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Hunt Cancellation & Date
Changes
A
situation that we feel needs to be more fully addressed
with our clientele is the issue of hunt cancellations
and species changes on booked safaris.
The
safari business has many moving parts that must fall
into place once a safari has been booked, a deposit
paid, and a contract executed between the clients
and the safari company.
At
the point that a deposit is received, the dates of
the hunt are put into the calendar and the contracted
trophy animals (with the exception of plains game
in Zimbabwe which are taken as available on quota)
are taken off the existing quota sheet.
After
the various safari club shows are over and bookings
are recorded, the job of choosing and configuring
camps and selected professional hunters begins. This
is a complicated and difficult task as re-supply
of camps, in bound and out bound charter flights,
and PH schedules all must be tightly coordinated
to assure your safari runs smoothly which is your
desire and ours.
Each
year every safari company gets calls from clients
wishing to change their bag by adding or deleting
species, changing dates, or wishing to cancel their
entire safari for a variety of reasons, some more
valid than others.
Even
minor changes can cause a wide variety of difficulties
for the outfitter as schedules, charters, and personnel
must be in place for many months prior to the safari.
On
occasions the outfitter and or booking agent may
be able to accommodate the change, but often this
comes with associated costs to the client such as
additional charter fees, change of areas, camps,
or professional hunters. Occasionally we hear a client
wishing to cancel an upcoming safari say, “I’ll
just roll my deposit over to next year.” Unfortunately
this is not possible for several reasons. First,
the client was not booked into the following year,
but this year. The following year is often booked
up already with dates and quota already spoken for.
Secondly, the safari operator, due to no fault of
his own, is now stuck with quota he will likely be
unable to sell at the last minute, as well as having
to explain to a booked PH that he has no income coming
from a hunt he was committed to and counting on.
For
that reason, our contract states that:
1.) “There
shall be no refund of any deposit paid is a hunt
is cancelled within 6 months of the date of the safari”
2.) “In the event of a hunt being cancelled prior to 6 months
of the date of the safari, then 50% of the deposit will be refundable.
If
a client has concerns about their scheduling or they
wish to safeguard against the possibility of unforeseen
circumstances (business-health ect…) then you
may want to protect yourself with trip cancellation
insurance which you will be able to purchase from
many sources including Travel Guard. (See brochure
included in this package)
To
avoid costly changes, loss of deposit money, or bad
feelings, please understand that cancellations are
a thing to be avoided if at all possible in the safari
game.
Dave
Fulson
Tim Danklef
