Skyscanner Dynamic Car Hire Bidding FAQ

Partners can download the file and test the following:

• Notepad++: Encoding → Convert to UTF-8 without BOM → Save

• VS Code: Click encoding (bottom-right) → Save with Encoding → UTF-8 → Save

• Mac/Linux terminal: iconv -f UTF-8 -t UTF-8 input.csv > output.csv

Are same-day bidding files accepted?

No, if a partner uploads the same-day bid file, they will receive an error notification in their email.

What formatting is supported?

The system expects plain CVS format and values wrapped in double quotes, extra formatting or separators could cause the validation to fail.

The correct format should be:

market  ,device  ,cpc  ,currency
UK      ,*       ,0.80 ,GBP
US      ,*       ,0.92 ,USD
CA      ,Desktop ,1.05 ,CAD
CA      ,Mobile  ,0.95 ,CAD

Column	Description
Market	Two-letter country code or alias (if defined in metadata).
Device	Mobile, Desktop, or * to apply to all devices.
CPC	Numeric CPC value.
Currency	Any ISO currency code (e.g. GBP, USD, EUR).

What naming format is supported?

For each CPC configuration update, you must upload one CSV file with the following naming format:

CPC_DD_MM_YYYY.csv

• The file contains CPC values by market and device.

• The file must use UTF-8 encoding and comma-separated values.

• The date in the file name (DD_MM_YYYY) represents the effective date of the CPC bids, not the upload date.

Will the partner bid default to the minimum CPC if no bidding file is uploaded?

• No, if the partner does not upload any file, the effective bid will remain the blended CPC, and the minimum CPC will not be applied.

In which currency are minimum bids defined?

• Minimum bids are defined in GBP. Foreign exchange (FX) calculations are applied at the time of validation to ensure that submitted bids meet or exceed the minimum bid threshold.

Can bids be submitted in currencies other than GBP?

• Yes, bids can be submitted in any supported currency; however regardless of the currency used to submit bids, all charges will be billed in your contractually agreed currency at the end of each month.

How does the system handle bids when a modified market isn’t enabled, especially if the values are below the minimum bids?

• If the modified market is not enabled for bids, the system will roll back to the value from the previously active version. In this case, the bids file will pass validation, but a warning will be included.

• If the new bids file continues to use the values from the previously active version, it will pass validation even if those values are below the minimum bids.

How to know if your upload bids were successful in validation?

• Skyscanner will send an email verifying the status of the bids.

Below is the table sample for the MCPC email validation.

Description	Email Sample
Success
Warning - Bid market not enabled
Error – Missing required columns
Error – illegal value
Error - Bids conflict
Error - Unknown Columns
Error – minimum bids violation