Filenews 16 May 2021 - by Theano Thiopoulou
The restrictive measures imposed to tackle the coronavirus pandemic have caused changes in consumer habits, which seem to have come to stay, at least several times.
Primarily the product market changed and from the traditional way of visiting a store we passed many of us on electronic orders. Also, everything has changed in travel, in the post-crown age.
According to the European Commission, since the onset of the pandemic, the European Consumer Centres have recorded a sharp increase in complaints and handled 50% more requests than usual.
In the health sector, consultants at the centres warn consumers about counterfeit pharmaceuticals, non-genuine protective masks and disinfectants and other scams related to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the summer, most questions about the crown are about flights, accommodation and package holidays. Consultants work hard to ensure that consumers are aware of their rights and are treated fairly.
Greater protection for the future
However, the EU's commitment to consumer rights is not limited to travel alone. As part of its new consumer agenda, the EU is providing for additional measures for the post-crown season. For shopping enthusiasts, the EU will offer enhanced protection for online shopping, such as deleting websites and social media accounts that promote fraud or contain hidden advertising. And for those who wish to adopt more ecological practices, the EU will provide more information on product repair rather than buying new ones. The Agenda sets out a long-term vision by 2025 to protect European consumers and strengthen their ability to play an active role in the green and digital transition. The EU will work with countries to coordinate protection rights, meet the needs of different consumer groups, such as the elderly or people with disabilities, and provide a high level of protection to European consumers buying from sellers established outside the Union.
Many consumers encountered problems in delivering their purchases, flights were cancelled and travel froze. Citizens in various states have contacted the European Consumer Centres (ECC-Net) across the EU to get help and advice on their rights and how to lodge complaints.
Measures for travellers
After a year-break, we will slowly start packing our bags again to explore the world, with new requirements, new preferences and different priorities. But what are the travel trends coming to the fore in 2021?
On 2 February 2021, the Council of the European Union updated its recommendation on travel restrictions from third countries to the EU. EU countries should require persons travelling for any essential or non-essential reason, with the exception of transport workers and frontier workers, to submit a negative PCR test to which they must undergo at the earliest 72 hours before departure.
In addition, they may require self-isolation, quarantine and contact tracing for a period of up to 14 days, as well as further diagnostic tests for COVID-19, as required during the same period. Quarantine and further diagnostic tests on or after arrival should be imposed in particular on travellers arriving from a third country where a worrying variant of the virus has been detected.
With regard to necessary travel, EU countries may decide, in a coordinated manner, to remove some or all of the above measures if they impede the very purpose of the trip. For transport workers, seafarers and frontier workers, Member States should not require more than one negative rapid antigen test on arrival.
For transport workers from a country where there has been a high incidence of worrying variants of the virus, EU countries may require proof of a negative result of a rapid antigen test before departure. Passengers and travellers can be assured that their rights are protected. The European Commission has published interpretative guidelines on how certain provisions of EU passenger rights legislation should be applied in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. This ensures clarity and legal certainty in the application of passengers' rights.
What about compensation
According to the European Commission, the guidelines specify that the current conditions are 'exceptional', e.g. compensation may not be paid in the event of flight cancellations within less than two weeks before the departure date. It should not be considered that persons travelling during the COVID-19 pandemic pose a high risk for the spread of the infection unless they are known to have come into contact with a confirmed positive case, in accordance with the new European guidelines on air travel. The Commission has also issued an information note on the Directive on package travel in relation to coronavirus.
Under EU rules, passengers and travellers have the right to choose between vouchers or refunds for tickets (air, train, bus and ship) or cancelled package trips. The Commission's recommendation of 13 May 2020 confirming this right seeks to ensure that vouchers become a viable and more attractive alternative to a refund for trips cancelled under the current pandemic, which has also caused serious financial pressure on tour operators.
Problems with airlines
Passengers denied boarding against their will, although they have appeared at check-in on time, have the right to compensation, the right to choose between a refund and transfer on another route, and the right to care. However, under EU law, passengers do not enjoy these rights in the event of denied boarding for reasonable reasons relating to health, safety or protection or the lack of adequate travel documents. Whether a passenger can nevertheless be subject to all or part of the abovementioned rights in this case depends on the type of ticket, as specified in the general and specific conditions of the airline.
A recent judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union confirmed that it would be contrary to the objective of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003. The power to assess and decide unilaterally and definitively whether the refusal of boarding is reasonably justified and therefore to deprive those passengers of the protection they are entitled to under that Regulation should therefore be entrusted to the air carrier concerned. It follows from that decision that the airline must exercise sufficient diligence in deciding whether to refuse boarding to a passenger. In the event that there are no valid grounds for refusing boarding, the passenger will always retain the right to compensation, the right to choose between the refund and the transfer on another route, and the right of care, since there is no possibility of limiting or refusing obligations towards passengers with regard to those rights, as referred to in Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003. 261/2004.
Rights of passengers and travellers
The European Commission has published interpretative guidelines on how certain provisions of EU passenger rights legislation should be applied in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. This ensures clarity and legal certainty in the application of passengers' rights.
According to the guidelines published on 2 December 2020 by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, based on the latest scientific data, it is estimated that the number of new cases of coronavirus among travellers is lower than in the general population. In addition, the measures already in place for air transport minimise the possibility of in-flight transmission.
