Helderberg Dog Coaching Centre
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Terms and Conditions

Terms and Conditions

Effective Date: 7 June 2026 Version: v3 Document ID: hdcc-terms-2026-06-07 Status: Active

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS CAREFULLY. They contain important provisions that limit our liability and require you to indemnify us in certain circumstances. Under the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) section 49, we draw your specific attention to those clauses before you agree to them. The plain-language summary in Section 11 (Indemnity — Plain Summary) explains what you are agreeing to.

1. The Parties

These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your use of facilities and/or services provided by Helderberg Dog Coaching Centre ("HDCC", "we", "us", "our"). HDCC is a trading name operated by Zelda Simon (the "Owner").

These Terms apply to you, the "Client", and any person or dog you bring to our facilities. By engaging with us, you agree to be bound by these Terms, our Rules, our Cancellation and No-Show Policy, our Privacy Policy, our Liability Waiver, and our Photo and Media Release.

2. Definitions

  • Client / Handler: The person registering, booking, paying or using services.
  • Dog: Any canine animal brought to the Site by the Client.
  • Session: A scheduled coaching class, private lesson, conditioning session, or field rental slot.
  • Booking: A reservation made for a Session.
  • Subscription: A recurring monthly payment for an active option — Canine Conditioning and Fitness Coaching (CFT), Agility Private, or Hoopers Private — see Section 6.
  • Field Rental: Per-session hire of a field at R100 per 25-minute session per dog.
  • Site: The training facilities at Annandale Drive, Somerset West, on the Seventh Day Adventist School premises.
  • Coach: Zelda Simon, Elzabi van Wyk, Sarah Davies (in her photographer/collaborator capacity), or any authorised instructor acting on Zelda's behalf.
  • Landlord: Seventh Day Adventist School.

3. Acceptance and Electronic Signature

By ticking the acceptance boxes on our registration platform, drawing your signature on the on-screen signature pad, and submitting the form, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agreed to these Terms.

Under the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECTA) section 13, an electronic signature that the parties have agreed will be used and that meets the reliability requirements of section 13(3) is legally valid for service contracts of this kind. Your drawn-pad signature, combined with your account email confirmation, constitutes a valid electronic signature for the purpose of accepting these Terms.

4. Services Offered

HDCC provides the following services (current pricing in Section 6):

  • Field Rentals — self-directed 25-minute slots on Agility, Hoopers, or the Spare Field.
  • Canine Conditioning and Fitness Coaching (CFT) — Initial Assessment + ongoing maintenance + group warm-up/cool-down. Delivered in the Canine Conditioning Studio.
  • Agility — group classes and private lessons from Foundations through Advanced.
  • Hoopers — group classes and private lessons from Foundations through Advanced.
  • Trick Dogs — in development; activation date to be announced.
  • Event Hosting — half or full-day hire of HDCC facilities for competitive or non-competitive dog-sport events (KUSA, SADAA, SAWDA and similar disciplines welcome).

5. Site Rules (cross-reference)

Detailed Site Rules — including the Sabbath observance (sunset on a Friday to sunrise on a Sunday), vaccination requirements, conduct expectations, and the presence of Zelda's personal dogs — are set out in our separate Rules document. You must read and tick acceptance of the Rules document as part of registration.

6. Pricing and Subscriptions

All prices are in South African Rand (ZAR). HDCC is not registered for VAT (turnover below the R1m threshold), so all prices are VAT-inclusive only. No VAT-exclusive or VAT-added pricing will appear on any HDCC invoice or page.

6.1 Field Rental Pricing

  • R100 per session per dog, for a 25-minute self-booked slot.
  • Self-directed (no coach included).
  • Not included in any subscription.

6.2 Subscription Options (active)

Three monthly subscriptions are available. Each is independent of the others — you may hold any combination simultaneously (e.g. CFT + Agility Private at R2,000/month total).

  • Canine Conditioning and Fitness Coaching (CFT) — R1,000/month. 4 conditioning sessions per month with Zelda in the Canine Conditioning Studio. A 5th session, if available in a 5-week month, is a free admin-discretionary bonus and may be withdrawn at HDCC's sole discretion. The 5th session may also be used to make up a lesson cancelled within the cancellation policy rules — any cancelled lesson must be rescheduled within 30 days of the cancellation, after which the make-up right lapses.

    CFT signup is a commitment to an Initial Assessment + three months of conditioning, billed monthly. Three months is the minimum window in which Zelda can demonstrate measurable change on structural and gait measurements; shorter commitments do not serve the Client's investment or HDCC's coaching method. If the Initial Assessment is conducted in month A, the first monthly coaching session begins in month A+1 — this allows Zelda time to complete the gait analysis video and structural assessment that inform the conditioning plan. Cancellation rights under CPA section 14 (20 business days' written notice) apply throughout, subject to a reasonable cancellation charge for any sessions already delivered or scheduled within the notice period.

  • Agility Private — R1,000/month. 4 one-on-one agility coaching sessions per month. 5th-session bonus as above (including the make-up right).

  • Hoopers Private — R1,000/month. 4 one-on-one hoopers coaching sessions per month. 5th-session bonus as above (including the make-up right).

6.3 Initial Assessment (CFT)

The first CFT session is an Initial Assessment at R1,200 once-off (60-90 minutes — gait analysis, structural analysis, and tailored conditioning plan). This is separate from the monthly CFT subscription and is billed once at sign-up.

6.4 Fundamentals Courses (Hoopers and Agility — separate)

Hoopers Fundamentals and Agility Fundamentals are offered as separate 8-week courses. Each course is R2,000 total, and includes a warm-up and cool-down session in one of the eight weeks.

Each R2,000 fee is paid as a split:

  • R1,050 to Elzabi van Wyk (course tuition fee — deposited into Elzabi's nominated bank account).
  • R950 to HDCC (field and equipment use levy — deposited into HDCC's nominated bank account).

You will receive two separate payment instructions at booking. Enrolling in both Fundamentals courses (Hoopers + Agility) requires two separate course bookings.

6.5 Payment Methods

We accept PayFast or EFT via PayFast only. Subscription payments are billed in advance.

7. Auto-Renewal and Notice (CPA section 14)

YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AUTO-RENEWS.

  • Auto-Renewal: Your monthly Subscription will automatically renew on the first day of each calendar month unless you cancel.
  • Your Right to Cancel: Under the Consumer Protection Act section 14, you may cancel at any time by giving us 20 business days' written notice via email to legal-notices@helderbergdogcoaching.co.za. A reasonable cancellation charge may apply for sessions already delivered or scheduled within the notice period.
  • Material-Change Notice: We will notify you between 40 and 80 business days before any material change to subscription terms or price.

8. Cooling-Off for New Online Subscriptions (ECTA section 44)

Because HDCC subscriptions are taken out electronically, the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act section 44 gives you a 7-day cooling-off period to cancel any new subscription without reason.

  • The 7 days run from the day after your subscription begins.
  • To cancel under this clause, email the Information Officer at legal-notices@helderbergdogcoaching.co.za.
  • We will refund the full subscription fee within 30 days, minus the pro-rata cost of any sessions you have already attended within the 7-day window (per ECTA s44(2)(a) — services begun with your consent).

This cooling-off right applies only to new subscriptions and does not affect the per-session cancellation policy in Section 9 below.

9. Cancellation and No-Show Policy (cross-reference)

Detailed session cancellation rules (24-hour notice, no-show forfeiture, refund mechanics, admin-discretion bonus sessions, Fundamentals course refund schedule) are set out in our separate Cancellation and No-Show Policy. You must read and tick acceptance of that document as part of registration.

10. Client Obligations

You agree to:

  • Provide accurate information when registering.
  • Disclose any history of aggression, bite incidents, fear reactivity, or medical issues regarding your dog.
  • Keep vaccination records current and available for inspection.
  • Follow all instructions given by the Coach.
  • Ensure your dog is under control at all times.
  • Pay in advance for all services you book.

11. Indemnity — Plain Summary (CPA section 49)

Read this. You are agreeing to take on certain risks.

By accepting these Terms, you agree that:

  1. Dog coaching is an activity with inherent risks. Bites, scratches, falls, and unpredictable behaviour can happen. You accept these risks by participating.
  2. You will pay for damage your dog causes to other dogs, people, or property at the Site.
  3. You will not bring a claim against HDCC, Zelda Simon personally, our Coaches, or the Landlord for losses caused by your own negligence or your dog's behaviour.
  4. You CAN still bring a claim against HDCC for losses caused by HDCC's gross negligence or HDCC's intentional wrongdoing — these are your protected rights under CPA section 51 and cannot be excluded.

The detailed indemnity language is in our separate Liability Waiver and Indemnity document, which you will read and sign separately.

12. Limitation of Liability (CPA section 48)

To the extent permitted by South African law and excluding the protected categories in Section 11.4 above:

  • HDCC's total liability to you for any claim arising from these Terms is capped at the total fees you have paid to HDCC in the 12 months preceding the claim. We do not believe this cap is unfair under CPA section 48 because it is proportionate to the value of the services rendered.
  • HDCC excludes liability for indirect, consequential, or special damages.
  • This cap and these exclusions do NOT apply to liabilities that cannot be excluded by law, including HDCC's own gross negligence (CPA section 51).

13. Policy Changes — Instant Notification

When we change any of the following documents — these Terms, the Rules, the Cancellation Policy, the Privacy Policy, the Liability Waiver, or the Photo and Media Release — we will:

  1. Send an email immediately from legal-notices@helderbergdogcoaching.co.za (a no-reply address used only for legal notices) to every registered handler with a link to the updated document and a short summary of what changed.
  2. Show an updated "Effective Date" and "Document ID" at the top of the changed document.
  3. Honor a 30-day grace period during which you can cancel any subscription without penalty if you disagree with the change.

You should add legal-notices@helderbergdogcoaching.co.za and helderbergdogcoachingcentre@gmail.com to your safe-sender list. If you do not receive a change-notification email, please check your spam or promotions folder and mark our sender as safe.

14. Intellectual Property

HDCC retains all intellectual property rights in our curriculum, training materials, website content, and video footage. For rights regarding photos or videos of you and your dog, please refer to our separate Photo and Media Release.

15. Force Majeure and Field-Closure Discretion

We are not liable for failure to perform due to events beyond our reasonable control, including load-shedding, extreme weather, weather whose aftermath renders the field surface unsafe (e.g. slippery turf following heavy rain), pandemics or government lockdowns, closures imposed by the Landlord, and acts of God.

HDCC reserves sole discretion to close the Site, suspend sessions, or modify session arrangements where Zelda or any authorised Coach determines that safety, weather, surface conditions, or operational requirements require it. Decisions to close or modify under this clause are made in good faith on safety and operational grounds and are not subject to challenge under this Section.

16. Suspension and Termination

HDCC reserves the right, at our sole discretion, to suspend or terminate your access immediately if you breach safety rules, fail to make payment, repeatedly violate Site Rules, or if your dog poses a safety risk to others.

17. Dispute Resolution

We prefer to resolve disputes amicably.

  1. Negotiation: We will attempt to resolve the dispute in good faith within 14 days.
  2. Mediation: If negotiation fails, we will attempt mediation.
  3. Arbitration: If mediation fails, the dispute will be referred to arbitration under the AFSA Rules.
  4. Statutory rights: Nothing in these Terms prevents you from approaching the National Consumer Commission, a provincial consumer court, or the Information Regulator regarding your statutory rights.

18. Severability, Notices, Waiver

  • Severability: If any part of these Terms is found invalid (e.g. unfair under CPA section 48), the remaining terms remain in full force.
  • Notices: Email to the address you registered with.
  • Waiver: Our failure to enforce a right does not constitute a waiver of that right.

19. Governing Law and Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. You submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the High Court of South Africa, Western Cape Division.

20. Contact

Helderberg Dog Coaching Centre Address: Annandale Drive, Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa Website: https://helderbergdogcoaching.co.za Email: helderbergdogcoachingcentre@gmail.com Legal Notices: legal-notices@helderbergdogcoaching.co.za (no-reply) Phone / WhatsApp: +27 72 602 3318

Document ID: hdcc-terms-2026-06-07 | Version: v3 | Effective: 7 June 2026

Helderberg Dog Coaching Centre · helderbergdogcoachingcentre@gmail.com · +27 72 602 3318