Jurídicos y Administrativos

🚧 Ramón Pons, director of Hotel Guadalpín Banús in Marbella, announced a temporary workforce adjustment plan (ERTE) due to "force majeure" amid high season service reductions. Two owners, Caja Rural de Granada and SPV Spain, reclaim their assets from the hotel operator, Grisoma Hotelera. The staff of 180 fear permanent closure. On Monday, employees demanded action from Marbella's City Hall to secure the hotel's future and their jobs. The ERTE, which will likely be retroactive from the closure on July 11, aims to rotate affected workers.

📌 British tabloids target Spanish destinations amid mass protests against tourism in Mallorca last weekend. Thousands gathered, organized by over a hundred left-wing, pro-independence groups, to demand reduced tourism. Daily Mail reports thousands of locals in Palma calling to limit foreign visitors on the Spanish island, with activists attacking British tourists, displaying signs like “Take back your drunks, give us back our homes.” Protesters mocked England and Germany's Eurocup losses with signs referencing English defender Kyle Walker: “The only thing coming home is you.” Other banners read “We used to have a life. SOS Residents,” “Your luxury, our misery,” and “Enjoy balconing,” referencing a dangerous activity by drunk tourists.

🏆 On March 5, Peng Hui, 54, stole $90,000 from a partially open suitcase on a Singapore Airlines flight from Hong Kong to Singapore. Despite not planning to steal, he took advantage of the sleeping owner and transferred the money to his bag. After landing at Changi Airport, the theft was reported to the police. Peng was easily apprehended at his hotel after exchanging the money to Singapore currency, thanks to boarding data and security cameras. He received a 2.5-year prison sentence for theft and failing to declare the stolen cash.

✈ Judge Peinado summoned Leticia Lauffer, former director of Globalia's subsidiary Wakalua, as a witness in a case involving Air Europa and Begoña Gómez. Lauffer linked the Hidalgos, Gómez, and Juan Carlos Barrabés. Barrabés, now indicted, testified on Friday after Gómez declined. Wakalua, under Lauffer, sponsored Gómez's Africa Center with €40,000 in January 2020. Lauffer's company also had ties to Barrabés, whom Gómez recommended for state contracts worth €10 million.

🏖 Pensionistas have until Monday, July 22, to apply for the next tourism program season starting mid-September, with 886,269 spots across coastal, island (Canary and Balearic Islands), and inland tourism. Applications are urged to be made online via Imserso's electronic office or sent to Programa de Turismo del Imserso, P.O. Box 10.140, 28080 Madrid. Sales will be handled by Turismo Social (Ávoris) and numerous accredited travel agencies.

✈ The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approved the Airbus A321XLR, a narrow-body aircraft for long-haul flights, with CFM LEAP-1A engines. Certification for the Pratt & Whitney engine version is expected later, along with approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The A321XLR can fly about 8,000 kilometers non-stop. The first A321XLR's maiden flight was in June 2022. Over 500 orders for the aircraft have been placed, with Iberia set to receive the first eight units.

🛫 Under Regulation (EC) 261/2004, air passengers are entitled to information, care, refund, or alternative transport for flight cancellations or delays over two hours or arrivals three or more hours late. Extraordinary circumstances exempt airlines from compensation, as with the operational disruptions due to a Microsoft network failure affecting Aena's systems. Rights include meals, drinks, two phone calls or email access, hotel accommodation if necessary, and transport between the airport and the hotel. Options offered are a ticket refund within 7 days, alternative transportation to the final destination as soon as possible, or at a later date convenient to the passenger. Complaints can be filed for free through AESA.

🛫 Tribunal del distrito de Delaware, Estados Unidos, falló en favor de Ryanair contra Booking.com por violación de la Ley de Fraude y Abuso Informático, al realizar screenscraping con intención de defraudar. El jurado desestimó todas las contrademandas de Booking.com. CEO de Ryanair, Michael O’Leary, afirmó que Booking.com utilizó prácticas engañosas y cobró de más a los consumidores utilizando información rastreada ilegalmente.

✈ Ryanair won a legal battle in the United States against Booking over "screenscraping" as the District Court of Delaware ruled in the Irish airline's favor. The U.S. Computer Fraud and Abuse Act was cited, with the OTA found to have acted with intent to defraud, causing economic harm. CEO Michael O'Leary hopes this ends internet piracy and excessive OTA charges. All counterclaims by Booking, including defamation and unfair competition, were dismissed.

🛃 Hotrec, Europe's major hotel federation, accuses Booking of unfair practices, with 40% of hotels experiencing undercutting—where Booking cuts hotel prices by reducing its commission—and 75% stating no consent was given for such price reductions. More than half of affected hotels report 6-10% price cuts, and 10% experience 11-15% cuts. Additionally, 44% of hotels are subjected to unauthorized "multi-sourcing" by Booking, which controls over 70% of OTA hotel bookings. Complaints include pricing inconsistencies, booking errors, lack of guest contact, poor service, financial losses, operational strain, and reputational damage. Despite the supposed elimination of parity clauses on July 1, unfair commercial practices persist daily.