A switch to trust funds to keep consumer monies secure and agents charging higher prices may be necessary changes in future to show consumers the industry has learnt lessons from the current crisis.
Speaking on a Travel Weekly Webcast, Miles Morgan Travel chairman Miles Morgan said the coronavirus crisis would undoubtedly damage the industry’s reputation.
He said: “If we don’t make changes as a result of this we are not helping ourselves or our customers. There will be damage. The way to get round the damage is to change and to communicate that openly to customers so they understand lessons have been learnt and can book again with confidence.”
One of the most important factors would be to ensure customers’ monies were safe, for example by holding funds in a trust before they travel, to avoid a repeat of the current refund problem, he said.
“I think the opportunity to use trust funds and release cash after the person has travelled has to be the best way that everybody operates because it’s very obvious then where customers’ funds sit. Nobody’s money is at risk at any point,” said Morgan, who owns 18 high-street travel agencies.
The current situation had demonstrated the current bonding set-up was too complicated, he added. “Trust funds seem a simple way to do it.”
Opportunity to differentiate
Amanda Matthews, managing director of Designer Travel, said agents should see this time as an opportunity to differentiate themselves from online players by being confident in charging clients more.
Already Designer Travel has instructed its agents, which include 90 homeworkers, not to match direct prices.
She said: “It’s a massive opportunity for agents to really understand the value they add. We are not faceless computers. We should be charging more than direct customers would pay.
“If direct customers want to do the work themselves then that’s fine. Maybe we have got to understand it’s better to shrink our businesses a little and have customers that really value the service we provide.
She added: “Some of the online players have turned their phones off. We have answered every one of our clients’ [calls]. We have been there for all of our people. We are hoping that our customers will remember that.”
