Will British Airways ever tell people that the Nectar conversion rate is devaluing?

As we revealed last month, the Avios to Nectar conversion rate is being devalued on 11th March.

The rate drops from 300 Avios = 400 Nectar points to 400 Avios = 400 Nectar points. Remember that, two years ago, it was 250 Avios = 400 Nectar points.

Following this change, Nectar will become a relatively pointless part of the Avios universe. Converting into Nectar, with its fixed 0.5p per point redemption rate, will be no better than using Avios for any other non-flight redemption, and in some cases will be worse.

British Airways has still not notified Avios members that the conversion rate is changing on Monday. Take a look at the BA / Nectar page for example.

The only people who know are those who have auto-conversion set up, since they needed to have time to cancel it if they didn’t want to accept the new rate.

We know that Avios is desperate to stop people converting to Nectar – after all, you used to get this begging message popping up when trying to convert:

…. but making a decision not to tell people of a fairly major change is not on. Even a warning email to those people who have converted Avios to Nectar in the past would have been enough.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (February 2025)

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 Mastercard

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

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 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

30,000 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

50,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large 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, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

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

50,000 points when you sign-up 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.