Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

750 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE Travel business entrepreneurs followed up on the audit of their products by modifying their contracts and general terms and conditions. In the Czech Republic, a number of entrepreneurs made the necessary changes in documents jointly for the purposes of transposition of PTD2 and for the implementation of the GDPR. Given that public administration employees have been trained in introducing PTD2 into practice, we can now perceive a greater interest of governmental authorities in travel businesses and in determining whether they meet the statutory conditions. VIII. CONCLUSIONS The Czech Republic transposed the PTD2 on time and we believe that also fully. There had been lots of discussions among the travel business entrepreneurs before July 1, 2018. The concern referred mainly to the new specification of security in case of insolvency, to the establishment of a Guarantee Fund and to the contributions to the Fund . There had been lots of uncertainty about the distinction between the sale of packages, facilitation of LTA and facilitation of other travel services. Lots of questions had been successfully resolved by the Ministry of Regional Development and by the professional associations. Nevertheless, there have been grey areas, such as the distinction between a general advertising of an additional travel service in comparison to facilitating additional travel service in a targeting manner, or identification of services which are intrinsically part of another travel service and should not be considered as travel services. However, as we described, the basics for the operation of travel business in the Czech Republic after the transposition of PTD2 is very clear. If the entrepreneur sells packages or facilitates LTA, his activities are regulated as a tour operator, which means he has to provide security against insolvency via insurance or via bank guarantee and he has to pay contributions to the Guarantee Fund. If the entrepreneur sells or facilitates travel services or their combinations which are not packages or LTA, his activities are not regulated and he can operate as a travel agency which does not need security against insolvency and does not contribute to the Guarantee Fund.