The HfP chat thread – Wednesday 23rd September

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• Kevin says:

  23 Sep23 September 09:03

  I want to downgrade from my premium BA Premium AMEX to the free one for the pro rata refund. Will I lose all my saved offers or will they still be on the free card?

  • Dave says:

    23 Sep23 September 09:13

    In my experience, they tend to stay on your card

    • Sandra says:

      23 Sep23 September 10:33

      I downgraded yesterday as I already have 3 vouchers, one of which I probably won’t get to use. During the conversation I was warned that ‘you may not be able to upgrade to the premium card at a future date’, which I ignored. Is this just a general warning they have to give in case your circumstances change?

      • John says:

        23 Sep23 September 10:48

        They will make an assessment of your account history at the time you want to upgrade, yes. They are unlikely to request a full credit search but it can happen

        • Sandra says:

          23 Sep23 September 10:53

          Thanks John that’s what I thought but it was said in a way that made me feel they weren’t too happy at losing my annual fee – maybe she was just having a bad day!

  • Lee says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:30

    Do you have to call to downgrade?

    • Sandra says:

      23 Sep23 September 10:33

      Yes you have to call

• berneslai says:

  23 Sep23 September 09:12

  Minor datapoint: I have some Hilton reward stays in the USA booked for August 2021. Almost all of them have reduced in points required overnight so I’ve cancelled and rebooked. I’ve generated enough in savings to get another night free elsewhere.

  I’m not sure how localised this is so your-mileage-may-vary.

  • ChrisC says:

    23 Sep23 September 09:35

    Been the same with some of my IHG bookings for UK and Europe as well.

    Some have gone down and some gone up

    But like with refundable cash rates I do check them all regularly to see if cancelling and rebooking would mean me getting some points back or the room for cheaper or of it’s the same price but with an added breakfast

  • John says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:51

    Points bookings may reduce in price whenever the flexible cash rate reduces. It is definitely a dynamically priced points rate if the “thousands” number is not 0 or 5, e.g. 27000 points

    The US dollar is used as the base currency for this. So for hotels in the UK, if GBP/USD rises by a few % it’s also worth checking if the points rate has dropped (for example when it got to $1.33 recently). Same for eurozone and EUR/USD exchange rate, etc.

  • Dan says:

    23 Sep23 September 15:42

    Thanks for this. Just replaced a couple of nights at the Bangkok Hilton in April for 68k from 88k.

• mark2 says:

  23 Sep23 September 09:48

  My wife applied for an Amex BA blue card yesterday and surprisingly it arrived in the post today. Even more surprisingly it had 25 offers already. Less surprisingly none of them are of interest.

• Marcin says:

  23 Sep23 September 10:01

  Could someone please save my time over searching through let’s say nicely not accurate positions on the internet.

  If I upgrade cash flight on BA app with more cash though “limited special offer”, do I get extra avios and tier points?

  Over the years I’ve been upgrading only with avios to CE / CW and I know you don’t get tier points / avios, if it different with cash upgrade?

  • AJA says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:50

    Yes you should get the extra TP and Avios with an upgrade paid in cash either online through MMB or at check in but they may not automatically post so expect to chase afterwards for them to be applied so keep all records including boarding pass showing your seat in the upgraded cabin.

    • Marcin says:

      23 Sep23 September 11:15

      Thanks AJA, in this case I think I’ll bite the £59 upgrade on my Saturday flight to Stockholm.

      Last year I went down to bronze with BA as due to work I was flying with * Alliance, funny enough I’m looking at clocking up Gold with BA this dry year.

      I got some “spare change” in tier points and upcoming 2 returns to Istanbul (320 TPs) the Quatar to SE Asia once Thailand opens will ideal.

      Fingers crossed for Thailnad to allow foreign travel, I don’t feel bold enough to play around with fake bussinnes visit over there.

  • WaynedP says:

    23 Sep23 September 11:19

    Out of interest, was your “limited special offer” advised to you by email, or does it appear online in your MMB (either mobile app, desktop, or both) ?

    • Marcin says:

      23 Sep23 September 11:42

      Showing on the entry page of the app, it’s my first upcoming flight with BA.

• Mikescores says:

  23 Sep23 September 10:02

  Hello All
  A little help, please. All things being equal, have a flight from T5 on 10th October , 10.35. Have in the past laid my head at Premier Inn, terminal 4. Do we know whether this is still the best/a viable option – eg, what is open, what is the state of transfers around LHR, any other factors. Thanks – stay safe.

  • Rob says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:24

    I’d do the Hilton Garden Inn at Hatton Cross. Jump on the tube in morning and be in T5 within 5 minutes. No faffing around with shuttle buses.

  • John says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:57

    Yes, the Premier Inn T4 is open, £29 for your night as a google search would have told you….

    Buses 482 or 490 will take you to T5 in the morning, bus stop is about 20m to the east of the hotel. Every 10 mins on average. Completely free, just walk on, no need to say anything to driver, can board by back door if they open it.

    You’ll have to take one of those buses to get there from Hatton Cross tube station (or taxi or walk). T4 is closed as is the tube station.

    • Mikescores says:

      24 Sep24 September 15:48

      As always – Thanks Rob – particularly as John below informed me that the tube at T4 is not open.
      Thanks John – I had seen the £29 price for the Premier Inn but wondering about the travel situation; wasn’t aware the T4 tube was closed.

• DK says:

  23 Sep23 September 10:19

  How long does it normally take for the voucher to get to your BA account after triggering?
  Triggered on Sep 13th and still waiting

  • Lee says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:33

    I triggered on 16th and also waiting. Someone mentioned yesterday even Avios are slow to reach BA account as normally on took a day. Not sure if there are any IT issues at the moment.

    • Sandra says:

      23 Sep23 September 10:43

      My latest was showing the day after I triggered it (7 September)

    • Geoff says:

      23 Sep23 September 11:25

      Mine triggered at the weekend and showing this morning.

      • DK says:

        23 Sep23 September 12:06

        Thanks for data points. Will chase with Amex tmr in this case

        • Lee says:

          23 Sep23 September 12:39

          Called Amex and been told my voucher was issued on 17th. I have to wait for the voucher to arrive up to 15 days.

• Gill says:

  23 Sep23 September 10:25

  Looking for advise on a declined platinum insurance claim.

  In August I booked a cottage in Scotland for myself and extended family for a trip in September. It was non-refundable and I paid on my platinum card. Local restrictions were applied where I live and therefore the trip couldn’t go ahead as it would have gone against the mixed household restriction.
  I put in a claim which has been declined with the reason noted below.

  “1.2 CANCELLING, POSTPONING AND ABANDONING YOUR TRIP
  You will not be covered in respect of the following:
  1) Cancellation claims arising directly or indirectly from circumstances known to You prior to booking
  Your Trip.”
  Please note that as per the policy terms and conditions above, we are not in a position of considering your claim as it is a cancellation due to a
  known event. At the time of your booking, even though there was no travel restricition but the pandemic Corona Virus has already been declared
  as from mid March 2020 and since your reason of cancellation it is due to the same reason, therefore, it is considered as a known event.

  Has anyone had a similar decline? The AMEX website notes the following which is the closest I can find to my situation.

  “I have booked a holiday in my own country. Am I covered if the region I’m due to visit is
  placed into lockdown?
  If you had booked your trip before the advice or ban was issued, trip cancellation claims will be
  considered on this basis for costs not recoverable from the airline, hotel or travel provider”

  The response they’ve provided seems to indicate that I wont be covered for any trip any time since Covid is a known event. I do plan to contest but any advise on the best approach would be appreciated.

  Thanks

  • AJA says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:35

    I think you will be out of luck as you made a non-refundable booking in August 2020, clearly well after Covid-19 was a known event. Not sure why you booked non-flexible deal but this shows why it’s not a good idea at the moment. You could appeal to the holiday provider to see if they will allow you to move to next year or give you a voucher but expect them to decline to help you as it was you who cancelled and not them Sorry not to have a positive response.

    • Gill says:

      23 Sep23 September 10:39

      Thanks – i suspect you may be correct and i’m just clutching at straws. If they aren’t covering claims for travel booked before a restriction was imposed, then it is confusing that they make a statement that seems to contradict that on their covid travel guidance.

      • John says:

        23 Sep23 September 10:59

        If you think they have not treated you fairly, just ask to make a complaint and (10 months later due to delays) let the financial ombudsman rule on it if you can’t come to an agreement. You can’t be put in a worse position than you are already in, i.e. they don’t reimburse you

  • Dave says:

    23 Sep23 September 12:40

    I think you have a valid claim. Although COVID was a known event, there were no travel restrictions in place when you booked. That is the key point and I think terms support this. They don’t mention know events, just booking before travel advice or ban was issued. Worth appealing.

    If you had booked your trip before the advice or ban was issued, trip cancellation claims will be considered on this basis for costs not recoverable from the airline, hotel or travel provider

    • Charlieface says:

      23 Sep23 September 13:22

      I concur. Take it all the way, up to and including MCOL

    • MinR says:

      23 Sep23 September 14:34

      Agree. I booked a flight to Spain (Vueling – non refundable, only one change free) that I couldn’t take as the travel advice changed. The flight was not cancelled.

      AXA first declined, but when I pointed them to their website guidance for Amex Platinum Travel Insurance on, they promptly paid out minus the £50 excess.

  • Gill says:

    23 Sep23 September 13:09

    I called to discuss the claim and before I even got to raising any dispute, the agent told me they were reopening as the amex platinum does cover cancellation where there is no restriction at time of booking. Whilst they couldn’t confirm it would pay out, they did confirm the clause listed for decline was not valid for my policy. I’m cautiously optimistic it will be successful 2nd time.

    • Lady London says:

      23 Sep23 September 14:03

      I guess this is Axa again?

      • Gill says:

        23 Sep23 September 16:05

        Yes – it was AXA. In all fairness, the person who I spoke to when I was preparing to raise a dispute was great and has sorted it all out in a matter of hours. They called back to confirm it will be settled minus the excess within 48 hours and apologised for the initial incorrect decision. I’m pleased with that but it does seem that these incorrect decisions are not uncommon.

        • AJA says:

          23 Sep23 September 19:39

          Gill that’s great news. Thanks for the update. I am pleased for you. Glad you didn’t just give up and pleased that others gave better responses than i did. Definitely a case of Hang up and call again.

• Jonathan says:

  23 Sep23 September 10:41

  Virgin Atlantic credit card limits

  Hello all, I’ve just cancelled my fee-free VA CC, so I can upgrade to their Premium card. The fee-free card when I cancelled it had a limit of £500, if of course the upgrade from free card to premium was easier, I would’ve asked for a credit limit increase, since I’d held the card well in excess in 9 months.

  I’d like to know if anyone else has experiences of having their credit limits changed when upgrading from the free card to the premium. Hopefully I’ll get a higher limit than £500 when I get the premium card, given that I’ve already got good recent credit history with themselves, and since £500 definitely doesn’t go far at all when buying a plane ticket, it sometimes won’t even cover the taxes alone!

  • AJA says:

    23 Sep23 September 10:56

    Wow how generous is Virgin, not? i don’t think I’ve ever had a credit limit below £7k though I’ve never had a Virgin card. What is the point of having the card with only a £500 credit limit? Even in these Covid-19 times I spend more than that most months!

    • Vit says:

      23 Sep23 September 11:06

      AJA — agreed. No much point having a card for less than a couple k let alone £500. I think it is true that Virgin is the least ‘generous’ among all cards provider I have. I’ve got the least limit from them at £5.9k while others MBNA, AMEX, Creation all ranges from 12k to 30k.

      • Crafty says:

        23 Sep23 September 13:05

        Our latest Amex (PRG, July) came with a £1,500 limit. Our previous Amex (Starwood) had been initially given £15,000. (Both cards in my wife’s name.) It may not only be Virgin tightening up.

  • Jonathan says:

    23 Sep23 September 11:27

    I’ve got a few other cards all with limits varying from £1000 all the way up to £7000, the lower card limits are lower at my choice due to their unique benefits and aren’t used regularly, similar to like Rob has mentioned many times that he doesn’t use his Amex Platinum as his main card. I’ve seen comments from numerous HFP readers that VA CC limits tend to be low

  • Harry T says:

    23 Sep23 September 13:09

    Virgin gave me a limit on the paid card that was 10% of my typical Amex credit limit.

  • John says:

    23 Sep23 September 14:38

    Had paid Virgin since it’s introduction with £25000 limit which is used and paid in full most months.
    Asked numerous times over many years for limit increase – always refuse. Unlike Amex and MBNA who constantly throw credit limit increases at me when don’t want /need them !

    • Jonathan says:

      23 Sep23 September 15:09

      What are you using £25k/month for?! Assuming you’re mates with Ernie or similar? Considering the earnings rate probably results in a loss on every transaction & you’ve stated you pay off in full so no interest then I’m more surprised they haven’t cut your limit rather than increased!

      There is a general trend with all financial institutions of a reduced appetite for unsecured lending at the moment & Virgin led the way with most people initially getting £20k +!limits at launch which became £10k ish 18 months ago then £5k in last year

      • TGLoyalty says:

        23 Sep23 September 16:47

        I don’t know in this particular case but there are ways to clock up lots of genuine spend

        i.e a web designer who handles their clients google adwords etc can put through multiple thousands per month.

      • John says:

        23 Sep23 September 17:02

        Employers NI payments

      • John says:

        23 Sep23 September 17:03

        Via Curve

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