The HfP chat thread – Saturday 21st August

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Dan says:

21 Aug21 August 14:16

AA have changed my flight to a different route. It was booked using avios, on ba.com. I don’t want to accept the change, I want to cancel. It won’t allow me to cancel online. The phone lines are horrendous. Is there any other way? Whatsapp for example?
- Sam G says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:55
  
  I got a changed reward flight cancelled via live chat. go to “help” and “help and contacts” and it’ll appear bottom right side. make sure they don’t charge you a fee
Tracy says:

21 Aug21 August 14:16

Trying to book a flight BHD to BCN. I have the option of economy or business. When I choose business, it books the BHD to LHR as business but LHR to BCN books into economy and it states there are no business seats on this flight so books into economy. However, I can book the LHR to BCN direct in business. The fare for BHD to BCN did seem unusually low…any ideas?
- Sam G says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:21
  
  There is a thread on flyertalk, seems like there is a bug currently
- Simon says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:25
  
  Not that this is helpful sorry but I had a similar thing recently trying to book BHD-LHR-MAD-SVQ. I could get the last two legs to price in business but not the BHD-LHR which was on BA. The other legs were on Iberia but the last flight wasn’t codeshared with BA which meant they couldn’t book it. I called Iberia to book but they couldn’t get business on the first leg. So maybe something similar?
  
  Maybe call BA if the flights are with them and they could get to the bottom of it? Does Google Flights give you availability in business on both?
  - Tracy says:
    
    21 Aug21 August 14:28
    
    Yes, all BA. Haven’t checked google flights but I can book LHR to BCN directly on BA in business….
MarcB says:

21 Aug21 August 14:17

If you’re expecting an upgrade at a Hilton property (via Gold status and/or Emyr/Virtuoso deal), is it best to check-in in advance via the app or at the hotel desk on the day (to get the best possible upgrade)?
- Harry T says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:37
  
  I never check in in advance – I reckon it’s better to check in at the desk, where you can ask for a better upgrade.
- Rui N. says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:51
  
  As Gold, I’ve never seen an upgrade offered on the app. It is always the type of room I’ve booked.
- John says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 16:56
  
  Upgrades usually show on the app by the morning of arrival. If you check in and choose your room generally you won’t get a further upgrade as they would start preparing it (e.g. placing gifts inside – in the past! And making your key cards)
  
  If you like begging at the front desk then there’s no point checking in online
Ryan Gill says:

21 Aug21 August 14:22

Can anyone tell me if the 100,000 Marriot points I’m allowed to purchase is per calendar year? I guess if I’m not careful and went over the total allowed to be purchased they’d refund? I’d hoped to maybe transfer some etihad points, but this only goes the other way.
- TGLoyalty says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:26
  
  Calendar year.
  
  Someone else can gift them to you
- Rob says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 14:40
  
  Calendar, but you may well get away with it.
  - Ryan Gill says:
    
    21 Aug21 August 15:19
    
    Thx TG and Rob, it’s annoying as I transferred into Etihad recently when they had a 50% bonus on. I might ask Marriott as I’m struggling to work out where I stand.
Matthew says:

21 Aug21 August 14:23

Expert Medicals – successfully ordered £28 PCR test yesterday for my wife. Today I can’t get the form to submit and go to checkout for mine. I’ve seen on here others have had same problem? Any suggestions? I’ve tried it in a few browsers now with no luck. Thank you.
- Anna says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 15:14
  
  They do seem prone to temporary glitches, possibly when they run out of stock. If you’ve got time, wait a day or so then try again, otherwise you may need to look for an alternative. My friend and I have recently ordered them for a trip next week and they seem to be taking about 5 working days to show up.
  - Matthew says:
    
    21 Aug21 August 15:30
    
    OK thanks Anna. Will try again. No big rush as its for Sept – just trying to get ahead of the game!
    - Anna says:
      
      21 Aug21 August 16:16
      
      Put an earlier return date in – they seem to dispatch them in date order.
Syed says:

21 Aug21 August 14:54

Could someone tell me:
Beardy: ok I understand
Brighton: sure no problem
Bendy: got it.
Solihull: ??? no idea.
Would Solihull be helpful to me if I wanted to get an ambassador thing or a holiday inn in Solihull…
Apologies for being a bit dense on this one.
- TGLoyalty says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 15:00
  
  Solihull is the HQ for creation as you say they would be good if you want to earn for IC / Indigo etc stays.
  
  There is a legacy Marriott card though which must be very lucrative
  - Syed says:
    
    21 Aug21 August 15:03
    
    Thanks very much, I’ll look into a stay in Solihull..I hear it’s lovely this time of year.
    - TGLoyalty says:
      
      21 Aug21 August 15:05
      
      Unfortunately the best IHG option in Solihull is St John’s and they’re currently a quarantine hotel.
      - Syed says:
        
        21 Aug21 August 15:18
        
        I’ll probably leave it then for a bit..but thanks for the advice!
Cherry says:

21 Aug21 August 15:21

BA/MCOL advice. When I’ve seen MCOL questions/advice on here, are you all submitting Letter Before Actions before you are reclaim or are you just heading to MCOL? I’m trying to ascertain if I’m wasting my time sending a letter or whether I should just cut to the chase.
- JDB says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 15:32
  
  You really need to send an LBA before issuing your claim, although it isn’t yet obligatory for MCOL as it is many other claims. To be seen to be reasonable, you need to give the business a final opportunity to address your concerns. You need to set out very clearly, precisely and concisely what the issue(s) is/are (+ any relevant documentary evidence) and what you want them to do about it and by what date – at least 14 days. If nothing else, and they don’t respond to your satisfaction, you will have your MCOL application all ready to issue.
  - Cherry says:
    
    21 Aug21 August 15:36
    
    Thanks for your help!
  - ChrisC says:
    
    21 Aug21 August 20:20
    
    And send it to BA legal Dept at Waterside and not customer relations.
Anna says:

21 Aug21 August 15:30

Interesting FTV data point. A few people have said they’ve been told that FTVs from BA Holiday bookings can’t be applied to the taxes/fees for new avios bookings. I decided to have a go anyway and asked for a £400 FTV to be applied to a new avios booking I made a couple of weeks ago, and just got an an email from BA Holidays confirming that the refund is being processed.
Now please don’t anyone call BA and start arguing about this, just try it and see what happens!
- Memesweeper says:
  
  21 Aug21 August 19:50
  
  Excellent
  
  I suspect a few folks will be trying it on with evouchers too in the coming weeks…