For many business travellers, the expense claim is still the most daunting stage of a business trip. However, publishers, agencies and all those involved in business travel are investing to ensure a smoother - and above all less time-consuming - experience with a view to simplifying the reimbursement of travel expenses. To measure the gap between the big announcements and practice - and to promote your own solution in the process BCD Paythe TMC of the same name surveyed 1,349 business travellers worldwide (mostly in North America) at the beginning of April. And despite the size of the companies involved - three quarters of those surveyed (75%) work for companies with 10,000 employees or more - there is still room for improvement in the level of maturity in the field of expenses and payments.
Unsurprisingly, the main frustration of mobile professionals lies in the time spent creating expense reports. This time-consuming aspect is cited by 63% business travellersin front of the receipt collection (54%). The loss of time can be explained in particular by the lack of ad hoc tools. BCD Travel notes that the use of a dedicated mobile application remains in the minority (40%). As for payment, the main problem is staying "within the bounds" of company policy. It should be noted, however, that this payment stage does not seem to pose that much of a problem for travellers, insofar as the absence of frustration is in second place.
However, payment practices still offer considerable room for improvement, according to the study published by BCD Travel. While a quarter of those surveyed (26%) are aware of virtual cards, their use remains very limited: 1% of travellers use this method of payment. Corporate cards still account for the vast majority (79%), and a quarter of those surveyed (26%) have to use their personal card.
" Companies looking to simplify payments for their travellers should explore the benefits of automating payments with virtual credit cards "says Ajay Singh, Vice President of BCD's Digital Payment and Expense Products division. " Automated payments virtual facilitates centralised payment for hotel or car reservations. It automatically generates a single-use virtual card number for each transaction and links all charges to a specific booking. Not only does this make the payment process easier for travellers, it also considerably reduces the risk of fraud. fraud "he insists.
