Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Groupon is selling Avios points from a mileage broker ….

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For the first time, Groupon UK is selling Avios points.  We have seen this on Groupon Spain and Groupon Ireland before, but not here.

Full details of the offer are here.

The prices are:

  • 10,000 Avios for £129
  • 20,000 Avios for £249
  • 30,000 Avios for £359
  • 40,000 Avios for £479
  • 50,000 Avios for £569

In all cases, these prices are lower than you will pay via the current ba.com ‘buy Avios’ deal we covered the other day.

So far, so good.  Except ….. the Avios are NOT being sold by British Airways.  They are being sold by a US group called buyairlinemiles.com.  If you visit their website, it is quite clear that they are basically a mileage broker, someone who finds ways of trading miles against the rules of the programmes.  The T&C’s say:

“We, at buyairlinemiles.com, are in no way affiliated with any of the respective, selected airlines.”

This looks very dubious to me and I am pretty sure that British Airways knows nothing about it.  For a start, Groupon calls them ‘Avios miles’ – BA / Avios Group is very specific that they must be called just ‘Avios’ (not ‘Avios points’ and certainly not ‘Avios miles’) at all times, in all communications.

Now …. you may well get your points if you buy.  If you use a credit card, you are protected by Section 75 chargeback coverage and indeed Groupon’s own guarantee.  I would be wary, however.


How to earn Avios from UK credit cards

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:

Barclaycard Avios Plus card

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

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

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

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.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

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.

Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa

Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review

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.

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

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.

American Express Business Platinum

40,000 points sign-up bonus and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

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

Comments (140)

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

  • Chris says:

    Really random off-topic but does anyone know how far in advance JAL tend to release domestic tickets? I wanted to fly CTS – TYO next Feb but there are not even any cash tickets available.

    • Nick_C says:

      I think it is two months in advance for redemptions. I want tickets for December and they are not available yet.

      • Wz says:

        Hi both, I just booked LHR to TYO to CTS redemption for Feb 2020 and when speaking to BA on the phone they were able book me that domestic redemption straight away.

    • Gavin says:

      It’s a bit weird. Sometimes they show only 2 months out online. Sometimes they show beyond that (up to a year out) but are not bookable beyond 2 months. Sometimes they are bookable online up to a year out! And sometimes the phone agents can see/book a different combination of the above.

      The last couple of months (since just before the devaluation) they have not been visible online more than 2 months out but you might be able to book them by phone.

      It shouldn’t be a problem booking them 1-2 months (or even just days) in advance, availability is usually excellent.

      • Nick_C says:

        Thanks wz and Gavin.

        I’m going to wait for them to show to show up on line as I have enough orphaned AA miles to cover the tickets I need. 15000 AA instead of 12000 Avios (HND to KIX) but I can finally use most of my AA miles and not worry about keeping them active.

  • Navara says:

    Rob
    It’s still diverting me to a free iPhone.

    • Rob says:

      When did you first use it today? The javascript is cached in your phone and can’t be cleared manually, I think.

      There is literally nothing we can do about it. I went through this with our IT guy when it happened a couple of months ago. The problem is Google partners (Google serves ads from partners when it has no relevant inventory itself) who are not as diligent as Google in checking the ad code put into their networks. We don’t even ‘see’ the code – Google Adsense sends it directly to you.

      • Chrisasaurus says:

        Seems like a strong case for switching ad providers…

        • Rob says:

          You seriously think Google would let any competing ad networks survive? Adsense is dominant. Niche ad networks are even riskier and generally only used by those banned from Google.

          Google sells ad space by auction. In an auction, monopolies benefit sellers and buyers. You might think eBay is too dominant but you’d be a mug not to use it if selling something.

      • Navara says:

        Hi Rob
        Since this morning.sending this from another iPhone which is fine

    • ZB says:

      Had this 4 times on this post!!

      • Rob says:

        Clear your phone cache (‘clear history and website data’ on Safari) or wait for the JavaScript cache to expire.

    • Frenzie says:

      For me it was a free supermarket voucher.
      Rob, I prefer the free iPhone! What can I do?

      • Paul says:

        I just got the iphone ad (pop up) too.
        Only on this website… I genuinely don’t know the reasons why it could be, but feedback is a gift and all that 😀

      • Bonglim says:

        Happened to me too. I am not sure it was the website, but rather something I did.

        The solution is for an iPhone:
        ‘clear history and website data’ (settings–> safari–> clear history and website data)

        Then, remove head for points from the favourites (if you have it saved as a favourite)
        Then make sure browser is closed fully and reopen, turn whole iPhone off if you like.

        Problem solved. Most people do the clear history thing – but get caught out if you have a website as a favourite.

  • Nic says:

    OT Bits… So On T?

    Just passed through Barcelona Prat airport T1 security which is dealing with an employee strike over an extra euro per hour. Government wants 90% minimum service. Didn’t feel much different from usual summer traffic. A few more lanes created prior to the boarding card machines to cope with expected numbers. No delays.

    OTOH you can’t buy Fast Track security access online at the moment which usually you can via the Aena website (“Service temporarily unavailable”). Perhaps related.

    Sala Miro lounge is still closed for refurbishment. The temporary lounge space is dull but fine. Was busy an hour ago, quiet now, but they weren’t turning anyone away.

  • C F Frost says:

    O/T. The Amex platinum luggage tags that they used to provide. Never used them. Was having a clear-out. Was going to consign to dustbin. But then thought: eBay. How much did they sell for?

    £27.00

    Good beer money for an HfP party.

    • TM says:

      Yeah, I think I sold mine for £25. Who buys this crap?

      • ankomonkey says:

        I’ve seen airline sick bags for sale for as much as £7 on ebay! It beggars belief…

        • Lady London says:

          They are exceptionally good to be sick into, though.
          Really solid, nothing leaks.
          Easy to close whilst remaining hygienic to dispose.

          considering the inflated prices the NHS is paying to vendors for some things, I can well imagine that perhaps someone looking after someone needing a lot of these to hand, might juuuust about find £7 ok. Depending on the country, of course.

    • Gavin says:

      That’s crazy. I’ve got loads of them in a drawer unused…!

    • Andrew M says:

      I sold an ANA First Class amenity kit on eBay last month for £65 which is pretty insane for what it is. The pyjamas are still listed, no takers yet.

    • TokyoFan says:

      Your name gave me a laugh 😂

    • Nick M says:

      D’oh – have several scattered around… threw one away yesterday, will have a look for the others now though!

  • Roger says:

    OT I have Marriott travel package expiring in next 3/4 days.
    Customer service is refusing to extend validity.
    What is my best course to extend the lif of certificate?

  • James says:

    Not a buyer of points at over 1p.

  • Liz says:

    Also getting the iphone pop every time I go to HFP on phone and ipad which is how I always access it. Using desktop to send this message but heading away on our travels again tomorrow and won’t be able to access HfP. I have already cleared cache etc but it’s still happening.

  • Jimbob says:

    Anyone have any idea how long I’ll have to wait for the iPhone I won this morning will take to be delivered?

    Fortunately I have them my credit card details so they could verify my details.

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

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