Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

816 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE It should further be noted that the organiser will now be expressly entitled to invoke the limitations set out in various international conventions that bind the European Union, such as the Montreal Convention of 28 May 1999. For other international conventions that bind only a member State, an express provision in the transposition measures will have to be adopted to allow the organiser to invoke the limitations. Contractual limitations are also admitted except for personal injury cases or for damage caused intentionally or by negligence and provided that the limitation does not amount to less than three times the total price of the package. The new PTD does not provide an express limitation period to make a claim under the new provisions. It only stipulates a minimal duration of two years. The Member States will not be entitled to provide shorter limitation periods. II. ENSURING COMPETITIVENESS OF TRAVEL BUSINESSES: PROFESSIONALS ARE UNDER SERIOUS HESITATION Besides consumers’ aspects, the Directive clearly outlines that it aims at improving competitiveness and fair competition between companies of the travel sector 19 . A. The delicate scope of the package and linked travel arrangements Since the Directive of 1990, the travel market has been subject to significant transformations. The technical innovations played an important role in this regard. The behaviour of travellers has considerably changed and travel services are now often combined under various means: if pre-arranged travel packages are still offered for sale, travellers are keen to prepare their holidays in their own manner and to combine travel services by themselves, in particular through the Internet or even using their mobiles. However, it was outlined that the combination of travel services arranged by travellers did not necessarily fall under the package definition. Such a situation was not apprehended by member States’ laws. Consequently, travellers were quite confused: such combined services did not necessarily give rise to the package protection granted by the Directive of 1990, even though they comprised most of the travel services at the time, such as transport and accommodation. 19 Recitals 4, 5, 6, 14.