The HfP chat thread – Wednesday 6th October

Links on Head for Points may pay us an affiliate commission. A list of partners is here.

We are running this daily chat thread on Head for Points during the coronavirus outbreak.

Historically, the daily ‘Bits’ articles were the de facto repository for random comments and questions. With the news flow being lighter, we are running fewer ‘Bits’ articles.

The comments under this article are where you should post questions about travel and, indeed, anything else on your mind. At this tricky time, and given that many of you are at home, we want the HfP community to have a place to chat.

Please only comment under the main articles on the site if your comment is directly related to the topic of the article. This has long-term benefits as it keeps the commentary relevant for people who read those articles in the future.

Old chat threads are hidden from the HfP home page. If you want to look for something in an old thread, click here. This brings up all the articles in our ‘General’ category which includes the chat threads.

Category

General

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

Grimz says:

6 Oct6 October 10:02

Due to go on holiday to Miami on the 18th November, the wait to find out the official date of the USA re-opening is causing more anxiety than excitement!! Biden hurry up and let us know!!
- xcalx says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:47
  
  Starting to think our November 7th flight is too soon now.
  - Grimz says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 11:15
    
    Yes I agree but how long can he leave it before letting people know.
    - Sean says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 11:26
      
      Took the view that my 3rd Nov flight was probably a no-goer and got it moved to 17th. That may still be a bit of a risk.
      - Grimz says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 13:20
        
        Is it free to shift flights if Avios availability is available?
- Andrew says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 12:09
  
  Also, like many, keen to know.
  
  If I were to choose two dates, it would either be Saturday 20th November, or Saturday 27th November. The former if he wants US residents to welcome their international family to the country for Thanksgiving, the latter if he wants Thanksgiving to be clear before allowing international travellers in.
Rob says:

6 Oct6 October 10:03

Advice needed

Yesterday I got an Email from ANA stating my flight from FRA – HND had been swapped from a 777 to a 787., Therefore I was downgraded from F to J.

The flight was booked using VS miles. What are my best next steps and what am I allowed to do? I don’t want to accept the downgrade as I won’t bother routing via FRA to go ANA J old product.

Will VS at least refund all my miles and fees? Presumably they aren’t required to offer me F on a different day? (as I believe it i still flying just on limited days)

Many thanks
- Rob says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:04
  
  Apologies forgot to mention. Original flight is booked for Feb 15th.
- Anna says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:19
  
  If the flight hasn’t been cancelled you don’t have EU261 rights. You’ll have the option of downgrade compensation (75% of cost of the downgraded lag, there is a precedent with avios bookings but I don’t know about VS miles), or cancelling/moving according to the Ts and Cs when you booked.
  If you decide to accept the downgrade, do some research on here before taking any action to maximise any compensation owed.
  - meta says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 10:27
    
    There are precedents for downgrade 75% compo no matter what airline and how you paid!
    
    Regarding options under EC261- you can ask to be rerouted on a date when there is F, full refund or if you decide to fly then 75% back of the miles plus any airline surcharges (don’t think there is any extra surcharges on that particular route or airline). For the 75% compensation you need to first fly then request it.
    - meta says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 10:29
      
      @Anna EC261 doesn’t only regulate cancellations, it also regulates irregularities such as downgrades, delays, duty of care (even when flight has not been cancelled), etc. This falls under the right to fly under comparable transport conditions.
      - Jonathan says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 10:53
        
        You don’t have a EU261 right to reroute/rescheduling to stay in F or to fly “under comparable conditions” ie. on a different airline. You don’t even have the right to a refund although most airlines would offer rescheduling or refund as a discretionary gesture.
        
        The EU261 rights are to 75% reimbursement (for a flight over 1500km & not within the EU) after the flight, that is it.
        
        It is EU261 that applies here not UK261 although they are currently aligned. Note that on the return leg you would have no downgrade compo for a non EU airline flying to the EU.
      - Anna says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 11:12
        
        But downgrades don’t get re-routing, I didn’t want Rob to set his heart on being able to pursue this when it’s not actually an option!
        
        I would also imagine that the precedent would apply to VS miles, I just don’t know if anyone has ever successfully claimed in these circumstances which would give Rob an example to copy.
      - Anna says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 11:14
        
        Have a re-read, @meta, this wasn’t what I was saying on either point!
    - ChrisC says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 10:50
      
      Downgradres don’t get compensation they get reimbursement. It’s specifically mentioned as that in the regulation.
      
      But the issue will be getting such reimbursement from ANA as the operating carrier.
      
      VS is only the agent here and you claim from the carrier not the agent.
      
      I suggests Rob contacts VS to discuss options such as rebooking. Issue here will be availability on other flights operating F and having to pay additional airport fees (and APD if the route starts in the UK) because the flight hasn’t actually been cancelled he’s more into the goodwill sphere.
      - Lady London says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 12:34
        
        Goodwill should be abundant if ANA truly accepts their obligations (if paid by Virgin miles, your claim under governing EU261, after flying, could be based by you as the retail cost of buying the 75% points for F off Virgin, quite acceptably to MCOL and you’d win at MCOL). As this would be a large cash sum. I am sure ANA would prefer to be flexible than to pay that much cash if you politely inform them you’d need that solution if flexibility can’t be offered.
        
        Call both and write to both very nicely explaining the options that would be preferable but leaving them in no doubt that this will be resolved another way if not.
  - Rob says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 11:30
    
    Hi Anna
    
    Just managed to log into my reservation and it actually says the outbound BOOKING has now been cancelled, and I haven’t even been informed!
    - Rob says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 11:36
      
      Thanks all for the helpful answers. Looks like I’ll be joining the ‘up to 3 hour wait time’ call que to Virgin.
    - ChrisC says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 12:03
      
      Cencelled means a different set of options open up for you so don’t rush in to anything until you’ve thought about what you want in terms of rebooking alternative dates / routes or a full refund.
      
      Remember though that fligths can update on web sitrs / apps much uicker than it takes to send out emails etc so I wouldn’t read too much into that.
    - Lady London says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 12:35
      
      Goodwill should be abundant if ANA truly accepts their obligations (if paid by Virgin miles, your claim under governing EU261, after flying, could be based by you as the retail cost of buying the 75% points for F off Virgin, quite acceptably to MCOL and you’d win at MCOL). As this would be a large cash sum. I am sure ANA would prefer to be flexible than to pay that much cash if you politely inform them you’d need that solution if flexibility can’t be offered.
      
      Call both and write to both very nicely explaining the options that would be preferable but leaving them in no doubt that this will be resolved another way if not.
Andrew H says:

6 Oct6 October 10:06

Have a flight booked ages ago back from MY in BA CS – so £1000 tied up in charges which I have been waiting for BA to cancel so I save £70… (the QM2 crossing to NY was cancelled a while ago). It’s for 2nd November. Is it likely given that that is 4 weeks away that the flight is now going ahead? Only about 6 seats reserved so far in CW, so doesn’t look very full. As it’s an A350 is it more likely than others to still fly.

It’s only £70 so I may just cancel so I don’t forget/can’t get through nearer the time and lose £1000!
- Sam G says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:24
  
  I’d leave it until 14 days then cancel it yourself, highly unlikely to change after that. CW seats are pricey to reserve so not a good indicator of load
  
  If you put the flight number into flightradar24 you can get a good idea as to if it has been operating or not
  - Andrew H says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 10:36
    
    Thanks for the help!
    
    Yes it has been flying, even on Tuesdays
    
    So I might as well cancel. (yes CW reserved seats ~£100)
    
    It’s a 777 not a A350 but with suites – I am soon booking either BA in CW or VS in UC for end of October next year, and with what I know now (from HfP) in both cases will try to book a A350
    - Sam G says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 11:06
      
      BA likely won’t make the A350 a regular feature at JFK as it doesn’t have F. Newark is more likely but I wouldn’t be making any bookings far out on either airline on the basis of aircraft as they do change quite frequently on this route (and all routes at the moment!)
      - Rhys says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 11:14
        
        We are approaching 50% Club Suite on the long haul fleet anyway, so even if not A350 your chances are 50/50
      - Sam G says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 11:17
        
        Yes indeed – JFK has a v high chance of getting it I’d say. A350 is a quieter ride though
- Lady London says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 12:42
  
  Give it till 5 days before at this time of year as you have a season change just before and it’s just possible flights could get changes particularly in your flight week and the week before.
Andrew H says:

6 Oct6 October 10:12

Interestingly (or not) my bonus offer on free BA Amex was £2000 spend and get 2000 Avios.

I went through the threshold once, but cancelled and rebooked (the next day) a Hotels.com NY stay (as had forgotten to use free nights and need to assign before end of year)

So i went through the £2k/2000 Avios threshold twice…

My Avios account has had 4,000 Avios added, not 2,000. Is this a bug?!
- Harry T says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:15
  
  What Would Ali Do? Definitely ring Amex and ask them if this was meant to happen.
  - Andrew H says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 10:20
    
    Of course. I just want to send the 2,000 Avios back…
    
    The 50 Avios for £1 spend also came through…
    
    And I managed to get 7,000 Nectar points that hadn’t credited on Nectar Connect sorted with Nectar (VACC+ hadn’t credited ANY spends) – including a Pizza Express purchase that was VACC+ behind Curve that I didn’t think would credit (Curve had a 10%offer as well at the time, and their offers DO seem to credit correctly).
    
    My lucky day
- BJ says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:29
  
  You got lucky, didn’t happen twice for my partner when he passed £4k.
- TGLoyalty says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:52
  
  It’s likely one will be reversed and your account will show -2k at some point.
- Youllnever says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 11:34
  
  Are you sure the Avios wasn’t simply the normal earning rate and the bonus? E.g. £2000 spend (2000 Avios) + 2000 bonus Avios = 4000 Avios?
  - Andrew H says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 12:35
    
    Damn – of course it was. I saw a separate entry with it and at first glance assumed that was the normal spend. But that entry was <2000 so couldn't have been the normal spend.
    
    …doh!!
Anna says:

6 Oct6 October 10:14

Car hire recommendations for Porto for next summer? Prices still seem insane!
- Harry T says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:15
  
  Isn’t it quite far out to be booking anyway? Perhaps car hire prices are like hotel prices – they are usually higher when you are booking far in advance.
  - Anna says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 10:20
    
    It’s a different kettle of fish when you’re travelling in peak school holiday period! You generally have to book early or risk prices going even higher or not being able to get anything at all.
- Andrew H says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:20
  
  I assume that you go through the usual brokers like AutoEurope?
  - Andrew H says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 10:23
    
    The cheapest price I got for car hire at Salzburg Airport in Feb was actually ebookers which seemed to be giving 10% off the AutoEurope level prices, plus similar % off through the usual shopping portals
- Sam G says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:26
  
  I usually find Opodo via Skyscanner cheapest. But best advice is to book something cancellable and then keep a very close eye on it – prices were all over the place this summer but I eventually snagged a good deal
- meta says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:45
  
  I went with Vipcars as an agent for Sadorent. Reviews horrible online for Sadorent, but if you know what you’re doing then no problem. Paid about £170 for 5 days (automatic, bmw3). We didn’t encounter any problems this summer and they were quite good actually. With Vipcars you only pay a small deposit £8-10 and you can cancel up to X amount of days (varies by company) before for full refund of the fee. Even if you cancel at short notice, you only lose deposit. We also used Vipcars in Iceland and no problem at all. It’s our go to now when prices at Avis/Hertz/Amex Travel are high.
  - Yorkieflyer says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 15:30
    
    Another shout out for Vipcars not used saddo rent though 🤪
- Louise K says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:53
  
  Have you looked at Expedia?
- AJ says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 11:00
  
  Cheaper to buy a car when you arrive, use for the duration and sell before you come home 😜
  - Anna says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 11:18
    
    I’m starting to think that might be the case lol.
    Thanks all, will look at all those options. I’ve just had to change all my flight and hotel bookings because I didn’t realise the gcse results would be coming out at the end of August and not in the middle 🙄. Very inconsiderate! (I only have the vaguest memory of getting mine – they were O levels then which tells you how long ago it was!)
    - Michael C says:
      
      6 Oct6 October 13:10
      
      Pop over to Vigo, Anna!
      - Anna says:
        
        6 Oct6 October 16:11
        
        That’s the plan – a couple of days in Porto (it’s the nearest airport from MAN), then up to Vigo to catch up with family. And enjoy those incredible beaches, of course. Unfortunately, because the Galician summer season is relatively short, prices in August have to be seen to be believed!
  - FatherOfFour says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 11:51
    
    Or start up an HfP car club…
Reney says:

6 Oct6 October 10:24

Hi any experience with submitting missing CB on the Virgin Card? I made 4 transactions recently that should all qualify for various CB offers (not morrisons all those tracked) and none of them have tracked. Just wondering how long it takes Virgin money to respond.
- Jonathan says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 11:00
  
  Yes, got my Morrisons increased from 7% to 10% about 2 days after raising a ticket in the Virgin App.
Voltron says:

6 Oct6 October 10:27

New offer on nectar app from brakes:
“Get 5000 bonus points when you link your nectar and brakes accounts”.

I had a look on brakes website and it seems you can register as a private individual (I don’t have a limited company), anyone used this offer before? Seems like an easy 5000 if you can register as a private individual and just add your nectar number.
- Rob says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:41
  
  I’d check the small print. It has exactly the same wording re Viking and forgets to mention that you also need to spend £30.
- Mattb says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 11:01
  
  I noticed that last night, t&cs mention a Nectar Business reward program…. Is that separate to the standard consumer product?
mjt55 says:

6 Oct6 October 10:29

I’ve lost track of what is happening with BAEC status extensions so was hoping someone can help clear things up please? My tier point collection year end is 8th December 2021. Will my status be extended beyond this? TIA
- ChrisC says:
  
  6 Oct6 October 10:54
  
  Check the date of your statis expiry on the website / app
  
  I have a Nov 8th collection year end but my status shows as ending December 2022. So yours should be showing January 2023
  - mjt55 says:
    
    6 Oct6 October 12:01
    
    Thank you. Assuming that is the same as “card expiry date”, that is spot on…