Originally Posted by
LondonElite
The TA owns the ticket until T-24, when it goes to airport control. TA's want it like this for historical customer service reasons.
This is certainly part of it. I prefer to do my own travel, but from time to time work with companies who contract all travel to a TA. They are very pointed about not doing things to the ticket down to "changing your seat as their system may change it back". I think this part is bluff since I've never had a problem doing things like changing a seat or adding my FF number when they haven't (typical, BTW).
On the upside, they do "own" the ticket and when travel goes south a good TA will proactively be monitoring and send me a "we've already rebooked you" along with an entire new set of instructions down to new airport pickup instructions, modified hotel reservations, etc. They've also notified the company that's paying for the trip so I don't have to.
If I started to muck about with the ticket myself I'd throw all that off.