Heathrow Rewards is (finally) here. What is new?

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A little later than originally planned, the new Heathrow Rewards website – the replacement for BAA WorldPoints – has finally launched.

The link is here.

Very little has changed so far.

Heathrow Rewards

Here is what I spotted:

Some of the more eclectic rewards (eg discounted Business Traveller subscriptions) have gone

The minimum conversion for all airline miles (Miles & More, Virgin, Avios, British Airways) has reduced to 250 points which gets you 250 miles. Virgin and Miles & More previously had a 500 points minimum.

You can now transfer Heathrow Rewards points from one person to another. See point 7 of the rules here. You can make up to four transfers per year.

The wording on sharing a card between a family seems to have been tightened up and in theory you cannot now do this (which is probably why transfers are now allowed). It remains to be seen if I will have problems using my wifes card, which I normally do.

The website does not auto-fill the first 8 digits of your card number, which makes it a lot harder to memorise! However, if you log-in and go to ‘Update My Details’ you can tick a box to make your log-in ID your email address.

Members will receive 90 minutes of free Wi-Fi in Heathrow, compared to the 45 minutes of free Wi-Fi available to the public.

Did I miss anything new? Please post below. Presumably new cards will be dropping through letterboxes in the coming days.

So far, no juicy sign-up bonuses have appeared, but I would expect something soon.

Category

British Airways and Avios, Heathrow Rewards, Lufthansa and Miles & More, Virgin Atlantic and Flying Club

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

Sir Stamford says:

25 May25 May 10:33

The ability to transfer points between different members is a useful enhancement. I have 2 relatively dormant accounts with small amounts of points which I can pool them into the main account to trigger the minimum conversion threshold to BAEC.

I believe the the transfer of points is a completely manual process by contacting customer services i.e. not something you can initiate online.

Lastly, given that points are valid for 3 years from the date of your last transaction (as per the FAQ), I wonder if a points transfer which is technically a transaction would reset the clock. Not sure.

Sir Stamford
Sinizter says:

25 May25 May 22:45

Are we going to receive new cards?
- Sir Stamford says:
  
  25 May25 May 22:55
  
  Per the FAQ https://rewards.heathrow.com/web/lhr/faqs
  
  Q: I am a WorldPoints member, will I automatically get a new Heathrow Rewards card?
  
  A: Most members will receive a new card in the post. Members who have not used their WorldPoints card for some time will not automatically get a new card, but they can request one through the website. Please check we have your correct address details before ordering a new card.
  
  Sir Stamford
Alan says:

25 May25 May 23:21

As Sir S noted above, there’s been a change to the points expiry rules:

Q: How long are my points valid for?

A: Points are valid for 3 years from the date of your last transaction. So if you keep using your card for transactions, your points will never expire.

This is a BIG improvement!! Previously points would expire 3 years for the date of the transaction itself, therefore even with ongoing use the points could end up expiring if you weren’t careful – with this change this will no longer be the case. Nice to see a sensible improvement 🙂
Heathrow Rewards to come into existence… With free Wifi at Heathrow - Ghetto IFE says:

29 May29 May 14:23

[…] those of you who intend to be using Heahtrow Rewards, there are some changes – Head for Points has outlined these, but big one for most of us is that you can claim Rewards from 250 miles for […]
sarah says:

30 May30 May 16:29

Apologies if not new news but decided to sign up and saw this on BAEC

Join Heathrow Rewards

Join now and you’ll receive 100 points when you register and a further 500 points worth 500 Avios when you spend £30 in a single day before 30 September 2013. Remember to add promotion code BA1 when you register to qualify for this offer.
- Rob says:
  
  30 May30 May 17:16
  
  Thanks Sarah, that is new news! I will write it up next week.
Roger says:

7 Jun7 June 13:16

E-mail 1 of 3 arrived today, as did (later) my new card.

HINT: if your e-mail is the same as mine was, 100 points are offered by registering, ticking the ‘I have a card’ link. Register promptly! I didn’t, as I wasn’t sure if the new number would be the same as the old number. In the event, it was.

However, when going back to the e-mail and clicking, the resulting page was already completed with my details, so no bonus.