Rules of engagement tighten
to protect PCO clients’ money

The Professional Conference Organisers (PCO) Group in New Zealand has been revisiting its terms, conditions and code of ethics to reassure clients that the sector is proactive and responsible in light of the current economic conditions.

PCO Group chairman Paul Walker says the group has been talking collectively about tightening the rules in regards to membership of the group, and therefore strengthening the trust people have in the PCO members. At the time of going to press the new rules were expected to be presented and signed off when PCOs met at the MEETINGS 2009 exhibition.

Walker says the move has been taken as a result of several high profile failures of conference organiser companies in recent months. He emphasises that these failures have not been of companies which were PCO Group members at the time.

‘We need to tighten things up and we have to be seen to be proactive about this - otherwise we may as well remove the word ‘professional’ from our titles,’ he says.

‘There has been a lot of discussion and it is clear that companies do things in many different ways.’

Walker was unable to give final details of the new PCO rules before the proposed late July sign off but says it is likely to become a standard that group members run separate accounts for each client. He says it is also important to have a contract on how any deposited money is handled. ‘There needs to be a legally binding contract stating that it remains the client’s money.’

Hotel deposits

Meantime, the PCO Association in Australia (which has a growing number of New Zealand members) has sent out an update on hotel deposits.

‘As you may know the incidence of hotels going into receivership/administration is on the rise this year,’ the communiqué states. ‘Often the deposits paid to hotels are banked by the building owner and not the chain or operator. If the building owner enters administration/receivership, any deposits paid to the hotel operator can be lost.

‘As we have a duty of care to our clients, we recommend you check where any deposit funds are being held. Have trust accounts been established?

‘In the case of recognised chain brands, they may be prepared to give you a guarantee relating to any deposits paid, via them, to the building owners. If you are unsure about your liability for any loss of client funds in these circumstances, we recommend you speak with your lawyers or contact the association’s legal adviser, Mike Prior at TVP Law....’

Paul Walker, chairman of the PCO Group in New Zealand, says he understands there has been a problem with a specific property on the Gold Coast which prompted the update from the Australian based association.

A PCO’s exposure can be reduced if delegates are responsible for paying for their own accommodation, however there is still the question of large venue / conference room deposits.

‘People need to do more investigation on who they are giving the money to and how stable that company is, what is the money being used for etc.’

He says people should be looking at paying smaller deposits and receiving assurances that their money is actually going towards the event rather than just into general cash flow.

Alan Trotter, chief executive of Conventions and Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) says this is one more example of the terrible economic situation which currently prevails presenting challenges which New Zealand have never experienced before. ‘It is up to each PCO to check the fine print on their hotel contracts to ensure deposits paid over to a hotel for a conference are used for that express purpose.’