Jurídicos y Administrativos

🏠 Madrid's Ayuntamiento, led by Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida, introduced the Plan RESIDE to protect residential areas and replace the 2019 Plan de Hospedaje. Key points include banning tourist apartments in residential buildings in the historic center, bounded by Avenida de la Reina Victoria and Plaza de Legazpi, and allowing them only in dedicated buildings. Incentives will be provided to convert commercial properties into affordable rental housing, with 210 eligible buildings in the center. The plan is expected to be effective by August 2025, following public consultation and approval. Since April, licenses for new tourist apartments have been frozen, and illegal operators face fines up to €100,001, with a 15% increase in inspectors to enforce the rules.

🛩 Ex-vice president Nadia Calviño, now President of the European Investment Bank, distanced herself from Air Europa's rescue operation when she learned the airline's owners distributed €35 million in dividends before seeking a €475 million public bailout. Calviño warned Ábalos's advisor of "a very relevant problem" regarding the dividends, yet she didn't halt the rescue. The operation, involving Sánchez, Ábalos, and others, was approved rapidly despite her reservations. Chats involving Calviño may cause issues if judicial investigations proceed.

🏠 CEHAT advocates for leveling the playing field in tourism by imposing VAT on tourist rentals and other fiscal and labor measures. The organization, representing 450,000 tourist apartment (AT) spots in Spain, distinguishes ATs from unregulated short time rentals (STRs) or vacation housing, stressing that ATs, along with aparthotels, are regulated and have paid VAT like hotels and hostels. They warn against confusing the types and oppose unjustified VAT increases on regulated accommodations. The EU allows reduced VAT rates to boost the sector's competitiveness, social benefits, and employment. Examples include France's VAT cut leading to 30,000 new jobs in under a year, and Germany's cut from 19% to 7%, creating 46,683 jobs, a 18.5% employment rise from 2016 to 2022. CEHAT urges that current VAT rates be maintained and applied to all tourist activities not currently taxed.

💸 Volotea faces a 423 million euros equity hole in 2023, up from 316 million in 2022 and 159.9 million in 2021. The airline suffered five years of consecutive losses, with a negative balance of 97.5 million in 2023, 134 million in 2022, and 74.9 million in 2021. Despite doubling sales from 302 million in 2021 to 694 million in 2023, EBITDA remains negative: -35.9 million in 2023. Volotea postponed a 36.2 million euro payment to SEPI and banks, with repayment deadlines set for 2029 and 2028, respectively.

🛫 Spanish travel agencies expect a new moratorium on the registry of reservations, set to start on December 2, amid protests and a non-binding resolution by the Congress urging the government to postpone the enactment of the regulatory law. This regulation, established by Royal Decree 933/2021, mandates that agencies report lodging and vehicle rental details for each reservation, which has drawn heavy criticism for data privacy concerns and administrative burdens. Industry associations like CEAV and FECLAV highlight the potential competitive losses and customer distrust, with fears of ending up in court. The issue of understaffed inspections to combat industry intrusions was raised, with regions like Galicia and Andalusia facing challenges. Concerns also arose over the intrusion by the government itself, as described by Jerónimo Fernández of FECLAV.

📢 Booking.com reaffirms its commitment to listening to partners and driving new business opportunities for them, expecting continued benefits from their collaboration. They have appealed the CNMC's decision, which is not yet final, suggesting damage claims should wait. The company prides itself on a mutually beneficial relationship with nearly 200,000 hotels and accommodations in Spain, emphasizing direct communication to better support partners. Lawyers from AEDH contest the claim that appeals must wait.

📌 Spanish travel agencies face a lack of public resources to combat industry intrusion, as highlighted during CEAV's first national meeting in Canfranc. Agavi President Juan A. Rivadulla reports years of using their own resources to detect intrusions due to administrative inspection collapse. Feclav President Jerónimo Fernández criticizes institutional intrusion, such as the exclusionary Club de los 60 program in Castilla y León. A controversial registry, effective December 2, requiring extensive client data for bookings, is critiqued for its administrative burden and malfunctioning platform, leading to time loss and missing hotel listings. CEAV's legal director, Ana Barluenga, notes the temporary non-enforcement of additional data collection by the Ministry of Interior, awaiting legal documentation to ensure juridical security.

🚂 Blablacar expands into train ticket sales across Europe, starting with Spain due to intense competition and attractive commissions of 2-4%. The service is operational in Spain and will grow to include France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and Belgium. Blablacar's strategy integrates high-speed train with shared car services, exemplified by the Madrid to Huesca route via Zaragoza. This follows their venture into bus services with Blablabus.

✈️ Volotea, under Carlos Muñoz's leadership, delayed a €36.2 million payment to SEPI and banks backed by the ICO until 2028. Initially due in 2024-2025, €14.5 million is now required by end-2025, and €21.7 million from 2026-2028. This follows a €200 million SEPI aid to be fully repaid by 2029 and a €150 million ICO-backed loan, partly repaid periodically. Despite predicting "historic margins," Volotea reported a 2023 loss of €97.5 million, marking its fifth consecutive deficit year since 2019.

💸 Javier Zamora, legal advisor to the AEDH, detailed the CNMC's fine against Booking.com, which hotels can now challenge via civil proceedings. Booking.com is warned to cease its behavior or face further action by the CNMC, as the hotel industry watchdog. Eskariam's CEO, David Fernández, indicated the collective strength is key to avoiding reprisals and accessing a larger data volume for damage determination. Potential damages could be substantial; for instance, a hotel with €4 million annual revenue since 2010 could claim between €1.8 and €1.9 million, including interest. The damage range is 1.6% to 2% of annual turnover. Eskariam, working on a no-win-no-fee basis with investment funds and specialized insurers, is in talks with 300 hotels and expects to reach 2,000 as in Germany. The claims process can last six years.