BA/VIRGIN FUEL SURCHARGE RECLAIM ADMINISTRATORS RESPOND TO ITM CONCERNS
Changes Made to Processes to Improve Corporate Claims
The appointed lawyers of the £73.5m BA/Virgin Fuel Surcharge fund, Hausfeld & Co LLP, have announced enhancements to the claims process as a direct result of issues raised by the Institute of Travel & Meetings (ITM) UK & Ireland. The initial process issues were first raised through ITM by three large UK corporate members in October 2009 and a subsequent communication to members resulted in a further twenty companies advising the association of on-going processing and communication issues.
As a response, ITM immediately created a log of unhappy claimants and passed details to the fund administrators. Subsequent discussions with the fund lawyers have consequently led to process changes for all corporate claims in the UK with immediate effect.
Details of the process enhancements, spanning communication, reconciliation data and claim challenges, are contained within an Industry Affairs Update produced by the association.
ITM Industry Affairs representatives have cited the automatic provision of line-by-line reconciliation data, previously not provided as a matter of course with payments, and an improved communication process as two of the key enhancements to ensure corporate claims are more efficiently processed.
Speaking about the enhancements, ITM's Industry Affairs Chairman Chris Reynolds said, "This is a perfect example of how quickly we can influence industry issues which have resulted in direct contributions to members' bottom lines. The fund lawyers are to be commended for their response to the association's concerns and we'd like to thank the corporate members who originally came to us for support, it's exactly what we are here for."
Chris Reynolds also assured members that the association would maintain contact with the lawyers and members who have logged issues to ensure those claims come to a satisfactory conclusion.
