Commission Opinion pursuant to Article 251(2), third subparagraph, point (c) of the EC Treaty on the European Parliament's amendments to the Council Common Position regarding the proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the liability of carriers of passengers by sea and inland waterways in the event of accidents amending the proposal of the Commission pursuant to Article 250 (2) of the EC Treaty
Date: 2008-11-26
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: carriage of passengers, carrier, liability, maritime transport, safety standard, transport safety

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 26.11.2008 
COM(2008) 831 final 

2005/0241 (COD) 

COMMISSION OPINION 

pursuant to Article 251(2), third subparagraph, point (c) of the EC Treaty 
on the European Parliament's amendments 
to the Council Common Position regarding the 
proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the liability of carriers of passengers by sea and inland waterways in the event of 
accidents 

AMENDING THE PROPOSAL OF THE COMMISSION pursuant to Article 250 (2) of the 
EC Treaty 

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2005/0241 (COD) 

COMMISSION OPINION 

pursuant to Article 251(2), third subparagraph, point (c) of the EC Treaty 
on the European Parliament's amendments 
to the Council Common Position regarding the 
proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the liability of carriers of passengers by sea and inland waterways in the event of 
accidents 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Article  251(2),  third  subparagraph,  point  (c)  of  the  EC  Treaty  requires  the  Commission  to 
deliver  an  opinion  on  the  amendments  proposed  by  the  European  Parliament  at  second 
reading. The Commission hereby sets out its opinion below on the 19 amendments proposed 
by the Parliament. 

2. 

BACKGROUND 

Date of transmission of the proposal to the European Parliament and 
the Council – document COM(2005) 592 final – 2005/0241(COD): 

13 February 2006 

Date of the opinion of the Committee of the Regions: 

15 June 2006 

Date  of  the  opinion  of  the  European  Economic  and  Social 
Committee: 

13 September 2006 

Date of the opinion of the European Parliament at first reading: 

25 April 2007 

Date of the revised proposal of the Commission: 

22 October 2007 

Date of adoption of the common position: 

6 June 2008 

Date of the opinion of the European Parliament at second reading: 

24 September 2008 

3. 

AIM OF THE PROPOSAL 

The  objective  of  this  proposal  is  to  give  all  passengers  travelling  by  ship,  whatever  their 
journey, and the carriers themselves a harmonised legal framework setting out their rights and 
obligations. The level of this harmonisation should aim to ensure not only fairer compensation 
for loss or damage, but also improved accident prevention. 

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The proposal seeks to incorporate into Community law the 2002 Protocol to the 1974 Athens 
Convention Relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea, adopted under 
the  auspices  of  the  International  Maritime  Organization  (“the  Athens  Convention”).  The 
Athens  Convention  is  a  modern  text  setting  out  clearly  the  rights  and  obligations  of 
passengers and carriers; it provides for a system of strict liability – ‘liability without fault’ –
 of  the  carrier  in  respect  of  loss  or  damage  in  the  event  of  shipping  incidents,  lays  down 
sufficiently  high  maximum  compensation  amounts,  requires  all  carriers  to  take  out  an 
insurance policy and allows the complainant to claim compensation from the insurer directly.  

In parallel with this current proposal, the Member States and the EU are preparing to become 
contracting parties to the Athens Convention1. 

Incorporating  the  Athens  Convention  into  Community  law  means  making  a  number  of 
adjustments: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

The  Athens  Convention  is  confined  to  international  maritime  transport.  The 
Commission  proposes  extending  the  scope  to  cover  cabotage  (maritime  transport 
within a single Member State) and inland waterway transport. 

So  that  harmonisation  will  benefit  both  passengers  and  carriers,  the  Commission  is 
proposing  to  render  inapplicable  the  clause  in  the  Athens  Convention  whereby  a 
Member  State  may  individually  adopt  maximum  compensation  limits  higher  than 
those  laid  down  in  the  Convention.  The  Commission  has  also  accepted  an 
amendment  by  the  European  Parliament  at  first  reading  which  aims  to  ensure  that 
victims receive compensation in all cases equal to the levels provided for under the 
Athens Convention. As things stand, the Athens Convention could be undermined by 
another Convention limiting carriers’ liability which could reduce the compensation 
paid to each victim by setting a total compensation ceiling per accident. 

Addition  of  a  measure  to  increase  the  compensation  for  loss  or  damage  caused  to 
equipment used by people with reduced mobility. 

Addition of an obligation to make advance payments. 

Addition of an obligation to inform passengers about their rights. 

4. 

THE COMMISSION'S OPINION ON THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT'S AMENDMENTS 

4.1. 

Amendments accepted by the Commission 

4.1.1.  Amendments accepted in full 

– 

Amendments 2, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 16, 18 and 19 are accepted in full. 

1 

Proposal for a Council Decision concerning the conclusion by the European Community of the Protocol 
of 2002 to the 1974 Athens Convention Relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by 
Sea, COM(2003) 375, 24.6.2003. Under adoption. 

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4.1.2.  Amendments accepted in part 

– 

– 

– 

– 

Amendment 1 is accepted, but only in part. The Commission does not accept the last 
sentence of this amendment, which suggests that setting up a compulsory insurance 
scheme  should  not  affect  existing  insurance  schemes.  In  fact,  setting  up  a 
compulsory  insurance  scheme  of  this  kind  will  inevitably  have  consequences  for 
individual  operators,  even  if  it  is  unlikely  to  affect  the  structure  of  the  insurance 
market generally. 

Amendments 3 and 17 are accepted, but only in part. The Commission takes the view 
that  it  is  unrealistic  to  demand  that  passengers  be  provided  with  complete 
information, since this would involve them being given copies of relevant legislation 
in full, including legislation relating to civil procedure. Amendments 3 and 17 also 
state that information should be provided to passengers before boarding. This is not 
always  practical,  given  the  scope  of  the  regulation.  The  regulation  applies  in  cases 
where contracts have been entered into in a third country; under these circumstances, 
it  could  only  be  guaranteed  that  the  information  would  be  available  at  the  time  of 
boarding. 

Amendment  14  is  accepted,  but  only  in  part.  The  Commission  does  not  accept  the 
deletion  of  the  second  paragraph  of  Article  5  of  the  common  position  covering  the 
system for indemnity in the event of a terrorist attack. 

Amendment 15 is accepted, but only in part. The Commission takes the view that it 
is not appropriate to guarantee a specific minimum advance payment in cases such as 
permanent invalidity. The Commission would like to draw attention to the fact that 
advance payments will have to be made in cases of death or injury, but in order for 
cases of invalidity to be taken into account, a procedure to establish invalidity needs 
to  be  followed,  which  may  involve  a  timeframe  too  lengthy  for  the  urgency  of  an 
advance payment.  

4.2. 

Amendments not accepted by the Commission 

– 

– 

Amendment 4 cannot be accepted in so far as it no longer applies. The amendment 
continues to refer to the procedure whereby any future amendment to the Convention 
is  automatically  incorporated  into  Community  law  unless  a  Commission  regulation 
to the contrary is adopted by comitology. In the common position, this approach has 
changed  and  the  Commission  has  accepted  this  change:  changes  to  maximum 
compensation amounts under the Athens Convention can be incorporated following 
the  adoption  of  a  Commission  regulation  under  the  regulatory  procedure  with 
scrutiny. Any other amendment to the Convention would be subject to co-decision.  

Amendment 5 cannot be accepted in so far as it involves a general declaration which 
is  not  appropriate  to  this  specific  regulation  reviewing  the  remit  of  the  European 
Maritime Safety Agency. 

5. 

CONCLUSION 

Under Article 250(2) of the EC Treaty, the Commission will amend its proposal in accordance 
with the above. 

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