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Read recent studies sited below. "GDS" is the term for the computer reservation terminal all travel agencies use to make reservations.
Also keep reading to find out about the perils of "on-line" booking from a leading travel attorney. Topaz study: Agents still find lowest air fares (3/1/2004)
PORTLAND, Ore. -- No matter a corporation's size, travel agencies are the best sources for the lowest air fares, according to a study completed by Topaz International, a company that audits travel programs for corporate clients.
For corporations that annually spend more than $100 million on air travel, travel agencies beat or equal the Internet's lowest fare 95% of the time, Topaz found. Agencies produce an equal or lower fare than the Web 92% of the time for corporations spending between $20 million and $100 million. The percentage dips to 90% for corporations spending less than $20 million.
Still, buying fares from an agency is the best option, said Topaz, because the average GDS fare for corporations spending under $20 million is $522 -- $32 less than the average Internet fare.
GDS Beats Web on Lower Fares..by Travel Weekly (8/14/2003)
PORTLAND, Ore. -- The GDSs produce the lowest air fares 91.6% of the time, according to a study of 15,000 corporate travel itineraries conducted by Topaz International, a company that benchmarks travel data for corporations.
Topaz found that fares booked through a contracted corporate agency averaged $516; the average fare booked via Internet travel sites was $576.
Topaz gathered itineraries booked by business travelers in managed travel programs and replicated those bookings on the Web.
Sites searched in the study -- which was conducted between January and June -- included Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity and "various airline Web sites."
With 8.4% of fares (about 1,200 itineraries) beating the GDSs, Topaz said running a travel program remains a challenge for corporations.
"As long as lower air fares are available on the Internet for the exact same itineraries, travel managers will continue to receive calls from those travelers who find cheaper fares," said Bradley Seitz, Topaz's president and CEO.
Although the study concludes the GDSs are the best sources for the lowest fares most of the time, a couple of factors may be skewing the results.
The Topaz study is based on fares booked by its clients, which mostly are large and midsize corporations that have negotiated private fares with airlines, which Seitz said probably impacted the results.
The Perils of On-line Bookings, by Travel Weekly (2/24/2003)
A few months ago, you wrote a column about how the users of American Airlines' Web site give up all of their legal rights when they book a flight.
Does the same hold true for booking on other major carriers' Web sites? What about booking on Orbitz, Travelocity and Expedia?
A: The Web sites of the seven major U.S. airlines (AA.com, Continental.com, Delta.com, NWA.com, Southwest.com, UAL.com and USAirways.com) -- as well as Orbitz, Expedia and Travelocity -- have the following in common:
* All fare information and booking capabilities are provided "as is." This means that if the information on the site is wrong, you have no legal remedy.
It also means that if the site makes errors in transmitting your booking or fails to transmit it at all, there is nothing you can do about it.
* All sites disclaim all "warranties of suitability for a particular purpose."
This means that, legally speaking, the Web site's owners are telling you that they do not promise their sites are suitable for anything and that, if you do use them, the owners have no responsibility if anything does not work.
The quoted legal terms make online transactions legally similar to the purchase of a used car from a nondealer. The seller sells the car as is with no warranties. Whatever is wrong with the car is the buyer's problem.
Five of the seven airline Web sites and all three public booking sites make you waive all claims for money damages of any kind. Orbitz extends this disclaimer to all of its travel suppliers -- so if you book on Orbitz, you agree not to sue any supplier for anything. Only Delta and Southwest omit this waiver of money damages.
If you book on the following sites, you agree to sue and be sued only in the following jurisdictions: AA.com and Travelocity, Tarrant County, Texas; Continental.com, Harris County, Texas; NWA.com, Dakota County, Minn; UAL.com, Illinois; Orbitz, Cook County, Ill.; and Expedia, King County, Wash.
Travel agencies' booking engines do not require travelers to agree to any of these kinds of oppressive terms. In fact, most agencies' sites have no terms and conditions at all.
Mark Pestronk is a Fairfax, Va.-based attorney specializing in travel law.
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