Package travel in the EU: legal basis and legal reform from 1990 to 2015

• Main Author: Erlendina Kristjansson 1969-
• Other Authors: Háskólinn í Reykjavík
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: Lögfræði; Meistaraprófsritgerðir; Ferðaþjónusta; Evrópusambandið; Law; Tourism; European Union; Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1946/25517

EU Legislation regarding Package Travel has been in place over the past 25 years; however, with the development of internet technology and the increase in services by low-budget airlines, the nature of consumer behaviour has changed dramatically from a brochure-driven environment to a digital one. The EU’s efforts towards the creation of a tourism policy can be recorded as far back as the establishment of the EU in 1956 with the signature of the Lisbon Treaty; however, since the 1980’s and up to now, the economic and social importance of tourism has pushed efforts forward in the direction of enhancing consumer protectionism and creating a stronger internal market for the tourism sector. Current EU legislation on package travel is outdated and, due to minimum harmonisation requirements, has resulted in a fragmented legal environment for the participants in the industry. This paper investigates the legal basis for EU tourism legislation as spurred on by EU initiatives towards a tourism policy. The paper pinpoints the major shortcomings of the Package Travel Directive No 90/1990 as addressed by the Package Travel Directive No. 2015/2302. The scope of ‘package travel’ within the two directives will be analysed along with the changes to the insolvency mechanisms. The main enhancements that the 2015 Package Travel Directive brings in relation to consumer rights will summarised. The final section of the essay consists of an example of how the 1990 Package Travel Directive has been transposed into the national laws of Iceland. A short summary of the main case law will be provided and some suggestions will be made regarding the action that need to be taken in order for Iceland to properly transpose the requirements of the 2015 Package Travel Directive into its national law, a step that has to be taken before 1 July 2018. Löggjöf Evrópusambandsins varðandi alferðir hefur verið í gildi síðastliðinn 25 ár. Með aukinni tækniþróun í tengslum við netnotkun og fjölgun lággjaldaflugfélaga hefur hegðun neytenda á þeim markaði ...