16 April 2024: Following the adoption by the European Parliament of its first reading position on the proposal to revise the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Directive, ERA, A4E and IATA have joined forces and shared with key Counsellors and Transport Attachés a joint policy paper urging the Member States to preserve the voluntary nature of ADR schemes and promote the development of specialised, high-quality ADR bodies.

While airlines are generally supportive of out-of-court dispute resolution, which can be a faster and less costly alternative to legal proceedings, European airline associations are concerned about mandating participation in such schemes at an EU level. As the ADR Directive is based on a minimum harmonisation approach, there are considerable differences in how EU Member States have implemented it, and how the ADR bodies and the relevant procedures have been set up. In some Member States, decisions are binding on the trader, in others they are not. Some Member States have only set up ADR bodies with general competence, while others have ADR bodies with specialised knowledge of different industry sectors.

As recognised by the European Commission and by the TRAN Committee, it is most appropriate that Member States have the flexibility to decide whether or not to mandate participation in ADR procedures, considering the national circumstances as well as the capacity, competence and specialisation of the national ADR bodies.

The joint policy paper is available for members only to download from the top right of this page.

Background – On 13 March 2024, the European Parliament adopted its first reading position on the proposal to revise the ADR Directive. Contrary to the European Commission’s proposal, and the Opinion of the TRAN Committee, the Internal Market & Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee proposed to make participation in ADR schemes mandatory for airlines but no other sectors. This amendment was passed as part of the EP’s first reading position.