Analysis: UK and Europe align on package travel reforms

The European Council and Parliament confirmed an agreement on reform of the Package Travel Directive (PTD) last week on the same day as the UK government confirmed limited changes to the Package Travel Regulations (PTRs).

The combination of announcements suggested a degree of coordination, an impression strengthened by the similarity of the proposals.

The EC had proposed more sweeping reforms in November 2023 – limiting customer downpayments to 25% of a package price, for example, with the balance payable only 28 days before departure.

More: Package reforms curtailed in face of industry backing

It also proposed extending a customer’s right to cancel due to “unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances” not just in a destination but “in the country of departure [or] residence” – leading Abta to express relief that the revision would not apply in the UK.

And the EC wanted official travel warnings to be “important” in assessing whether unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances arose.

Although the Council sought to remove these proposals in its response, the Parliament restored elements of them. This threatened divergence between the PTD and UK PTRs, which derive from the 2018 directive and appeared subject to more limited reform by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT).

However, the difference now appears limited.