Abta has defended its decision to charge members the full cost of subscriptions for the next financial year following a plea to reduce the fees.
Travel agent action group Travel Agent Reform Group Engaged Together (Target) has called for Abta to halve its membership subscription fees for 2021-2022, as it did for the current financial year, because of the impact of the Covid pandemic on members’ businesses.
The group has written to Abta chairman Alistair Rowland and chief executive Mark Tanzer in response to what it calls a reversal in Abta’s subscriptions to levels last charged in 2019.
Reacting to the plea, Abta said it understood the difficulties agents faced but said subscription fees were critical to providing its services to members, including legal fees and business support, particularly at such a difficult time for the trade.
A spokesman said: “We understand that these are the toughest times many Abta members have ever experienced and that the pandemic has caused real financial and emotional strain on businesses and individuals.
“As such, Abta members want and need us to be active for them during these unprecedented times, by providing the high-quality services they need – such as free legal advice and business support, lobbying and operational guidance as well as a trusted brand. These are predominantly funded by subscriptions.”
To help members, the spokesman said Abta has spread the cost of the subscription across the year instead of asking agents to pay the full amount in one go.
“Whereas usually subscriptions would be due in full at the start of the financial year, we are helping members now with via quarterly payments which will enable them to spread the financial costs over the year,” he added.
Target co-founders Graeme Brett and Jill Waite have warned some members will struggle to pay the subscription fees this year and are already struggling to make ends meet due to a lack of cash flow and government loans to repay.