Agents have expressed concern that Jet2holidays’ decision to start taking bookings from InteleTravel agents will erode service standards at the UK’s largest operator.
It will be the first time the UK operator has worked with the US-based homeworking group, which has more than 20,000 agents in the UK and Ireland.
While InteleTravel agents have expressed delight that they’ll finally be able to sell the largest UK tour operator’s packages, other homeworkers are worried Jet2holidays won’t be able to cope with the increased demand.
Posting on social media, multiple agents asked for reassurance from Jet2holidays that it was planning to take on more calls centre staff, with some pointing out that service standards with other operators had slipped once they started working with the homeworking giant. A handful cited problems with Gold Medal and Classic in particular.
However, Jet2holidays declined to comment further on its deal with InteleTravel and refused to respond to questions from Travel Gossip about how it intended to handle the additional volume of enquiries.
InteleTravel also refused to comment further on the deal and declined to respond to specific queries about agent training.
In an internal memo, seen by Travel Gossip, InteleTravel urged its agent members to attend a webinar next Monday to learn about Jet2holidays product. It added: “It is imperative that you listen to this webinar prior to making any booking with Jet2holidays so you understand the booking process.”
Agents who are already selling Jet2holidays pointed out that while most bookings can be completed online, lead passenger name changes and other issues must be done over the phone, and lines are already clogged at busy times.
Jet2holidays indicated that some InteleTravel were already booking its packages, albeit unofficially. Announcing that its ‘standard commercial and pricing agreements’ will apply to InteleTravel in the future, it added: “We believe that working with InteleTravel will also enable better transparency over where bookings are coming from.”
The news was met with incredulity by a few, with some agents saying they were ‘shocked’ and ‘speechless’ even though InteleTravel also has commercial agreements with multiple UK brands including Cosmos, Inghams, Travelpack and Virgin Voyages.
Earlier this year, InteleTravel took a 60% stake in Major Travel, one of the first UK operators to sell through its agents.
Inteletravel UK reported a turnover of £95 million last year, 50% up on the previous year, and said its turnover was up a further 28% in the first quarter of this year, when its top 50 agents generated over £2.5m of bookings.
The post Agents seek reassurance from Jet2holidays after it signs deal with InteleTravel appeared first on Travel Gossip.
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It will be the first time the UK operator has worked with the US-based homeworking group, which has more than 20,000 agents in the UK and Ireland.
While InteleTravel agents have expressed delight that they’ll finally be able to sell the largest UK tour operator’s packages, other homeworkers are worried Jet2holidays won’t be able to cope with the increased demand.
Posting on social media, multiple agents asked for reassurance from Jet2holidays that it was planning to take on more calls centre staff, with some pointing out that service standards with other operators had slipped once they started working with the homeworking giant. A handful cited problems with Gold Medal and Classic in particular.
However, Jet2holidays declined to comment further on its deal with InteleTravel and refused to respond to questions from Travel Gossip about how it intended to handle the additional volume of enquiries.
InteleTravel also refused to comment further on the deal and declined to respond to specific queries about agent training.
In an internal memo, seen by Travel Gossip, InteleTravel urged its agent members to attend a webinar next Monday to learn about Jet2holidays product. It added: “It is imperative that you listen to this webinar prior to making any booking with Jet2holidays so you understand the booking process.”
Agents who are already selling Jet2holidays pointed out that while most bookings can be completed online, lead passenger name changes and other issues must be done over the phone, and lines are already clogged at busy times.
Jet2holidays indicated that some InteleTravel were already booking its packages, albeit unofficially. Announcing that its ‘standard commercial and pricing agreements’ will apply to InteleTravel in the future, it added: “We believe that working with InteleTravel will also enable better transparency over where bookings are coming from.”
The news was met with incredulity by a few, with some agents saying they were ‘shocked’ and ‘speechless’ even though InteleTravel also has commercial agreements with multiple UK brands including Cosmos, Inghams, Travelpack and Virgin Voyages.
Earlier this year, InteleTravel took a 60% stake in Major Travel, one of the first UK operators to sell through its agents.
Inteletravel UK reported a turnover of £95 million last year, 50% up on the previous year, and said its turnover was up a further 28% in the first quarter of this year, when its top 50 agents generated over £2.5m of bookings.
The post Agents seek reassurance from Jet2holidays after it signs deal with InteleTravel appeared first on Travel Gossip.
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