The HfP chat thread – Monday 13th September

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Michael says:

13 Sep13 September 07:49

I am hoping to fly to Bogota in Colombia in the near future from London.
Once they are off the redlist, which airlines are likely to have direct flights available?
- ChrisW says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 07:54
  
  Avianca
  - Michael says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 08:04
    
    Thank you Chris,
    Do you know if they fly from Heathrow?
    What about British Airways? I have Avios and Virgin Points, so an ability to use them to get there cheap would be welcome.
    - Sam G says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 08:06
      
      Iberia from Madrid using Avios is very reasonable especially in Business class. Book a separate ticket to Madrid outbound (maybe with an overnight stop) to save on the cash element. Coming back you can book straight through to the UK.
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 08:35
        
        I did this separate tickets to Avios additional fees and APD from London.
        
        777 in club world to Madrid on BA cash ticket with a single night stop over Then business on a 340 to Bogotá via Avios 80k and just under £200 I think. Did the return with a shortish stop in Madrid for a few hours.
      - Sam G says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 08:42
        
        Exactly what I’ve got booked for next year ! Weirdly the taxes & fees were cheaper booking via BA than IB
    - Michael says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:03
      
      Sounds good, I will look into this. 80K Avios and £200 sounds good for business. A flatbed in the return to the UK would be great.
Louie says:

13 Sep13 September 07:57

If you are a dual UK/somewhere else citizen, do the UK require you to use a UK passport to enter? I had always thought not, but maybe I am wrong. Does anyone know of any link to official documentation that answers the question either way?
- Anna says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:05
  
  I checked this recently and apparently you are now required to show a UK passport if you have one. I think Rob said his wife fell foul of this recently.
  - Michael C says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 08:32
    
    I tend to, but had no idea it was a rule!
    - Rhys says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 08:58
      
      I believe this is another fallout from Brexit.
      - BJ says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:05
        
        It is nothing to do with Brexit. Regardless of any other nationality and passport held if you are a UK citizen you must enter on your UK passport.
      - Rhys says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:07
        
        Except I and many other people used to use our other nationality passports all the time to enter the UK 🙂
      - BJ says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:37
        
        I didn’t mean it was impossible, I meant you were not supposed to do it.
- Darko says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:14
  
  I remember from my dual citizenship paperwork that I am required to use UK passport for entering UK, but I could not point you to the exact paragraph where that was written. In any case, on the day when my UK passport did not work on the e-gates, I just pulled out my blue Croatian passport and passed through the e-gates hassle free.
  - Rob says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 08:31
    
    LCY immigration tried to stop my wife entering on her German passport 2 weeks ago. They said that she must use, or at least be able to show, her UK one from now on. My son was also on his German passport as his UK one had expired but luckily I had a picture of it on my phone. They eventually let my wife in with a warning – for a while it looked like I would have to go home and text her a picture of her UK one.
    - Louie says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 08:38
      
      How did they know she had a UK passport?
      - Rob says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 08:44
        
        That’s the point. Without a UK passport she would have been thrown out of the country immediately despite being my wife, because she does not have ‘leave to remain’ (because she has UK citizenship and obviously doesn’t need it).
        
        Obviously she couldn’t prove she was my wife either, not that it makes a difference.
        
        As far as immigration was concerned, I was trying to bring a German citizen into the UK to live with me and that is now banned.
        
        Ironically had she travelled on a Monday morning on her own, in a suit, she would have been waved through.
      - meta says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 08:46
        
        When applying for citizenship, you have to send your other passport(s) and it’s all linked in the system.
      - meta says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 08:50
        
        I have a similar experience to Darko. I travelled on my EU passport as I didn’t know that I have to bring both. The immigration officer at Stansted could see that I had dual nationality and they gave me a warning that I have to show my UK passport. This was before Brexit though.
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:11
        
        @meta the “link” can only last as long as your not foreign passport
        
        What’s far more likely is you must use your U.K. passport because you have no other proof of leave to remain or citizenship.
        
        Germans and other EU citizens are no longer able to enter freely.
      - Louie says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:21
        
        @meta – in my case, I’m British by birth so as far as I know, the UK authorities have no idea I have another passport.
      - BJ says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:52
        
        @TGL, exactly that! When somebody obtains citizenship by naturalisation they have to surrender their biometric residence permit or document providing leave to enter/remain. Therefore to travel they must then apply for a UK passport to prove this right. People can flout this if tge other passport they hold allows visa free entry to the UK for whatever reason as other have already stated, but Border Force is aware and provides warnings. Where people really become unstuck is if the other passport they hold does not provide visa-free entry to the UK, in such cases they are not even going to get on the plane if airline staff do their job properly.
  - Lady London says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 10:32
    
    Why is the assumption, if the passport you present does not require a visa to visit the UK, that you are doing anything other than visit the UK for whatever period you’re allowed to?
    
    If your foreign passport requires you as a tourist, say, to have provable onward travel out of the UK then why is it a problem if a foreign person enters even accompanying a British citizen?
    
    This is a bit George Orwell for me.
- Harry T says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:49
  
  #brexitbonus – have to abandon your wife at the border and choose another one with a British passport 😂
  - Aston100 says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 10:24
    
    “takin back are country”
    - Harrier25 says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 11:05
      
      Rob, if all else fails, you could always send your wife back over from Northern France in a dinghy! 😂
      - Paul Pogba says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 13:48
        
        She would also be able to review four star hotels in the provinces for HfP :p
  - BuildBackBetter says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 11:10
    
    Are you saying Rob wasted his chance? 😂
    - Rob says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 11:32
      
      It is FAR better to get yourself a wife with an EU passport these days.
      
      For a start, my kids can go to live and work in Europe free of any restrictions. Your kids are screwed.
      - BC says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:38
        
        Surely Irish passport has now become one of the most powerful passports – Right to live and work in EU plus UK!
      - Harry T says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:58
        
        @Rob sad but true.
      - Harrier25 says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 13:20
        
        I’m sure that in the next few years things will start to relax again. Both the UK and EU are currently flexing their muscles and trying to be the toughest. The sooner they both realise that that strategy helps neither, the better!
      - Rui N. says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 13:42
        
        If there is one thing the EU never ever relaxed their position on was that all of the four “freedoms” have to go together. “Partner states” (EEA, CH) cannot pick and choose. But sure, they will make an exemption for the UK.
      - The Savage Squirrel says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 19:03
        
        I have informed Mrs O’Squirrel that she needs to investigate her Celtic roots more thoroughly.
- BJ says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:56
  
  If you are a UK citizen you must use your UK passport to enter the UK.
  - Louie says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:11
    
    But where does it say this?
    - TGLoyalty says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:21
      
      How else would you prove your right to freely enter the U.K.?
      - Louie says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:36
        
        Do we not allow foreigners in these days then? As far as I know, foreigners enter the UK every day.
      - Colin MacKinnon says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 09:45
        
        Birth certificate, with parents’ birth certificates. Photo ID, like a driving licence.
        
        Quite simply, everything you need to apply for a passport!
        
        A passport is a convenience, that’s all.
        
        One of our kids has a UK passport, the other hasn’t. Both have UK citizenship, ie the right to have a UK passport. Both have Scottish accents. Neither – in the past month or so – have had issues with the UK border in Glasgow/Edinburgh using their non-UK papers.
        
        For the one without, if asked, it might be a real hassle! But they are still a UK national.
      - Anna says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:02
        
        How are people from the EU still coming on holiday then? There’s no visa requirement so Rob’s wife could have been visiting the country for all sorts of reasons.
      - Rob says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:25
        
        She could, and had she not been entering with me and the kids (two of us on UK passports) she would undoubtedly have been waved through.
      - Rui N. says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:25
        
        People coming on holiday to the UK are not coming “freely” as TGLoyalty was likely refering to, they come with a deadline to leave. If you say you are coming on a holiday there are a set of requirements that do not apply if you have the right to live in the UK. In general, you cannot lie to the Border Force.
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:46
        
        Not Freely. They will be on a limited period tourist visa exemption etc
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 12:36
        
        @colin having a U.K. driving licence doesn’t mean you have right to free entry to the U.K.
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 12:37
        
        @Anna I’m assuming they all went to the desk together and it was very clear Rob’s wife wasn’t entering as a tourist.
      - WearyTraveller says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 14:32
        
        Every European citizen can freely enter the UK. Same goes for the US, New Zealand, Canada, Japan and many many other countries’ citizens. This didn’t change at all because of Brexit.
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 18:38
        
        Ofcourse they can’t. They can enter as tourists for a limited period.
        
        Not to work, live long term etc without the correct visas and documentation.
    - AJA says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:51
      
      This is from the gov.uk asset publishing service:
      
      RIGHT OF ABODE IN THE UNITED KINDOM – NOTE FOR BRITISH CITIZENS
      All British Citizens have the right of abode in the United Kingdom. If, as a British Citizen, you wish to travel on a non-British passport it must be endorsed to show that you have the right of abode. Otherwise, you might experience difficulty proving your right to be re-admitted to the United Kingdom.
      
      Logically therefore it would just be easier to enter the UK on your British passport.
      
      Many countries around the world have the same thing but make it mandatory that you enter the country if your citizenship on that passport.
      
      Unfortunately I can seem to copy the link but try searching for:
      Can a UK citizen enter the UK on a foreign passport?
      - Louie says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:32
        
        I did see that before I posted. I’m personally not bothered about evidencing a right to live in the UK (though obviously I do have one) – I’m only intending to visit.
        
        Incidentally, I’m not arguing with anyone, I’m sure the UK would prefer I used my British passport. I’m just trying to find something official that says I MUST use it.
        
        The thinking behind this is that if I use my UK passport, I will have to quarantine at home as I am not UK vaccinated (arriving from amber). I may not have to if I use a different passport. Things may change before I get back in any case.
      - AJA says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:09
        
        @ Louie My reply above specifically said you have the option of travelling on a foreign passport.
        
        Where you may have a problem is being refused entry to the UK on your foreign passport on the right of abode rules. You may be OK on the basis that you are only visiting the UK and not intending to stay here.
        
        But I’m not sure trying to use your foreign passport to circumvent the quarantine rules would work since you still have to complete the PLF form. That is ignoring the rights and wrongs of even trying to circumvent the rules.
        
        As for UK Border not knowing whether you have a UK passport I wouldn’t be so sure. You are more likely to flag it up as entering on the foreign passport may just trigger the systems to the fact that there is a UK national with your name.
      - Louie says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:33
        
        @AJA – “That is ignoring the rights and wrongs of even trying to circumvent the rules”….. do you seriously think that someone fully vaccinated with AZ should have to quarantine purely because the UK government is too incompetent to design a system that allows vaccines administered to their citizens overseas to be recognised by the NHS? Thereby preferring foreign (US/EU) citizens to UK citizens? Even though the vaccine minister said it would be possible by the end of July?
      - AJA says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 16:51
        
        @ Louie Oh dear! I wasn’t commenting on the rights and wrongs of trying to circumvent the rules. I specifically included the word “ignoring” to express the fact that I wasn’t going into the rights and wrongs of doing so.
    - BJ says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:55
      
      Email the home Office, they will provide it to you in black and white in relevant document as they can never be bothered answering questions in a personal way.
      - meta says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:23
        
        When applying or renewing passport, the application form has the following question:
        
        « Has the person named in section 2 had any sort of passport (British or otherwise) or been included in any passport before »
        
        Therefore you need to declare it each time. They absolutely know you have other passports. However, systems may not be as sophisticated and the agent probably needs know how to look for that data. Some might be less keen than others.
      - Louie says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:36
        
        @meta. My new(ish) citizenship post-dates the issue of my last UK passport.
- John says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 10:56
  
  BJ is incorrect. However there may be a new policy in use by immigration which is not fully backed up in law.
  
  If you have proof of your citizenship (which born citizens probably do not have other than a passport), a foreign passport will be accepted with only minor verification.
  
  If you have a return ticket and are coming to the UK for a short visit, given the state of Home Office IT, they will probably not know you are a British passport holder unless you had previously recently come to their attention which resulted in your passports being linked on their systems. But I expect this to change in the medium term future
  - BC says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 11:37
    
    FYI for dual nationalities, when I applied for my new British passport a few months back, they demanded I send my foreign passport alongside the application. I declined, but ended up having to send a photocopy of every single page of the foreign passport.
    - WearyTraveller says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 14:58
      
      Wow you got lucky. How did you convince them to let you keep your foreign passport? I had ti send mine because they said it’s non negotiable.
      
      To me it’s really bizarre that they take your foreign document away from you. You have no way to prove your identity for potentially weeks on end.
      - AJA says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 17:00
        
        Why does it matter if you have to send the foreign passport in or not? It is not the property of the UK Government so they can’t keep it. They should hand it over to the consular services of the foreign country as soon as they are done with it and the consular service of the foreign country should hand it back to you. The only reason I can see where this may fall down is the foreign country does not allow dual nationality. If that is the case then they might cancel the passport on the basis that by taking a British passport you have given up citizenship of the foreign country. In that case I am pretty sure the UK government would simply return the passport directly to you if you explained that might happen.
  - BJ says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 12:07
    
    I am not incorrect, the requirement is that if you are a UK passport holder you are required to enter the UK on that passport regardless of what other travel documents you may hold. That what happens in practice from time to time varies does not change that requirement. All sorts is possible in different circumstances; you can even enter the UK on the basis of faxed documents and telephone calls if the immigration officer or supervisor is sufficiently satisfied. I don’t think the rules are that messy and AFAIK those in the UK are consistent with most other nations. Where it got particularly messy in the UK was in the weird half in half out, say one thing do another, relationship we have always had with the EU. Chronic underfunding and staffing of the border force has also likely contributed to variations in practice that people have experienced. But none of that changes the fact of the actual requirements and best way of avoiding any issues is to follow the requirements.
    - Rui N. says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 12:28
      
      Someone above posted a document saying that you do not have to enter with your UK passport. And it was an official UK gov document, not a random website.
      - Rob says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 13:02
        
        They were very clear that my wife did not need to enter on her UK passport but need to be able to show it, or a scan of it.
      - BJ says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 13:06
        
        That is not what that paragraph says.
      - Rui N. says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 13:43
        
        What does it say then? And the process they outline to be able to enter the UK without a passport what does it “really” say then=
- Tracey says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 12:59
  
  Dates back to conscription days, if you entered a country on a foreign passport you wouldn’t risk conscription!
Lyn says:

13 Sep13 September 08:13

@BJ – I was looking at Alaska for a BA connection and checked a couple of things re your question a couple of days ago. Apologies for the O/T for anyone else.

I think it would be a good idea to check the AS web-site for availability before you check via BA. In Nov at least they show only one non-stop flight from DCA to SFO so that’s the one to look for. AA don’t seem to have one.

Alaska show several mileage levels for First class (i.e. BA J) for DCA – SFO. 30K, 40K and 70K. The 30K is almost certainly the one you need to find to get availability via BA avios. The 70K would be impossible, as it is basically last seat for revenue sale availability. 30K does show up in Nov so its not a mirage.

Similarly, looking at Economy for the same route, I think you would need dates showing the 12.5K level.

The Alaska web-site says that access to Alaska lounges is included with First class domestic awards. I don’t know if this is the case with American.
- BJ says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 09:30
  
  @Lyn, thanks for your efforts and feedback on my behalf, much appreciated. As it happens I had a bit of a booking frenzy last night. USA domestic availability on BAEC is shockingly bad, much worse than I expected. Thus, with the fees only £4.10 a pop I decided just to go ahead and reserve AS Y IAD-SFO for now. As an alternative I booked in AA Y DCA-ORD and AA J ORD-LAS to provide for a few nights in each. Also got BA J INV-LHR-JFK locked in but despite using my new variant amex voucher I cannot yet get a return from SFO as these are almost nonexistent next June. A case of wait and see on all of those. Ideally I would like to fly Delta to JFK direct from EDI and would even take Y on this as it’s only thing available at the moment. The problem with this is how to get back from SFO to EDI in J one way at reasonable miles cost and no more than one connection. Best option is probably AF/KLM I guess but I don’t have enough MR or FC miles to do that right now. Both the where to go and how to get there is all still a work in progress 🙂
  - Lyn says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 10:09
    
    Well, that certainly was a booking frenzy! Hopefully AS will open up in First, or even Y, from DCA before June. Also flights back from SFO, and you’ll be add them to make a round-trip, well an open jaw, ticket. Otherwise a reasonable miles cost won’t be your only problem, with the extra cash charges that BA add to one way “taxes” from the US.
    
    I think Alaska also have non-stop flights from DCA to other west coast cities, like LA, Seattle or Portland if that is on any use.
    
    Have you already checked for flights back from San Jose (SJC) as an alternative to SFO? I think people tend to forget about it, unless they work in IT of course. And San Diego might have more availability than SFO although it only has one flight daily instead of SFO’s two.
    - BJ says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:30
      
      Direct to SFO from DCA in F is top of my wish list so let’s see. Don’t really care too much about visiting Chicago but figured why not when there was no availability to fo direct from WAS to LAS. I had just remembered SJO after signing out so will check tonight. However, I think I even prefer Y to JFK direct from EDI to getting around to the East Coast via INV and LHR in J so I will double down on FC miles in hope of doing something on return. Another possibility is do SFO to BOS and have a couple of nights there before doing BOS-EDI Y direct on Delta. All a bit like mixed up jigsaws right now.
      - Lyn says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:49
        
        Just a suggestion to look for SJC instead of SJO unless you feel like flying home via Costa Rica! Apparently it is a fairly common mistake, people really do actually book to the wrong airport / country.
    - Lady London says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:43
      
      Lyn that’s interesting. Would you say for SEA and PDX there’s better options from Washington rather than NYC? Some of those things you mentioned look like you’d have to transit from IAD to DCA…is that a pain?
      - Lyn says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:07
        
        LL, I presumed that BJ was planning to actually stay in Washington DC, and chose Reagan National (DCA) because it is so central. So I was really just thinking about alternative routes flown by Alaska Airlines non-stop from DCA to the West coast if the flight to SFO wasn’t available. SEA and PDX are important airports for Alaska.
        
        I don’t really know but yes, I would imagine getting from IAD to DCA or vice versa is a pain.
      - AJA says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:16
        
        I’ve done the IAD to DCA transfer. It’s not fun. It is doable but I would avoid doing it again and just choose a domestic connection directly from IAD unless spending a night or two in Washington DC.
      - Lady London says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:54
        
        Thanks both. Worth knowing and may also consider BOS if there’s no overnight involved (as Boston hotel rates made me go eek! last time I looked
      - BJ says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 12:17
        
        Yes @Lyn, you assumed correctly I am staying in DC hence preference for DCA. I will make sure to get the right airport in Ca 🙂
        
        @LL, last night I was seeing a lot more availability from WAS than NYC or BOS for May/June 22, it was mostly in Y though. PHL was also better than NYC if that works for you.
Can says:

13 Sep13 September 08:22

Slightly off topic, so apologies. I left my car in LHR long stay parking for my summer travels. Due to some family drama my return got significantly delayed. So my dear car was in the lot for about 7 weeks. I am due to return this week. But yesterday I’ve got a notification from my car’s app, warning me if extremely low battery. Now, my car was serviced just before my trip. I was wondering if this ever happened to you. I am trying to understand what I should expect: call AA, or it’s just a super cautious warning and my car will work? Just dealing with this with all my luggage after a flight terrifies me.
- Craig says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:41
  
  I have a Noco battery booster I always leave in the car when it’s left in a car park for a period of time, this is after having been in a similar position to you some years ago. Some car parks have them available, particularly if they are manned otherwise the AA should have a patrol van nearby, I’d wait until you try to start it first. The RAC came within about 30 minutes when it happened to me.
  - Toby says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:45
    
    Small warning on this — We needed the RAC the other day and their initial wait time exceeded 2 hours, which they said was due to very high traffic due to all the staycations. As it happened they prioritised us because we have an infant, but they did seem very stretched.
    - Aston100 says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:25
      
      2 hours?
      That’s normal isn’t it?
      - Toby says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 12:11
        
        Huh. Maybe, I’ve actually only had to use them once before and they came in 30 mins that tine.
        
        They told me 2hrs was extended. I guess my point is, don’t assume it’ll be speedy to come and get you going.
- Sam G says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:41
  
  We had a flat battery years ago and the car park helped jump start it & I saw them doing the same for someone at Stansted just the other day. However if your car is hi tech enough to have an app then you may not be able to do a traditional jump start !
  
  It’s probably the comms feature that has drained the battery – usually they can be turned completely off if the car is going to be sat for a while – can you do that remotely now ?
  
  Hopefully you’ll have enough juice to get it started
  - TGLoyalty says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:22
    
    Jump starts still work no matter how “high tech”
    - John says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:59
      
      Only if you can open the bonnet and doors without the battery
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 12:40
        
        All cars are designed to do it but it’s often not as easy as you’d think.
        
        And not every battery is accessed from the bonnet
      - The Savage Squirrel says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 19:08
        
        Every car has an unpowered way to access the battery. Otherwise you couldn’t even install it 🤣.
- Andrew says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:43
  
  Don’t be terrified. If you’ve got a manual car, just ask people passing by to bump start you.
  
  Even if the car is serviced regularly, if you’ve got the background systems running the cameras and notification systems for 7 weeks without the engine topping up the battery it’s going to run down.
  
  Flat batteries will be a daily for occurence for the car park staff. They might even have some jump leads and a battery on standby. Some car parks have arrangements with the AA or RAC. Just make sure you’re a member of the AA *before* you phone them.
  
  I suspect the bigger shock will be the 7 weeks excess parking charges at the headline daily rate.
  - QFFlyer says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:16
    
    Yep, if it’s manual and you can push it enough to get it rolling yourself, you won’t even need any help to bump start it.
  - Can says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 10:24
    
    Thanks, I already paid the excess online before. It was high, but not as high as I expected.
- ChrisL says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:44
  
  Modern car batteries do tend to run down quite quickly due to all the background systems they power on a car even when not running. I found during lockdown when I wasn’t using my car it started giving me warnings after a few weeks.
  
  I think it’s a case of just hoping it will still start when you get there. If it doesn’t Heathrow Parking might be able to jump start it for you. The website says use the help phone to call the duty manager and ask. If they can’t it’ll need to be your breakdown service.
- Graham says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:45
  
  Cars do not do well sitting for long periods of time. If your car is alerting you that the battery is extremely low then it’s very possible it won’t have enough power to start the car. I would be prepared to phone the AA. Is there anybody you could call that would be able to access a spare to go and check it? Even driving it around the car park and letting it run for 15-20 minutes would help matters. If it doesn’t start they could potentially wait for the AA or let you know to phone in advance of arriving.
  
  Be prepared for it to happen and plan around it then there’s no reason to be terrified.
  - Tarmohamed says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 13:29
    
    3-5 weeks of parking without starting your car, you should be fine if the battery is in good condition.
    
    If the battery is accessible I’d just disconnect it after parking up if you’re planning to park for more than 5 week.
    
    Alternatively get a solar panel which connects to the 12v socket. It’ll keep the battery charged.
- Rhys says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 09:04
  
  I wouldn’t be surprised if the car park attendant has a battery starter kit. This will be a common problem.
  
  I was once with a friend at Denver airport and their battery didn’t start. An attendant bought round a portable battery starter and off we went.
  - KBuffett says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:13
    
    Whilst on this topic, can anyone recommend a comprehensive breakdown cover deal with discount/stacks etc?
    - Sam says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:31
      
      Try your insurance company? Seemed good value last time I looked
    - Sam says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:32
      
      Try your insurance company?
    - Reney says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:59
      
      I used RAC with tesco voucher, there was an offer in the summer when I renewed cost £8 of tesco voucher.
    - AJA says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:00
      
      No idea about any discount/stacking opportunities but purely on price I recommend Green Flag as a breakdown service. I got a year’s cover for my 5 year old BMW when the included cover ran out for just over £20 including home start. Got the same deal on renewal a year later via a comparison site. That said I never had to use it for a call out so no idea how good they are at rescuing you by the roadside.
    - Andrew says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:15
      
      I just buy a PCP a new car every 3 years and it usually comes with regular AA or RAC cover anyway.
      - Aston100 says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:26
        
        But the level of cover isn’t very comprehensive though is it?
    - Paul Pogba says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:20
      
      Nationwide FlexPlus offers breakdown cover, world travel insurance and mobile phone cover for £13 a month. If you want to jump in with both feet they’re offering £100 bonus if you switch. It might be worth checking if it covers your needs.
      - Tony1 says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 18:37
        
        Thoroughly recommend this product – they took me from Andorra to London when we broke down by taxi, then car came back 2 weeks later.
    - BuildBackBetter says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 11:15
      
      Start Rescue is recommended by Which. Think you can go through TaCo Bell.
- Lyn says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 10:38
  
  Can, this is a good example of the helpfulness of the HfP community. Hopefully knowing you have thought it through and have a plan B based on the advice above will help you deal with it calmly when you get back to Heathrow and you’ll be able to laugh about it afterwards.
  
  It is not surprising if it seems daunting at the moment if you have been dealing with “family drama” for a few weeks. I expect the car park people will be able to help you. This must happen all the time.
  - Can says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 19:11
    
    For sure, thank you!
- r* says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 11:16
  
  Unrelated, but what happened with the long stay parking charges? Presumably youd paid for the time you expected to be there, did they then try and charge the £26 or whatever per day for the 7 weeks overstay?
  - Rui N. says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 11:24
    
    When I had to extend one stay at Standsted long stay parking, I simply had to pay the extra per diem rate at the published rate when I left. Didn’t need to let them know or anything like that. But trust me, it was a lot more than £26 per day (over £50 I believe)!
    - kitten says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 11:59
      
      This is why I never park in airport car parks if I can avoid it
  - TGLoyalty says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 12:42
    
    Yes unfortunately. It’s where 3rd parties come in handy as they’ll often just charge a few £ per day.
    
    I know the last time I did it they charged £20 cash for an extra week.
  - Can says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 19:15
    
    I had the official LHR long stay parking, and extended it online. Honestly, with a lot of going on I didn’t check if that was prorata of my original booking or the current prices. My original booking was during school holidays so I assumed it can’t be higher than that. In total I paid £320 for about 53-54 days :(( plus the AA, in the worst case I guess.
AndyW says:

13 Sep13 September 08:24

Morning. I want to extend a 241 so I can use it on a booking, but want to tie up the min possible in the travel voucher in case I later cancel. What is the cheapest avios and cash option to do this? Thanks!
- Harry T says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:27
  
  Probably a domestic one way, say INV-LHR. Remember that you need to book for the two passengers you intend to ultimately use the 241/FTV for.
- Rob says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:27
  
  Off peak economy return to Zone 1, which is 9500 Avios plus £70 I think with a 241.
  - AndyW says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 08:44
    
    Thanks Both
  - Yorkieflyer says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 21:19
    
    Do you need to book a return?
    - Rob says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 22:02
      
      Not clear. Probably not but for the sake of 4,750 Avios why risk it?
- Tracey says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 13:07
  
  Cheapest cash won’t be the cheapest Avios, but GIB is only £1.
JohnT says:

13 Sep13 September 08:34

A lot of HfP readers have cried over much less important stuff, such as cancelling a 1/2avios 241 or missing an intern rate! And why not!
mycity says:

13 Sep13 September 08:49

Good Morning all, sorry I cant find the latest info on this and I guess its been asked before.
Re the BA241 premium voucher are new ones being issued now for 24 months or is there still a 6 month extension hence giving me 30months?
- WaynedP says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 08:59
  
  30 months on my BAPP companion voucher triggered last week.
  
  Will apparently be the case right up to December.
  - mycity says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:01
    
    Fantastic thanks WaynedP
- WaynedP says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 11:18
  
  Official confirmation in the FAQs at https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/executive-club/tiers-and-benefits
  
  Quote: “We want to maximise the opportunity for Members to use their well-earned vouchers. If your Companion Voucher, or Travel Together Ticket, earned via a British Airways credit card is issued between June 2020 and the end of December 2021, we will be automatically applying a 6-month extension when your voucher is awarded to your account.
  
  This does not currently apply to Gold Upgrade Vouchers.”
Patrycja says:

13 Sep13 September 09:00

I’m staying at W Barcelona at the moment and so far have had a different experience to Rhys. No queues at check in. Got upgraded 2 categories to Wonderful Sky room. Bayern Munich are staying at the hotel at the moment for their game with Barcelona tomorrow and my husband is beyond excited😊
- Rhys says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 09:05
  
  Presumably not fully booked given it is now September and most people are back at school/uni/work!
  - Patrycja says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:13
    
    You are right, I would expect the occupancy to be lower in September. I was a bit worried after reading your review but we are really enjoying the hotel. Service at breakfast is great. Given it is our 5th trip to Barcelona, we are not that concerned about staying in the centre and it is a nice 30mins walk to all the tapas bars. It shows it’s down to personal preferences how much you enjoy the place
    - Rhys says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:24
      
      I’m sure if you had to queue for 45 minutes to check in you wouldn’t be so positive 😉
- Harry T says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 09:06
  
  My SNAs cleared into a studio suite and the hotel was actually quite busy (July). The check in situation needs sorting out during July and August.
  - Rhys says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:09
    
    The problem the hotel (and many other hotels) had this summer was:
    1. Recruitment shortages
    2. Everyone booking last minute making it very difficult to plan ahead even with the staff available.
    
    Hopefully next year will be a lot easier.
    - Harry T says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 09:59
      
      @Rhys fair comment. I did book a few days before! There were a few checkin desks empty so perhaps they did not have enough staff to man them. I still don’t see the point of an elite checkin desk if they don’t enforce the requirement to be an elite though lol
      - TGLoyalty says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:47
        
        Everyone’s an elite this year.
- WaynedP says:
  
  13 Sep13 September 09:12
  
  Nice one, Patrycja
  
  Mrs dP hasn’t yet seen any benefit from this points and cards game, and is beginning to grumble about the hassle of having to divert spending on my command.
  
  I’m hoping to change her perception on a Club Europe BA Holiday to Greece later this month.
  
  Football team won’t do it for her, but different story if Daniel Craig showed up as a hotel guest.
  
  Fingers crossed …
  - Patrycja says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 09:18
    
    Wayne, I followed the tips from this forum and messaged the hotel couple of days in advance via Bonvoy chat advising of our arrival time and politely asking what room type we got allocated. Worked a treat. We are off to Valencia in two days staying at another Marriott property. Fingers crossed for another decent outcome
  - Anna says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 10:05
    
    Lol – you can book her tickets to see the new film from today!!
    - WaynedP says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 11:44
      
      Yes, Bond films were always on the list of those we insisted on seeing on the big screen at the cinema as a family and making a treaty day out of it 🙂
      
      They’re all grown up now, and part of the generation far more used to viewing entertainment on tiny screens, so hopefully we’ve instilled something in them that will ensure the survival of cinemas.
  - KBuffett says:
    
    13 Sep13 September 10:14
    
    Best not to get too excited about Club Europe. It’s a curtain and empty middle seat.
    - Rob says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:22
      
      I’m very pro CE – unless you are a group of 3 (as opposed to 1, 2 or 4) it makes for a far more pleasant trip.
    - ankomonkey says:
      
      13 Sep13 September 10:31
      
      But it sounds better than the Daniel Craig option to me…
      - Anna says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 10:49
        
        CE with Daniel Craig would be pretty awesome.
        It’s a very nice way to travel if the cabin is quiet – we had a delightful trip to Rome a couple of years ago where there were only a couple of other pax in the cabin with us so the crew just kept bringing us champagne and nibbles for the duration. If it’s full (and extended) and you get one drink if you’re lucky, you end up wondering why you bothered!
      - WaynedP says:
        
        13 Sep13 September 11:39
        
        Personally, I’m inclined to agree @ankomonkey, but hey ho.
        
        And even if the CE experience doesn’t particularly wow, the double TPs mean instant Bronze membership for Mrs dP (and Silver for me), so I’m glossing over the fact that this is a cash (not strictly Reward) flight and will try to emphasise the wider benefits of being part of “the Club”.