New Regulation (EU) No. 2021/782 on Rail Passengers' Rights and Obligations

Uredba (EZ) br. 1371/2007 o pravima i obvezama putnika u željezničkom prijevozu primjenjuje se u državama članicama od 3. prosinca 2009. godina. S ciljem pružanja bolje zaštite putnicima u prijevozu željeznicama donesena je nova Uredba (EU) br. 2021/782 koja je stupila na snagu 6. lipnja 2021. godine, a počet će se primjenjivati od 7. lipnja 2023. godine i time staviti izvan snage Uredbu (EZ) br. 1371/2007. Ovaj je rad komparativna analiza svih važnih tema koje se tiču prava i obveza putnika u željezničkom prijevozu propisanih prethodno navedenim uredbama uz istaknute nove i važne značajke Uredbe (EU) br. 2021/782. Nakon uvodnih objašnjenja temeljnih definicija i područja primjene Uredbi, posebna je pažnja stavljena na prava i obveze iz ugovora o prijevozu putnika željeznicom. Dalje su u radu analizirane nove značajke odgovornosti željezničkog prijevoznika prema putnicima uz naglasak na odgovornost u slučaju smrti ili tjelesne ozljede putnika i odgovornost za štetu nanesenu prtljazi, životinjama i vozilima. U drugom su dijelu rada analizirane novine u pogledu prava i obveza putnika u slučaju kašnjenja, propuštenih veza i otkazanih putovanja stavljajući posebnu pažnju na nove značajke koje donosi Uredba (EU) br. 2021/782 u vezi s cijenom naknade karte. U posebnom su poglavlju analizirana prava putnika s invaliditetom ili sa smanjenom pokretljivošću s naglaskom na brojne mjere kojima se takvim putnicima pokušava olakšati prijevoz željeznicom bez ikakve diskriminacije. Također je u radu u dva poglavlja komparativno prikazan postupak pritužbe putnika o kvaliteti usluge te način provedbe uredbi u zemljama članicama Europske Unije, posebno ističući značajke u vezi s informiranjem putnika, ali i ulogu Hrvatskih željeznica u željezničkom prijevozu. Zaključno je istaknuta uloga Hrvatske regulatorne agencije za mrežne djelatnosti kao nacionalnog tijela nadležnog za obavljanje regulatornih poslova u području tržišta željezničkih usluga.Regulation (EC) No. 1371/2007 on rail passengers’ rights and obligations has applied in member states since December 3rd, 2009. On June 6th, 2021, the New Regulation (EU) No. 2021/782 on rail passengers’ rights and obligations was brought into force, 2021, but will be applied from June 7th, 2023, to provide significantly improved protection to rail passengers and thereby repeal Regulation (EC) No. 1371/2007. This paper is a comparative analysis of all important rail transport passenger rights and obligations themes regulated by the regulations mentioned above, with the highlights of the new and important Regulation (EC) No. 2021/782 features. After the Regulation's basic definitions and application areas, special attention was given to rights and obligations arising from rail passenger transport contracts. The paper also contains a railway carrier to passenger's new responsibility feature analysis and highlights the responsibility due to people's deaths or physical injuries and luggage, animal and vehicle damage. The second section of this paper analyzes new passenger rights and obligations as a result of delays, missed connections, or canceled journeys, as well as highlights of the new Regulation (EU) No. 2021/782 features regarding ticket prices. In a special chapter of this paper, the rights of people with disabilities or people with reduced mobility are analyzed with an emphasis on numerous services for relieving rail transportation without any discrimination. Also, in conclusion, in two chapters, there has been a comparison of passenger complaints due to service quality and regulation implementation processes in the European Union, with an emphasis on passenger information and also the role of Croatian railways in railway transportation. In the end there is highlighted role of Croatian regulatory authority for network industries (HAKOM) as part of regulatory affairs in the area of the railway services market