Travellers prefer booking directly with providers amid uncertainty: GlobalData
The pandemic left many travellers with cancelled flights, hotel rooms, excursions and more, and many never received their refunds. Now, it seems that those practices have left a lasting impression, and booking patterns are changing as a result. New research from GlobalData reveals that travellers prefer booking directly with companies, leaving online travel agencies behind.
Arecent GlobalData poll has revealed a shift in consumer preference towards booking holidays directly, instead of going through an online travel agency (OTA). total 39 per cent of respondents said they would typically book directly, followed by 17 per cent that opted for OTAs and price comparison sites. This is as per the GlobalData Live Tracker Verdict Poll of 156 respondents which is live since April 19, 2021. The leading data and analytics company notes that this shift is no surprise, given the flexible cancellation and straightforward refund policies offered by direct booking.
The pandemic has caused a significant shift in consumer booking habits. A previous survey in Q3 2019 showed that OTAs were the most popular booking option, followed by direct booking with a hotel or airline. Earlier, the GlobalData Q3 2019 Consumer Survey stated that of 29,744 global respondents, 44 per cent of respondents preferred booking through an OTA, 36 per cent directly with a hotel and 34 per cent directly with an airline.
However, as some OTAs have been extremely slow to issue refunds and have received a raft of bad press as a result. This has knocked travellers’ confidence to book through intermediaries.
“Direct booking channels are likely to have experienced an increase in popularity due to the fragility of booking a trip in the current situation. Travellers now desire the highest level of flexibility, and it is no wonder that direct booking channels’ flexible terms, easy changes and quick refunds are winning travellers over,” says Gus Gardner, Associate Travel and Tourism Analyst at GlobalData.
“Further, the ability to make changes online places the power back into the traveller’s hands and streamlines the whole process. By booking directly, the traveller cuts out the middleman, considerably speeds up the change/ refund process, and increases their satisfaction,” he added.
Some OTAs such as Lastminute.com have been slow to issue refunds, and the negative press received has not helped traveller confidence. In fact, in lastminute. com’s case, the UK Competition and Markets Authority threatened legal action unless it met a 14-day refund timeline.
“Confidence in OTAs’ ability to issue refunds has quickly dented confidence. The slow responses have been incredibly frustrating and have resulted in a slight shift away from this booking method,” concludes Gardner.