SPAA president Mike Tibbert has called on airlines and tour operators to provide more support to agents when they cancel flights and holidays, instead of “shifting the labour” to the trade.
Speaking as the association hosted its second annual Sparkle Awards in Glasgow, Tibbert sympathised with agents left to “pick up the pieces” when last-minute changes are made to customers’ bookings, saying it was “horrible” for those in client‑facing positions.
He said the SPAA was “having conversations” to resolve the issue and believes “companies are listening” but work still needs to be done.
“Previously, airlines would undertake the rescheduling of flights but now they have passed that labour over to the agent, leaving it up to them to rebook the passenger, which adds to their workload,” he said.
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“Agents might then face the problem that the only new option is more expensive than their original flight, and because they are the ones dealing directly with disgruntled customers, they take the brunt of the anger, which is horrible for them.
“Tour operators have been much more organised this year with their schedules, but there are still issues with holidays being cancelled and it is being left to the agent to sort out.”
Despite his concerns, Tibbert said it had been a “fantastic” summer for the Scottish trade, with lates sales matching the “heyday” of the 1980s and 90s due to customer perceptions that booking late would “lead to a bargain”.
He predicted strong sales would continue for the rest of 2023 but expects them to “plateau” next year.
“According to our retailers, this summer was fantastic for sales, with many agencies reporting their best‑ever July figures,” he said.
“August sales tapered off a bit but were still really good for trading.
“I believe the market is so strong because of the bounce-back from Covid and I think that strength in demand is likely to continue through to the end of 2023. However, I expect it will plateau in 2024 and we won’t see that same lates market boom.”