical organization, as such it expects and demands the same respect and ethical behaviour from its volunteers as it awards to them.

Please read these Terms and Conditions carefully before completing and submitting your online booking form.

WHO CAN PARTICPATE?
Volunteer Compass welcomes single volunteers, couples, gap year students, professionals, career breakers, retired people and anyone who wants to have an exciting and interesting time volunteering for Marine and/or Wildlife projects..

RESPONSIBLE
All volunteers must be of a responsible disposition, highly motivated, cooperative, flexible, in good health (appropriate and suitable for the chosen project) and adaptable to the country, project or programme that they are volunteering for. First time volunteers must prepare themselves (mentally and physically) for perhaps an unfamiliar country, a different culture with unfamiliar people and climatic conditions not encountered at 'home'. Volunteers must be ready to learn, participate, be receptive to new ideas or methods of working and willing to share skills. We will endeavour to help in whatever way we can to familiarize our volunteers with the country and project they have agreed to join before they leave home.

INSURANCE
Although travel insurance is not mandatory for any volunteer or volunteers, it is strongly recommended. Volunteer Compass is not an insurance agent or company and thus does not provide any insurance of any kind. It is advized that professional insurance services are sought to determine the type of insurance required for the country the volunteer will be in, plus but not limited to medical and evacuation services. The level and extent of the insurance cover is the repsonsibility of the volunteer.

RISKS
Due to the nature of volunteering in a 'foreign' country, each volunteer must note the inherrent risks invloved how ever small or great. All projects are vetted and risk assesments made. However, Volunteer Compass cannot and will not be held responsible for the risks involved in the project the volunteer has volunteered for. It is the sole responsibility of the voilunteer to assess, research and satsify themselves of the potential risks they may or may not encounter. Volunteer Compass (its directors, employees, interns and office volunteers), host families and partner organizations shall not be held liable, to the maximum of the law, for any loss, damage or harm the volunteer (or associate) may suffer or endure , including but not limited to loss caused directly or indirectly by: Personal injury, emotional distress and/or trauma, illness or disease, death, damage to or loss of property (personal included), hostage situation, earthquake, hurricane, civil unrest, war or terrorism.

INDEMNITY
Each volunteer agrees to indemnify Volunteer Compass against any and all liability which Volunteer Compass incurs arising directly or indirectly out of, or in connection with (in any way), the volunteer's travel to and from, living in and providing services in the volunteer's chosen project country.

TRAVEL
Volunteer Compass is not a travel agent or company and thus does not provide or give advice on travel arrangements. Volunteers are responsible for all airfares, additional transport costs (to and from the host country) as well as internal travel requirements..

TRAVEL DOCUMENTATION
It is the responsibility of each and every volunteer to seek and have the correct documentation for the chosen country or countries they will travel to or be in. In the Volunteer Compass Information Guide (VCIG), there will be indications of the necessary documentation and paperwork one should have for the country. However, Volunteer Compass cannot and will not be held resposnsible for any errors and omissions and specifics to you, the volunteer and your personal circumstances. We strongly recommend each volunteer to talk to knowledgable and professional people such as, but not limited to Embassy or Consul staff of the country or countries your project is located in regarding the correct, up-todate paperwork and documentation required.

APPLICATION - GENERAL
All applications are made by filling-in the online Volunteer Compass Application Form, supplying the appropriate information and ticking all relevant boxes.

By clicking the box 'I have read and agree to the Volunteer Compass terms and conditions' you will be legally bound by them.

APPLICATION DEADLINES
Volunteer Applications should be received at least THREE weeks before the start of placement date. For some projects more notice may be required. As much advanced notice to avoid disappointment is advised.

All applicants will be informed as to the situation or position of a chosen project. Once your application has been received by Volunteer Compass we will contact you.

APPLICATION - THE INTERVIEW
Our aim is to help in a meaningful way our projects. Each applicant will be required to attend, either in person (if resident in the UK) or by telephone or webcam an interview. Please see the section on How To Apply for more information. The interview is not high-pressure or something to be nervous about. All we wish to ascertain is your suitability to the actual project you have volunteered for. WE ARE HERE TO HELP NOT TO STOP YOU!

APPLICATION - CONFIRMATION
Confirmation of a position on your chosen project will be confirmed in writing as soon as we humanly can. Confirmation of a placement cannot be made until the Registration fee has been paid.

REGISTRATION FEES
The Registration fee is set at £195.00 per volunteer. Click HERE to see what are the benefits of Registering with Volunteer Compass.

REFUND POLICY
Registration fees are refundable up to sixty (60) days before the start of the volunteer's placement date. Each refund will be subject to refund costs: The volunteer will incur administration (£55.00) and processing fees (£45.00) plus any or all fees incurred with processing the refund, such as but not limited to bank charges, transaction fees and other ligitimate unforseen charges associated with the refund beyond our control..

All refund requests must be made in hard-copy form. Telephone, mobile, celluar calls, e-mails, web-calls will not be accepted. The refund letter must contain at the barest minimum: the name of the volunteer, the date at writing the refund request letter, the project name, host country, the commencement date, the e-mail address of the volunteer and the hand signature of the volunteer.

Once the refund letter has been received at Volunteer Compass Head Office, Volunteer Compass administration staff will reply immediately in e-mail form. If the volunteer has not received an e-mail reply within a reasonable period of time, the volunteer must assume Volunteer Compass has not received your letter. Please contact Volunteer Compass by e-mail for further instructions.

CHANGE OF PLACEMENT DATE
If the volunteer changes the date of their placement (not cancellation or refund request) within sixty (60) days of the confirmed commencement date, the volunteer will incur an administration (£25.00) and a new processing fee (£15.00). If any changes are made before the sixty-day deadline, there will be no charges levied.

CANCELLATION OF PLACEMENT
If a volunteer Registers for a project, attends the interview (by whatever method applicable and appropriate), receives all documentation (CVIG) and receives a verfication of placement, the volunteer will not receive a full refund of their registration fee should they resign or wirthdraw from the project. The volunteer will receive only 10% of the Registration fee as a refund.

CHANGE IN REGISTRATION FEE
Volunteer Compass reserves the right to change, alter, amend or revise the Registration fee at anytime. Any volunteer that has registered and paid in full their fee will not be subject to any changes made.

PHOTOGRAPH
Upon accetance onto a project, each volunteer will be required to submit to Volunteer Compass an up-to-date and realistic likeness photograph. The photogaph will be used for administration purposes and for project leaders to identify the volunteer in the country upon their arrival.

PROJECT FEES
All project fees can be found along side the project descriptions. Please note prices may change. All fees, apart from the Registration fee, are paid directly to our partner organizations. They and not us determine the cost of their project and fees associated with the project. If there were to be a refund requested by a volunteer, the refund would be sought not from us but directly with the partner organization.

PROJECT FEES PAID DIRECTLY TO VOLUNTEER COMPASS
In the instances where a volunteer wishes to pay all their fees for their project via Volunteer Compass, all the transaction fees associated with the online payment will be for the account of the volunteer and will be added to the invoice. The fees will be at cost. Volunteer Compass are not in the business of making money from online banking transfers.

All project fees are due SIXTY (60) days before commencement of the project date. A failure to adhere to this payment date can result in the loss of the project placement and no refund on the Registration fee. Please note, all Registration fees and Project fees are not transferable to other volunteers.

DRUG AND ALCOHOL USE AND MISUSE
Volunteer Compass has standards and ethics volunteers agree to abide by when signing to join any Volunteer Compass project. Each volunteer organization, host family and other members of the volunteer world have rules regarding the consumption of alcohol. These must be abided by without question. Hard and soft drug use (unless prescribed by a professional medical doctor) is strictly prohibited and will result in instant dismissal from the project with no refund what-so-ever. No discussions will be entered into regarding this.

OBEYING THE RULES
Each of our partner organizations have their own rules and regulations referring to behaviour, conduct, areas out-of-bounds and more. It is an obligation if you are accepted onto a project to abide totally by their rules and regulations.

Volunteer Compass provides an all-encompassing service connecting volunteers to partner organizations around the world.  Upon being accepted onto a project, each volunteer agrees that Volunteer Compass is not and shall not be liable for any actions or omissions of any partner organization.

Notwithstanding anything else contained in this or any agreement, the liability of Volunteer Compass to the volunteer shall not in aggregate exceed the amount of the registration fee paid by the volunteer.

The www.volunteercompass.org website's sole purpose is to promote Volunteer Compass' services and those of their partner organizations. Volunteer Compass is a UK based company and falls within the law and jurisdiction of the United Kingdom of Great Britain. Volunteer Compass strives to make the information and details contained in their website as accurate as posiible, however it makes no representation that all information is totally accurate and up-to-date.

Those that access the www.volunteercompass.org website from outside the United Kingdom must satsify themselves that they understand not only the terms used but also the understanding of the language and information on the website and do not misinterpret any of the meaning due to cultural or linguistic reasons. Any questions and queries must be directed to the directors of Volunteer Compass to explain or clarify any points not understood.

FORCE MAJEURE
Volunteer Compass has no liability for any lack of peformance, unavailability or failure of the services, projects or its website or for any failure of Volunteer Compass to comply with these terms and conditions, where the same arises from any cause reasonably beyond the control of Volunteer Compass.