Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

122 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE The notion of “Linked travel arrangement” is therefore connected with the notion of “Travel contract”, as commented above. Recital 13 indicates some particular situations: “(13) Specific rules should be laid down for both high street and online traders which assist travellers, on the occasion of a single visit or contact with their point of sale, in concluding separate contracts with individual service providers and for online traders which, for instance, through linked online booking processes, facilitate in a targeted manner the procurement of at least one additional travel service from another trader”. 4.6.1. The new category of linked travel arrangement In addition to package travel 11 , which as we have seen presents amore comprehensive legal concept compared to 1990’s framework, a new typology, linked travel arrangements 12 , was established in 2015, essentially doubling its scope. As with package travel, it is necessary to combine at least two different types of travel services for the same trip or vacation, as provided for in Article 3/1. Notwithstanding that the eligible travel services and the minimum combination coincide with the type of package travel, they should not be mistaken for each other, and alternative requirements must also be applied for the duration – at least 24 hours – or regarding an overnight stay – which must also include accommodation 13 . It brings about different contracts with the various service providers, for instance, a contract linking the hotel, the airline, rent-car, etc., which provide accommodation services, air transport and car rental, whereby linked travel arrangements have two distinct possibilities in terms of operator provision: 11 As in the 1990 Directive, the operator is responsible for the performance of the various services, and there is also a guarantee against insolvency. 12 Articles 2/1 and 3/5. In this new typology, the responsibility belongs to each service provider, not only to the operator, but a guarantee is in place in case of insolvency of those, namely the hotel or airline. According to recital 14”. In order to ensure fair competition and to protect travellers, the obligation to provide sufficient evidence of security for the refund of payments and the repatriation of travellers in the event of insolvency should also apply to linked travel arrangements.”. Similarly, recital 43 states that “Traders facilitating linked travel arrangements should be obliged to inform travellers that they are not buying a package and that individual travel service providers are solely responsible for the proper performance of their contracts. Traders facilitating linked travel arrangements should, in addition, be obliged to provide insolvency protection for the refund of payments they receive and, insofar as they are responsible for the carriage of passengers, for the travellers’ repatriation, and should inform travellers accordingly. Traders responsible for the performance of the individual contracts forming part of a linked travel arrangement are subject to general Union consumer protection legislation and sector-specific Union legislation.”. 13 Article 2/2/(a).