Beach services concession holders at resorts on Majorca's east coast are seeking exemptions from payments this summer. The season, they believe, will be "lost", so they are asking town halls to agree to one-year extensions of their contracts in order to try and recoup losses.
Miquel Adrover, one of the concessionaires in the area, says that "the uncertainty about what will happen is enormous". "What we do know is that things aren't going to be like they were in previous years and that we will be unable to pay the charges and at the same time maintain jobs."
He explains that contracts for services are granted for a few years, over which time there can be returns on investment in materials. This year there will be no return. "On the contrary, we will incur losses, and we want to know if we'll be able to recover them next year."
A problem is that there is no legislation that allows this. Nevertheless, concessionaires will be sending letters to town halls in seeking greater flexibility. Adrover, who has sixty employees, adds that "in principle the town halls are receptive and understand the situation, but there is no legislation in this respect or any precedent".
When they are able to provide services, hoteliers and town halls will want to ensure that the beaches are in good condition to attract "the little national tourism that wishes to travel". "We want to provide the services and we are aware that we will incur losses because of capacity limitations and other measures. But solutions must be found in order to mitigate the damage that the sector will suffer. With forecasts as they are, we will not be able to meet payment of charges, which are very high due to the dynamics of the past few years