Policies/Procedures
Enrollment Eligibility and Guests - Enrollment will only be open to Hills Bank and Trust Company (Hills Bank) Friends Club members; however, a Friends Club member who would typically be a single occupancy is allowed to bring one guest. In rare occasions, a Friends Club household (two members) may bring a non-member couple or single guest if there is availability and the:
• Event has been promoted to members for one month. • Day trip has been promoted to members for one month.
• Extended trip has been promoted to members for at least three months. After the same guest travels with Friends Club on three extended trips, the guest will be required to join Friends Club to continue traveling with the group. A non-member may be charged more than a member. Hills Bank and its tour operators reserve the right to accept or decline any person at any time, or to require any participant to withdraw from a program at his or her own expense when such an action is determined by the operator or Hills Bank to be in the best interest of the participant’s health and safety or the general welfare of the other participants. Payment and Itinerary - Hills Bank will mail a payment letter with the itinerary and a postage paid envelope within a week of a registrant signing up for a day trip or an event. Send payment as soon as possible to reserve your spot. If payment is not received within 2 weeks of when you received the letter, we will offer the spot to another member. For extended travel, trip deposits and a completed registration form will secure your reservation. If this information is not returned (postage paid envelope provided) within two weeks of requesting the packet, then Friends Club will follow-up with a phone call to check your status. There is a registration deadline for each trip with final payment due, but waiting until this date to secure your spot with a deposit could result in no availability. Detailed brochures are available upon request and on the website at www.hillsbank.com/friends-club-calendar. Waiting List - Events, day trips, and extended travel may have a waiting list due to limited space or tickets. We appreciate your understanding and willingness to be on the waiting list. Do not be discouraged, you may get a call to join us! We do our best to have a second event, get additional tickets, or do another trip for those on the waiting lists when possible. Cancellations - If cancellation is necessary, please find a replacement and let Friends Club know by calling 319-358- 2278 or 319-358-2215 or emailing FriendsClub@HillsBank.com. You may also inquire about a waiting list to see if we can find a replacement for you. If there is not a replacement available on the waiting list, you can consider asking a non-member to take your place. This also applies to local events with a cost. Refunds for cancellations are not guaranteed due to nonrefundable circumstances, such as pre-purchased tickets, deposits, and reservation fees. If an event or day trip is cancelled due to insufficient reservation numbers, a full refund will be issued. For extended travel using an outside travel agent, Friends Club will adhere to the written cancellation policy of the travel agent. In most cases, cancellations prior to the final payment due date allow for a deposit refund. In some cases, including most cruises, the deposit may be non-refundable, which will be noted on the brochure and registration materials. If cancellation is necessary after final payment and it is due to a medical reason, then the traveler will be able to submit an insurance claim if a Travel Protection Plan is included in the trip. Hills Bank and the travel provider have no determination whether the claim will be approved. More details will be provided upon request. Inclement Weather - In the event of inclement weather, travelers and event participants will be contacted if the event is cancelled. Unfortunately, refunds for inclement weather cancellations are dependent on the venue’s policy to refund Hills Bank Friends Club for the cancellation and cannot be guaranteed. Health and Medical Requirements - Hills Bank Friends Club welcomes all travelers but requests that participants be in good health to join the trip and be physically able to participate in all stated itinerary items. If you cannot participate in all activities, then you must be willing to stay back so the group is not affected. You will not be reimbursed for the activities that you miss. Hills Bank Friends Club offers tours to exciting destinations, and in some places there are very limited accommodations for wheelchairs, walkers, or people with limited mobility. Any condition that may require assistance or special medical attention must be reported at the time a reservation is made or as soon as possible thereafter by emailing FriendsClub@HillsBank.com or calling 319-358-2230. Every effort will be made to address special dietary requirements with notice given to venues: however, no guarantees can be made that the venues will be able to accommodate. Neither Hills Bank Friends Club employees nor its vendors may assist with medications or physically aid participants on tours, including administering medications, physically lifting or assisting participants into transportation vehicles, or assisting with wheelchairs. Persons who cannot travel independently and who would need special assistance must be accompanied by a companion who will be able to assist and assume responsibility for this person. The companion will be treated as any other participant and will be subject to the same policies and program rates. Parking - Day trips and extended travel will depart from and return to Hills Bank on Blairs Ferry Road in Cedar Rapids and the Johnson County Fairgrounds in Iowa City, unless otherwise noted in the payment letter sent to each registrant. Parking at these locations is free. Hills Bank Friends Club cannot accommodate requests for additional pickup locations due to timing and accommodation of the group. Motorcoach Seating - Seats are assigned for day trips and motorcoach extended trips to better serve the travelers and to help the tour manager and Hills Bank escort get better acquainted with the travelers. Seat rotations will be at the discretion of the tour manager and escort. Any special or medical needs regarding seating assignments should be mentioned at the time of registration as indicated on your registration form, and we will accommodate as best as possible. A bus seating list is mailed out to travelers for day trips approximately 2-3 weeks before departure.
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1st Quarter 2019
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