Private Driver Tours Sri Lanka
Legal

Terms & Conditions

Last updated 5 August 2026

1. About these terms

These terms are a contract between you and Private Driver Tours Sri Lanka ("PDTSL", "we", "us"). They apply whenever you browse this website, request a quote, make a booking, request a rental, or post on the share-a-taxi board. By using the platform, ticking an acceptance box, or confirming a booking you accept these terms; each acceptance is recorded together with a timestamp and the terms version then in force. You must be at least 18 and able to enter a binding contract. If you book on behalf of other travelers, you are responsible for their acceptance of these terms. Nothing here removes any statutory rights you have as a consumer that cannot be excluded by law.

2. Definitions

  • Platform — this website and the related booking, matching and messaging services operated by PDTSL.
  • Traveler ("you") — a person requesting or making a booking, rental, or share-a-taxi connection.
  • Driver — an independent, self-employed driver or chauffeur guide who lists their services on the Platform.
  • Owner — an independent rental shop or vehicle owner listing bikes, tuk-tuks or other vehicles for self-ride hire.
  • Co-rider — another user of the free share-a-taxi connection board.
  • Booking — a confirmed arrangement for a Driver to provide a Tour to a Traveler.
  • Deposit — the portion of the price paid to PDTSL through the Platform to confirm a Booking.
  • Balance — the remaining price paid by the Traveler directly to the Driver.
  • Tour — the transport and chauffeur-guide service the Driver provides.

3. Our role — a marketplace venue only

PDTSL operates a marketplace that introduces Travelers to independent, self-employed Drivers, chauffeur guides and Owners in Sri Lanka. We provide an introduction and venue service only. We are not a transport operator, tour operator, rental company, or travel agent; we do not own, operate, inspect or maintain any vehicle, and we do not supervise, direct or control any Driver or Owner. The contract for each Tour, rental or shared ride is formed directly between you and the Driver, Owner or Co-rider; PDTSL is not a party to, an agent for, or a guarantor of that contract or its performance.

Our role is limited to providing the Platform, transmitting details between the parties, processing the Deposit where applicable, and offering discretionary support. Any document checks, "verified" indicators, badges or listing approvals we carry out are administrative screening for listing purposes only. They are not — and must not be relied on as — endorsements, warranties or representations about any person's identity, licensing, insurance, competence, safety record, or the condition or legality of any vehicle. We cannot and do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of Driver- or Owner-supplied information, the availability of any Driver, or the quality or safety of any Tour or rental.

4. Your verification responsibilities

Before you travel, you must satisfy yourself that the Driver, Owner or Co-rider and the vehicle are suitable for you. In particular, you are responsible for independently checking, at or before the start of the service:

  • the Driver's driving licence and (where applicable) SLTDA tourist-driver or chauffeur-guide licence;
  • that insurance covering you as a paying passenger is in place and current;
  • the vehicle's registration, apparent condition and roadworthiness, and that seatbelts or helmets are available and used;
  • for rentals, that you hold a licence or International Driving Permit valid for that vehicle class in Sri Lanka;
  • anything else material to your decision to travel with that person.

Listings, ratings, reviews, badges and profile content are informational only and are provided by users, not by PDTSL. If anything does not check out, do not start the trip and contact us. By placing or accepting an order you acknowledge that this verification duty is yours alone, and that acknowledgment is recorded with a timestamp and terms version.

5. Assumption of risk and release

Road travel in Sri Lanka carries inherent risks, including variable road conditions, local driving practices, weather, wildlife, and the acts and omissions of other road users. You voluntarily assume these risks when you choose to travel. To the maximum extent permitted by law, you release PDTSL, its directors, staff and agents from all claims, demands, losses and liability arising out of or connected with services provided (or not provided) by any Driver, Owner or Co-rider, including personal injury, death, property damage or loss, delay, and failure of an itinerary — save only to the extent such loss is caused by PDTSL's own fraud or negligence in operating the Platform itself. This release does not limit any liability that cannot be excluded by law.

6. Your account and details

  • Provide accurate, current trip and contact details, and keep them up to date.
  • If you create an account, keep your login credentials secure; you are responsible for activity that takes place under your account.
  • Tell us promptly if you believe your account has been used without your permission.

7. Bookings and deposits

  • A booking request becomes a confirmed booking when (a) a driver accepts it and (b) the traveler pays the 50% deposit through the platform.
  • The remaining 50% is payable by the traveler directly to the driver at the start of the tour, in cash (USD, EUR, GBP or LKR) unless otherwise agreed.
  • The quoted daily rate includes the vehicle, driver, fuel, insurance, parking and highway fees, and the driver's meals and accommodation. It excludes traveler accommodation, entrance tickets, train tickets and tips.
  • Quotes cover 100 km per tour day averaged across the tour; excess distance may be charged at the driver's published per-km rate.
  • Quotes are valid until the stated expiry, or until the driver's availability or rates change, whichever comes first.
  • Quotes are prepared and offered by the Driver, not PDTSL; the Driver is responsible for honoring the quoted price and inclusions.

8. Prices, payment and taxes

  • The Deposit is charged through our payment processor, Stripe. PDTSL never sees or stores your full card number.
  • Prices are shown in the currency selected at booking. Your bank or card issuer may apply currency-conversion or transaction fees that are outside our control.
  • The Balance is settled directly with the Driver and is not processed by PDTSL. PDTSL has no responsibility for cash or other payments made directly to a Driver or Owner.
  • Prices include Sri Lankan taxes applicable to the Tour where required; personal expenses, tips and optional extras are not included.

9. Changes to a booking

  • You may agree itinerary changes with your driver before or during the tour, subject to time, distance and the driver's availability.
  • Additional days or distance beyond the quote may be charged at the driver's published daily or per-km rate and are settled directly with the driver.
  • Material changes you request before the tour may require a revised quote and the driver's re-acceptance.
  • Changes agreed directly with a Driver are between you and the Driver; PDTSL is not responsible for arrangements made outside the quoted booking.

10. Cancellations and refunds

  • Cancel 4 or more days before the tour start date: full refund of your deposit.
  • Cancel within 4 days of the start date: the deposit is retained (50% shared with the reserved driver).
  • If the driver cancels or fails to appear, you receive a full refund of the Deposit and we will attempt to re-match you with a comparable driver at no extra cost. The Deposit refund is your sole remedy from PDTSL for a Driver cancellation or no-show; further losses (such as accommodation or onward travel) are matters between you and the Driver.
  • If we cancel a booking because a driver can no longer be verified or supplied, you receive a full refund of your deposit.
  • Refunds are returned to the original payment method within 5–10 business days.

11. Traveler obligations and acceptable use

  • Treat drivers and vehicles with reasonable care; smoking in vehicles requires the driver's consent. You are responsible for damage you or your party cause to a vehicle.
  • Do not ask drivers to break Sri Lankan law (speeding, overloading, restricted areas).
  • Do not use the platform for any unlawful, fraudulent or abusive purpose, submit false information, or impersonate anyone.
  • Do not scrape, copy, overload, or interfere with the platform, or attempt to access data that is not yours.

12. No off-platform arrangements

For any booking that originates on the Platform, you agree not to arrange, pay for, or settle the Tour off-platform in order to avoid our fees, and not to solicit a Driver to do so. Arrangements made off-platform are entirely at your own risk and fall outside these terms, our payment handling and our support.

13. Driver obligations

  • Drivers are independent contractors solely responsible for maintaining valid licences, insurance and roadworthy vehicles at all times, for the safety and legality of the service they provide, and for informing us of any changes.
  • Drivers must honor accepted bookings and quoted rates, arrive on time, and drive safely and legally.
  • Platform commission is deducted from the deposit as published in the driver agreement; the balance of the deposit is remitted to the driver in the weekly payout run.
  • A Driver's failure to meet these obligations is a breach of your contract with the Driver, not of any contract with PDTSL.

14. Bike and tuk-tuk rentals

The Platform lists self-ride bikes and tuk-tuks offered by independent Owners. When you request a rental, PDTSL only transmits your request to the Owner. The rental contract — including price, deposit, damage assessment, fuel, helmets and insurance — is formed solely between you and the Owner, and any deposit or damage claim is a matter between you and the Owner. You are responsible for holding a driving licence or International Driving Permit valid for the vehicle class in Sri Lanka, for wearing a helmet where required, and for inspecting the vehicle's condition before riding. PDTSL takes no responsibility for the condition, roadworthiness, legality or insurance of any rental vehicle.

15. Share-a-taxi board

The share-a-taxi board is a free connection board only, provided "as is". PDTSL does not vet Co-riders or their posts beyond confirming control of a WhatsApp number, does not arrange or supervise shared rides, and receives no payment for them. You connect with and travel alongside Co-riders entirely at your own risk. Take sensible precautions: meet in public places, verify identities yourself, agree cost-sharing directly, and share your plans with someone you trust. To the maximum extent permitted by law, PDTSL has no liability of any kind arising from share-a-taxi connections or the rides that follow from them.

16. Travel insurance

PDTSL provides no insurance of any kind — travel, medical, vehicle, liability or otherwise. Obtaining comprehensive travel insurance that covers road travel in Sri Lanka, including medical evacuation, is your own responsibility, and you acknowledge this when you place or accept an order. Do not travel without it.

17. Reviews and your content

Reviews may only be left for completed bookings and are moderated for abuse, discrimination and personal data before publication. We do not edit substance and we do not accept payment to remove honest reviews. Any review, photo or other content you submit must be your own and accurate; by submitting it you grant PDTSL a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, display and share it in connection with the Platform. Reviews, ratings and other user content are the opinions of the users who post them, not statements by PDTSL; we do not verify their accuracy and accept no liability for reliance on them.

18. Intellectual property

The Platform, its software, design, text, logos and brand are owned by PDTSL or its licensors. We grant you a limited, personal, non-transferable licence to use the Platform to browse and make bookings. You may not copy, resell, or create derivative works from our content without our written permission.

19. Communications and notices

  • You are responsible for giving us a correct email address and phone number. We are not liable for messages that fail to reach you because your details were wrong or out of date.
  • To protect both sides, a driver's personal contact details are shared with you only once a booking is confirmed, and vice versa.
  • We may give notices to you electronically, including by email and through the Platform.

20. Complaints and disputes

If something goes wrong, contact us at hi@privatedrivertourssrilanka.com and we will try to help. Because every Tour, rental and shared ride is provided under a direct contract between you and the Driver, Owner or Co-rider, disputes about the service itself are exclusively between you and that party. PDTSL may, at its sole discretion, assist or facilitate communication, but has no obligation to mediate, adjudicate, resolve or compensate, and doing so in one case creates no obligation in another. We will investigate complaints about the Platform itself, our verification screening process, or payments handled by us.

21. Disclaimers and liability

The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available". To the extent permitted by law, we exclude all implied warranties, including any implied terms of merchantability, satisfactory quality, fitness for a particular purpose and title. We do not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted or error-free.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, PDTSL has no liability for the acts or omissions of any Driver, Owner or Co-rider, for the condition, roadworthiness, legality or insurance of any vehicle, or for accidents, injury, death, loss of or damage to property, delays, or the failure of any itinerary, Tour, rental or shared ride. PDTSL is not liable for indirect, special, incidental, consequential or punitive loss, or for loss of profit, revenue, data or enjoyment. Our aggregate liability for any claim relates only to our operation of the Platform itself (such as site availability and Deposit processing) and is limited to the amounts paid to PDTSL through the Platform for the affected booking. Nothing in these terms limits liability for fraud, or for death or personal injury caused by PDTSL's own negligence, or any other liability that cannot be excluded by law.

22. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify PDTSL against reasonable losses, costs and claims arising from your breach of these terms, your misuse of the Platform, your unlawful acts, or claims brought by members of your party in connection with your Booking.

23. Force majeure

PDTSL is not liable for any failure or delay caused by events beyond its reasonable control, including natural disasters, extreme weather, floods, landslides, epidemics, strikes, civil unrest, fuel shortages, road closures, telecommunications or power failures, or acts of government. If such an event prevents a Tour, the cancellation terms above govern any refund of the Deposit.

24. Suspension and termination

We may suspend or close an account, or cancel a booking, if we reasonably believe there has been a breach of these terms, fraud, or abusive or unsafe behaviour. Where we cancel a booking you have paid for and you are not at fault, we refund your deposit.

25. Dispute resolution, governing law and time limit

Before bringing any claim against PDTSL, you agree to first raise it with us in writing and allow 30 days for good-faith resolution. These terms are governed by the laws of Sri Lanka, and disputes are subject to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Sri Lanka. To the extent permitted by law, any claim against PDTSL must be brought within 12 months of the event giving rise to it. These terms are the entire agreement between us on their subject matter. We may assign or transfer them in connection with a reorganisation or sale of the business; you may not transfer your rights without our consent. A delay in enforcing a term is not a waiver of it, and if any provision is held unenforceable it is to be read down to the minimum extent necessary and the remainder stays in effect. Nothing here creates a partnership, agency or employment relationship between us.

26. Terms version, acceptance and changes

These terms carry the version identifier 2026-08-05. When you register, request a quote, make or accept a booking, request a rental, or post on the share-a-taxi board, your acceptance of the then-current version is recorded with a timestamp. We may update these terms from time to time; material changes will be notified to registered users at least 14 days before taking effect, and your continued use of the Platform — or your next recorded acceptance — constitutes agreement to the updated terms.