Bits: Heathrow protest today, Etihad sale, update on 40,000 Nectar points deal

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News in brief:

Heathrow anti-expansion protest today may cause delays

British Airways has issued an advisory warning due to a protest against Heathrow Airport expansion which will take place today, Saturday.

To quote:

A peaceful demonstration against airport expansion is expected to take place at Heathrow Airport on Saturday 1 October.

Heathrow Airport is working with the Metropolitan Police who will manage any protest activities in and around the airport or terminal facilities.

Roads around Heathrow may see a period of disruption around the middle of the day and customers travelling to/from the airport may wish to allow extra time for their journey.

Etihad launches 96 hour sale – with bonus miles

Etihad is running a sale this weekend which runs until Monday evening.

As well as some decent prices in Business Class, the airline is offering 15,000 bonus Etihad Guest miles for every Business Class flight. Economy flights will attract a 5,000 mile bonus.

Whilst Etihad Guest was devalued sharply last year, the ability to top up your account via American Express Membership Rewards, the UK Etihad credit card, the HSBC Premier credit card and Heathrow Rewards makes their miles flexible. You can also redeem across the full Etihad Airways Partners alliance.

Here are some headline business class fares from London.

Abu Dhabi £1,500
Bangkok £1,550
Mumbai £1,552
Johannesburg £2,191
Perth £2,600
Melbourne £2,600

Whilst these are not the cheapest deals seen this Winter, you need to remember that I rate the Etihad A380 Business Class Studio as the best seat on the market. Heathrow will be operating a 100% A380 service from November.

These deals can be booked for travel until June 2017. Full details are on the Etihad website here.

Update on the ‘40,000 Nectar points’ credit card deal

Yesterday I wrote an article about the attractive American Express Nectar credit card promotion which launches today. If you are targetted via the Nectar app or website, you will receive a whopping 40,000 Nectar points for signing up.

Full details of the card are here although you should not sign up via this page.

This is worth at least – in the worse case scenario – £200 to spend at Sainsbury’s, easyJet, Expedia etc. However, if you use your points wisely during special offers, you could get as high as £400.

I missed out a key point in the early version of the article yesterday which was the version emailed out.

Anyone who is targetted will receive the 40,000 points as long as they have not had a Nectar credit card in the last six months. That statement was correct.

However … the terms and conditions state that you only receive the first year of membership for free if you have not had any Amex-issued Amex cards in the last six months. That will disqualify 95% of HFP readers, who will have a BA Amex, Amex Gold, Amex Platinum, Starwood Amex or similar.

You WILL still get the 40,000 points but you need to be resigned to paying the £25 fee. This is still very small in contrast to the sign-up bonus, however, and is refundable pro-rata if you cancel the card.

Want to earn more points from credit cards? – December 2021 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit or charge card, here are our November 2021 recommendations based on the current sign-up bonus.

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the top current deals:

British Airways BA Amex American Express card

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways BA Premium Plus American Express Amex credit card

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers.

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and free for a year Read our full review

American Express Business Platinum

40,000 points sign-up bonus and a long list of travel benefits Read our full review

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending: