Purpose

An ICIA is required under the Islands (Scotland) Act 2018 and as specified in the Islands (Scotland) Act 2018 the ICIA will:

• Describe the likely, significantly different effects of the proposed changes to the Terms and Conditions for block booking customers.
• Assess the extent to which CalMac considers the Block Booking Terms and Conditions to improve or mitigate capacity for the island communities and the outcomes resulting from it.

As specified in the Islands (Scotland) Act 2018, on completion of the ICIA, CalMac will have:

• Ensured that the commercial customers and communities are kept in mind throughout the changes to the Block Booking Terms and Conditions.
• Helped to support strong, resilient and vibrant island communities.
• Helped to meet the four principles of fairness, integration, environmental protection (green) and inclusiveness that underpin the work to support island communities.
• Promoted the voice of island communities.
• Recognised that every person in Scotland has a right to live with dignity and to enjoy high quality public services wherever they live.

(see Appendix 1 for further detail as regards to rationale and purpose)

Timelines 

The ICIA process commenced on 26 May 2025 with an expected completion date at the end of September. The customer consultations commenced on 13 June 2025 and completed on 23 July 2025. During the 30-day consultation period 18 meetings were held from 19 June 2025 to 1 July 2025 with a combination of mixed group meetings and one-to-one meetings at customer’s request. 39 companies attended the consultation sessions with 49 individual attendees. Once the 30-day consultation period finished all commercial customer comments/feedback were captured and collated, findings determined, and recommendations finalised within 10 days. The island communities in scope were informed of expected timescales and justification provided for any changes to timescales as required.

Guidance

Scottish Government Islands Policy and Communities Team are available for guidance and support on the ICIA process.

Objective

The objective of this consultation is to gather feedback on the proposed changes to the Block Booking Terms and Conditions from our commercial customers. This process aims to ensure the Block Booking Terms and Conditions amendments are transparent, considers the full range of factors affecting commercial customers and is reflective of the diverse needs of our service users. Ultimately, our goal is to be as inclusive as possible and capture the diverse requirements of our commercial customers and where appropriate be considered for inclusion in the amended Block Booking Terms and Conditions. In so doing this should enhance the overall service by optimising deck space for the benefit of all customers.

Our goal is to prevent late cancellations and no shows and thus optimise deck space for all customers. The aim of this consultation is to collate feedback on the proposed changes to the Block Booking Terms and Conditions from our block booking commercial customers. This process seeks to ensure all customers are aware of the proposed changes, and accounts for the unique nature of island businesses.

Background

The combination of increased demand and a lack of adherence to and enforcement of Block Booking Terms and Conditions has resulted in our need to review our Block Booking Terms and Conditions and propose changes. Hence the need to consult with our block booking commercial customers.

As part of our commitment to improving fairness, accountability, operational efficiency and service delivery we have reviewed the Block Booking Terms and Conditions for commercial customers ahead of the Winter 2025/26 timetable. These changes aim to address operational challenges, maximise deck space, and respond to ongoing disruption across the network. Block bookings play a key role in how we provide a service to our commercial customers; these have not been strictly implemented over the past few years, and commercial customers have had no financial implications for no shows. It has been recognised that several customers are not fully utilising their block bookings, and we are continuing to see no shows having an impact on deck space utilisation across the network. We have received feedback from ferry committees and several commercial customers about a lack of ability to make bookings only for space to transpire at time of boarding. This has caused a real sense of frustration among customers and stakeholders alike. While late cancellations and no shows are not the only cause for space becoming available at time of boarding, it is a significant contributing factor hence the need to address Block Booking Terms and Conditions, amend and enforce.

Existing Terms and Conditions for Block Booking Customers  

The most salient clauses within the Block Booking Terms and Conditions are highlighted below. In summary, they relate to late cancellations, where less than 24 hours notice is given, customer no shows and utilisation of less than 80%.

• We require all block booking customers to achieve not less than an 80% level of utilisation of block bookings made in any one timetable period.  
• Customers may cancel any or all block bookings, provided that such cancellations are submitted by e-mail to CFL at least 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure time. 
• The practice of confirming all block bookings prior to departure and then cancelling some or all these bookings at check in time will not be accepted. 
• Check in times must be adhered to, late check in may lead to the vehicle being refused carriage and recorded as a no-show. 
• Customers that block book may have their credit facility withdrawn in the event they fail to comply.
• For the avoidance of doubt, failure to advise CFL that a block booking is not required - resulting in a ‘No Show’ - will result in the cancellation of all future block bookings for the particular sailing involving the ‘No Show’. It is the customers sole responsibility to inform CFL of any amendments to bookings including but not limited to changes to travel times or size of vehicles booked.

Proposal at consultation stage

Beyond emphasising the importance of the Block Booking Terms and Conditions and the need to adhere to them to ensure the maximum space is freed up for all customers, the primary purpose of the proposal is to consult on:

1. No Shows - 100% charge for customers that do not turn up by the check in time for their scheduled sailing without any prior notification to CalMac will be classed as a no show.
2. Under no circumstances may any block booking space be transferred or offered to any 3rd party.
3. Enforcement of Late Cancellations - Failure to notify CalMac of a booking cancellation 24 hours prior to travel will result in the booking being classified as a late cancellation.

ICIA Process

The process for conducting the ICIA, along with the revised Block Booking Terms and Conditions following consultation is set out in the downloadable document at the bottom of this page.

Conclusion

CalMac fulfilled their commitment to review the commercial customer Block Booking Terms and Conditions and aligned this review with the ICIA process. The full process has been participative and has enabled an in-depth understanding to be gathered of the specific challenges faced by commercial customers directly and island communities indirectly. With over 50 responses to the consultation, CalMac are extremely grateful to everyone who participated and welcomed all feedback. This helped provide reassurance that the final amended Block Booking Terms and Conditions were reviewed considering customer feedback with amendments benefiting all customers and with welcomed improvements for commercial customers and island communities alike. The feedback received allowed the Block Booking Terms and Conditions amendments to be adjusted to reflect the realities and concerns of those affected.

Appendix 1: Block Booking Terms and Conditions Rationale and Purpose

Why are we doing this? ​

The goal is to optimise deck space utilisation, reduce 'no-shows' and late cancellations while improving operational efficiency and customer satisfaction. ​

The aim is to cancel unnecessary block bookings from the system as early as possible, to ensure all customer groups have access to guaranteed bookings, and in so doing, reduce the need for customers to go 'standby' on the day of travel.

• The misuse of block bookings can impact deck space utilisation and capacity across the network.​

• Some block booking customers are not adhering to the current Terms and Conditions, and we are continuing to see no shows and late cancellations within 24 hours of departure. ​

• We want to effectively manage bookings and maximise deck space utilisation and to achieve this we must work with our customers to imbed good working practices.​

Feedback – Internal and External​

Port teams, ferry committees, and the local community are regularly reporting concerns. Customers are aware of unused space being held under block bookings but cannot access it opting instead to travel standby. On arrival, they often see empty deck space, leading to frustration. Some have taken photos and shared them on social media, increasing public scrutiny and dissatisfaction.​ However, it must be recognised that the above is not always down to the commercial customer.

Appendix 2: Block Booking Terms and Conditions Customer Communications Pack

• Opens in new windowBlock Booking Customers Terms and Conditions Presentation
• CV and LGV Block Booking Terms*
• Commercial Block Booking Customers Consultation FAQs

*terms and conditions sent out to block booking customers prior to consultation

Appendix 3: Proposed timelines

• Executive Committee - 21 July 2025
• Transport Scotland - 2 August 2025
• Colleagues - 11 August 2025
• External Stakeholders & Communities (Ferry Committees) - 15 September 2025
• Adherence & Enforcement of New Block Booking Terms and Conditions - 20 October 2025

Appendix 4: Attendance and Feedback Summary from Consultation

In total 113 companies were invited to the consultation sessions, out of which 39 (35%) customers accepted and 74 (65%) declined. 

In total 39 companies provided feedback via our consultation sessions (34%), 21 provided feedback via our feedback form, by email or phone call (19%) and 53 provided no feedback (47%). Overall, we received feedback from 53% companies.  

Appendix 5 Customer Feedback Results – 100% No-Show Fee for Block Bookings

As you can see from the chart shown and the information below, customers were generally supportive of the introduction of no-show fees. ​

• Total Number of Customers who were positive regarding the introduction of no-show fees – 35
• Total Number of Customers who were negative regarding the introduction of no-show fees – 13
• Total Number of Customers who were neutral regarding the introduction of no-show fees – 12
  ​

*Neutral – the customer did not provide any positive or negative feedback towards the proposal, and the points made did not reference no show fees. 

Appendix 6 Customer Feedback Results – 24-Hour Cancellation Policy for Block Bookings 

As you can see from the chart, there were a significant number of customers who were negative towards the 24-hour cancellation policy. ​

• Total Number of Customers who were positive regarding the 24-hour cancellation policy - 20
• Total Number of Customers who were negative regarding the 24-hour cancellation policy – 28
• Total Number of Customers who were neutral regarding the 24-hour cancellation policy – 12

*Neutral – the customer did not provide any positive or negative feedback towards the proposal, and the points made did not reference the cancellation policy.

Appendix 7: Commercial Customer Consultation Feedback – Key Themes and Responses