Q: I have a very troublesome client who is threatening to sue me, complain to government agencies and post derogatory comments on social media. We booked air and hotels for a multidestination trip next month. Her complaint is that we decline to continue to advise her on a daily basis about every little detail that she asks about, such as exactly what sights to see, how much to tip, which credit cards to use and visa issues. The client also demands that I remain available 24 hours a day in case problems arise. Are such advice and such availability really legally required of me? Does it make any difference if I charged a fee for the arrangements we made? Does it make a difference if my website states that I’m an expert in that area of the world?

A: A travel advisor’s legal duties are not unlimited. Under court precedents, they consist of making requested arrangements with care and advising about risks that are known or should be known to the advisor but that would not be known to the reasonably informed client.

Conversely, a travel advisor generally has no legal obligation to answer any and all pre-trip questions or to provide advice beyond advising about risks. Similarly, an advisor generally has no legal duty to remain on call after the trip begins, let alone 24 hours a day.

The fact that you charged a fee does not add to your legal duty, although it certainly may affect your client’s expectations. The fact that you hold yourself out as an expert in that area of the world does not add to your legal duty, either, as there is no generally accepted standard of what an area expert is, so any advisor can call himself an expert in anything.

Thus far, I have only discussed your legal obligations. I realize that many readers would react negatively and aver that you consider it your professional obligation to provide the services requested by this client. That’s fine, and if you did so I would complement you on your professionalism, but that is different from your legal obligation.

The exception to all this would be the case where you have an express agreement to provide such pre-trip advice and in-trip availability. The agreement should be in writing, but it can also consist of your oral assurances that the client relied on in deciding to use your services, if the client can prove what you promised.

For after-hours, in-trip inquiries, your agreement can provide that the client should use a 24-hour emergency service that you can sign up for. If you have a host agency, I am sure that it has such a service under contract.

For the future, when you make complex travel arrangements for a leisure client, you should have a written agreement that spells out exactly what you will do. In the same document or in a separate disclaimer such as those at www.pestronk.com/resources, you should also cover what you are not responsible for and what the client’s obligations are.

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