ECTAA: EU’s Proposed Passenger Mobility Package has ‘Unworkable’ Reimbursement Rules

ECTAA’s Semi-Annual Meeting in Sofia: Shaping the Future of European Tourism. Photo source: ECTAA

The European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators’ Association (ECTAA) recently addressed critical issues in the European Commission’s proposed passenger mobility package, which aims to establish new unimodal and multimodal passenger rights, during its Semi-Annual Meeting in Sofia.

The European Commission introduced the passenger mobility package in November 2023, and it is currently under active discussion in the Council of Ministers, with a forthcoming debate expected in the European Parliament.

One of the proposal’s most challenging elements involves new reimbursement rules for cases involving intermediaries.

According to ECTAA, the rules overlook existing industry practices, creating impractical requirements that could impose undue obligations on travel intermediaries.

Specifically, the proposal would mandate intermediaries to refund fees charged for facilitating ticket sales, irrespective of the service provided. ECTAA finds this expectation “costly” and “unrealistic”, as transport operators seldom compensate intermediaries for their role in ticket sales.

Photo source: European Commission

ECTAA also expressed concern about customer data handling, stressing the need for strict safeguards to prevent transport operators from misusing sensitive customer information shared by intermediaries for commercial purposes.

While supporting the principle of multimodal passenger rights, ECTAA emphasizes that such rights must be fair and balanced.

“Intermediaries create transparency and offer choice by presenting various options across numerous transport operators, a service not typically offered by the operators themselves,” noted ECTAA President Frank Oostdam. “It is essential that intermediaries are not held liable for the performance of transport services they neither operate nor control.”

Oostdam underscored ECTAA’s long-standing support for fair, effective passenger rights legislation.

“However, regulations that are practically impossible to implement are counterproductive,” he said. “Legislation should not disadvantage indirect distribution channels to favor transport operators’ direct channels, as this would ultimately harm consumer choice.”

ECTAA said that it will continue advocating for “practical and consumer-friendly solutions” as discussions on the legislative package move forward.