British Airways to give a six month extension on upcoming BA Amex 241 companion vouchers

British Airways has done a big favour to British Airways American Express cardholders whose membership years end in July, August or September.

As part of the current coronavirus compensation deal, all British Airways American Express 241 companion vouchers issued by 30th June 2020 were to be issued with an additional six months validity.

This has now been extended to 30th September.

This means that all newly issued 241 vouchers, triggered by 30th September 2020, will be valid for 2.5 years (or 1.5 years if generated on the free BA Amex card).

Official confirmation should arrive from British Airways during the day today.

I have written before about how this extension creates a situation where it may be advisable to trigger your next 2-4-1 voucher early.

Here are the new dates you need to bear in mind for a BA Premium Plus cardholder:

A 2-4-1 voucher issued on 20th September 2020 will expire on 20th March 2023 (30 months)

A 2-4-1 voucher issued on 20th October 2020 will expire on 20th October 2022 (24 months)

Anyone who triggers their next voucher in October, November or December 2020 or January / February 2021 will be worse off than someone who triggers their next voucher in late September 2020.

There could be real benefits in triggering your voucher early to get the extra six months.  If you have kids and your card year ends in November, for example, triggering your voucher in September 2020 would cover you for Christmas 2022 and February half term 2023.  If you don’t trigger your voucher until October or November 2020 it won’t – it will expire in October 2022 or November 2022 respectively.

What does this mean for me?

If your next British Airways Premium Plus American Express card year ends between October and February, you may want to think about pushing forward spending so that you trigger the voucher before 30th September.

This will maximise the life of the voucher by giving you 30 months to use it.

(Remember that the expiry date is the date by which you must take your outbound flight and not the deadline to book.)

More information

If you want to learn more about how to use your voucher now you have the extension, this Head for Points artice is the definitive guide on everything you need to know about the British Airways American Express 2-4-1 voucher.

You can also learn more about how the British Airways American Express 2-4-1 voucher works in this ‘Avios Redemption University’ article.

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 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

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:

Barclaycard Select Cashback Credit Card

1% cashback and no annual fee Read our full review