Perfect Propaganda: Holiday lets

The recent horror story in the "Majorca Daily Bulletin" of sisters Emily and Daisy Wolton and their nightmare with a holiday apartment in Palma would make perfect propaganda for the Mallorcan hoteliers and the Exceltur alliance. Prime opponents of the private accommodation sector, the story had it all: no control of standard of accommodation; misleading representation; no comeback. It would also make perfect propaganda for others, including Aptur, the association which represents owners of private accommodation for tourist rental, and Biel Barceló, the minister of tourism. If none of these organisations or individuals have seen the article, they should all be sent a copy.

For the hoteliers and for Exceltur, it was confirmation of all that they have said about the poor quality of accommodation that is on the market, about an unregulated sector that does not abide by any rules, about properties which give Mallorca a bad name. One example it may be, but one example can often be sufficient to deter other visitors, once the information enters the public domain either through established media channels or social media. The Wolton sisters made the point that they have previously had good experiences with renting accommodation, but one bad experience can be enough to make regular visitors wonder about returning.

For Aptur, the case only harms its own objective, which is to obtain a system of regulation which is more permissive in allowing the proper commercialisation of tourist accommodation. It is as against poor standard properties as the hoteliers, even if it is coming at the issue from a different angle. For Barceló, it would be likely to add to his concerns about tourist saturation, the consequence not only of Mallorca having been this summer's refuge for visitors put off by events elsewhere. The saturation is not a product of the hotels with their finite number of places, it is one of a market which, while also finite, gives an impression of growing infinitely. Mallorca and the Balearics are said to have the most private properties for tourist rental of Spain's regions, with Palma the most popular specific destination. And this despite the law. (42% of all visitors to Spain who book apartments do so in Mallorca, according to research by the Esade business school.)

The Wolton sisters wondered who they could complain to. The tourism ministry would be the first port of call. But how do they denounce what has happened? With regulated establishments there are complaints' books and information as to how complaints can be registered. Unregulated, and there is none. A review on Trip Advisor can be a response, but where on Trip Advisor? And who would take any real notice? Users look at hotel reviews, but some individual apartment in Palma? And a review doesn't, in any event, undo the damage.

We know that Barceló is looking at changing the law in order to facilitate proper commercialisation rather than there being merely the loophole (often itself abused) of the tenancy act. But he is as alarmed as anyone at the flood of accommodation being made available and at the poor quality of some of it and so the harm it does to Mallorca's image. He wants regulation in place for next year's summer season, in which case he will have to get his skates on. Even with regulation in place, though, there will still be the non-regulated supply. Catalonia, which has a system of property standards and of registration, has found that this doesn't prevent a flouting of the law. But Barceló needs to act. The supply of accommodation is out of control.