Considerations on COM(2023)753 - Amendment of Regulations (EC) No 261/2004, (EC) No 1107/2006, (EU) No 1177/2010, (EU) No 181/2011 and (EU) 2021/782 as regards enforcement of passenger rights in the Union - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2023)753 - Amendment of Regulations (EC) No 261/2004, (EC) No 1107/2006, (EU) No 1177/2010, (EU) No 181/2011 and (EU) 2021/782 as ... |
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| document | COM(2023)753 |
| date | November 29, 2023 |
(2) Effective passenger rights should encourage an increase in travel by public transport, which is an objective set by the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy adopted by the Commission in December 2020.
(3) The Commission concluded in the comprehensive evaluations of Regulation (EC) No 1107/2006, Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 and Regulation (EU) No 181/2011 which it carried out between 2019 and 2020 that the effectiveness of Union passenger rights legislation is compromised by a lack of awareness among passengers of their rights and the existing provisions about exercising them In addition, these evaluations also concluded that passengers including persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility do not fully benefit from their rights due to shortcomings in their application by carriers, airport managing bodies, station managers, port terminal operators, bus terminal managing bodies and intermediaries, on the one hand, and shortcomings in their enforcement by the national enforcement authorities, on the other hand.11
(4) Simplification, consistency and harmonisation of the rules of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Regulation (EC) No 1107/2006, Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010, and Regulation (EU) No 181/2011 is required especially as regards rules dealing with the information to passengers on their rights before and during the journey, enforcement of passenger rights and complaint handling for passengers. The existing rules in those Regulations should be amended to complement those of the recently adopted Regulation (EU) 2021/782 of the European Parliament and of the Council12 as regards forms to request reimbursements and compensation, service quality standards, obligations for carriers to share information with national enforcement bodies, and information of passengers by national enforcement bodies on alternative dispute resolution.
(5) At present, as regards air tickets booked via an intermediary, the reimbursement process is unclear and should therefore be clarified. The intermediaries are involved in the reimbursement process in two different ways: either they transmitted the passenger’s (credit card) payment details directly to the carrier (‘pass-through’ intermediary), and the air carrier reverses the original payment flow so that the reimbursement arrives directly on the passenger’s account. Or the intermediary paid the air carrier from its own account (‘Merchant of Record’ intermediary), and when the air carrier reverses the payment flow, the reimbursement payment arrives on the intermediary’s account. The intermediary then transfers the final reimbursement payment to the passenger. Passengers are often not aware which reimbursement process the intermediary chooses. The intermediary and the air carrier should inform the passenger about the reimbursement process. In particular, the air carrier should state publicly whether it cooperates with intermediaries for the processing of reimbursements, and if so with which it does so.
(6) Processing the reimbursement payment through the intermediary that made the payment to the air carrier from its own account (‘Merchant of Record’ intermediary) is a widespread air industry practice. This possibility should therefore be provided for the air carrier.
(7) If the air carrier processes reimbursements through this type of intermediary, the payment deadline to the passenger should be extended to a maximum of 14 days to take account of the two steps in the reimbursement process. The air carrier should accordingly transfer the reimbursement payment to the intermediary within a maximum of seven days, and the intermediary should transfer it to the passenger within a further seven days. If the passenger is not reimbursed at the latest within 14 days, the passenger should however be entitled to receive the reimbursement directly from the operating air carrier.
(8) Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and the Council13 applies to the processing of personal data by air carriers and intermediaries. Any processing of personal data must in particular take place in accordance with the requirements set out in Article 5(1) and Article 6(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679. It should be noted that the obligations to provide information to passengers concerning their rights are without prejudice to the obligation of the controller to provide information to the data subject pursuant to Articles 12, 13 and 14 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679.
(9) When the passenger acquires a ticket from an intermediary, the air carrier should be able to contact the passenger directly where necessary in order to ensure that the passenger receives the relevant travel information, and that the air carrier fulfils its obligations under this Regulation and under applicable Union law on aviation safety and security and on the operating carrier under Regulation (EC) No 2111/200514. The carrier may use these contact details exclusively for the purpose of fulfilling these obligations and should not process the contact details of the passengers for any other purposes. This personal data should be deleted within 72 hours after the completion of the contract of carriage unless further retention of the personal data is justified to fulfil obligations in respect of the passenger’s right to re-routing, reimbursement or compensation.
(10) A risk-based approach to the monitoring of compliance with passenger rights, which is based not only on complaints received but also on compliance monitoring activities such as inspections should ensure that national enforcement bodies are better able to detect and correct non-compliance by carriers and terminal managers with the existing rules.
(11) Information provided to passengers on their rights before and during their journeys should lead to enhanced awareness. Such information should be concise and made easily, prominently, and directly available. It should be provided in a clear and comprehensible manner, and by electronic means as far as possible.
(12) National enforcement bodies should cooperate with each other in order to ensure a harmonised interpretation and application of the Regulations concerned. A regular flow of information from carriers, terminal managers and intermediaries to national enforcement bodies on all aspects related to the application of the Regulations concerned should enable national enforcement bodies to better fulfil their monitoring role.
(13) Carriers and terminal managers should define, manage and monitor service quality standards for all passenger services, reflecting the operational features of each mode. Those service quality standards should refer inter alia to delays, cancellations, assistance to persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility, complaint handling mechanisms, customer satisfaction, and cleanliness. Carriers should also make information on their service quality standards publicly available.
(14) Regarding air passenger rights, air carriers should strive to establish industry standards on the weight and dimensions of hand luggage with a view to limiting the current proliferation of different practices and enhancing the passenger travel experience, and report on their adherence to those standards as part of their service quality management systems. The publication of implementation reports by carriers on their quality standards should allow users to compare and make informed choices, encourage competition based on the quality of services, and facilitate uniform monitoring and enforcement by the national enforcement bodies.
(15) To make it easier for passengers to request reimbursement or compensation in accordance with the Regulations concerned, forms that are valid throughout the Union should be established for such requests. Passengers should have the possibility to submit their requests by using such a form.
(16) Passengers seeking individual redress should be made aware about the possibilities to complain to alternative dispute resolution bodies about alleged infringements of the Regulations concerned. The national enforcement bodies are best placed to do this.
(17) In the light of Article 9 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and in order to give persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility opportunities for air travel comparable to those of other citizens, if an air carrier, its agents or a tour operator requires a person with disabilities or person with reduced mobility to be accompanied by another person who is capable of providing the assistance required by applicable safety requirements established by international, Union or national law or by the competent authorities, the accompanying person should travel free of charge. In addition, it should be aligned with the existing rights in rail, bus and coach and waterborne transport modes in the Union. In addition, if information to persons with disabilities and reduced mobility is provided in accessible formats, it should be provided in accordance with the applicable legislation such as the accessibility requirements set out in Annex I to Directive (EU) 2019/88215.
(18) Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely ensuring the effective enforcement of air, rail, bus and coach, and waterborne passengers’ rights, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, but can rather, by reason of the need to have the same rules within the single market , be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.
(19) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council16. The examination procedure should be used for the adoption of the common forms for reimbursement and compensation requests.
(20) This Regulation respects fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular Articles 21, 26, 38 and 47 concerning, respectively, the prohibition of any form of discrimination, the integration of persons with disabilities, the ensuring of a high level of consumer protection, and the right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial.
(21) The European Data Protection Supervisor was consulted in accordance with Article 42(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council (17) and delivered an opinion on [ ].