An email arrives about Avios ….

If you were wondering how the general public approach their miles and points – and where the programmes are making real money – take a look at this email I received earlier in the week.

Whenever I appear in the media as I did recently over the BA data breach I tend to hear from a few people like this who are outside our usual sphere of readers.

I won’t comment but as a HfP reader you probably know that this situation is wrong on so many levels.  If this person had contacted me before doing the transfer things would have been so much different:

Hello Rob

I’m completely new to the world of points. I have just transferred 421,000 Amex points gathered over 24 years to BA Avios to book a trip to the USA for my wife’s 70th birthday.

I’m travelling on 02.10.18 BAXXX to New York, currently booked in as Economy. There appears to be no availability in premium Economy or Business class which how we’d like to travel.

We are travelling in the US and then returning to have six days in Washington before flying back on BAXXX Business Class to Heathrow.

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 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 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.)