'Travellers not utilising technology'

Travellers are not fully utilising the technology available to them when booking flights and trips abroad according to new figures from the Institute of Travel Management (ITM).

The ITM survey of business travellers found that only 13 per cent of people used or understood how to use self-booking tools for the purchase of tickets and organising travel arrangements, Travel Mole reports.

This is in contrast to industry projections which suggested 80 per cent of travel transactions would be being carried out using self-booking tools within 18 months.

Paul Tilstone, ITM executive director, said "The attitude of buyers and suppliers towards self-booking tools is symptomatic of human nature where technology is concerned.

"How many of us use even a tenth of the functionality of our PCs, iPods or whatever? More than a few of us are guilty of adopting technology without either understanding how it works, the potential benefits or how to use that technology most effectively."

One of the leading professional bodies for buyers, managers and suppliers of business travel in the UK and Ireland, the Institute of Travel Management was founded in 1956 and aims to provide the best possible information, opportunities and support to its members to help them achieve best practice in effectively managing their travel spend.

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