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Practical lessons from Lloyd Figgins, CEO of TRIP Group at EnrolyCon
Lloyd Figgins has spent years advising governments, organisations and travellers on safety, security and risk management around the world.
At EnrolyCon, he delivered one of the most practical sessions of the day, focused not on fear, but on how frequent travellers can reduce risk through awareness, preparation and small behavioural changes.
For professionals in international Higher Education, the topic felt particularly relevant.
Recruitment trips, agent visits, conferences, overseas campuses and partnership meetings mean many university teams spend months of the year travelling internationally. And according to Lloyd, that familiarity can sometimes become the risk itself.
“When we arrive in a new destination, we are vulnerable because we do not have a baseline of normality.”
Here are some of the biggest travel mistakes he warned international education professionals against.
1. Treating overseas travel differently to travel at home
One of the simplest but most revealing audience questions focused on seatbelts. Almost everyone in the room said they always wear one in the UK. Far fewer said they always do overseas.
As Lloyd put it:
“Unless we start demanding that we have proper transportation that has proper seat belts… then we are part of the problem.”
The point was simple: experienced travellers often normalise risks abroad that they would never accept at home.
2. Losing awareness the second you leave the airport
According to Lloyd, distraction is one of the biggest vulnerabilities for modern travellers. People walking through transport hubs glued to phones with noise-cancelling headphones:
“The bread and butter for criminality.”
Phones reduce peripheral vision. Headphones remove awareness of surroundings. Opportunistic criminals notice immediately.
For university staff regularly travelling alone with passports, laptops and work devices, situational awareness matters.
3. Sitting in the wrong place in taxis
One practical tip that stuck with many attendees - sit behind the driver, not next to them.
Why?
- the driver cannot easily see valuables or your phone
- they cannot easily reach you
- you are closer to an exit if needed
Small decisions, Lloyd explained, can significantly reduce vulnerability.
4. Ignoring hotel safety basics
Lloyd shared several surprisingly simple hotel habits:
- avoid ground-floor rooms
- avoid rooms above the fourth floor due to fire ladder access
- ask reception not to announce your room number publicly
- physically walk fire escape routes when you arrive
One anecdote involved discovering blocked fire exits containing children’s toys and even a disused washing machine.
“Little things can actually make a big difference.”
5. Assuming familiarity means safety
One of the strongest themes throughout the session was complacency. International recruitment professionals often revisit the same countries repeatedly. Airports, taxis and late-night arrivals become routine.
But Lloyd warned that experienced travellers can sometimes become less alert precisely because travel feels normal.
Fatigue, jet lag, busy schedules and constant movement all reduce awareness.
6. Posting travel updates in real time
Another major warning focused on social media.
Using an example of a traveller publicly sharing flight details, hotel locations and live updates, Lloyd explained how easily that information can be exploited.
“That, ladies and gentlemen, is how people get kidnapped.”
While extreme, the wider message landed strongly: real-time travel posting creates unnecessary exposure.
His advice was simple, post afterwards, not while travelling.
7. Thinking travel safety is about fear
The session closed with an important reminder, international travel is overwhelmingly safe.
“The vast majority of those trips are trouble free.”
This was not about making people fearful of travelling overseas. It was about avoiding complacency and building smarter habits.
For many in the room, it felt less like a security briefing and more like a useful reminder to be aware, stay prepared, and do not let frequent travel switch your instincts off.
