General Terms and Conditions (GTC), version March 2024 in English
1. Scope of application The following General Terms and Conditions apply to all courses and seminars offered by Swiss Education Company GmbH (hereinafter referred to as "Swiss Education Company") to its course and seminar participants (hereinafter referred to as "course participants"). Changes to these terms and conditions made by Swiss Education Company will be communicated to the course participant in writing or by e-mail to the (e-mail) address provided by the course participant. They shall be deemed approved if the course participant does not object in writing or by e-mail within 4 weeks. The course participant must inform Swiss Education Company of any changes to his/her (e-mail) address. Delivery to (e-mail) addresses that are no longer current shall not prevent the effectiveness of deliveries, provided that the changes have not been communicated.
2. Registration Registration for a course or seminar must be made in writing using the registration form provided. The course participant will receive the registration form by e-mail or, on request, by post. The course description, which forms an integral part of the contract, is sent together with the registration form. The form must be signed by hand and then sent either as an original by post or as a scan by e-mail. Alternatively, it is also possible to register via the Swiss Education Company website, in which case the GTC must also be accepted. The course participant's registration (with a written registration form or via the website) is a binding and irrevocable application. The course participant will receive a confirmation of registration unless Swiss Education Company refuses participation within five working days (Monday to Friday; public holidays of the Confederation and the Canton of Zurich are decisive). The contract becomes binding for both parties (i) upon confirmation of registration or (ii) in the absence of an express refusal within a reasonable period of time.
3. Financial conditions Payment by monthly instalment is possible from a course length of 2 months, but not for shorter courses and seminars.
In the case of online payment with monthly instalments by credit or debit card, the first monthly instalment is due 5 days after the date of registration. The subsequent monthly installments are due at intervals of 30 days from the due date of the first installment. The num- ber of monthly installments is determined by the duration of the course in months.
When paying in monthly installments by QR-bill, the deposit of 20% is due 5 days after the date of registration. The remaining amount is due in monthly installments at intervals of 30 days from the start of the course. The number of monthly installments is determined by the duration of the course in months -1 month. (e.g. course length of 6 months: 1 down payment and 5 monthly installments).
In the case of a one-off payment, there is a right to a discount of 3%, provided that payment is made within 5 days of registration. The claim is due from the day of registration. The discount deduction must be made independently by the course participant on the QR invoice. In the event of payment without a discount deduction, the course participant may reclaim the omitted deduction within 6 months of receipt of payment. Due to the additional manual work involved on the part of Swiss Education Company, a contribution towards expenses of CHF 25.00 will be deducted from the cash discount balance to be refunded. No contribution towards expenses will be charged if the omitted cash discount deduction is converted into a credit note that can be deducted when purchasing further courses and products within 2 years. For courses lasting less than two months and for products/kits, there is no entitlement to a cash discount deduction.
The training place is only guaranteed once payment has been received, but this does not release the course participant from the obligation to pay the outstanding amount.
A default interest of 5% p.a. will be charged in the event of non-compliance with the payment obligations. Furthermore, a contribution towards expenses of CHF 20.00 will be charged for the second and final reminder. If a monthly instalment is overdue by more than 30 days, all instalments with interest and costs are due for payment immediately.
The course fee includes the theory documents and the certificate/diploma as well as VAT. Not included in the course/seminar are the training materials and personal consumables/professional tools, which must be paid for by the course participants. A fee of CHF 200.00 will be charged for retaking the final examination.
After expiry of the deadline set in the second reminder or if payment is more than 30 days overdue, the outstanding debt will be as- signed to the Swiss Education Company's debt collection partner without further notice. Additional fees will be charged, which can be accessed at https://fairpay.ch and are accepted by the course participant upon registration.
Fees are charged for payments made at the post office counter, which Swiss Education Company may pass on to the course participant in accordance with the principle of causation. In order to avoid unnecessary fees, Swiss Education Company therefore recommends that course participants pay the invoice online or by written payment order to their bank or the post office.
The extension of a course will be charged on a pro rata basis in relation to the total course fee. The extension requires a new registra- tion by the course participant.
A fee of CHF 150.00 will be charged for subsequent name changes on certificates and diplomas.
Any assumption of costs for the course fee by third parties (employer, insurance company, unemployment fund, trade union, other person, etc.) is the sole responsibility of the course participant. Swiss Education Company therefore recommends that this be clarified before making a binding course registration.
For some beauty seminars, the course participant must also purchase the corresponding kit in order to guarantee the training objec- tives. In such cases, Swiss Education Company will mention this in the course description on its website. By registering, the course par- ticipant undertakes to make the corresponding purchase, subject to any rejection by Swiss Education Company.
4. Cancellation and postponement by Swiss Education Company In the event of a shortage of course participants, Swiss Education Company reserves the right to postpone, combine or cancel the course or seminar. Swiss Education Company will notify the course participant in writing of any new course dates and cancellations.
In the event of a change, of course date or a postponement of the course by more than 3 months, the following agreement applies: If the new course date does not suit the course participant, the course participant can reject the new course date in writing within 10 days. In this case, the contract will be terminated immediately before the start of the course and any payment already made will be refunded. Otherwise, the course participant will be deemed to have accepted the new course date.
A similar regulation also applies to courses after the start of the course in which individual modules are cancelled that cannot be made up before or after the start of the course. In this case, any course fees paid in excess will be refunded pro rata.
In the event of events beyond the control of the Swiss Education Company (e.g. an officially ordered lockdown due to a pandemic), the contract will continue and the missed lessons will be made up, even if school operations have to be suspended for several weeks.
For postponements of courses that were initially postponed by the course participant, the provisions of Clause 6 below shall apply.
5. Termination by Swiss Education Company Swiss Education Company has the right to terminate the training or further education contract without notice for good cause. Such a reason shall be deemed to exist in particular if the participant is more than 30 days in arrears with the payment of the course fee (both in the case of instalments and one-off payments). However, this does not release the course participant from paying the course fee for courses that have already been held or for courses for which no successor participant can be found and/or arrangements have already been made.
6. Termination, postponement or change by the course participant The training or further training contract can be revoked or terminated at any time. However, if this is done at an inopportune time, the course participant is obliged to compensate Swiss Education Company for the damage caused. In the case of the present education and training contract, revocation or termination on the basis of arrangements already made shall be deemed untimely if it occurs in the middle of the semester or shortly before the start of the course, i.e. up to 4 weeks before the start of the education or training, unless the course participant can prove that Swiss Education Company has given good cause for this. The following contractual penalty is agreed in the event of revocation or termination at an inopportune time: In the event of termination/revocation up to 4 weeks before the start of the training or further education course, 30% of the course fee must be paid. In the event of termination/revocation less than 4 weeks before the start of the training or further training, 100% of the course fee must be paid.
In the event of postponements up to 4 weeks before the start of the planned training or further training, a deposit of 30% must be paid on time as a contractual penalty, half of which will then be credited for the training or further training taking place later. In the event of postponements of less than 4 weeks before the start of the planned training or further training, compensation in the form of a contractual penalty of 30% of the course fee is due, which must be paid within 10 days and will not be credited towards the training or further training taking place at a later date. Postponements after the start of the planned training or further training are not possible; 100% of the course fee must be paid in any case.
A postponement of the course is possible for a maximum of two years from the start of the planned training or further training. Thereafter, the contractual provisions on termination shall apply retroactively to the date of the request for postponement of the course (including the application of default interest of 5% p.a.). In the case of postponements made up to 4 weeks before the start of the originally planned training or further education course, the entitlement to half of the 30% deposit paid in the form of the contractual penalty shall lapse after two years. In the case of postponements made less than 4 weeks before the start of the originally planned training or further training, the remaining 70% of the course fee, including interest on arrears, shall be owed after two years from the date of the request to postpone the course and must be paid within 10 days.
Swiss Education Company has two years to offer a replacement course if the course participant postpones a course before the start of the course, especially as some courses are only offered irregularly due to low demand for economic reasons. In the case of a replacement course more than 3 months after the original course, the course participant can reject the new course date in writing within 10 days. In this case, the contract will be terminated immediately and there will be no entitlement to a refund of the 30% contractual penalty paid. If no confirmation is received from the course participant within 10 days, the new course date is deemed to have been accepted by the course participant.
If no replacement course is offered within the two-year period, the above contractual penalty will be refunded after deduction of compensation for administrative costs of CHF 200.
No entitlement to a replacement course and reimbursement of the contractual penalty exists if the course participant postpones the course after the start of the course.
A change of course after the start of the planned training or further training is only possible if it is the same course and it is already run- ning (e.g. on a different day of the week). A contribution towards expenses of CHF 200.00 is due for the change of course, which must be paid within 10 days of confirmation of the change. The payment deadline for the course fee remains unchanged in the event of a change.
For courses lasting several semesters (e.g. hairdressing course), the course fee for the semester and not the total training or further education costs for all semesters is decisive.
Cancellations and postponements must be made in writing and by registered letter. A written statement from an authorized signatory of Swiss Education Company is required for all contractual adjustments resulting from cancellations and postponements. Any other agree- ments with employees who are not authorized signatories regarding contractual adjustments are therefore null and void.
7. Contract extension for multi-semester courses or seminars In the case of multi-semester courses or seminars, the contract is automatically and tacitly extended for the following semester unless the course participant terminates the contract in writing by registered letter at least one month before the start of the new semester. This termination clause does not apply if there is no automatic contract extension and the course is not advertised and bookable in individual semesters. Currently (as of March 5, 2024), only the hairdressing course can be booked in individual semesters.
Swiss Education Company guarantees the same conditions for the other semesters, provided that the entire training course is completed without interruption.
8. Obligations of Swiss Education Company Swiss Education Company provides course participants with the content listed in the course or seminar advertisement. The training courses take place on the premises of Swiss Education Company.
Swiss Education Company undertakes to conduct the course or seminar in accordance with the course or seminar description on the Internet. The course times can be found in the course announcements. If a teacher is unavailable at short notice, Swiss Education Com- pany will endeavor to find a suitable replacement. However, if such a replacement cannot be found at short notice, the cancelled les- sons will be made up in consultation with the course participants.
The courses are offered in various languages. The current offer can be found on the website of the Swiss Education Company, which forms an integral part of the contract. The course documents and theoretical lessons are available in the desired language. Some of the practical exercises take place in mixed-language groups, which facilitates exchange with other cultures. Correspondence from the school management and course administration will be in German for the course location in Zurich and in French for the course location in Lausanne.
Swiss Education Company has the right to adapt the course or seminar content at any time (e.g. inclusion of new techniques due to changes in market conditions) and to adapt the sequence of learning objectives and content.
Swiss Education Company undertakes to comply with and enforce all health and safety regulations (e.g. compulsory masks) at all times.
At the course location in Zurich, Swiss Education Company offers a parking lot on request for CHF 15.00 per day or CHF 7.50 per half day. Due to the limited number of parking spaces available, it is advisable to make a reservation in advance; a parking space is not guaranteed.
9. Obligations of the course participant The course participant is responsible for punctual and regular attendance and participation in the course. In the event of more than 20% absences, Swiss Education Company reserves the right not to allow the course participant to take the final examination. In such cases, however, it is possible to make up the missed lessons for a fee.
Absence due to illness, vacation or professional reasons does not release the course participant from fulfilling the contract. In such cases, the parties will endeavor to find a joint solution. In the event of absences of more than 10 days due to illness or accident and if a medical certificate is available, the missed lessons will be made up. The entitlement to make-up lessons exists for a maximum of two years and only if the medical certificate is sent in continuously. There is no entitlement to a refund of course fees due to absences. Backdated medical certificates will be accepted up to a maximum of 7 days.
No street clothes may be worn during practical lessons in beauty courses and seminars; appropriate professional clothing (white work clothes or apron for hairdressing schools) must be worn in accordance with the school management's instructions. Swiss Education Company provides suitable lockers for street clothes.
The course participant undertakes to handle facilities, equipment and rooms with care and to use the products and materials provided sparingly and sensibly. Course participants will be instructed by the school management on how to handle the materials provided.
Course participants must take out their own accident and liability insurance. Swiss Education Company is not liable for loss or theft on its premises or for any other damage incurred by course participants. Changes of address, including name changes, must be reported to Swiss Education Company immediately. If postal deliveries or notifications are not possible due to a faulty or incorrect address, all responsibility is declined. Furthermore, it is recommended to take out cancellation insurance for events such as courses, seminars and further training.
In the interests of orderly school operations, course participants must also follow the verbal instructions of the subject teachers and the school management. After each use of the rooms, they must be tidied up and cleaned as instructed by the subject teachers or the school management.
10. Models The treatment of model clients is obligatory for beauty courses and seminars, as the practical part is an integral part of the training and further education. In addition, course participants must be able to work quickly and accurately up to the final practical examination, which requires regular participation in the practical exercises.
The models are normally organized by Swiss Education Company. However, course participants have the option of bringing their own model. For the practical examinations, including the final practical work (e.g. fashion show as part of the fashion design course), the models must be organized by the course participant in accordance with the examination regulations.
The fee for the highly discounted beauty services on the models is due to Swiss Education Company and primarily serves to cover the variable costs for advertisements, online campaigns, electricity, consumption of beauty products, etc. The prices for services on beauty models are published on the Hair & Beauty Studio website (https://hair-and-beauty-studio.ch) and are applicable to all internal and external customers. However, no fee is required if a course participant makes themselves available as a model in their own class. For models brought by the course participants themselves, only CHF 20 per color tube will be charged for hairdressing services.
11. School holidays On the official public holidays of the City of Zurich (relevant for courses in Zurich) and the City of Lausanne (relevant for courses in Lau- sanne) as well as on Easter Saturday, school operations are suspended. Furthermore, school operations are suspended for 2 weeks during the summer vacation and for 2 weeks during Christmas/New Year. Swiss Education Company publishes the school-free days on its website.
12. Production and publication of photo and video recordings The course participant agrees to the taking and publication of photographs and video recordings made during the course, at examinations and at Swiss Education Company fashion shows. Swiss Education Company owns the rights to the photos and video recordings and may use them for advertising purposes and promotions or publish them in an online gallery. The course participant cannot derive any rights (e.g. remuneration) from consent to publication. This declaration of consent can be revoked from Swiss Education Company and its photographers at any time with effect for the future. In the event of revocation, Swiss Education Company will remove the images from the respective platform.
13. Data protection The course participant agrees to the necessary processing of his/her personal data by Swiss Education Company in the context of the training or further education. Swiss Education Company complies with the data processing principles, ensures appropriate data security and grants information and/or access rights upon request.
14. Final provisions Should individual provisions of these GTC be invalid in whole or in part, the validity of the remaining provisions shall remain unaffected. The invalid provisions shall be replaced by such provisions that come closest to the meaning and purpose of the invalid provisions in a legally effective manner. In the event of contradictions between the different language versions of these GTC, the German version shall prevail. Furthermore, the registration forms/contracts with the GTC are available at any time on the Swiss Education Company website in German and in the selected course language.
15 Applicable law and place of jurisdiction The place of jurisdiction and place of performance is Zurich. Swiss law shall apply to the exclusion of the conflict of laws.
