Watch Out For The Fine Print In Frequent Flyer Programs

Watch Out For The Fine Print With New Frequent Flyer Requirements

Watch out for the fine print when comparing changes in some of the airlines’ frequent flyer programs for 2014.  Delta Airlines shocked its frequent flyers with a shift from using the number of miles flown by a passenger to determine his preferred status with the airline to making the cost of the ticket the basis of status.

Supposedly, this was to reward the last minute business flyers who have to pay the highest prices.  However,  when you watch out for the fine print and use a grid comparison to evaluate the advantages for different price points, in most cases all Delta frequent flyers would be rewarded less under the new program.

Why You Need To Watch Out For The Fine Print with United Airlines

United Airlines announced changes to their frequent flyer status requirements also, but on the surface these did not appear difficult to attain.  By requiring a certain minimum dollar payment for each status level, it seemed a reasonable amount for the number of miles you would be flying to reach that level.

However, it is important to watch out for the fine print because there are many exceptions as to how the required minimum expenditure is calculated.  Unfortunately, the total price of the ticket does not represent the amount credited toward your dollar status level.  Exempted from the dollar status credit are taxes, which can represent twenty-five to thirty percent of the total ticket price.

Eliminating Dollar Status Credit for Consolidator Fares and Partner Airlines

For many years, the airlines have sold discounted international tickets through consolidators at lower rates than their published fares.  A discounted business fare, although still two or three times the cost of the lowest coach ticket, can be $2000 less than the published business fare.  Travel agents look for these value plus tickets to book for their clients, and the consolidator tickets have always received the same status mile bonus as the published air tickets.

If you watch for the fine print in the new rules, consolidator and other unpublished fares would no longer count for dollar status credit.  This was painfully learned recently when a $7000 business consolidator ticket that earned almost 27,000 status miles only received a dollar status credit of $811.

If you fly on partner airlines, such as Air Canada and Lufthansa, to take advantage of their lower fares on the same routes United flies, you will not receive dollar status on all of the flights unless you make the reservations on united.com and have a United flight as your first one.

By the time all of the restrictions are implemented, the $7,500 required payment to achieve Platinum status translates into a much larger expense than it first appeared.  Since you will not see the amount credited to your account until after you have traveled, it is hard to estimate the full cost of the new program If you do not watch out for the fine print.

If you not an invested United Mileage Plus frequent flyer with status, you might wonder what free  benefits make the program desirable.  Here are the major ones:

1. Free upgraded seating in the Mileage Plus section of the plane with more leg room
2. Priority boarding so you can always find overhead bin space for your carry-on luggage
3. Free checked luggage on all domestic and international flights
4. Free phone assistance to search for United international coach flights that can be upgraded with miles
5. Possible free upgrades to first class on domestic flights, although this seems to have dried up now that any seats still available on the day of travel are offered for sale at discounted rates to passengers with no upgrade status.

The benefits are attractive enough to still make frequent flyer status worth pursuing, although it is very important for people to watch out for the fine print in order to know exactly how to play the game successfully.

How do you feel about the new restrictions on frequent flyer mileage accounts that make it harder to acquire or maintain your status with an airline?  For expert assistance in planning your best vacation, contact our luxury travel team for a complimentary 20 minute consultation.