The HfP chat thread – Sunday 19th September

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Jane says:

19 Sep19 September 14:37

Wow, Travel Insurance is crazy at the moment, two quotes so far, both for worldwide plus winter sports (optimistic), ABTA was anywhere from £725 – £975 depending on the level, staysure £159. Looks like it’s going to be a dull afternoon reading small print.
- Rich says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 14:47
  
  I’d be interested to see what you find.
  
  During Covid I’m self-insuring, up to a point, by making flexible bookings. I’ve taken a couple of trips, and relied on Amex Plat. I assume at all times they won’t pay out, then I can be pleasantly surprised when they do!
  
  The thought of medical bills or paying for 2 weeks accommodation do worry me though. The rest I can probably handle.
- JDB says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 14:57
  
  Have a look at Nationwide FlexPlus, the insurance that comes with the account seems good and covers worldwide travel to ‘non essential’ countries. Also covers winter sports.
- Andrew H says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 20:08
  
  I got a quote for about £300 from Staysure for a couple including cruise cover and worldwide including US (for the QM2 crossing to NY). This is including a pre-existing condition (atrial fibrillation, currently OK). Thought not a bad price and if you get it through the right site, 25% off.
Lee says:

19 Sep19 September 15:09

QQ: I was waiting for my flight to Doha with BA to be cancelled this November. Now all inventory has been zeroed out. When will BA cancel the flight normally? Thanks
- Pablo says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 16:40
  
  My booking still holds but flights are no longer for sale. Let’s wait another week or so.
Tony says:

19 Sep19 September 15:15

Trying to make an online transaction with my IHG credit card. Creation are asking me for digits from my online code as part of the authentication process. I’m sure I set this up, but either way, have clearly forgotten what it was. Any ideas how I reset it? (And is this number different to the code I use to log in to Creation’s website, right?)
- Hanif says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 15:24
  
  You should be able to view the code you created on the app.
- Guernsey Globetrotter says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 18:33
  
  On the web interface, you reset it via My Profile – Online Payments option. It is a five digit code rather than the six digit one used for sign-in.
  - Tony says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 19:40
    
    Thanks!
Patrick Cold says:

19 Sep19 September 15:50

Just got straight through to BA Gold line, made some bookings using vouchers, all sorted in 20 minutes. Was I very lucky indeed? I was expecting the worst.
Raveon says:

19 Sep19 September 15:59

Brief review of the Virgin Red Room at the AO Arena (formerly known as the MEN), Manchester for its inaugural event last night (Sat 18th Sept):
(see these HfP articles for background
https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/12/21/book-manchester-ao-arena-tickets-on-virgin-points/
https://hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2021/08/06/redeem-virgin-points-ao-arena-manchester/)
This was our first visit to the arena since the heinous 2017 bombing and security was – as expected – noticeably tighter than our prior experience, with highly visible & fully armed BTP officers on patrol around the venue. Entry is gained via a dedicated suite entrance (which bypasses the main queues) on Trinity Way and once through security – which requires all personal items to be deposited in a tray for inspection and full handheld wand body scan – we were swiftly escorted to the ‘Red Room’ by a member of the arena staff.
Once delivered to the suite, we were greeted by a Virgin ‘Genie’, but then passed over to a bar host – seemingly employed by the arena – to take our order. Soft drinks are complimentary but beer and wine is not. Whilst this is made clear when booking, it was still slightly disappointing not to receive say a first ‘welcome’ alcoholic drink on the house. The range and stock was also rather limited, with the fridge looking more like you’d expect to see it at the end of the event than the beginning and, unfathomably, no one had thought to switch it on! Needless to say, £5 for a 300ml bottle of well above room temperature Amstel did not make for a great first impression. The server then went AWOL for several long periods throughout the evening, leaving the Virgin host looking rather helpless and only able to offer tap water as both soft and alcoholic drinks remained locked in the fridge.
There are three types of seating in the suite: an area of soft, low stools in the socialising / bar area (see photos in above links), one row of high stools and two rows of cushioned benches, which is where we sat for the gig. These offer a great view of the stage as the suite is located a mid level and only just off centre, at a distance that doesn’t require you to strain your eyes to see the performers.
- Raveon says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 16:01
  
  Despite the slightly shambolic drinks offering, I would say 20,000 points offered reasonable value, especially as we are Blossoms fans. If you are starting to doubt the long term prospects for a big pile of Virgin Points and/or are looking to burn a few points, there is a good selection of gigs and events coming up, however you would have to be desperate to consider any costing 60/70k points compared to the cost of paying cash to access a similar suite; I would certainly agree with Rob that the pricing at that level is very “toppy”, even if the drinks service is up to speed by then!
  Rob, please feel free to contact me if you would like any further details to include in an article (unlikely I know haha).
  - Rob says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 16:36
    
    Thanks for this, I appreciate it. We are hoping to do a HfP event in the suite at some point so should be able to try it out then. Can’t really complain at 20k points for two people though.
Rich says:

19 Sep19 September 16:00

Got an existing Amex MR account with a large balance in it, attached to my ARCC. I applied for the PRG recently, and the points seem to be going into a new MR account. Is it as simple as calling up and asking them to redirect the points into my existing account? I’ll likely cancel the PRG next year.
- Aston100 says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 17:42
  
  Well it does give you the opportunity to get 90k referral on both accounts rather than on just the one account as you are meant to.
  - Rich says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 18:57
    
    That is a very good point!
    
    Although, to be fair I barely manage a couple of referrals per year.
bafan says:

19 Sep19 September 16:04

Been in Canada since Wednesday, having a wonderful time. I was a bit panicky with all the rules before I came but it was much easier than I expected. Considering extending my stay and going to Banff now!
- AL says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 16:24
  
  Banff is ace! I roadtripped across Canada a few years back and the scenery around the BC area is gorgeous. Enjoy!
  - Mike says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 21:20
    
    I used to go to Banf every other weekend when I worked in Alberta – lovely place
Chrism20 says:

19 Sep19 September 16:06

Some changes coming to Nectar this week.

Mainly around Nectar prices similar to Tesco’s Clubcard prices, however you will have to use either the smart shop app or the relevant handheld device instore to benefit from these discounted prices by all accounts.
- Rob says:
  
  19 Sep19 September 16:34
  
  …. which seems very silly to me.
  - Peter K says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 16:37
    
    Agreed. With Tesco all you need to do is scan a card/app at the end. Sainsbury’s would need people to change their shopping habits.
    
    I actually liked the handheld scanner, but it is a bit of a faff.
    - JDB says:
      
      19 Sep19 September 17:05
      
      And with Tesco you get Clubcard prices for online shopping.
  - Super Secret Stuff says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 16:45
    
    I can see the money saving element of why they want people to use smart shop, to fund the cheaper prices. But really? 🙄
  - Youllnever says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 16:57
    
    I actually don’t mind the smart shop app. It’s pretty straightforward and easy to use imo.
    - Tracey says:
      
      19 Sep19 September 17:01
      
      Not when you have more than one account on the go and want to split your shopping according to what offers you have on what card. Far easier to split the shopping at the till.
      - AJA says:
        
        19 Sep19 September 17:27
        
        Just use two scanners – one for each nectar card and put the items into separate bags.Then pay at the Smartshop self-scan tills, scan and pay for shopping on each scanner. Even if you end up needing a rescan, as happened to me yesterday, you can point them to the bags containing the items for whichever needs re-scanning.
      - Tracey says:
        
        19 Sep19 September 17:58
        
        My store doesn’t have those scanners, it’s a small ‘local’. The only option is to use your phone as the scanner.
      - John says:
        
        19 Sep19 September 19:55
        
        I just take 2 devices. I used to have 5 accounts but I can’t be bothered any more
  - Chrism20 says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 18:09
    
    Does seem a bit on the daft side
    
    Apologies, I meant to post the link and forgot
    
    https://www.about.sainsburys.co.uk/news/latest-news/2021/16-09-2021-sainsburys-gets-personal-with-launch-of-tailored-my-nectar-prices
    - Dave says:
      
      19 Sep19 September 21:10
      
      The salient word in this thread is faff.
  - BJ says:
    
    19 Sep19 September 19:52
    
    Don’t think so, the logic is likely to get more people using these options to enable them to reduce the number of staffed checkouts still further.