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NonGeographicalMan

Andy_cf wrote: »

As I had said, before I'd read this forum it had never crossed my mind that availability would be such an issue.

Things have become a lot worse since they went back to a year round flat rate miles redemption system instead of charging more air miles at periods of high demand and less miles during low season periods. They are very reluctant indeed to let any seat go to Air Miles customer on dates when they can sell all the seats for cash fares. The point of Air Miles is to fill up planes that would otherwise travel with say 35% of their seats empty. But I can't understand the basic lack of availability problem to all destinations in Australia and New Zealand given that Air Miles also does redemption with several other airlines including Virgin.

Doesn't seem a particularly fair scheme to allow some many people to spend so long saving up and then having to chase so few seats. Many more people than prizes.

It most certainly is not and if you take the trouble to email their Chief Executive and their marketing director with your concerns (as I have) and your email is then passed for response (after them initially trying to fob me off with a meaningless reply from customer services) to an ultra evasive legal director then you will be left in no doubt that the company (BA) does not care that Air Miles is a second class mileage scheme compared to BA Miles with thoroughly second class redemption rights (hence no stopovers or one way flights allowed any more after the premium business customers were syphoned off in to the separate and superior BA Miles scheme with Air Miles now being mainly focused as much on selling you holidays for cash as much as on redeeming miles.)

Will have to use my free 1500 points on a short haul this year and carry on saving and waiting for that trip to Aus!

Air Miles availability does exist to Australian destinations from time to time but what happens is that it gets released in waves on a few dates (Monday morning seems to be a good time for more seats to appear) but is then immediately snapped up so you need to be checking back at least once a week until eventually some dates come up. But given the Christmas holiday problem if you are thinking going out in November and back in December you could easily find that the dates that come up only let you go for 12 days or seven weeks. When I was looking in mid November 2009 first of all there was no availability but then seats came up leaving in the next few days but the only flights back were either arriving on Christmas Day morning or not until January 17th. Combined with the no stopover in Singapore issue (I have a school friend who lives in Singapore and I also go stir crazy and start to feel quite unwell on any flight travelling in Economy longer than about 10 hours - it doesn't help I am 6ft 3in tall) that was the deciding factor for me in not booking an Air Miles flight.

So if you got the 10,000 miles and then kept checking the Air Miles site every day sooner or later some flights would come up in Nov, Dec or Jan but the duration of the trip might not suit you and you might also decide that the lack of a stopover in the Far East or the ability to fly to in Australia and then back to the UK from another Australian airport or from one in New Zealand were terminal failings with an Air Miles ticket to this destination. By contrast with short haul UK or to the more major European city airports (but not the Med in the summer where all the same lack of availability problems as Oz and Nz exist) an Air Miles ticket is more or less as available as a cash ticket and the restrictions compared to a cash ticket (no stopover or one ways) are less of an issue on a short haul European or UK domestic flight.

If you want to go South Africa or South America in mid winter though (both of which can be reached for 8,000 miles return) then Air Miles flights are pretty readily available.

Also the north of Scotland is pretty interesting around the longest day (June 21st) so you might want to think of using the 1500 miles for two flights to say Edinburgh, Glasgow or Aberdeen and then hire a car and drive round northern Scotland from there. Forget using Air Miles to the Western Isles, Orkneys or Shetlands as that counts as two flights from Heathrow or Gatwick and there is also almost no availability on the Scottish islands flights from Edinburgh, Glasgow or Aberdeen (probably due to limited capacity and ludicrously high cash fares on the routes).

NonGeographicalMan

jackieblack wrote: »

Aren't taxes/surcharges included in Airmiles?

Yes they are now included for Air Miles customers (at generally much higher mileage rates than before) but they are still extras on the BA Miles scheme.

This is because Air Miles is now in head on competition with the https://www.natwestyourpoints.com/ (fee free travel mainly on Easyjet flights) following the Air Miles split with NatWest and its new alliance with Lloyds TSB.............

BA Miles on the other hand is competing with the other airline premium business traveller mile schemes, all of which have more flexible redemption than Air Miles but make you pay the additional taxes and charges.

withabix

My double BA Miles (48000 extra!) posted today, just 10 days after I redeemed this quarter's Clubcard vouchers!

mummypig_3

This airmiles thing is v confusing to me.

My mum gave me clubcard vouchers as a birthday present so i can convert to airmiles. Tesco told me today that i cannot put her vouchers into my account, as it will flag by the address and airmiles will simply open a new account for her. So, after a little weep (genuinely! - she had enough to send me to New York!) i rang airmiles, and they confirmed the information from Tesco, BUT...i CAN use my airmiles, and her airmiles, and ANYONES airmiles on one booking for me as long as they give authority! Woop!

clarabombshell

Hi,

I have been using the Eshop at airmiles and wanted to check my understanding of the time it takes to get the airmiles credited to your acc.

If I click through and buy something eligible, it normally takes 2-3 days for it to appear in the "shopping history". Am I right in thinking that it will then take 35 days for the miles to be actualy crd to my account?

I also created a family acc by merging my husband and my accs, but now since doing that all my shopping history has dissappeared (the miles waiting to be crd). The ppl at airmiles said that they can still see it in the backround of my acc and the miles will still be credited as normal.
Then I clicked through and bought through waterstones and the miles havn't even appeared in my shopping history over a week later.

Has anyone else had any problems with eshop or this same thing happen?

jackieblack

clarabombshell wrote: »

Hi,

I have been using the Eshop at airmiles and wanted to check my understanding of the time it takes to get the airmiles credited to your acc.

If I click through and buy something eligible, it normally takes 2-3 days for it to appear in the "shopping history". Am I right in thinking that it will then take 35 days for the miles to be actualy crd to my account?

Yes, that's how it worked for me.

Any

Sorry, this might be stupid question, but I am new to Airmiles - can you exchange your airmiles for ticket in someone elses name and not fly with them? IE my miles for ticket for my son only.

lullybubs

Hi Any,

yes you definately can exchange your airmiles and book a ticket for someone else other than yourself.

NonGeographicalMan

lullybubs wrote: »

yes you definately can exchange your airmiles and book a ticket for someone else other than yourself.

I'm sure that you may well be right but bearing in mind that is your first post in the forum can you perhaps indicate your source for this claim such as the appropriate section of the Airmiles Terms and Conditions.

lullybubs

You are quite right, it is my first post, but that doesn't mean that what I have to say isn't correct. The reason I know this to be true is because I have done exactly this. I have used my airmiles to book a ticket in someone elses name within the last month. Please be assured that even though I may be a new poster, I wouldn't offer an answer like that unless I was certain of the facts.