The new HFP chat thread – Friday 14th August

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• Sina says:

  14 Aug14 August 13:10

  I’ve read here from someone that I could top-up my koto card in PayPoint, can anyone confirm it’s still possible? I tried this today at Co-op but card was not recognised?!

  • Secret Squirrel says:

    14 Aug14 August 14:58

    Last week most people stated they were not going near Koto card, looked dodgy.

• @mkcol says:

  14 Aug14 August 13:20

  I’ve had some random Radisson Rewards floating around for years unable to use them.
  Thankfully I’ve found a way to offload them to help SOS Children’s Villages, a charity I’ve not heard of before but am more than happy for them to get some help.

  Have a look https://www.gppsurveys.com/promotion/SOSChildrensVillagesDonate.cfm

• MadeUpName says:

  14 Aug14 August 13:30

  Anyone got hotel recommendations for Sardinia? Looking for a nice family friendly resort.

• Jonathan says:

  14 Aug14 August 14:04

  Just had a profitable chat with Amex in the Philippines. Turns out lightening can strike twice (& harder) when you threaten to leave!

  • Sundar says:

    14 Aug14 August 17:50

    How hard ? Also Higher metal hard or lower metal hard ? 😀

• Brian says:

  14 Aug14 August 14:06

  My mum has some IHG points she can no longer use due to health reasons. Transferring to me too expensive, transferring to Avios or getting a gift card not great value but better than nothing.

  To ask, is it possible for her to book a room under her IHG account but she will not actually stay (and instead I would use the booking to stay)?

  I know this has been discussed before but just wondering what the current thoughts are on this.

  Thanks

  • Jonathan says:

    14 Aug14 August 14:11

    If you book in her name & put yourself as additional guest it’s always been fine for me doing similar with my wife’s account. I think Rob had an issue once in Spain but I’ve done >10 times in UK/USA with no bother.

    • Lady London says:

      14 Aug14 August 14:14

      Yup. Book in her name add you as guest put a note on the booking that you are likely to arrive earlier.

      Rob did it for Anika and they’re not even same surname

    • Anna says:

      14 Aug14 August 14:19

      All I ever do is give the surname on the booking, as long as they get a valid credit card off you at check in (which can be in a different name) they don’t seem to care!

  • Genghis says:

    14 Aug14 August 20:55

    If your mum calls CS, they will book a room in your name with her points.

    • Brian says:

      14 Aug14 August 22:49

      Thanks for the replies.

• Froggee says:

  14 Aug14 August 14:34

  Hello – advice please. I’ve had an email from Easyjet presenting “a change in my flight itinerary” for October. The flight itinerary has been moved to 3.5 hours earlier. However the flight number has changed. Am I correct that under EU regs that I am entitled to a full refund as this is a cancellation be Easyjet? Obviously I can’t get through to Easyjet on the phone (but I can hold a long time!) but the website and form hub doesn’t seem to want to offer the refund option so I have to speak to them. I’d like to be sure before I get fobbed off. Thank you.

  • Reeferman says:

    14 Aug14 August 15:13

    Correct – a change in flight number is indeed an effective cancellation. Full refund is due.

  • Lady London says:

    14 Aug14 August 15:22

    I have posted two times on this in the past 2-3 days to warn people about this new trick Easyjet is trying Apparently so people won’t realise they have EU261 rights Easyjet doesnt want to honour.

    If flight number changes ooen and shut you have full refund and rerouting rights under EU261. Easyjet has removed flight numbers on the email so you wont see this.

    Worse, look in Manage Booking. Without marking it in any way Easyjet has overwritten the details of your original flight and its number with details of the different flight they’ve moved you to. They are not informing you they’ve actually moved your booking to a new flight number. They’re claiming it is only a time change, and not informing you of your full rights, which I believe is illegal.

    Work out what you want, call them and insist on it. keep a record as people are saying agents are telling them the easyjet system doesn’t let them mark the cancellwd flight as a cancellation.

    Be aware that any time anyone has to phone Easyjet for a new booking or if they are required to phone to change an Easyjet booking they use separate pricing and will not be the same as the price you get on the internet. this would matter if you took a voucher and found you had to call to use it.

    • Lady London says:

      14 Aug14 August 15:27

      PS even if it is just a time change on the sane flight number (and this new type of email seems to have been invented just for cancellations that they are calling time changes) then most of their flights are under 1500km. asbin @Charlieface’s post about 2 days ago this means even if it’s the same flight number they can only move it up to 2 hours later or, IIRC, 1 hour before.

      • Froggee says:

        14 Aug14 August 15:43

        Thanks Lady London – that’s me just off the phone. Exactly what you said. I pushed the agent hard but remained polite. She said she cannot give a refund. There is nobody else I can speak to. She has lodged a complaint for me but I don’t hold much faith in that. I got the impression that she knew exactly the issue but had no flexibility as she didn’t push back when I said that Easyjet cannot override EU law with their terms and conditions. I’ll go the Amex route as thankfully that one is booked with Amex. Annoyingly I need to wait as Easyjet are apparently refunding me for seat selection (as they clearly can’t carry these onto a completely different flight) and I don’t want to be dishonest and over claim. On the time change issue, my understanding was that if the flight number remains the same it is driven by what the airline considers to be a minor change which for Easyjet is five hours. They are rascals but thankfully have just raised another £600m.

        • Froggee says:

          14 Aug14 August 16:01

          Actually, after going Grrr for a bit I just phoned Amex, who were brilliant. I explained the situation and the seat reservation fee refund and they’ve note it all and are processing a dispute.

        • Lady London says:

          14 Aug14 August 18:15

          no an airline can have its own rules about refunds and flexibility on their own schedule changes but EU 261 overrides this. It’s 2 hrs max later they can reschedule it if distance is under 1500 km otherwise its same as a cancellation with EU rights.

          Of course if an airline wants to offer better than EU261 requires they are free to do so. EU261 is the backstop.

        • Lady London says:

          14 Aug14 August 18:22

          PS I dont think Easyjet minds if you take a refund. If you take a refund you are giving up EU261 rerouting rights that give you flexibility to choose a later date of travel that works for you.

          If you take a refund you also give up duty of care rights of EU261 which may be what they’re more worried about.

          They’lll try to get you to take a voucher but that is not as flexible as the right you have to choose another date that suits you under rerouting.

          In any case you do have the right to a full refund although I suspect they might warn you they would take weeks to refund you as a way to push you towards a voucher – you’re actually entitled to be paid within 7 days.

        • Froggee says:

          14 Aug14 August 19:16

          Thanks again Lady London – the agent literally would do nothing else. I have no interest in a voucher or re-routing as that would go unused. Normally it would be hang up and call again but not with a 90 minute delay to get an agent. It seems pointless to engage further with EasyJet when I can go the Amex dispute way. It is pretty flagrant by EasyJet as this is clearly their new strategy. The flights were Gatwick to Faro – not cheap. There were many flights that day which have now been consolidated to three and they’re clearly hoping to run them full! I very much doubt I’ll be flying for some time now and particularly not with my elderly mum.

        • Lady London says:

          14 Aug14 August 19:35

          @Froggee a wise decision. Particularly not with your elderly Mum.

      • Sukes says:

        14 Aug14 August 23:08

        @Charlieface’s comments do not apply. They relate to delays. EC261 requires the person to have checked in for the flight sector in order for a claim relating to denied boarding or delay to be raised.

        • Lady London says:

          14 Aug14 August 23:43

          @Sukes tx, when I saw Charlieface’s comment it matched my recollection of text within EU261 limiting rescheduling. (the piece I recalled stated limits on rescheduling flights earlier as well as later but my recollection of the limits ‘later’ was close enough to what Charlieface said.) I will take a look and find the exact limits whem i get time.

          Luckily the new type Easyjet emails being sent out seem only to be triggered when Easyjet has in fact changed the flight number (meaning full EC261 cancellation rights apply) whilst presenting it only as a time change. Real time changes, where only the time has changed and the flight is the same, are apparently still being sent out in the old format.

• Tom says:

  14 Aug14 August 14:45

  I received a refund for a purchase i made on my curve card which has gone to “Curve Cash” rather than my underlying card i used to make the purchase.

  Is this how a refund should be processed? How can i withdraw that money? It is a 4 figure sum and i would rather it not be sat in Curve.

  Thanks

  • Qwertyknowsbest says:

    14 Aug14 August 14:47

    Exactly the same refund situation with. Curve, complaint in with them.

    • mark2 says:

      14 Aug14 August 15:36

      Many people would like to have the refund in cash.
      Just set to Curve Cash in wallet and spend it!

      • Tom says:

        14 Aug14 August 15:51

        I don’t want to spend it, i want it back on the payment card that i used to make the original transaction.

        Why would i want thousands of pounds locked into a company with no FSCS protection when it should have been sent to the credit card used to fund the transaction which i could be paying interest on?

        • @mkcol says:

          14 Aug14 August 15:54

          Just use your Curve card to pay that credit card off using your Curve Cash.
          It’s not rocket science.

        • Tom says:

          14 Aug14 August 16:19

          I don’t think i am being unreasonable to ask for the funds to be put back on the card used to pay.

          My reasoning is slightly complex because i was the lead booker for a group of people who need paying back. The money going back to my payment card will allow me to do this in a much cleaner way.

          Curve clearly state that refunds go back to the payment card, that is all i am asking for. I don’t care what i could or couldn’t do with the unprotected Curve Cash, i just want them to do what they state they do.

        • Lady London says:

          14 Aug14 August 19:39

          @Tom this is a bit cryptic but as regards posting this here as an issue : You do realise you are a fox in a henhouse surrounded by chickens and saying you are a vegetarian ?

        • Tom says:

          14 Aug14 August 22:54

          @LL haha I appreciate the reasons why soke might prefer the refund not to go back on the original card but in this occasion it maies sense for me so wanted to see if they could manually do it for me.

        • Pat the Postie says:

          15 Aug15 August 21:43

          Best contact them

• Rupert says:

  14 Aug14 August 14:58

  Anyone confirm NS&I top with curve and IHG is fine or incurs?

  • stevenhp1987 says:

    14 Aug14 August 15:14

    fine.

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