{"id":570,"date":"2017-10-24T05:00:42","date_gmt":"2017-10-24T09:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/?p=570"},"modified":"2026-01-07T11:34:51","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:34:51","slug":"3-ways-tell-home-based-travel-agency-registered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/3-ways-tell-home-based-travel-agency-registered","title":{"rendered":"3 Ways to Tell if a Home-Based Travel Agency is Registered"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In Ontario, the travel industry has experienced a dramatic increase in home-based travel agencies and travel counsellors working as outside sales representatives on behalf of travel agencies. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While registered home-based travel agencies are completely legal, consumers should take the same precautions they would when dealing with a brick and mortar or online travel agency. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To ensure you are not forfeiting the consumer protection available in Ontario when travel, check to make sure the company is registered with TICO.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-595\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Untitled-design.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"778\" height=\"327\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Untitled-design.png 778w, https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Untitled-design-300x126.png 300w, https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Untitled-design-768x323.png 768w, https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Untitled-design-256x108.png 256w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 778px) 100vw, 778px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>All travel agencies and websites located and operating in Ontario must be TICO registered<\/strong> and must follow consumer protection laws. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These include following trust accounting and other financial requirements, advertising standards, and rules around providing proper disclosure at the time of booking. There is also a<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/consumers\/overview.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Travel Compensation Fund<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which provides consumer protection in the event of bankruptcy or insolvency. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Here Are 3 Questions to Ask to Make Sure a Home-Based Travel Agency is Registered:<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3><b>1. Can the Home-Based Travel Agency Provide a TICO Registration Number?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the travel industry in Ontario is regulated, <\/span><b>all home-based travel agencies are required to be registered with TICO <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and must follow consumer protection laws when selling travel services. \u00a0Selling travel services in Ontario without TICO registration is a violation of the <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Travel Industry Act, 2002<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and may result in charges being laid. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once registered, each travel agency is given their own unique registration number. To find out if an agency is registered, look for the <\/span><b>TICO logo<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and the agency\u2019s <\/span><b>TICO registration number<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. You can also use TICO\u2019s online<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/tico.ca\/search\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">travel agency search<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> feature to find out if a particular home-based travel agency is a TICO registered agency or not.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>2. Is Your Home-Based Travel Agent TICO Certified?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Anyone selling travel services, even if they are a home-based travel agent must complete the TICO Certification program and successfully pass the exam<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> prior to selling travel services on behalf of a registered Ontario travel agency or website. The exam tests the individual on Ontario&#8217;s travel consumer protection requirements. Be sure to ask your travel agent if they are TICO Certified.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>3. Has Your Home-Based Travel Agent Provided You With Complete Disclosure?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Regardless of how and where the transaction takes place, all TICO registered travel agencies and TICO Certified Travel Counsellors are <\/span><b>required by law to provide certain disclosures to you regarding the travel services you wish to purchase<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> prior to accepting payment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The total price of the travel services including all taxes and fees<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The travel dates<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A fair and accurate description of the travel services to be provided<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cancellation penalties<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Availability of insurance<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Travel documents required for each person traveling<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1996 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Tweet-10A.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"512\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Tweet-10A.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Tweet-10A-300x150.png 300w, https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Tweet-10A-768x384.png 768w, https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Tweet-10A-256x128.png 256w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2><b>Book with a TICO Registered Travel Agency<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">To verify if a travel agency or website is TICO registered, check <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/tico.ca\/search\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">our online directory<\/span><\/b><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">.\u202f<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:270,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Take the <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/tico.ca\/quiz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">TICO Traveller Quiz<\/span><\/b><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u202f<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">to see what type of traveller you are.\u202f<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:270,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<p>Sign up to receive quarterly travel consumer protection  <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/visitor.r20.constantcontact.com\/manage\/optin?v=001p8NOiSxIZC12oVOmEkGz3mpJax73Yi5s2-_VlwcuwvUYDtJi7HEUhKSbixYTzRTonN5SkQMZqB-b9x1BDdZjnTH2KgUTqnhhgKWfgCKo4vouIG6xNwWzZtP4BVFs0ieDuxrNbX2R9XyTFulZz_ra7A%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">email updates<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more travel tips and information, visit the\u202f <a href=\"https:\/\/tico.ca\/consumer\/info.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Smart Traveller Guide<\/strong><\/a>. <span data-contrast=\"none\">All travel agencies and websites located and operating in Ontario are regulated by TICO. Registered travel agencies and websites provide additional consumer protection for your travel investment that may not be available when booking with travel agencies and websites based in other countries or provinces. For more information about \u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/tico-help-consumers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">how TICO helps, click here<\/span><\/b><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">.\u202f\u00a0<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"none\">Any questions can be directed to tico@tico.ca or 1-888-451-TICO (8426).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In Ontario, the travel industry has experienced a dramatic increase in home-based travel agencies and travel counsellors working as outside sales representatives on behalf of travel agencies. While registered home-based travel agencies are completely legal, consumers should take the same precautions they would when dealing with a brick and mortar or online travel agency. To&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":594,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4,20,19],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\r\n<title>3 Ways to Tell if a Home-Based Travel Agency is Registered - Travel Industry Council of Ontario Blog<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"To ensure you are not forfeiting consumer protection in Ontario when booking with an out-of-home agency, you need to make sure they are TICO registered.\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tico.ca\/blog\/3-ways-tell-home-based-travel-agency-registered\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"3 Ways to Tell if a Home-Based Travel Agency is Registered - 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