More evidence of BA prioritising Avios bookings for downgrades?

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A month ago I ran this article speculating that BA has begun to target Avios ticket holders for downgrades.

This would be economically rational. Under EU regulations, a downgraded passenger is automatically due a 75% refund on that leg of their ticket. For a cash passenger, that is expensive.

For an Avios passenger, it is not expensive to downgrade. All the airline has to do is refund a few points.

british-airways-ba

For an Avios passenger travelling on a 2-4-1 voucher, the downgrade is free to BA. It has been telling some passengers that as their ticket cost zero Avios, the refund is 75% of zero which is, erm, zero.

After my original article there was some debate about whether this is actually happening. Some BA staff told me that it isn’t easy to tell whether a passenger is on a 2-4-1 ticket or not, although it is easy to spot those on redemptions on the manifest. Some agents have implied that it is functionality in FLY, the new check-in and passenger management system, which now allows this policy to be implemented.

It is worth noting that the person involved in my original article issued a Small Claims Court against British Airways after being refused any compensation. As per this page of Flyertalk, it appears that BA chose not to fight the case and settled for the unspecified amount the passenger demanded.

In the last couple of weeks, two more readers have contacted me with linked stories.

The key one came yesterday from a reader. I always weigh up news I receive by email from readers to see how truthful and verifiable it seems, but this is one I trust implicitly – the person involved is a regular commentator and has even written a guest article for the site in the past.

If you read the comments on HfP yesterday, you would have seen his regular updates as the situation developed.

This is what he said to me by email:

“At Edinburgh to start our trip to Gatwick and then what was meant to be Club World BAPP 241 reward seats to Male. At checking in for EDI-LGW we have been told we have been downgraded, either both to World Traveller Plus or just me with my wife staying in CW. We have been told that BA has oversold the flight and it’s because we are on reward tickets that we have been selected to be downgraded.”

Here is another email I received two weeks ago:

“I have read your article re 2-4-1 downgrades and it almost exactly mirrors our experience. The Duty Manager was adamant her instructions were to target Redemption ticket holders first. Given that our seats were showing as still allocated to us that morning (albeit not available to be printed due to “system error” at the hotel), it appears BA have chosen to sell more CW seats on the day . . . knowing they had a supply of 2-4-1 pax ready to be downgraded

It is a largely win-win situation for BA . . . if there are any no-shows, no skin off their noses, but hey, why not sell an equivalent number of CW seats to exactly match the number of 2-4-1 holders on every flight! Cheap trick but as I learned in over twenty years with them, the internal “bar” is set at the greediest money-earning opportunity.”

The reader above is not one I have met but I have no reason doubt the accuracy of what he sent me. He had even paid to reserve specific Club World seats but even that did not protect him from being downgraded.

To clarify, there is no specific proof that this is going on. No BA employee has yet sent me a copy of the relevant memo or email.

Do let me know if you are also impacted by this and have been told that the staff that you have been downgraded specifically because you are on an Avios ticket.

How to earn Avios points from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

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

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

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

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

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

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

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

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios? Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)

Category

British Airways and Avios

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

stuart says:

26 Feb26 February 11:16

As coincidence has it, my wife’s 2-4-1 came through this week. In the email it describes:

When you book a Reward Flight (departing and returning to the UK) on any British Airways mainline flight with a BA flight number, your Voucher gives you a second seat for a companion, on the same flight and in the same cabin.*

What’s that little * all about? T&C’s at the bottom the email perhaps, where on the first line (looking all new and out of place) reads:

“Companion Vouchers are subject to availability.”

Could this mean “availability at time of booking” or “availability at time of flight”?

Also, something that’s a bit different from expected (my CAPS):

“Companion Vouchers must be exchanged for a RETURN ticket and all outbound travel from the UK must be taken before the expiry date of the Voucher(s). ”

and:

“Return flights MUST BE booked at the SAME TIME as the outward journey is booked.”

Both of which seem contrary to what is the commonly perceived wisdom…
- Genghis says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 11:53
  
  Yes – and also contrary to the Terms and Conditions that I accepted when I took out the card and they need to give me 3 months’ notice of any amendment.
  - Cate says:
    
    26 Feb26 February 12:44
    
    +1
  - JamesW says:
    
    26 Feb26 February 13:36
    
    Oooh, interesting. What are the card Ts& Cs you refer to ? Where can I find them ?? (Obviously in the TS & Cs but something more specific would be great !).
    - Genghis says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 14:45
      
      If a term is not mentioned as part of the T&Cs you accept, then it is not a T&C. I.e. no mention in the T&Cs I accepted of return being booked same time as outbound.
- Andrew* says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 14:45
  
  That clause isn’t ‘brand new’… a little digging through old emails shows it’s been there since at least September next year…
  
  More importantly, is it being enforced?
  - Andrew* says:
    
    26 Feb26 February 14:45
    
    *last year
    - mark2 says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 15:29
      
      Same time is not being enforced and return is taken to include open jaw.
      Many people book one way and then add return when available.
Anon says:

26 Feb26 February 14:24

Hi folks,

It’s dark here at the Conrad Rangali now, sunset was lovely as was complimentary afternoon tea and Happy hour.

Just got off the phone with a very nice & caring, attentive lady in the Manchester BAEC office confirming our missing bag will be here tomorrow, huge relief to see that when it gets here, our options for evening wear will be less restrictive that the snorkeling shorts I’ve been wearing for the last 2 nights… 🙂
mark2 says:

26 Feb26 February 14:45

If anyone else wants to write to American Express the address is:
American Express Card Services,
1, John Street,
BRIGHTON,
BN88 1NH

I think that the main point to mention is their reputational risk as their name is all over this offer.
- Nigel says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 16:31
  
  Yes, it’s their voucher, Amex provides it – and given that quite a few Plat card holders also have a BAPP, it’s a problem which could affect some of their ‘better’/higher-spending customers…
- Paul L says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 17:07
  
  Mark,
  
  Have you a physical name to write too? A particular head of a department?
  - mark2 says:
    
    26 Feb26 February 17:56
    
    The person at Brighton told me that all correspondence goes to Executive Services who forward it to the correct person.
    - Matt says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 20:40
      
      My last BAPP statement gives Department 871 at that address.
Ian Hubbard says:

26 Feb26 February 16:49

I have a 241 voucher and am (or maybe was) planning to use it to go to the U.S. Sept 2018 in first class. Like others I am now very uneasy as I believe it has the potential to totally screw up a holiday. Question, how far could I be bumped i.e. club, premium economy or economy? Looks like I will be downgrading my BAAE card……….
In anticipation thanks for taking the time to answer.
- the real harry1 says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 18:07
  
  people need to be a bit more rational, keep things in perspective & stop acting like the only gay in the village (nothing personal to OP & just a reference to a silly character in Little Britain)
  
  you can clearly be bumped down anywhere or off the plane entirely
  
  BUT
  
  you are unlikely to be downgraded
  you are unlikely to be downgraded more than 1 class
  you are unlikely to be bumped off the plane especially if you check in ahead of time as far as possible
  - Anon says:
    
    26 Feb26 February 18:57
    
    Do you remember Robs story from 2013 when his 2 yr old was selected to be bumped off his DXB-LHR flight?
    - the real harry1 says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 19:00
      
      ISTR he reacted rationally & sorted it out
    - Rob says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 19:01
      
      Indeed he was. BA did book him into a five star hotel for the day and issue him with a ticket for the evening flight, though, which was thoughtful of them.
      
      That was a cash ticket and both me and my wife were Silver cardholders at the time. Obviously the lad wasn’t, which may have been why he was thrown off.
Michael_S says:

26 Feb26 February 15:53

Rob, every time you post an article about BA squeezing something here and there, I tell to myself “wow, this must be their lowest point ever”, until you post another one. Then they complain you are biased against BA!

I have 241 BA 001 coming up next monh. What are the chances of me being put in a bus from LCY to LHR and shipped to NYC in economy (or cargo?). Don’t tell me it can’t happen, we all know there’s – hopefully only a slim – chance!
- Jovanna says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 17:14
  
  Only 11 pax on board when I was on BA1 a few weeks ago. You’ll probably have the whole row to yourself!
- Mike says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 17:24
  
  I’ve a 241 on BA002 for the summer.
  I’m not particularly concerned. It would have to be a truly exceptional situation for there to be nothing available in J between NYC and LON on any particular day across both airlines.
  
  I know there are only a few data points but something like Male seems much more at risk.
  - Anon says:
    
    26 Feb26 February 18:39
    
    Agreed, apparently the Caribbean destinations are another “nightmare” for the BA rep to have to deal with disappointed customers.
    - Rob says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 19:04
      
      That’s probably because people booked to the Maldives on non-refundable tickets have a weird habit of actually turning up for the flight, unlike business travellers to JFK on fully flexible tickets …..
      - Anon says:
        
        26 Feb26 February 19:25
        
        The real nightmare part is trying to reroute them to their Caribbean destination via the USA when they don’t have a visa, and this is prior to more recent restrictions with immigration in the US…. :/
    - Anna says:
      
      26 Feb26 February 19:11
      
      Hopefully that’s from Gatwick. My 2 4 1 Caribbean CW redemption this summer is from Heathrow!
      - Anon says:
        
        26 Feb26 February 19:30
        
        Dont want to spook you, but can you see availability for cash bookings on your CW flights?
        
        You could phone up BAEC to ask if your flight is going to be intentionally overbooked?
        
        That way at least you are provided with enough info to decide whether to risk keeping the booking or to cancel and make alternative arrangements.
      - Anna says:
        
        27 Feb27 February 07:53
        
        Anon, just out of interest did a dummy search for 4 x CW seats and got a quote though we don’t go till August. However, that’s their low season and in any case GCM doesn’t attract a huge number of British holiday makers, despite being a British territory. We try and keep it a secret lol!
Josh says:

26 Feb26 February 18:11

I don’t even have a BA Amex any more, even though I did get 4 x F return tickets to Canada with it. I’d rather use up more points to fly on another airline or just pay for a J ticket on another airline than have to fly BA.
Anon says:

26 Feb26 February 18:26

The real harry – Thanks for the laugh! 🙂

However unlikely, if the policy of delibrately making cynical & calculated overbookings on popular routes (and lets call it what it is, ie “gazumping”), if you have a flight booked to high demand & low frequency destination, I would suggest BA now consider your 241 booking to be a “Standby Companion” Ticket and nothing more.
Anon says:

26 Feb26 February 18:35

In fairness, I was also told by the BA rep in the LGW lounge that the new computer system remembers if you or your flying partners bookings have ever been subjected to a downgrade so that you or your partner will never be selected again for a future downgrade.

But please bear in mind the same person told me the false story about the “faulty unsafe & unusable” CW seat that might be used by a crew member during the flight but I wasn’t allowed to use.

So I’ll leave you guessing (along with me) if the first statement is true or not…..