Current legislation is quite impressive from the point of view of the range of specific tools that can be used to protect tourists’ interests in relationships with firms organising and selling tourism services. Statutory provisions which are especially important in this respect are those that provide tourists with protection when travel agencies become insolvent.

In such cases, it is crucial that the costs of repatriation of tourists are covered, and the price paid for the holiday refunded. In Poland, customers are protected against problems relating to insolvency of travel agencies under the version of the Act of 29 August 1997 on Tourism Services in effect as of 17 September 2010 (text: ISAP).

The most recent resolution adopted by the Supreme Court (case no. III CZP 18/16) relates precisely to interpretation of these regulations, and in particular the issue of reimbursement for a down payment or payment for a holiday which did not take place due to insolvency or bankruptcy of a travel agency.

In its interpretation of the regulations described above, the Supreme Court also reviewed EU directives and the extensive CJEU case law. It has referred especially to the practice of interpretation of Article 7 of the Council Directive 90/314/EEC (recently replaced by Article 17 Directive (EU) 2015/2302 of the European Parliament and of the Council on package travel and linked travel arrangements – see: Eur-Lex).

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