United Points: Spend ‘em If You Got ‘em…Quick!
Posted on January 25, 2007
I have a gazillion (or maybe half that) frequent flier points on United, a carrier that I have attempted to avoid over the past few years because of some REALLY BAD EXPERIENCES, like not being given a boarding pass because the airline was holding out for people on an overbooked flight that paid more than I did for a ticket. A couple of weeks ago, they changed my flight to two hours earlier, something I didn’t find out until the day before I left and only after calling to confirm seats.
Well now, in something reminiscent of Nixon’s Saturday night massacre (when he fired the Watergate prosecutor on Saturday night to avoid publicity), United announced that it is setting hasta la vista dates on its points. It did this last Friday, just after the Sunday travel sections were put to bed.
Naughty, Naughty!
If your United account has remained inactive for 18 months, your miles will expire on December 31, 2007. How does this work? That’s less than 12 months away. Well, they backdated the start of their rule to July of last year.
Not only that, the airline did so in the spirit of famed PR agent William Makenews Flackery, United said that this was A GOOD THING.
Another way to get rid of all of those unused points floating around in the economy might be: Make them easier to redeem.
Hasta la Vista
R
» Filed Under Airlines, Travel Biz
