Retsudvalget 2021-22
REU Alm.del Bilag 250
Offentligt
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Dato:
Kontor:
Sagsnr.:
Dok.:
10.05.2022
Formueretskontoret
2022-72-0413
2437125
General remarks
During the COVID-19 pandemic, consumer rights under the Package Travel
Directive have been challenged throughout the European Union. Therefore,
Denmark welcomes the announced revision of the Directive, as there seems
to be a need to improve certain provisions of the Directive in order to ensure
that consumer rights are always respected
–
even in the event of a crisis like
the COVID-19 pandemic.
Clarification of uncertainties regarding
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown a need for clarifications of Article 12
of the Package Travel Directive. During the pandemic, we have seen exam-
ples in the European Union of consumers being forced to accept vouchers
instead of reimbursement in money, and we have also seen examples of con-
sumers not being reimbursed within 14 days. In the opinion of the Danish
Government, article 12 does not allow for such regulation. Therefore, the
Danish Government believes that there is a need to clarify in Article 12 that
the use of vouchers must always be voluntary for the consumer and that the
consumer must always be reimbursed within 14 days of the cancellation of
the agreement.
Dealing with the challenges facing the package travel industry during the
COVID-19 pandemic in Denmark has shown that it is possible to provide
support to the package travel industry without compromising consumer pro-
tection.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, travel agencies in Denmark have been
obliged to comply with the Danish Package Travel Act issued in pursuant
to the Package Travel Directive. Thus, they have had to refund travellers in
the event of a cancelled or annulled trip within 14 days. Furthermore, travel
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agencies have had the opportunity to offer consumers a refund in the form
of a voucher, but have also been obligated to provide a cash refund if the
consumer so wishes. This scheme is supported by the Commission Recom-
mendation of 13 May 2020, which states that in the event of a cancelled trip,
the tour operator may offer the traveller a refund in the form of a voucher,
but that this option does not deprive the traveller of the right of a cash re-
fund.
To support the industry, the Danish government established a loan scheme
under the Danish Travel Guarantee Fund, so that travel providers in need of
extra liquidity had the opportunity to take out loans to ensure the repayment
of their customers within 14 days. This has helped package travel providers
to comply with the obligations of the Package Travel Directive and thus
maintaining a high level of consumer protection in Denmark.
Clarification of uncertainties regarding insolvency protection
Lack of clarity regarding the scope of insolvency protection turned out to be
particularly relevant in a crisis such as the COVID-pandemic as package
travel contracts were cancelled on a large scale. Negating insolvency pro-
tection where an organiser becomes insolvent
before
reimbursing any pre-
payments made by travellers for the cancelled packages would cause a ma-
jor loss of travellers’ trust in the package
travel industry. Travellers must be
able to rely on insolvency protection of their prepayments in all cases. In-
solvency protection should therefore not depend on the reason why the trip
was cancelled.
In this respect, the Travel Guarantee Fund in Denmark has established a
practice to cover travel packages other than those that cannot be carried out
as a direct consequence of the organiser’s insolvency. Thus, the Travel
Guarantee Fund also covers gift cards (vouchers) and travel packages that
have been lawfully cancelled/annulled before the organiser’s insolvency or
where the traveller has not been refunded for prepayments made for a travel
package before the organiser’s bankruptcy.
This long-standing practice was introduced in Denmark in 1996. There was
a wish to also protect those travellers who, due to the organiser´s bank-
ruptcy, cannot use a prepaid gift card (for the purchase of a travel package),
or who are not reimbursed for the prepayment made for a travel package
cancelled by the traveller or by the organiser before the bankruptcy.
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However, during the COVID-19 pandemic several stakeholders raised
doubts as to whether the Travel Guarantee Fund’s practice of also covering
travellers’ claims for refunds of prepayments for cancelled travel packages
before bankruptcy goes beyond the Package Travel Directive.
For example, one of the major package travel organisers refused to refund
travellers the prepayments made for travel packages that have been lawfully
cancelled/annulled because of the COVID-19 crisis, even though travellers
are entitled to a refund within 14 days the Package Travel Directive. The
organiser stated that if it went bankrupt, the guarantee provided should not
cover travellers’ claims for reimbursement for cancelled travel packages, as
such claims are not covered under the Package Travel Directive.
In order to provide effective insolvency protection to travellers, it is im-
portant to have clear provisions stating that the insolvency protection in-
cludes refund claims for package travel contracts terminated before the or-
ganiser’s insolvency.
The Danish government would like this to be clarified
in the revision of the Package Travel Directive to ensure a continued high
level of consumer protection.
The Danish Government are looking forward to the upcoming revision of
the Directive and to working closely together with the European Commis-
sion and other Member States in order to find balanced solutions regarding
this important Directive.
Yours sincerely,
Mattias Tesfaye and Simon Kollerup
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