Hotels in Spain send message to Irish tourists ahead of introduction of new, 'Big Brother' travel rules
Hotel groups have warned that the new rules could have "serious implications" for holidaymakers
Spanish hoteliers have reassured Irish tourists they will not stop them checking in if they refuse to comply with controversial ‘Big Brother’ demands the country’s government wants to force on holidaymakers.
The new Spanish government regulations are due to come into force on Monday (December 2) despite a wave of criticism and promises of legal challenges by hotel associations. Costa hotels have had to record and pass on the names and ID or passport numbers of guests for years.
Under the new rules, hoteliers will be expected to pass on extra information, including their mobile phone numbers, home addresses, email addresses and information on the relationship between clients booking the same rooms. It will potentially leave adult couples in the embarrassing situation of having to declare whether they are married, common-law partners or weekend lovers.
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Critics have pointed out the government decree breaches EU data protection laws and say they put hoteliers, as well as campsites, car rental firms and travel agencies also affected by the new rules, in a ‘lose-lose’ situation with potential fines from different administrations for collecting information or failing to do so.
Forty-two pieces of data will end up having to be loaded onto an online platform under the new set-up, according to one local newspaper report this week.
HOSBEC, the Valencian Community’s Hotel and Tourism Business Association, which has a massive presence in Benidorm, announced on Wednesday it was considering legal action after another leading hotelier association called CEHAT threatened to take the Spanish government to court.
HOSBEC president Fede Fuster admitted the new regulations were likely to increase check-in times but assuaged fears member hotels would stop guests from checking in if they refused to hand over sensitive information.
He said: “It appears the Spanish government has listened to the hotel associations because there appears to have been a modification on the online platform in the last couple of days and instead of having to hand over guests’ bank account or credit card details, we’ll only have to say now whether they paid by card, cash or bank transfer.
“But I think the new system will come into effect on Monday and there won’t be any last-minute suspension. We believe that’s inevitably going to cause check-in delays, especially in the first few days, although we’re not expecting a situation of chaos.
“There was some data we were already collecting and passing on, like the information on clients’ ID cards or their passports. But the new information we’ll be expected to gather and load onto an online platform include their emails, financial information relating to how they paid and something we don’t like, which is the relationship between guests sharing a room and whether, for instance, we’re receiving a married couple or a father with his adult son.
“Speaking as the president of HOSBEC, I can categorically say that we’re not going to start asking any of any guests if they’re checking in with their wife, lover or cousin. And tourists who decline to give us that information will be checked in as normal and won’t be denied entry under any circumstances.
“Before putting any guest who has chosen to stay at one of our hotels into an uncomfortable situation, we’ll fight the Spanish government wherever we need to, starting with a demand in the courts for a precautionary suspension of the new decree once it comes into force.”
Benidorm-based HOSBEC, whose 358 affiliate members include 117 hotels and nine campsites in the famous Costa Blanca resort, accused the Spanish government of burying its head in the sand earlier this week as it said the new rules would have “serious implications” for holidaymakers.
The traveller registration system was originally set to kick in on October 1 before being delayed to its current scheduled start date of December 2. HOSBEC said in a statement on Wednesday, after CEHAT threatened legal action: “We join CEHAT in the announcement of possible legal action against the implementation of the new Travellers’ Register and the lack of response from the government.
“HOSBEC, as a member of the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation (CEHAT) and through this entity, considers that the regulation could have serious implications for travellers and establishments and is considering going to court.
“The announcement is motivated by the lack of responses from the government and the negative impact this regulation will have on the hotel sector and travellers themselves. The hotel employers' association denounces the fact that the government has ignored all requests for dialogue and clarification, both from CEHAT and international tourism associations.
“Despite repeated warnings about the grave repercussions that this regulation will have, the government has not offered solutions nor has it issued the promised ministerial order to clarify its implementation.”
Spain’s interior ministry has said the new obligations are necessary on security grounds to help the police track criminals operating in Spain but critics say it tarnishes millions of innocent people with the “suspicion of guilt.”
Hotel bosses say Spain is the only EU country where hoteliers are obliged to send tourists’ ID and passport information to the police instead of just having to store the data for a period of time, and insist the current data gathering regulations are more than sufficient.
Mr Fuster said any implementation of the new system would turn hotels into data control centres and wouldn't enhance security. Failure to comply with European data protection regulation can lead to fines which are higher than the proposed fine of €25,000 for not complying with the Spanish government decree in time, leaving hotels and other travel firms in what they describe as their ‘lose-lose’ situation.
A Spanish Interior Ministry spokesman insisted earlier this week: “This new register is a police instrument which will help tackle terrorism and the commission of crime. We know the logistics of motor vehicles and accommodation are indispensable features of the modus operandi of criminal organisations.”
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