The HfP chat thread – Wednesday 2nd December

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• John says:

  2 Dec2 December 13:39

  Curve have confirmed the offer is open to everyone regardless of tier or targeting.

  • Dan says:

    2 Dec2 December 13:57

    Ive tried a £100 amazon top up via CURVE..declined. Tried 2 separate cards, IHG and HSBC.. no good.

    • Tom says:

      2 Dec2 December 15:39

      E gift card got declined for me to but a physical gift card (they post it to you) went through fine, arrived this morning.

    • TGLoyalty says:

      2 Dec2 December 15:46

      sometimes it happens if you’ve never used the card before on amazon.

    • Aston100 says:

      2 Dec2 December 17:18

      Curve with underlying IHG was fine for me, for that very same transaction.

    • mr_jetlag says:

      2 Dec2 December 18:00

      Curve worked for me yesterday, used Amazon PlatMC (newday)

• John says:

  2 Dec2 December 14:20

  Works fine for me. Are you sure you don’t have two curve cards? And you’re using the old one?

  • Richster says:

    2 Dec2 December 14:24

    +1

• Charlieface says:

  2 Dec2 December 14:21

  Does the Amex Amazon offer work with paying marketplace seller fees?

  • Tom says:

    2 Dec2 December 15:34

    Unfortunately not.

  • Lady London says:

    2 Dec2 December 15:52

    Can you pay marketplace seller fees with vouchers perhaps?

    • Tom says:

      2 Dec2 December 16:35

      No can’t do that either unfortunately.

      • Charlieface says:

        2 Dec2 December 17:38

        I suppose it was a nice try…
        We probably have a few million of that…

• Alan says:

  2 Dec2 December 14:23

  For anyone using the Morrison’s AMEX offer to buy JL vouchers be aware that the beauty voucher can only be initially used on beauty treatments with whatever is remaining only usable on make up.

  Neither JL nor Morrisons will refund or exchange them, this left me with a bit of a problem as I had purchased 10 x £150 vouchers.
  Getting them exchanged took a trip to Morrisons, escalation to the store manager and was done on the basis that I had asked for JL vouchers and was shown the beauty vouchers (the standard ones were not in stock).

  The refund was made to my debit card (I asked if it mattered what card I used and was told no). I then purchased £1,500 of the standard JL vouchers which triggered the both the 10% offer and the 1,500 Avios

  • Jonathan says:

    2 Dec2 December 14:53

    You purchased £1500 of the wrong voucher, got it refunded then bought another £1500 & got the 10% back? The Amex 10% was one transaction only. You got lucky they gave you a refund and doubly so to a different card or you’d have lost your 10%!

    • TGLoyalty says:

      2 Dec2 December 15:44

      if you use it but the transaction refunded you can still use the offer again.

    • Alan says:

      2 Dec2 December 16:43

      No it was to the same card.
      It appears that the offer is valid for multiple use. I got confirmation that it had tracked a couple of hours after the purchase.
      A week or two ago someone else on hear has also mentioned getting multiple discounts.

  • H says:

    2 Dec2 December 14:57

    @Alan – I bought two John Lewis “Beauty Gift Cards” from Morrisons last week (had to select an amount up to £150 myself). I have been able to check the balance and apply the gift card towards a home appliance purchase (although I have not yet placed the order). Did you try redeeming your card on the John Lewis website? Were your Beauty vouchers different to the “Beauty Gift Card”? Mine is black with brushes in the background and a detachable section with various make-up brands listed on it.

    • Alan says:

      2 Dec2 December 16:52

      I tried to redeem one at Waitrose and it wouldn’t validate. I called JL and they told me that I could only use it on beauty treatments/products and that they wouldn’t swap it for the standard card.

      It looks similar to the ones you have purchased, maybe loading cash on to it yourself is treated differently.

      • H says:

        2 Dec2 December 17:35

        Maybe the issue was that they weren’t activated properly? Did you get a receipt confirming that the cards had been activated? In any event, I’m glad you were able to sort it out.

  • mark2 says:

    2 Dec2 December 15:20

    I have bought quite a few Beauty gift cards and Baby cards as the standard cards were out of stock.
    Before buying them I checked carefully and both types of card say on the reverse that they can be used in John Lewis or Waitrose, instore and online.
    I have used a Baby card in Waitrose and will try a Beauty card tomorrow.

    • Prune says:

      2 Dec2 December 15:23

      All a bit strange! I bought 10 x £100 JL beauty vouchers and used them online without an issue to buy a new iPhone a few weeks ago.

      • TGLoyalty says:

        2 Dec2 December 15:40

        Agree I used £600 on Saturday to buy a Sonos Sub online and the sub is now in my room.

        Spent another £150 in waitrose over the past couple weeks too.

        It’s just branding rather than a beauty gift experience which can only be used on beauty treatments instore.

    • Nigel W says:

      2 Dec2 December 16:07

      Likewise, my local morrisons only had the baby card and it worked fine on the website.

    • Alan says:

      2 Dec2 December 18:53

      It’s possible that there was a problem with their activation, and JL was just quoting their T%Cs at me, although they did scan them when I took them back to Morrisons to check how much to refund.

      I was relieved when I got it sorted, as I am not sure giving my wife 10 beauty treatments for Christmas would have sent the right message.

    • Alan says:

      2 Dec2 December 18:59

      Perhaps there has been a change or there are two versions.

      The ones I purchased said initial purchase must be used on a beauty treatment and that anything remaining could be used on make up.

      • TGLoyalty says:

        2 Dec2 December 21:07

        On the back of the card? Were they labelled £x-£150?

  • TGLoyalty says:

    2 Dec2 December 15:38

    That’s not true the beauty and baby cards are jut branding they can be used on aything

  • Yuff says:

    2 Dec2 December 16:44

    I read the top comment and rang Morrison’s as I just bought £800 this afternoon, they are emailing back after talking to Thea tore, looks like I’m ok to keep them.

  • TGLoyalty says:

    2 Dec2 December 17:09

    No need to buy anything else

    • Steven says:

      2 Dec2 December 17:32

      Many thanks

  • Kevin says:

    2 Dec2 December 21:26

    I also bought £1000 beauty gift cards and planning to get an iPhone from Oxford st this weekend. I checked the small print and as mark mentioned that it can be redeemed in store and online for both JL or Waitrose. However I did have a problem to use it in Waitrose last week. I am keeping the entire GC package and preparing to argue with JL if they can’t be used in store.

• Chris Heyes says:

  2 Dec2 December 15:16

  Just back from Tesco (Bognor Regis) spent over £100 by the time I’d got back to Flat i had a e-mail saying i’d triggered the spend over £100 receive 1500 points that was quick

  • Charlieface says:

    2 Dec2 December 17:40

    Normally triggers within a minute or doesn’t come at all

    • Rob says:

      2 Dec2 December 18:34

      I had a Hilton email through today which triggered at the point the transaction went from Pending to Processed, two days after the charge was made.

• mark2 says:

  2 Dec2 December 15:21

  Can someone advise please: with the large retention bonuses on Amex cards is there a spend requirement attached?

  • Lev441 says:

    2 Dec2 December 15:26

    Not generally.

  • Lev441 says:

    2 Dec2 December 15:27

    I got an additional 1 Avios per £1 spent for 3 months on my BAPP last week

    • Mike says:

      2 Dec2 December 16:19

      Same. Though not sure what will they offer or say if I cancel after the 3 months?

• Super Secret Stuff says:

  2 Dec2 December 15:58

  Something just occurred to me, with the capacity imits for entry into Aus. We could see the 787-9 doing a non stop LHR to Aus service a lot sooner than we think.

  When fully introduced it was always going to be a reduced capacity premium passenger and cargo service so given the planes currently sat around. Someone say at BA could easily make it work.

  Wouldn’t like to think about high the fares will be tho…

  • callum says:

    2 Dec2 December 16:24

    There was already a 787-9 doing non stop LHR to Aus. If you mean BA specifically, absolutely no chance whatsoever. There’s no way in hell that could possibly be financially viable with 50/60 passengers, no matter how high BA try and make the fares.

    • Super Secret Stuff says:

      2 Dec2 December 17:30

      That was only a trial with Qantas who view it as there future growth market. I think it is viable particularly if you take out the seats you aren’t using.

      If you did all club world and first seats, with 30 passengers each way and an average ticket price of £4k across both cabins, you’d net £240,000. A 787-9 can have 36 ULD 3s and a bulk hold. Assuming the passangers take up the bulk hold and 6 ULD space, you still have space for 30 ULDs or 10 pallets each way. I believe pre covid it costs £10k each way to occupy a unit from LHR to Aus. So you are looking at a solid £100k each way. Could probably charge more as it is direct and quicker so time sensitive goods will likely pay for it.

      Meaning you will net £440,000 per day per return trip. That for sure covers there variable costs and probably a large chunk of the fixed costs with that aircraft. Obviously post covid it could continue with more passengers etc.

      • callum says:

        2 Dec2 December 18:44

        It wasn’t a trial – it’s a regular service and has been going on for quite a while now. They’ve even reorganised their Australia-London routes around it. The only reason it has stopped is because Qantas only currently flies international scheduled flights to New Zealand due to Covid.

        I’d wager there’s a reason why no carrier is considering such a route, and it’s not their lack of planes or inability to calculate cargo revenue potential! If the likes of Qatar cannot make the route profitable, I don’t believe for a second that BA can.

        Not to mention there’s a reason why they have cancelled all their direct LHR-SYD services (which are only negligibly slower than a non-stop itinerary – I don’t see why companies would pay any premium to get on a 20 hour flight instead of 22 hours). If that’s not viable (especially as premiums for non-stop are irrelevant at the moment – there’s a captive audience with demand far higher than supply), then neither could this be.

        • Super Secret Stuff says:

          2 Dec2 December 22:10

          Its a trial. Look it up.

          Also, your argument is flawed. To be commercially viable you need a base on either end and the exact right plane because of the range. Which, guess what? Leaves Virgin, BA, Qantas and nothing else.

          It is easily commercially viable or else they wouldn’t be bothering with trials.

          The reason why they’ll pay is it also reduces jet lag and make the flights more manageable. Plus staff can get a better sleep not having to change planes.

        • Callum says:

          2 Dec2 December 23:33

          It’s not a trial… As Nick has pointed out you’re presumably confusing it with their Sydney trial.

          Of course people will pay more, they always do on direct flights. Your claim that they’d pay so much more that it’s financially viable to fly a Dreamliner with only 30 passengers is beyond absurd. If Qatar can’t make it financially viable flying from Doha, I struggle to see how on Earth BA could. (As I said, demand FAR outstrips supply so direct will not be able to capture a significant price premium – if there’s a seat available it will be, and is, sold many times over)

      • Nick_C says:

        2 Dec2 December 19:53

        QF have run a couple of non stop test flights LHR-SYD and JFK-SYD, and had planned to operate non stop from LHR to SYD at some point in the future.

        QF were operating a daily non stop from LHR to Perth (with onward connections) before the pandemic.

      • Chrisasaurus says:

        3 Dec3 December 06:08

        Also remember that’s 30 premium passengers you now don’t have on your ‘normal’ route, plus same for that cargo – unless you’re confident there’s significant hidden demand for both?

  • @mkcol says:

    3 Dec3 December 04:16

    Well SYD is going to the 787 next year anyway….

• Mike says:

  2 Dec2 December 16:12

  If you’re flying out of LHR then stay at the Sofitel the night before. They do a £199 ‘rest and test’ package that includes a room and an overnight PCR test. If you check-in and get swabbed by 8pm they guarantee the result by ??? (somewhere around 7am I think).

  Extra room occupants are charged at £70 each for additional PCR test/breakfast so if you’re travelling as a couple the cost per person is similar to using any other test service but with a hotel room thrown in…

  • h2d says:

    2 Dec2 December 23:13

    The Sofitel option would not be valid for South Africa as require the test to be done by a medical professional. Sofitel tests are saliva based not swab and self-administered

    • Will says:

      2 Dec2 December 23:33

      How do SA know who performed the test if the certificate is signed by a medical person and the method is not mentioned on the certificate. Many places do the same including Wren

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