Passenger ships play an important role in the mobility of EU citizens - more than 400 million people pass every year through EU ports, with 120 million passengers being transported between ports of the same Member State.
EU legislation on passenger ship safety has been put in place over time following accidents such as the sinking of the Herald of Free Enterprise in 1987 and the Estonia in 1994, which resulted in mathe loss of 193 and 852 lives respectively. It complements international and national standards, provides for safer ships and more efficient handling of ship accidents.
Review of EU rules on passenger ship safety
On 30 November 2017, a number of legislative texts that simplify and improve the common rules on safety of ships carrying passengers in EU waters were published in the Official Journal of the European Union. They had been adopted by the European Parliament on 4 October 2017 and the Council on 23 October 2017.
The new rules enter into force 20 days after publication. Member States then have 2 years to transpose the updated rules into national legislation and shall apply them from 21 December 2019.
The package is a result of proposals made by the European Commission in June 2016, as a follow-up to the recommendations of the fitness check driven by the Commission's Regulatory Fitness and Performance (REFIT) Programme.
The update is a response to lessons learnt, including from accidents, and technological progress. Its aim is to enhance safety and ensure that the competition takes place on equal footing. It does so by making the rules clearer, simpler and up-to-date with legal and technological developments.
The new rules will also provide for easier compliance by operators and better monitoring and enforcement for national competent authorities as well as the European Commission, assisted by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). The key changes to the safety standards and requirements for passenger ships sailing in EU waters include:
- Amendments to Directive 2009/45/EC on technical requirements for passenger ships on domestic voyages clarify that ships built in aluminium have to be certified according to this Directive and meet its fire safety requirements (in 10 years for new and 12 years for existing aluminium ships after the amendments enter into force). Passenger ships below 24 metres are excluded from the scope of the Directive.
- Amendments to Directive 98/41/EC on registration of persons on board introduce the requirement to register passenger data in a digital manner, using harmonised administrative procedures (the so-called single window established under Directive 2010/65/EU) to facilitate search and rescue operations in case of emergency. For a period of 6 years after entry into force, Member States may continue to apply the old rules, i.e. keeping data concerning persons on board by means of the company's registrar. The time allowed for reporting data on persons on board is shortened from 30 to 15 minutes after the ship's departure.
- A new Directive replacing and repealing Directive 1999/35/EC on surveys for passenger ferries and high-speed craft in regular service eliminates overlaps between various inspection regimes. This preserves the safety level while reducing the administrative burden on shipowners and rationalise the inspection efforts of Member States' authorities.
See also: "Maritime Transport: Final adoption of the Passenger Ship Safety package" (23/10/2017)
Small passenger ships
On 9 April 2019, the Council adopted its Recommendation on safety goals and non-binding functional requirements for passenger ships below 24 meters in length (2019/C 142/01) to coordinate safety rules for small passenger ships (length below 24 meters). It is the first time a common safety framework for all small passenger ships is adopted at EU level.
Pursuant to this recommendation, Member States shall follow common safety goals and functional requirements for small passenger ships - such as for ship design, fire hazards and emergency situations. These requirements, once endorsed and further developed by Member States, will provide a common level of safety for passengers sailing domestically and facilitate access for manufacturers and operators to the wider EU market.
The recommendation follows on the above mentioned review of EU rules on passenger ship safety and the recommendation of the fitness check to develop a new, performance based approach to the safety of small passenger ships. The safety goals and functional requirements annexed to the recommendation have been developed jointly with Member States' experts and stakeholders in the framework of the expert sub-group on passenger ship safety.
See related documents: "Commission Staff Working Document accompanying the Proposal" and "Consultation on common EU rules for small passenger ships" (25/07/2017 – 30/11/2017).
Next steps
The Commission, assisted by the European Maritime Safety Agency, will follow-up on the remaining recommendations of the fitness check. In particular, it will analyse results of a preparatory study on whether the specific EU damage stability requirements for ro-ro passenger ships should be aligned with those applicable at the global level (adopted on 16 June 2017 within the International Maritime Organisation, IMO).
EU passenger ship safety legislation
The most extensive EU legislative instrument is Directive 2009/45/EC, which covers passenger ships made of steel or equivalent material and high speed craft on domestic voyages. Where applicable and feasible, it is based on internationally agreed standards, namely the International Convention for the Safety of Life At Sea (SOLAS), establishing detailed technical requirements on vessel construction, stability, fire protection and life-saving equipment. It also includes specific access and public information requirements for persons with reduced mobility or disabilities.
In addition, Directive 2003/25/EC provides for additional measures for ro-ro passenger vessels throughout the Union, engaged on both international and domestic voyages, to ensure their stability following damage. Moreover, specific EU rules governing the mandatory inspections for ro-ro passenger ships and high-speed craft in regular service are in place (Directive (EU) 2017/2110 that has replaced and repealed Directive 1999/35/EC). Shipping companies also need to comply with the requirements of Directive 98/41/EC on registration of persons on board, in order to make search and rescue operations more effective and to facilitate proper management of the consequences of any accident (medical care, insurance, etc.).
Passenger carriers' liability
Passengers involved in maritime accidents must have an adequate level of compensation for any loss or damage they suffer. To ensure this, ship owners must have appropriate insurance arrangements in place.
The Regulation on the liability of carriers of passengers by sea in the event of accidents (Regulation (EC) 392/2009) lays down harmonised rules on liability and insurance for shipping companies and aims at an adequate level of compensation should an accident occur. This applies irrespective of the area of operation of the vessel, thus to all carriers engaging in international carriage, including between EU Member States, and certain types of domestic carriage (over 5 miles from the coastline). Passengers may claim compensation for death or personal injury, loss or damage to luggage or valuables, vehicle and mobility or other special equipment, provided that one of the following requirements are fulfilled:
- the ship flies the flag of a Member State or is registered in a Member State, or
- the carriage agreement was concluded in a Member State, or
- the point of departure and/or destination specified in the carriage agreement are located in a Member State
Enforcement of the rights and obligations under the Regulation relies mainly on flag State and port State control, and the relevant systems available in the EU.
The Commission has recently completed an ex-post evaluation of the application of the Regulation and concluded that on the whole it has performed as expected and not proposed any changes to the Regulation. The Commission Staff Working Document, the support study and connected documents relating to the passenger liability regulation were published in October 2017.
Key documents
Evaluation of Regulation (EC) 392/2009
Review of EU rules on passenger ship safety
- Directive (EU) 2017/2108 amending Directive 2009/45/EC
- Directive (EU) 2017/2109 amending Directive 98/41/EC
- Directive (EU) 2017/2110 replacing and repealing Directive 1999/35/EC
Small passenger ships
- Proposal for a Council Recommendation on safety goals and functional requirements for passenger ships below 24 meters in length
- Staff Working Document accompanying the Proposal
REFIT – Adjusting Course: EU Passenger Ship Safety Legislation Fitness Check
- Report from the Commission: "Adjusting Course: EU Passenger Ship Safety Legislation Fitness Check" [COM(2015) 508]
- Staff Working Document accompanying the Report [SWD(2015)197]
Consultations
- Consultation on common EU rules for small passenger ships (25/07/2017 – 30/11/2017)
- Targeted consultation on the simplification of EU passenger ship safety legislation (15/12/2015 – 26/01/2016)
- Workshop on the simplification of EU passenger ship safety legislation (2/02/2016)
Expert Group
Contact
If you have any questions about the EU passenger ship safety legislation, please send an email to the Passenger Ship Safety Mailbox: MOVE-PASSENGER-SHIP-SAFETY
ec [dot] europa [dot] eu (MOVE-PASSENGER-SHIP-SAFETY[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)