How to P.R.E.P.A.R.E for Travel

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Recently we’ve been looking at what business travel may look like post COVID-19 and what you can do to plan and prepare. In this post we look at how you can P.R.E.P.A.R.E for business travel with our easy to follow checklist.

Policy

Considerations

  • What are the acceptable reasons for travel?
  • What are the booking channels?
  • What is the approval process?
  • What are the new rules?
  • What is the procedure for emergencies?

Advisories

  • Consider if the purpose of the trip cannot be achieved without travel
  • Mandate Travel Management Company who can:
    • Arrange tracking procedures of travellers
    • Facilitate your approval process
    • Inform of regulatory and safety concerns of destinations
    • Provide notifications pre, during and post trip
    • Train approvers on new vetting process
    • Allow offline bookings so travellers can talk to their TMC for latest information
    • List approved suppliers which meet safety requirements, facilitate credit terms, satisfy scheduling demand and offer refundable terms
    • Limit advance booking
    • Limit cash payment
    • Liaise with approved suppliers, risk management and insurers to identify expectations for emergency
    • Allow for taxis, car hire, personal car use to limit social contact
    • Provide notifications pre, during and post trip

Research

Considerations

  • What are the Government restrictions for departure and destination locations?
  • Identify the local containment measures and political risk factors such as protests which often spike after an economic crisis
  • What is the level of cover and process for claiming?

Advisories

Resources:

Engagement

Considerations

  • Traveller health check
  • Traveller written agreement to travel / indemnity
  • Review and update of traveller profile information held by Gray Dawes

Advisories

  • Medical history (including relevant pre existing health conditions, blood type, any medications, allergies)
  • Traveller’s exposure to people at risk
  • What are traveller concerns pre trip and how can these be mitigated?
  • Training on how and when to access support

Plan

Considerations

  • Self assessment
  • PPE
  • Pre book all forms of travel
  • Download TMC App for notifications
  • Print tickets and luggage tags
  • Print Emergency contact and process information
  • Notify next of kin of travel plans
  • Local and destination travel regulations

Advisories

  • Does the traveller have any symptoms?
  • Masks, Wipes, Hand Sanitiser (100ml), Gloves, Themeteor, Pen, Cashless Payment
  • Book door to door, avoiding crowding and ride sharing
  • Avoid hand luggage
  • Prepare to show address and reasons for travel
  • Is there quarantine/air bridges, do you need health certification, download contract tracing apps, arrive times at airports

Action

Considerations

  • Employee Duty of Loyalty

Advisories

  • employee adheres to the following:

    • Performs self assessment prior, during and post travel for symptoms
    • Books through approved vendor and suppliers
    • Maintains 2m distance
    • Wears PPE
    • Washes hands / uses hand sanitiser frequently
    • Avoids crowded areas
    • Pays cashless
    • Follows protocols in event of an emergency
    • Shares experiences of travel on return

Respond

Considerations

  • What happens in an emergency?

Advisories

  • Traveller should always carry contact details of local emergency services in the event of developing symptoms
  • Company should ensure traveller is covered by insurance prior to travel and inform them immediately in the event of developing symptoms 
  • Initiate repatriation procedure should the traveller develop symptoms while abroad
  • Traveller should notify family/friend, employer and travel management company immediately that they have developed symptoms
  • The traveller should return to their accommodation via non ride sharing transport and isolate
  • If at the airport, the traveller should notify their transport operator, Border Force and the Government. They will work together to ensure you are isolated in a safe space and repatriated
  • Traveller should ensure if returning home they have a safe environment to isolate in

Evaluate

Considerations

  • Survey traveller experience
  • Update procedures based on traveller feedback and regulations

Advisories

  • Send post trip survey and distribute to all travellers
  • Include questions whether pre trip information was satisfactory, whether suppliers and offices during the trip met expectations, on any emergency services used?
visit the TRAVELLER TOOLKIT

To help you navigate the changes of business travel, we’ve created the brand-new Traveller Toolkit. This invaluable online resource is packed full of easy-to-use guides and checklists for every stage of every journey. We detail exactly what you need to know and do before, during and after your trip in a post-pandemic, post Brexit world.

You can even check the travel restrictions and health status of your destination with our comprehensive COVID-19 Country Tracker, updated five times daily to ensure you have the very latest information to help keep you and your travellers safe.

Travel is changing. With common sense and a good TMC behind you, travellers can have the confidence to once again take to the skies. It’ll soon be back business as (un)usual.

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