When an employee is halfway across the world on a business trip, a missed flight or lost company card can quickly become more than an inconvenience. Health emergencies, extreme weather, civil unrest and security incidents can all disrupt travel plans and put people at risk.
Most business trips go smoothly. But it only takes one incident to show why companies need a clear, practical approach to corporate travel safety. A strong programme prepares travellers for the unexpected, gives them reliable support when plans change and helps employers meet their duty of care obligations.
This guide explains how to protect employees before, during and after business travel, from building a duty of care policy and conducting risk assessments to setting up monitoring, training and emergency-response processes.
What is corporate travel safety?
Corporate travel safety is the combination of policies, processes, information and support that helps employees travel safely for work. It covers both preventing foreseeable problems and responding effectively when incidents occur.
A complete travel safety programme should account for:
Health, medical and wellbeing needs
Security threats, crime and accommodation safety
Political instability, civil unrest and terrorism risks
Extreme weather, natural disasters and transport disruption
Traveller-specific needs, including accessibility, health conditions and identity-related risks
Real-time communications, emergency contacts and incident support
Appropriate travel insurance, evacuation arrangements and contingency plans
Corporate travel safety is closely tied to duty of care and travel risk management, but the terms are not interchangeable.
The role of duty of care in business travel
Duty of care is an employer’s legal and moral responsibility to protect the physical and emotional safety and wellbeing of employees. This responsibility does not end when an employee leaves the office; it extends to work-related travel, whether the trip is domestic or international.
In the UK, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 requires employers to protect employee health, safety and welfare so far as reasonably practicable. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 also require employers to assess workplace risks and put suitable controls in place.
For business travellers, duty of care can include planning for risks related to:
Health and safety
Fire safety
Stress, fatigue and wellbeing
Violence, harassment, discrimination and bullying
Food and water safety
Medical access and emergency care
Transport, accommodation and destination security
A duty of care policy should form part of a wider corporate travel policy. It should make clear what the company will do to protect travellers, what support is available and what employees are expected to do before and during a trip.
Why duty of care matters
Duty of care is important because business travel can expose employees to unfamiliar environments, changing local conditions and disruptions that are outside their control. Even experienced travellers can need help with a delayed flight, missing passport, illness abroad or a local emergency.
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One study cited by AlertMedia found that 22% of travelling employees had not been briefed on who to contact in an emergency while on a business trip. Meanwhile, a World Travel Protection report found that 40% of respondents felt their organisation did not take their wellbeing seriously when travelling.
Getting duty of care right can help companies:
Protect employees from avoidable harm
Improve traveller confidence and wellbeing
Reduce operational disruption and lost productivity
Support travel-policy compliance
Strengthen employee retention and trust
Limit legal, financial and reputational exposure following an incident
A smoother, better-supported trip is also more productive. When employees know their company has prepared them and can help when needed, they can focus more fully on the purpose of their travel.
Duty of care vs travel risk management
Duty of care is the why: the employer’s legal and ethical obligation to protect employees.
Travel risk management is the how: the practical strategy used to identify, assess, mitigate and respond to travel risks.
| Area | Duty of care | Travel risk management |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The legal and ethical obligation to protect employee safety and wellbeing | The process used to identify, assess and reduce travel risks |
| Focus | Responsibility, compliance and employee welfare | Practical controls, risk assessments and incident response |
| Primary goal | Meeting employer obligations and safeguarding travellers | Reducing the likelihood and impact of travel-related incidents |
| Examples | Providing emergency support, appropriate insurance and safe travel policies | Risk assessments, travel alerts, training, traveller tracking and escalation plans |
| Relevant framework | UK health and safety obligations and HSE guidance | ISO 31030, the travel risk management standard |
Providing travel insurance, emergency contacts and real-time travel notifications are all examples of travel risk management measures that help a company meet its duty of care responsibilities.
Common business travel risks to consider
Every destination, trip and traveller has a different risk profile. A proportionate approach should consider the individual traveller, their itinerary and the destination environment.
Political instability and civil unrest
Political protests, strikes, armed conflict and civil unrest can create immediate security risks and disrupt flights, local transport and access to essential services.
Before approving travel, review reliable government travel advice and local news. UK employers can consult the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), while US-based travellers may use US Department of State advisories. These sources can help travellers understand local safety concerns, terrorism threat levels, entry restrictions and recommended precautions.
Travellers should know how to avoid protest areas, what to do if a situation escalates and how to access emergency assistance if they need to leave an area quickly.
Health, sanitation and medical access
Health risks are not always predictable, but companies can help employees prepare for them. IMG’s 2024 Annual Travel Outlook Survey found that 67% of respondents considered travel medical insurance “very important” for international travel.
Health-related travel planning should cover:
Availability of healthcare: Travellers should know where to find nearby hospitals, clinics and pharmacies before they need them.
Medical conditions and allergies: Employees should be able to disclose relevant health needs confidentially before travel so reasonable arrangements can be made.
Vaccinations and medication: Check whether the destination requires vaccinations, preventative medication or other health documentation.
Food and water safety: Local hygiene standards and water quality may differ from those at home. Travellers should follow reliable local advice on food and drinking water.
Infectious diseases: Review destination-specific risks, including diseases such as typhoid, hepatitis A or yellow fever where relevant.
Traveller wellbeing: Long-haul journeys, demanding itineraries and poor accommodation can affect physical and mental wellbeing. Consider sensible schedules, rest time and accommodation options that support health and comfort.
Transport and itinerary risks
Travel itself can introduce risk, particularly when schedules are tight or unfamiliar transport is involved. Consider:
Flight cancellations, missed connections and delays
Poor road conditions or unsafe driving environments
Late-night arrivals and limited ground-transport options
Fatigue after overnight flights
Local strikes, transport restrictions or severe weather
Car-hire requirements and insurance coverage
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A safer itinerary may involve allowing additional connection time, avoiding unnecessary overnight travel or arranging approved transport from the airport to accommodation.
Accommodation security
Accommodation should be assessed as part of the overall travel risk profile. Hotels and other lodgings can be targets for theft and may vary significantly in their security arrangements.
Encourage travellers to:
Choose accommodation in a safe area with positive recent reviews and visible security measures, such as a 24-hour front desk and monitored common areas.
Avoid ground-floor rooms where possible. Rooms between the third and sixth floors can reduce accessibility to intruders while remaining reachable by emergency services.
Be discreet at check-in and avoid saying room numbers or personal information aloud.
Use in-room safes for passports, laptops, company cards and other valuables.
Lock doors using the deadbolt and consider a portable door lock or door stop where appropriate.
Identify emergency exits and evacuation routes immediately after arrival.
Crime and personal security
Crime levels, scams, pickpocketing and theft can vary by city and neighbourhood. Risk assessments should consider local crime patterns and provide practical guidance, such as using approved taxis, avoiding isolated areas and carrying only necessary valuables.
Where pickpocketing or theft is a known risk, companies may recommend practical safeguards such as secure bags, money belts and accommodation with secure storage.
Natural disasters and extreme weather
Earthquakes, hurricanes, flooding, wildfires and severe storms can cause major disruption and may require travellers to shelter in place or leave an area quickly.
Monitor weather advisories and local alerts before and during travel. Emergency plans should include a clear escalation route, accommodation contingencies and guidance on how travellers can access support.
Traveller-specific risks
A risk assessment should not treat every employee as having identical needs. Consider individual circumstances sensitively and only collect information necessary to support safe travel.
Relevant factors may include:
Existing medical conditions, allergies or medication requirements
Accessibility needs
Anxiety related to flying or certain transport modes
Solo travel
Traveller experience and familiarity with the destination
Gender, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity where local laws, discrimination or violence may increase risk
Female business travellers may face particular safety concerns. A 2023 World Travel Protection survey found that 71% of female business travellers believed travelling for work as a woman is less safe than travelling for work as a man. The same report found that 19% thought employers should take more action with women’s safety in mind, including avoiding late-night flight arrivals. Yet only 18% of travel policies specifically addressed female traveller safety.
Travel policies should avoid treating employees as a single group. Instead, they should enable confidential conversations, offer reasonable alternatives and provide relevant safety information without placing responsibility for systemic risks on the traveller.
Third-party contractors and suppliers
Duty of care may extend to contractors and other people an organisation is responsible for during travel. Third parties can introduce additional security and compliance risks, particularly when working overseas.
Use approved suppliers where possible, assess high-risk vendors carefully and ensure drivers, accommodation providers, security firms and local partners meet appropriate standards.
How to perform a travel risk assessment
A travel risk assessment identifies threats an employee may face while travelling and determines what steps can reduce those risks. It is a core part of an effective duty of care and travel risk management programme.
The assessment should consider both:
The individual traveller, including their health, experience, needs and itinerary.
The external environment, including destination, transport, accommodation, local conditions and foreseeable disruptions.
The findings should inform the policies, procedures, training and support provided to the traveller.
Use a risk assessment matrix
A useful risk assessment considers two factors:
Likelihood: How likely is the risk to occur?
Impact: How severe would the consequences be if it occurred?
A high-impact risk may be unacceptable even if it is relatively unlikely. For example, violent political unrest may be infrequent but too severe to manage effectively in some circumstances.
A more common risk, such as stomach illness caused by unfamiliar food or water, may be more manageable if the impact is limited and practical mitigation measures are available.
Use a consistent framework to decide whether to:
Accept the risk with standard precautions
Add controls to reduce the likelihood or impact
Change the itinerary, transport or accommodation
Delay or cancel the trip
You can use Perk’s travel risk assessment template to help structure the process.
When to conduct a travel risk assessment
Conduct assessments before travel begins, allowing sufficient time to address complex itineraries, health needs, visa requirements, insurance or destination-specific concerns. For higher-risk or longer trips, starting several weeks in advance can be appropriate.
The level of assessment should be proportionate to the trip.
Repeat destinations
A new full assessment may not be necessary every time an employee travels to a familiar, low-risk destination, provided that:
The work activities have not changed
The accommodation and transport arrangements remain suitable
There have been no material political, health, security or environmental changes
The traveller’s personal circumstances have not changed
However, destination conditions should still be reviewed before each trip.
Domestic travel
Domestic travel may appear lower risk, but it can still involve accidents, extreme weather, fatigue, transport disruption or personal safety concerns. A short, proportionate assessment is often appropriate for longer journeys, unfamiliar locations or higher-risk work.
Last-minute travel
Last-minute trips still require a review of major risks, especially when an employee is travelling to an unfamiliar destination. Focus on critical factors such as security, health, transport, accommodation, insurance and emergency support. If the trip cannot be properly prepared for, consider whether it should proceed.
What a travel risk assessment should include
Individual traveller considerations
Before travel, gather only the information needed to provide suitable support. This may include:
Health and medical needs: Is the employee fit to travel? Do they have medical conditions, allergies, medication requirements or accessibility needs?
Travel patterns: Does the itinerary create unnecessary fatigue or pressure, such as driving after an overnight flight?
Experience and familiarity: Has the traveller visited the destination before? Do they understand local customs, laws and language considerations?
Personal safety factors: Could the traveller face increased risk due to solo travel, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or other identity-related factors?
Emergency contacts: Are the traveller’s contact details and emergency contact information current?
A confidential pre-travel questionnaire can help employees disclose relevant information and request adjustments.
Destination and environmental considerations
Assess the environment the employee will encounter, including:
Transport restrictions, local driving conditions and disruptions
Political instability, protests, strikes and civil unrest
Crime rates and known scams
Natural disasters and seasonal extreme weather
Disease outbreaks, vaccination requirements and local healthcare access
Entry requirements, visas and travel documentation
Accommodation safety and location
Local laws and cultural considerations
Risks to LGBTQIA+ travellers and other groups whose rights may be restricted in the destination
Five steps to build a travel risk management programme
A travel risk management programme turns duty of care obligations into repeatable processes that employees and managers can follow.
1. Define policies, responsibilities and approval procedures
Your travel policy should clearly explain:
Which trips require approval
Who approves travel and when escalation is required
Which destinations, suppliers and transport options are permitted
What travellers must do before departure
What to do if an emergency, delay or safety concern occurs
Who is responsible for communicating with and supporting travellers
When travel should be postponed, rerouted or cancelled
Make the policy easy to access wherever employees book travel. A travel risk management policy template can help organisations establish a clear starting point.
2. Use reliable, real-time travel information
Travel risks can change quickly. Decisions should be based on current information rather than assumptions or outdated destination guidance.
Use reliable sources to monitor:
Government travel advisories
Local news and security developments
Weather alerts and natural-disaster warnings
Transport disruptions and airport strikes
Entry restrictions and documentation requirements
Public health updates
Real-time alerts should reach both travel managers and travellers before departure and while the trip is underway.
3. Provide pre-travel briefings and employee training
Employees should understand the risks relevant to their trip, how to avoid unnecessary exposure and what to do if an incident occurs.
Training can cover:
Local laws, cultural norms and destination-specific risks
Personal security, theft prevention and accommodation safety
Health precautions and medical support
Emergency contacts and incident-reporting procedures
How to respond to civil unrest, natural disasters or transport disruption
What to do if travel documents, devices or payment cards are lost or stolen
Prevention should be a key focus. It is often easier to avoid a dangerous situation than to resolve one under pressure. However, travellers also need clear, memorable instructions for responding when something does go wrong.
4. Apply a consistent risk-assessment framework
Create a repeatable approach for evaluating both environmental and traveller-specific risks. For higher-risk destinations, consider additional approval requirements, more detailed briefings, enhanced insurance or alternate travel arrangements.
A travel policy can support this process by restricting booking options that do not meet safety requirements. For example, it can guide employees towards approved accommodation, compliant transport options and safer arrival times.
5. Build a communication, monitoring and emergency-support plan
Employees need to know exactly who to contact if they face an incident, disruption or emergency.
Your plan should include:
A 24/7 support contact
Local emergency service information
Employer and emergency contact details
Procedures for reporting incidents
Escalation responsibilities for travel managers, HR and security teams
Medical, legal and insurance support processes
Embassy or consulate details for international travel
Evacuation or relocation contingencies where relevant
Traveller visibility can also be crucial during widespread disruption. A corporate travel tracker can help travel managers see employee itineraries, including flights, hotels and car rentals, and identify travellers affected by an incident.
Creating a duty of care policy for travel
A duty of care policy should be practical, specific and easy for employees to follow. The ISO 31030 travel risk management standard can provide a useful framework for developing and improving your programme.
Assess your current travel programme
Start by reviewing what currently happens before, during and after employee travel.
Involve relevant stakeholders, including:
Frequent travellers
Travel managers
HR and people teams
Security, legal and compliance teams
Finance and procurement
Senior leadership
Review previous incidents, traveller feedback, booking data and emerging global risks. Frequent travellers can provide valuable first-hand insight into where the current process works and where support is missing.
Working with a travel management company can also help organisations access destination information, traveller support and tools for managing disruptions.
Establish a pre-travel process
A consistent pre-travel process can include:
Reviewing the trip’s purpose, itinerary and destination risk level
Completing a risk assessment where appropriate
Checking entry requirements, travel documentation and insurance
Providing destination-specific alerts and safety guidance
Confirming traveller and emergency contact details
Identifying nearby healthcare facilities, embassies and emergency services
Ensuring the employee understands how to access support
Cover both domestic and international travel
Duty of care should apply to all work-related travel, not just international trips. An employee travelling across town for a meeting can still experience an accident, severe weather, harassment, transport disruption or other safety issue.
International travel may require additional planning, but domestic travel should not be excluded from your safety framework.
Plan for contingencies
Every travel policy should include a reliable Plan B. This should cover both general incidents and trip-specific risks.
For international travel, contingency planning may include:
Emergency accommodation
Alternative transport routes
Medical assistance
Passport replacement support
Insurance and evacuation procedures
Embassy, consulate or evacuation-point information
A process for communicating with travellers and their emergency contacts
Corporate liability can arise from omissions as well as direct negligence. Travellers should know recommended vaccinations, how to access medical treatment and what contingencies exist if evacuation becomes necessary.
Travel safety tips for employees
A company’s policy should be supported by simple, practical guidance that travellers can use on the road.
Before travel, employees should:
Review destination advice, travel alerts and local laws
Confirm passports, visas, insurance and health requirements
Save emergency contacts and support details on their phone
Share their itinerary with the appropriate internal contact
Check accommodation location, transport arrangements and local emergency services
Tell their employer about relevant health, accessibility or safety needs
During travel, employees should:
Stay aware of local conditions and avoid protest areas or unsafe locations
Keep important documents, devices and payment cards secure
Use approved transport and accommodation where possible
Avoid sharing room numbers, travel plans or personal information publicly
Follow local health and safety guidance
Report incidents, disruptions and safety concerns promptly
Contact emergency services first when immediate danger is present, then use company support channels
Improve business travel safety with Perk
Managing travel safety manually can be difficult when employees are travelling across multiple countries, itineraries change quickly and risks evolve in real time.
Perk helps companies support travellers through duty of care solutions, travel visibility and around-the-clock assistance. Travel managers can access employee itinerary information in one place, while travellers can receive support when urgent trip changes or emergencies arise.
With 24/7 customer support, policy controls and traveller tracking, companies can build a more reliable travel safety programme while giving employees greater confidence wherever work takes them.
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