Agents bow to IATA pressure
View(s):Sri Lankan travel agents were compelled this week to bow to pressure from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to implement the 7-day credit payment plan in Colombo.
Last week the Business Times exclusively reported that travel agents believed there would be an imminent threat from the airline body to pull out of its programme to Colombo if they did not agree to implement the new settlement plan. The bill settlement plan (BSP) is a programme carried out by IATA for the payment to airlines for tickets issued via the IATA airline agents’ network.
Travel agents in Colombo were insisting that they needed to continue with the BSP on a 10-day period but were compelled to implement payment to airlines within seven days from July 1.
Agents speaking with the Business Times said they would have to make payments to airlines in accordance with the new rules set out by IATA until the matter was resolved.
IATA agents in Colombo met with the local authorities and airlines last Wednesday to discuss how they could try to work out ways to continue with the 10 day settlement plan due to constraints on the part of the travel agents.
The hour-long meeting however, was unable to ensure these agents could continue with a 10 day payment plan since they were part of the airline body and whose rules would obviously impact on them.
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