Commitment period of a timeshare contract

In case a consumer concludes a timeshare contract with an entrepreneur it is considered inadmissible to stipulate a long-term commitment without the possibility of ordinary termination for the consumer. A clause, which contains an excessively long commitment period (in the case decided: 30 years) has to be reduced to its legally permitted core, therefore, to the legally permitted commitment period. The reduction of invalid provisions to preserve their validity does not violate the Unfair Terms in consumer contracts Directive 93/13/EWG, because an appropriate commitment period is a main component of a timeshare contract and therefore excluded from the above-mentioned directive’s scope of application. A commitment of 15 years is regarded as justified in case the company’s business model is based on advance services, the right of use of holiday time and location can be exercised flexibly and almost the whole fee is paid in advance. [OGH 20.01.2016, 3 Ob 132/15f]