Hays has apologised to a rival travel agent after one of its trainees carried out a mystery shopping exercise at her busy high street store.

The agent said she was fuming when the apprentice from a Hays store in her home town called into her shop with a fake enquiry.

She said her agency was full of customers at the time, but the trainee ‘had the cheek’ to return later, further wasting her time when she was trying to deal with genuine bookings.

Posting a direct appeal to Hays’ boss Dame Irene Hays on Facebook, the agent said: “We are all super busy with all new enquiries and do not need the extra work. Irene please address this.”

Other agents who read her message were appalled at the idea of rival agents Mystery Shopping each other.

One wrote: “Shocking in the current climate where companies are busy and struggling to recruit.”

Others said it was ‘disgusting’ and ‘counter-productive’.

The agent, who doesn’t wish to be named, said she believed it was part of Hays’ in-house apprenticeship training programme.

However, she has since received a full apology from both Hays’ head office and the local branch concerned.

She told Travel Gossip: “They advised this isn’t part of their training and this shouldn’t have happened.

“It has been addressed in house their end and even the branch manager came to me personally and apologised on behalf of what had happened as the training isn’t done in branch it is all done via Zoom.

“Glad it has been addressed and I did appreciate the apologies too.”