Traditional travel companies may be forced to change their business models to avoid the costs associated with regulation and compete with a growing number of unregulated rivals, according to the chairman of the Association of Independent Tour Operators.
Speaking at the association’s overseas conference in Istanbul, Derek Moore (pictured) described the topic as an “old bugbear”, and said the costs associated with complying with regulation such as Atol meant members were put at an increasing disadvantage.
His views echo those of Abta bosses, who admitted that the rise of the sharing economy and unregulated companies such as Airbnb, in addition to companies circumventing regulation by moving overseas, was putting pressure not just on members, but on its own commitment to enforcement.
Moore said: “How fair is it for our regulatory authorities to expect us to continue offering – and paying to offer – fully bonded travel services when so many of our competitors using new routes to market do not have to do so?
“How long should we continue to be the good guys? Maybe it’s a good idea commercially to learn from the bad guys? Will the future see more regulation or less for all of us?”
In a panel debate, Abta chairman Noel Josephides said: “The main difficulty is that for those of us who are regulated heavily, the screw will turn even more. But the sheer pace of change in the market is making it hard for regulators to keep up.”
John de Vial, Abta head of financial protection, admitted regulation was the “big strategy issue”, and added: “It may just be we have to move away from that so our members have freedom of cost base with those they are competing with. We will not serve our members well by maintaining a level of costs their competitors don’t have.”