Operators booking British Airways flights face charges of almost £10 per booking if agents do not supply clients’ e-mails, mobile phone numbers and information demanded by US immigration.
New preferred partner contracts due to start in April will see operators face additional penalties on top of charges to book through global distribution systems if they fail to meet quarterly targets for gathering customer information.
One senior tour operator source said: “It’s yet another reason not to book BA but from a business point of view we need them. What if the customer does not have a mobile or refuses to divulge the information?
A BA spokeswoman said the information will improve customer service as the carrier prepares for Heathrow Terminal 5. She added that the targets were reasonable and take account of the complexity of partner businesses.
“It’s something we are looking to do as we prepare for Terminal 5 to make sure we offer the best customer care we can. Collecting this information is vitally important.”
The spokesman denies the data would be used for direct marketing purposes and said BA sets itself much tougher internal targets for collecting this information.
Preferred partners would not be penalised immediately but if they fail to reach quartlerly targets BA will issue an ADM (additional debit memo) to the operator.
“Tagets will be agreed with our partners and a one by one basis and they will be reviewed, but if they have not been reached then we will issue an ADM,” the BA spokeswoman added.