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The new HFP chat thread – Sunday 29th March

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We have decided to run this new daily chat thread on Head for Points.

Historically, the daily ‘Bits’ articles were the defacto repository for random comments and questions.  It is unlikely that the news flow will be so big over the next few weeks that we will need many ‘Bits’ articles, however.

The comments under this article are where you should post questions about travel and, indeed, anything else on your mind.  At this tricky time, and given that many of you are stuck at home self-isolating, we want the HFP community to have a place to chat.

Please only comment under the main articles on the site if your comment is directly related to the topic of the article.  This has long-term benefits as its keeps the commentary relevant for people who read those articles in the future.

By default, HFP shows the last page of comments under the article.  If you want to see the first page of comments and read them all from beginning to end in order, click here: https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/03/29/the-new-hfp-chat-thread-sunday-29th-march/comment-page-1 The page will refresh with this article but the comments will now show the first page and not the last page.

We will continue to monitor how this is working:

we could potentially split it into a daily travel and non-travel chat thread

we may install some basic forum software

we may start suggesting potential topics for daily discussion

Let’s see how it goes.

We will do a separate article in a day or so about how we plan to run the site over the next few weeks.  Take care!

Category

General

Comments (200)

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

  • Charlieface says:
    29 Mar29 March 02:50

    Let’s just kick this off with a question for the armchair lawyers out there:
    If the airline cancels a ticket and automatically send a voucher in lieu of a refund, is a cash refund still applicable ON TOP? The relevant regs are in EC261/2004 Art 7,3:
    The compensation referred to in paragraph 1 shall be paid in cash, by electronic bank transfer, bank orders or bank cheques or, with the SIGNED AGREEMENT [my caps] of the passenger, in travel vouchers and/or other services.

    • Charlieface says:
      29 Mar29 March 02:51

      Just thinking, I suppose even real lawyers are armchair lawyers at the moment 🙂

      • Shoestring says:
        29 Mar29 March 02:55

        if you get given (say) a £200 voucher at the airport because of cancellation, then yes: you can claim EC261 compo on top and the £200 voucher counts for nothing, it was a gesture

    • John says:
      29 Mar29 March 02:54

      If you didn’t agree to vouchers, then yes, but they are entitled to take the voucher back.

  • Waribai says:
    29 Mar29 March 08:07

    Does any clever person here know a way of getting an Ocado or Waitrose delivery?

    I believe Tesco releases slots at 11:30 but I haven’t worked out these other two….

    • Johnny Tabasco says:
      29 Mar29 March 08:17

      Tesco is 11pm.
      Not convinced some of the slots are actually opening up with these supermarkets and they are just being set to ‘unavailable’ or words to that affect.
      Just to clarify, this isn’t a criticism, it’s totally understandable.

      • Michael C says:
        29 Mar29 March 08:33

        I agree, Johnny – did another “round” of them v early this morning, and from the various messages thought yeah, this is not for us right now.

    • Secret Squirrel says:
      29 Mar29 March 09:15

      SS:
      Was that a Tesco delivery?
      Restrictions supposed to be in place, unsure how you got all those items..

    • meta says:
      29 Mar29 March 09:17

      Unless you have smart pass forget about Ocado. You are guaranteed one weekly slot with smart pass. They’ve split members into several groups and they email you when it’s your turn (you have until the end of that day to place an order). I could only book a slot in 9 days time when I logged in as soon as the email arrived on Friday, but they released earlier slots later in the day. Next week I’ll wait.

      • Tilly says:
        29 Mar29 March 10:46

        There’s no guarantee with smart pass, not even with reserved now. I’ve been lucky to secure a delivery slot but had to get in there quickly to book it (I do have a smart pass and have a reserved slot which was not guaranteed at this crazy time). Was as relief to get it when the husband is a key worker and I’ve got a newborn baby I really don’t want to be taking to the supermarket.

        • meta says:
          29 Mar29 March 13:35

          The email I received says that it is guaranteed. Plus I can see they opened up at least 4-5 slots yesterday and today. Perhaps it’s because I have Anytime Pass? The email did state that Anytime Pass holders are their most loyal customers.

          • Tilly says:
            29 Mar29 March 14:36

            I have whatever allows you to book unlimited deliveries whenever I want as long as the slot is available. Includes my regular reserved slot every week. No idea about the anytime pass. I am glad my usual slot has been booked so far but others I hear have not been so lucky.

          • meta says:
            29 Mar29 March 17:32

            I have the anytime pass for 2 or so years now ever since Amex Plat had an offer and every year they offer the same rate at £1.99 per month. Glad you got the slot!

    • Waribai says:
      29 Mar29 March 15:29

      Yes, I’ve also worked out Morrisons is possible right on the stroke of midnight. Not too impressed with their meat though….
      We are going via the farm shops route. Many of them who usually cater to schools and trade are now delivering direct to households at fairly reasonable prices….

      https://tinyurl.com/rfstxn4

      • meta says:
        29 Mar29 March 17:24

        If you have Amazon Prime, you could try Prime Now service for both Amazon and Morrisson’s. Did a top-up delivery last week, but haven’t managed to book it since then.

  • Ali says:
    29 Mar29 March 09:05

    My return flight in 2 months is cancelled by Emirates.(inbound from Pakistan)
    It tells me to contact my travel agent for the rest of the process.
    Am I due the full fare refund or would I get a mere half? As I would still need to pay up a full fare really to book a one way flight. Any ideas as to what I should be asking for?
    My port of call – contact travel agent, then try charge-back and the last thing is insurance. But am I entitled to the entire refund?

    • Ali says:
      29 Mar29 March 09:22

      didnt realise this was posted – so annoying that two posts for the same thing.do apologise

      • Clive says:
        29 Mar29 March 10:59

        Hi Ali, if you have not flown the outbound you are entitled to a reimbursement of both legs however you may have a fight with Emirates for a cash refund and may end up with a voucher

        • Ali says:
          29 Mar29 March 11:26

          I have flown the outbound but the inbound is cancelled 🙁

          • Lady London says:
            29 Mar29 March 12:14

            If you departed from the UK then that falls under eu261 so you can choose to demand they provide you a ticket on another airline if they’re not flying.

            You can also demand a refund (I wouldn’t if I need to get back to.Uk) or you could request to be retucketed on an indirect route or at a much later date. In these cases you don’t have to pay any fare difference they have to provide you your choice free of charge

            As soon as you request a refund you lose all of these rights as well as duty of care – if they have to ticket you on some other airline or other route, they are also obliged to reimburse o rpay your accomodation (if you are taking a rebook around same time or closest you can get,) until your replacement flight as well as all meals and drinks not alcohol from your original flight to the replacement flight. (Once this would not apply if you decide to travel in 8 months time instead)

          • Lady London says:
            29 Mar29 March 12:19

            PS you are not obliged to take a voucher and there are lots of reasons why it’s not good to takes voucher.

            Worst case, if you can afford to if they won’t provide your legal rights above voluntarily, get your own ticket home and sue them for replacement cost of ticket and duty if care via moneyclaimonline dot gov dot uk

            Under s75 you could also ask credit card to provide these if you paid with one. Or insurance if covered.

          • Lady London says:
            29 Mar29 March 12:45

            So the short answer is if you need to get home, tell the travel agent you invoke your rights to a replacement ticket on any other airline that your originally booked airline must provide you at no extra cost to you (whatever the cost of the replacement ticket would be andeen if it’s higher).

            It’s your legal right under EU261 to choose this. So just tell your agent and also Emirates that’s what you want and you don’t care how they do it it’s what you need.

            Insurance or s75 via credit card co if they still don’t play ball

          • Ali says:
            29 Mar29 March 13:10

            Lady London,
            Thank you.
            p.s. I am a fan
            Regards

          • Harry T says:
            29 Mar29 March 16:12

            Lady London certainly doesn’t need my back up, but she is, of course, correct.

            Can I just take a moment to say how admirable I think it is that Lady London takes such care to craft such insightful and helpful responses to so many people? Very much an admirer.

    • AJA says:
      29 Mar29 March 21:57

      Hi Ali

      EU air passenger rights (EU261/2004) apply:

      If your flight is within the EU and is operated either by an EU or a non-EU airline

      If your flight arrives in the EU from outside the EU and is operated by an EU airline

      If your flight departs from the EU to a non-EU country operated by an EU or a non-EU airline

      If you have not already received benefits (compensation, re-routing, assistance from the airline) for flight related problems for this journey under the relevant law of a non-EU country.

      EU means the 27 EU countries , including Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Réunion Island, Mayotte, Saint-Martin (French Antilles), the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands as well as Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. It does not include the Faroe Islands, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.

      I dont want to contradict LadyLondon but your problem is that Emirates is not an EU airline so your inbound flight is not covered by EU261/2004.

  • Ali says:
    29 Mar29 March 09:06

    Hi Peeps.
    My return flight in 2 months is cancelled by Emirates.(so the inbound flight from Pakistan)
    It tells me to contact my travel agent for the rest of the process.
    Am I due the full fare refund or would I get a mere half? As I would still need to pay up a full fare really to book a one way flight. Any ideas as to what I should be asking for?
    My port of call – contact travel agent, then try charge-back and the last thing is insurance. But am I entitled to the entire refund?
    Do apologize for re-posting from yesterday x I guess had posted late so was right at the bottom x

  • Andrew MS says:
    29 Mar29 March 09:39

    I flew with BA from Munich to LHR to MAN on Monday . There were only 22 of us on board and we all had to move back a few rows to balance the aircraft , apart from the two sat in Club
    On my domestic I was sat in the row behind Club and felt so claustrophobic. My coffee was served look warm and the crew didn’t respond to the call button so I tried to get out of my seat and found it impossible with the tray down and a drink in my hand . Monday was the first time in 20 years flying with BA ( being a northerner) , can I ask , is there less seat pitch on the domestic flights ?
    The crew made an announcement about reducing the spread of Coronavirus only for the crew member with the latex glove ( who would later serve the food ) to scratch her face

    • Save East Coast Rewards says:
      29 Mar29 March 13:26

      Domestic is no different to other BA short haul configurations.

    • Nick_C says:
      29 Mar29 March 13:26

      I’m surprised BA is offering refreshments on short haul flights. It’s just unnecessary contact.

      And I wouldn’t be touching a call button except in an emergency. I hope you sanitised your hands afterwards.

      But to answer your question, yes, seat pitch on BA shorthaul is dreadful, regardless of whether you are in Economy or Club, and the domestic fleet and the shorthaul fleet are one and the same. If you look up your flight on flight radar 24, you can use the registration code to see where else that aircraft has been recently..

      • Save East Coast Rewards says:
        29 Mar29 March 13:33

        Since the middle of last week you only get a tiny bottle of water and a biscuit on short haul. Whether in club or economy. The usual Club Europe catering and M&S buy on board has been suspended.

  • memesweeper says:
    29 Mar29 March 09:49

    Hi – sorry posted yesterday but no replies …

    ** Revolut **

    If I have a Barclaycard, John Lewis (HSBC), HSBC World Elite and IHG (Creation), what’s the collective wisdom on the best to use for a Revolut top up? I’ve not done one for months and I’m not planning to go mad!

    • Anna says:
      29 Mar29 March 10:20

      Depends which points you want most. IHG limited to £300 + £200 + £200 per week.

    • Rob says:
      29 Mar29 March 10:32

      Visa seems OK now but not Mastercard.

    • MarkH says:
      29 Mar29 March 11:12

      Barclaycard works fine as did my Lloyds Mastercard a few days ago.

      • TGLoyalty says:
        29 Mar29 March 13:28

        Lloyd’s add interest into your statement. Be sure to pay off any balance asap

        • MarkH says:
          29 Mar29 March 22:36

          Ah ok – I happened to pay it off straight away so didn’t realise that. Good to know.

    • Benilyn says:
      29 Mar29 March 17:38

      In case your revolut account is important to you (it is for me for having USD account and good FX rates, trading etc) they can block your account for topping up and withdrawing immediately/within a few days. Heads up.

  • Will says:
    29 Mar29 March 10:10

    Hi everyone,
    I received a Free Upgrade to AwardWallet Plus for 3 Months via email. But it doesn’t seem to be working. Anyone else experiencing the same?
    Apologies if the topic has been covered somewhere else.
    Thank you!

  • BA-flyer says:
    29 Mar29 March 10:11

    Virgin Atlantic replied to my text message at 3am. They sent another shortly after, saying as I had not replied they were closing my request. Are they honestly this stupid, or is it a deliberate ploy to avoid contact?

    • Rob says:
      29 Mar29 March 10:31

      Was almost certainly middle of the day where the person who did the text was.

      • BA-flyer says:
        29 Mar29 March 11:01

        No doubt, but it would still be logical to allow more than 60 minutes before closing the request.

    • Jonathan says:
      29 Mar29 March 10:35

      I messaged flying club 24 hours ago re transferring points to Hilton but have had no reply bar a message saying they are busy

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