Terms & Conditions of Service

These Terms & Conditions of Service (the "Terms") are an agreement between Westminster Chariots LLC ("Westminster Chariots", "WC", "we", "us") and the person or organization that makes a reservation (the "Customer", "you"). "Passenger" means anyone who travels under a reservation, and "Guest" means anyone travelling with a Passenger.

You accept these Terms by ticking the acceptance box at checkout (or by signing a written order or agreement with us). We keep a record of the version you accepted, and that version governs your reservation unless we both agree to a change or the law requires otherwise.

These Terms incorporate the Cancellation & Refund Policy, the Payment & Additional Charges Policy, the Minor Travel & Guardian Authorization Policy (when it applies), the Accessibility Statement and the Privacy Policy. If a supporting policy and these Terms conflict, these Terms control unless the supporting policy says otherwise for its specific subject.

You must be at least 18 and able to enter a binding contract to make a reservation. If you book for someone else, you confirm that you are authorized to do so and that you will share the relevant parts of these Terms with each Passenger.

A Passenger under 18 may travel without an accompanying adult only under a completed Guardian Authorization (see section 17).

At checkout we ask, separately from these Terms, for your consent to use electronic records and signatures for your reservation and to receive reservation notices electronically. That consent, its scope, how to withdraw it and how to request a paper copy are described in the Electronic Records Consent.

Westminster Chariots provides prearranged chauffeured ground transportation, including point-to-point and airport transfers, Hourly (as-directed) service, corporate and executive travel, special events and long-distance trips. Every service is prearranged; we do not accept street hails.

Services are offered in the reserved vehicle class (for example Business Sedan or Business SUV), subject to availability, safety, operational feasibility and the law. Where Virginia law requires a minimum contract period for a service, the contract period for that service is at least that minimum even if the physical trip is shorter; your price already reflects this.

Vehicle photographs and model names on our website are representative. Your vehicle will be of the reserved class or an equivalent or higher class (see section 22).

A reservation is confirmed only when payment of the full confirmed price has succeeded and we have issued a confirmation showing your reservation number. A reservation awaiting payment ("Payment Pending") is not a confirmed or held reservation unless we tell you in writing that an exception applies.

You are responsible for giving accurate pickup and drop-off details, times, passenger and luggage counts, flight details and contact information. We may need to adjust or decline a reservation if the details make it unsafe, unlawful or impossible to perform; if we decline after you have paid, we refund you in full.

The price shown at checkout is your confirmed price for the itinerary, vehicle class and service you selected. It includes any mandatory charges we can reasonably determine at booking, including predictable tolls. It does not include a gratuity; no automatic gratuity or service charge is added, and any tip is at your discretion.

Normal reservations are paid 100% in advance. We do not offer deposits, instalments or payment to the chauffeur as a normal way to pay. Separate written terms (for example a signed corporate agreement) may provide otherwise; see section 31.

If a price is displayed because of an obvious technical or typographical error, we will tell you before the trip and you may accept the correct price or cancel for a full refund. We will not change a confirmed price for any other reason except as these Terms allow for changes you request or the additional charges described in section 8.

Card payments are processed by our payment processor. We do not store your full card number. See the Privacy Policy.

For One Way, Round Trip and Hourly reservations alike, the charge for a cancellation you make depends on the time remaining before the scheduled pickup. Before any journey of a Round Trip or other reservation with more than one journey has started, the reservation is cancelled as a whole: the time is measured from the scheduled pickup of its first journey, and the charge is a percentage of the whole reservation amount. After a journey has been completed (for example, the outbound ride of a Round Trip), you may cancel the journeys that have not started: the fare of each completed journey is retained and is not refunded, and the charge is a percentage of the recorded price of the journeys being cancelled only, measured from the earliest scheduled pickup among them. For a Round Trip, this means the charge applies only to the return ride's price, measured from the return ride's own scheduled pickup. Any gratuity included in the price of a cancelled journey is always refunded in full. While a journey is in progress, the reservation cannot be cancelled online; please contact us. Your cancellation takes effect when you submit it online through your account or our reservation platform, or when we receive your request by e-mail to info@westminsterchariots.com or a call to (571) 426-6338:

A reservation where the passenger is unavailable (section 10) is treated as a reservation cancelled with less than 12 hours' notice.

Multi-vehicle, multi-day or event reservations may carry different cancellation terms; if so, they are shown to you before you pay and recorded with your reservation, and they control for that reservation.

If we cancel, or cannot perform paid transportation and you do not accept a substitute or new time we offer, we refund the amount you paid for the transportation we did not provide. Refunds are processed by our owner or an authorized administrator within 3 business days after the cancellation is confirmed, to the original payment method. Your bank or card issuer may take additional time to post a refund. A refund is recorded alongside your original payment; it does not erase it.

At checkout you authorize only the following categories of additional charge, and only when they actually arise:

• Waiting beyond the complimentary grace period (section 9), at $0.52 per minute.
• Hourly time beyond your booked duration, in 30-minute increments (a partial increment counts as a full one) at your package's disclosed rate (section 12).
• Distance beyond an Hourly package's included miles, at your package's disclosed rate (section 12).
• Changes or added stops you request after booking, priced as we tell you when you ask.
• Tolls, parking and venue charges that could not reasonably be known at booking, at actual cost with no markup (section 13).
• Documented excessive cleaning and documented damage caused by a Passenger or Guest (sections 26 and 27).

For each additional charge we send you an itemized notice naming the category, the amount, the date and the supporting record we hold (for example a toll record, receipt or photographs) and how to question it. We then collect it through a payment request or another method you approve. We do not use a general authorization to charge you for anything else. The Payment & Additional Charges Policy gives the details.

Standard pickups include 15 minutes of complimentary waiting after the scheduled pickup time. Airport arrival pickups include 60 minutes of complimentary waiting after the flight's tracked actual landing time, when you gave us a valid arrival flight number.

If you or the Passenger contact us to say you are delayed, we are generally glad to keep waiting when the chauffeur's schedule, following reservations, airport and curb rules, safety and the law allow. We cannot promise unlimited waiting. Waiting beyond the grace period is charged at $0.52 per minute, for each completed minute.

If the grace period ends, the Passenger has not arrived and we have made at least 2 reasonable, documented attempts to reach the Passenger or you using the contact details on the reservation, we may close the trip as "Incomplete — Passenger Unavailable". We may leave sooner if remaining is unsafe or not permitted (for example by airport or law-enforcement direction).

For a trip closed this way, the prepaid fare is retained, subject to applicable law. You are not charged a second time; we keep the payment already made.

When you give us a valid arrival flight number, we use the flight's actual arrival time to plan the pickup and to start the airport waiting allowance (section 9). Flight information from airlines and flight-data services can be late or wrong; we act reasonably on the information available but cannot guarantee its accuracy.

If no flight number is given, or the flight details are materially wrong, the scheduled pickup time may apply. Please tell us about diversions, cancellations or rebookings as soon as you can.

Hourly service is a vehicle and chauffeur at your direction for a booked duration. Each Hourly package or quote states, before you pay: the booked duration, the vehicle class, the included distance in miles, the rate for additional time and the rate for distance beyond the included miles, and any geographic or operational limits. Those values are recorded with your reservation and do not change if our package pricing later changes.

Additional time beyond the booked duration is billed in 30-minute increments at the package's disclosed rate. A partial increment is rounded up and billed as a full increment (for example, 31 minutes over is billed as two 30-minute increments).

Included time and included distance are separate allowances. If you exceed the included miles but not the booked time, only the excess-distance charge applies. If you exceed the booked time but not the included miles, only the additional-time charge applies. If you exceed both, both may apply. Hourly service is never unlimited mileage unless your package expressly says so.

Extensions depend on chauffeur and vehicle availability and on legal limits on chauffeur working time.

Predictable mandatory tolls and similar charges are included in your confirmed price when we can reasonably determine them at booking. Tolls, parking, airport or venue charges that could not reasonably be known at booking - for example because of Hourly routing, added stops, changes you request or variable venue parking - may be charged afterward at their actual cost, with no Westminster Chariots markup, and each is itemized (for example "Dulles Toll Road - $6.00").

Ask us before your trip to change the time, route, stops or vehicle. We will confirm whether the change is possible and any price difference before it takes effect. During a trip, the chauffeur may accommodate reasonable requests when safe and lawful; added stops or routing changes may be charged as described in section 8.

Each vehicle class has a maximum passenger and luggage capacity shown at booking. For safety and legal reasons we cannot exceed it. Every Passenger must use a seat belt where one is provided.

The parent, guardian or booking customer is responsible for supplying an appropriate child safety seat or booster for any child who needs one, and for its correct installation. Westminster Chariots does not provide child safety seats or boosters. Our chauffeur may help load or position a seat but does not inspect or certify installation.

We apply this rule as a safety policy even where a statutory exemption for chauffeured vehicles may exist (for example in Virginia). Child-restraint laws differ between Virginia, the District of Columbia and Maryland, and we may decline to transport a child without an appropriate restraint.

A Passenger under 18 may travel without an accompanying adult when that Passenger's parent or legal guardian completes our written Guardian Authorization for the specific reservation, and the trip can be performed safely and lawfully. The Minor Travel & Guardian Authorization Policy explains what is required.

We may decline or end a minor's trip if the authorization is incomplete or inaccurate, if the guardian or emergency contact cannot be reached when needed, or if safety requires it. We do not use minor travel information for marketing.

We do not discriminate on the basis of disability and never charge a disability-related surcharge. We carry mobility devices that can be safely stowed in the reserved vehicle. Wheelchair-accessible vehicles are not part of our standard fleet; if you need one, contact us before booking and we will tell you honestly what we can arrange.

Service animals are welcome and are not pets; there is no fee for a service animal. Other animals require advance notice and a secure carrier or arrangement. See the Accessibility Statement.

Smoking, vaping and alcohol (including open alcohol containers) are not permitted in Westminster Chariots vehicles. This applies to every service, including Hourly, special events and school events.

Passengers and Guests must behave lawfully and safely and treat the chauffeur with respect. We may refuse or end service for illegal, threatening, abusive, harassing, destructive or unsafe conduct; where there is an immediate safety risk we may do so without warning. If a trip is ended for such conduct, the fare already paid is retained to the extent applicable law permits.

Illegal items and substances, explosives, flammable or hazardous materials, and anything that endangers the chauffeur, Passengers or the vehicle are not permitted. We may decline to carry an item we reasonably consider unsafe.

The chauffeur may make safety decisions about routing, stopping and continuing a trip. In an emergency we may contact emergency services and the emergency contact on the reservation.

We may provide a different vehicle of the same or a higher class. A substitute will still meet the passenger capacity, luggage needs, confirmed accessibility needs and other material requirements of your reservation. We will not downgrade you to a smaller or lower class without your agreement; if we cannot provide a suitable vehicle and you do not accept an alternative, we refund the transportation not provided.

Pickup and arrival times are planned carefully, but traffic, weather, road closures, airport operations and similar factors can cause delays. Please allow reasonable time for important connections.

If severe weather, road or airport closures, government action, civil emergencies, extraordinary traffic events, a mechanical or chauffeur emergency, a public-safety event or other circumstances reasonably outside our control affect your trip, we may delay, reroute, substitute a vehicle, offer a new time or cancel where necessary. If we cannot perform the paid transportation and you do not accept a substitute or new time, you receive a refund for the transportation not provided.

Occasionally we may arrange your trip with a vetted transportation provider that holds its own required operating authority and insurance. We will tell you if your trip will be performed by another provider. Each party remains responsible for its own acts and omissions as the law provides; nothing in these Terms removes responsibilities the law places on us.

We take reasonable care of items left in a vehicle and hold found items for about 30 days. Contact us promptly; return shipping or pickup is at the owner's cost. Identity documents, payment cards and similar items may be handed to the issuer or the appropriate authority. We cannot guarantee that an item will be found or recovered.

Ordinary cleaning is included in every reservation. If a Passenger or Guest causes cleaning beyond ordinary use - for example a significant food or drink spill, severe staining, vomit or other bodily fluids, smoking or vaping remediation, or exceptional debris or contamination - we may charge the reasonable, documented actual cost of the additional cleaning or remediation. We document the condition (for example with photographs, the chauffeur's notes and any cleaning invoice) and share it with you before we seek payment.

You are responsible for physical damage to a vehicle caused by a Passenger or Guest, limited to the reasonable, documented actual cost of repair and any other loss the law allows us to recover. We give you a written description, the supporting evidence and the amount, and a way to question it, before we seek payment. We do not apply penalties or speculative lost-revenue formulas.

We send reservation-related messages - confirmations, receipts, chauffeur and trip updates, changes, refunds and security notices - by e-mail. We or your chauffeur may also call or text the mobile number on the reservation about your trip. These messages are part of the service. We send marketing only if you have separately opted in, and you can opt out at any time. Making a reservation does not subscribe you to marketing.

Discretion is central to our service. How we collect, use, share and keep personal information is described in the Privacy Policy.

If you believe a charge is wrong, please contact accounting@westminsterchariots.com first - most questions are resolved quickly. Filing a card dispute does not waive any right you have, and we may provide your reservation records, acceptance records and trip evidence to the card network in response. We may cancel reservations made with stolen or unauthorized payment details.

If you book for an organization, you confirm that you are authorized to act for it, to make reservations within the permissions it has given you, to provide its travelers' information and to accept charges on its behalf.

Adding a traveler to an organization's profile does not give that traveler portal access. Business Suite users can see only the information their role permits.

Reservations are prepaid unless a signed written agreement between Westminster Chariots and your organization provides otherwise. Where such an agreement expressly conflicts with these Terms, the agreement controls for that subject; otherwise these Terms apply.

The Westminster Chariots name, logo, website, photography and text belong to us or our licensors. You may use the website to learn about and book our services, not to copy, scrape or misuse it.

We provide our services with reasonable care and skill. Apart from the promises in these Terms and any rights the law gives you that cannot be excluded, we do not make other warranties about the services.

To the extent the law permits, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special or consequential losses - including missed flights, missed appointments, lost business, lost profits or lost opportunities - caused by delays or events outside our reasonable control. To the extent the law permits, our total liability for any claim arising from a reservation is limited to the amount paid for that reservation.

To the extent the law permits, you agree to reimburse our reasonable costs from third-party claims to the extent they are caused by a Passenger's or Guest's unlawful conduct, breach of these Terms or deliberate damage. This does not apply to claims caused by our own negligence or misconduct.

Step 1 - Tell us in writing. Send a written complaint (a "Notice of Dispute") to legal@westminsterchariots.com. Include your name and contact details, the reservation number, a description of the dispute and the relevant facts, and the resolution you want. A Notice of Dispute is a contractual notice; it is not formal service of legal process.

Step 2 - Try to resolve it directly. We will acknowledge your notice and work with you in good faith to resolve the dispute within 30 days after we receive it. This period does not delay or reduce any refund due to you under these Terms or our Cancellation & Refund Policy, and it does not affect the rights described below.

Step 3 - Mediation. If the dispute is not resolved within that period, either of us may propose mediation with a neutral mediator we both agree on. Mediation is not binding unless we both sign a written settlement. Each of us pays our own costs, and we share the mediator's fees equally, unless we agree otherwise in writing or the law requires a different allocation.

Step 4 - Court. If the dispute is not resolved through mediation, or we cannot agree on a mediator within 30 days after mediation is proposed, either of us may bring the claim in the courts described in section 36.

Rights this section does not affect. Nothing in this section prevents you from filing a complaint with, or seeking relief through, a government agency or regulator; prevents either of us from bringing a claim in small-claims court or from asking a court for urgent relief (for example to prevent immediate harm or misuse of intellectual property); or shortens any deadline the law gives you to bring a claim. If a legal deadline would expire before these steps are completed, either of us may file a claim to protect it.

Covered disputes are disputes about these Terms, a reservation or our services. If any part of this section is unenforceable, the rest remains in effect.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia and applicable federal law, without regard to conflict-of-law rules, except where the law of the place you live gives you protections that cannot be waived. A claim that proceeds in court will be brought in an appropriate state or federal court in Virginia, unless the law entitles you to bring it in another court (for example, a court where you live).

Order of precedence: a signed written agreement (to the extent it expressly conflicts), then the terms specific to your reservation shown at checkout, then these Terms and the incorporated policies.

If a provision is unenforceable, the rest remains in effect. We may assign these Terms to a successor business; you may not assign them without our consent. These Terms, the incorporated policies and your reservation details are the entire agreement about your reservation. Provisions that by their nature should survive (including payment, charges, liability and disputes) survive completion or cancellation.

We may update these Terms for future reservations by publishing a new version with a new version number and effective date. A change does not apply to a reservation you have already made unless you agree or the law requires it.

Written complaints, Notices of Dispute and other contractual notices to us must be sent to legal@westminsterchariots.com.