Berlin, Jan. 12 (AP) Travelers whose tourist trips were ruined by the imposition of restrictions to combat the COVID-19 pandemic may be entitled to at least a partial refund, the European Union’s top court said Thursday .
The EU Court of Justice intervened after a court in Germany asked for its opinion.
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The Munich court is looking into the case of two people who bought a two-week holiday package to the Spanish island of Gran Canaria from March 13, 2020, just as the pandemic hit Europe. They are seeking a 70% reduction in price due to the restrictions imposed two days later and their early return.
When the restrictions were imposed on March 15, beaches were closed, a curfew was imposed and the plaintiffs were allowed to leave their hotel room only to eat, the EU court said. On March 18 they were told they were ready to leave at any time, and two days later they were to return to Germany.
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The tour operator refused the requested reduction because it could not be held responsible for a “general risk to life”.
The EU court considered that “a traveler is entitled to a reduction in the price of his package when the non-conformity of the travel services included in the package is due to restrictions that have been imposed on the travel destination by combat the spread of an infectious disease, such as COVID-19.”
He said it doesn’t matter if similar restrictions are imposed in the traveler’s place of residence or in other countries.
The German court will now have to assess whether the restrictions in the particular case in question “could constitute breaches or improper execution” of the contract by the tour organizer. (AP)
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