How to recoup losses after the card fee ban

Meanwhile, even though the surcharge ban is an EU initiative, lawyer Farina Azam, a partner at Travlaw, highlighted that the legislation would remain in place after the UK leaves the union in 2019.

“Because it’s a directive, it’s going to be implemented into English law, so when we leave the EU there will be no impact,” she explained.

Azam warned that agents should be transparent about any changes, particularly if they are thinking of introducing a booking fee, and she stressed that financial incentives to use certain payment methods would be illegal. “Booking fees are one option but you have to careful because it has to apply, regardless of payment method,” she added. “As it’s a compulsory fee, you also have to make it clear when you advertise.”

Azam also suggested that any booking fee should be based on a percentage of the holiday price rather than as a flat fee on each booking.

“The tricky part is that customers will have to do the maths when they are looking at the price,” she added.

Gary Lewis, chief executive of The Travel Network Group, warned that having conversations with clients about a new booking fee could draw “negative” reactions. He instead suggested introducing a package of extra services that could be sold to clients to make up for the lost income from card charges.

“You have to look at how the member adds value to cover the £20 to £25 credit card charge,” he added. “That’s why we have launched our Concierge Service. For an extra £10 per passenger we will print out boarding passes, do your visa application and offer a 24-hour helpline.”

Lewis went on to suggest all agents could unanimously stop taking credit card payments for a day. “If we said we would not take credit cards en masse for one day only, then that would start a conversation,” he added. “That’s a PR opportunity.”