Unused Tickets. Depending on your travel-arrangements turnover, they may be an untapped treasure trove for your program.

World Travel, Inc. has developed manual and automated process that increase non-refundable ticket redemption, and we work hand-in-hand with each client to make sure any specific program details – like airline contracts or booking tool – are incorporated into the booking process.

With the recent release of brand new technology by MagnaTech, we’ve put together our best practices for unused tickets. Take a look and see if you’re optimizing what your travelers leave behind.

 

Best Practices for Unused Tickets

TECHNOLOGY

Automated Ticket Tracking

Technology is an amazing thing. World Travel, Inc. uses E-Checker to review all electronic documents three days after the return date to verify use. If the booked ticket was not used, the ticket is flagged. If, however, your traveler actively cancels the ticket on the online booking tool or with an agent, the unused ticket will be immediately available for the next trip.

WorldQC™ Processes

From there, WorldQC™ will upload unused tickets nightly into the traveler’s online booking tool profile.

Drop Buckets

Depending on the airline regulations and the cost of a name-change, it may be advisable to transfer the unused ticket to another traveler. We work with our clients and their agents to determine the best protocol for these situations, but we are able to keep “Drop Buckets” which an agent can check to see if an unused ticket is available for an account.

 

REMINDERS

Grabbing unused tickets is one thing. Making sure they’re used is quite another.

Notifications

Our WorldQC™ technology can trigger an email 30, 60, and 90 days pre-expiration for any unused tickets. These notifications can be triggered to both travelers and travel managers.

Display

Out of sight, out of mind, right? That’s why we make sure unused tickets are displayed on the Online Booking Tool homepage, in the traveler’s online profile, and in the airline matrix of ticket options. The traveler is then fully aware of their unused tickets, and can easily redeem them.

Redemption Options

With the launch of MagnaTech, the agent-end of finding unused tickets has become more automated. Instead of having to dig into the traveler profile to see if unused tickets are available and applicable, our agent booking platforms will automatically notify the agent of an unused ticket. The system simply searches for the traveler’s name in the database, and if it finds an unused ticket, it will trigger an efficiency prompt on screen in front of the agent.

“Mr. Smith has tickets to utilize.”

Once the ticket is redeemed, WorldQC™ notifies MagnaTech that the ticket was used, and the system purges that ticket from the record.

 

REPORTING

Exactly how much money can you save by redeeming unused tickets? We’ll tell you.

Automated Reporting

The WorldReports™ platform can be programed to send a monthly Unused Ticket Report to the client contact. This report includes all outstanding unused tickets, both usable and unusable.

 Unused Ticket Report

The Unused Ticket Report has three sections:

  • The “Usable” section lists all unused tickets, which World Travel defines as: non-expired unused tickets valued at more than $200.  The ticket issue date and expiration date are clearly indicated.
  • The “Breakage” section lists all expired unused tickets and all non-expired unused tickets valued at less than $200.  Most airlines charge change fees of $200 or more, so tickets valued at less than $200 are considered un-redeemable.
  • The “Partial” section shows tickets that were changed mid-trip.

NON-REFUNDABLE VS. REFUNDABLE

Need we say it? Best practice is to refund all refundable tickets, as soon as you know they won’t be used.

 

Best Practices for Your Program

The most important thing to remember is that every program is different. Depending on your travelers, your contracts, and your online booking tool integrations, you may need to tweak your program to optimize it. But keep an eye on those unused tickets – they are a primary source of leakage, and therefore a prime opportunity for cost avoidance.

Image by Natalie Fox via Unsplash
Chesley Turner

Written by Chesley Turner