What Does Duty of Care Really Mean for Traveling Employees in 2026?

Business travel has never been more important or more complicated.

Organizations are expanding into new markets, meeting clients across continents, attending global conferences, and supporting operations around the world. While travel creates opportunities for innovation and growth, it also exposes organizations to a responsibility that extends far beyond booking flights, approving expense reports, or reserving hotel rooms.

When an employee boards a plane on behalf of your organization, your responsibility doesn’t end at the departure gate. In many ways, it has only just begun.

This responsibility, commonly known as Duty of Care, has become one of the defining challenges facing HR leaders, security professionals, risk managers, and executive leadership. Yet despite its growing importance, many organizations still misunderstand what Duty of Care truly requires. Some believe it begins and ends with travel insurance. Others assume their responsibility is fulfilled once employees receive an itinerary and emergency contact information.

In reality, Duty of Care is much broader. It is the ongoing responsibility to reasonably protect employees before, during, and after business travel through thoughtful planning, effective communication, risk awareness, and the ability to respond when circumstances change.

As global travel continues to accelerate and world events become increasingly unpredictable, organizations that treat travel safety as a strategic business function, not simply an administrative task, will be far better positioned to protect both their people and their operations.

Executive Summary

Every organization that sends employees away from their normal workplace assumes some level of responsibility for their safety. Whether employees are attending a conference one state away, visiting an international client, inspecting a manufacturing facility overseas, or relocating for an extended assignment, organizations are expected to take reasonable steps to identify risks, prepare travelers, and respond appropriately should an emergency occur.

Modern Duty of Care extends far beyond legal compliance. It has become an essential component of organizational resilience, employee well-being, business continuity, and corporate reputation.

An effective travel safety program typically includes:

• Destination-specific travel risk assessments
• Pre-travel preparation and briefings
• Traveler accountability procedures
• Emergency communication plans
• Crisis response capabilities
• Ongoing monitoring of changing conditions

Technology (including traveler accountability platforms) plays an important role in supporting these efforts, but technology alone is not a complete Duty of Care strategy. Rather, it is one component of a larger framework designed to help organizations anticipate, prepare for, and respond to travel-related risks.

Why Duty of Care Has Become a Boardroom Issue

Not long ago, business travel was viewed primarily as a logistical exercise.

Human Resources coordinated travel policies. Finance approved budgets. Administrative staff booked flights and hotels. Beyond basic emergency contacts and insurance information, relatively little attention was given to traveler safety unless employees were visiting destinations considered particularly hazardous.

That mindset has changed dramatically. Today’s organizations operate in an environment where risks can emerge with little warning. Political demonstrations can disrupt entire cities overnight. Extreme weather events increasingly affect transportation networks across the globe. Cybersecurity threats now follow executives wherever they travel. Public health emergencies can rapidly alter border requirements and local infrastructure. Even destinations traditionally viewed as “low risk” are not immune from unexpected events.

As a result, protecting traveling employees is no longer solely the responsibility of Human Resources or Corporate Security. It has become an executive-level concern that intersects with business continuity, operational resilience, legal exposure, reputation management, and employee retention.

Leaders are asking new questions:

• If a major incident occurred today, could we quickly determine which employees might be affected?
• Do our travelers know how to request assistance?
• Can we communicate with employees if local infrastructure is disrupted?
• Have we evaluated destination-specific risks before approving travel?
• Do we have a documented response plan?

Increasingly, investors, employees, clients, and boards expect organizations to answer “yes.”

Understanding Duty of Care

Although legal definitions vary across jurisdictions, the principle behind Duty of Care remains remarkably consistent. Organizations have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to protect employees while they perform work-related activities, including business travel.

Importantly, Duty of Care does not mean eliminating every possible risk. Travel, by its very nature, involves uncertainty. Flights are delayed. Roads close. Weather changes. Medical emergencies occur. Civil unrest can emerge unexpectedly.

The objective is not to predict every possible scenario.

It is to anticipate foreseeable risks, prepare travelers appropriately, and establish practical procedures that allow organizations to respond effectively when circumstances change.

Consider a relatively routine business trip. An employee travels to another country to attend a three-day industry conference. On the second day, severe flooding causes airport closures and widespread transportation disruptions. Cellular service becomes unreliable. The employee cannot reach the airport, flights are canceled indefinitely, and local authorities begin issuing evacuation advisories.

Without a travel safety program, the organization may have no reliable way to determine:

• Whether the employee is safe.
• Where they are currently located.
• Whether they require assistance.
• How to coordinate next steps.

Now multiply that scenario across dozens (or hundreds) of employees traveling simultaneously. The importance of proactive planning becomes immediately apparent.

The Evolution of Travel Risk Management

Duty of Care has evolved alongside the changing nature of global travel. Historically, organizations focused primarily on high-profile threats such as terrorism, political instability, or violent crime. While those risks remain important, today’s travel environment is significantly more complex.

Modern travel risk management considers a much broader spectrum of potential disruptions, including:

• Severe weather and natural disasters
• Transportation interruptions
• Medical emergencies
• Cybersecurity incidents
• Civil unrest
• Infrastructure failures
• Public health events
• Supply chain disruptions
• Local regulatory changes

This broader perspective recognizes an important truth: The most disruptive travel event isn’t always the most dramatic.

Sometimes it is a canceled flight that strands an executive before a critical negotiation. Sometimes it is a regional power outage that interrupts communications. Either way, organizations that understand this shift are moving beyond reactive crisis management toward proactive travel risk management: a philosophy centered on preparation rather than improvisation.

One of the most influential resources supporting this approach is ISO 31030, the international guidance standard for travel risk management. Published in 2021, ISO 31030 provides organizations with a structured framework for developing travel risk management programs, emphasizing governance, risk assessment, traveler preparation, communication, and continuous improvement. While it is not a certification standard, it has become an important reference for organizations seeking to strengthen their Duty of Care practices and understand how to implement them.

The GlobalSecur Travel Risk Lifecycle

One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding Duty of Care is that it’s a single policy or procedure. In reality, effective travel safety is a continuous process, one that begins long before an employee leaves home and continues even after they return.

Within GlobalSecur, we view this process as the Travel Risk Lifecycle. While every organization is different, successful travel safety programs generally progress through five interconnected stages:

1. Assess

Every trip begins with understanding the destination.

Before approving travel, organizations should evaluate factors such as:

• Crime trends
• Political stability
• Civil unrest
• Public health concerns
• Natural disaster exposure
• Transportation infrastructure
• Medical capabilities
• Local laws and customs
• Cybersecurity risks
• Cultural considerations

Not every trip requires the same level of planning. Sending an employee to Toronto presents different challenges than sending one to São Paulo, Lagos, or Jakarta. A meaningful travel risk assessment allows organizations to allocate resources appropriately while avoiding unnecessary restrictions.

2. Prepare

Preparation transforms information into action. Employees should understand not only where they are traveling, but also what they may encounter and how to respond if conditions change.

Preparation often includes:

• Destination briefings
• Emergency contact information
• Medical considerations
• Cultural awareness
• Cybersecurity best practices
• Required documentation
• Local emergency procedures

Preparation should also establish clear expectations for communication throughout the trip. Employees should know:

• Who to contact if assistance is needed
• How emergencies will be communicated
• When routine check-ins are expected
• What constitutes an emergency requiring immediate escalation

The more familiar travelers are with these procedures before departure, the more confidently they can respond under stress.

3. Monitor

Travel risk is dynamic. Conditions that appear stable before departure can change dramatically within hours.

Organizations should maintain awareness of:

• Severe weather
• Transportation disruptions
• Political demonstrations
• Security incidents
• Health advisories
• Infrastructure outages

Monitoring allows organizations to identify emerging issues before they become crises.

For example, if a tropical storm changes direction toward a city where employees are scheduled to arrive, travel plans can often be modified before flights are canceled or transportation networks become overwhelmed.

Likewise, monitoring geopolitical developments may allow organizations to postpone travel before demonstrations escalate into widespread civil unrest.

4. Respond

Despite careful planning, unexpected events will occur. The effectiveness of a Duty of Care program is often measured not by whether incidents happen, but by how well an organization responds when they do.

Effective response depends on answering several critical questions quickly:

• Who is traveling?
• Where are they?
• Are they safe?
• Can we communicate with them?
• What assistance is required?

Organizations that already have established communication channels and traveler accountability procedures can often make informed decisions within minutes rather than hours. That difference can be significant during rapidly evolving emergencies.

5. Recover

Many organizations overlook the final stage. Once employees return home, the incident is often considered complete. However, post-incident review is one of the most valuable opportunities for improving future preparedness.

Organizations should ask:

• What worked well?
• Where did communication break down?
• Were travelers adequately prepared?
• Were emergency procedures effective?
• What improvements should be made before the next trip?

Continuous improvement is what transforms isolated responses into mature travel safety programs.

Five Common Duty of Care Mistakes Organizations Make

Many organizations believe they have a travel safety program simply because they reimburse travel expenses or maintain an employee handbook. Unfortunately, these measures alone rarely prepare organizations for real-world emergencies.

Here are five of the most common gaps we encounter.

Mistake #1: Assuming Travel Insurance Is Enough

Travel insurance is an important resource, but it is not a travel safety strategy. Insurance may help reimburse costs or coordinate certain services after an incident occurs.

It does not:

• Assess destination risks
• Monitor changing conditions
• Communicate with employees
• Account for travelers during emergencies
• Coordinate organizational response

Insurance should support a broader Duty of Care program, not replace one.

Mistake #2: Treating Every Destination the Same

Every destination carries a unique risk profile. Sending an employee to London requires different preparation than sending one to Mexico City, Nairobi, or Bangkok. Factors such as healthcare infrastructure, transportation reliability, political stability, and local crime trends vary significantly between locations.

Effective organizations tailor their preparation to the destination rather than relying on generic travel guidance.

Mistake #3: Having No Traveler Accountability Process

One of the first questions leadership asks during a crisis is simple:

“Who do we have there?”

Surprisingly, many organizations cannot answer. Without a structured accountability process, companies may spend valuable time manually reviewing itineraries, contacting managers, or attempting to locate employees through outdated travel records.

A documented traveler accountability program dramatically improves situational awareness during emergencies.

Mistake #4: Failing to Test Emergency Procedures

An emergency plan that has never been tested is simply a document. Organizations regularly conduct fire drills, cybersecurity exercises, and business continuity simulations. Travel safety deserves the same attention. Scenario-based exercises help identify communication gaps, clarify responsibilities, and improve decision-making before a real incident occurs.

Mistake #5: Viewing Duty of Care as Solely an HR Responsibility

Travel safety is inherently multidisciplinary. Human Resources plays an important role, but so do:

• Executive leadership
• Corporate security
• Risk management
• Operations
• Legal
• Information technology
• Communications

The strongest programs are supported across the organization rather than owned by a single department.

A Real-World Scenario

Imagine this situation.

A regional sales manager travels overseas to attend a three-day conference. The itinerary appears routine. Flights are booked. Hotel reservations are confirmed. Meetings are scheduled.

On the second evening, large political demonstrations begin several blocks from the convention center. By morning, demonstrations have spread throughout the city. Public transportation is suspended. Road closures prevent access to the airport. Local authorities advise travelers to avoid several neighborhoods. News coverage becomes increasingly alarming.

Leadership immediately begins asking questions:

• Is our employee safe?
• Can we reach them?
• Are they still at the hotel?
• Should we arrange alternate transportation?
• Do other employees have travel scheduled to this city later this week?

Organizations that have invested in travel preparation, destination awareness, traveler accountability, and communication procedures can answer these questions quickly and confidently. Those without a structured program often spend valuable time simply trying to determine who is affected.

Preparation cannot prevent every disruption. It can dramatically improve how effectively an organization responds.

Duty of Care Is More Than Legal Compliance

Many discussions about Duty of Care focus on liability. While legal obligations are certainly important, reducing Duty of Care to compliance alone overlooks its broader business value.

Organizations that prioritize employee travel safety often experience benefits that extend well beyond risk reduction. Employees are more likely to accept travel assignments when they know their employer has invested in their well-being.

Recruiting efforts benefit from demonstrating a genuine commitment to employee safety. Clients and business partners gain confidence in organizations that proactively manage operational risk.

Investors increasingly evaluate resilience and governance practices as part of broader environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives. Most importantly, employees recognize the difference between organizations that simply authorize travel and those that actively support travelers throughout their journey. 

Duty of Care ultimately reflects organizational culture. It demonstrates that protecting people is not merely a policy requirement: it is a leadership priority.

If you’re evaluating your current travel safety program, Incident Management Group (IMG) can help. From travel risk assessments and organizational readiness planning to executive protection and crisis response, IMG Globalsecur provides the expertise organizations need to better protect their people. Combined with FoneTrac’s traveler accountability capabilities, check-in, and emergency communication capabilities, your organization can build a comprehensive Duty of Care program designed for today’s dynamic travel environment.

Ready to strengthen your travel safety program? Contact IMG today at (954) 458-5500 to schedule a Travel Safety Assessment or request a personalized demonstration of FoneTrac and discover how your organization can better prepare, communicate, and respond, wherever business takes your employees.

Incident Management Group (IMG) has helped organizations protect their people, assets, and operations since 1995 through comprehensive travel risk management, executive protection, crisis response, organizational readiness, and security consulting. FoneTrac®, IMG’s traveler accountability application, supports organizations worldwide with employee check-ins, emergency communications, and traveler accountability.