TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Guided Diving:

• Maltese Law requires that all divers with a level rating less than Advanced Open Water or equivalent level need to be accompanied/guided by a renewed and insured Instructor in the water at all times.
• Guest divers will be grouped according to their qualification and experience and will always follow the instructions of the accompanying instructor. An instructor may terminate the dive or dive pack of any guest if the diver does not follow instructions or is deemed unsafe to himself and/or others.
• The dive centre or instructor reserves the right to refuse the business of any guests on the grounds of safety issues or possible issues that arise or may arise.
• If the guest has a medical issue and does not present a medical certification from any doctor allowing the guest to scuba dive then the guest will not be allowed to dive with us, regardless of the guest’s experience and/or certification level, until such medical check up is done and a medical certification is issues by any doctor allowing the guest to scuba dive.
• All qualified divers must present their certification card and logbook at the time of registering. Failure to do so may disqualify the guest from diving until such time that the required proof is provided.
• For their own safety, Divers may be required to complete a check dive and/or a refresher dive depending on their certification level and experience and the time elapsed between their last logged dive.
• If the guest does not present an official log book, which would contain the stamp and certification number of the final instructor, the requirement of whether a check dive and/or refresher dive is needed, still remains at the discretion of the present instructor.
• The maximum depth for each guest is determined by their certification level, as well as the instructor’s assessment of the client’s ability and comfort level and also by the weather and sea conditions on the day.
• All recreational No-Deco dives will always be done within the recreational depth limits and the no decompression time limits.
• Any guest scuba diving in Malta is not required, under local Maltese law, to have or take out any sort of diving insurance to be legally allowed to learn or practise scuba diving. Neither is the diving centre legally bound to issue any sort of diving insurance to the guest learning or practising scuba diving with them. Scuba diving insurance is still a choice the guest would need to make. DAN provide short on-line insurance coverage for these very occasions.
• Watercolours Dive Centre Malta and all their instructors are fully insured by DAN – Divers Alert Network to carry out scuba diving activities which include teaching courses, course dives and recreational leisure dives for certified divers.
• As you can see, we take diving safety very seriously and would strongly advise guests to be entirely honest when filling in these forms especially were medical safety in involved. Putting one’s life at risk and potentially the lives of others, including our instructors, should never be an option.
• The collection and safe keeping of all recoded client data and eventual destruction is described in our Privacy Policy.

All divers will need to complete and sign:

• Self-Assessment Medical Statement (RSTC Medical form): (LINK TO FORM)
If the diver answers “YES” to any of the medical conditions on the form, then a medical certificate signed by a doctor is required.
• Risk and Liability Statement: (LINK TO FORM)
Divers under the age of 18 need to provide written parental/ guardian consent allowing them to dive.
• Customer Registration Form: (LINK TO FORM)
This form is issued by the dive centre and will be given to the guest either by email or by hand and will be used solely to collect personal data and diving information as well as reminding the guest of local medical obligations. This form also includes the Self-Assessment Medical & Risk Liability statements.

Time of the dives:

• The divers are usually requested to be at the Dive Centre at 09:00 for a day of diving, unless otherwise specified.
• Night dives depart from the centre between 17:00 and 20:00 depending on the season.
• The meeting time for night dives will depend on the time of the year and the special circumstances of the dive or the day.
• If a diver doesn’t show on time, the dive may start without waiting for him/her.

Number of dives:

• The guest may choose the number of dives to do in a day. For some dive sites, a minimum of 2 dives will be required.
Courses:
• Standards require that appropriate student materials are purchased for use during all courses and to keep as reference after finishing it. Watercolours does not include the cost of the materials in the price of the course. The client may bring their own materials or purchase them from Watercolours.
• For technical courses, the certification fee is not included in the price of the course. The instructor may decide not to certify the student, if he considers the diver doesn’t fulfil the ability or personal requirements for the certification. There is a certification fee on each successfully completed recreational course included in the course prices.
• Watercolours will do all that is possible to complete a course within a stipulated time, however, it cannot guarantee its duration as each student will have to fulfil all the obligations and standards of the course which might take more time. If the student can’t complete the course during their stay either a referral will be issued by Watercolours or Watercolours will reserve the option to keep the course open to be finished within 12 months.
• If more than 12 months elapse then the course must be restarted from the beginning.
• If the student needs further days to complete a course additional fees may apply.

Dive sites:

• Watercolours will choose the appropriate dive sites suitable for its guests depending on their certification level, proficiency and the sea conditions on the day.
• The planned dive sites for the day may change, even at short notice, depending on weather conditions, safety issues or technical reasons.

Transport:

• Transport to and from dive sites is included in our prices, unless otherwise mentioned. Divers using our transport do so at their own risk. We recommend not to take valuables to the dive sites. Watercolours will not accept any responsibility for lost properties or thief.
• The cost of most of our boat dives is also included in the total price of our dives, however, additional boat costs may apply for dives done due to distance covered or special permits such as Heritage Malta & other costs. See additional costs explanation on the dive centre’s website. (LINK TO PAGE)

Non-divers:

• Non-divers travelling in the dive trucks and/or on the dive boat are subject to the available space with first preference always being given to diving clients. Non-divers travelling on the boat and/or in the dive trucks travel at their own risk. Watercolours doesn’t offer any tourist guiding or other activities except for diving and snorkel trips. All dive trucks and the dive boat all hold the appropriate licences and are all covered by the necessary insurance coverage.

Equipment Rental:

• Watercolours Dive Centre only rents equipment to divers accompanied by one of our instructors.
• The guest who is renting equipment is fully responsible for any damage or loss that the equipment may suffer due to bad or irresponsible use.
• Watercolours dive Centre does not rent out any scuba diving equipment to third parties.

Transfers:

• Upon request and availability, Watercolours offers Transfers from the airport to the chosen hotel or the dive centre.
• Watercolours also offers pick-ups for guests… see list of free pick-ups on website. Return transfer to the hotel cannot be guaranteed and is usually done at closing time which is 17:00

Confirmed bookings:

• A booking will only be confirmed upon deposit unless another arrangement is reached. In any other case it will be considered a provisional booking and Watercolours cannot guarantee the availability of an instructor for the requested activity. Alternatively, If there is space available, the guest can join any other dive happening during the stay.

Cancellation Policy:

• If the guest cancels an activity 24 hours before, the cost is 25% of the total cost.
• If the guest cancels an activity within 24 hours a 50% cancellation fee is required.
• The guest renounces any deposits for any cancellations unless a special agreement is reached.