Terms of sale

These terms apply to all sales through www.thewhiskyhouse.com: tickets for tastings and events, and the Bottle of the Month. Please read them carefully. By booking a ticket or confirming an offer, you accept these terms.

1. Seller

The Whisky House BV
Assestraat 11, 1790 Affligem (Essene), Belgium
Enterprise and VAT number: BE 0884.190.929
Email: sales@thewhiskyhouse.com
Phone: +32 485 66 04 30 or +32 2 582 71 36

2. Age: adults only

Belgian law prohibits selling, serving or offering spirits to persons under 18. Whisky is a spirit. Therefore:

• we only sell whisky and tasting tickets to persons aged 18 or over;
• with every order and every offer you confirm that you are 18 or over;
• a valid ID is required on delivery, on pickup at the shop and when attending a tasting.

If the buyer or recipient cannot show an ID proving they are 18 or over, we refuse the delivery, pickup or admission. For a bottle, we refund the purchase price minus the actual shipping and return costs. For a tasting, no refund is given.

3. Prices and payment

All prices are in euro, including VAT. Shipping costs for a bottle are communicated separately and in advance. Online payments are processed securely by our payment partner Mollie (including Bancontact and credit cards). We never receive or store card details.

4. Tickets for tastings and events

Booking. Your booking is final once payment has been received. You then receive a confirmation email with your reference. While you pay, we hold your seats for 30 minutes. Seats are limited and the system never sells more seats than are available.

Passing on your ticket. If you cannot attend, you may pass your ticket on to another adult free of charge. Just let us know the name of that person by email.

Cancellation by you. You can cancel your booking by email:

• up to 14 days before the tasting: full refund;
• 13 to 7 days before the tasting: 50 percent refund;
• less than 7 days before the tasting, or if you do not attend: no refund (passing on your ticket remains possible).

No right of withdrawal. By law, a ticket for a leisure activity on a specific date is not covered by the 14-day right of withdrawal (article VI.53, 12° of the Belgian Code of Economic Law). The cancellation policy above does apply.

Cancellation or changes by us. If we cancel a tasting (for example because there are too few participants, or in case of force majeure), we refund the full amount or, if you prefer, move your booking to another date. We may replace a whisky in the programme with an equivalent whisky.

Tasting responsibly. During a tasting you taste small amounts. We may refuse to serve anyone who is intoxicated. Do not drive after a tasting and plan your transport in advance.

5. Bottle of the Month

5.1 This is not an auction

The Bottle of the Month is not an auction. Presenting a bottle on the website is an invitation to make an offer, not an offer by us. Every bid is an offer to purchase by the bidder. A sale is only concluded when The Whisky House manually accepts an offer. The highest offer is not automatically accepted. We may accept or decline any offer without giving reasons.

5.2 Making an offer

• You must be 18 or over and provide correct details (name, email, phone and country).
• An offer must be at least the minimum amount shown. The website shows the current highest offer and the minimum increment.
• An offer only counts after you have confirmed it through the link in the email you receive.
• You can withdraw a confirmed offer by email as long as it has not been accepted.
• After the offer period ends, we let every bidder know our decision by email.

5.3 Acceptance and payment

The sale is concluded when we inform you by email that we accept your offer. That email states the total amount (your offer plus any shipping costs), the delivery method and the payment deadline (7 days by default). You pay through the secure payment link in the email. If you do not pay in time, we may cancel the sale and offer the bottle to another bidder.

5.4 Delivery, shipping and pickup

Shipping within Europe. We only ship to addresses within the European Union. Shipping costs are stated in the acceptance email and include any excise duties and taxes due in the country of destination. The bottle is only handed over to an adult recipient.

Pickup. You can also collect the bottle free of charge at the shop in Affligem, on Saturdays from 10:00 to 18:00 or by appointment. Please bring an ID.

Buyers outside Europe. If you live outside the European Union, you may make an offer provided that you either (a) arrange and pay for shipping, customs formalities, import duties and taxes yourself, or (b) collect the bottle in person at the shop. You are responsible for complying with the rules on importing alcohol in your country. We are not liable if the import is refused or if additional costs are charged. On request we provide an invoice for export.

Risk. The risk of loss or damage passes to you on delivery or pickup, or when the bottle is handed over to the carrier you chose yourself.

5.5 Condition of old bottles

Old and rare bottles may show signs of age, such as a lower fill level, wear to the label or capsule, and sediment. We describe the condition as accurately as possible, and the photos are part of the description. We do not open bottles to check the contents.

5.6 Right of withdrawal

If you are a consumer, you have the right to withdraw from the purchase within 14 days of receiving or collecting the bottle, without giving any reason. Tell us clearly by email or letter. Then return or bring back the bottle within 14 days, unopened and with the seal intact, in the condition in which you received it. The direct cost of returning the bottle is yours, and the bottle travels at your risk. We refund the purchase price and the original standard shipping costs within 14 days of receiving the bottle in good condition, using the same payment method. An opened bottle, or a bottle with a broken seal, cannot be taken back.

You can use this model form: "To The Whisky House BV, Assestraat 11, 1790 Affligem, sales@thewhiskyhouse.com: I hereby give notice that I withdraw from the contract for the sale of the following bottle: [name of the bottle], received on [date], name and address of the consumer, date."

6. Conformity and warranty

Consumers benefit from the legal two-year warranty for defects that existed at delivery. For old and collectible bottles, the condition as described applies (see 5.5). Please report any problem as soon as possible, and no later than two months after you discover it.

7. Liability

We are liable for damage that is the direct result of our fault. We are not liable for indirect damage, for force majeure, or for damage caused by the import rules of a country outside the European Union. Nothing in these terms limits the rights consumers have by law.

8. Personal data

We process your data as described in our privacy policy.

9. Complaints and disputes

If you have a complaint, please contact us first at sales@thewhiskyhouse.com and we will look for a solution together. If we cannot resolve it together, consumers can contact the Belgian Consumer Mediation Service (www.consumentenombudsdienst.be). These terms are governed by Belgian law. In case of a dispute, the courts designated by law have jurisdiction; consumers keep the protection of the mandatory rules of their country of residence.

10. Changes

We may change these terms. A booking or an offer is governed by the terms that applied at the moment of booking or confirming the offer. The Dutch text prevails over translations.