Why you should ignore the new Avios / Economist subscription offer – despite the headline

We have seen a lot of promotions for The Economist magazine over the last couple of years.  These generally involve buying a one-year subscription with up to 13,200 Avios points thrown in as a bonus.

Last Autumn there was an even better offer.  For £12, you could get a 12 issue trial subscription to The Economist, plus 1,050 Avios.  At 1.16p per Avios, plus 12 issues of the magazine, it was a good deal.

A new Economist offer has just launched on ba.com.  In theory it looks even better than before – but it stinks.

This is how it looks on ba.com (click to enlarge):

Let’s look at what it says above:

“12 weeks for £12 with The Economist and collect 1,200 Avios”

A great offer, yes?  Er, no.

Because, when you click through – click here – there is some cunning small print:

“In order to qualify for the Avios in this 12 week offer, the Eligible Customer must maintain a subscription for at least six months (26 weeks).”

You are NOT getting 1,200 Avios for spending £12.  You actually need to remain a customer for 26 weeks, which will cost you:

• £12 for the first 12 weeks
• £44 for the next 13 weeks
• £44 for the next 13 weeks (to get you over the 26 week threshold)

This is a total cost of £100 for which you will receive just 1,200 Avios.  This is a terrible incentive, especially compared to normal Economist offers for buying a full year subscription.

Part of me thinks that The Economist has made an error here, but I doubt it.  This is because the BA website has its own set of rules, and they say the same thing:

1. To be eligible for this offer, new customers must subscribe to a 12 week subscription with The Economist Newspaper and be a member of the British Airways Executive Club
2. Eligible members will collect 1,200 Avios for a Print, Digital OR Print AND Digital subscription when they choose the 12 week quarterly option.
3. The 12 week quarterly Avios offer from 1 February 2019 until 31 March 2019 will only be available in the UK.
4. To sign up, Eligible Customers must visit the dedicated webpage and click on ‘Subscribe now’, choose the subscription type (digital and/or print) and enter the 8 digit, British Airways Executive Club membership account number.
5. Avios will be awarded to your account within 28 days.
6. In order to qualify for the Avios in this 12 week offer, the Eligible Customer must maintain a subscription for at least six months (26 weeks). This subscription is non-refundable, except if the customer is a resident in the EU, in which case the customer may cancel the subscription in the first 14 days and get a refund for any part of your subscription that has not already been delivered (for the print element) or published (for any digital element) before it is cancelled.

Do read the small print here and give this offer a miss.  If it does turn out to be a mistake, and the 26 week restriction quietly disappears, I will let you know.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.