Court overturns holiday rental rules in area of south Tenerife

The Canary Islands High Court has overturned the Granadilla de Abona council’s provisional rules on holiday rentals, following a challenge by the Canary Islands Holiday Rental Association, ASCAV.

The court found that the council had failed to carry out a strategic environmental assessment before approving the ordinance.

This is a procedure used to assess the potential environmental effects of a plan, and includes properties located in the coastal towns of El Medano and Los Abrigos in the municipality in the south of Tenerife.

Judges annulled the rules because of that procedural error. They did not rule on whether the restrictions themselves were justified.

ASCAV says the decision could help owners who were already operating holiday rentals before the local rules came into force. The association had argued that the ordinance restricted their ability to continue the activity.

The ruling applies to Granadilla’s municipal ordinance. The wider Canary Islands holiday rental law remains in force, and owners must still comply with any other applicable requirements.

The decision is not yet final and can be appealed to Spain’s Supreme Court.