ITB Feature: Online validation systems can help OTAs and suppliers in the travel industry overcome issues with fraud and reduce staff and accounting costs, Nick Palan, the Chairman of Golden Tours in London, said during the ITB Convention in Berlin.

“We all have issues with fraud, where we don’t know if the voucher validated is real or photocopied,” said Palan.

Fraud costs the travel industry over 2 billion GBP per year, he said.

Palan said apps like Konnect which provide online validation services are a promising solution for OTAs looking to reduce their exposure to fraud. OTAs can submit bookings via the Konnect app for validation.

“It’s almost like a clearing house for transactions between OTAs and suppliers,” said Palan. Konnect takes bookings from OTAs and then tells them whether it is the right booking or not.

The app can also help OTAs manage passenger bookings by tracking the number of times a ticket is validated or determine whether a certain property or vehicle offered by suppliers is indeed the correct one, said Palan.

Bus tours in particular should find the app useful as it can help keep track of passenger numbers and ticket purchases, he said.

The Konnect app also gives suppliers and OTA a large degree of leeway to manage relationships with each other.

“OTAs and suppliers negotiate their own contracts and discuss issues like commission among themselves,” said Palan. “The app doesn’t get involved here. It simply validates documents for them.”

Konnect only charges OTAs for bookings that are validated, and it keeps a record of documents and transactions that are submitted, said Palan.

The app also reduces accounting costs by minimizing issues like late or wrong payments and saves on staffing costs by eliminating the need for personnel to spend time reconciling tickets.

“These problems disappeared 6 months ago when we found this solution,” said Palan.

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