Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

BELGIUM | ILSE MEYERS 687 regulations do not apply, whereas in other Member States, including Belgium, this will not be possible. 36. Standard information form with remote sales – Various discussions between the Belgian Travel Operators’ professional association and the Economic Inspection of the Federal Public Service Economy concerned interpretation issues in the transposition law. During these discussions, the Economic Inspection, which monitors the travel sector, put forward its view on the application of significant new aspects of the transposition law, including the practical application of the obligatory standard information form. If a package is sold via an online procedure and is, consequently, subject to the regulations governing remote sales, the Economic Inspection requests that the traveller should first accept the standard information form, before entering into a travel contract. Only then the general and extraordinary terms and conditions applicable to the sale and, where applicable, any other documentation. The standard information form must not be incorporated in a single act of acceptance; it should be ticked separately by the consumer. This interpretation exceeds the law and imposes additional obligations upon Belgian travel organisers. The Economic Inspection also requested that the first three paragraphs of the standard information form, Appendix 1, Part A 27 , should be immediately visible to the traveller and not concealed by a hyperlink. Remote sales of packages will consequently not be conducted in the same way in cross border situations. 37. Standard information form in retail – The discussions with the Economic Inspection highlighted that the retailers’ obligation to take financial failure insurance cover has an impact on the standard information form submitted to the traveller. When a package from another organiser is sold, the retailer must give the organiser’s standard information form to the traveller, during the pre-contractual phase. The organiser must submit this standard information form to the retailer, together with the quotation, and the form has to be in PDF format to ensure 27 Appendix 1, Part A, of the Law pertaining to the sale of package travel, linked travel arrangements and travel services, dated 21 November 2017, BS 1 December 2017, 106.687.