Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

256 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE are not limited to an economic outlay, guarantees a fixed minimum time, limiting the use of reasonableness. It requires that the tour operator clearly informs before the conclusion of the contract about the opportunity to sell the contract, but in turn demands that the traveller uses a certain form to inform the organiser and that the transferee traveller fulfils all the conditions required for the progress of the trip. Given the joint and several liability for the costs of transfer, it requires the tour operator to provide evidence of the “reasonable” costs incurred in carrying out the sale. In brief, the institute of the sale itself represents a way of protecting the traveller, intended as an opportunity for those who can no longer travel not to lose, in addition to their holiday, the money spent. To say that this protection has been expanded through article 9 of the directive is perhaps a little bold. In fact, the changes made to the institute by the European legislator have made it more easily and practically feasible for the tour operator. However, the viability on the part of the traveller was perhaps at an even greater disadvantage. He has less time available to find the replacement person, not only meeting all the conditions required by the package, but also establishing a fiduciary relationship with that person, since with he will remain jointly responsible for all payments until these have been successfully paid off. This probably explains why in the Italian market the average number of transfers managed by tour operators is around 0%. It is possible that an improvement of the conditions of the traveller (and therefore of his protection) could be obtained by providing the possibility of the tour operator intervening in the contract of sale, identifying in its customer database potential assignee travellers to whom to propose the replacement.