How do I prevent unauthorized travel bookings?

Prevent unauthorized travel bookings through three core controls:

• Policy enforcement that stops non-compliant bookings before they happen
• Access controls and spending limits that restrict what employees can book
• Visibility into spend as it occurs, rather than weeks later in an expense report

What approval workflows prevent unauthorized bookings?

The most effective approval workflow is one your team rarely encounters: policy controls that filter out non-compliant options before anyone clicks "book." Engine's travel policies work this way. Set your nightly rate caps and preferred vendors, and employees only see compliant options when they search. No temptation, no violation, no awkward conversations.

When legitimate exceptions arise, Engine's book-outside-policy functionality lets travelers request what they need with required justification. Your superintendent needs a room near the job site that breaks the rate cap? They submit the request with the reason, you review it, and approve legitimate needs in minutes. Custom fields ensure every booking ties to the right project code, so cost allocation is accurate from checkout.

How do spending limits and access controls work?

Role-based permissions determine who can book what. Set spending caps by employee level, department, or project.

Companies often set different limits by role: a foreman might have a $150 nightly limit while a superintendent gets $200. An apprentice might only book from pre-approved properties near active job sites. The point: employees don't get unlimited credit card access. They see only what they're authorized to book.

True Up Companies was juggling bookings across multiple systems with no central visibility into what drivers were spending. With Engine's role-based controls and consolidated platform, they saved $66,000 in five months.

What role does real-time monitoring play in preventing unauthorized bookings?

Real-time monitoring catches problems before charges hit your accounts. Finance managers see pending bookings and budget consumption as it happens, not weeks later in an expense report. You can intervene during the booking window rather than discovering the charge at month-end reconciliation.

Southern Response, a disaster recovery company, dealt with unpredictable emergency deployments that made traditional booking workflows impossible. Coordinators spent 12–14 hours per deployment just arranging lodging. With Engine, they cut deployment booking time to under 30 minutes and saved over $200,000 using FlexPro when plans inevitably changed.

How does a travel policy enforced at point of booking prevent unauthorized spending?

A documented travel policy sets expectations. Your crews know the rules before they book: maximum nightly rates, approved hotel categories, advance booking requirements, and which vendors are in-network. But documentation alone doesn't guarantee compliance.

Engine enforces policy at the point of search. Non-compliant hotels don't appear in results, so there's nothing to approve or deny. Your field workers book what they need without navigating restrictions because they only see compliant options. Direct Bill consolidates everything booked through the platform into one monthly invoice, giving finance complete visibility into authorized spend.

Engine's zero-fee model, consolidated invoicing, and automatic policy enforcement give operations and finance teams the control they need without slowing down crews in the field.