How to manage corporate travel safety in turbulent times
Because peace of mind should be part of the itinerary
Source: Pexels
If you’ve glanced at the news lately, you’ll know the world feels anything but steady. Europe continues to grapple with political unrest that can flare into travel disruptions overnight. Wildfires in southern Europe, record-breaking heat in Spain, Italy and Greece and mass displacement from storms and flooding in parts of the continent are making climate risk part of every itinerary.
Add in cyber disruptions – such as the August 2024 breach at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport that knocked out display systems and internet access – and the map looks less like a travel brochure and more like a risk register.
And yet, business still moves. Deals are signed face-to-face, projects need site visits and conferences remain the lifeblood of entire industries. The question isn’t whether your people will travel; it’s how you’ll keep them safe while they do.
This is where corporate travel safety comes in. Not as a checkbox on a compliance form, but as a living part of how companies operate in volatile times. For employees, knowing the business has their back – that someone is tracking developments, offering guidance and ready to respond if things go wrong – is the difference between travelling with confidence and travelling with anxiety. For employers, it’s about protecting more than people: budgets, reputations and even legal standing hinge on how well travel safety is managed.
That’s why “duty of care” has become the anchor phrase in travel programmes. It’s not just about insurance policies or emergency hotlines (though those matter). It’s about embedding safety thinking into every step: which hotels are approved, how transport is booked, what alerts are sent out when the unexpected happens. Done right, a travel safety strategy doesn’t slow business down. It clears the path so employees can focus on the meeting, the deal or the work at hand.
Below, we’ll unpack what duty of care really means, the risks businesses need to plan for in 2025, and the practical steps that make travel safer without turning every trip into an ordeal. Consider this guide as a toolkit for navigating choppy waters during travel; one that helps your company keep moving forward without leaving your people exposed.
Duty of care: what it really means
“Duty of care” sounds like legal jargon, but at its core it’s simple: companies have a responsibility to look after their people when they’re travelling for work. Not just because regulators or lawyers say so, but because employees are the ones keeping the business moving. If they don’t feel safe, the whole system wobbles.
Duty of care has three overlapping layers:
- Legal – many countries have explicit requirements that employers protect staff health and safety, including when they’re abroad. If an incident occurs and a company can’t show it took reasonable precautions, the consequences can range from lawsuits to regulatory fines.
- Ethical – businesses ask employees to step onto planes, trains and into cities they may not know. There’s a moral obligation to make sure that isn’t an unnecessary gamble.
- Cultural – in practice, how you treat travelling staff sends a message. Do you see them as assets to be protected, or costs to be managed? Employees notice.
Regulators are sharpening their stance too. In the UK, the Health and Safety at Work Act has been interpreted to apply to staff abroad, while in the U.S., OSHA guidance highlights employer responsibility for travel-related risks. But compliance is only half the picture. Today’s workforce, especially younger employees, expect proactive safety measures as part of company culture, not just a checkbox exercise. When duty of care is visible in daily practice, it builds trust. When it isn’t, it erodes confidence fast.
What good duty of care looks like
At a minimum, it means covering four bases:
- Risk assessment – before a trip even begins, companies should identify potential threats. Is there political unrest in the destination? Are there known health risks, extreme weather patterns or security concerns? This isn’t scaremongering – it’s preparation.
- Communication – employees should know who to call, and managers should know where their people are. Real-time alerts, itinerary sharing and emergency contacts matter more than glossy policy PDFs.
- Emergency support – whether it’s a missed connection or a major disruption, support has to be fast and reliable. That might mean a 24/7 travel desk, local ground partners or pre-arranged evacuation plans.
- Insurance – comprehensive cover that goes beyond lost luggage. Medical emergencies, cancellations and crisis assistance should be built in, not added as an afterthought.
When duty of care breaks down
Unfortunately, it often takes a crisis to highlight what’s missing. Consider companies that send staff abroad without visibility on their location. When protests erupt or a natural disaster strikes, managers are left guessing: Who’s there? Are they safe? How do we reach them? That delay in response can turn a manageable situation into a reputational disaster.
Beyond reputation, there’s legal exposure: ISO 31030 sets out clear standards for travel risk management, and regulators are increasingly willing to penalise employers who fall short ISO 31030:2021.
Or think of employees who find themselves stranded after a cancelled flight, with no support line to call and only a reimbursement form waiting weeks down the line. Technically the company may pay them back eventually, but in the moment, it feels like abandonment.
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Why culture matters as much as compliance
A strong duty of care framework isn’t just about avoiding risk. It creates trust. Employees who know their company is proactive about safety travel with more confidence, engage more fully with their work and are less likely to cut corners. They’re also less likely to resent being sent on trips in the first place.
On the flip side, when safety feels like an afterthought, employees notice. They may still travel, but they’ll do so reluctantly, and they’ll be more inclined to see the business as indifferent to their wellbeing. That cultural damage is harder to quantify than a reimbursement claim, but in the long run it can cost far more.
In short, duty of care is the foundation of corporate travel safety. It’s not about bubble-wrapping staff; it’s about creating the conditions where they can travel confidently, knowing the business is paying attention to both their risks and their needs.
Corporate travel risks in 2025
Even with demand rebounding, the backdrop for business travel in 2025 is far from smooth. The risks companies must plan around are no longer limited to “lost luggage” or “delayed flights”. They’re broader, more complex and often unpredictable. Here are the big ones keeping travel managers up at night:
Geopolitical risks
Political unrest continues to shape travel in Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia. Protests in Paris last year spilled onto major transport hubs, forcing cancellations and leaving travellers stranded. In Eastern Europe, shifting conflict zones mean government advisories can change overnight. Terrorism alerts, once rare, have resurfaced for large international events.
- Impact on travellers: sudden changes in safety ratings, grounded flights, closed borders. What should have been a two-day trip can turn into a week-long ordeal.
- What companies can do: monitor advisories in real time, partner with providers that offer traveller tracking and set clear escalation protocols if employees need to exit a region quickly.
Health and wellbeing
The pandemic’s peak may be behind us, but health risks are still shaping itineraries. Regional outbreaks of respiratory viruses in Asia triggered advisories earlier this year, reminding businesses how quickly things can flare up. Beyond physical health, mental wellbeing is also under pressure. Long-haul flights, jet lag and packed schedules take a toll, particularly on employees juggling family responsibilities back home.
- Impact on travellers: increased stress, fatigue and vulnerability to illness. When employees burn out on the road, productivity tanks.
- What companies can do: provide access to health insurance that covers international care, build recovery time into itineraries and normalise policies that limit excessive travel. Offering mental health support (such as check-ins or counselling services) can turn a “necessary evil” into a more sustainable part of work.
Environmental and climate risks
Extreme weather has gone from being an occasional disruption to a regular feature of travel. In 2024, wildfires in Greece forced mass evacuations of tourists and business travellers alike. Flooding in northern Italy shut down rail services for days. In the U.S., record heatwaves grounded flights when tarmac conditions became unsafe.
- Impact on travellers: cancelled or diverted flights, stranded employees, rising insurance claims. Entire conferences or site visits can be scrapped at short notice.
- What companies can do: diversify travel routes, have contingency plans for virtual participation and ensure employees know who to contact in an emergency. Including environmental risk in pre-trip assessments is no longer optional.
Cyber and digital risks
Not all dangers are physical. Airports and hotels remain hotspots for cybercrime. In 2025, several major airports in Europe were hit by ransomware attacks, causing delays and exposing passenger data. On the individual level, travellers are prime phishing targets: public Wi-Fi in hotels or cafes gives attackers a gateway into corporate systems. Even legitimate booking platforms have been hacked, creating chaos for companies relying on them. In fact, cybersecurity researchers note that the cost of breaches linked to mobile or travel activity is rising fast, with IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach Report 2024 placing the average incident at over $4.4 million. The outcome in this context?- Impact on travellers: stolen data, disrupted itineraries, compromised company systems. A single careless click on an unfamiliar network can ripple through an entire organisation.
- What companies can do: enforce the use of VPNs, provide training on recognising phishing attempts and vet travel booking systems for security compliance. Reminders to avoid unsecured Wi-Fi may sound basic, but they’re critical.
Source: Pexels
In an unpredictable landscape, business trips carry risks far beyond logistics. Geopolitics, health, climate and cyber threats can derail plans in an instant. The companies that stay ahead are those that view travel safety not as a sideline, but as a core business function.
Corporate travel safety tips
Policies and systems set the framework, but real-world safety comes down to practical steps before, during and after each trip. The best corporate travel safety strategies combine employer responsibility with employee awareness. Here’s how to make that work in practice.
Before travel
A safe trip begins long before the boarding gate. Companies that put effort into pre-trip preparation avoid last-minute surprises and give employees the confidence to travel smart.
What employers should do:
- Run risk assessments: Use tools like government advisories, International SOS or third-party dashboards to check destination-specific risks (geopolitical, health, environmental).
- Issue pre-trip briefings: Provide a short, tailored briefing covering safety protocols, local customs and emergency contacts. A quick five-minute read can prevent major misunderstandings abroad.
- Support vaccinations and health checks: For high-risk destinations, ensure staff are up to date on required vaccines and understand local healthcare access.
- Provide cyber hygiene training: Travellers should know the basics of avoiding public Wi-Fi, spotting phishing attempts and using VPNs. A 30-minute session saves countless headaches.
- Check insurance cover: Confirm that company travel insurance matches the realities of the trip (medical evacuation, lost documents, natural disaster cover).
What employees should do:
- Review the company’s travel policy and safety protocols before leaving.
- Carry copies of key documents (passport, visas, insurance) in both physical and digital formats.
- Download approved apps for secure messaging, itinerary tracking or emergency updates.
- Pack with safety in mind – for example, portable chargers, a basic first aid kit and any personal medications.
During travel
Preparation only works if it carries through to the trip itself. This is where the principle of “duty of care” becomes visible: the company provides a safety net, and the traveller follows smart practices.
What employers should do:
- Book safe hotels: Prioritise properties vetted for security, location and amenities. Avoid remote hotels with poor access to transport or healthcare.
- Set transport guidelines: Encourage official taxis, ride-sharing apps with traceability or pre-arranged transfers over hailing cars on the street.
- Provide local contacts: Share details of in-country partners, local offices or 24/7 helplines so employees know who to call if something feels wrong.
- Enable real-time alerts: Use platforms that push location-specific safety notifications (e.g., protests, weather alerts or strikes).
What employees should do:
- Keep valuables, documents and devices secure. Hotel safes or RFID-blocking wallets are worth the effort.
- Stick to well-lit, populated routes when moving around cities, especially at night.
- Stay cautious online: avoid logging into corporate systems on public Wi-Fi unless using a VPN.
- Keep phones charged and location-sharing enabled with trusted contacts.
- Report incidents immediately, no matter how small. A stolen phone today might become a data breach tomorrow.
Crisis communication tip: If a disruption occurs – cancelled flights, civil unrest or health emergencies – the company should be able to reach travellers within minutes. Test your communication protocols regularly to ensure they work in practice.
After travel
Safety doesn’t end when employees land back home. The post-trip stage is often overlooked, but it’s where companies can identify gaps and prevent repeat issues.
What employers should do:
- Debrief travellers: Ask what went well, what felt unsafe and where processes could be smoother. Real-time feedback is more valuable than post-quarter surveys.
- Check health and wellbeing: Long travel days and jet lag take a toll. Offering access to counselling, rest days or flexible schedules post-trip shows that wellbeing matters.
- Review expenses and policies: Spot unexpected costs (e.g., surge-priced taxis, expensive last-minute bookings) that signal where policies need refinement.
- Update travel risk assessments: Feed new experiences into your systems so the next trip benefits from the lessons learned.
What employees should do:
- Submit expenses promptly and flag any areas where policy clarity was lacking.
- Share honest feedback with managers, whether it’s about a hotel that felt unsafe or a local contact who was invaluable.
- Take time to reset: use rest days if offered, or schedule lighter workloads immediately after long-haul travel.
Putting it all together
Corporate travel safety isn’t one department’s job; it’s a partnership. Employers must provide the tools, systems and support, while employees must use them wisely on the road. By breaking safety into three phases – before, during and after travel – companies create a consistent safety culture that spans the entire journey.
Done right, these steps turn travel safety from a burdensome checklist into a living framework that protects people, strengthens trust and keeps business moving even in challenging times.
How a corporate travel management company makes it easier
Source: Pexels
A corporate travel management company (TMC) goes beyond shaving a few pounds off your hotel bill. It’s the safety net when things get messy – and the framework that keeps problems from spiralling in the first place. Here’s how they make corporate travel safety easier in practice.
Know where people are, fast
When protests shut down a city centre or wildfires spread overnight, the last thing you want is guesswork. TMCs log every booking, so you can see exactly who’s where and contact them in seconds. Travellers get real-time alerts, managers get confirmation their people are safe )no frantic phone trees required).
Hotels that pass the safety test
A “deal” isn’t worth much if the hotel’s in a dodgy area or won’t let you cancel when flights get grounded. TMCs negotiate contracts with safety in mind: central locations, 24/7 reception, proper Wi-Fi security and the flexibility to cancel without penalty. They can even bake in meals to save late-night trips outside. It’s safety and comfort, wrapped into the rate.
Guardrails built into booking
Instead of burying rules in a PDF, TMC platforms weave policy into the search. If a hotel is too far from the client site, the tool nudges you closer. If the rate busts the budget cap, it asks for approval before you hit confirm. Think of it as policy that lives inside the booking flow, not after the fact when finance rejects the claim.
Help when it all goes sideways
Cancelled flights, cyber outages, medical emergencies – disruptions don’t wait for office hours. That’s why TMCs run 24/7 support desks. While unmanaged travellers queue at the airline counter, managed travellers get rebooked in minutes. One number, one app and you’re back on track.
One clear picture, not ten open tabs
The biggest win? Everything sits in one place. Bookings, policies, safety data – all connected and easy to audit. That visibility means you can spot risks, measure compliance and prove your duty of care without piecing together spreadsheets. Platforms like Roomex make this easy by consolidating hotel bookings, embedding travel policies directly into search, automating receipts and showing where employees are at any given time. The result is less admin, fewer blind spots and safer, smoother trips all round.
Source: Pexels
Why corporate travel safety is strategy
Corporate travel safety is the strategy that protects your most valuable assets: people, budgets and brand reputation. A single mishandled trip – an employee stranded without support, or a safety issue swept under the rug – can cost far more than the flight or hotel ever did.
The good news? Safety doesn’t have to slow you down. With the right policies, tools and mindset, companies can move confidently through an uncertain world. A clear travel safety framework reassures employees that they’re supported, gives finance and HR the visibility they need and builds resilience into the business when disruption inevitably hits.
Think of it as future-proofing. Risks – geopolitical, environmental, digital – won’t disappear. But a company that invests in safety builds trust with its people and earns credibility with clients and partners alike. That’s not just risk management; that’s your competitive advantage. Just as importantly, it shows staff that their wellbeing comes first – that they’re valued not only for the work they deliver, but as people whose safety and peace of mind genuinely matter.
Now’s the moment to take a fresh look at your travel safety approach. Are your policies up to date? Are your systems fit for purpose? Do your travellers know who to call when things go wrong? Reviewing and updating today could save you a lot of headaches tomorrow – and keep your business moving no matter what’s on the news ticker.
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