Open any newspaper and it's hard not to feel dismayed by the current state of geopolitics. From trade tariffs affecting global markets to regions of armed conflict and increased confusion over immigration rules, business travel is becoming increasingly risky business.

¡°What¡¯s especially challenging in 2025 is that even regions historically seen as stable now present unpredictable challenges ¨C ranging from sudden social unrest to deteriorating healthcare infrastructure,¡± says International SOS regional security director in Northern Europe, James Wood.

And while Europe¡¯s air traffic proves resilient in the face of uncertainty, Wood said corporate travel sentiment is ¡°noticeably more cautious¡±.

¡°Outside of the pure people risk considerations, the fragmentation of traditionally stable and predictable operating environments means organisations are finding it harder to plan longer term,¡± he adds. ¡°Due diligence on new market entry, new supply chains and new travel destinations has become more challenging because of the need to be able to foresee risk differently.¡±

Indeed, conducting a risk assessment has become increasingly difficult given the current pace of geopolitical change. According to a poll of 80 travel managers at the BTN Group¡¯s Business Travel Show Europe last month, most (84 per cent) indicated that geopolitical volatility is complicating their work.

Additionally, 30 per cent said their organisation is now travelling less, although 57 per cent reported no change in travel volumes and 13 per cent are travelling more because of shifts in geopolitics. In a subsequent poll, 68 per cent of buyers reported no change in the destinations where employees are travelling to. Business continuity, it seems, remains a core objective.

Bex Deadman, co-founder of the Travel Risk Academy ¨C which provides education and training in line with the ISO 31030 Travel Risk Standard ¨C says most companies still treat travel risk management as a tick box exercise.

¡°They've got policies in place, but no one's testing this,¡± she says. ¡°No one's taking this to the next level unless they're in a crisis situation. That¡¯s when they realise they haven't got everything they needed in place ¨C that's the trigger,¡± Deadman explains, adding that many travel managers don¡¯t have complete visibility of their programmes from a travel risk perspective.

¡°Larger corporations generally have a global travel management company, a global insurance company and a global assistance company. In most cases, [the travel manager] holds the relationship with the TMC and someone else has a relationship with the insurance company, which may or may not be how your assistance company is involved,¡± says Deadman. ¡°The reality is that 60 to 70 per cent of companies are not optimising their programmes in the way that they should be.¡±?

The introduction of the ISO 31030 Travel Risk Standard in 2021 was a ¡°leveller¡± for a lot of organisations and forced the industry to really ¡°take a look under the hood,¡± says Deadman. It includes guidance on policy and programme development, risk assessment and prevention and mitigation strategies. ¡°Some organisations are doing very well against it, others not so well, and some are not even on the scale.¡±

Among a growing list of risk management specialists, TMCs are also offering up new services to help corporates better manage travel risk.

UK-based travel management company Key Travel, which serves the non-profit sector, recently introduced a travel risk assessment framework that it said provides clients with a ¡°readiness¡± score in line with the ISO standard based on pre-trip, in-trip and post-trip assessments. According to group product manager Bruce Teatheredge, most clients are still largely concerned with in-trip risk.

¡°There's a bit more of a consciousness around pre-trip, but less so around post-trip, depending on the organisation,¡± he says, adding that most of the TMC¡¯s clients don¡¯t rely on dedicated third-party support for travel risk management.

Meanwhile, Barcelona-based TravelPerk in June partnered with insurance provider Battleface to provide insurance coverage for unexpected medical issues or lost baggage for clients in the UK and Europe.

The TMC also recently established an in-house travel disruptions team in response to increased geopolitical volatility and civil unrest ¨C ¡°but they work with all types of disruption,¡± says TravelPerk¡¯s UK and Ireland country manager, Vicki Williams.

The 20-strong team includes dedicated agents and business travel consultants as well as a weather forecaster, which Williams says allows the travel management company to ¡°flex the capacity of our customer care team well in advance¡± and ¡°proactively reach out to clients¡±.

Increased complexity

Evolving immigration policies are also adding new layers of complexity to business travel. International SOS¡¯s Wood says the reintroduction of travel restrictions into the US under President Trump has ¡°prompted an interest from clients, especially regarding visa delays, airport detentions and last-minute itinerary disruptions¡±.

Deadman went one step further, saying immigration compliance is ¡°a huge issue¡±. She continues: ¡°It's probably one of the biggest driving forces to get travel risk management on the table in front of your executives¡­ because of the [risk of] fines and the reputational damage.¡±

Cybersecurity and data protection is another area that has received ¡°significant¡± attention. ¡°Travellers are always the weakest link in any cybersecurity programme,¡± says Deadman, ¡°because they're plugging into airport lounges and downloading stuff in hotels¡± ¨C which can expose company-owned devices to a potential cyber attack.?

How are corporates responding?

GE Vernova¡¯s executive ¨C travel, meetings and fleet, Bernadette Basterfield, says traveller safety is currently her top priority. ¡°We work very much hand-in-glove with security because we know that people will go off piste [and book direct],¡± she said during a panel discussion at Business Travel Show Europe in June. ¡°Some travel policies might say ¡®OK, if you find it cheaper online, go book it¡¯ ¨C but not in today's world,¡± she added.

Last October, GE Vernova introduced new policy controls that require travellers to upload their itinerary to the company¡¯s systems if they¡¯ve booked directly with a supplier ¡°so that we've got eyes on you,¡± Basterfield said.

The travel team now also proactively reviews expense data to identify travellers who habitually book direct. These travellers receive a message from the C-suite notifying them that they¡¯ve violated company policy.

Additionally, the company has developed a safety message, ¡®Off programme. Off radar¡¯, which is shared at town hall meetings. ¡°We¡¯re doing a hard and soft element to traveller safety ¨C and it's working,¡± said Basterfield.

Tightening travel policy

Jennifer Legittino, global travel & expense manager at industrial tools and services provider Enerpac has increased communication with her travellers within the last 12 months. This involved working more closely with the company¡¯s immigration services provider and duty of care partner to provide travellers with information on extended visa processing times and destination-specific advice on safety and security.

¡°I don't want to inundate [travellers] with information, but I want them to have the right information,¡± says Legittino. Internal collaboration between the company¡¯s travel, IT and security departments has also ramped up, which Lettigino says has helped to ¡°button up¡± the travel programme.

Headquartered in Milwaukee, Enerpac has operations in more than 20 countries, including a heavy presence in the Middle East as well as across Europe.

Even before the US travel restrictions were announced, increased scrutiny of travel documentation at the border saw the company implement a travel approval process for US-bound travellers ¡°to better understand the timing of things and really for our security department to check to see what the state [of US immigration policy] is at that moment,¡± she explains.

Enerpac also provides travellers with scrubbed laptops to mitigate against cyber attacks or any sensitive information being leaked while travellers are on the road. ¡°We've been doing that with mobile phones as well. If people are travelling overseas or to higher risk areas, we don't want them having their corporate computer,¡± says Legittino.

She relies heavily on her duty of care provider, which pulls travel data directly from the company¡¯s online booking tool to power a traveller tracking app and emergency response service.

¡°Risk and safety are our first priority, and cost is definitely secondary,¡± she says, while stressing the importance of keeping herself informed. ¡°I think just paying attention to the news [is important] because, as much as you can rely on your vendors, things are changing so rapidly that sometimes communication can't come out fast enough.¡±