Over the past ten years that I have been working in the travel arena, the one most common complaint I hear about from my travelers are fees. They complain that every time they turn around, another fee has been charged to their government charge card. But what about these fees, why do there appear to be so many fees on a travel voucher?
Since TMC’s are no longer working on commission, they have to be paid somehow for their part in making travel arrangements, thus the fees begin. The TMC that my agency uses set there TMC fees into two categories, touched and non-touched transactions. Touched transactions are just what they sound like, reservations that need to be touched by a TMC agent before completed. Non-touched transactions are reservations that are made in the electronic travel system that does not require a TMC agent to touch before making the reservation.
Obviously, if the reservation is made without the aid of a TMC agent, the fee charged is substantially less than when an agent is required to intercede. I believe the concern from travelers begin when changes are made to a reservation, they do not take into account additional fees that may be charged. No matter how the initial reservation was made, any time a change is made to the reservation after it has been ticketed, an additional fee will be charged. Sometimes a traveler will make numerous changes to the reservation, extending the stay or shortening the duration, thus resulting in a new fee being charged.
Travelers need to be aware of what fees their TMC charges and when they charge them. Making changes for personal convenience can result in more travel money being spent by the agency.
By: Linda Ruppel
The contents of this message are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the Government or my agency.