In statements to journalists, André Sousa, concessionaire at Garrão beach (Algarve), said the situation stems from a lack of consensus and clear guidelines, emphasising that operators have, until now, followed the indications in the existing signage and beach notices.

"The truth is that it seems there has never been a law, but in the beach notices I have always said that it was mandatory to comply with the existing signage," he said, considering that the concessionaires organise the space, recommending that users place their sun umbrellas outside the shaded areas of the concessions.

Despite the criticism from the head of the APA, André Sousa argues that the concessionaires have not acted abusively.

“I don’t think it was abuse. I simply think that all the concessionaires complied with the existing rules, in which there was signage that you were required to put up,” he argued.

According to the official, the problem lies in the coexistence of different interpretations of the rules.

“The beach tender also has its own rules, and now it seems that there is no consensus. They tell us one thing, but it’s written another. We, the concessionaires, need to see this resolved so we know how to proceed,” he added.

“We never forced anyone to leave. We always recommended to people, informing all users that the area for umbrellas, as indicated by the signage, is on that side. There are those who accept, there are those who comply, there are those who do not comply,” he explained.

The concessionaire also stressed that it is not up to the operators to enforce any restrictions because they have “no authority whatsoever.”

According to André Sousa, this competence belongs to the maritime police and “many times we have seen people being fined and removed from the area and others not.”

Still, he admits that the eventual widespread permission to place private umbrellas in front of the concessions could have an economic impact.

"Probably yes, because it's a concession area and the user who will pay to be in a concession area, with the right to a deck chair and umbrella, if there's someone right in front with a private umbrella, they might not find it very appealing," he said.