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Story: Lufthansa’s fee ‘under- mines core values’ – Amadeus GDS charges to airlines and other travel interests have historically always been too high because they, as a small but powerful group, had little competition. One of the major carriers was bound to take them on and it will be two or three months before we see how the results are working out. Agents will steer away from Lufthansa where they can. If other major carriers join in, they may bail out Lufthansa; if they don’t, Lufthansa will face an uphill battle. GLENN E PICKARD
GROUP
This is a fascinating power struggle and I suspect it is worse for travel agents than it is for the airline. If customers end up booking Lufthansa direct, the airline wins, and it may keep many new direct relationships. Additionally, confidence in the value provided by agents could be undermined.
However, if agents can push enough customers to alternative carriers, and Lufthansa loses a lot of bookings, it could drop its GDS fee as an experiment that did not work out. DAVID TARSH
TWEETS THIS WEEK
Lufthansa power struggle still up in the air
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Features and Supplements Features editor Joanna Booth
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Deputy news editor Hollie-Rae Merrick 4874 Chief reporter Juliet Dennis
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TALK BACK WHAT YOU’RE SAYING THIS WEEK
LETTER OF THE
WEEK
Opinion: Agents must do more to advise clients about risk (by Frank Brehany) The person who sells the holiday must have a responsibility to tell the customer about any known risk. After all, it’s the customer who pays our wages. STEVE KANE
COMMENT IN MY OPINION
The latest attack in Sousse, Tunisia, in which a police officer was shot dead,
underlines the growing concern that regional conflict represents a serious threat to the soft target of tourism. This tragedy came days after the
attacks in Bangkok and Istanbul. No doubt we will hear that we must not be defeated, show solidarity and that terror can occur in any part of the world; this latter point suggests there is no distinction of location and that we are all prone to the same risk. I disagree. For some time, through
People need to take responsibility for their own actions and do their own research. It’s never been easier to do that – it’s your holiday and your choice. BLAME SOCIETY
HolidayTravelWatch, I have been making the case for a different consideration on ‘risk destinations’; my latest commentary concerns Thailand. Consumers, before parting with their precious income, should research their destinations from a practical, social and political perspective. I am not an ordinary consumer, but I pass on my methodology in the hope that consumers will make their own informed decisions about travel.
Flawed advice However, the majority of consumers rely on two key sources for information: Foreign Office travel advice; and tour operators and/or agents. It is these two sources that are failing consumers. There has to be wider recognition
that different regions bring completely different levels of risk. You cannot say that travel to Spain, Italy or the Caribbean attracts the same type of risk as travelling to Tunisia, Egypt, Turkey or Kenya, and it is misleading to suggest otherwise.
FCO advice fails in the sense that it
is often limited. How many times have you read ‘there is a high threat from terrorism’? What does that mean? The overview on crime (Magaluf is an example) or general issues appear to be incomplete or different from the advice for business. Why such distinctions? Then there is the travel industry’s
reliance on FCO advice. This gives the impression that travel has no ownership of that information, when in fact it has a unique insight into a country and contributes to those same advisories. The problem is that we now live in
a complex world. While I have great sympathy and understanding for those that rely on tourism, it cannot be the case that consumers are simply economic or political foot-soldiers in the pursuit of policy; they deserve more respect.
Industry insight I believe the solution is to be found within the travel industry. Our recent
Holiday Standards Report found that 80% of UK respondents, from a sample of more than 2,500 adults, had not booked a holiday through a travel agent in the past 12 months. We book with agents or travel firms because they are trusted individuals or brands. Travel must readjust itself to this new world of ‘threat’ and begin to do what it does best and help ordinary consumers to decide where to go and to avoid obvious ‘risk’ destinations. There are many other destinations
out there and this represents a business opportunity to be seized. If the industry were to take that challenge we may see a reversal in our survey and a recognition of the valuable skill-set that agents and travel companies have. As for ‘risk destinations’, surely it is time for International politics to do what is necessary to help those who could benefit from tourism, rather than simply rely on the goodwill that you or consumers provide.
No agent is going to ignore FCO advice, however flawed it might be, or set itself up as an adviser on the safety of destinations. It would be better to lobby the FCO to provide more-transparent advice and perhaps more of it. BOB MAYFAIR
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travelweekly.co.uk 27 August 2015
TWE_270815_030.indd 30 24/08/2015 16:54
Don’t book young ‘uns if they lack insurance
Story: Big rise in uninsured young holidaymakers – Abta The answer is simple: if there is no proof of insurance, the agent should not book the holiday – regardless of the loss of a sale.
STEVE KANE
Full Circle Travel @FCTravel Congratulations to our MD Niall on cycling #londontobrighton to support @ABTALifeLine
Derek Jones @Degsycom Proud to say that at #Kuoni we pay all of our Personal Travel Experts more than the living wage
Paul Richer @paulricher In light of the Ashley Madison affair, how secure from hacking is the data in your travel system?
QUOTE OF THE
WEEK
“APD is the highest tax of its kind anywhere in the world and acts as a major brake on tourism to
the UK and inward investment”
WILLIE WALSH chief executive, International Airlines Group
TALK BACK TO US... Email:
editorial@travelweekly.co.uk. Please write ‘Talk Back’ in the subject line. Deadline: Midday Monday. All correspondence must be accompanied by a name, job title and company address; these will be withheld on request. Please limit letters to 150 words maximum. We reserve the right to edit for brevity and clarity. Other comments are taken from
Travelweekly.co.uk.
10 September 2015
travelweekly.co.uk 19
Agents must do more to advise clients about risk
Industry should look beyond simplistic advice on safety
FRANK BREHANY CONSUMER DIRECTOR,
HOLIDAYTRAVELWATCH
EDITORIAL@ TRAVEL WEEKLY.
CO.UK
Safety advice is dangerous ground
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