As stated by the EU Press Room, “Consumers across the EU will benefit from greater holiday protection – when they buy and resell timeshare holidays, or timeshare-like holidays on cruise boats, canal boats, caravans and ‘discount holiday clubs’ – under new rules endorsed by the European Parliament today. The aim of the new Directive is to further boost consumer confidence in the Timeshare industry (worth over €10.5 billion and responsible for more than 40,000 jobs across the EU) and to eliminate the rogue traders who cause problems for consumers and bring legitimate operators into disrepute. Up to now, EU rules on Timeshare have given consumers basic rights with regard to clear information, the right to withdraw and change their mind, and a ban on deposits. The new Directive which the European Parliament voted in favour of today, aims to tackle loopholes in the current rules. Most importantly, it will extend the scope of the 1994 EU Timeshare Directive to cover new products which have emerged on the market – like discount holiday clubs, and ‘timeshare-like’ holidays on cruise boats, canal boats and caravans. It will also extend protection to important areas like timeshare resale and exchange clubs. The new rules should ensure that consumers are equally well protected across the EU and will create a level playing field in the market for timeshare and certain other holiday-related products.Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva said: ‘I warmly welcome Parliament’s support for this Directive, which will allow consumers real peace of mind when they sign up for their dream holiday deal. The new rules will ensure that the best possible protection is in place for consumers in the modern holiday market, and that rogue traders will no longer be able to exploit loopholes in the law’.”This release is available in full text.
