Cancelled Meetings Cost UK plc 119m Pounds Sterling a Year

LONDON -

- Archaic small print cited as reason behind waste

Research conducted by BDRC and commissioned by Regus, the leading global provider of innovative workspace solutions, into the small print of hotel meeting room terms and conditions has found that cancellation charges are costing UK plc at least 119 million pounds Sterling annually.

Mark Dixon, Chief Executive, Regus says: “At a time when businesses are struggling to survive, such blatant profiteering is remarkable. One well-known national provider charges 90% of the booking fee for a cancellation with 60 days notice! The average cost of cancellation up to 30 days is 59% and 43% for 60 days notice. Thirty years ago this might have been acceptable practice but in today’s market there is simply no justification.

“Recessions bring such archaic, unethical and inefficient business practices to the surface and force their resolution. A great product or service at a good price with fair terms and conditions should be the bedrock upon which all businesses are built.”

Matt Costin, Director, BDRC says: “Flexibility is key to driving recommendation and repeat business for external meetings, and in the current climate cancellation terms may be coming under greater scrutiny. The figure of 119 million pounds Sterling is conservative as we have only looked at small meetings and not the entire market. We were surprised by the significant variation in T&Cs offered by properties operating under the same brand, something which risks confusing venue buyers.”

Dixon adds: “I would encourage businesses of all sizes to find alternative providers, of which there are many, who are structured to provide a flexible, efficient meeting room service purely for businesses, with prices, terms and conditions which are rooted in this century and not the last.”

BDRC found that the average charge for cancellations up to 15 days in advance was 82% of the hire fee. Average cost of cancellation up to 30 days in advance is 59% and up to 60 days in advance is 43%. The average cost of cancellation for each delegate is 26.40 pounds Sterling.

Notes to Editors

Method used — BDRC contacted 30 hotel meeting room providers by phone in the week commencing 15 June, two in each of the UK’s top 15 brands by distribution — The hotels were selected to be broadly representative of events volume held in key locations across the UK — Using day delegate scenarios of between 10 and 20 delegates, mystery callers collected information on the quoted rate and the cancellation charges that would apply at 15, 30 and 60 days in advance of the event — The average day delegate rate (DDR) was then calculated and multiplied by the average cancellation charge, and in turn by the number of delegates. For the purpose of the calculation a midpoint of 15 delegates was used. This gave the typical cost of a cancellation — For the purpose of scaling up the data to provide a national figure, the following assumptions were used: — 1.37 million events in last 12 months (BCVS 2007) — 62% of events last one day or less, so approx 849,400 day events a year — 30% of bookings are cancelled (conservative figure based on data collected by Regus(1) and supported by Grass Roots), so the 849,400 day events actually derive from approximately 1,104,220 event bookings — Therefore, of the 1,104,220 events booked, 331,266 (30%) are cancelled — Taking a conservative estimate of 15 delegates per event, a typical DDR of 48 pounds Sterling and a cancellation charge of 50% (weighted down to reflect the fact that comparatively few events are cancelled at very short notice), we estimate a typical cancellation charge of 360 pounds Sterling per event (24 pounds Sterling each delegate) — 360 pounds Sterling per cancellation x 331,266 cancelled events = 119m pounds Sterling (119,255,760 pounds Sterling)(2)

About BDRC

The BDRC Group is the UK’s largest independent research consultancy with a specialist hospitality industry research division. It is an ISO 20252 accredited organisation and a MRS Company Partner. For more information visit www.bdrc.co.uk

About The Regus Group

The Regus Group (LSE: RGU) is the world’s leading global provider of innovative workspace solutions, with products and services ranging from fully equipped offices to professional meeting rooms, business lounges and the largest network of videoconferencing studios. Regus delivers a new way to work, whether it’s from home, on the road or from an office. Clients such as Google, GlaxoSmithKline, and Nokia join thousands of growing small and medium businesses that benefit from outsourcing their office and workplace needs to Regus, allowing them to focus on their core business.

Over 400,000 clients a day benefit from Regus facilities spread across a global footprint of 1,000 locations in 450 cities and 75 countries, which allow individuals and companies to work wherever, however and whenever they want to. For more information please visit: www.regus.co.uk

For more information contact: Andrew Brown Regus +44(0)7721-513777 Andrew.brown@regus.com

(1) Regus internal figure (supported by Grass Roots). Regus has national coverage in all key locations: 1,314 meeting rooms account for approximately 10% of total branded meeting room stock in the UK (BDRC data).

(2) This national estimate is an indicative estimate only based on conservative application of available data.

Source: The Regus Group

Andrew Brown of Regus, +44-(0)7721 513777, Andrew.brown at regus.com