Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd, its principals, employees, servants and agents, will always act with all due care, attention and skill, and you can be assured of our full commitment to your comfort and safety. However, in circumstances where Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd utilises the services of other independent service providers, Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd is not responsible or liable for the acts or omissions of those other service providers, including airlines, transport companies, tour guides, drivers and trackers, for any loss, damage, injury or expense, including but not limited to the loss of money paid in advance, which may occur as a consequence of the negligence of others. This is applies to both persons and property.
You appreciate that you will potentially be travelling to remote parts of the African continent. The tour may expose to you inherent dangers from wild animals, civil and political unrest, other people, disease, accident and extremes of weather. All care and skill will be applied for your protection, but wild animals, by their very nature, are wild and thus unpredictable. Levels of hygiene may not be the same as you are used to, although, again, all care will be taken in that regard. All due care will be taken to ensure that the areas we will visit are safe, but civil or political unrest, even to the extreme of acts of terrorism or war, can spill over from another African nation (or unexpectedly arise in the country in which we are travelling) into an otherwise previously safe area frequented by tourists, and crime is potentially present in any country no matter how apparently civilised. You may be entering desert areas where water is difficult to find and engines and equipment are stressed and challenged beyond their limit, or at the other extreme, you may visit an area where unexpected flash flooding may occur after heavy rain or storms. Again all care and attention will be undertaken to keep you safe, but some events are unforeseen.
You must appreciate that, in the unlikely event that you require evacuation or medical attention, this may prove difficult in a remote part of an African country, and consequently more expensive than one would normally anticipate for a given situation. Significant delays in the provision of assistance, or in evacuation, may be experienced in remote locations. It may even be impossible from a given area, necessitating the transfer to another locale before evacuation can be attempted (eg. a lengthy drive to the nearest airstrip). Depending on the nature of the situation, evacuation may even be required off of the African continent. In any of these types of extreme circumstances, all expenses, including evacuation by road, or by helicopter or fixed wing aircraft, medical expenses, doctors’ fees, meals and accommodation will be your responsibility, and no refund is available for the unused portion of the services to be provided by Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd. You must understand and accept that a medical or other emergency may be life threatening, and by booking with Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd, you accept that these potentially adverse and unfavourable conditions, though hopefully unlikely, are entirely your choice, being part and parcel of adventure travel and the special experience that Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd endeavours to provide to its clientele. For this reason, we will not be able to take you on your chosen tour unless you have read, understood and accepted by way of execution and signature the “Indemnity and Release” form which will be provided to you prior to your departure date, and without proof of adequate travel insurance that covers you for evacuation from remote areas. Such travel insurance is your responsibility and it falls to you to ensure that the travel insurance you choose is sufficient for this kind of adventure travel.
It is also your responsibility to ensure that your vaccinations are fully up-to-date. Travel in some African nations is not possible without proof of current vaccinations (eg. yellow fever). We recommend that you visit your GP or a reputable travel doctor to check on your general level of health for such a trip and to ensure that your are adequately protected by way of vaccination and medication (such as malaria tablets).
It is also your responsibility to ensure that your passport is up-to-date and that you have visas for the countries to be visited. We may be able to assist as regards visas, so feel free to ask.
The aim of Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd is to provide you with a once in a lifetime experience, not available from any other travel provider. But such an experience is inevitably accompanied by potential dangers in a foreign and remote land, and you must understand and accept that all of our skill, care and attention may not be enough to protect you and your property from the impacts of these dangers. At the end of the day, the choice to expose yourself to such potential dangers is yours, and yours alone, and Matson and Ridley Pte Ltd, its principals, employees, servants and agents, are not liable if an unforeseen circumstance befalls you.