Greece Trip: Non-Conforming Services and Price Discrepancies – Should the Agency Pay? [ABO]


Séjour en Grèce : prestations non conformes et écarts de prix, l’agence doit-elle payer ? - Depositphotos.com  Auteur martinm303

TAP Air Portugal


Two travelers referred the Mediation after a trip to Greece organized by a travel agency. They believed that several services provided did not correspond either to the announced descriptions or to the price they had paid before departure. They were seeking a refund of €2,700.

The trip included several legs through the Cyclades. Upon arrival, the travelers noted various non-conformities: a room in Santorini they deemed different from the one shown at the time of booking, a hotel in Paros that did not match the advertised description, and a discrepancy between the price of certain services charged by the agency and the amount shown on the documents provided on site.

They notably found that the amount paid for their accommodation in Sifnos was higher than the price shown on the establishment’s bill.

The same observation was made for the boat crossings, whose rate actually paid to the companies was much lower than the amount billed within the framework of the trip.

The agency had proposed a first commercial gesture of 235 € to compensate for some differences noted during the stay, an offer the travelers had refused, deeming this amount insufficient.



Ce que disent les textes :

On the legal front, the Mediation notes that Article L. 211-16 of the Tourism Code places full liability on the seller of a package tour for the proper execution of the contracted services.

When the services do not conform to what was agreed, the professional must remedy them or, failing that, compensate the traveler.

Moreover, the case file elements do not call into question the price agreed at booking. However, they highlight a significant gap between the sums paid to the agency and the actual cost of certain services, notably the Sifnos accommodation and the maritime crossings.


Ce que préconise la Médiation Tourisme et Voyage :

In the interest of fairness, the Mediation considers it justified to retain half of these price differences, while taking into account the commercial gesture already offered by the agency.

At the end of its analysis, it therefore recommends the payment of an additional compensation of €277.96, to be added to the €235 already proposed, in order to amicably settle the dispute.


Find all the practical cases from the Tourism and Travel Mediation by clicking HERE.


Non-Conforming Accommodation: Were Travelers Allowed to Leave the Hotel? [ABO]


Hébergement non conforme : les voyageurs pouvaient-ils quitter l'hôtel ? - Depositphotos.com Med_Photo_Studio

CroisiEurope


A holidaymaker turned to Mediation after two consecutive stays in Tunisia booked through the same tour operator, claiming to have suffered shortcomings in the organization and the accommodation. He was notably seeking the full refund of the second trip as well as damages.

The first stay, scheduled in Djerba in the summer of 2025, had already given rise to an accommodation difficulty from the first night due to the unavailability of the originally planned room.

An out-of-court agreement had then been reached between the parties, providing for financial compensation used to finance a second stay.

This second trip, organized in Mahdia a few days later, was in turn marred by non-conformity : the booked lodging (a superior quadruple bungalow) was not available in the form advertised on arrival.

On site, several alternatives were offered by the hotel and its partners, including separate bungalows or closely spaced double rooms, then a complete family solution at a later time.

These proposals were refused by the travelers, who left the establishment before the end of the stay and requested a total refund of the services, as well as additional compensation.



What the texts say:

On the legal front, the professional’s strict liability is engaged in cases of non-performance or poor performance of the services of a tour package (Article L. 211-16 of the Tourism Code).

The Tourism Code, however, provides that the professional may partially exempt itself from liability when it offers replacement solutions that are comparable to remedy the non-conformity.

In this case, the Mediation notes that the on-site lodging solutions reflected a willingness to rectify on the part of the providers. If they did not exactly match the initially booked service, they cannot be considered clearly insufficient in view of the circumstances.


What the Tourism and Travel Mediation recommends:

The rejection of these alternatives and the guests’ early departure therefore does not allow placing all the financial consequences of the interrupted stay solely on the professional.

However, the initial non-conformity of the accommodation is recognized and entitles a price reduction.

Under these conditions, the Mediation deemed that an amicable settlement could be reached and recommended a partial refund equal to 25 % of the price of the second stay.


Find all the practical cases of the Tourism and Travel Mediation by clicking HERE.