The provisions on linked travel arrangements (LTAs) in the revised Package Travel Directive are dividing the Member States, according to an EU Council document dated Thursday 5 September, which Agence Europe has been able to consult.
In the interests of simplification, the European Commission had proposed abolishing the current distinction between packages and LTAs purchased at a single point of sale (see EUROPE 13303/6). Despite a reduction in the number of insolvency obligations, some professionals in the sector, and also some Member States, find this new proposal confusing, given how few times these provisions are identified as such, according to a European source interviewed on Tuesday 10 September.
The Hungarian Presidency has therefore provided three options. The first, supported by the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Italy, Latvia and Malta, would be to abolish this concept. “This legal category of ‘linked travel arrangements’ does not provide any guarantee to the consumer and is too difficult to understand”, argued France.
Austria and Germany are opting for choice B, which is to maintain LTAs. “Although this definition is not easy to understand and is hardly relevant in practice, maintaining it would ensure that consumer protection does not change in any negative way”, argued Germany.
The third option, supported by Cyprus, Spain and Slovenia, would be to include the notion of LTAs in the definition of the package. “In a multi-channel era [...] it is particularly important to clarify precisely the meaning of ‘single visit’ and ‘contact with a point of sale’ in order for operators to be able to meet their obligations and for national authorities to ensure enforcement”, argued Spain.
This option is rejected by Italy, France and Germany in particular, especially as the definition itself poses problems. Hungary proposed that the situation in which the definition of “package” includes the criterion of a single visit or contact should be assessed on a case-by-case basis. “Not every interruption in the booking process should be automatically presumed to lead to a separate visit or contact”, it suggested. Estonia retorted that this explanation “creates more confusion than clarity”. Spain finds this recital “too vague and [considers that it] should be further refined”. Between the implications relating to time - the 3-hour/24-hour rule suggested by the Commission - and the different methods of booking, the Member States seem confused and no solution has yet emerged.
Finally, the Commission’s initial proposal to limit advance payments (deposits) for packages at the time of booking to 25% of the price was rejected by Estonia, Finland, France and Malta. “The restriction of downpayments would significantly affect small and medium-sized organisers’ possibilities to engage in package travel activities”, Finland pointed out.
To read the Presidency’s proposal, go to https://aeur.eu/f/ddg (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)