General terms and conditions Arendt Academy (of the Hannah Arendt Institute vzw) for purchasing and taking part in online courses, webinars, registrations for learning communities and products. (version March 2022)
1. Definitions
1.1 In these General Terms and Conditions (hereinafter ‘terms’), the following definitions apply:
a) Arendt Academy: the online learning platform of the Hannah Arendt Institute vzw, which sells the products and offers the services;
b) Buyer: the party (consumer or legal entity) that buys a product or service from Arendt Academy;
c) Participant: the party (consumer or legal entity) that takes a (free or paid) course or webinar at Arendt Academy.
2. General
2.1 These terms apply to all services/offers made by Arendt Academy via its digital learning platform www.arendt-academy.be, for ordering products and registering for online courses and webinars.
2.2 The Hannah Arendt Institute reserves the right to amend or supplement these terms.
2.3 If any provision of these terms is or becomes void or is annulled, the remaining provisions of these terms remain valid.
2.4 Arendt Academy cannot be held to its offers if the buyer/participant reasonably understands or should understand that the offers, or any part of them, contain an obvious error or typo.
2.5 The agreement between Arendt Academy and the buyer/participant is concluded at the moment the buyer/participant clicks the registration or purchase button.
2.6 For its services, Arendt Academy has an obligation of means, not an obligation of result.
2.7 These terms remain in force if Arendt Academy (of the Hannah Arendt Institute vzw) changes its name, legal form or owner.
3. Delivery and payment of products
3.1 If the ordered products are in stock, they are dispatched within seven working days of the order. Exceeding this period does not give any right to compensation.
3.2 The place of delivery is only the address the buyer has provided to Arendt Academy.
3.3 Unless expressly stated otherwise, all prices on the web platform include VAT. Any handling and/or shipping costs due are shown during the ordering process in the webshop.
3.4 Orders of printed material can be paid in advance via PayPal. Printed material is delivered once Arendt Academy has approved the payment.
3.5 Orders of an individual online course can be paid via PayPal. Buyers of an individual e-learning module automatically receive an invoice by email and have immediate access to the module after payment via PayPal.
4. Right of withdrawal
4.1 The buyer has the right to return delivered products to Arendt Academy within a cooling-off period of fourteen days, without giving any reason. The cooling-off period starts on the first day after the buyer has received the printed materials. If the buyer exercises this right of withdrawal, only the costs of returning the goods are borne by the buyer.
4.2 As soon as the return has been received by Arendt Academy and checked for any damage, the purchase amount (including the handling/shipping contribution) is refunded, provided the item is in good condition. This will be refunded within 30 days to the bank account the buyer used to pay for the order, or credited to the relevant credit card. Keep the shipping confirmation and the track & trace code of the return. Arendt Academy may ask for these.
4.3 The right of withdrawal does not apply to the sale of individual online courses, because it has been agreed with the buyer that they receive immediate access to the module after payment, so returning it is no longer possible.
6. Participation in paid meetings, courses and webinars
6.1 You can register for a paid meeting, course or webinar via the registration form. Registrations are handled in order of receipt. If there are too many registrations, you will be put on a waiting list. You can only take part in the paid meeting, course or webinar concerned if you receive an email confirming your participation.
6.2 Participation criteria apply to some courses. Participants are then selected on the basis of a questionnaire or an interview.
6.3 The fee for the paid course/webinar must be paid within 14 days of the invoice date.
6.4 If a participant is unable to attend a paid meeting, the participant owes Arendt Academy €50.00 (excl. VAT) in cancellation costs up to eight days before the paid meeting. In the event of cancellation less than eight days before the meeting, the participant owes Arendt Academy the full amount.
6.5 If a participant is unable to attend a paid course/webinar, the participant owes Arendt Academy €50.00 (excl. VAT) in cancellation costs up to 14 days before the paid meeting. In the event of cancellation less than 14 days before the course, the participant owes Arendt Academy the full amount.
6.6 If a participant is unable to attend a paid meeting/course, a substitute may be sent in their place at no extra cost, provided the substitution is notified to Arendt Academy no later than 10:00 on the day before the meeting via: info@hannah-arendt.institute.
7. Participation in free meetings
7.1 You can register for a free meeting via the registration form. Registrations are handled in order of receipt. If there are too many registrations, you will be put on a waiting list. Please note: you can only take part in the meeting concerned if you receive a written confirmation of participation.
7.2 If a participant is unable to attend a free meeting, they can cancel free of charge. We kindly ask you to let Arendt Academy know as soon as possible if you cannot attend, via: info@hannah-arendt.institute. People on the waiting list will then get a chance to take part after all.
8. Cancellation of meetings and courses by Arendt Academy
8.1 If, in the opinion of Arendt Academy, too few participants have registered up to eight days before a meeting, Arendt Academy has the right to remove the meeting from the website and to consider the agreement with those who have already registered as dissolved, without judicial intervention being required. Those concerned are informed of such a cancellation decision as soon as possible. Any participation fees already paid are refunded.
8.2 If, due to circumstances including force majeure, for example illness of the trainer, a meeting on the website cannot go ahead, Arendt Academy sets a new date for the meeting. Participants who have already registered are informed by Arendt Academy as soon as possible of the new date and any new location and/or start time.
8.3 Arendt Academy’s notice that the date has changed also constitutes termination of the agreements relating to the meeting on the original date and an offer to take part in the meeting on the new date. Only those who confirm that they agree to the new date are placed on the list of participants for the meeting on the new date. Those who do not register for the meeting on the new date owe Arendt Academy nothing in this respect. Any participation fees already paid are refunded.
8.4 If, due to circumstances, a meeting on the website is to take place at a different location, participants are informed of this by Arendt Academy as soon as possible. If Arendt Academy changes the location of a meeting due to circumstances, Arendt Academy also has the right to adjust the start time of the meeting to this new situation. A change of location does not cancel registrations. However, registrants may cancel their registration without giving reasons and without owing cancellation costs within one week of Arendt Academy informing them of the change of location.
8.5 If Arendt Academy cancels a meeting or changes the date, location or start time of a meeting, Arendt Academy is not liable for any compensation or guarantee.
9. Liability and indemnification
9.1 Arendt Academy is not liable for any form of direct or indirect damage relating to the supply of its products and services.
9.2 Should Arendt Academy nevertheless be held liable for damage to persons or property, that liability is limited to the amount paid out in that case under Arendt Academy’s business liability insurance, less any applicable excess, in accordance with that business liability insurance.
9.3 A condition for any right to compensation is always that the buyer/participant reports the damage to Arendt Academy in writing as soon as possible, and in any case within two weeks, after discovering or after they should reasonably have discovered the damage.
9.4 Any claim for compensation against Arendt Academy lapses one year after the agreement has been performed, without prejudice to any earlier grounds for lapse under the law.
9.5 If proper performance of the assignment so requires, Arendt Academy will engage third parties. Arendt Academy is not liable for shortcomings or negligence of these third parties, except in the case of intent or gross negligence on the part of Arendt Academy. If these third parties wish to limit their liability in connection with the performance of an assignment from Arendt Academy, Arendt Academy assumes, and where necessary hereby confirms, that all assignments given to it by the buyer/participant include the authority to accept such a limitation of liability on behalf of the buyer/participant.
10. Privacy and confidentiality
10.1 Arendt Academy collects and processes personal data of buyers of products and participants in meetings for the purpose of entering into and performing (purchase) agreements with the person concerned and handling them. On accepting the (purchase) agreement/these terms, the buyer/participant is deemed to have given explicit informed consent for the processing of this personal data by Arendt Academy and any processors of personal data acting for Arendt Academy.
10.2 Arendt Academy does not provide or sell personal data to third parties, such as other companies or organisations, unless this is necessary for the performance of its services or Arendt Academy is required to do so by law. Arendt Academy kindly refers you to its Privacy statement , which describes how we handle personal data and what your rights are.
10.3 Arendt Academy and the buyer/participant may not disclose information that is or could be confidential in nature to third parties not involved in the agreement, nor use the information for any purpose other than that for which it was obtained. This information is subject to a duty of confidentiality, unless the exception in art. 10.2 applies.
10.4 The obligations under this article also remain in force after (early) termination of the agreement.
11. Intellectual property rights
11.1 All intellectual property rights and similar rights to the products, meetings and courses of Arendt Academy belong exclusively to Arendt Academy or to the licensors or licensees of Arendt Academy.
11.2 The buyer/participant may not reproduce, modify or copy, in whole or in part, any product or service supplied by Arendt Academy to the buyer/participant without the prior written consent of Arendt Academy.
12. Complaints
12.1 If you have a complaint about our products, meetings or courses, you can submit it via the form of the Hannah Arendt Institute. Please describe your complaint as precisely as possible. You will receive a response from us as soon as possible, and in any case within four weeks.
12.2 Complaints do not suspend the obligation to pay.
13. Applicable law and competent court
13.1 All agreements between Arendt Academy and the buyer/participant are governed by Belgian law.
13.2 All disputes arising from or relating to these terms and agreements between Arendt Academy and the buyer/participant will be settled by the court of Mechelen, unless the law mandatorily designates another competent court.