Summary of provisionsconcerning the rights of passengerswhen travelling by sea and inland waterway1
Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 concerning the rights of passengerswhen travelling by sea and inlandwaterwaybecomesapplicable on 18 December 2012.
It provides for a minimum set of rights for passengers travelling
- on passenger services where the port of embarkationissituated in a MemberState,
- on passenger services operated by Union carriers from a port situated in a third country to a port situated in a MemberState and
- on a cruisewhere the port of embarkationissituated in a Member State2
The Regulationdoeshowever, not apply to certaincategories of waterborne transport services3
Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 does not precludepassengers from claimingdamagesbeforenationalcourts in accordance with national law in respect of individualiseddamagesresulting from cancellationordelay of transport services.
Right to information
Allpassengers travelling by seaorinlandwaterwayshave the right to adequateinformationthroughouttheirtravel. Thatrightincludes the right to be informed on passengerrights and contactdetails of the nationalenforcementbodies, and on the conditions of access to transport for disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobility.
In the event of cancellationordelay in departure, passengershave the right to be informed of the delayorcancellation by the carrieror terminal operator no laterthan 30 minutesafter the scheduledtime of departure and of the estimateddeparture and arrivaltime as soon as thatinformationbecomesavailable.
Right to non-discriminatorycontractconditions
Allpersonshave the right not to be discriminateddirectlyorindirectlybased on theirnationalityor the place of the establishment of the carrierorticketvendorwithin the Union whenpurchasingtickets of waterbornepassenger transport services and cruises.
Right to care and assistance
In case of delay of morethan 90 minutesorcancellation of a passenger service orcruise, and wherereasonablypossible, passengersshall be offeredfree of chargesnacks, mealsorrefreshments in reasonablerelation to the waitingtime.
Where the delayorcancellation of a departurenecessitates one ormoreadditionalnights of stay for the passenger, he orsheshall be offeredadequateaccommodationfree of charge on boardorashore by the carrier and transport to and from the port terminal to the place of accommodation. Where a carrierprovesthat the cancellationordelayiscaused by weatherconditionsendangering the safeoperation of the ship, he isrelieved of the obligation to offerfreeaccommodation.
The passengeris not entitled to assistance by the carrier, if he orshe was informed of the cancellationordelaybefore the purchase of the ticketorwhere the cancellationordelayiscaused by the fault of the passenger.
Right to re-routing and reimbursement in case of cancellationordelay of departure
In case of a delay of morethan 90 minutes as compared to the scheduledtime of departureorcancellation of a passenger service, passengershave a right to choosebetween
- re-routing to the finaldestinationat no additionalcostat the earliestopportunityundercomparableconditions
and
- reimbursement of the ticketpricecombined, whererelevant, with a free of charge return service at the earliestopportunity to the first point of departure set out in the transport contract.
Right to requestpartialcompensation of the ticketprice in case of delay in arrival to the finaldestination
Passengersmayrequest the compensation of 25% of the ticketprice from the carrier, where the delay in arrival to the finaldestinationexceeds
- 1 hour in case of a scheduledjourney of up to 4 hours;
- 2 hours in case of a scheduledjourney of morethan 4 hours, but not exceeding 8 hours;
- 3 hours in case of a scheduledjourney of morethan 8 hours, but not exceeding 24 hours; or
- 6 hours in case of a scheduledjourney of morethan 24 hours.
Passengersmayrequest the compensation of 50% of the ticketprice from the carrier, where the delay in arrival to the finaldestinationexceeds
- 2 hours in case of a scheduledjourney of up to 4 hours;
- 4 hours in case of a scheduledjourney of morethan 4 hours, but not exceeding 8 hours;
- 6 hours in case of a scheduledjourney of morethan 8 hours, but not exceeding 24 hours; or
- 12 hours in case of a schedulejourney of morethan 24 hours.
The carrierishoweverrelieved of the obligation to paycompensation to passengers in case of delay in arrival, if he provesthat the delayresulted from weatherconditionsendangering the safeoperation of the shipor from extraordinarycircumstanceshindering the performance of a passenger service whichcould not havebeenreasonablyavoided.
Rights of disabledpassengers and passengers with reducedmobility:besides the generalpassengerrights, disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobilityhave the followingrightswhen travelling by waterborne transport so as to providethem with a right to transport on anequal footing with otherpassengers:
(a) right to access to transport for disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobilitywithoutanydiscrimination
Carriers, travelagents and tour operatorsmay not refuse to accept a reservation, to provide a ticketor to embarkpersons on the grounds of theirdisabilityorreducedmobility.
Whereitis not possible to carry a disabled person or a person with reducedmobility on board a ship for safetyreasonsordue to the impossibility of embarkationresulting from the design of the shipor port infrastructure and equipment, carriers, travelagents and tour operatorshave to makeallreasonableefforts to propose the person concernedanacceptablealternative transport. Disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobilitywhohold a reservation, whohavenotified the carrier of theirspecificneeds but arestilldeniedboardingmaychoosebetweenreimbursement and re-routing, the latterbeingconditional on the fulfilment of safetyrequirements.
Carriers, travelagentsor tour operatorsmay not askdisabledpersonsorpersons with reducedmobility to pay a highercost for reservationsortickets. Tickets and reservationsshall be offered to the disabledpersonsorpersons with reducedmobilityunder the same conditions as to otherpassengers.
The carriers and terminal operatorsshallhave in place non-discriminatoryaccessconditions for the transport of disabledpersons, persons with reducedmobility and accompanyingpersons.
(b) right to specialassistance
Disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobilityhave the right to free of chargeassistance by carriers and terminal operators in ports and on boardships, including with embarkation and disembarkation.
Disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobilityhave to notify the carrierat the time of reservationoradvancepurchase of the ticket of theirspecificneedsregardingaccommodation, seating, required services ortheirneed to bringmedicalequipment. For anyotherassistance the disabledpersons and persons with reducedmobilityneed to notify the carrieror terminal operator atleast 48 hours in advance and have to presentthemselvesatanagreedtimeahead of the publishedembarkationtimeat a designated point.
(c) right to compensation for loss of ordamage to mobilityequipment
Where a carrieror terminal operator hascausedlossordamaged of mobilityequipmentorotherspecificequipmentused by a disabled person or a person with reducedmobilitydue to hisneglectorfault, he has to pay the disabled person or the person with reducedmobility a compensationcorresponding to the replacementvalue of the equipmentconcernedor, whereitispossible to repairthatequipment, the costsrelating to repairs.
Right to submitcomplaints to the carriers and nationalenforcementbodies (NEBs)
Passengersmaysubmitcomplaints to the carriers and terminal operatorswithintwomonths from the date on which the service was performedorwhenitshouldhavebeenperformed.
The carrieror terminal operator has to have a complainthandling system in place. Withinthatframework he has to notify the passengerwithin 1 month of receipt of the complaintwhether he considers the complaint to be substantiated, rejectedorstillconsidered. The carrieror terminal operator has to provide the passenger with a finalreplywithin 2 months of receipt of the complaint.
Passengersmaysubmitcomplaintsaboutallegedinfringements of Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 to nationalenforcementbodies.
Enforcement of passengerrights by NEBs and comparablemechanisms
WithinMemberStates the designatednationalenforcementbodiesshallenforce the rights and obligations set out in Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 as regardspassenger services and cruises from portssituated on the territory of thatMemberState and passenger services from a third country to suchports.
Where a MemberStatehasdecided to exemptpassenger transport services covered by public service contractsorintegrated services from the scope of application of the Regulation, itwillneed to ensurethat a comparablemechanism of enforcement of passengerrightshasbeenput in place.
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1)Summarydrafted in accordance with Article 23(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010. Thissummaryhas no legalvalue.
2)Cruisepassengershave no right to re-routing and reimbursement in case of cancelledordelayeddepartures and no right to compensation of the ticketprice in case of delay in arrival.
3)Shipscertified to carryup to 12 passengers, shipswhichhave a crewresponsible for the operation of the shipcomposed of not morethanthreepersons, passenger services of less than 500 metres one way, excursion and sightseeingtoursotherthancruises and ships not propelled by mechanicalmeans as well as original and individualreplicas of historicalpassengershipsdesignedbefore 1965, builtpredominantly with the original materials certified to carryup to 36 passengers, areexcluded.
In addition, MemberStatesmaydecide not to apply the Regulationprovidedthat the rights of passengersareadequatelyensuredundernational law to seagoingships of less than 300 grosstonsoperated in domestic transport until 17 December 2014 and for anindefinite period of time to passenger services covered by public service obligations, public service contractsorintegrated services.