Chaotic scenes erupted in Spain after the country’s new system for registering traveller information crashed on its first day.
Spain’s new system has already sparked unanimous disapproval after it proved “problematic,” sparking problems for the travel agency sector. It seems these problems could continue for a while longer.
Pedro Fiol, president of the Aviba Balearic Association of Travel Agencies, warns that the failures have already had an “international impact.”
“It was chaos. It hardly ever worked during the test period”, said Fiol.
He added: “It is disproportionate and has already had an international impact. We cannot upload data that we don’t know.”
Fiol argues that the plans which were implemented to “fight terrorism and organised crime” will “neither prevent nor deter any possible attack”.
He said: “Terrorists with names and surnames will not be staying with their faces uncovered in any hotel surrounded by tourists. The measure violates all the principles of privacy of our customers. Europe should act. It will be easier to file a tax return than book a hotel.”
With fines for non-compliance as high as 30,000 euros, Aviba is now advising members to take screenshots of website errors as evidence.
“It is very important that we can prove that the system has not been working and that we have therefore not been able to load the data”, said Fiol.
The new rules mean that anyone who is 14 or above must provide a breadth of information, with up to 31 additional details including their names and surnames, ID numbers, home address and email addresses, telephone numbers, card details, passport number and account numbers.
Children under 14 will not need to provide the information, but adults travelling with them must explain their relationship with them.
A spokesperson for the Interior Ministry previously said: “It is justified for the general interest for the security of citizens against the threat of terrorism and other serious offences committed by criminal organisations.”
However, business owners and hoteliers are worried they will have to shoulder the inevitable backlash.