Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

RemovedDirective (EU) No 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 1: The purpose of this Directive is to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal market and to the achievement of a high and as uniform as possible level of consumer protection by approximating and simplifying certain aspects of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States in respect of contracts between travellers and traders relating to package travel and certain aspects of contracts between organisers of packages and travel service providers, as well as of the specific information requirements in some cases not leading to the creation of a package.

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7 – point b, Article 12 – paragraph 3 a: 3a. Official warnings against travel to a particular destination issued by the authorities of the Member State of departure or traveller’s residence or the country of destination, or the fact that travellers will be subject to serious restrictions at the travel destination or in the Member State of residence or departure after returning from the trip or holiday, for example related to obligatory quarantine requirements against the spread of contagious diseases, shall be important elements to be taken into account in the assessment of whether a termination of the contract based on paragraph 2 and paragraph 3, point (b), is justified. / Where the traveller provides the organiser with an official travel warning as referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph within 28 days before the start of the package travel contract, the traveller shall have the right to terminate the package travel contract and be entitled to a full refund of any payments made for the package.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

RemovedWe aim to clarify that the restrictions are connected to the obligatory quarantine requirements against the spread of contagious diseases and that an official travel warning gives the traveller the right to terminate the package travel contract and receive a refund.

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 2, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1: This Directive applies to packages offered for sale or sold by traders to travellers.

Change 2

ChangedDirective (EU) No 2015/2302

Change 3

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 8, Article 12 a – paragraph 6: 6. Vouchers shall be usable for all travel services proposed by the organiser and travellers may use vouchers for one or more services offered by tour organisers and in parts on different occasions. If the voucher is not redeemed within its validity period, the organiser shall refund the amount specified in the voucher as soon as possible and at the latest within 14 days after the end of the validity period without the need of any prior request by the traveller.

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 2 a (new), Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point a: (2a) in Article 2(2), point (a) is replaced by the following: / ‘(a) packages covering a period of less than 24 hours unless overnight accommodation is included;’

RemovedVouchers should be valid for all travel services and travellers should be able to redeem the voucher in parts and on different occasions.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

RemovedDirective (EU) No 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 2 b (new), Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point b: (2b) in Article 2(2), point (b) is replaced by the following: / ‘(b) packages offered occasionally and on a ‘not-for-profit’ basis and only to a limited group of travellers;’

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 8, Article 12 a – paragraph 7: 7. Vouchers shall be transferable to another traveller only once without any additional cost. The traveller shall inform the organiser in writing of the transfer of the voucher and provide the organiser with the transferee’s personal data necessary to redeem the voucher or to receive a refund at the end of its validity period. If the traveller chooses to transfer the voucher more than once, the organiser shall be entitled to charge a reasonable fee corresponding to the administrative cost.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

RemovedIn order to prevent potential fraud and keep the administrative burden of the use of vouchers reasonable for organisers, we limit the transfer of vouchers without additional costs. From the second transfer, organisers can charge a reasonable fee corresponding to the administrative costs.

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 2 – point 2 c (new), Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point c: (2c) in Article 2(2), point (c) is replaced by the following: / ‘(c) packages purchased for the arrangement of business travel between a trader and another natural or legal person who is acting for purposes relating to his trade, business, craft or profession.’

Change 4

ChangedDirective (EU) No 2015/2302

Change 5

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point i: (i) those services are purchased from a single point of sale and have been selected before the traveller agrees to pay, or / (deleted) / (deleted) / (deleted)

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point i a (new): (ia) if, before the traveller agrees to pay for a first travel service, the trader actively invites the traveller to book one or more additional types of travel services at the same point of sale within 24 hours of agreeing to pay for the first service, or

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point ii: (ii) offered, sold or paid at an inclusive or total price, regardless of any separate billing, or

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point iii: (iii) advertised or sold under the term ‘package’ or under a similar term, or

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point iv: (iv) combined after the conclusion of a contract by which a trader entitles the traveller to choose among a selection of different types of travel services, or

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point v: (v) purchased from separate traders through linked online booking processes where the traveller's personal data through which the traveller can be identified as a contracting party, are transmitted from the trader with whom the first contract is concluded to another trader or traders and a contract or contracts is or are concluded at the latest 24 hours after the confirmation of the booking of the first travel service with the latter trader or traders,

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point b – point v a (new): (va) or any other situation where the parties agree to consider the booked travel services as a package.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b, Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 5: (b) point 5 is deleted / (deleted)

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b a (new), Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 7: (ba) point 7 is replaced by the following: / ‘(7) ‘trader’ means any natural person or any legal person, irrespective of whether privately or publicly owned, who is acting, including through any other person acting in his name or on his behalf, for purposes relating to his trade, business, craft or profession in relation to contracts covered by this Directive, whether acting in the capacity of organiser, retailer, or as a travel service provider;

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b b (new), Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 12: (bb) point 12 is replaced by the following: / (12) ‘unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances’ means a situation beyond the control of the party who invokes such a situation and the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken, including inter alia war or conflict, other serious security problems such as terrorism, significant risks to human health such as the outbreak of a serious disease at the travel destination, or natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes or weather conditions which make it impossible to travel safely to the destination as agreed in the package travel contract;

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4 – point -a (new), Article 5 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point a – subpoint viii: (-a) in point (a), subpoint (viii) is replaced by the following: / ‘(viii) whether the trip or holiday is generally suitable for persons with a disability and reduced mobility and, upon the traveller's request, precise information on the accessibility and suitability of the trip or holiday taking into account the traveller's needs;’

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4 – point –a a (new), Article 5 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point b: (-aa) point (b) is replaced by the following: / ‘(b) the trading name and geographical address of the organiser and, where applicable, of the retailer, as well as their free of charge telephone number and functional e-mail address;’

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4 – point a, Article 5 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point d: ‘(d) the arrangements for payment, including via points or other currency reward systemsand any amount or percentage of the price which is to be paid as a down payment and the timing for payment of the balance, or financial guarantees to be paid or provided by the traveller;’

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4 – point a a (new), Article 5 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point f: (aa) point (f) is replaced by the following: / ‘(f) exhaustive general information on passport and visa requirements, including approximate periods for obtaining visas and information on health formalities, of the country of destination and transit, as well as changes occurring between the conclusion of the contract and its execution;’

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4 – point b a (new), Article 5 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 – point h a (new): (ba) the following point is added: / ‘(ha) information that the traveller is buying a package and an explanation of the protection given to travellers after the conclusion of the contract, as provided for in this Directive.’

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 4 a (new), Article 5 – paragraph 3: (4a) in Article 5, paragraph 3 is repalced by the following: / 3. The information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be provided in a clear, comprehensible and prominent manner and in accessible formats in accordance with the accessibility requirements set out in Annex I to Directive (EU) 2019/882. Where such information is provided in writing, it shall be legible.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 5, Article 5a: Member States may, in accordance with national provisions, introduce limitations on pre-payments.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6 – point -a (new), Article 7 – paragraph 1: (-a) paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: / ‘1. Member States shall ensure that package travel contracts are in accessible formats in accordance with the accessibility requirements set out in Annex I to Directive (EU) 2019/882, in plain and intelligible language and, in so far as they are in writing, legible. At the conclusion of the package travel contract or without undue delay thereafter, the organiser or retailer shall provide the traveller with a copy or confirmation of the contract on a durable medium. The traveller shall be entitled to request a paper copy if the package travel contract has been concluded in the simultaneous physical presence of the parties.’

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6 – point b, Article 7 – paragraph 2a: 2a. The relevant information form set out in Annex I shall be attached to the contract or made available electronically at the time of its conclu sion. The contract shall contain a clear reference to that information form.

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 6 a (new) -, Article 11 – paragraph 2 – introductory part: (6a) in Article 11, the introductory part of paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: / 2. If, before the start of the package, the organiser is constrained to alter significantly any of the main characteristics of the travel services as referred to in point (a) of the first subparagraph of Article 5(1) or cannot fulfil the special requirements as referred to in point (a) of Article 7(2), or proposes to increase the price of the package by more than 8 % in accordance with Article 10(2), it shall inform immediately the traveller who may within a reasonable period specified by the organiser:

AddedDirective (EU) 2015/2302

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 7 – point -a (new), Article 12 – paragraph 1: (-a) paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: / ‘1. Member States shall ensure that the traveller may terminate the package travel contract at any time before the start of the package. Where the traveller terminates the package travel contract under this paragraph, the traveller may be required to pay a standardised termination fee laid down in the contract.’