Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Laws in the Trial of Tourism Disputes (Revised in 2020)

Article 1 Tourism disputes mentioned in these Provisions refer to contract disputes or infringement disputes arising from tourism among tourists, tourism operators and tourism auxiliary service providers.

"Tour operator" refers to a person who runs tourism business in his own name and provides tourism services to the public.

"Tourism auxiliary service provider" refers to the person who has a contractual relationship with the tour operator, assists the tour operator to fulfill the obligations of the tour contract, and actually provides travel services such as transportation, sightseeing, accommodation, catering and entertainment.

These Provisions shall apply to the tourism disputes between tourists and operators of tourist attractions in the process of self-travel. Article 2 Where a tourism contract is concluded with a tourism operator in the form of a unit or a family. And disputes arise in the course of performance, the people's court shall accept the lawsuit filed by individual tourists on the dispute over the tourism contract, except that the collective brings a lawsuit in the name of one party to the contract. Article 3 If a tourist suffers personal injury or property loss due to the same reasons as a tour operator, and the tourist chooses to request the tour operator to bear the liability for breach of contract or tort, the people's court shall try the case according to the cause of action selected by the parties. Article 4 If the tour operator breaches the contract due to the reasons of the tour auxiliary service provider, and the tourists only sue the tour operator, the people's court may add the tour auxiliary service provider as a third party. Article 5 If a tour operator has taken out liability insurance and a tourist only sues the tour operator for an insurance liability accident, the people's court may, at the request of the parties concerned, list the insurance company as a third party. Sixth tour operators make unfair and unreasonable provisions to tourists in the form of standard terms, notices, statements, store notices, etc. , exclude or restrict the rights of tourists, reduce or exempt the responsibility of tour operators, increase the responsibility of tourists, etc., and the people's court shall support the tourists' request to determine that the content is invalid according to the provisions of Article 26 of the Consumer Protection Law. Article 7 The people's court shall support the failure of tour operators and tour auxiliary service providers to fulfill their security obligations, causing personal injuries and property losses to tourists, and the tourists request the tour operators and tour auxiliary service providers to bear the responsibilities.

If personal injury or property loss is caused by the behavior of a third person, the third person shall bear the responsibility; The people's court shall support tourism operators and tourism auxiliary service providers who fail to fulfill their security obligations and tourists request them to assume corresponding supplementary responsibilities. Article 8 The people's court shall support the failure of tour operators and tourism auxiliary service providers to inform and warn tourists about tourism projects that may endanger their personal and property safety, thus causing personal injuries and property losses to tourists, and the tourists request the tour operators and tourism auxiliary service providers to take responsibility.

The people's court shall not support tourists who fail to provide personal health information related to tourism activities according to the requirements of tourism operators and tourism auxiliary service providers and fulfill the obligation of truthful disclosure, or who do not listen to the notification and warning of tourism operators and tourism auxiliary service providers and participate in tourism activities that are not suitable for their own conditions, resulting in personal injury and property loss during tourism. Article 9 The people's court shall support the illegal collection, storage, use, processing, transmission, sale, provision and disclosure of tourists' personal information by tourism operators and tourism auxiliary services, and the tourists request them to bear corresponding responsibilities. Article 10 If a tour operator transfers the tour business to other tour operators, and the tourists do not agree to the transfer, and request to terminate the tour contract and hold the tour operator liable for breach of contract, the people's court shall support it.

The people's court shall support a tour operator who transfers the tour business to other tour operators without authorization, and the tourists are damaged during the tour, and requests the tour operator who signed the tour contract with him or the tour operator who actually provided the tour service to bear joint and several liability. Article 11 Unless the nature of the contract is not suitable for assignment or it is otherwise agreed in the contract, if a tourist transfers his rights and obligations in the travel contract to a third party within a reasonable period before the start of the travel itinerary and requests to confirm the validity of the transfer contract, the people's court shall support it.

Based on the reasons mentioned in the preceding paragraph, if a tour operator requests a tourist or a third party to pay an increased fee or a tourist requests a tour operator to refund a reduced fee, the people's court shall support it. Twelfth before or during the tour, the people's court shall support the tourists who unilaterally terminate the contract and ask the tour operators to refund the expenses that did not actually occur, or the tour operators ask the tourists to pay reasonable expenses. Article 13 If a tour operator who has signed a tour contract entrusts part of the tour business to a destination tour operator, and the entrusted party fails to fulfill the obligations stipulated in the tour contract, thus causing damage to tourists during the tour, the people's court shall support it.

If a tourist operator entrusts a person other than those specified in the preceding paragraph to operate the tourism business, and a tourist brings a lawsuit against the tourist operator, the people's court shall accept it. Article 14 If a tour operator allows others to engage in tourism business in its name, causing personal injury and property loss to tourists, and tourists request the tour operator and the anchor to bear joint liability according to the provisions of Article 168 of the General Principles of the Civil Law, the people's court shall support it.