Study Shows Many U.S. Buyers Plan Tighter Travel Policies

Many travel managers, especially in the United States, plan on higher 2009 costs and expect to further restrict travel policy in response, according to AirPlus' new International Travel Management Study 2008, which it plans to release tomorrow.

Of 1,500 travel manager respondents from 15 countries, 58 percent expect travel costs to increase next year. Of the 94 percent of U.S. respondents who said they monitor policy compliance, 47 percent plan to make their policies more restrictive next year, up from 39 percent in last year's survey.

U.S. travel managers expect a tougher road ahead than many of their counterparts in other countries. Sixty-eight percent of 100 U.S. travel managers surveyed said they expect costs to rise in 2009 in comparison to 51 percent in Europe. Just 6 percent of U.S. buyers expect costs to decrease.

Buyers' declining ability procure to supplier contracts in the United States, particularly as airlines become more selective in offering, also is complicating travel management. Forty-six percent of U.S. respondents reported having an air deal, down from more than half last year and two-thirds in 2006. Among the countries included in last year's survey, 55 percent said they have negotiated air deals.

According to AirPlus, many companies have adopted lowest-logical-airfare policies, especially on short-haul routes. "This is particularly true of smaller companies, which in any case find it harder to coax worthwhile deals out of airlines," according to AirPlus. Eighty-one percent of larger-spending companies reported having contracted deals, whereas 52 percent of medium spenders and 45 percent of low spenders said they do.

Other regions reported more success in procuring vendor contracts. Half of Asia/Pacific and European travel buyer respondents said they have air deals. Sixty percent of U.S. respondents have hotel deals, while more than two-thirds of the respondents in Asia/Pacific and Europe reported having hotel deals.

Overall, the average corporate hotel discount has fallen from 19 percent last year to 15 percent this year and only 70 percent of respondents reported having negotiating success with hotels during the last negotiating season because of a strong seller's market, widely believed to be on its way out in 2009.

While the United States is among the most mature managed travel markets in the world, 68 percent of U.S. respondents said their companies have a specific policy for some or all areas of travel. The global average is 71 percent.

Although there is a marked increase in the attention being paid to the travel budget moving into next year, the growth in implementing analytical tools and other software to help with the process has hit a wall. While 78 percent of respondents said they analyze their travel spending, a little more than one-third globally use such automated tools and 39 percent of Americans reported doing so.

This year's AirPlus study surveyed at least 100 respondents in each of 15 countries. Previous studies only surveyed buyers in eight European countries and the United States. This year, AirPlus added respondents from Australia, Brazil, China, Mexico, Singapore and South Africa.