EUROSTAR is offering agents extra commission if they sign up to its new accounting system.
The cross-Channel train operator has joined the Bank Settlement Plan scheme as it prepares to replace its current accounting methods within the next two years.
Eurostar is sending out letters tomorrow to the 7,500 agents licensed to sell its tickets asking retailers to join BSP.
Agents who sign up before December 10 will get an extra 1% commission on ticket sales between January 1 and June 30.
Eurostar pays 9% commission to agents booking through its Elgar booking system and 5% on sales through the train operator’s call centre.
Executive director sales and distribution Adrian Watts said the introduction of the BSP system is the second phase of the company’s initiative to improve sales made through the trade. Two years ago it set up Elgar to link into Eurostar’s reservation systems for viewdata and Internet bookings.
Watts said: “The key benefits for agents will be that they can match data supplied with their own records rather than going through the individual tickets they have sold.”
For the 3,500 International Air Transport Association agents already members of BSP, joining Eurostar’s scheme will be simple. Non-IATA agents will need a separate contract.
Watts said Eurostar will stay with its manual accounting system through 2000, but did not plan to support two accounting systems in the future and will switch all accounts over to BSP.
Agents account for 35% of Eurostar sales, up from the 29% when Elgar was introduced in 1997.
Tour operators sell 15% of tickets and half of all sales are through other train-operating companies and direct.