Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Some interesting insights into how people use their frequent flyer miles

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I am spending three days this week at the Loyalty 2017 conference in London and will be giving a talk on Wednesday.

Yesterday a representative from trade group IATA presented some results from their regular survey of frequent flyer programme members.  What is interesting about this is that it includes members of many different schemes, not just one specific programme.

These were the results to the question:  “How have you used your miles over the last 12 months?”.  The total is over 100% due to the ability to select multiple answers.

  • 37% – flight in my usual travel class
  • 29% – have not used my miles in the last 12 months
  • 28% – class upgrade
  • 17% – flight in a higher class
  • 13% – flight on a partner airline in my usual class
  • 7% – shopping
  • 6% – flight on a partner airline in a higher class
  • 6% – did not use before they expired
  • 4% – hotel stay
  • 4% – transferred miles to another programme
  • 4% – paid for excess luggage
  • 3% – leisure reward
  • 2% – car rental
  • 2% – donated miles to charity

There are a few interesting points here.  One is that, despite the efforts of airline programmes to introduce non-flying redemptions, the vast majority of members still redeem for flights.

As flight redemptions are likely to be more expensive than the other types of reward listed, the percentage of miles redeemed for tickets will be even higher.

I am surprised that more people did not redeem for a higher cabin reward, but that is presumably down to a) higher cabin rewards being more expensive and b) the fact that travellers who usually fly economy won’t be earning that many miles and would find it harder to get enough for a higher cabin redemption.  Those who regularly fly in First or Business would also not be able to redeem for a ‘higher than usual’ cabin.

Here is a second set of figures given in answer to the question:  “What are your top ideas to enchance frequent flyer programmes?”.  It wasn’t clear if respondents were given a shortlist or could write in an answer.

  • 44% – last minute upgrade for lower amount than usual
  • 19% – last minute offers for flight bookings at lower amounts than usual
  • 13% – allow a combination of cash and miles to purchase flights
  • 10% – able to book a seat when no reward seats are available
  • 6% – auction upgrades for miles
  • 5% – converting points into cash
  • 3% – able to spend miles on ancillary charges such as excess luggage
  • 1% – spending in medical facilities (I have no idea what this means – I can only imagine IATA surveyed people globally)

I’m not sure that the first two make economic sense.  Allowing last minute bookings for miles at all risks losing hugely profitable last minute cash bookings from the business market.  Letting those seats go for miles at a discount, whether via upgrades or a direct booking, seems odd.

Of the next five ideas, it is interesting to note that Avios / British Airways offers three of them to one degree or another.  Gold members can force open seats for double Avios for a Gold Priority Reward (I used that last week for our Salzburg ski flights and I met others who had done the same) and you can now use points for buy on board food.  ‘Part Pay With Avios‘ is also now well established.

We will have to wait a while before we can use our Avios for ‘spending in medical facilities’ however …..

Category

General

Comments (77)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • TravelBloggerBuzz says:
    21 Feb21 February 05:06

    All I ever wanted was to use Avios in medical facilities #dreamredemption

    • Rob says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:30

      I have a Euro 95 medical bill from last week – I could pay it with Amex MR points using statement credit!

      Doubt I will claim it on insurance as the trouble in explaining that I was injured in a ski resort whilst not skiing would be too complex 🙂

      • Worzel says:
        21 Feb21 February 09:09

        A little more information on this this non-skiing injury/incident would be helpful Rob!

        • Rob says:
          21 Feb21 February 09:28

          You really don’t want to know. Unbelievably bloody.

          • Robbie says:
            21 Feb21 February 09:47

            Sounds bad – Hope you (Or whoever was injured) are on the mend and no lasting damage done.

          • Anon says:
            21 Feb21 February 09:47

            Another case of #HeadForPints? 🙂

            Ps Glad your on the mend

          • Worzel says:
            21 Feb21 February 15:55

            Anon @ 9:47am-I reckon that you’re on the case!

            More detail from Rob needed so that we can all give sympathy! 🙂 .

          • Lady London says:
            21 Feb21 February 21:09

            Enquiring minds need to know about this.

          • Fenny says:
            21 Feb21 February 23:34

            You can’t join the Old Enough to Know Better Club (or the Junior Bloody Club) without proper explanation!

      • Alan says:
        21 Feb21 February 09:09

        Pretty painless online claim process with Amex ICC (did recently for my Dad!).

        I’m happy to be paid in Avios for medical advice/treatment 😛

      • Michael Jennings says:
        21 Feb21 February 11:47

        If it makes you feel better, I managed to have an accident resulting in a serious injury in a bar while not drinking.

  • C77 says:
    21 Feb21 February 05:19

    Aren’t class upgrade and flying in a higher class amounting to the same thing? If you add the two responses together then you have almost half of those taking part aspiring to use their points towards flying in a premium cabin of some description. Add on those you’ve identified as premium cabin fliers redeeming for their usual cabin then that’s somewhere between 60-70% of those surveyed who’s ultimate goal is accruing/redeeming for an upgraded flying experience.

    • Peter K says:
      21 Feb21 February 10:36

      Ultimately the same but different way to achieve it. One is paying the full amount of avios and then fees (ie mucho Avios, less money), the other is buying eg premium economy then upgrading (less avios be more money).

      It helps differentiate between those who spend more Avios and those who spend more money.

  • Frenske says:
    21 Feb21 February 05:23

    I am always baffled by the fact that first and business class redemptions feature so much in headforpoints. I would think the majority of readers are occasional flyers e.g. 3-6 return flights per year (mixed leisure/business usually economy and Europe). Perhaps earn about 15K-30k Avios per year.
    We are the silent majority, the forgotten ones by the Avios elites (sorry for the hyperbole, seems to work for some).

    • C77 says:
      21 Feb21 February 05:46

      I always see the elusive upgrade as the ultimate aspiration as far as points redemption goes. Getting something for points that would otherwise cost (in some cases) a lot of extra cash is my main driver. The value perception means a lot to me and assists me in justifying trips I may be sitting on the fence about. I guess we all approach the subject from different directions and as such have different priorities and aspirations. It means the economy traveller who has been saving points for a couple of years is just as important as the frequent flyer who aspires to First and Business. It also means if 60-70% of points collectors are after an upgrade as per my calculation then you have a higher chance of redeeming for something you want than I do. Power to the silent minority…. ☺

      • Kathy says:
        21 Feb21 February 09:09

        I definitely collect miles so I can do trips I couldn’t afford otherwise. Back in the tax-free airmiles days that meant flying economy, now it means flying business class for roughly the price of economy. It’s hard to go back to economy once you’ve experienced business class!

    • Monopolies commission says:
      21 Feb21 February 05:52

      I intrepret those top two as people want better value for their upgrades.

      Considering a lot of airlines only allow an upgrade from a flexible booking class into a restricted business class fare, and some then whack an increased fuel surcharge to boot, its not surprising people want to upgrade at the last minute for fewer miles.

    • Hingeless says:
      21 Feb21 February 06:00

      Frenske: “15K-30k Avios per year”, i hope people are getting a lot more than that, my average is over 500k per year.

      You would have to be particularly bad at this hobby to not get enough to fly occasionally in a flat bed.

      • Martin says:
        21 Feb21 February 06:15

        I would suggest many households would/could get around 100-150k a year without chasing it too hard. I get about 150k without chasing hard but I do have around £10k of cc spend purely for work purposes. If I switched all spends to cc and started shopping at Tesco I could generate probably another 150k easily.

        • Anna says:
          21 Feb21 February 06:42

          I agree. I don’t do any business travel or spending, but I’ve amassed 50,000 avios in the past 6 months on Amex spending, sign-up bonus and Clubcard conversions. I also treated myself to a few thousand booster avios when BAEC had the 25% bonus offer. Additionally, I’ve started doing all my internet shopping via avios.com and have around 10,000 in that account. As a result of last year’s collecting I’ve got 6 return redemption flights booked for this year (despite being mucked about to some tune by BA changing and cancelling some of these, but that would have happened even if they were cash bookings), two in ET, two in CE and two in CW to the Caribbean.

          You can get avios with virtually any spend – I’ve just realised I can pay my council tax on my Lloyds Mastercard so will be cancelling my direct debit next month, and the spend will be going towards my upgrade voucher!

      • Kathy says:
        21 Feb21 February 09:11

        It depends how dedicated a collector you are, though. Lots of people don’t focus all their spending activity to earn Avios, they just pick up the occasional points here and there.

        • Robbie says:
          21 Feb21 February 09:53

          True, and how much of your spending you control. I collect about 100k a year in non-flight earning but could nearly double that if I could get my wife to the same mindset. We are taking a Club World trip to Dubai – after that I may have to sort out a long haul overnight in Economy see if I can get her to agree that the minor changes are more than offset by never having to travel at the back again.

          • Genghis says:
            21 Feb21 February 11:22

            @Robbie. What’s the reluctance from your wife? I keep things simple with Mrs G and put one Amex and one non-Amex in her purse; “use the Amex where you can and the IHG card where you can’t”. Easy. You then do all the admin. My wife hates cancelling cards in her name but thinks it’s worth it for the J and F travel and quality hotel stays.

          • Kinkell says:
            21 Feb21 February 13:46

            I do that for my husband…cards in wallet, tell him which ones to use, keep a track of when to cancel,churn etc etc. I do the flights and hotels, he does the itinerary, once we get there. Works for us. He has becone accustomed to turning left!

    • mark2 says:
      21 Feb21 February 06:58

      On long haul economy redemptions the charges often come to approx. the same as a cash fare (probably not BA).

      • Anna says:
        21 Feb21 February 07:59

        That’s why I save them for CW – or pick a destination with few flights and therefore higher fares from BA (e.g. Cayman Islands, Turks & Caicos).

    • Rob says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:28

      You would be a bit of a mug to redeem long haul Y.

      If the taxes went away I would change the focus a bit.

      • Kathy says:
        21 Feb21 February 10:15

        There are the odd exceptions – last minute redemptions when cash fares are through the roof – but I suspect a lot of people who are not dedicated collectors/frequent flyers are happy to use Avios for a £100 reduction over cash fare prices.

      • zsalya says:
        21 Feb21 February 17:41

        “Taxes” ?
        There is some APD but for long-haul Y that is about a quarter of what BA charge?
        I suggest “surcharges” is more appropriate.

      • the real harry1 says:
        21 Feb21 February 20:38

        presumably (haven’t done it) redeeming in Y ex EU where you actually like the place you use as your European airport, might be a different calculation?

        ie you position/ go spend a day/ some days in a European place you like/ you redeem in Y without BA’s fees, for a decent discount/ valuation of Avios

        & reverse on the way back

    • Thunderbirds says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:31

      Frenske, unfortunately I think some on this site seem to assume that everyone has access to collecting via some or all of the main sources of Avios, for example
      1. Can get a credit card (with the ability to spend and churn)
      2. Fly/Stay in hotels/Hire cars paid for/refunded by their employer
      3. Live close to a Tesco
      4. Have salary high enough for self funded travel
      5. Are self employed
      6. Etc..
      Unfortunately some don’t. My circumstances changed, I moved to a new job and live in Spain. I was surprised how that put a dent in my ability to earn.

      • Robbie says:
        21 Feb21 February 09:57

        I moved to Spain too, Reduced my earning ability for a bit but once I got to grips with IB+ I was back up and earning well.

        A great earner (If it is in your city) is El Tenedor which is a restaurant booking app. I have booked a table for coffee before and so been able to pick up 250 Avios for about 5€ of cost (Some of the places have a minimum spend to use the app but sometimes it can work) Also the Iberiaplusstore has very handy retailers on it such as El Corte Ingais and Just Eat I probably use it at least twice a week.

        • Thunderbirds says:
          21 Feb21 February 11:44

          Great thanks I’ll take a look at that App. Yes there are upsides. I do benefit from The Economist subscription via Iberia. Also I live close to the border with Gibraltar so I don’t cry when I fill up my car..!
          I would benefit from lower tax Iberia flights but I’m married so generally redeem my Avios using 241 with BA or pay for Ex-Europe flights without the hassle of needing to buy re-positioning flights.

        • Zoe says:
          21 Feb21 February 21:21

          Do you just download the app or need a link from Iberia? Not moved to Spain but have an apartment in Javea

    • aliks says:
      21 Feb21 February 09:01

      I used to be in that category, and could never find anything useful to do with the points. Not surprising really as 20k points is only about £200 worth – its hard to give much advice about how to maximise the benefit of a couple of hundred quid.

      The game changer is the possibility of credit card welcome bonuses. 100,000 points really can get you some great redemptions, upgrades etc. It only takes 3 or 4 credit card cycles to get this amount, but you need to be diligent to follow the rules and take your opportunities – hence the value of HfP and FlyerTalk sites.

      • Frenske says:
        21 Feb21 February 11:55

        Well I am active in getting value for money/points. Which does not necessarily maximum Avios e.g. Tesco vouchers are used for Eurotunnel/Ferry crossings not Avios.
        Nor do I churn as often as I could. My wife is not cooperative.

  • Anon says:
    21 Feb21 February 07:18

    A better (but long winded) question….

    “Do you redeem miles for flights in a higher class than you would have normally previously bought a cash ticket for.?”

    Before I got into this game and started turbo charged collecting my miles via HFP tips, we typically did a max of 2 long haul per year in Economy, v occasionally in PE in a sale.

    Over the last 5 years that has changed, I aim to redeem in a minimum of PE, with 50℅ of flight sectors in a class with a flat bed, so BA CW or VS UC. Long haul Economy is still done but accounts for 5℅ of sectors.

    As yet I’ve never bought a cash ticket for business class, even in a sale.

  • Hugo says:
    21 Feb21 February 07:24

    “I’m not sure that the first two make economic sense”

    Surely there are a number of routes where last minute business fares are rare? Thinking of Caribbean and other “holiday only” destinations

    I would be a huge fan of “pop off to St Lucia next week for cut price redemption” at low seasons for example

    • Barry cutters says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:20

      Just remember doing that would eliminate upgrades at the gate for us tho.
      Last year I must have been upgraded for free at least 12 times. Both ways on an ex bmi a321 to Istanbul. And wtp to club world on a load of east coast flights – to the point where I actually stopped booking club worlds because the chances of an upgrade were so high. Although for west coast I still booked business as wasn’t willing to take the risk.
      Saying that . Aa have the request an upgrade function, but iv still been upgraded on the a321 from business to first from JFK to lax. And again on my only long haul economy flight last year from Heathrow to lax on their 77W.

      I guess I’m saying I’d rather not have upgrades for auction at the gate , as I’m sure it would decrease free upgrade chances in the future

      • AndyR says:
        21 Feb21 February 09:16

        Barry, are you BAEC Gold or GGL? I didn’t realise BA were so generous with upgrades like AA is for it’s members.

        • Alan says:
          21 Feb21 February 09:21

          BA actually seem to more frequently give upgrades to non-status members, perhaps as a way to entice them to consider an upgraded class of travel next time?!

    • Alan says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:23

      I would have thought that the first option makes some economic sense if it meant turning up at check-in and upgrading at a discount if there is availability. Surely there must be a few flights where this was an option? I don’t know how full Business/First class gets on, particularly off-season, flights as I have yet to fly in these cabins.

  • Tilly71 says:
    21 Feb21 February 08:01

    OT: Anyone got their bonus clubcard points from using payquiq app from the most recent promo.
    I completed 10 x transactions nearly two weeks ago but nothing posted as yet, I don’t know if I should contact them.

    • TGLoyalty says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:22

      Yep been getting them as I’ve been using it over past 2/3 weeks

      You were targeted via email?

    • xcalx says:
      21 Feb21 February 08:30

      Looking at my 3 transactions on the 14th of Feb 150 bonus cc points were awarded on the 15th. Is there an additional bonus to this on completion of 10 transactions.

      • Genghis says:
        21 Feb21 February 08:45

        I’ve been getting 150 cc points per day it seems and I wasn’t targeted.

        • Ben says:
          21 Feb21 February 09:50

          I logged on to my tesco clubcard account last week and it seems all my points have been sent out to me in a little booklet. Does anyone know if I can undo this or is it too late?

          • Alan says:
            21 Feb21 February 10:14

            That’s how it always works – you can still spend them online though for Clubcard perks, etc so it doesn’t make any difference.

  • James67 says:
    21 Feb21 February 08:20

    6% failing to use their miles before expiration is a shocker in my view. As bad as miles-charity options usually are, I wish they would take the time to do it if all other options fail.

    • Fenny says:
      21 Feb21 February 23:45

      I have 1000 Etihad and 500 Lufthansa miles expiring in a couple of months. Can’t remember where they came from, but there’s no decent options for anything that small. I think I used some Etihad miles on a raffle to win GP tickets, or something similar. But lack of reasonable earnings opportunities coupled with very strict expiry rules mean they are mostly worthless.

      I would donate small balances to charity, but there’s usually a minimum limit I never reach. Even transferring them to other HfP readers would be acceptable if it were possible.

  • rams1981 says:
    21 Feb21 February 09:06

    I was awarded 600 bonus CC points I believe on 4 or 5 minor spends but none recently.

    • Yuff says:
      21 Feb21 February 09:53

      I got that as well, no idea why.
      Been getting the 50 Pts bonus as well on other accounts.

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