Groupon is selling Avios points from a mileage broker ….

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For the first time, Groupon UK is selling Avios points. We have seen this on Groupon Spain and Groupon Ireland before, but not here.

Full details of the offer are here.

The prices are:

10,000 Avios for £129
20,000 Avios for £249
30,000 Avios for £359
40,000 Avios for £479
50,000 Avios for £569

In all cases, these prices are lower than you will pay via the current ba.com ‘buy Avios’ deal we covered the other day.

So far, so good. Except ….. the Avios are NOT being sold by British Airways. They are being sold by a US group called buyairlinemiles.com. If you visit their website, it is quite clear that they are basically a mileage broker, someone who finds ways of trading miles against the rules of the programmes. The T&C’s say:

“We, at buyairlinemiles.com, are in no way affiliated with any of the respective, selected airlines.”

This looks very dubious to me and I am pretty sure that British Airways knows nothing about it. For a start, Groupon calls them ‘Avios miles’ – BA / Avios Group is very specific that they must be called just ‘Avios’ (not ‘Avios points’ and certainly not ‘Avios miles’) at all times, in all communications.

Now …. you may well get your points if you buy. If you use a credit card, you are protected by Section 75 chargeback coverage and indeed Groupon’s own guarantee. I would be wary, however.

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.

Chris says:

11 Aug11 August 12:55

Really random off-topic but does anyone know how far in advance JAL tend to release domestic tickets? I wanted to fly CTS – TYO next Feb but there are not even any cash tickets available.
- Nick_C says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 13:04
  
  I think it is two months in advance for redemptions. I want tickets for December and they are not available yet.
  - Wz says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 14:54
    
    Hi both, I just booked LHR to TYO to CTS redemption for Feb 2020 and when speaking to BA on the phone they were able book me that domestic redemption straight away.
- Gavin says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 17:44
  
  It’s a bit weird. Sometimes they show only 2 months out online. Sometimes they show beyond that (up to a year out) but are not bookable beyond 2 months. Sometimes they are bookable online up to a year out! And sometimes the phone agents can see/book a different combination of the above.
  
  The last couple of months (since just before the devaluation) they have not been visible online more than 2 months out but you might be able to book them by phone.
  
  It shouldn’t be a problem booking them 1-2 months (or even just days) in advance, availability is usually excellent.
  - Nick_C says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 21:26
    
    Thanks wz and Gavin.
    
    I’m going to wait for them to show to show up on line as I have enough orphaned AA miles to cover the tickets I need. 15000 AA instead of 12000 Avios (HND to KIX) but I can finally use most of my AA miles and not worry about keeping them active.
Navara says:

11 Aug11 August 13:39

Rob
It’s still diverting me to a free iPhone.
- Rob says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 14:50
  
  When did you first use it today? The javascript is cached in your phone and can’t be cleared manually, I think.
  
  There is literally nothing we can do about it. I went through this with our IT guy when it happened a couple of months ago. The problem is Google partners (Google serves ads from partners when it has no relevant inventory itself) who are not as diligent as Google in checking the ad code put into their networks. We don’t even ‘see’ the code – Google Adsense sends it directly to you.
  - Chrisasaurus says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 15:07
    
    Seems like a strong case for switching ad providers…
    - Rob says:
      
      11 Aug11 August 17:00
      
      You seriously think Google would let any competing ad networks survive? Adsense is dominant. Niche ad networks are even riskier and generally only used by those banned from Google.
      
      Google sells ad space by auction. In an auction, monopolies benefit sellers and buyers. You might think eBay is too dominant but you’d be a mug not to use it if selling something.
  - Navara says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 15:09
    
    Hi Rob
    Since this morning.sending this from another iPhone which is fine
    - Navara says:
      
      11 Aug11 August 15:18
      
      Cleared cache on phone seems fine now
- ZB says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 15:01
  
  Had this 4 times on this post!!
  - Rob says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 17:03
    
    Clear your phone cache (‘clear history and website data’ on Safari) or wait for the JavaScript cache to expire.
- Frenzie says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 16:02
  
  For me it was a free supermarket voucher.
  Rob, I prefer the free iPhone! What can I do?
  - Paul says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 20:17
    
    I just got the iphone ad (pop up) too.
    Only on this website… I genuinely don’t know the reasons why it could be, but feedback is a gift and all that 😀
  - Bonglim says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 20:22
    
    Happened to me too. I am not sure it was the website, but rather something I did.
    
    The solution is for an iPhone:
    ‘clear history and website data’ (settings–> safari–> clear history and website data)
    
    Then, remove head for points from the favourites (if you have it saved as a favourite)
    Then make sure browser is closed fully and reopen, turn whole iPhone off if you like.
    
    Problem solved. Most people do the clear history thing – but get caught out if you have a website as a favourite.
Nic says:

11 Aug11 August 15:27

OT Bits… So On T?

Just passed through Barcelona Prat airport T1 security which is dealing with an employee strike over an extra euro per hour. Government wants 90% minimum service. Didn’t feel much different from usual summer traffic. A few more lanes created prior to the boarding card machines to cope with expected numbers. No delays.

OTOH you can’t buy Fast Track security access online at the moment which usually you can via the Aena website (“Service temporarily unavailable”). Perhaps related.

Sala Miro lounge is still closed for refurbishment. The temporary lounge space is dull but fine. Was busy an hour ago, quiet now, but they weren’t turning anyone away.
C F Frost says:

11 Aug11 August 17:23

O/T. The Amex platinum luggage tags that they used to provide. Never used them. Was having a clear-out. Was going to consign to dustbin. But then thought: eBay. How much did they sell for?

£27.00

Good beer money for an HfP party.
- TM says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 17:32
  
  Yeah, I think I sold mine for £25. Who buys this crap?
  - ankomonkey says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 17:54
    
    I’ve seen airline sick bags for sale for as much as £7 on ebay! It beggars belief…
    - Lady London says:
      
      12 Aug12 August 00:04
      
      They are exceptionally good to be sick into, though.
      Really solid, nothing leaks.
      Easy to close whilst remaining hygienic to dispose.
      
      considering the inflated prices the NHS is paying to vendors for some things, I can well imagine that perhaps someone looking after someone needing a lot of these to hand, might juuuust about find £7 ok. Depending on the country, of course.
- Gavin says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 17:46
  
  That’s crazy. I’ve got loads of them in a drawer unused…!
  - C F Frost says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 19:00
    
    Sickbags?
    - Lady London says:
      
      12 Aug12 August 00:02
      
      Sickbags.
- Andrew M says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 21:00
  
  I sold an ANA First Class amenity kit on eBay last month for £65 which is pretty insane for what it is. The pyjamas are still listed, no takers yet.
- TokyoFan says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 22:38
  
  Your name gave me a laugh 😂
- Nick M says:
  
  12 Aug12 August 13:18
  
  D’oh – have several scattered around… threw one away yesterday, will have a look for the others now though!
Roger says:

11 Aug11 August 18:29

OT I have Marriott travel package expiring in next 3/4 days.
Customer service is refusing to extend validity.
What is my best course to extend the lif of certificate?
- Peter K says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 19:26
  
  Why not actually use it?
  - Roger says:
    
    11 Aug11 August 19:56
    
    Not able to find any location where I would like to go on a holiday.
- BJ says:
  
  11 Aug11 August 21:22
  
  If you got it before the rules changed they should still convert it into points for you.
  - MarkH says:
    
    12 Aug12 August 01:07
    
    They should also convert it into the new category TP which will give it another year validity
James says:

11 Aug11 August 18:44

Not a buyer of points at over 1p.
Liz says:

11 Aug11 August 20:45

Also getting the iphone pop every time I go to HFP on phone and ipad which is how I always access it. Using desktop to send this message but heading away on our travels again tomorrow and won’t be able to access HfP. I have already cleared cache etc but it’s still happening.
Jimbob says:

11 Aug11 August 21:43

Anyone have any idea how long I’ll have to wait for the iPhone I won this morning will take to be delivered?

Fortunately I have them my credit card details so they could verify my details.