The Balearic High Court has rejected an appeal to suspend a regional decree that prohibits owners of privately owned boats from renting them out to tourists for up to three months a year. Referred to as 'nautical Airbnb', Spanish legislation now permits this but is strongly opposed by the Balearic Government.
The appeal was by Lista Séptima, which is essentially a website for the renting of private boats. The Balearic decree, issued in August last year, does not authorise a temporary change of use of boats from private to commercial, which is what national legislation permits.
The court cites "powerful public interest" in not granting a temporary injunction against the regional regulations. It considers that the only harm that the failure to suspend the regional regulations could cause the plaintiffs is financial, due to the loss of the ability to temporarily rent out boats. This harm can be remedied with compensation if, when the merits of the appeal are examined, the courts overturn the prohibition.
"In any event, the harm is insufficient to outweigh the powerful public interest." The rejection of the preliminary injunction does not preclude legal recourse. The Balearic High Court has yet to rule on the merits of the appeal, which will continue its usual course.
The government has welcomed the ruling but remains cautious. "This ruling only addresses the request for precautionary measures and does not evaluate the substance of the decree. The government maintains a cautious and respectful stance toward the judicial process, awaiting the courts' detailed analysis of the ongoing claims."
Among its objections to the national legislation, the government continues to explain that regional regulations "establish the need to have an authorised location from which to operate a nautical rental, with the aim of regulating the activity and ensuring responsible use of the Balearic coastline".
The Spanish regulations came into force on the first of January. The Spanish Government, via the ministry of transport, will take the Balearic regulations to court, considering them to have exceeded regional powers. At the same, however, the ministry says it will make an amendment in order to limit the possibility of 'nautical Airbnb' in tourist-stressed areas like the Balearics. The problem is, though, that the national regulations are already in effect.