Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

84 COLLECTIVE COMMENTARY ABOUT THE NEW PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE Member State of establishment. In order to facilitate the administrative cooperation and supervision of organisers and, where applicable, retailers which are operating in different Member States with regard to insolvency protection, Member States should be obliged to designate central contact points (Recital 42 of the Directive). To ensure mutual recognition of insolvency protection Member States shall designate central contact points to facilitate the administrative cooperation and supervision of organisers operating in different Member States. They shall notify the contact details of those contact points to all other Member States and the Commission. The central contact points shall make available to each other all necessary information on their national insolvency protection requirements and the identity of the entity or entities in charge of the insolvency protection for specific organisers established in their territory. Those contact points shall grant each other access to any available inventory listing organisers, which are in compliance with their insolvency protection obligations. Any such inventory shall be publicly accessible, including online. If a Member State has doubts about an organiser’s insolvency protection, it shall seek clarification from the organiser’s Member State of establishment. Member States shall respond to requests from other Member States as quickly as possible taking into account the urgency and complexity of the matter. In any event a first response shall be issued at the latest within 15 working days from receiving the request. In all decrees regulating travel agencies in the different autonomous communities, there are planned rules governing the guarantees that have to constitute those agencies. For example, the Basque Decree (Decree 81/2012) states that “ The single bond, whatever their form, must cover the asset liability of the agency, up to the following amounts, depending on the group to which it belongs: (a) Wholesalers: 120,000 euros. (b) Retailers: 60,000 euros. (c) Wholesaler-retail: 180,000 euros”. The bond may be provided individually or collectively, it will be available at the competent Directorate in terms of tourism, it shall be constituted in the General Treasury of the Basque Country and, it may consist of cash, of guarantee given by a credit institution or mutual guarantee company, of surety insurance or public issuing securities.