Travel Agent Code Of Conduct

MSE_Martin · 9 July 2007 at 11:54AM

MoneySavingExpert.com Travel Board

Travel Agent Code of Conduct

Many travel agents and advisers use this forum and voluntarily give up their time to help other MoneySavers. However as these are professional people who make their living out of deals; to ensure there’s no conflict of interest, I’ve drawn up the following Code of Conduct for agents posting.

Martin

Please read the MoneySavingExpert.com articles first. Your first port of call for cost cutting tips should be the Cheap Flights, Haggle Down Your Holiday Costs and Travel Insurance articles.
Travel Agents are very welcome on this board and are thanked for the time and effort they put in to help users. While it’s not this site’s policy to allow use of the boards as a medium for gaining business, information on how to save money is always welcome.
Travel Agents’ signatures. If travel agents want to add a signature about being a broker to their post it should be:

I am a Travel Agent

[FONT=&quot]My company’s ATOL/ABTA numbers are xxx. MSE doesn't check my status as a Travel Agent, so you need to take my word for it. ATOL numbers can be checked with the Civil Aviation Authority. This signature is here as I follow MSE's Travel Agent Code of Conduct.[/FONT]

Please use this exact text and font, colour and display and enter your ATOL/ABTA numbers. You should be able to copy it and post it directly into the signature Wysiwyg. For info the top line is in Verdana size 2, the rest is in Times New Roman sized 2. If the system won't let you because of the hyperlink please email forumteam@moneysavingexpert and explain the issue.

This should be the only text in your signature. There should be no other notes or other hyperlinked text. Travel agents that do not choose to use this signature should not be PMing deals or indicating they are a travel agent in any other way in their posts.

1.) Travel Agents’ Profiles. Travel Agents may have the name of their business and a single link to their website in their profiles. However even within their profile it should not be encouraging users to contact them (i.e. no ‘contact me if you’ve a problem’ or ‘happy to help').

2.) Travel Agents should not tout for business on the boards or in PMs. There should be no posts or unsolicited PMs offering travel deals. Nor should agents ever say ‘see my profile for who I work for’ or make any other such comment.

However if a user requests their service either via PM or forum post, then I have no objection to that and the business generated. Yet if someone requests the service by a post on the board, the agent should simply post to say “I will PM you” rather than posting details there.

Any travel agent found to be flouting this ‘no touting’ rule will potentially lose their rights to post on the forum (PPR). This applies whether the agent is using a signature or not.

3.) Travel Agents should not recommend other Travel Agents. To prevent accusations of reciprocal help or deals, travel agents should not be recommending other agents. If a poster is asking for recommendations, it is best left to non-agents or they should be referred to the MSE article.

4.) Non-agents have valid opinions too. Travel agents should be mindful that non-agents can have valid opinions on holiday deals too, and this forum isn’t an ‘agent-only zone’.

5.) Travel agents may not post/sell deals in any way except in the Blind-Quote thread. This site is not a place for travel agents to try and sell their products/wares/or even services in any way. A special exemption is made in the Beat My Quote thread but even there it is only to be by pre-solicited Private Message. Any travel agents posting in that thread MUST use the travel agents special signature as above.

5.) The site will err on the side of the agents following the code. As agents obeying the code are under much more stringent rules than normal posters if agents are following rules 1 to 5 of the code of conduct this site will (resources permitting) be supportive. If posters are trying to stop the flow of information and disrupt it (which includes simply linking to site articles without reason/reasoning) as opposed to simply disagreeing on info or advice the site Forum Team will err on the side of agents.

Of course all users of the Forum are subject to the site’s terms and conditions. Should anything in this code of conduct conflict with those terms and conditions, the terms and conditions shall prevail.

IF YOU FEEL AN AGENT (OR POSTER) IS BREACHING THIS CODE. PLEASE REPORT IT TO ForumTeam@MONEYSAVINGEXPERT.COM.

(DO NOT REPORT IT IN THE THREAD BELOW)

liverpool_red_2 · 3 August 2009 at 9:18PM

newby on this so would like to know how you get your money back when you have paid on a debit card for a holiday and the high street travel agent has gone bust and the agent who is a large travel company refuses to answer the phone any help please would be gratefull

floragreen · 2 March 2010 at 7:17AM

oops,thanks for your sharing

vezznay · 14 March 2011 at 2:43PM

isn't this a travel agents worst nightmare?

nopobesseRils · 20 April 2011 at 3:55AM

Does anyone know which is better for international flights. if so can anyone recommend a good travel agency or site here in the States?

Jrwedge · 9 March 2012 at 10:22PM

Hi, I booked a holiday to turkey late last year and paid a £575 deposit and at the time of booking we upgraded to a 'family room'. We have since found out that the family room is just a slightly larger double room and the manager at Thomas cook even admitted there was nowhere to put a cot up once the sofa bed was up for our 9 year old son! On our invoice it is stated as family room but on the hotels own website the room we have been given is a spacious double room and the family room is reccomended for parents with 1-3 children(as we do) but we have not been given this room. Where do I stand on getting my deposit back???

kckleekyle · 20 November 2012 at 6:29PM

I have just recieved this email from travelsoon about a holiday i have booked for myself and 10 others.
we fly out on the 29/11/12 and was told there wouldnt be any problems as the hotel would be completed by the 1/10/12. , they have advised me that i could move hotel at a cost but thats all there offering , shouldnt we be compensated if we decide to stay at the hotel?
thanks in advance for any info.

We have been advised by the Sea Club Aquapark of the following information:

The hotel is undergoing refurbishment work on the Italian restaurant and Aqua Restaurant (painting), the Gym and Spa, and improvements are being made to the landscape. Work will be completed on the 05/01/13.

This will not affect your stay at their hotel; however, we are passing this information on as a matter of courtesy before you depart.

There is no alternative or compensation being offered on this occasion.

Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused and we hope that this information will not detract from the overall enjoyment of your holiday.

Kind Regards,

Hotel changes Team

simoncandice · 16 December 2012 at 4:34PM

Good Tips for travel agent ! its really very useful information.

adamvore · 30 December 2013 at 7:53PM

Thank you very much for sharing this here with us.

petergabril · 7 February 2015 at 1:51PM

I am thinking to travel the world’s beautiful place.

Steph0101 · 29 December 2015 at 11:02AM

thank you so much for your tips, i will note it down

Travel Agent Code Of Conduct

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