TERMS AND CONDITIONS
This website located at https://www.winecompanion.com.au/ (Website) is owned and operated by HGX Pty Ltd ACN 612 186 946 ("we", "us" or "our").By using this Website and in consideration of us granting you access to the Website, you confirm that these Terms and Conditions govern your access to and use of the Website and that you accept and agree to comply with them.
We recommend that you print a copy of these Terms and Conditions for future reference.
We reserve the right to amend these Terms and Conditions from time to time. Every time you wish to use the Website (including any membership subscription) or to purchase a product through our website, please check these Terms and Conditions to ensure you understand the terms and conditions that apply at that time.
Please note that transactions will only be accepted on this Website for deliveries within Australia, and members must have a fixed address in Australia.
Subject to these Terms and Conditions, we welcome all members of the public to view the content set out on our Website.
1. Membership to our Website
1.1 Whilst our Website is accessible by all members of the public, certain advanced features are only available to paying members.
1.2 You may sign up as a member of our Website via the process outlined in this clause.
1.3 It is your responsibility to ensure the type of membership you subscribe for, and any member benefits, are suitable for you.
1.4 Membership is available to anyone, noting that individuals must be over 18 years of age to subscribe for a membership.
1.5 Membership applications must be made through our Website via the "Sign Up" option. You will be prompted to select the membership type you wish to subscribe for via this process. During the process, you will be asked to:
(a) confirm that you accept these Terms and Conditions (as updated from time to time in accordance with our terms);
(b) verify the accuracy of the information you have provided and make any necessary corrections before submitting your application; and
(c) pay your membership fee or, where a monthly payment option is selected, the first month of your subscription fee, in advance.
1.6 Once you have submitted your membership application by clicking the "Pay Now" button, and provided we accept your application and payment, you will receive an email from us detailing your account and access information.
1.7 You must provide us with accurate information in connection with your membership, and you are responsible for updating that information if any of your details change. If you receive a password to access your account, you must keep that password strictly confidential.
1.8 Memberships are auto-renewed at the end of the membership term. Subscription prices for renewed memberships will be those displayed on our Website in respect of the particular membership type at the time of extension.
1.9 You may cancel your subscription for membership at any time by notifying us via your online account or at info@winecompanion.com.au.
1.10 You may request a pro rata refund of your membership fee or a credit note equal to such amount if you cancel part way through the membership term. For monthly memberships, once you notify us of your cancellation, the cancellation will take effect at the end of the current payment cycle (i.e, if you pay on the first of every month, the cancellation will take effect on the last day of the current month).
1.11 You are welcome to contact us at info@winecompanion.com.au if you wish to discuss any aspect of your membership including its cancellation or wish to upgrade your membership type.
1.12 Please review the Website before selecting the membership type you wish to subscribe for, as not all membership types attract the same benefits.
1.13 On occasion we conduct short-term offers for new members. These offers are not valid in conjunction with any other offer. Any coupon code used must be added at time of purchase, and cannot be added retroactively or applied to a future renewal outside the promotion period. When the coupon code is applied correctly, $0.01 will be removed from the price of your membership.
2. Winery, Distributor and Retailer Membership
Hardie Grant grants you an annual license to use Content from Halliday Wine Companion subject to the following conditions: You have accepted these terms and conditions by signing up to a Winery, Distributor or Retail subscription plan for Halliday Wine Companion. You continue to comply with the following terms and conditions. By Content we mean all wine reviews, including ratings of wines reviewed, reviews of wines and part of reviews, roundels, Awards and all other material of any kind whatsoever and wheresoever published, whether on the Website and any associated applications or in any other publications, digital or analogue. By Website we mean the website at wineompanion.com.au. By book we mean Halliday Wine Companion. Your license entitles you to reproduce and use Content in accordance with the category of user (Winery (Bronze, Silver or Gold,) Distributor, Retailer) selected by you solely in connection with the promotion and sale of wines by retail or wholesale, whether from your retail premises, by mail order, in Cellar Door or through an online facility. You may only use Content for wines you sell. You must ensure that any Content you use is current and up to date at the time of reproduction, as this Content may change over time. You may not alter any Content in any way except to abridge it for advertising or marketing purposes provided that such abridgement does not alter, change or misrepresent the sense or meaning of a review or of the rating of the wine reviewed or adversely impact moral rights in that Content. You may not under any circumstances alter, change or misrepresent the rating of any wine reviewed or any review of any wine or use it otherwise than in connection with the sale and promotion of the wine reviewed. When quoting tasting notes, in part or in full, you must: 1. Attribute the review to Halliday Wine Companion and the member of the tasting panel who reviewed the wine, in this format: Halliday Wine Companion, Jeni Port 2. James Halliday must not be named against the review if he did not taste the wine 3. You must also include a link to www.winecompanion.com.au If you use Content otherwise than in accordance with this license, we are entitled to terminate the license forthwith on notice to you, and on receiving such notice you must immediately remove all references and links to the Content from your sales and promotional material forthwith. You will not be entitled to any refund or partial refund of any license fees in the event that we terminate this license for non-compliance. We reserve the right to monitor your usage of Content to ensure usage is in line with brand guidelines provided to you on subscribing/renewing your membership. Upon termination of your Winery, Distributor or Retailer subscription you must remove all references to Content from Halliday Wine Companion within 30 days from your marketing material, including online material on your website as well any physical material, including but not limited to flyers, brochures, handouts, and posters If your retailer membership includes access to the ratings API (application program interface) the following conditions apply: Access to the ratings API is only available to Retailers with a valid unlimited usage license. If a Retailer changes usage level the API access will automatically be terminated. API access will not be available for a 4-week period after the Halliday Wine Companion Awards Launch (other than to key Launch partners). API access is not transferable and Retailers with access must take all reasonable precautions to protect their API Key from usage by any third party. Data available through the ratings API cannot be used for the following purposes: To compare current tastings to past tastings. To compare ratings with any other wine tasting rating system Ratings cannot be aggregated with other wine tasting rating systems. No data from the ratings API can be published Data available through the ratings API can be used for the following purposes: Buying and merchandising team to make purchasing decisions. Marketing collateral, (taking into account what cannot be used as set out above). For example winery reviews (unaltered); tasting notes (unaltered); points; and winery rating. At all times the Retailer must adhere to the Halliday Wine Companion brand guidelines.
3. Membership to Halliday Wine Club
These terms and conditions outline the terms of membership with Halliday Wine Club. By subscribing to any of the three membership tiers – Wine Club Explorer, Wine Club Enthusiast, or Wine Club Collector – you agree to abide by these terms.
3.1 Halliday Wine Club offers three membership tiers: Wine Club Explorer, Wine Club Enthusiast, and Wine Club Collector.3.2 Members are billed on the 31st or otherwise final day of each month for the upcoming month's subscription. Payment will be charged to the credit card provided during sign-up.
3.3 Each month, members will receive two bottles of wine, specially curated by Halliday Wine Club.
3.4 The monthly subscription cost for the Wine Club Explorer tier is $89. This price is exclusive to Halliday Wine Companion annual members. The non-member price per month is $99.
3.5 The monthly subscription cost for the Wine Club Enthusiast Tier is $139. This price is exclusive to Halliday Wine Companion annual members. The non-member price per month is $149.
3.6 The monthly subscription cost for the Wine Club Collector tier ranges from $300 to $400. The cost may vary each month based on the wines selected for that month's subscription, and members will be notified prior to the billing date of the upcoming change in cost.
3.7 Wines are picked and packed within seven days of payment, and may take up to 21 days to arrive.
3.8 Postage and handling is included in the cost of the membership and is not billed on top of the monthly invoice.
3.9 Members can pause their subscription prior to the billing date via their user profile. Pausing the membership will skip that month's wine delivery.
3.10 There is no sign-up fee or lock-in contract for any membership tier. To avoid automatic renewal, a membership must be cancelled before the billing date.
3.11 By subscribing to Halliday Wine Club, you affirm that you are of legal drinking age in your country of residence.
4. Ordering Products
4.1 If you are an individual, you must be at least 18 years of age to place orders for any products (including without limitation the Halliday Wine Companion Magazine and any other products offered on our website) (Products) through the Website.
4.2 It is your responsibility to check that the information displayed in your "Cart" accurately reflects your selection before confirming your order.
4.3 You may not place an order for Products to be delivered to a PO Box address or to be delivered outside Australia. Book deliveries to PO Boxes are unfortunately unable to be tracked and these addresses are entered at customer's own risk.
4.4 The images of the Products on the Website are for illustrative purposes only. Although we make every effort to display the colours accurately, we cannot guarantee that a device's display of the colours accurately reflects the colour of the Product. Products may vary slightly from those images, and packaging or covers may change. Accordingly, to the maximum extent permitted by law, we shall not be liable for any inaccuracy in the photographs of the Products displayed on the Website. If you have any questions about the Products, you may contact us at info@winecompanion.com.au.
4.5 We reserve the right to refuse to accept or to cancel any order that you place with us if you have been involved in a dispute concerning a prior order, if you place an order with a delivery address outside Australia, if we have reasonable grounds to suspect that you have violated these Terms and Conditions including if we have grounds to suspect that you are not 18 years or older, if you appear to be engaged in fraudulent activities, or if we form the view that your intended use of the purchased is inconsistent with these Terms and Conditions. You may not purchase any Products via our Website for resale.
4.6 Prior to submitting your order, you must verify the accuracy of the information you have provided and make any necessary corrections.
4.7 The order is submitted when you click the "Pay Now" button. After placing an order, you will receive an automatic e-mail confirmation of the receipt of your order.
4.8 Please note that clicking the "Pay Now" button does not mean that your order has been accepted and that the purchase is complete. Your order constitutes an offer to us to buy a Product. Upon receipt, the order will be assessed for processing and provided we receive payment from you for your order and we accept your request we will confirm such acceptance to you by sending you a confirmation e-mail.
4.9 Orders may not be changed or cancelled after processing except as expressly provided in these Terms and Conditions, with our consent or as required by applicable law.
4.10 Products will remain our property until we receive payment in full from you. Risk in the Product passes to you on delivery.
4.11 We reserve the right to change the Products offered on the Website from time to time without prior notice. Whilst we make all reasonable endeavours to meet all orders for Products, we will not be liable if any Product is out of stock or otherwise unavailable.
5. Prices and Payments
5.1 General terms regarding pricing
- (a) Prices listed on the Website (for Products and membership subscriptions) are in Australian Dollars (AUD), inclusive of applicable taxes but exclude all shipping costs. All amounts are payable in Australian Dollars (AUD).
- (b) We reserve the right to modify the price of Products offered through the Website at any time. You will be charged the price displayed on the Website at the time you place your order. We reserve the right to correct any errors or inaccuracies on the Website or to cancel orders if an order is placed based on erroneous or inaccurate information. Any payments made by you will be refunded in full in such circumstances.
- (c) We reserve the right to modify the price of subscriptions offered through our Website at any time. If there is an increase in subscription cost, these increases will be applied to future annual subscription terms.
5.2 Payments
(a) We accept payments through third party payment providers (for example Shopify and Chargebee).
(b) You may be required to provide your personal information directly to third party payment providers when you make a purchase from us. You consent to the use and disclosure of such personal information. Those third party payment providers may pass on your personal information to us to finalise a purchase.
6. Product Deliveries
(a) We will use all reasonable endeavours to dispatch all Products within a week of the order being placed. Delivery is made by courier or Australia Post to the address you supplied during the ordering process. Shipping times will vary depending on your location. The courier requires a signature upon arrival. If no one is available to sign, a calling card will be left at the premises to allow you to arrange a suitable delivery time.
(b) Promotional offers such as complimentary bottles of wine will be delivered by the manufacturer / retailer via Australia Post.
7. Change of Mind returns
(a) If you change your mind about a Product (other than a membership subscription), please contact us at info@winecompanion.com.au and, provided we are satisfied that you meet the requirements set out below, we will happily provide a refund:
(i) you have returned the Product to us within 30 days of your purchase;
(ii) you have valid proof of purchase (usually a receipt);
(iii) the Product and all packaging is in its original condition;
(iv) the Product is not a sale or clearance item;
(v) the Product is in re-saleable condition; and
(vi) the Product has not been used or damaged.
(b) We will notify you as soon as possible on receipt of the Product whether your change of mind request has been approved.
(c) All freight costs are non-refundable for change of mind returns.
(d) We will provide you with the address for returns when you contact us at info@winecompanion.com.au with a change of mind request.
(e) The change of mind policy outlined in this clause does not impact your rights under the Australian Consumer Law, as outlined in clause 6 below.
8. Australian Consumer Law
Products on our Website come with Consumer Guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law (which can be found in Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (the Australian Consumer Law)). You are entitled to a replacement or refund for a major failure and compensation for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage. You are also entitled to have the products repaired or replaced if they fail to be of acceptable quality and the failure does not amount to a major failure.
9. Member communication
8.1 By subscribing for a membership, you acknowledge and agree that you we may send you promotional and marketing information and materials, surveys, information concerning your membership and its status, information concerning your account and/or other information we deem appropriate from time to time. All communications, with the exception of expiry/renewal reminders and our initial email to you detailing your account / access details, include the option to unsubscribe at any time. We value the relationship we have with our members and do not spam.
8.2 From time to time you may receive communications from third party partners. These emails are sent by winecompanion.com.au on behalf of third party partners, and no personal information is exchanged by us with the third party partner, other than your email address. We believe that the information contained in such emails may be relevant and of interest to you as our member. Each of these emails includes an option to unsubscribe at any time.
10. The Halliday Wine Companion Magazine
9.1 Subscriptions to the soft copy Halliday Wine Companion Magazine (Soft Copy Subscription) are managed by PressReader Inc.(PressReader). Every member of our Website will receive a Soft Copy Subscription (consistent with the membership benefits attached to the particular membership type). By subscribing for a Soft Copy Subscription via the Website (including by joining as a member of our Website), you agree that we will share your personal information with PressReader to enable it to assess your request and you agree to be contacted by PressReader regarding that request. You agree to deal directly with PressReader in relation to such subscription, that we are not responsible or liable for your arrangements with PressReader, and that your subscription will be subject to PressReader's terms and conditions.
9.2 Subscriptions to the hard copy Halliday Wine Companion Magazine (Postal Order Subscription) are payable in advance.
9.3 Postal Order Subscriptions are delivered on a bi-monthly basis. A one-year subscription constitutes six issues. A two-year subscription constitutes twelve issues. Due to the bi-monthly cycle, delivery of the first issue may take up to two months.
9.4 You may cancel your Post Order Subscription at any time by notifying us at info@winecompanion.com.au, and will be entitled to a pro rata refund of any fees you have paid in advance for magazines you have not yet received, less an administration fee of $20.00.
11. Intellectual Property
11.1 All material on the Website, including the text, code, information, graphics, illustrations, photographs, video, music, sound, trading names, service marks, logos, design, layout, downloads, pricing, products and services (Content) is owned by us or licensed to us.
11.2 You must not reproduce, transmit, adapt, distribute, sell, modify, publish or store Content for any purpose, other than with our prior written consent, or as permitted by law.
11.3 The Halliday Wine Companion is a trade mark of Hardie Grant Publishing Pty Ltd (previously Hardie Grant Books Pty Ltd) which has licensed the use of the trade mark to us.
11.4 Trade marks used on the Website to describe third parties and their products are trade marks of those third parties and you are not permitted to use them without the consent of those third parties.
11.5 You acknowledge and agree that you have no right, title or interest in or to any intellectual property rights in the Content or any intellectual property rights in any Products or the Halliday Wine Companion Magazine (hard or soft copy).
12. Links and Third Party Content
12.1 You must not frame or mirror any part of the Website without our prior written authorisation.
12.2 The Website may contain links to or display the content of third parties (Third Party Content), including links to websites operated by other organisations and individuals (Third Party Websites). Third Party Content and Third Party Websites are not under our control. We do not endorse, approve or make any warranty or claim regarding Third Party Content, Third Party Websites or the products, services or information available on any Third Party Website, or in respect of the owner or operator of a Third Party Website or their conduct. If you use or rely upon Third Party Content or Third Party Websites, you do so solely at your own risk.
13. Your conduct
13.1 You must not:
(a) use the Website in breach of any applicable laws or regulations;
(b) use the Website for commercial purposes (including for competitive advantage or to our competitive disadvantage);
(c) use the Website to harm, abuse, harass, stalk, threaten or otherwise offend others;
(d) interfere with, disrupt, or create an undue burden on the Website;
(e) upload, post, transmit or otherwise make available any material that:
(i) is not your original work, or which may infringe the intellectual property or other rights of another person;
(ii) is, or could reasonably be expected to be, defamatory, obscene, offensive, threatening, abusive, pornographic, vulgar, profane, indecent or otherwise unlawful, including material that racially or religiously vilifies, incites violence or hatred, or is likely to offend, insult or humiliate others based on race, religion, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation or any physical or mental disability;
(iii) includes an image or personal information of another person unless you have their consent;
(iv) you know or suspect, or should reasonably know or suspect, to be false, misleading or deceptive;
(v) contains large amounts of untargeted, unwanted or repetitive content; or
(vi) contains financial, legal, medical or other professional advice.
Without limiting the above, you will not and will not permit a third party to:
(f) misuse the Website by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other material that is malicious or technically harmful. You must not attempt to gain unauthorised access to the Website, the server on which the Website is stored or any server, computer or database connected to the Website. You must not attack the Website via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack;
(g) use any method or process (including data scraping, web-bots, collection or accumulation tool, robot, spider or scripted responses) for the purpose of obtaining, processing, copying, replicating, distributing, reconfiguring, republishing, viewing, assessing, analysing, modifying or repacking the Content;
(h) use, obtain, or attempt to obtain from the Website, information in order to identify or discover pricing, underwriting, rating and related business methodology or systems; and
(i) do anything which will or may damage, disrupt access to or interfere with the proper operation of the Website.
If you believe that a user has breached any of the above conditions, please contact us immediately at info@winecompanion.com.au.
14. User-generated Content
14.1 By uploading, transmitting, posting or otherwise making any material available via the Website, you grant us with a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual licence to use, store, reproduce, edit and exploit the material in any form and for any purpose, and unconditionally waive all moral rights as defined by the Copyright Act 1968. Any material you upload to the Website will be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary.
14.2 We reserve the right to block or suspend any user of the Website, and to modify or remove any material uploaded, posted, transmitted or otherwise made available on the Website by any user, without notice. We also have the right to disclose your identity to any third party who is claiming that any material posted or uploaded by you on the Website constitutes a violation of their intellectual property rights or of their right to privacy.
14.3 We are not responsible for, and accept no liability with respect to any material uploaded, posted, transmitted or otherwise made available on the Website by any third party. We do not endorse any opinion, view, advice or statement made by any third party, including any member reviews.
14.4 You agree to indemnify us and each of our officers, employees, agents, contractors, suppliers and licensors (collectively Affiliates) in respect of any liability, loss or damage (including all legal and other costs on a full indemnity basis) suffered or incurred by us or any Affiliate arising out of or in connection with your breach of or failure to comply with these Terms and Conditions, or your default or wrongful conduct.
15. Cookies
15.1 A cookie is a small text file stored in your computer’s memory or on your hard disk for a pre-defined period of time. We use cookies to identify specific machines in order to collect aggregate information on how visitors experience the Website. This information will help to better adapt the Website to suit personal requirements.
15.2 We may use third-party vendors to show our ads on sites on the Internet and serve these ads based on a user’s prior visits to the Website. We may also use analytics data supplied by these vendors to inform and optimise its ad campaigns based on your prior visits to the Website.
15.3 While cookies allow a computer to be identified, they do not contain personal information about a specific individual. For information on cookie settings of your internet browser, please refer to your browser’s manual.
16. Disclaimer and Liability
Website
16.1 We do not guarantee that the Website will be secure or free from bugs or viruses or function without interruption or errors. The Website is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. You are responsible for configuring your information technology, computer programmes and platform to access the Website. You should use your own virus protection software. By accessing the Website, you assume all risks associated with its use, including but not limited to the risk that your computer, software or data may be damaged by any virus transmitted by the Website or by any Third Party Content or Third Party Website.
16.2 To the extent permitted by law, we exclude all warranties, guarantees, conditions and representations (whether express or implied) that may apply to the Website or any Content on it. We will not be liable to you for any loss or damage of any kind, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), even if foreseeable, arising under or in connection with:
(a) your use of, or inability to use the Website; or
(b) your use of or reliance on any Content or material displayed on the Website,
Productsincluding any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential or punitive damages, which includes, but is not limited to, loss of revenue or profits or business or anticipated savings, loss of use or goodwill or reputation, loss of data, even if such loss was foreseeable.
16.3 Every effort is made to keep the Website up and running smoothly. However, we take no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the Website being unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
16.4 With the exception of Consumer Guarantees as defined under the Australian Consumer Law, we exclude:
(a) any term, condition or warranty that may otherwise be implied into these Terms and Conditions;
(b) any liability to you for consequential or indirect loss.
16.5 Subject to clause 15.6, our liability in respect of any breach of or failure to comply with any Consumer Guarantee is limited to the following:
(a) in the case of any goods (including Products), to the replacement of the goods or the supply of equivalent goods;
(b) in the case of services, to:
(i) the supplying of the services again; or
(ii) the payment of the cost of having the services supplied again.
16.6 Our liability in respect of a breach of or a failure to comply with a Consumer Guarantee will not be limited in the way set out in clause 15.5 if:
(a) the goods or services supplied are goods or services 'of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use or consumption', as that expression is used in section 64A of the Australian Consumer Law;
(b) it is not 'fair or reasonable' for us to rely on such limitation in accordance with section 64A(3) of the Australian Consumer Law; or
(c) the relevant Consumer Guarantee is a guarantee pursuant to sections 51, 52 or 53 of the Australian Consumer Law.
17. Privacy Policy
Our Privacy Policy is incorporated by reference into these Terms and Conditions. We will only use your personal information as set out in its https://www.winecompanion.com.au/privacypolicy.
18. Jurisdiction
These terms and conditions are governed by the laws of Victoria, Australia.
19. Contact
If you have any queries regarding these Terms and Conditions, please contact us on info@winecompanion.com.au.