agreement.35 If the voucher is not redeemed within its validity period, the organiser shall refund the amount specified in the voucher at the latest within 14 days after the end of the validity period without the need of any prior request by the traveller.36 Last but not least, there shall be insolvency protection coverage for the vouchers – but limited to the amount of the payments received from the traveller.37 While it makes perfect sense to provide for a mandatory insolvency protection coverage for such vouchers, the provision is far too detailed in its other respects. Sentences like “The organiser may offer a voucher on a higher amount” or “The parties may at any time agree on a full refund before a voucher is redeemed or expires” are unnecessary and redundant. Moreover, I don’t see a need to limit the validity of the vouchers: as long as there is insolvency protection coverage, both parties might be interested in a longer validity period. Transferability could be left to the agreement of the parties within the framework of contractual freedom. All in all, I consider the proposal to be over-regulation; more flexibility could certainly be allowed (in the interests of both parties), especially as it is always necessary for the traveller to opt for a voucher voluntarily anyway.38 1.5. Insolvency protection The explanatory memorandum the Commission Proposal explicitly refers to the challenges which emerged from the 2019 Thomas Cook bankruptcy and the COVID-19 pandemic and to an opinion of the Fit for Future Platform (F4F) of 22 March 2022,39 which had identified five problems in the PTD 2015, one of which related to uncertainties regarding insolvency protection. According to Recital 11 of the proposed amended PTD, it should be provided that travellers’ payments are effectively protected at all times, including in a crisis. Furthermore, it should be ensured that the national insolvency protection systems are resilient and provide more uniform protection. Again, the proposal suggests far more detailed rules than those of the current PTD. 35 Article 12a(5) CP 2023 PTD. 36 Article 12a(7) CP 2023 PTD (the proposal does not include a para 6). 37 Article 12a(9) CP 2023 PTD. 38 Less critical: Stamer, Vorschlag der Kommission zur Änderung der Reise-RL – Gutscheine (Art. 12a), RRa 2024, 176. 39 https://commission.europa.eu/document/download/fa58abe9-99c9-4ccd-8f18-3e1a0c66bb14_ en?filename=Final%20opinion%202021_SBGR3_15%20Package%20travel_fup_0.pdf. 10 MICHAEL WUKOSCHITZ
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTE4NzM5Nw==