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The HfP chat thread – Monday 11th January

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We have decided to run this daily chat thread on Head for Points during the coronavirus outbreak.

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Comments (255)

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

  • stevenhp1987 says:
    11 Jan11 January 11:30

    We could rebook Japan for October but BA have seemingly dropped Osaka – could we move to October and re-route?

  • Paul says:
    11 Jan11 January 11:58

    I have to be out of my house in 2 weeks. Wont have new house until mid march. Kids aged 13 11 and 9. Kids doing remote learning. Thinking about moving abroad for a while, somewhere hot. Any ideas where? Ideally south or east so kids dont have to start school at 330am!

    • Anna says:
      11 Jan11 January 12:07

      Is remote learning definitely going to continue that long? Otherwise if you can get into Spain, Canaries would be ideal with the climate and 1 hour time difference (I think). Or North/East/West Africa? Mauritius/UAE are 4 hours ahead which is probably about the biggest time difference you want.

      • Anna says:
        11 Jan11 January 12:09

        Sorry, half my answer seems to have disappeared! I hope it continues as my son is much happier at home but I would worry that if the schools go back after Feb half term remore provision might be withdrawn.
        Also a lot of places tie you in to 6/12 month rentals, though Air B nB might be more flexible.

        • Colin MacKinnon says:
          11 Jan11 January 13:31

          Hi Anna,

          Other half and daughter still out in Lanzarote. They negotiated a two-bed flat in Costa Teguise with terraces, sea view, internet and Netflix for 30 euros a night.

          The island is dead. The big Tui-style hotels are now all closed. A few stayed open over Xmas and one in Playa Blanca had just 100 guests, instead of 2,000 plus!
          The Irish/Scottish/Welsh bars in Costa Teguise closed at new year when the EU Brexit-Covid restrictions came in.

          January/Feb should be peak time, with the grannies and grandpas coming over after their festive family gatherings in UK. But they either can’t get in, or they don’t want to miss their UK vaccine dates.

          So with no customers, it’s not worth Ryanair and Easyjet running many – if any – flights! My flight back, 15 passengers. Outbound: empty.

          Covid is also on the rise, Lanzarote just been lifted a tier.

          But it is warm, the shops are open, and there is lots of space sitting in the sun outside bars and restaurants that are still open (usually the better quality ones!).

      • xcalx says:
        11 Jan11 January 12:26

        No time change for Canaries

        • Anna says:
          11 Jan11 January 12:43

          Even better! If this does go on beyond half term I am sorely tempted to look into it ..

          • xcalx says:
            11 Jan11 January 16:09

            We put the youngest into Wingate school Tenerife for 3 terms back in 1999. Little sod was always going missing with his new mate whose dad just happened to own a scuba diving business.

    • Andrew says:
      11 Jan11 January 15:49

      Have you considered Boarding?

      You enjoy the heat, they enjoy a good education.

      • Anna says:
        11 Jan11 January 17:14

        He gets an excellent (and free) education from his outstanding state school topped up by his highly educated family!

  • mutley says:
    11 Jan11 January 12:27

    Some kids prefer to be at home, its probably a welcome respite if they are bullied.
    Personally I would loved to be on remote learning, lounging in a comfy chair, half an eye on the playstation , bag of quavers etc.

    • Anna says:
      11 Jan11 January 12:38

      That is exactly what he’s doing, except it’s Walker’s roast chicken flavour and not quavers 🤣. Also much prefers getting up at 9.00 am for the first lesson at 9.15 instead of 7am!

  • xcalx says:
    11 Jan11 January 12:29

    End of an era for me and Tesco. Just exchanged my last £728.50 in vouchers for 174,840 Avios.

    • 747_Brat says:
      11 Jan11 January 12:31

      Woah! 😯
      How long have you been saving the Tesco Vouchers for?

      • xcalx says:
        11 Jan11 January 12:40

        Apart from using Vouchers for a couple of cruises in the last 2 years these are left overs from the 3V days when just under £300 was going into 4 accounts monthly.

    • Anna says:
      11 Jan11 January 12:39

      That’s awesome though, 2 F returns if you use a 2 4 1!

      • xcalx says:
        11 Jan11 January 12:47

        Never used a BA 2 for 1 on long haul. I have used Lloyds . I can’t justify the Taxes BA charge when Avios are so easy to acquire and taxes so low on IB. Plus BA don’t fly to San Juan where we start most of our cruises.

  • DodgyDCF says:
    11 Jan11 January 12:43

    Would it be worth closing platinum card at this rate? I’m still waiting for my 20k bonus and it has been over 60 days since meeting the spend on the green -> platinum upgrade?

    • mark2 says:
      11 Jan11 January 14:11

      Just yesterday I rang Amex about this very matter.
      I spoke to a charming lady called Honor in Brighton.
      She sought guidance from above and came back to tell me that I was not entitled to the bonus because I had had a Platinum card in the last two years. I do not believe that, but, if true, the system should have warned me during the upgrade process. I shall state this on the satisfaction survey but do not expect satisfaction. I have checked the current offer and there is no mention of this condition.
      So I am going to cancel the card as the only real use at present is to earn for referrals.

      • TGLoyalty says:
        11 Jan11 January 15:15

        Not the case in the T&C’s of the upgrade offer.

        That is the case for the new sign up

        • Sina says:
          11 Jan11 January 15:54

          I was told the same but with threat of complaining, they caved and gave me the points, it’s because on two occasions they tried to weasel out of it but I insisted they show me the terms and conditions, which they failed to do so!

      • Crafty says:
        11 Jan11 January 22:57

        Not true. I phoned 4 days ago and got the 20,000 instantly.

  • DenisO says:
    11 Jan11 January 12:56

    With the Tesco / BA Avios link ending I need to get a new non-Amex Avios generating credit card – any suggestions ?

    I would also appreciate any comments on the best ways to use Tesco Clubcard Points generated in future.

    F.Info – We use BA Amex Premium Plus Cards for all possible spend, but need a credit card for spend where Amex is not accepted (Up until now the Tesco Credit card has done this). The BA Card, with 2-4-1 vouchers, has been great value in the past with First Class trips to Tobago (twice), and a mix of First and Club Class trips to Sydney (three times), for my wife and me in the last 6 years.

    • TGLoyalty says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:29

      Outside Tesco (where it was very good) the rate was 2.4 avios / £8 or 0.3 Avios / £.

      You would have been better off with a 0.5% cash back credit card then buying the Avios in one of the many bonus offers that bought the price down to about 1p per point.

      Unfortunately the door is closed on most of these cards now due to the interchange fee cap.

      It’s worth waiting to see if there are any partnerships as a result of BA announcing their new supermarket partner next week.

    • BuildBackBetter says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:33

      If you’re eligible for hsbc premier, their cards are good for avios. The only other option is to use IHG cards, but they have poor value.
      You can also use debit cards with Lloyds or NatWest etc where you get some good rewards and convert them to avios. However you’ll lose purchase protection.

      • TGLoyalty says:
        11 Jan11 January 16:35

        IHG cards are great value 🙂

        • Dan says:
          11 Jan11 January 18:51

          Even the free version?

          • Anna says:
            11 Jan11 January 19:41

            Not as much but if you push enough spend through you can build up a chunk of points. Also gives gold status though I’m not sure that’s worth much apart from the odd free drink.

  • Anna says:
    11 Jan11 January 13:16

    PCR test for DXB – I recall this being asked before but can’t remember what they reply was! AT what point does the 72 hour clock start running? In the event of travel being feasible by Easter, I’m assuming we would need our results in sufficient time to be able to cancel our avios flights (and hotels) prior to T-24 (or is there a separate BA policy for this eventuality apart from a FTV?).
    With all the doom and gloom coming from the government scientific advisors I’m considering scrapping the whole thing and doing what my friend’s son did – wait for a negative test result then go online and book whatever flight is departing the next day!

    • Anna says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:19

      Flight is MAN-LHR-DXB which is obviously a sizeable chunk of the 72 hours.

      • Michael C says:
        11 Jan11 January 15:55

        Anna, fwiw, the Brazilian arrivals rule says “72 hours before FIRST flight if transiting”!

    • TGLoyalty says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:30

      You can take an FTV right up to the point of check in.

      • Anna says:
        11 Jan11 January 13:46

        It won’t be any use to me if it still expires in April 2022!

        • TGLoyalty says:
          11 Jan11 January 14:48

          You can book anything else after and you’ll get a refund if you cancel that for £35 pp

    • Colin MacKinnon says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:39

      My prediction: Easter not going to happen.

      We’ve seen the aftermath of Xmas. While the at-risk (of death) groups will be vaccinated by Easter, if all the young folks go out partying like its 1999 then the hospitals will be flooded with patients.

      Hopefully, being young, they won’t die. But they will clog up the hospitals and so others will die due to delayed cancer ops etc.

      So the carrot the politicians dangle – we should be getting back to normality by Easter.

      But remember, the donkey never actually gets the carrot!

      • babyg says:
        11 Jan11 January 13:48

        unfortunately the UK gov doesn’t understand the fact the donkey must not get the carrot… the donkey has been given the carrot at least 3 time (hence 3 lockdowns)… our only way out of this is the vaccine IMHO… everything else is just making things “less worse” until that point…

      • Anna says:
        11 Jan11 January 13:54

        I think there’s a very good chance you’re right and if that starts looking very likely by mid Feb I may relocate to Lanzarote as well if there are flights running! Otherwise we could just blow a chunk of points and free night vouchers on a week at the IC Park Lane (would love to go to Scotland but I’m guessing if the rest of Europe is out of the question, Scotland probably will be also).

        • Colin MacKinnon says:
          11 Jan11 January 14:31

          Anna, I would be back in a flash to Lanzarote – but the EU Brexit-Covid rules mean UK nationals are banned at the moment. And I can’t see the Madrid government seeing this as a priority for change at the moment.

          Mind you, I seem to recall you have just claimed Spanish nationality, so you’ll be OK!

          There are no Brexit consequences for travel to Scotland – until independence 😉

          Some of the best holidays I have ever had were to Skye at Easter – light dusting of snow on the hills, clear blue skies and no midges! If you ever go, let me tell you some of the best walks.

          Disclosure: I am now the Commissioner for Scotland for the Clan MacKinnon Society!

      • Yuff says:
        11 Jan11 January 16:01

        Things will look a lot different at the end of Feb IMO.
        1.3% of hospital admissions currently at 85+ but that 1.3% accounts for 44% of deaths which is up from 35%.
        When they have all had their jabs deaths will drop 50% and other younger groups will be vaccinated.
        This will look dramatically different in March.

        • Anna says:
          11 Jan11 January 17:17

          Matt Hancock (hopefully quoting someone else’s research) just said on the news that the top 4 tiers of the vaccination programme account for 88% of deaths, so you can’t help but think that hospitalisations have got to start falling as these groups get the vaccine.

      • Andrew says:
        11 Jan11 January 16:07

        Over 5,000 of my colleagues have been jagged and will have had their second jag by Easter. By then there will be over a million NHS staff ready to board a Boeing going up…

        Open Europe up to the over 65s and NHS staff from Good Friday.

        The rest of you can caw canny.

        • Anna says:
          11 Jan11 January 17:19

          How many of them are in admin roles? I know 2 people who work in HR/admin for the NHS and have already had their first jab (and kicking off about possibly not getting their second.) Meanwhile my OH is a 50 year old front line police officer and according to the vaccination “calculator” not due to get his first jab until July!

          • memesweeper says:
            11 Jan11 January 17:37

            If they are admins and in hospitals that’s entirely reasonable.

            If they’re working from home that’s a bare-faced bit of queue jumping (however, the NHS does tend to look after it’s own, unofficial perk I was told by a midwive)

          • Bazza says:
            11 Jan11 January 18:23

            Our admin(all ages and races, and without health issues) have received txt messages today. Don’t know what dates they are being offered though. I know a medical Sec @ Luton Dunstable that has already had hers.

          • The Savage Squirrel says:
            11 Jan11 January 19:51

            Bear in mind every man-hour spent making everything “fair” is one less hour that could have been spent getting more vaccines into more arms. In quite a number of cases in the run-up to Xmas, the vaccine would not “keep” over the 4 days of the bank holiday, therefore if there were missed appointments, unexpected supply, etc it made perfect sense to round up anyone nearby whatever their role so that all thawed Pfizer could enter an arm rather than be thrown away.

          • Andrew says:
            11 Jan11 January 21:57

            Plenty.

            There aren’t many benefits, but would you rather 2 doses were discarded at the end of the day or available to the first 2 people who replied to the standby text message?

          • TGLoyalty says:
            11 Jan11 January 22:44

            Exactly, no point messing around getting the right person just Get them into any willing arm around 🙂

    • Colin MacKinnon says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:49

      On a practical note, based on Emirates site:

      https://www.emirates.com/uk/english/help/covid-19/dubai-travel-requirements/tourists/

      You need a test for Dubai at least 96 hours (not 72) before departure.
      Or you can get tested on arrival.
      And the test must be printed on official paper – whatever that is! – rather than digital.

      Of course, that may all change by Easter.

      Me, I would book the Manchester-LHR the day before for cash. Then if the test comes through positive, you have time to cancel the big ticket part of the trip.

      • Anna says:
        11 Jan11 January 13:56

        Thanks for the link. I don’t think I would risk not being tested until we get there, with OH being public-facing and son possibly being back at school by then. 96 hours is a bit more wriggle room, it would probably give us time to cancel avios flights.

      • BP says:
        11 Jan11 January 14:26

        Dubai now testing all arrivals coming off some UK flights regardless of a negative test result. Emirates COVID insurance will cover up to 7500 USD if you do test positive beforehand and can’t travel.

        • TGLoyalty says:
          11 Jan11 January 15:46

          I think there’s still piece of mind from having a pre departure test.

          • Anna says:
            11 Jan11 January 17:21

            Agreed – much better to have at least some idea before travelling. And obviously if we got negative results we would then isolate until the day of departure!

  • Phil says:
    11 Jan11 January 13:53

    easyJet have just rescheduled our flights for July. I’m actually quite cool with the reschedule, however I have a query wrt to our car rental.

    We were due to pick up a car from Hertz on the Saturday @ 12.00 (noon). Our flight now doesn’t arrive into MUC until 14.35, so realistically it will be 15.00 before we can collect the car from the Gold Canopy. I looked at amending the booking (shortening by 3 hours!) but it reprices €60 more expensive.

    I’m tempted to just leave the booking as it is, but was wondering whether Hertz have a cut-off point at which they consider you a “no-show”. All I could find in their T&Cs was the following,

    “1. If you fail to cancel your reservation prior to the Pick Up Time and do not collect the vehicle on the Pick Up Date…”. This seems to suggest, I can turn up anytime on the day after the Pick Up Time and it shouldn’t be an issue.

    Just wanted to check if anybody else has experience of this or is aware of different terms that I haven’t spotted.

    Thanks in advance.

    • Anna says:
      11 Jan11 January 13:59

      Just email them and advise them of the new time you will be collecting the car. There is always the chance your flight would have been delayed anyway. You should be fine up till the time the rental office closes.

      • Charlieface says:
        11 Jan11 January 14:07

        +1
        If you have the flight number in the booking they are supposed to hold the car til 1 hour after closing anyway

      • Phil says:
        11 Jan11 January 14:21

        Thanks, I’ll see if I can find an email address. I didn’t put the flight number, as we were actually due to arrive into MUC the night before and didn’t want to confuse anybody! I’m struggling to add the flight number now without the whole reservation re-pricing!

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