With the prospect of a bleak autumn and winter ahead, the thought of basking in the sun in some southern clime becomes increasingly attractive.

While few may be able to buy a villa outright, many can afford a brief taste of luxury.

One way of doing this is to invest in timeshare -- 'consecutive sharing of accommodation with concurrent ownership'.

This hybrid, partly property and partly leisure based, can be bought and sold, may be left by wills and can form part of a matrimonial carve-up.From humble beginnings in 1964 the industry escalated until, in 1994, some 560,000 units were sold worldwide, with over 3.1 million families now owning timeshare.Over the years, the European Commission and the petitions committee of the European Parliament have received complaints from timeshare owners who have demanded action to regulate the way in which it has been sold.

However, there were questions over whether EU institutions had powers to intervene and, if they did, whether they should.

Art 222 of the EEC Treaty, repeated in the Treaty of European Union, states: 'The treaty shall in no way prejudice the rules of the member states governing the system of property ownership.' It was argued that timeshare was not a matter of property ownership but a by-product of tourism and leisure and that the timesharing public should be viewed as consumers.The Treaty of Rome does not mention the word 'consumer', but art 18 of the Single European Act brings consumer protection within the scope of the treaties (art 100A of the EEC treaty) and the competence of the EU was extended in the Treaty of European Union (Maastricht) by arts 129 and 129(a).

With subsidiarity gaining strength, the Commission and the European Parliament need to be convinced that action at EU level is not only necessary but has 'added value' to national remedies.Protection under national law is patchy.

Following the Office of Fair Trading report in June 1990, the Timeshare Act was passed in 1992.

This provided for a cooling off period of 14 days.At para 1.13 of the report, Sir Gordon Borrie, then director-general of Fair Trading, said: 'In view of the international nature of timeshare, I think it is desirable that other member states of the European Community and the European Commission should consider similar measures to control abuses in the timeshare industry.'On 23 June 1986 the Council of Ministers passed a resolution (OJC 167, 5 July 1986, p.1) to increase the level of consumer protection.

Annexed to this were practical proposals relating to unfair terms of contracts and misleading or fraudulent advertising.

In February 1987 the committee on petitions to the European Parliament reported on the subject.

Most of the recommendations included in the report (PEDOC 126.117 final of 1989) found their way into the Directive drafts.

The revised draft, COM (93) 487 final SYN 419 of 7 October 1993, was amended by OJC 137/42 of 19 May 1994 and published in the Official Journal.

This left more to the discretion of member states -- the result of 'subsidiarity'.There are several important elements to the amended proposal: the seller's obligation to provide information in a document whose content constitutes an integral part of the contract; the provision of a cooling- off period and the prohibition on deposits; that the purchaser cannot waive his rights under the Directive and the seller cannot disclaim liability.The draft Directive applies only to those buildings used for dwelling purposes, thus buildings intended for office or other use are outside the scope of the Directive.

The main aim is to create a foundation of common rules to give the consumer legal and economic security.The European Timeshare Federation, a grouping of the independent nation timeshare representative bodies, including the Timeshare Council (UK), has been consulted and is in favour of the proposals, although it would prefer a small advance payment from the buyer.

The consumers consultative committee is also in favour, as is the standing committee of notaries.The salient features of the Directive are:-- art 1: sets out the purpose of the Directive;-- art 2: deals with definitions.

A timeshare contract is: 'A contract relating directly or indirectly to the purchase of a right to use one or more immovable properties on a timeshare basis.' It is: 'Any contract or group of contracts concluded for at least three years under which, directly or indirectly, on payment of a certain global price, a real property right or other right relating to the use of...the property...for a specified or specifiable period of the year, which may not be less than one week, is established or is the subject of a transfer or an undertaking to transfer.''Immovable property' means: 'Any building or part of a building for use as accommodation to which the right...relates'.'Vendor' means: 'Any natural or legal person who, acting in transactions covered by this Directive and in his professional capacity, establishes, transfers or undertakes to transfer the right.''Purchaser' means: 'Any natural person acting in transactions covered by the Directive for purposes which may be regarded as being outside his or her professional capacity';--art 3: contains minimal requirements for the contract.

These are set out in the annex (see below);-- art 4: ensures provision for written contracts to include the items mentioned in the annex.

In particular, contract and information brochures are to be available in an EU language which the purchaser understands.

The purchaser can stipulate which it is to be.

Furthermore, the vendor must provide the purchaser with a certified translation of the contract in an official language of the member state in which the property is situated; -- art 5: provides for a cooling-off period of ten days.

If the purchaser makes use of the cooling-off period he or she may be required to pay the expenses incurred in this connection;-- art 6: directs member states to prohibit any advance payments before the end of the cooling-off period; -- art 7: gives the purchaser the right to withdraw from any related loan contract if he or she withdraws from the main contract.

The procedures for exercising this right to cancel are to be determined by the member states themselves;-- art 8: requires legislation that any clause depriving a purchaser of his or her rights under the Directive will not be binding;-- art 9: ensures that whatever law is applicable, the purchaser is not deprived of the Directi ve's protection if the property is within a member state's territory;-- art 10: provides for the consequences of non-observance.

The Department of Trade and Industry has intimated that the UK government foresees civil rather than criminal sanctions;-- art 11: enables member states to make stricter provisions;-- art 12: sets the deadline for national implementation: April 1997.The annex lists the items to be included in the contract.

These include: 1.

identity and place of residence of the parties with a precise indication of the legal status of the seller, as well as the identity and place of residence of the owner of the property;2.

the precise nature of the rights being sold;3.

a detailed description of the property and its location;4.

when the property is under construction:(a) the state of the construction and a reasonable deadline for completion; (b) the number of the building permit and the names and addresses of the authorities responsible;(c) the state of completion of common services rendering the property operational (eg electricity or water);(d) adequate guarantees to compensate for loss resulting from delays or non-performance by the vendor;5.

the common services to which a purchaser will have access and the conditions;6.

sport and leisure facilities available with the conditions;7.

the principles under which maintenance, repairs and management will be arranged;8.

a definition of the periods during which the right to occupy may be exercised, the duration of the scheme and the date from which the purchaser may occupy;9.

the total price which the purchaser must pay, including that for common services, facilities, and any administration charges;10.

confirmation that the purchase will only involve those matters stipulated in the contract;11.

whether the purchaser may participate in an exchange project and/or resale plus possible costs;12.

information on the right to withdraw from the contract with a precise indication of the nature and quantity of fees which may be charged;13.

the date and place of the signature of the contract by both parties.After initial difficulties, the draft has been adopted.

The main points of the Directive are the 'cooling-off' period of ten days and that all deposits will be forbidden -- this latter point despite the strong opposition of the European Timeshare Federation as being contrary to normal commercial practice.This important Directive will require study as new obligations are being imposed.

All current projects should be considered in the light of this legislation.Timeshare is not going to disappear; on the contrary, the indications are that it will continue to develop.

Already boats and motor homes are being timeshared and, as the US pattern is followed, the major hotel chains are entering the European market.