a time when the intermediary and the travel organiser mostly used structures rooted in the territory. Thus, for the second recital of Directive 2015 / 2302 / EU, “the traditional distribution channels have been joined by the Internet (...), which has become an increasingly important medium through which tourist services are offered or sold. The latter are not only combined in the form of traditional pre - arranged packages, but are (...) increasingly customised. Many of these combinations (...) are (...) in a ‘grey area’ or do not fall within the scope of Directive 1990 / 314 / EEC at all”. The Directive 2015 / 2302 / EU adopted an articulated notion of package (Z. Chen, 2021, 886 ff.; F. J. Melgosa Arcos 2020, 65 ff.), precisely in an attempt to embrace the different ways in which several services can be combined. For the fifth recital, an area without internal borders must be created, in which the free movement of services is ensured. The harmonisation of rights and obligations arising from package contracts was deemed necessary in order to promote a high level of protection for travellers and the competitiveness of businesses. On a global level, between 2020 and 2022, the epidemic situation, due to the rapid spread of the COVID - 19 virus, disrupted the competitive dynamics, with the risk that the entire sector would enter an irreversible crisis; in fact, the contracts stipulated in that period were terminated and no new bookings were made. This created liquidity problems for many organisers, so that either some travellers did not obtain a refund of their compensation or it was paid with a considerable delay with respect to the fourteen - day deadline provided for in Article 11(5) of Directive 2015 / 2302 / EU. In order to preserve the immediate liquidity of operators, many States have resorted to unusual solutions, such as the recognition of a credit equal to the consideration paid, a credit that could only be exercised by entering into another agreement, within a certain period of time from the termination of the first one. More generally, in order to contain the considerable damages suffered by companies, many Countries, including Italy, have left the choice between returning the original consideration and issuing the so - called voucher to the company itself, which has almost always opted for the second solution, preferring to perform a service similar to the original one at a later date, rather than return the consideration, with the risk of financial difficulties. In Recommendation 2020 / 648, in an attempt to rebalance the relationship between operators and consumers, the Commission considered the offer of vouchers legitimate, but made its effects conditional on the customer’s acceptance. 2 CHIARA TINCANI
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTE4NzM5Nw==