Legal provisions of COM(2004)143 - International Rail Passengers' Rights and Obligations

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dossier COM(2004)143 - International Rail Passengers' Rights and Obligations.
document COM(2004)143 EN
date October 23, 2007

Contents

CHAPTER I - GENERAL PROVISIONS


Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation establishes rules as regards the following:

(a)the information to be provided by railway undertakings, the conclusion of transport contracts, the issuing of tickets and the implementation of a Computerised Information and Reservation System for Rail Transport,

(b)the liability of railway undertakings and their insurance obligations for passengers and their luggage,

(c)the obligations of railway undertakings to passengers in cases of delay,

(d)the protection of, and assistance to, disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility travelling by rail,

(e)the definition and monitoring of service quality standards, the management of risks to the personal security of passengers and the handling of complaints, and

(f)general rules on enforcement.

Article 2

Scope

1. This Regulation shall apply to all rail journeys and services throughout the Community provided by one or more railway undertakings licensed in accordance with Council Directive 95/18/EC of 19 June 1995 on the licensing of railway undertakings (8).

2. This Regulation does not apply to railway undertakings and transport services which are not licensed under Directive 95/18/EC.

3. On the entry into force of this Regulation, Articles 9, 11, 12, 19, 20(1) and 26 shall apply to all rail passenger services throughout the Community.

4. With the exception of the provisions set out in paragraph 3, a Member State may, on a transparent and non-discriminatory basis, grant an exemption for a period no longer than five years, which may be renewed twice for a maximum period of five years on each occasion, from the application of the provisions of this Regulation to domestic rail passenger services.

5. With the exception of the provisions set out in paragraph 3 of this Article, a Member State may exempt from the application of the provisions of this Regulation urban, suburban and regional rail passenger services. In order to distinguish between urban, suburban and regional rail passenger services, Member States shall apply the definitions contained in Council Directive 91/440/EEC of 29 July 1991 on the development of the Community’s railways (9). In applying these definitions, Member States shall take into account the following criteria: distance, frequency of services, number of scheduled stops, rolling stock employed, ticketing schemes, fluctuations in passenger numbers between services in peak and off-peak periods, train codes and timetables.

6. For a maximum period of five years, a Member State may, on a transparent and non-discriminatory basis, grant an exemption, which may be renewed, from the application of the provisions of this Regulation to particular services or journeys because a significant part of the rail passenger service, including at least one scheduled station stop, is operated outside the Community.

7. Member States shall inform the Commission of exemptions granted pursuant to paragraphs 4, 5 and 6. The Commission shall take appropriate action if such an exemption is deemed not to be in accordance with the provisions of this Article. No later than 3 December 2014, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and the Council a report on exemptions granted pursuant to paragraphs 4, 5 and 6.

Article 3

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall apply:

1.‘railway undertaking’ means a railway undertaking as defined in Article 2 of Directive 2001/14/EC (10), and any other public or private undertaking the activity of which is to provide transport of goods and/or passengers by rail on the basis that the undertaking must ensure traction; this also includes undertakings which provide traction only;

2.‘carrier’ means the contractual railway undertaking with whom the passenger has concluded the transport contract or a series of successive railway undertakings which are liable on the basis of this contract;

3.‘substitute carrier’ means a railway undertaking, which has not concluded a transport contract with the passenger, but to whom the railway undertaking party to the contract has entrusted, in whole or in part, the performance of the transport by rail;

4.‘infrastructure manager’ means any body or undertaking that is responsible in particular for establishing and maintaining railway infrastructure, or a part thereof, as defined in Article 3 of Directive 91/440/EEC, which may also include the management of infrastructure control and safety systems; the functions of the infrastructure manager on a network or part of a network may be allocated to different bodies or undertakings;

5.‘station manager’ means an organisational entity in a Member State, which has been made responsible for the management of a railway station and which may be the infrastructure manager;

6.‘tour operator’ means an organiser or retailer, other than a railway undertaking, within the meaning of Article 2, points (2) and (3) of Directive 90/314/EEC (11);

7.‘ticket vendor’ means any retailer of rail transport services concluding transport contracts and selling tickets on behalf of a railway undertaking or for its own account;

8.‘transport contract’ means a contract of carriage for reward or free of charge between a railway undertaking or a ticket vendor and the passenger for the provision of one or more transport services;

9.‘reservation’ means an authorisation, on paper or in electronic form, giving entitlement to transportation subject to previously confirmed personalised transport arrangements;

10.‘through ticket’ means a ticket or tickets representing a transport contract for successive railway services operated by one or several railway undertakings;

11.‘domestic rail passenger service’ means a rail passenger service which does not cross a border of a Member State;

12.‘delay’ means the time difference between the time the passenger was scheduled to arrive in accordance with the published timetable and the time of his or her actual or expected arrival;

13.‘travel pass’ or ‘season ticket’ means a ticket for an unlimited number of journeys which provides the authorised holder with rail travel on a particular route or network during a specified period;

14.‘Computerised Information and Reservation System for Rail Transport (CIRSRT)’ means a computerised system containing information about rail services offered by railway undertakings; the information stored in the CIRSRT on passenger services shall include information on:

(a)schedules and timetables of passenger services;

(b)availability of seats on passenger services;

(c)fares and special conditions;

(d)accessibility of trains for disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility;

(e)facilities through which reservations may be made or tickets or through tickets may be issued to the extent that some or all of these facilities are made available to users;

15.‘disabled person’ or ‘person with reduced mobility’ means any person whose mobility when using transport is reduced due to any physical disability (sensory or locomotory, permanent or temporary), intellectual disability or impairment, or any other cause of disability, or as a result of age, and whose situation needs appropriate attention and adaptation to his or her particular needs of the service made available to all passengers;

16.‘General Conditions of Carriage’ means the conditions of the carrier in the form of general conditions or tariffs legally in force in each Member State and which have become, by the conclusion of the contract of carriage, an integral part of it;

17.‘vehicle’ means a motor vehicle or a trailer carried on the occasion of the carriage of passengers.

CHAPTER II - TRANSPORT CONTRACT, INFORMATION AND TICKETS


Article 4

Transport contract

Subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the conclusion and performance of a transport contract and the provision of information and tickets shall be governed by the provisions of Title II and Title III of Annex I.

Article 5

Bicycles

Railway undertakings shall enable passengers to bring bicycles on to the train, where appropriate for a fee, if they are easy to handle, if this does not adversely affect the specific rail service, and if the rolling-stock so permits.

Article 6

Exclusion of waiver and stipulation of limits

1. Obligations towards passengers pursuant to this Regulation may not be limited or waived, notably by a derogation or restrictive clause in the transport contract.

2. Railway undertakings may offer contract conditions more favourable for the passenger than the conditions laid down in this Regulation.

Article 7

Obligation to provide information concerning discontinuation of services

Railway undertakings or, where appropriate, competent authorities responsible for a public service railway contract shall make public by appropriate means, and before their implementation, decisions to discontinue services.

Article 8

Travel information

1. Without prejudice to Article 10, railway undertakings and ticket vendors offering transport contracts on behalf of one or more railway undertakings shall provide the passenger, upon request, with at least the information set out in Annex II, Part I in relation to the journeys for which a transport contract is offered by the railway undertaking concerned. Ticket vendors offering transport contracts on their own account, and tour operators, shall provide this information where available.

2. Railway undertakings shall provide the passenger during the journey with at least the information set out in Annex II, Part II.

3. The information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be provided in the most appropriate format. Particular attention shall be paid in this regard to the needs of people with auditory and/or visual impairment.

Article 9

Availability of tickets, through tickets and reservations

1. Railway undertakings and ticket vendors shall offer, where available, tickets, through tickets and reservations.

2. Without prejudice to paragraph 4, railway undertakings shall distribute tickets to passengers via at least one of the following points of sale:

(a)ticket offices or selling machines;

(b)telephone, the Internet or any other widely available information technology;

(c)on board trains.

3. Without prejudice to paragraphs 4 and 5, railway undertakings shall distribute tickets for services provided under public service contracts via at least one of the following points of sale:

(a)ticket offices or selling machines;

(b)on board trains.

4. Railway undertakings shall offer the possibility to obtain tickets for the respective service on board the train, unless this is limited or denied on grounds relating to security or antifraud policy or compulsory train reservation or reasonable commercial grounds.

5. Where there is no ticket office or selling machine in the station of departure, passengers shall be informed at the station:

(a)of the possibility of purchasing tickets via telephone or the Internet or on board the train, and of the procedure for such purchase;

(b)of the nearest railway station or place at which ticket offices and/or selling machines are available.

Article 10

Travel information and reservation systems

1. In order to provide the information and to issue tickets referred to in this Regulation, railway undertakings and ticket vendors shall make use of CIRSRT, to be established by the procedures referred to in this Article.

2. The technical specifications for interoperability (TSIs) referred to in Directive 2001/16/EC shall be applied for the purposes of this Regulation.

3. The Commission shall, on a proposal to be submitted by the European Railway Agency (ERA), adopt the TSI of telematics applications for passengers by 3 December 2010. The TSI shall make possible the provision of the information, set out in Annex II, and the issuing of tickets as governed by this Regulation.

4. Railway undertakings shall adapt their CIRSRT according to the requirements set out in the TSI in accordance with a deployment plan set out in that TSI.

5. Subject to the provisions of Directive 95/46/EC, no railway undertaking or ticket vendor shall disclose personal information on individual bookings to other railway undertakings and/or ticket vendors.

CHAPTER III - LIABILITY OF RAILWAY UNDERTAKINGS FOR PASSENGERS AND THEIR LUGGAGE


Article 11

Liability for passengers and luggage

Subject to the provisions of this Chapter, and without prejudice to applicable national law granting passengers further compensation for damages, the liability of railway undertakings in respect of passengers and their luggage shall be governed by Chapters I, III and IV of Title IV, Title VI and Title VII of Annex I.

Article 12

Insurance

1. The obligation set out in Article 9 of Directive 95/18/EC as far as it relates to liability for passengers shall be understood as requiring a railway undertaking to be adequately insured or to make equivalent arrangements for cover of its liabilities under this Regulation.

2. The Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and the Council a report on the setting of a minimum amount of insurance for railway undertakings by 3 December 2010. If appropriate, that report shall be accompanied by suitable proposals or recommendations on this matter.

Article 13

Advance payments

1. If a passenger is killed or injured, the railway undertaking as referred to in Article 26(5) of Annex I shall without delay, and in any event not later than fifteen days after the establishment of the identity of the natural person entitled to compensation, make such advance payments as may be required to meet immediate economic needs on a basis proportional to the damage suffered.

2. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, an advance payment shall not be less than EUR 21 000 per passenger in the event of death.

3. An advance payment shall not constitute recognition of liability and may be offset against any subsequent sums paid on the basis of this Regulation but is not returnable, except in the cases where damage was caused by the negligence or fault of the passenger or where the person who received the advance payment was not the person entitled to compensation.

Article 14

Contestation of liability

Even if the railway undertaking contests its responsibility for physical injury to a passenger whom it conveys, it shall make every reasonable effort to assist a passenger claiming compensation for damage from third parties.

CHAPTER IV - DELAYS, MISSED CONNECTIONS AND CANCELLATIONS


Article 15

Liability for delays, missed connections and cancellations

Subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the liability of railway undertakings in respect of delays, missed connections and cancellations shall be governed by Chapter II of Title IV of Annex I.

Article 16

Reimbursement and re-routing

Where it is reasonably to be expected that the delay in the arrival at the final destination under the transport contract will be more than 60 minutes, the passenger shall immediately have the choice between:

(a)reimbursement of the full cost of the ticket, under the conditions by which it was paid, for the part or parts of his or her journey not made and for the part or parts already made if the journey is no longer serving any purpose in relation to the passenger’s original travel plan, together with, when relevant, a return service to the first point of departure at the earliest opportunity. The payment of the reimbursement shall be made under the same conditions as the payment for compensation referred to in Article 17; or

(b)continuation or re-routing, under comparable transport conditions, to the final destination at the earliest opportunity; or

(c)continuation or re-routing, under comparable transport conditions, to the final destination at a later date at the passenger’s convenience.

Article 17

Compensation of the ticket price

1. Without losing the right of transport, a passenger may request compensation for delays from the railway undertaking if he or she is facing a delay between the places of departure and destination stated on the ticket for which the ticket has not been reimbursed in accordance with Article 16. The minimum compensations for delays shall be as follows:

(a)25 % of the ticket price for a delay of 60 to 119 minutes,

(b)50 % of the ticket price for a delay of 120 minutes or more.

Passengers who hold a travel pass or season ticket and who encounter recurrent delays or cancellations during its period of validity may request adequate compensation in accordance with the railway undertaking’s compensation arrangements. These arrangements shall state the criteria for determining delay and for the calculation of the compensation.

Compensation for delay shall be calculated in relation to the price which the passenger actually paid for the delayed service.

Where the transport contract is for a return journey, compensation for delay on either the outward or the return leg shall be calculated in relation to half of the price paid for the ticket. In the same way the price for a delayed service under any other form of transport contract allowing travelling several subsequent legs shall be calculated in proportion to the full price.

The calculation of the period of delay shall not take into account any delay that the railway undertaking can demonstrate as having occurred outside the territories in which the Treaty establishing the European Community is applied.

2. The compensation of the ticket price shall be paid within one month after the submission of the request for compensation. The compensation may be paid in vouchers and/or other services if the terms are flexible (in particular regarding the validity period and destination). The compensation shall be paid in money at the request of the passenger.

3. The compensation of the ticket price shall not be reduced by financial transaction costs such as fees, telephone costs or stamps. Railway undertakings may introduce a minimum threshold under which payments for compensation will not be paid. This threshold shall not exceed EUR 4.

4. The passenger shall not have any right to compensation if he is informed of a delay before he buys a ticket, or if a delay due to continuation on a different service or re-routing remains below 60 minutes.

Article 18

Assistance

1. In the case of a delay in arrival or departure, passengers shall be kept informed of the situation and of the estimated departure time and estimated arrival time by the railway undertaking or by the station manager as soon as such information is available.

2. In the case of any delay as referred to in paragraph 1 of more than 60 minutes, passengers shall also be offered free of charge:

(a)meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the waiting time, if they are available on the train or in the station, or can reasonably be supplied;

(b)hotel or other accommodation, and transport between the railway station and place of accommodation, in cases where a stay of one or more nights becomes necessary or an additional stay becomes necessary, where and when physically possible;

(c)if the train is blocked on the track, transport from the train to the railway station, to the alternative departure point or to the final destination of the service, where and when physically possible.

3. If the railway service cannot be continued anymore, railway undertakings shall organise as soon as possible alternative transport services for passengers.

4. Railway undertakings shall, at the request of the passenger, certify on the ticket that the rail service has suffered a delay, led to a missed connection or that it has been cancelled, as the case might be.

5. In applying paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, the operating railway undertaking shall pay particular attention to the needs of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility and any accompanying persons.

CHAPTER V - DISABLED PERSONS AND PERSONS WITH REDUCED MOBILITY


Article 19

Right to transport

1. Railway undertakings and station managers shall, with the active involvement of representative organisations of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility, establish, or shall have in place, non-discriminatory access rules for the transport of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility.

2. Reservations and tickets shall be offered to disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility at no additional cost. A railway undertaking, ticket vendor or tour operator may not refuse to accept a reservation from, or issue a ticket to, a disabled person or a person with reduced mobility, or require that such person be accompanied by another person, unless this is strictly necessary in order to comply with the access rules referred to in paragraph 1.

Article 20

Information to disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility

1. Upon request, a railway undertaking, a ticket vendor or a tour operator shall provide disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility with information on the accessibility of rail services and on the access conditions of rolling stock in accordance with the access rules referred to in Article 19(1) and shall inform disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility about facilities on board.

2. When a railway undertaking, ticket vendor and/or tour operator exercises the derogation provided for in Article 19(2), it shall upon request inform in writing the disabled person or person with reduced mobility concerned of its reasons for doing so within five working days of the refusal to make the reservation or to issue the ticket or the imposition of the condition of being accompanied.

Article 21

Accessibility

1. Railway undertakings and station managers shall, through compliance with the TSI for persons with reduced mobility, ensure that the station, platforms, rolling stock and other facilities are accessible to disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility.

2. In the absence of accompanying staff on board a train or of staff at a station, railway undertakings and station managers shall make all reasonable efforts to enable disabled persons or persons with reduced mobility to have access to travel by rail.

Article 22

Assistance at railway stations

1. On departure from, transit through or arrival at, a staffed railway station of a disabled person or a person with reduced mobility, the station manager shall provide assistance free of charge in such a way that that person is able to board the departing service, or to disembark from the arriving service for which he or she purchased a ticket, without prejudice to the access rules referred to in Article 19(1).

2. Member States may provide for a derogation from paragraph 1 in the case of persons travelling on services which are the subject of a public service contract awarded in conformity with Community law, on condition that the competent authority has put in place alternative facilities or arrangements guaranteeing an equivalent or higher level of accessibility of transport services.

3. In unstaffed stations, railway undertakings and station managers shall ensure that easily accessible information is displayed in accordance with the access rules referred to in Article 19(1) regarding the nearest staffed stations and directly available assistance for disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility.

Article 23

Assistance on board

Without prejudice to the access rules as referred to in Article 19(1), railway undertakings shall provide disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility assistance free of charge on board a train and during boarding and disembarking from a train.

For the purposes of this Article, assistance on board shall consist of all reasonable efforts to offer assistance to a disabled person or a person with reduced mobility in order to allow that person to have access to the same services in the train as other passengers, should the extent of the person’s disability or reduced mobility not allow him or her to have access to those services independently and in safety.

Article 24

Conditions on which assistance is provided

Railway undertakings, station managers, ticket vendors and tour operators shall cooperate in order to provide assistance to disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility in line with Articles 22 and 23 in accordance with the following points:

(a)assistance shall be provided on condition that the railway undertaking, the station manager, the ticket vendor or the tour operator with which the ticket was purchased is notified of the person’s need for such assistance at least 48 hours before the assistance is needed. Where the ticket permits multiple journeys, one notification shall be sufficient provided that adequate information on the timing of subsequent journeys is provided;

(b)railway undertakings, station managers, ticket vendors and tour operators shall take all measures necessary for the reception of notifications;

(c)if no notification is made in accordance with point (a), the railway undertaking and the station manager shall make all reasonable efforts to provide assistance in such a way that the disabled person or person with reduced mobility may travel;

(d)without prejudice to the powers of other entities regarding areas located outside the railway station premises, the station manager or any other authorised person shall designate points, within and outside the railway station, at which disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility can announce their arrival at the railway station and, if need be, request assistance;

(e)assistance shall be provided on condition that the disabled person or person with reduced mobility present him or herself at the designated point at a time stipulated by the railway undertaking or station manager providing such assistance. Any time stipulated shall not be more than 60 minutes before the published departure time or the time at which all passengers are asked to check in. If no time is stipulated by which the disabled person or person with reduced mobility is required to present him or herself, the person shall present him or herself at the designated point at least 30 minutes before the published departure time or the time at which all passengers are asked to check in.

Article 25

Compensation in respect of mobility equipment or other specific equipment

If the railway undertaking is liable for the total or partial loss of, or damage to, mobility equipment or other specific equipment used by disabled persons or persons with reduced mobility, no financial limit shall be applicable.

CHAPTER VI - SECURITY, COMPLAINTS AND QUALITY OF SERVICE


Article 26

Personal security of passengers

In agreement with public authorities, railway undertakings, infrastructure managers and station managers shall take adequate measures in their respective fields of responsibility and adapt them to the level of security defined by the public authorities to ensure passengers’ personal security in railway stations and on trains and to manage risks. They shall cooperate and exchange information on best practices concerning the prevention of acts, which are likely to deteriorate the level of security.

Article 27

Complaints

1. Railway undertakings shall set up a complaint handling mechanism for the rights and obligations covered in this Regulation. The railway undertaking shall make its contact details and working language(s) widely known to passengers.

2. Passengers may submit a complaint to any railway undertaking involved. Within one month, the addressee of the complaint shall either give a reasoned reply or, in justified cases, inform the passenger by what date within a period of less than three months from the date of the complaint a reply can be expected.

3. The railway undertaking shall publish in the annual report referred to in Article 28 the number and categories of received complaints, processed complaints, response time and possible improvement actions undertaken.

Article 28

Service quality standards

1. Railway undertakings shall define service quality standards and implement a quality management system to maintain service quality. The service quality standards shall at least cover the items listed in Annex III.

2. Railway undertakings shall monitor their own performance as reflected in the service quality standards. Railway undertakings shall each year publish a report on their service quality performance together with their annual report. The reports on service quality performance shall be published on the Internet website of the railway undertakings. In addition, these reports shall be made available on the Internet website of the ERA.

CHAPTER VII - INFORMATION AND ENFORCEMENT


Article 29

Information to passengers about their rights

1. When selling tickets for journeys by rail, railway undertakings, station managers and tour operators shall inform passengers of their rights and obligations under this Regulation. In order to comply with this information requirement, railway undertakings, station managers and tour operators may use a summary of the provisions of this Regulation prepared by the Commission in all official languages of the European Union institutions and made available to them.

2. Railway undertakings and station managers shall inform passengers in an appropriate manner, at the station and on the train, of the contact details of the body or bodies designated by Member States pursuant to Article 30.

Article 30

Enforcement

1. Each Member State shall designate a body or bodies responsible for the enforcement of this Regulation. Each body shall take the measures necessary to ensure that the rights of passengers are respected.

Each body shall be independent in its organisation, funding decisions, legal structure and decision-making of any infrastructure manager, charging body, allocation body or railway undertaking.

Member States shall inform the Commission of the body or bodies designated in accordance with this paragraph and of its or their respective responsibilities.

2. Each passenger may complain to the appropriate body designated under paragraph 1, or to any other appropriate body designated by a Member State, about an alleged infringement of this Regulation.

Article 31

Cooperation between enforcement bodies

Enforcement bodies as referred to in Article 30 shall exchange information on their work and decision-making principles and practice for the purpose of coordinating their decision-making principles across the Community. The Commission shall support them in this task.

CHAPTER VIII - FINAL PROVISIONS


Article 32

Penalties

Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of the provisions of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Member States shall notify those rules and measures to the Commission by 3 June 2010 and shall notify it without delay of any subsequent amendment affecting them.

Article 33

Annexes

Measures designed to amend non-essential elements of this Regulation by adapting the Annexes thereto, except Annex I, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 35(2).

Article 34

Amending provisions

1. Measures designed to amend non-essential elements of this Regulation by supplementing it and necessary for the implementation of Articles 2, 10 and 12 shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 35(2).

2. Measures designed to amend non-essential elements of this Regulation by adjusting the financial amounts referred to therein, other than in Annex I, in light of inflation shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 35(2).

Article 35

Committee procedure

1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee instituted by Article 11a of Directive 91/440/EEC.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5a(1) to (4), and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

Article 36

Report

The Commission shall report to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementation and the results of this Regulation by 3 December 2012, and in particular on the service quality standards.

The report shall be based on information to be provided pursuant to this Regulation and to Article 10b of Directive 91/440/EEC. The report shall be accompanied where necessary by appropriate proposals.

Article 37

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force 24 months after the date of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.