into a distance reservation contract, have a series of information duties connected, among other things, with the no-show clause in the reservation contract.18 Before entering into a contract, the service provider is bound to provide information to the consumer, in a clear and comprehensive manner, on the main characteristics of the service, i.e. reservation. This obligation includes information about the payment and the performance arrangements of the reservation service and about any means of communication provided by the trader to make it possible for the consumer to quickly contact the trader and communicate with him in an efficient way.19 It is particularly laid down that before the conclusion of the contract, the service provider must inform the consumer of the total price of the service and of the existence and the conditions of deposits or other financial guaranties to be paid or provided by the consumer at the trader’s request.20 From all these obligations, it undoubtedly follows that the restaurant service provider, before the conclusion of the reservation contract, must inform the customer/consumer, in a transparent way, about all the elements of his reservation cancellation policy, including the relevant information on the payment of the no-show fee and any deposit necessary. All this information is held to be an integral part of any distance reservation contract and it must not be changed unless the parties to the contract expressly agree otherwise.21,22 It is particularly important that the consumer, who accepts the payment obligation (e.g. of the no-show fee) under a distance reservation contract concluded by electronic means, is well-informed about the amount of the fee just before placing his or her order. The trader must ensure that the consumer, when placing his or her order, explicitly acknowledges that the order implies an obligation to pay (e.g. by activating the order confirmation button).23 In other words, when the consumer confirms the reservation of the restaurant charging no-show fee, he or she must be aware of the fact that the reservation implies the obligation to pay such a fee in the case of not arriving at the restaurant in due time. If the reservation contract is concluded by electronic 18 Art. 6, 6a, Art. 8, CR Directive. 19 See Art. 6/1/a,b,c, CR Directive. 20 Art. 6/1/e, q, CR Directive. 21 Art. 6/5, CR Directive. 22 The provider of hospitality services, with regard to supplying the service of reservation, also has all the obligations prescribed by the Directive 2006/123/EC on services in the internal market (OJ L 376, 27.12.2006, pp. 36–68). See, for example Art. 22 of the Services Directive. 23 Art. 8/2, CR Directive. In that regard, the CR Directive expressly provides that “if placing an order entails activating a button or a similar function, the button or similar function shall be labelled in an easily legible manner only with the words ‘order with obligation to pay’ or a corresponding unambiguous formulation indicating that placing the order entails an obligation to pay the trader“ (Art. 8/2/2). 122 TATJANA JOSIPOVIĆ
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