Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

336 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE In addition to completing the legal activity which consists of stipulating a valid and effective package travel contract, in the name and on behalf of the traveller, according to the specific mandate with representation, the regulations identify precise information and documentation obligations, substantially corresponding to those borne by the organiser (articles 34-36 of the Tourism Code). Added to these is a specific commitment on the retailer’s part to indicate to the traveller that he is acting as an intermediary in stipulating the package travel contract, in line with what was envisioned by art. 19, par. 2, of the International Convention on Travel Contract (CCV). In compliance with the principle of legitimate expectations, pursuant to art. 51- bis of the Tourism Code, the retailer that fails to provide the traveller with the standard information form and the information regarding the organiser, or that fails to inform the traveller that they are acting as a mere retailer, is considered as organiser 39 . Furthermore, among the retailer’s responsibilities is the obligation to provide any legal and material activity resulting from taking on the mandate and, in particular, to promptly forward any messages, requests or complaints to the organiser relating to the execution of the package travel formulated by the traveller (according to art. 44, par. 1, of the Tourism Code). The legislative framework is completed by the obligations of protection in the event of insolvency or bankruptcy pursuant to art. 47 of the Tourism Code, as well as attributing to the retailer the organiser’s obligations in the event that the package travel is provided by a tour operator established outside the European Union, except for the burden of proof that the latter is compliant with EU legislation (according to art. 51- ter of the Consumer Code). With reference to the retailer’s liability regime, Legislative Decree No. 62/2018 establishes specific regulations and clear rules on the responsibility of the intermediary regarding the sale of packages and booking travel services, which are kept separate from that of the travel organiser, according to the widely consolidated approach in national law. As previously mentioned, applying art. 13, par. 1, comma 2, of the Directive (EU) 2015/2302 is one of the most delicate and complex issues, on which the Directive offers greater autonomy to the Member States, and represents a particularly significant element of the new regulation of package travel contracts. 39 See F. Romeo, Il processo informativo nella commercializzazione dei contratti di viaggio , cit., p. 43.