TMCs Producing Tools To Navigate Nonrefundable Storm

Travel management giants Navigant International and WorldTravel BTI yesterday announced they are designing new tools to help companies retain the value of nonrefundable tickets in the face of the major carriers new "use it or lose it" policies. Similar tools from other agencies may hit the market very soon.

Navigant account managers yesterday began contacting their clients to notify them of the early November launch of RescueFlyr, a new component of Navigant's ReportFlyr suite that is designed to rescue the value of unused nonrefundable tickets. RescueFlyr sends e-mails to travelers who have booked nonrefundable tickets between one and three days before departure, reminding them of their upcoming departures. If travelers need to make changes to a nonrefundable itinerary, they are instructed notify to Navigant via e-mail or phone that they will not be making the trip. Navigant then will rebook the ticket for as far out as possible, with the client paying the $100 change fee.

At that point the traveler's profile will be flagged to indicate the presence of an unused nonrefundable ticket that has been rebooked for as far out as possible. The ticket has been placed on hold, so to speak, so when the traveler books a flight in the future, the value of the unused nonrefundable then can be applied to the new itinerary, minus an additional $100 change fee.

WorldTravel BTI yesterday also announced the October rollout of a new service, called Non-Refundable Tracker, that e-mails users of nonrefundable tickets within three business days in advance of their trip a reminder of restricted ticket status and the fact that they should review their schedules and determine whether they need to adjust flight plans prior to travel. Unlike Navigant's new service, Non-Refundable Tracker does not automatically rebook unused nonrefundable tickets.

John Dabeck, CIO of Rosenbluth International, told Business Travel News that his company will announce on Monday that it is adding notification capabilities to its existing nonrefundable reporting tools, called SmartTicket, which notifies travelers three days in advance of restrictions on nonrefundable tickets. The service will be available in early October.

TQ3 Maritz Travel Solutions director of technology marketing Kathie Lia said the mega already has taken steps to do advance notifications reminding travelers of upcoming trips with nonrefundable tickets. Lia said more than 20 clients are using its Ticketminder solution and are slated for the new notification process.

TQ3 is seeking to automate rebooking, Lia said, but added that may be something of which to be wary. "Later on down the road, you're booking something that may be fictitious," Lia said, "and suppliers may not look kindly on that."

Other travel management companies are weighing their options before deciding what kind of new tools, if any, they will roll out to deal with the carriers' recent changes to nonrefundable fare rules.

Carlson Wagonlit Travel tracks nonrefundables as part of its Symphonie platform, and is considering adding pretrip notification or possibly automatic rebooking functionalities to the tool. "There have been a lot of discussions around those types of notifications, said Lisa Dickey, CWT manager of quality management, "but there is nothing definite yet. We're gathering client feedback on that right now." In the meantime, CWT is notifying clients of the new restrictions on nonrefundables at the point of sale through notices on e-mail itineraries and verbal instructions from call center agents.

A spokesperson for American Express said the company is advising that clients sign up for its nonrefundable ticket tracking tool TicketTRAX NR, so they can take advantage of unused segments dating back up to 12 months. The company is researching the possibility of making changes to the tool to reflect the carriers changes in policy.

Smaller agencies are considering making changes to their nonrefundable functionality as well. Stephen Thomas-Schulere, COO of Stephens Travel Management, a New York-based corporate agency that had $50 million in ARC sales for 2001, said, "What we've been doing is passing along the most up-to-date information via faxes and e-mails to travelers and travel planners, that keeps the clients up to date with the carriers' latest changes." Stevens has its own proprietary nonrefundable ticket tracking technology. It currently does not have a plan to make any changes to that tool, although it is reviewing that possibility.

Daniel Bohan, COO at Fairfax, Va.-based Omega World Travel, said, "We are looking at other options besides our current nonrefundable ticket tracking systems, but the whole thing is in flux. You can squeeze the distribution channels but not your clients."