Business travelers want more safety, support and reassurance

Safety concerns, frequent disruption and rising expectations of employer support are reshaping how employees experience travel for work, and how they judge the companies they work for.

Zurich’s new Business Travel Outlook 2026 – How to navigate a new era of disruption, based on responses from 4,000 international business travelers across five continents and eight countries, finds that disruption has become the norm. Four in five respondents (80%) experienced at least one disruption while traveling for work in 2025, and more than half faced an incident or emergency during a business trip.

Those incidents increasingly go beyond delays and logistics. One in five travelers (20%) encountered natural disasters, geopolitical threats or societal unrest – more than those reporting medical incidents (13%) – and 43 percent say they feel less safe traveling for business than they used to.

Younger travelers are feeling the strain. Gen Z employees are less confident about how to respond in an emergency, more concerned about mental health while traveling, and more likely to lose belongings than older generations. They also travel internationally more often and are more likely to mix business and leisure “(bleisure” travel), a fast-growing trend that can create new risks and protection gaps if policies don’t keep pace.

The findings tell a stark story about what is at stake for employers. Nearly three in five respondents (58%) believe their employer could do more to ensure their safety while traveling, and a similar proportion (60%) say they would consider leaving their job if safety wasn’t a priority.

As business travel enters a new era of rapid change and greater complexity, the need for proactive support for business travelers has never been greater. Disruptions, safety concerns and shifting employee expectations are shaping today’s travel landscape. Business leaders must invest in tailored travel protection to prioritize employee wellbeing. Taking decisive steps will help safeguard the traveling workforce, retain top talent, and strengthen organizational resilience.

Cara Morton, CEO Global Businesses and Operations

With most respondents (81%) planning to mix business and leisure travel in 2026, the report highlights the need for clearer guidance, better preparation and more responsive travel risk management approaches that reflect how people travel today – not how they traveled a decade ago.

Key findings from the report

• 80% of international business travelers experienced at least one disruption while traveling for work in 2025.
• 53% reported at least one travel incident or emergency in 2025.
• 43% feel less safe traveling for business than they used to.
• 81% plan to combine business and leisure travel in 2026.
• 58% agreed their employer could do more to ensure safety.
• 60% would quit their employer if they felt their safety when traveling was not a priority.
• 26% – including 32% of Gen Z – are unsure or do not know what to do in an emergency abroad.

About the research

The report offers practical steps organizations can take to protect their people, adapt to emerging risks, and build responsive travel risk management policies that reflect today’s realities. The Business Travel Outlook 2026 survey is based on responses from 4,000 employed individuals who traveled internationally for business at least once in 2025. Survey responses were collected by Opinium Research from December 19, 2025, to January 5, 2026, with 500 participants each from the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Germany, and Singapore.

Further Information

The full report, Business Travel Outlook 2026 – How to navigate a new era of disruption is available for download on Zurich’s website.