Newark, DE (PRWEB) March 30, 2016
Technology is changing business travel just like it’s impacting virtually every other facets of the business world, including accounting and accounts payable. Ride-hailing and car-sharing services have been getting a lot of press and we wondered if (and to what extent) they had penetrated the business travel market. AP Now recently polled its members to find out. What we found may surprise you.
- Use of ride-hailing services, such as Uber and Lyft, by business travelers is high with 74% reporting some usage by employees. Another 9% weren’t sure.
- The major reason given for allowing use of ride-hailing services was employee convenience followed by demand by employees. Cost savings was the third reason given—but only by 21% of respondents.
- Only 11% reported business travelers using car-sharing services, such as zip car and car2go, although 30% weren’t sure.
- The primary reason for allowing the use of car-sharing services was employee convenience followed by employee demand. Cost savings was the third reason given, but only by 20% of respondents.
“What these figures reveal,” says AP Now’s Mary Schaeffer, the sponsor of the poll, “is a dramatic shift in the way business travelers get to their final destinations. Employees are demanding the convenience these services offer. What’s more, we expect the numbers of business users to grow as travelers become more comfortable with the services and the expediency of using them.” Convenience far outweighs cost when it comes to utilizing these services.
Part of the reason some respondents didn’t know if the services were used or not revolves around the accounting issue. Since use of these services isn’t addressed in most corporate policies, travelers sometimes don’t know where to account for them when filing out an expense report. Some put the item under taxis, others under car rentals and still others in a miscellaneous or other category. This can hide the fact, in some cases, that one of these services was used. We expect this issue to sort itself out over the next few years.
For now, as one respondent indicated, “there is definitely a generational gap in the use of rideshare services. Millennials and early adopters of technology seem to use services like Uber regularly, whereas older members of our staff tend to stay with taxis and traditional car service companies.” We are confident that will change over time.
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