CELEX: 51988PC0041
Language: en
Date: 1988-03-21
Title: PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DIRECTIVE ON PACKAGE TRAVEL, INCLUDING PACKAGE HOLIDAYS AND PACKAGE TOURS

12. 4. 88                              Official Journal of the European Communities                                No C 96/5
                                                                 II
                                                        (Preparatory Acts)
                                                  COMMISSION
             Proposal for a Council Directive on package travel, including package holidays and package
                                                               tours
                                                        COM(88) 41 final
                             (Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 23 March 1988)
                                                          (88/C 96/06)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,                             ization of legislation on package tours, and point 12 of
                                                                     the Annex setting out the timetable for action envisages
                                                                     the adoption by the Council of a directive on package
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
                                                                     tours in 1987;
Economic Community, and in particular Article 100 A
thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,                   Whereas national laws of Member States concerning
                                                                     package travel show many disparities and the various
                                                                     national practices in this field are markedly different,
In cooperation with the European Parliament,                         with the result that the national markets operate diver-
                                                                     gently from each other and that distortions of compe-
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and                     tition arise amongst operators established in different
Social Committee,                                                    Member States;
Whereas one of the main objectives of the Community is
to complete the internal market, of which the tourist                Whereas certain common rules on package travel will
sector is an essential part, by 1992 at the latest;                  contribute to achieve a common market in services, thus
                                                                     helping operators established in one Member State to
                                                                     render their services in another Member State and
Whereas paragraph 36 (b) of the Annex to the Council's
                                                                     consumers to benefit from equal conditions when buying
resolution of 19 May 1981 on a second programme of
                                                                     a travel package in any Member State;
the European Economic Community for a consumer
protection    and     information    policy     invites    the
Commission to study, inter alia, tourism, and, if appro-
priate, to put forward suitable proposals with due regard            Whereas, in concluding contracts for package travel,
for their significance for consumer protection and the               consumers often thereby contract for the provision of
effects of differences in Member States' legislation on              services which are of an international character, such as
the proper functioning of the common market;                         transportation across frontiers and accommodation and
                                                                     associated services, in payment whereof large amounts of
Whereas the Council adopted on 10 April 1984 a                       money are transferred between Member States;
resolution on a Community policy on tourism, wherein,
after welcoming the Commission's initiative in drawing
attention to the importance of tourism, and after taking
                                                                     Whereas tourism plays an increasingly important role in
note of the Commission's initial guidelines for a
                                                                     the economies of the Member States; whereas package
Community policy of tourism, the Council invited the
                                                                     travel constitutes an important part of tourism; whereas
Commission to present proposals to it in the field of
                                                                     the package travel industry in Member States would be
tourism;
                                                                      stimulated to greater growth and productivity if at least a
                                                                     minimum of common rules were adopted in order to
Whereas the Commission's communication to the                         structure it to a Community dimension; and whereas this
 Council concerning consumer protection policy, which                would not only produce benefits for Community citizens
was entitled 'A New Impetus for Consumer Protection                   undertaking package travel organized on the basis of
 Policy' and was approved by resolution of the Council                those rules, but would attract tourists from outside the
 on 6 May 1986, lists in paragraph 37, among the                      Community who seek the advantages of guaranteed
 measures proposed by the Commission, the harmon-                     standards in package travel;
 ---pagebreak--- No C 96/6                               Official Journal of the European Communities                                  12. 4. 88
Whereas experience has shown that package travel,                  assistance in recording evidence of significant complaints
commonly paid for in full in advance of departure, has             which have not been remedied; and whereas both the
caused a certain level of dissatisfaction, and that the level      consumer and the package travel industry would find
of dissatisfaction is high enough to justify action, in the        that consumers' complaints in this field would be
form of a Council directive, by the Community;                     disposed of more expeditiously than at present if in each
                                                                   Member State there existed a rapid, efficient and inex-
                                                                   pensive procedure for dealing with those complaints
Whereas the organizer of the package and the retailer of
                                                                   which are not resolved amicably whether provided by
it should be under obligation to ensure that in descriptive
                                                                   public or private bodies;
matter, and particularly in brochures, relating to package
travel which they respectively organize and sell, infor-
mation should be given which is accurate and also clearly          Whereas both the consumer and the package travel
legible and understandable to the consumer;                        industry would benefit if organizers were placed under
                                                                   an obligation to cover by means of insurance those parts
                                                                   of their liability under this Directive as are insurable;
Whereas the consumer needs to have a record of the                 whereas, similarly, each Member State should ensure
terms of contract applicable to the package; whereas this          that within its territory a guarantee fund is available for
can conveniently be achieved by requiring that all the             payment of claims sustainable under this Directive which
terms of the contract be stated in writing or such other           remain unpaid from some other source;
documentary form as shall be comprehensible and
accessible to him, and that he be given a copy thereof;
                                                                  Whereas the consumer should have the benefit of the
                                                                   protection contemplated by this Directive irrespective of
Whereas the consumer should be at liberty in certain               whether he is a direct contracting party, a transferee, or
circumstances to transfer to a willing third person a              a member of a group on whose behalf another person
booking made by him for a package;                                 has concluded a package travel contract;
Whereas the consumer should be protected against any               Whereas Member States should be at liberty to adopt, or
unjustified increase in the price of the package;                  retain, more stringent provisions relating to package
                                                                   travel for the purpose of protecting the consumer,
Whereas the consumer should in certain circumstances
be free to withdraw before departure from a package
travel contract concluded with him;                                HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Whereas there should be a clear definition of the rights                                     Article 1
available to the consumer in circumstances where the               The purpose of this Directive is to approximate the laws,
organizer of the package cancels it before the agreed              regulations and administrative provisions of the Member
date of departure;                                                 States relating to package travel, including package
                                                                   holidays and package tours.
Whereas if, after the consumer has departed on the
package, there occurs a significant failure of
                                                                                             Article 2
performance of the services for which he has contracted
(for whatever cause other than the fault of the                    For the purposes of this Directive:
consumer) or the organizer perceives that he will be
unable to procure a significant part of them to be                 — Package: means the pre-arranged combination of not
provided, the organizer should have certain obligations                less than two of the following when organized at a
vis-a-vis the consumer;                                                global price and marketed as such:
Whereas consumer dissatisfaction could be much                         1. transport,
reduced if there were imposed on the person who
arranges or sells the package an obligation to ensure that             2. accommodation,
all the services which the traveller contracts to receive
are rendered at the proper time and efficiently;                       3. other services not ancillary to transport or accom-
                                                                           modation;
Whereas the consumer should be informed in writing of
the name of the organizer's local representative, if any,              and the expressions 'package holidays', 'package
at the package destiriation(s) and of the means of                     tours' and 'package travel' shall be interpreted
making contact with such representative, who should use                accordingly.
his best endeavours to rectify the consumer's complaints;
whereas to the extent possible local tourist authorities           — Organizer: means the person who in the course of
should investigate complaints made to them by                          his business, organizes the package and offers it by
consumers* should suggest solutions and endeavour to                   means of brochures, or other forms of advertising, to
obtain amicable settlement of complaints, and provide                  the public generally.
 ---pagebreak--- 12. 4. 88                               Official Journal of the European Communities                                    No C 96/7
— Retailer: means the person who sells the package on                   conditions, if any, applicable to the package, and the
     behalf of the organizer.                                           legal or administrative arrangements, if any, for
                                                                        taking part in it, and who shall be responsible for
— Consumer: means the person who takes or agrees to                     payment of the balance of the price;
     take the package.
                                                                   (4) that consumers are protected against unjustified price
— The contract: means the agreement whereby the                         increases, and in particular:
     consumer purchases the package and the organizer
     undertakes to provide it.
                                                                        (a) that the price is not varied unless the contract
                                                                              expressly so provides; and that if the contract
                            Article 3                                         does so provide, the organizer may, subject to
                                                                              subparagraph (c) below, alter the price solely in
With regard to the marketing and sale of the package,
                                                                              order to take account of modifications in:
Member States shall ensure that all descriptive matter
published or issued by the organizer or the retailer                         — transportation costs, including the cost of
concerning a package, the price thereof and any other                             fuel,
terms applicable to the contract therefor, is legible,                       — dues, taxes or fees chargeable for certain
understandable and accurate, and that brochures relating                           services, such as airport taxes, landing fees,
to a package contain adequate information, where
                                                                              — currency exchange rates,
relevant, concerning:
(a) the type(s) of transport to be used;                                      but only if the resulting aggregate variation is in
                                                                              excess of 2 % of the agreed price;
(b) where hotel or other accommodation is involved, the
      category (if any), address and main features thereof;
                                                                        (b) that the amount of the variation in price, and the
                                                                              reason therefor, is notified in writing to the
(c) the meal plan;
                                                                              consumer without delay;
(d) visits, excursions or other services included in the
      package or available optionally on payment of a                    (c) that the consumer has one of the following
      supplement;                                                             guarantees after he has paid the whole of the
                                                                              price agreed in the contract:
and that brochures specify:                                                    (i) either from the thirtieth day prior to the
                                                                                    agreed date of departure the price will not
 (e) either the monetary amount, or the percentage of the                           be increased;
      price which is to be paid by way of pre-payment, on
                                                                              (ii) or during the period of three months
      account of the price; and
                                                                                    following the conclusion of the contract the
 (f) the timetable for payment of the balance of the price.                         price will not be increased;
                            Article 4                               (5) that the consumer is entitled to withdraw from the
                                                                         contract before departure if important alterations are
 Member States shall ensure that in relation to the                      made to the terms of the contract as agreed, and in
 contract the following principles shall apply:                          particular:
 (1) that the contract contains all the essential terms; by              (a) if the price is raised by 10 per cent or more; or
      way of illustration there is annexed hereto a list of
      terms which, depending on the circumstances, are to
      be considered essential;                                            (b) if the package is modified significantly; or
 (2) that all the terms of the contract (including such of                (c) if there is an unreasonable delay in departure,
       those set out in the Annex hereto as are appropriate                    howsoever caused, otherwise than by his own
       to the particular package) are stated in writing or                     fault;
       such other documentary form as shall be
       comprehensible and accessible to the consumer; and
       that he shall be given a copy thereof;                       (6) that if the consumer withdraws from the contract
                                                                          pursuant to point 5 above, or if, for whatever cause,
                                                                          other than the fault of the consumer, the organizer
  (3) that if the consumer is for serious reasons (such as                cancels the package before the agreed date of
       sickness, bereavement), which he duly communicates                 departure, the consumer is entitled:
       to the organizer or retailer not less than one week
       before the departure date, prevented              from
       proceeding with the package, he is free to transfer                (a) to take an equivalent substitute package at no
        his booking to a willing person who satisfies the                      extra charge to the consumer; or
 ---pagebreak--- No C 96/8                                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                  12. 4. 88
     (b) to be repaid all sums paid by him under the                 (2) that vis-d-vis the consumer, liability for any de-
          contract, and where appropriate, be compensated                 ficiency in the provision of those services lies either
          either by the organizer or by the retailer                      with the organizer or (in those Member States which
          according as the relevant Member State's law                    so prefer) with the retailer.
          shall provide or determine, for non-fulfilment of
          the contract, except where:
           (i) cancellation is on the grounds that the                                          Article 6
                number of persons who enrolled for the               With regard to complaints, Member States shall ensure:
                package is less than the minimum number
                specified by the organizer in the brochure or
                elsewhere, and the consumer is informed of           (1) that not later than the time when the tickets or other
                the cancellation, in writing, not less than 21            travel documents are delivered to the consumer he is
                days before the advertised or subsequently                informed in writing of the name of, and the means
                agreed date of departure; or                              of making contact with, the organizer's local
                                                                          representative, if any, at the relevant destination(s);
          (ii) cancellation is for reasons of force majeure;              and that this representative uses his best endeavours
                but these reasons shall not include over-                 to rectify the consumer's complaints, particularly if
                booking;                                                  they are substantial;
(7) that where, after departure, a significant part of the           (2) that to the extent possible local tourist authorities,
     services contemplated by the contract is not provided                whether public or private bodies, investigate
     or the organizer sees that he will be unable to                      complaints made to them by consumers, suggest
     procure a significant part of them to be provided, (in               solutions and endeavour to obtain amicable
     either case, for whatever cause other than the fault                 settlement of complaints, and provide assistance in
     of the consumer) the organizer:                                      recording evidence of significant complaints which
                                                                          have not been remedied;
     (a) makes suitable alternative arrangements, which              (3) that in each of their territories there is available
          are free of cost to the consumer, for the                       whether provided by public or private bodies a rapid,
          continuation of the package (and if it is a                     efficient and inexpensive procedure for use by the
          package holiday to a destination at which he has                consumer in dealing with his complaints concerning
          already arrived, to continue it at the place where              any package for which he has contracted, where
          he is) if such arrangements are capable of being                these are not resolved amicably.
          made; or, if such arrangements are impossible to
          achieve or are not agreed by the consumer,
                                                                                                Article 7
     (b) provides suitable transport for the consumer, free          Member States shall ensure:
           of cost to him, to return him to the place of
           departure, or to such other return-point as was
                                                                     (a) that organizers cover by means of insurance such
           agreed between them; and
                                                                          part of their liability under this Directive as is
                                                                          insurable; and
      (c) where appropriate, compensates the consumer
           according as the relevant Member State's law              (b) that there is available in each of their territories a
           shall provide:                                                  guarantee fund for payment of claims sustainable
            (i) for significant inconvenience caused to him;               under this Directive which remain unpaid from some
                 and                                                       other source.
           (ii) to the extent that the agreed services have
                 not been provided, for non-performance of                                       Article 8
                 them, proportionally.
                                                                     The consumer shall have the benefit of the protection
                                                                      contemplated by this Directive if he is:
                             Article 5
                                                                      (a) the person with whom the organizer or the retailer
The Member States shall, as regards the performance of                     has concluded the contract, or in the event of a
 the contract, take the necessary measures to ensure:                      transfer, the transferee;
 (1) that the services which under the contract are to be             (b) a person in respect of whom the organiser or the
      provided for the consumer, whether by the organizer                  retailer has concluded the contract with another
      or by a third person, shall be rendered punctually                   person, such as a parent, guardian or group
      and efficiently;                                                     convener.
 ---pagebreak--- 12. 4. 88                                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                        No C 96/9
                           Article 9                                     December 1990. They            shall   forthwith    inform the
.,   .    _                .                                             Commission thereof.
Member States may adopt, or retain, more stringent
provisions in this field to protect the consumer.                        2.    Member States shall communicate to the
                                                                         Commission the texts of the main provisions of law
                                                                         which they adopt in the field governed by this Directive.
                          Article 10
1.    Member States shall bring into force the measures
necessary to comply with this Directive not later than 31                This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
                                                                 ANNEX
                             Terms for inclusion in the contract if appropriate to the particular package
             (a) the travel destination(s); and, where periods of stay are involved, the relevant periods, with dates;
             (b) the type(s) of transport to be used, the date and time of departure and return and the times of
                 transport connections, if appropriate; and particulars of the place to be occupied by the traveller e.g.
                 cabin/berth on ship, sleeper compartment on train;
             (c) the departure point and return point;
             (d) where the package includes hotel accommodation the name, address and category (if any) thereof, the
                 meal plan (if included), and a statement whether a private bathroom or shower is included; and where
                 the package includes another type of accommodation such as a villa, chalet, apartment, flat, room or
                 caravan, a description of its main features;
             (e) the price of the package, and a statement that it will not be varied except in the event that the
                 organizer is himself compelled to accept modifications, which he cannot avoid or reduce, in respect of
                 transportation costs (including cost of fuel), certain dues, taxes or fees chargeable for services (such as
                 airport or seaport taxes, landing or departure fees) and currency exchange rates;
             (f) the timetable for payment of the price;
             (g) other services, if any (e.g. excursions), which are included in the price;
             (h) any special requirements which the traveller has communicated to the organizer or retailer when
                 booking his travel, and which either of them has accepted.
             (i) the name and address of the organizer and, where appropriate, of the retailer.