Dear Cashing In, I have an upcoming trip on United Airlines, and they keep sending me emails asking if I'm interested in an «Award Accelerator» program that lets me earn bonus frequent
flier miles by paying a small fee.
Will I lose my collected
flier miles by doing so?
Instead of awarding frequent
flier miles by the distance flown, all major U.S. airlines will award them based on the cost of the ticket.
A borderline agoraphobe who's picked on by his seven sisters, he lives alone in a sterile Valley apartment, is prone to sudden violent outbursts of rage and is obsessed with his scheme to acquire 1.5 million frequent -
flier miles by buying Healthy Choice pudding.
Not exact matches
Airline frequent
flier programs have become less rewarding over the last few years
by offering fewer upgrades to elite
fliers and requiring more
miles than ever for award tickets.
He christened his frequent
flier account (6,440
miles in the bank to date) and passport last month with a visit to our friends in Toronto followed
by a lovely week with family & friends in Michigan.
On the verge of reaching five million frequent
flier miles, Ryan is informed
by his boss, Craig Gregory (Jason Bateman), that the company is looking to cut corners as well.
It is possible to earn airline
miles without a credit card
by joining an airline's frequent
flier program.
Belkin, who goes
by the name BeauBeau on various travel forums, treats frequent
flier miles like a Wall Street investment banker treats stocks.
Anyone can contribute to the cause throughout the month of April
by donating their frequent
flier miles or making a cash donation to Make - A-Wish.
Once you've earned those
miles — whether
by flying or
by making charges on a co-branded airline credit card — the airline controls the frequent
flier miles, not the bank that issued the card.
Some frequent
fliers, known as «travel hackers,» take advantage of distance - based programs
by earning lots of
miles on cheap flights and then redeeming them for more expensive award tickets.
«Going ballistic» Travel and rewards expert Tim Winship says he wasn't surprised
by the poll results because he says rewards users, especially frequent
fliers, are passionate about their
miles.
For instance, you can earn 30,000 frequent
flier miles on United Airlines or American Airlines
by spending $ 1,000 in three months on the credit cards they offer in conjunction with banks (Chase's United MileagePlus Explorer card, $ 95 annual fee, waived first year; Citi's Platinum Select AAdvantage World MasterCard, $ 95 annual fee, waived first year).
American Airlines, the world's largest carrier, said today that it is fundamentally changing the way it awards frequent
flier miles, joining other major U.S. airlines
by rewarding dollars spent instead of
miles flown.
For
fliers redeeming their
miles, Delta will continue to award tickets
by pricing them in
miles, not in actual cash fares, offering different levels of availability as it does today.»
Follow the moving retail target Frequent
flier bloggers have been obsessed with this game ever since the Vanilla / Bluebird / rewards card trifecta was discovered
by miles collectors a few months ago.
Consumers who rack up
miles on credit cards are especially vulnerable: Airlines waive many of the fees for their most - frequent
fliers, but not for those who accumulate
miles mainly
by credit card spending.
If you're a frequent
flier on United, here's a deal to consider: the new United Mileage Plus Explorer card, issued
by Chase, is offering up to 60,000
miles as a sign - up bonus.
Most customers (those without elite status) will receive frequent
flier miles equal to the cost of the fare multiplied
by five.
Most people don't buy frequent
flier miles — they typically earn them
by flying, or receive them from using a
miles - earning credit card.
A slight dip in her credit score for a few months is worth cutting an annual fee
by $ 100 and earning 30,000 frequent
flier miles.
That was followed
by American Airlines joining forces with Visa to offer a frequent -
flier mile for every dollar a cardholder spent.
«For
fliers redeeming their
miles, Delta will continue to award tickets
by pricing them in
miles, not in actual cash fares, offering different levels of availability as it does today -LSB-...] Delta plans to introduce a system with up to five tiers of redemption choices so customers will have a wider variety of options, including one - way reward tickets and the ability to redeem tickets using both
miles and cash, Mr. Robertson said.
Under its new program, which will apply to most flights departing on or after March 1, 2015, the number of
miles you receive for a flight will be the fare price multiplied
by a number between five and 11, depending on whether you have elite
flier status.
Frustrated
by the complexity and hassle of redeeming frequent
flier miles and credit card reward points, some consumers are turning to a new breed of specialized travel agents to handle the dirty work: professional award bookers.
With nonairline travel cards, such as those sponsored
by Capital One and American Express, you might have to follow special rules for purchasing a ticket with
miles or points, or specifically request that
miles be transferred to your frequent
flier account.
The tradeoff is that these points can be redeemed for more than a penny each, which is better than many frequent
flier miles issued
by airlines.
With sign - up bonuses for airline rewards cards hitting new heights, savvy frequent
fliers can pocket thousands of extra
miles — for free —
by signing up for a succession of credit cards with mileage bonus offers.
Although the report was commissioned
by several airlines, it indicated an overall satisfaction
by fliers despite the policies that require the dollar spend over
miles earned.
Fewer
miles being earned
by heavy
fliers might mean it's a bit easier for you to find an award seat.
While only about half of
fliers surveyed have an airline credit card, 59 % of those hold one say they earn more
miles with the card than they do
by flying.
If you aren't tied to the idea of earning cash back or frequent
flier miles specifically, you can opt for a points credit card like those offered
by Citi Bank.
Just as with frequent
flier programs, hotel cards are tied to loyalty programs, and just as you maximized your
miles by sticking to one airline group, you'll get the most benefit if you can stick to one hotel chain.
In November 2014, reports began emerging about millions of stolen Hilton HHonors points, followed
by news in early 2015 that thieves had stolen American Airlines and United Airlines frequent
flier miles after getting hold of account holders» usernames and passwords.
Frequent business travelers often use one airline and have their travel costs picked up
by their employers, which allows them to rack up enormous amounts of
miles with their chosen airline, especially if they make all their business charges with that airline's frequent
flier credit card.
If history offers any guide, the 69 million members of American Airlines» frequent -
flier program shouldn't fret about losing their
miles following Tuesday's bankruptcy filing
by the airline's parent company.
For frequent
fliers, the decision to eschew the credit cards may be harder, as they are often generating so many
miles by flying and working toward elite level qualification, which Brancatelli admits is important to the business traveler.
Standing precedent on this issue is a statement made
by the IRS in 2002, regarding «the taxability of frequent
flier miles or other promotional items that are received as the result of business travel and used for personal purposes.»
The buying power of frequent
flier miles jumped to 1.6 cents in 2005, spurred
by the 12.7 percent increase in average fares IdeaWorks used to define a typical reward ticket.
«Many frequent
flier programs expressly state that
miles or points are not property of the member, and are not transferable
by operation of law to any person or entity,» Connolly says.
There are few regulations, airlines can change the terms any time they want, and frequent
flier miles are not regulated
by any government body.
Losses for tickets or tours won as an award or
by redeeming frequent
flier or credit card
miles (although some plans will reimburse the re-deposit fee for frequent flyer programs)
We immediately contacted Travel Insured International, to institute a claim for the 12 % Cancellation Fee that was being imposed upon our refund
by the touring agency (amounting to $ 755), and for reimbursement of the «reinstatement fee» of $ 150 charged to my account
by American Airlines, to reinstate my Frequent
Flier miles that I had used for my air ticket to Japan.
However, if the trip was cancelled
by a travel supplier, some policies will reimburse the cost of a reissue fee plus fees to re-bank frequent
flier miles.
Frequent
flier miles aren't covered
by travel insurance.