Agencies at war with IATA over the new payment system it wants to impose
The Confederación Española de Agencias de Viajes (CEAV) has denounced a maneuver by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to vary substantially and in a “unilateral” way; the procedures for accreditation and settlement of airline tickets. The new system could come into force next January.
Enormous commotion is causing among agencies the so-called New Gen ISS, a protocol that the association that brings together the vast majority of airlines operating worldwide wants to apply from 2017;and that, among other measures, involves the immediate payment of tickets issued to the BSP, the financial entity in charge of collecting the aérea production from the agencies on a periodic basis.
The project dates back to 2014, when it began to take its first steps. Despite the fact that the agencies have always expressed their opposition to it, IATA has continued to develop it to the current point, where it is almost ready to start its implementation.
The new contract with IATA involves three levels of agency accreditation: standard without the possibility of cash payment; standard with the possibility of cash payment and a credit limit; or accreditation in several countries, with a credit limit. The latter means that online agencies or consolidators will be able to operate with a single license.
According to CEAV, the launch of New Gen ISS will also bring with it the introduction of the Easy Pay system, whereby the amount of the ticket is blocked in the agent's account at the time the ticket is authorized for issuance. The project also includes a new credit management system and a change in the financial insurance scheme.
The agency association criticizes that IATA's approach "is not a simple modification or modernization of the current resolutions or of the currently established operations” y “supposes a unilateral rupture of the contractual relations with the travel agencies already accredited, forcing them to apply for a new accreditation”.