Terms and conditions

1. Who you are buying from

The lessons are provided by Sebastian Don Maria Lenders, trading as Speak with Sebastian, Rua Dr. António Manuel Dias da Silva 62, Nesperal - 6100-459 Sertã, Portugal. NIF: 313644594. Email: hello@speakwithsebastian.com. Telephone: +351 923 076 661 (national mobile network).

By paying for a package you confirm that you have read and accept these terms. The version published on the day of your purchase applies to that purchase.

2. The lessons

Lessons are personal, one-to-one and online, in Dutch, Portuguese (European or Brazilian), Spanish or English, with explanations in another of these languages. Each lesson lasts 50 minutes and takes place on Google Meet. The camera is optional.

Lesson times are agreed personally, in Lisbon time, within Sebastian’s availability, which includes some evenings and Saturdays. Twice a week is recommended; once a week is fine.

The lessons are educational. No particular level, exam result, certificate, residence permit, citizenship or job outcome is promised. Specialist exam preparation is not part of the service.

3. Adults only

Lessons are only for adults aged 18 and over. By buying a package you confirm that you, and the person taking the lessons if that is someone else, are at least 18. If it turns out that the learner is under 18, Sebastian may cancel the package and refund the lessons not yet given.

4. The free introductory call

Before the first lesson, you book a free 15-minute introductory call on Google Meet through Sebastian’s booking page (Cal.com). It is used to get to know each other, check your level and agree on lesson times. The intro call is not a lesson and does not use up any lessons from your package.

If, after the intro call, Sebastian believes he is not the right teacher for your goals, he may decline the order and refund the full amount.

5. Packages, prices and validity

Packages: 1 lesson €35 (€45 with homework); 5 lessons €150 (€200 with homework); 10 lessons €250 (€350 with homework). Homework is chosen for the whole package when you buy, and cannot be added or removed later.

Prices are final totals. No VAT is added: Sebastian is exempt from Portuguese VAT (IVA) under the Portuguese VAT Code. If this tax status changes, prices for new purchases may change; purchases already made are not affected.

A package is valid from the date of purchase: 1 month for a single lesson, 2 months for 5 lessons and 3 months for 10 lessons. Lessons not used within the validity period expire and are not refunded, except as described in sections 8 and 9 or where the law requires it. If Sebastian is unavailable for a period, the validity is extended by the same period.

Packages are one-off purchases. Recurring arrangements can be discussed personally and do not carry an extra discount.

6. Payment and invoices

Payment is made in full, in advance, on Stripe’s secure checkout page, using one of the payment methods Stripe offers. Speak with Sebastian never sees or stores your card details. Stripe emails a payment receipt.

A Portuguese invoice (fatura-recibo) is issued for every purchase. For now it is issued by hand and emailed to you within two working days of payment. Please make sure the name and email you give are correct; tell Sebastian if your invoice needs a tax number (NIF) or a company name.

7. Rescheduling, cancellations, lateness and no-shows

You can reschedule or cancel a lesson free of charge up to 24 hours before it starts, by email or message to Sebastian. A cancellation with less than 24 hours’ notice, or not showing up, counts as a lesson given and uses one lesson from your package.

If you are late, the lesson still ends at the agreed time and counts as a full lesson. If you have not joined within 15 minutes of the start and have not sent a message, the lesson counts as a no-show.

If a lesson cannot take place, or is cut short, because of a problem on your side (for example your internet connection or equipment), it counts as given. If it cannot take place, or is cut short, because of a problem on Sebastian’s side, the lesson, or the missing time, is rescheduled at no cost.

If Sebastian has to cancel a lesson, it does not count and a new time is offered.

8. Your right to withdraw within 14 days

If you buy as a consumer, you can withdraw from the purchase within 14 days of the day you paid, without giving a reason. To withdraw, use the online withdrawal form, or send a clear statement by email to hello@speakwithsebastian.com or by post to the address in section 1.

When you sign up on the website, you ask for lessons to start right away, within the 14-day period. If you then withdraw, you pay for the lessons already given, calculated at your package’s price per lesson (the package price divided by its number of lessons), and the rest is refunded. Starting lessons does not take away your right to withdraw from the rest of the package.

If you asked for lessons to start right away and all lessons in the package have been given before the 14 days end, the right to withdraw no longer applies, because the service has been fully performed with your prior express request and acknowledgement.

Refunds after a withdrawal are made within 14 days of receiving it, using the same payment method you used, at no cost to you.

9. Refunds after the 14 days

After the withdrawal period, a package cannot be refunded because you changed your mind, stopped having time or no longer need the language. Your statutory rights are not affected.

Unused lessons are refunded, at your package’s price per lesson, if Sebastian cannot provide them: for example if he cannot offer you at least one lesson time per week within his published availability, if he stops teaching, or if he ends the agreement under section 10 for a reason that is not your fault.

10. Behaviour and ending the agreement

Lessons should be respectful on both sides. Sebastian may end a lesson immediately, and may end the agreement, in case of abusive, discriminatory, threatening or unlawful behaviour, or repeated serious breaches of these terms. In that case the lesson in progress counts as given, and unused lessons are refunded at your package’s price per lesson, minus any amount owed.

Lessons are not recorded unless both of you agree beforehand. Teaching materials Sebastian shares are for your personal learning only and may not be published, shared or sold.

11. Liability

Sebastian teaches with care and skill, but language learning depends a great deal on the learner’s own practice. He is not liable for outcomes such as exam results, visa or citizenship decisions, job applications or business losses, nor for indirect or consequential losses.

Except in cases of intent or gross negligence, injury to life, body or health, or where the law does not allow a limitation, Sebastian’s total liability in connection with a package is limited to the price you paid for that package. Nothing in these terms limits rights that consumer law gives you and that cannot be excluded.

Sebastian is not responsible for delays or failures caused by events outside his reasonable control, such as illness, power or internet outages, or failures of Google, Cal.com or Stripe. In such cases the affected lessons are rescheduled and the validity of your package is extended.

12. Complaints and disputes

If something is not right, please email hello@speakwithsebastian.com first. Most problems are quickly solved in a conversation.

Consumers in Portugal can also use the electronic complaints book (Livro de Reclamações Eletrónico) at https://www.livroreclamacoes.pt/. For alternative dispute resolution of consumer disputes, you can contact the Centro Nacional de Informação e Arbitragem de Conflitos de Consumo (CNIACC), https://www.cniacc.pt/.

13. Changes and applicable law

These terms may be updated. Changes only apply to purchases made after they are published.

Portuguese law applies. If you are a consumer living in another EU country, you keep the protection of the mandatory consumer rules of that country.