Arlene McCarthy

Arlene McCarthy, MEP and Chair of the Consumer Protection Committee in the European Parliament spoke exclusively to RCI Ventures about the components of the new European Timeshare Directive and its likely impact on the industry.

On October 22, 2008, the European Parliament adopted a new Directive for the ‘protection of consumers in respect of certain aspects of timeshare, long-term holiday products, resale and exchange’.

The Directive is designed give consumers better protection, as well as confidence, when investing in timeshare, other long-term holiday products and related services. It was passed by an overwhelming majority, with 674 votes for and only 11 against.

Arlene McCarthy, pictured left, who is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Directive in the UK, said Labour Party Euro MPs, who had taken up constituents’ problems with timeshare touts and holiday club scams, were delighted to receive overwhelming backing for the new law.

She said: “With this new law we are closing the loopholes for dodgy dealers and helping consumers to distinguish the genuine deals from the scams. Consumers will now have the same rights from Varna on the Black Sea to Valencia on the Costa Blanca.”

The new law provides additional protection to consumers who buy, sell or exchange all types of timeshare holiday product, including cruise boats, canal boats or caravans – as well as ‘discount holiday clubs’.

The new law will only be as effective as its enforcement and McCarthy said members of the EU Consumer Protection Committee applaud all initiatives to drive rogue traders out of the market, whether through self-regulation, ADR or not. She added: “The important issue is that we’ve got a separate piece of legislation around timeshare and having a network of enforcing bodies means that UK Trading Standards and its equivalent in other member states have to be able to talk to each other and share information. There will need to be joint police action across Member States as well where it’s necessary to protect consumers.”

Crucial elements of the Directive include:

• Extending the scope of the law to cover all timeshare style products
• Extending the right of withdrawal from 10 to 14 days
• Introducing a new standard information sheet on the timeshare product, giving all details plus any other management or services fees and charges – which must be provided in advance of the contract being signed
• An extension of the right of withdrawal to three months if the company fails to provide the standard information sheet
• An extension of up to one year of the right of withdrawal if the company fails to inform buyers of their right of withdrawal, at no cost to the consumer for use of the facilities
• A ban on upfront payments (deposits) for holiday clubs replaced by staggered annual payments, in addition to the right to withdraw annually from the contract at no further cost.

The European Directive will ‘direct’ Member States, who must transpose its detail and spirit into their national laws. This can take a considerable time and the Directive is unlikely to become law across Europe until the end of 2010 or January 2011, though some Member States may have it in place before these dates.

• See the June issue of RCI Ventures magazine for an in-depth interview with Arlene McCarthy, the MEP who is driving the implementation of the law in the UK.

About Arlene McCarthy

Arlene McCarthy has served as an MEP since 1994. She was elected as a Labour MEP for the North West Region in 1999 and was re-elected in 2004, having been MEP for the Peak District from 1994 to 1999.

She works alongside 19 Labour MEPs from across Britain, as members of the Socialist Group in the European Parliament.

She is:

• Chair of the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee
• Link member for Anglo-German relations
• Member of the EU-US Parliamentary Delegation
• Vice president of the European Parliament’s All-Party Sports Intergroup
• Convener of the European Parliament’s Urban Affairs Working Group.

Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, McCarthy was educated at Universities in London and Manchester. A fluent German and French speaker, she often engages her European colleagues in debate in their own language - and has appeared on German television and radio, and French radio. She is also currently learning Italian. She is married to Professor David Farrell, Professor in Government and Politics at Manchester University, where he specialises in electoral systems and European politics.