Travel agencies. The offer

Transcription

1 Package Travel

2 Travel agencies According to G.O. no. 107/1999, republished, travel agency means any specialized unit, legal person, who organizes, delivers and sells packages of travel services. Travel agencies can be of two kinds: 1. Organizer agencies They conduct virtually all the activities covered by the definition given above, organizing the travel package, with everything this implies: providing transport, accommodation etc., and then offering and selling these packages directly to consumers or through an intermediary. 2. Retailer agencies Retailer agencies only deal with the real commercialization of the packages, which means offering and selling packages to consumers. Given the complexity of the field and the need to protect consumers, travel agencies, irrespective of their category, must hold a license in tourism in order to offer and sell travel packages in Romania. The license in tourism is issued by Ministry of Tourism and is certifying the agency has the ability to sell quality and safe services for consumers. As an additional measure of protection for tourists, people who provide the management of travel agencies must obtain a tourism certificate from the Ministry of Tourism, which certifies the professional training in tourism to these people. Package travel According to art. 2, section 1 of G.O. no. 107/1999, republished, travel package means the pre-arranged combination of not fewer than two of the following when sold or offered for sale at an inclusive price and when the service covers a period of more than twenty-four hours or includes overnight accommodation: a) transport; b) accommodation; c) other tourist services not ancillary to transport or accommodation and accounting for a significant proportion of the package. The offer Before closing a contract travel agencies must provide consumers, in written, information on: destination; transport route; the means, characteristics and categories of transport used; type of accommodation units, addresses and classification categories; the meal plan and classification category of food establishments; program, indicating the date of arrival and departure; information on the passport, visa and health insurance required for travel and residence; either the monetary amount or the percentage of the price which is to be paid on account, and the timetable for payment of the balance; the minimum number of persons required for the program and if so, the deadline for informing the consumer in the event of cancellation; opportunities of closing an optional insurance for assistance in case of sickness, accidents and others; period for which the tourist offer is available. The contract of commercialization of the package travel The travel agency is obliged to conclude a package travel contract with the tourist. To protect the interests of tourists, it was established a minimum mandatory number of terms that the contract should contain: the travel destination(s) and, where periods of stay are involved, the relevant periods, with dates; the means, characteristics and categories of transport to be used, the dates, times and points of departure and return; if the package includes travel and accommodation, address and classification category of tourism structures in accordance with the host state legislation; the meal plan;

3 whether a minimum number of persons is required for the package to take place and, if so, the deadline for informing the consumer in the event of cancellation; the itinerary; visits, excursions or other services which are included in the total price agreed for the package; the name and address of the organizer, the retailer and, where appropriate, the insurer; the price of the package, an indication of the possibility of price revisions and an indication of any dues, taxes or fees chargeable for certain services (landing, embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports and airports, tourist taxes) where such costs are not included in the package; schedule and method of payment; special requirements which the consumer has communicated to the organizer or retailer when making the booking, and which both have accepted; periods within which the consumer must make any complaint concerning failure to perform or improper performance of the contract; the amendment and cancellation of contract; obligations of the travel agency in case of travel cancellation, or for replacement or the failure of services; the possibility of contract transfer to a third party and way to do it; any changes that the travel agency can provide to purchased services; travel agency liability and compensation of tourist for contract failure. Also, as an additional protection, by Order no. 516/2005 of the Ministry of Transport, Construction and Tourism, it was approved a standard-contract for commercialization of the travel packages. It contains terms relating to the contract price, rights and obligations of the parties, contractual responsibility, etc. Information on strict package travel is included in voucher, treatment ticket, ticket or travel program for tourist activities, attached to the contract. Order ticket If the consumer does not choose a pre-arranged travel package, and the travel package is made according to his requirements, travel agency is required to provide an order ticket. To protect the consumers it was established, the same as for the package travel contract, a minimum number of elements of the order ticket: the travel destination(s), duration and dates of arrival and departure; the means, characteristics and categories of transport to be used; type and category of accommodation structures; the meal plan; the solicited travel program; number of people asking for the travel package, the number of children, age and their identification papers; other special requests. 3

4 The contract concludes when the tourist receives the confirmation of the reservation. This should be sent by the travel agency not later than 60 calendar days from the date of the order ticket signature. If the order ticket differs from the confirmation of travel or tourist confirmation was not made within 60 calendar days from the date of the order ticket signature, the tourist can consider the package was not booked and he is entitled to immediate reimbursement of all he paid. However, if the tourist and travel agency agree, the contract may be concluded even if the written confirmation of the reservation hasn t come in the 60 days. Price Prices set in the contract can not be changed - increased or reduced - unless two conditions are met: modification should be provided in the contract explicitly, both for increase and reduction; modification is made as a result of variations of: a) transport costs, including the cost of fuel; b) fees and charges for landing services, landing/boarding in ports and airports and tourist taxes; c) exchange rates for package travel contract. Prices set in the contract can not be changed under any circumstances during the 20 calendar days preceding the date of departure. If the prices set in the contract are increased by over 10%, whatever the reasons for the increase, the tourist can end the contract without having any obligation to the travel agency. The latter is required to immediately repay all amounts the tourist paid for the travel, including the commissions. Contract cession The consumer may transfer the package travel contract to another person. The operation is called the contract cession. This can be done only if the person to whom the contract is transferred meets all the conditions in the travel package and only if travel agency which signed the contract is announced. According the standard travel contract this announcement must be made with at least 5 days before departure. Also according the standard travel contract, the travel agency will end the contract with the initial tourist, transferring and signing a new contract with the other tourist. For individual travels, if the middle of transport is the airplane, the transfer can only be made if there is a possibility of transfer of the flight reservation. The tourist transferring the travel contract and the one who receives it are jointly liable to pay the price of travel and any additional costs. 4

5 Contract cancellation The cancellation can be made by tourist at any time for the whole contract or only a part, for any reason, including the case when the tourist is unable to travel. The clear disadvantage compared to the transfer appears from the fact that if the tourist cancels the contract for a reason which can be imputed to him, he must compensate the agency for the damage created as a result of the cancellation. The compensation may amount to the maximum price of travel tours. Cancellation of contract can intervene also in particular cases. Thus, as already noted, in a situation in which prices set in the contract increased by over 10%, whatever the reasons for the increase, the tourist can terminate the contract without having any obligation to the travel agency, the latter being required to reimburse the tourist with all he paid for the travel, including the commissions. Another situation when the tourist can terminate the contract appears when one of the essential provisions of the contract is modified by the travel agency. In this case, the agency is required to notify the change to traveller with at least 15 days before departure. The tourist is required to notify the travel agency, within 5 days from receiving the notification, the decision to opt for cancellation of contract without penalty or to accept the new conditions of the contract. If he opts for cancellation, the tourist is entitled: to accept at the same price another travel package of equivalent or higher quality; to accept a package of a lower quality, proposed by the travel agency, with immediate reimbursement for the price difference; or to be immediately reimbursed. The same three options are available for the tourist if the travel agency cancels the trip before departure. Contractual liability The contractual liability of the travel agency is engaged when it is not fulfilling its contractual obligations. The travel agency which signed the contract is liable towards the tourist. Thus, even if irregularities occurred by the service providers (accommodation, transport operator) any damages would be obtained from the travel agency with which the tourist has contracted. If, after the beginning the travel, an important part of the services provided in the contract is not carried out or the travel agency notices this services will not be provided, the agency must: v provide appropriate alternative to continue the journey without increasing the price; 5

6 v refund to the tourist the difference between he effectively paid and the services which were provided to him; v where no appropriate alternative can be given or the tourist doesn t accept, to ensure with no additional cost the transport back to the place of departure or elsewhere agreed by the tourist and, where appropriate, compensation for services unfulfilled. Travel agencies are not liable if: v the contract failure is due to the tourist; v the contract failure is due to reasons of force majeure; v the contract failure is due to a third party not connected with the provision of the services, and the causes for non-compliance are unforeseeable and unavoidable. Force majeure means any abnormal and unforeseeable circumstances, beyond the will of the person which invokes it and whose consequences could not be avoided despite all efforts: earthquakes, floods, etc. Tourist compensation For material damages caused by the failure of the travel agency, the responsibility for tourist compensation may not exceed twice the price of the travel package included in the contract. The travel agency can not exclude or limit liability for damage caused by death or injury as a result of tourist activities or their negligence. If the travel agency needs to change a key provision of the contract or if the travel agency cancels the travel before departure, the tourist is entitled to ask the agency a compensation for the failure of the initial contract, except the cases where: cancellation was due to failure of gathering the minimum number of persons mentioned in the contract, and the travel agency informed the tourist in written within the period specified in the contract, which may not be less than 15 calendar days preceding the date of departure; cancellation was due to a case of force majeure; cancellation was due to the fault of the tourist. Tourist is required to complain in written to both the service provider (accommodation unit, etc.) and the travel agency, about the deficiencies observed. Accommodation units Accommodation units include: Accommodation units with the accommodation function: hotels, apartmenthotels, motels, hotels for young people, tourist villas, chalets, bungalows, holiday villages, campsites, apartments or rooms for rent in family homes or buildings with another destination, river and sea vessels, guesthouses and boarding house and other units of tourist accommodation; 6

7 Accommodation units with catering functions: catering units inside accommodation units, catering establishments located in cities, on the routes and tourist resorts. The classification of accommodation units is made by the Ministry of Tourism which issues the certificate of classification. The certificate must be change from 3 in 3 years. The certificate of classification and its annex are kept permanently in the tourist reception, to be presented to the control authorities. Economic operators who have obtained the certificate of classification are required to exhibit at the place, outside the building, a panel containing the words "classified by the Ministry of Tourism", the logo, signs on the type of tourist reception and level of classification. According the construction, facilities and services quality, tourist reception structures are classified by stars or flowers (daisies) for rural tourist guesthouses. Accommodation is made at any time of day and night, in order of arrival and in the limit of places available, taking into account the priority of obligations under previous contracts and confirmed appointments. 7