Terms and conditions for a brewery, distillery or vineyard offering tours and events

A tour of a working brewery or distillery takes the public onto an industrial site and serves them alcohol. A vineyard adds weather and terrain. The terms have to fix age limits, safety, conduct and cancellation, and separate the visitor experience from the private event that hires the space. I draft those terms for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Breweries, distilleries, cideries and vineyards in England and Wales offering public tours, tastings, masterclasses and private events, and taking bookings online and by phone from consumers and from businesses booking for groups.

What matters in tour and event terms

Age limits, alcohol and refusal

Age limits apply to alcohol under section 146 of the Licensing Act 2003 and tastings need a premises licence or temporary event notice under that Act, so the terms should require proof of age, state the minimum age for tastings and whether under-age visitors may join a tour without drinking, and give you the right to refuse alcohol to anyone and to refuse or remove a visitor who is drunk. That right is also a condition of your own licence and the terms should say the licence rules apply to everyone on site.

Safety on a working site

A brewery floor is wet, a still is hot, and a vineyard has slopes and machinery. The terms should require visitors to stay with the guide, follow instructions, wear suitable footwear, and disclose mobility or health issues that affect their safety, and should give the guide the right to exclude anyone who does not comply. Liability for injury caused by your own negligence cannot be excluded against a consumer, and section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 places a duty on you towards visitors to a working site, so the terms describe the safety briefing and the route rather than disclaim the site.

Bookings, cancellation and minimum numbers

A tour on a specific date is a leisure service excluded from the fourteen-day cancellation right by regulation 28 of the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013; your cancellation policy governs and must be fair. The terms should set a notice period for transfers, allow you to cancel a tour below a minimum number with a refund or transfer, and say that tour content may vary with production and season.

Private events and group bookings

Private events need their own section: the space and hours hired, a deposit and cancellation scale, minimum spend if any, catering and external suppliers, the organiser's responsibility for the group's conduct and for damage, and that stag and hen parties are accepted only on stated conditions or not at all. Business bookings should be invoiced with interest on late payment under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.

Weather, vouchers, photographs and sales

Vineyard tours depend on weather, and the terms should say that tours go ahead in most conditions and what happens if they cannot. Gift vouchers need a stated, reasonable expiry. Photographs of visitors for marketing need their agreement. Bottles sold at the end of a tour are goods under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, and online bottle sales are distance contracts with their own rules and age verification on delivery.

What it costs

Customer or supplier terms and conditions, £995. One set of terms, customer-facing or supplier-facing, drafted for your business. Five working days.

Review of your existing terms, £495. You already have terms and want them checked and brought up to date. Returned marked up with my amendments and an explanation of the changes. Three working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the terms and conditions drafting page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A full set of bespoke terms drafted for your business, reflecting the legal requirements that apply to your business and sector
• A note in plain English explaining the terms I have drafted for you
• Liability, payment, termination and IP provisions that protect your position and are drafted to withstand scrutiny from the other side
• Guidance on how to incorporate the terms properly
• Your questions and comments answered by email or phone
• One round of amendments to finalise the terms ready for use

What is not included

• Negotiating your terms with individual customers (I am happy to quote for this as an additional service if required)
• Sector-specific regulatory compliance beyond the contract terms themselves
• Website privacy notice and cookie compliance, which I quote separately
• Terms governed by the law of another country
• Tax advice

Questions I am often asked

Can I refuse a stag party?

The terms can state that group bookings of a particular kind are accepted only with prior agreement and on conditions, or not at all. A policy stated at booking is far easier to apply than a refusal at the gate.

A visitor slipped on the brewery floor. Where do I stand?

If the floor was maintained with reasonable care, the briefing warned of wet floors and required suitable footwear, and the visitor was on the route with the guide, the slip is an accident rather than negligence. Where the process fell short, you are liable, and the terms cannot change that.

Do I need separate terms for my online shop?

Online bottle sales are goods sold at a distance with age verification, cancellation rights and delivery rules that tour terms do not cover. A short online sales section can sit in the same document, or a separate set of shop terms can be drafted.

Related guidance and services

• Terms and conditions drafting, £995, the service this page describes
• Contract review, £495
• Terms and conditions for a cookery school
• Terms and conditions for a wedding and events venue

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: September 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.