REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Report on the application of Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 concerning the rights of passengers when travelling by sea and inland waterway and amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004
Date: 2016-05-24
Institutions: Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission
Subjects: application of EU law, carriage of passengers, consumer protection, disabled person, equal treatment, indemnification, inland waterway transport, maritime transport, public awareness campaign

EN 

   EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 24.5.2016  COM(2016) 274 final   REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Report on the application of Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 concerning the rights of passengers when travelling by sea and inland waterway and amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004  
 
 
1. 

INTRODUCTION 

1.1.  Background 

Regulation (EU) No 1177/20101 (‘the Regulation’), which aims to ensure the basic protection 
of  passengers  who  travel  by  sea  and  inland  waterway  using  passenger  services  or  cruises, 
became applicable on 18 December 2012. 

The Commission is submitting this report under Article 29 of the Regulation, which requires 
it  to  report  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  on  the  operation  and  effects  of  the 
Regulation and, if necessary, to make legislative proposals for implementing it in more detail 
or amending it. 

The  report  is  based  partly  on  quantitative  and  qualitative  input  from  national  authorities’ 
reports on the enforcement of the Regulation2 in 2013-2014  and consultation of stakeholders 
representing passengers and the industry at European level.3 

1.2.   Importance  and  features  of  the  EU  maritime  and  inland  waterways  passenger 

transport sectors 

Sea  traffic  accounts  for  almost  all  passenger  transport  market  by  boat  in  the  EU.  Inland 
waterway traffic accounts for less than 1 % of the market.4 

The Regulation distinguishes between commercial passenger and cruise services and reflects 
their different characteristics in the different scope of the rights that it grants to passengers: 

 

Commercial passenger services are passenger transport services operated between ports 
according  to  a  published  schedule.  They  constitute  96.5 %  of  the  maritime  passenger 
market:  193  million  passengers  used  maritime  ferries  and other  regular  maritime  liner 
services  in  2013.5  Intensive  maritime  passenger  traffic  is  essential  if  Member  States’ 
archipelagos, islands and outlying/outermost regions are to form part of the EU’s social 
and  economic  fabric.  In  some  cases  (e.g. small  islands  without  an  air  transport 
connection), there is no alternative to maritime transport and citizens have to travel by 
ship, under whatever conditions the carrier may impose. 

1   Regulation  (EU)  No  1177/2010  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  24  November  2010 
concerning  the  rights  of  passengers when  travelling by  sea  and  inland waterway  and amending  Regulation 
(EC) No 2006/2004 (OJ L 334, 17.12.2010, p. 1). 

2   Article  26  of  the  Regulation  obliges  the  national  authorities  designated  by  the  Member  States  to  publish  a 
report  by  1  June  2015  and  every  two  years  thereafter  on  their  enforcement  activities  in  the  previous  two 
calendar years. The reports are available on the authorities’ homepages. 

3   The  Commission  invited  organisations  representing  passengers  (including  those  with  disabilities), 
ship-owners, ports and cruise operators at EU level to send observations on the operation of the Regulation in 
writing  and  to  participate  at  a  stakeholders’  meeting  in  Brussels  on  14  December  2015.  The  following 
organisations  did  so:  the  Cruise  Lines  International  Association  —  Europe  (CLIA  Europe),  European 
Community  Shipowners’  Associations  (ECSA),  the  European  Disability  Forum  (EDF),  the  European 
Passengers’ Federation (EPF) and the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO). 

4   See  p.  15  of  the  impact  assessment  on  the  proposal  for  the  Waterborne  Passengers’  Rights  Regulation 

(SEC(2008) 2950). 

5   EU transport in figures, statistical pocketbook, European Commission, 2015. 

2 

 
                                                            
 

Cruises  are  waterborne  services  operated  exclusively  for  pleasure  or  recreation, 
supplemented  by  accommodation  and  other  facilities,  with  more  than  two  nights  on 
board.  In  2013,  the  number  of  cruise  passengers  reached  almost  7  million,  i.e.  around 
3.5 % of the market.6 The cruise industry is part of the luxury segment of the maritime 
sector;  the  ships  include  a  complete  hotel  infrastructure,  provide  leisure  activities  and 
often bring passengers back to the port of departure. 

2. 

THE AIMS, SCOPE AND CONTENT OF THE REGULATION 

2. 1   Aims of the Regulation 

The EU legislators have adopted rules on passenger rights for all modes of transport (aviation, 
rail, waterborne and bus/coach transport) in order to give citizens minimum protection when 
they travel around Europe and thus facilitate mobility and social integration. The existence of 
a  common  set  of  passenger  rights  guaranteed  by  law  across  the  four  modes  (with  specific 
provisions  reflecting  modal  characteristics  of  each  mode,  markets  and  passengers7)  helps  to 
create a level playing-field for operators within and across modes.  

2.2   Scope and content of the Regulation 

Scope  

With certain exceptions,8 the Regulation applies to maritime and inland waterway passenger 
services operated from or to ports in the EU and to cruise services with a port of embarkation 
in the EU. 

Until 18 December 2014, Member States were allowed to exempt from the application of the 
Regulation seagoing ships of less than 300 gross tonnes used in domestic transport, provided 
that  the  rights  of  passengers  were  adequately  ensured  under  national  law.  None  of  the 
Member States have made use of this exemption. 

Member  States  may  decide  not  to  apply  the  Regulation  to  passenger  services  covered  by 
public service obligations, public service contracts or integrated services if they guarantee that 
the  rights  under  the  Regulation  are  comparably  guaranteed  by  national  law.  None  of  the 
Member States  made use of this exemption. 

Content  

6   Ibid. 
7   One characteristic of waterborne passenger transport, as compared with other modes of collective transport, 
is that the overwhelming majority of passengers travel in ro-ro ferries with their in groups with their cars or 
as part of their coach trip. 
8   The Regulation does not cover: 

ships certified to carry up to 12 passengers; 
ships with a crew responsible for the operation of the ship composed of not more than three persons; 

 
 
  passenger services over a distance of under 500 m one way; 
 
 
  original and individual replicas of historical passenger ships designed before 1965, built predominantly 

excursion and sightseeing tours other than cruises; 
ships not propelled by mechanical means; and 

with original materials and certified to carry up to 36 passengers. 

3 

 
                                                            
Like passenger rights applicable to other modes of transport, waterborne passenger rights are 
based on four principles: 

a)   Non-discrimination on the grounds of nationality 

No passenger should suffer direct or indirect discrimination on the basis of nationality 
when purchasing tickets for waterborne passenger transport services and cruises. 

b)   Accurate, timely and accessible information   

Passengers  have  the  right  to  adequate  information  before  and  during  their  journey  (in 
particular in the event of transport disruption), including on their rights and the contact 
details of national enforcement bodies (NEBs). 

c)  

Immediate and proportionate assistance in the event of transport disruption 

In the event of a delay of more than 90 minutes or cancellation of a passenger service or 
cruise,  passengers  are  entitled  to  proportionate  and  suitable  assistance  free  of  charge. 
in  some  circumstances, 
This  could 
accommodation. They must also be offered the choice between: 

include  snacks,  meals,  refreshments  and, 

 

 

re-routing  to  the  final  destination  at  no  additional  cost,  at  the  earliest 
opportunity and under comparable conditions; and  

reimbursement  of 
ticket  price,  combined,  where  relevant,  with  a 
free-of-charge  return  service  at  the  earliest  opportunity  to  the  first  point  of 
departure as set out in the transport contract. 

the 

Also, passengers have a right to objective and standardised compensation in the event of 
a long delay at arrival. The amount of compensation depends on the extent of the delay 
and  the  scheduled  duration  of  the  journey,  and  is  calculated  in  relation  to  the  ticket 
price.  The  carrier  does  not  have  to  pay  compensation  if  it  proves  that  the  delay  was 
caused  by  weather  conditions  endangering  the  safe  operation  of  the  ship  or  from 
extraordinary circumstances that could not reasonably have been avoided. 

Contrary  to  commercial  passenger  services,  cruises  do  not  have  a  binding  published 
schedule,  therefore  cruise  passengers  have  no  right  under  the  Regulation  to  choose 
between  re-routing  and  reimbursement  in  the  event  of  cancelled  or  delayed  departure 
(this issue shall be regulated in the contract that the passenger concludes for the cruise 
services), neither a right to compensation in the event of delayed arrival. 

d)   Rights of persons with disability and reduced mobility 

The  Regulation  imposes  certain  obligations  on  carriers,  port  terminal  operators,  travel 
agents  and  tour  operators  in  order  to  ensure  that  persons  with  disability  or  reduced 
mobility have equal opportunities for waterborne travel. 

Carriers,  travel  agents  and  tour  operators  may  not  refuse  to  accept  a  reservation  by 
passengers, or to transport them, on the grounds of their disability or reduced mobility, 
unless: 

 

 

it  is  impossible  to  transport  them  in  compliance  with  the  applicable  safety 
legislation and the health and safety requirements established by the competent 
authorities; or  

the  design  of  the  ship  or  the  transport  infrastructure  make  it  impossible  to 
transport them in a safe and operationally feasible manner.  

Carriers and terminal managers must put in place non-discriminatory access conditions. 

4 

 
Persons with disabilities or reduced mobility must not be asked to pay any additional fee 
for  their  tickets,  and  carriers  and  port  terminal  operators  must  provide  them,  free  of 
charge, with appropriate assistance in ports and on board ships. 

Other EU legislation relevant for waterborne passenger services 

Passengers using maritime services within the scope of the Regulation are also protected by 
Regulation (EC) No 392/2009,9 which aims to ensure that adequate compensation is paid for 
any personal injury (including death) or other loss or damage they might suffer as a result of a 
maritime accident.10 

Passengers  who  travel  by  ship  as  part  of  a  package  trip  enjoy  additional  rights  under  the 
recently  adopted  Directive  (EU)  No  2015/2302  on  package  travel  and  linked  travel 
arrangements.11  

The following EU legislation also regulates several aspects of the accessibility of persons with 
disability or reduced mobility to ships: Directive 2009/45/EC on safety rules and standards for 
passenger  ships12,  Directive  1999/35/EC  on  a  system  of  mandatory  surveys  for  the  safe 
operation  of  regular  ro-ro  ferry  and  high-speed  passenger  craft  services13  and  Directive 
98/41/EC on the registration of persons sailing on board passenger ships operating to or from 
ports of the Member States of the Community.14 

A  significant  part  of  the  waterborne  passenger  transport  occurs  in  a  cross-border  context: 
either passengers travel on cross-border services or they travel on domestic services outside of 
their own Member State. In order to protect the interest of such passengers, Regulation (EC) 
No 2006/2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of 
consumer  protection  laws15  provides  an  appropriate  framework  for  national  enforcement 
bodies  to  cooperate  with  each  other  and  to  defend  the  collective  interest  of  passengers  in  a 
cross-border context. 

3.  MEMBER STATES’ APPLICATION OF THE REGULATION 

The Regulation requires Member States to designate national enforcement bodies (NEBs) to 
enforce it and to lay down effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties in their national 
law to sanction operators that breach it. 

9   Regulation  (EC)  No  392/2009  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  23  April  2009  on  the 

liability of carriers of passengers by sea in the event of accidents (OJ L 131, 28.5.2009, p. 24). 

10   The  scope  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  392/2009  is  different  from  that  of  Regulation  (EU)  No  1177/2010  –  it 
applies to maritime services not covered by the latter, but it does not apply to inland waterways services. 
11   Directive  (EU)  No  2015/2302  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  25  November  2015  on 
package travel and linked travel arrangements (OJ L 326, 11.12.2015, p. 1), which amended Regulation (EC) 
No 2006/2004 and Directive 2011/83/EU, and repealed Council Directive 90/314/EEC. 

12   OJ L 163, 25.6.2009, p. 1. 
13   OJ L 138, 1.6.1999, p. 1. 
14   OJ L 188, 2.7.1998, p. 35. 
15   OJ L 364, 9.12.2004, p. 1. 

5 

 
                                                            
The designation of NEBs16 

Most, but not all, Member States have designated NEBs that were previously responsible for 
passenger  rights  in  other  transport  modes.  The  NEBs  are  either  transport  authorities  or 
consumer  protection  authorities.  Some  Member  States  designate  several  NEBs:  generally  a 
consumer  protection  authority  which  is  responsible  for  complaint  handling  and  a  transport 
authority which is responsible for other issues (inspections, sanctions, access to ships and port 
terminals  for  passengers  with  disabilities).  In  most  Member  States  NEBs  have  been 
designated at national level only, but in a few Member States regional authorities play a key 
role in enforcing the Regulation. 

Complaint handling 

Passengers  may  submit  complaints  about  alleged  infringements  of  the  Regulation  to  the 
carrier, the port terminal operator or directly to the NEB.  

The Regulation does not stipulate a chronological order for the lodging of a complaint, but it 
does  allow  Member  States  to  require  that  passengers  shall  submit  their  complaint  to  the 
carrier  or  port  terminal  operator  first,  with  the  NEB  only  acting  as  an  appeal  body  if  the 
passenger is not satisfied with the answer. In total, 21 Member States chose this option, which 
has the advantage that NEBs can process complaints more efficiently and rapidly, since they 
have at their disposal from the beginning the correspondence between the complainant and the 
carrier/terminal  operator,  and  thus  a  more  comprehensive  overview  of  the  case  from  both 
parties’ points of view. 

There are no publicly available figures on the number of complaints that passengers submitted 
to  carriers  or  terminal  operators  in  2013  and  2014.  Although  such  data  would  be  useful  for 
assessing the operation of the Regulation, the carriers and terminal operators are not obliged 
to collect them and report them to the NEBs. 

We  do  know,  however,  that  the  NEBs  have  handled  very  few  complaints  (see  the  table 
below). There are various reasons for this; in particular, the Regulation is relatively recent and 
many  passengers  might  not  be  fully  aware  of  their  rights.  Also,  in  most  Member  States, 
passengers must first submit their complaints to the carrier or terminal operator, who seem to 
settle most of them satisfactorily so that they do not reach the NEBs. 

Sanctions 

Most  Member  States’  national  laws  provide  for  a  penalty  system  based  solely  on  fines,  but 
some  NEBs  can  also  withdraw  an  operator’s  licence  if  it  deliberately  and  systematically 
breaches the Regulation.  

NEBs have imposed very few sanctions since the Regulation became applicable (see the table 
below).  Most  argue  that  operators  are  keen  to  comply  and  correct  breaches  and  resolve 
complaints before it becomes necessary to impose a sanction. 

16   For a list of NEBs responsible for enforcement of the Regulation, see: 

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/themes/passengers/maritime/doc/2010_1177_national_enforcement_bodies.pdf 

6 

 
 
                                                            
 
Table - The number of complaints handled and sanctions imposed by NEBs17 

Member State 

Number of complaints handled  Number of sanctions imposed 

2013 

2014 

2013 

2014 

Austria 
Belgium 
Bulgaria 
Croatia 
Cyprus 
Czech Republic 
Denmark 
Estonia 
Finland 
France 
Germany 
Greece 
Hungary 
Ireland 
Italy 
Latvia 
Lithuania 
Luxembourg 
Malta 
Netherlands 
Poland 
Portugal 
Romania 
Slovakia 
Slovenia 
Spain 
Sweden 
United Kingdom 

N/A 
N/A 
- 
0 
- 
N/A  
1 
1 
10 
N/A 
4 
64 
0 
3 
N/A 
0 
0 
N/A 
1 
0 
N/A 
N/A 
N/A 
0 
0 
501 
1 
14 

N/A 
N/A 
- 
0 
- 
N/A  
2 
1 
6 
0 
10 
45 
0 
0 
N/A 
0 
0 
N/A 
3 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
419 
27 
11 

N/A 
N/A 
- 
0 
- 
N/A  
0 
0 
N/A 
N/A 
0 
11 
0 
0 
N/A 
0 
0 
N/A 
0 
0 
N/A 
N/A 
N/A 
0 
0 
21 
N/A 
0 

N/A 
N/A 
- 
0 
- 
N/A  
0 
0 
N/A 
0 
0 
7 
0 
0 
N/A 
0 
0 
N/A 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
39 
0 
0 

Other enforcement and communication activities  

Handling  complaints  and  penalising  non-compliance  are  just  some  examples  that  the 
Regulation  gives  of  the  possible  tools  to  enforce  waterborne  passenger  rights.  Many  NEBs 
have been very proactive and have taken additional action. 

17   Figures  taken  from  NEB  activity  reports.  Where  no  figures  are  available  (N/A),  there  was  no  operational 
NEB  in  that  Member  State  in  the  year  in  question  or  there  was  no  penalty  system  in  place  to  sanction 
operators that breached the Regulation, or the NEB did not published its activity report . 

7 

 
 
                                                            
Both  NEBs  and  stakeholders  have  said  that  meetings  between  NEBs,  carriers  and  port 
terminal  operators18  and  the  publication  of  national  guidelines  on  passengers’  rights  and 
operators’  obligations19  before  the  Regulation  became  applicable  were  very  useful  in 
preparing operators for the application of the Regulation. 

Some  NEBs20  participate  frequently  in  media  events  and  tourism  fairs  to  inform  the  public 
about waterborne passenger rights. 

Several NEBs carry out regular inspections to check whether ships and port terminals provide 
the  necessary  information  for  passengers  and  whether  they  are  accessible  for  persons  with 
disability or reduced mobility. They also check carriers’ and terminal operators’ homepages 
(e.g. to ensure that passengers are informed about their rights, or that general terms of contract 
are in line with the Regulation).21 The main aim is not to sanction operators, but to educate 
them about their obligations under the Regulation and facilitate voluntary compliance. 

4.  OPERATION OF THE REGULATION AND ACTION FOR IMPROVEMENT 

4.1  Assessment of the operation of the Regulation 

Results of stakeholder consultation 

In  November  2015,  the  Commission  invited  stakeholders  representing  passengers  and  the 
industry at EU level to share their views on the operation of the Regulation22. 

Stakeholders  representing  ship-owners,  cruise  lines  and  ports  indicated  that  the  Regulation 
was  working  well  and  should  not  be  amended.  They  stressed  the  high  quality  of  service 
provided, as demonstrated by the very low number of complaints. 

Passengers’  organisations  are  generally  satisfied  with  the  Regulation,  but  see  room  for 
improvement.  They  think  that  carriers  and  port  terminal  operators  have  shown  a  positive 
approach to the implementation and application of the Regulation, but that work remains to be 
done by operators and NEBs. The level of application varies  significantly between Member 
States and between carriers.  

Further action should be taken to guarantee the right of mobility of people with disability and 
reduced mobility:  

  vessels and terminals should be made more accessible;  

  carrier  and  terminal  staff  should  be  better  trained  to  provide  appropriate  assistance; 

and  

  organisations  representing  disabled  persons  should  be  more  systematically  consulted 

on the implementation of the relevant provisions.  

18   Such meetings took place in Denmark, Germany, Finland and the UK, for example. 
19   The German, Irish and UK authorities stated in their reports that they published such guidelines. 
20   The Estonian, Swedish and Finnish NEBs reported on such activities. 
21   The  Czech,  Danish,  German,  Estonian,  Greek,  Lithuanian,  Finnish,  Swedish  and  UK  NEBs  indicated  that 

they inspect ships and terminals and monitor operators’ homepages on a regular basis. 

22   See footnote 3.  

8 

 
 
                                                            
In  particular,  carriers  and  terminal  operators  should  take  account  of  the  views  of 
representative  organisations  when  they  establish  quality  standards  for  the  assistance  of 
persons with disability or reduced mobility (Article 13).   

Assessment by the Commission 

The Commission has not detected any deliberate, severe or systematic non-compliance with 
the  Regulation.  Most  individual  complaints  of  which  it  is  aware  relate  to  the  lack  of 
compensation  or  proper  assistance  in  the  event  of  delay  or  cancellation.23  From  the  NEB 
reports, it seems that many such complaints fall outside the scope of the Regulation24 or are 
unfounded.25 

Despite  the  overall  positive  picture,  the  Commission  identified  the  following  obstacles  to 
more efficient application of the Regulation: 

a)   Passengers and operators are not sufficiently aware of their rights and obligations  

As the Regulation is relatively recent, citizens are not sufficiently aware of it. NEBs and 
stakeholder  representatives  indicated  that  many  operators  were  not  aware  of  the 
Regulation  when  it  was  adopted  and  this  is  still  a  problem  in  certain  Member  States. 
Therefore  there  is  a  clear  need  for  NEBs,  national  and  EU-level  stakeholder 
organisations, and the Commission to continue to educate passengers about their rights 
and operators about their obligations.   

b)   Enforcement is lagging behind in some Member States  

Member  States  were  late  in  taking  measures  to  implement  the  Regulation.  By 
18 December 2012, when it became applicable, only two Member States had taken all 
the  necessary  national  measures.  The  Commission  launched  infringement  procedures 
against the Member States that had not notified it of the necessary measures. At the end 
of  2015,  Belgium,  Greece,  Spain  and  Luxembourg  still  did  not  have  fully  operational 
NEBs or comprehensive systems of penalties for non-compliance with the Regulation. 

NEBs’ approaches to enforcing the Regulation vary widely. Some are very proactive in 
informing  passengers about  their rights  and monitoring  application, but the activity of 
several NEBs seems to be limited to complaint handling.   

There  are  also  significant  differences  as  regards  the  actual  enforcement  of  passenger 
rights. In some Member States, NEBs’ decisions on complaints are not binding on the 
carriers and there is no alternative dispute resolution mechanism26, so passengers have 

23   Europe Direct Contact Centre (EDCC) is a service financed by the Commission which provides information 
free of charge for citizens and businesses on EU law. It received 150 queries between the date on which the 
Regulation  became  applicable  and  15  November  2015  (this  represents  only  0.8 %  of  all  passenger  rights 
queries), of which over 80 % relate to passenger rights in the event of delay or cancellation. NEB reports that 
give the reasons for passenger complaints show similar or even higher percentages of complaints relating to a 
lack of assistance or compensation in the event of delay or cancellation. 

24   e.g. complaints about services that fall outside the scope of the Regulation, e.g. complaints related to hygenie 

or the quality of the service  

25   e.g. complaints about compensation for cancellation or delay caused by weather conditions endangering the 

safe operation of the ship. 

26  Although Directive 2013/11/EU of 21 May 2013 on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes (OJ  
L  165,  18.6.2013,  p.  63)  aims  at  ensuring  access  to  alternative  dispute  resolution  procedures  for  contractual 
disputes between EU-resident consumers and EU-established traders among others in the transport sector. 

9 

 
 
                                                            
to  pursue  their  claims  in  court,  which  is  costly  and  time-consuming,  and  therefore 
discourages them from enforcing their rights. 

c)   Difficulty in interpreting certain provisions  

Some  provisions  in  the  Regulation  have  been  interpreted  differently  by  NEBs  or 
operators.27 

Stakeholders argued that the Regulation does not need to be amended in order to clarify 
these provisions, but that the Commission and NEBs should agree on how they should 
be applied in practice. 

4.2  Commission action to improve application of the Regulation 

The Commission took the following measures to address the issues identified above: 

a)   Action to raise awareness of passengers’ rights and operators’ obligations 

In June 2013, the Commission launched a two-year information campaign on passenger 
rights  for  all  modes  of  transport,  including  waterborne.  This  included  printed  material 
(posters  and  leaflets  available  at  several  ports  and  on  vessels  throughout  the  EU),  the 
use  of  social  media  (YouTube,  Facebook,  Twitter),  a  mobile  phone  app  and 
participation in tourism fairs. 

The Commission published a summary of the Regulation which is widely used by NEBs 
and operators to inform passengers about their rights. 

b)   Action to improve enforcement  

The  Commission  launched  infringement  proceedings  against  all  Member  States  that 
failed to take the necessary measures to apply the Regulation. 

It has organised annual EU-level meetings at which NEBs and stakeholders could share 
their experiences about the application of the Regulation and exchange good practice. 

A non-compulsory standard form has been produced in cooperation with NEBs to help 
citizens to present their complaints. 

In  addition,  the  Commission  provided  guidance  and  good  practices  at  the  annual 
meetings with the NEBs to enhance cooperation between NEBs. 

c)   Action to ensure uniform application of the Regulation  

At  the  annual  meetings  with  the  NEBs  and  stakeholder  representatives  and  through 
written  correspondence,  the  Commission  provided  clarification  on  the  practical 
application  of  several  provisions  in  the  Regulation,  thus  contributing  to  its  uniform 
application throughout the EU. 

27   For instance, different views were expressed as to which services are covered by the Regulation if the port of 
embarkation is in a non-EU country and the port of disembarkation is in a Member State (see Article 2(1)(b) 
read  together  with  Article  3(e))  or  whether  the  obligation  of  the  carrier  to  re-route  passengers  ‘under 
comparable  conditions’  in  the  event  of  delay  or  cancellation  (Article  18(1)(a))  should  be  interpreted  as 
including the possibility of re-routing them by other modes of transport. 

10 

 
                                                            
5.  CONCLUSIONS AND NEXT STEPS 

The Commission considers that overall implementation of the Regulation is satisfactory. The 
Regulation  is  recent  and  appears  to  be  sufficiently  flexible  to  accommodate  improvement 
without the need for amendments at this stage. This is also the stakeholders’ view. 

Nevertheless,  to  overcome  the  remaining  obstacles  that  passengers  face  in  enjoying  their 
rights or having them enforced, the Commission: 

  will launch its third (two-year) passenger rights information campaign in 2016, focusing 
on social media. It invites NEBs, the industry, passenger rights organisation and other 
stakeholders to join its efforts or to launch similar activities at their level; 

  will  continue  the  ongoing  infringement  procedures  against  the  Member  States 
concerned  until  they  have  operational  NEBs  and  penalty  systems  in  place  that  allow 
them to penalise any breach of the Regulation; 

 

 

invites NEBs to carry out visits on board ships and in terminals, inter alia to verify how 
the  Regulation  is  applied  in  practice  and  to  educate  operators  about  their  obligations 
under  the  Regulation.  NEBs  are  also  invited  to  check  carriers’  homepages  to  ensure 
inter  alia  that  they  contain  information  on  passenger  rights  and  that  general  contract 
terms are in line with the Regulation; 

encourages  those  Member  States  that  currently  do  not  offer  an  alternative  dispute 
resolution  mechanism  for  passenger  rights  to  put  such  a  mechanism  in  place  in 
accordance  with  Directive  2013/11/EU28      so  as  to  give  passengers  quicker  and  less 
expensive redress of their rights; 

  will continue to organise regular meetings with NEBs and stakeholders’ representatives 
to  reach  a  common  understanding  on  the  interpretation  and  implementation  of  the 
Regulation,  and  to  enhance  cooperation  and  the  sharing  of  experiences  (difficulties 
encountered and good practice); and 

  will, if the need arises, publish general interpretative guidelines in order to provide more 
clarity (as it has in the past for other transport modes) and/or good practice documents 
on  specific  issues  (e.g. how  to  respond  better  to  the  specific  needs  of  persons  with 
disability or reduced mobility). 

28 See footnote 24. 

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