Passengers Rights

Regulation (EU) No 181/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 concerns the rights of passengers in bus and coach transport.

This Regulation was incorporated in the Law on Access to the Profession of the Road Transport of 2001 with the amending Law 4(I)/2014.

Article 4 — Tickets and Non-Discriminatory Contract Conditions

Without prejudice to social tariffs, the contract conditions and tariffs applied by carriers shall be offered to the general public without any direct or indirect discrimination based on the nationality of the final customer, or on the place of establishment of the carriers or ticket vendors within the Union.

Rights of Disabled Persons and Persons with Reduced Mobility

Article 10 — Exceptions and Special Conditions

Notwithstanding Article 9(1), carriers, travel agents and tour operators may refuse to accept a reservation, issue or otherwise provide a ticket to, or take on board, a person on the grounds of disability or reduced mobility:

• In order to meet applicable safety requirements established by international, Union or national law, or in order to meet health and safety requirements established by the competent authorities.
• Where the design of the vehicle or the infrastructure, including bus stops and terminals, makes it physically impossible to take on board, alight or carry the disabled person or person with reduced mobility in a safe and operationally feasible manner.

Article 16 — Training

Carriers and, where appropriate, terminal managing bodies shall establish disability-related training procedures, including instructions, and ensure that their personnel, including drivers, who deal directly with the travelling public or with issues related to the travelling public, are trained or instructed as described in Annex II.

Article 17 — Compensation in Respect of Wheelchairs and Other Mobility Equipment

1. Carriers and terminal managing bodies shall be liable where they have caused loss of or damage to wheelchairs, other mobility equipment or assistive devices. The loss or damage shall be compensated by the carrier or terminal managing body liable for that loss or damage.
2. The compensation shall be equal to the cost of replacement or repair of the equipment or devices lost or damaged.

Passenger Information Rights

Article 25 — Information on Passenger Rights

1. Carriers and terminal managing bodies shall, within their respective areas of competence, ensure that passengers are provided with appropriate and comprehensible information regarding their rights under this Regulation at the latest on departure.
2. This information shall be provided at terminals and, where applicable, on the Internet.
3. At the request of a disabled person or person with reduced mobility, the information shall be provided, where feasible, in an accessible format.
4. This information shall include contact details of the enforcement body or bodies designated by the Member State pursuant to Article 28(1).
5. In order to comply with the information requirement, carriers and terminal managing bodies may use a summary of the provisions of this Regulation prepared by the Commission in all official languages of the institutions of the European Union.

Complaints

Article 27 — Submission of Complaints

Without prejudice to claims for compensation in accordance with Article 7, if a passenger covered by this Regulation wants to make a complaint to the carrier, the passenger shall submit it within 3 months from the date on which the regular service was performed or when a regular service should have been performed.

Within 1 month of receiving the complaint, the carrier shall give notice to the passenger that the complaint has been substantiated, rejected or is still being considered.

The time taken to provide the final reply shall not be longer than 3 months from receipt of the complaint.

Enforcement and National Enforcement Bodies

Article 28 — National Enforcement Bodies

Any passenger may submit a complaint, in accordance with national law, 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.

A Member State may decide that the passenger, as a first step, shall submit a complaint to the carrier. In this case, the national enforcement body or any other appropriate body designated by the Member State shall act as an appeal body for complaints not resolved under Article 27.