USA American Society of Travel Agents study: agency fees expanding
TravelMole reports from the USA say that The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) found that travel agencies have expanded their fees in terms of the amounts charged and the number of services for which they charge, according to their latest study.
Among the findings were:
** Of the 94.3% of responding agencies that charge a service fee, the vast majority charge for booking air travel.
** In addition, most report that they are likely to charge fees for rail travel, trip planning, and car rental of the non-air travel segments.
** Trip planning, on average, has the largest service fee of all non-air travel segments.
** Almost one-quarter of respondents increased service fees for air travel bookings in 2006 primarily due to the “increased costs” or “combination of increased costs and reduced GDS incentives.
** A majority of the agencies that charge a consultation fee do not refund the initial fee even if the trip is successfully booked.
** The number of agents compensated by a combination of salary and commissions or commissions alone increased in 2006.
Total annual revenue from service fees is wide ranging, according to ASTA.
A TravelMole USA report by David Wilkening
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