91998E2375

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2375/98

by Eryl McNally (PSE) to the Commission

(27 July 1998)

Subject: Exploitation of single travellers

Having already felt the need to establish a support group - STAG - Single Travellers Action Group - which already has a membership of 4 000, a constituent of mine has written to express concern that the issue of single travellers is still very much ignored. Single travellers continue to be exploited by travel companies charging higher prices for single travellers, for example, and national consumer groups do not appear to offer any protection.

Bearing in mind the increasing number of people living alone, does the Commission envisage submitting any proposals to prevent these inequalities from occurring and thus protect the single traveller on a European level? What degree of protection does Europe currently offer?

Answer given by Mrs Bonino on behalf of the Commission

(20 October 1998)

Council Directive 90/314/EEC of 13 June 1990 on package travel, package holidays and package tours(1), aims to approximate the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States relating to packages sold or offered for sale in the territory of the Community. The directive is designed to protect consumers who buy package travel in the Community.

Article 2.4 of the Directive defines the consumer as the person who takes or agrees to take the package ("the principal contractor"), or any person on whose behalf the principal contractor agrees to purchase the package ("the other beneficiaries") or any person to whom the principal contractor or any of the other beneficiaries transfers the package ("the transferee"). Therefore the Community text does not make any distinction between travellers, single or not, and its provisions apply to all of them.

In the absence of more detailed information about possible inequalities, the Commission does not see in which way single travellers are disadvantaged. Generally speaking a higher price for single travellers is one of those principles accepted by the mechanisms of the market, because single travellers cause higher accommodation and travelling costs and this has an obvious repercussion in prices.

(1) OJ L 158, 23.6.1990.