THE ITALIAN INTERVENTION 199 Article 28 “travel reimbursement and tourist packages”, the Decree dealt with air, rail, sea and land transport contracts (paragraph 1) and tourist package contracts (paragraph 5). Subsequently, the Decree-Law No. 18 “Cura Italia”, of 17 March, was published. It contains “measures to strengthen the National Health Service and economic support for businesses, workers and families connected to the epidemiological emergency from COVID-19”, and also extends the reimbursement provisions, referred to in Decree-Law No. 9, Article 28, , to residence contracts with some issues that will be discussed shortly. Both Article 28 and Article 88 of the two Decrees have been amended by the Law of Conversion No. 27/2020, recently published. The discipline of residence contracts has been merged in Article 88bis, which now deals not only with transports and packages but also with hotels contracts, and the discipline of other services, foreseen in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4, has remained in art. 88. Concerning travel contracts, Article 28 of Decree-Law No. 9, of 2 March 2020, (and now Art. 88bis §6) established, in paragraph 5, that the subjects referred to in paragraph 1 of the same Decree (i.e. all people subject to legal restrictions due to COVID-19, therefore to date all Italian citizens), can exercise pursuant to Art. 41 paragraph 4 of Legislative Decree 23 May 2011, No. 798 the right of withdrawal from the tourist package contracts to be performed in the periods of hospitalisation, quarantine, active surveillance or duration of the epidemiological emergency from COVID-19 (currently in progress) in the areas concerned (currently corresponding to the whole Italian territory). Article 88bis, compared to 28, provides several significant changes which do not pertain to the traveller’s use of the right of withdrawal. In fact, Art. 88bis, paragraph 6 confirms it and also states, in paragraph 7, that the withdrawal works for the organiser as well, as foreseen in Article 41 paragraph 5 letter b) of Legislative Decree No. 79/2011. The organiser can exercise the right of withdrawal from contracts targeting foreign states where landing or arrival is prevented or prohibited due to the COVID-19 emergency and in any case when the execution of the contract is prevented, in whole or in part, by measures taken due to this emergency by national, international or foreign states authorities. Article 41’s reference to the institution of the free withdrawal by the traveller (and the organiser), in this specific case, however, deserves some observations: the reason for the withdrawal will no longer exclusively be referred to the unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances that occurred in the place of 8 Italian Tourism Code that implements Article 12 of Directive 2015/2302.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTE4NzM5Nw==