OPERATORS and agents will be dealt a blow this week
when Barclays slaps a fee increase on those it deems ‘at risk’ of collapse.
Barclaycard Merchant Services, the company that
processes and clears credit-card transactions of most agents and operators,
said it has suffered “considerable losses” from the travel industry due to the
amount it has to pay out to credit-card holders if an agent or operator folds.
BMS has drawn up a hit list of agents and operators it
feels are more at risk of collapse, and plans to charge an extra 25p per £100 –
in addition to the fee it already charges for credit-card bookings.
Under ABTA preferred rates members pay a fee to BMS of
between 1.34% and 1.59% of the cost of a holiday. This will impact all agents
and operators despite the fact that the trade has a range of bonding schemes
protecting customers.
BMS would not reveal the names of the agents or
operators on its blacklist, but those at risk will receive a letter within the
next 10 days informing them of the higher rate due from June 1.
One shocked Cheshire-based agent said: “This is the
first I’ve heard of it and it’s a major step.”
Many agents already charge customers a fee for
credit-card bookings and will be forced to pass the additional charge on to the
customer.
“We have no choice but to pass on the cost to the
customer,” said one independent operator.
The Association of Independent Operators has already
taken the complaint to the Office of Fair Trading but had its case turned down.
AITO deputy chairman Noel Josephides said: “AITO has
approached the OFT regarding the percentage of market share held by BMS, and
its alternative called Streamline, but has been told there is no restriction on
entering the credit-card clearing market.
“This will contribute to a rise in holiday prices.”
ABTA dismissed BMS’s plans as
a commercial decision that it had no power to influence.