BIG NEWS: BA moves to revenue-based tier status for Bronze, Silver, Gold and Gold Guest List

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• John says:

  7 Jan7 January 15:43

  IDK.

  Bad/ugly: Poor communication; in parts half-baked (what exactly do I need to do to earn the 2.5k TP from credit cards?); new thresholds are tightening the screws a bit too much, especially at Gold/GGL levels

  Good/neutral: More ways to earn TP. They could have gotten further, though, IMO.

  Consequences:
  – Not the huge exodus the frequent flyers on the forums are suggesting: Supply-side shortages protect BA from too many defectors in the long-haul business; and I don’t buy the story premium leisure or corporate travellers will really switch to Easyjet with their infrequent rotations at, often, bad hours
  – The competitive landscape also protects BA and IB: They not just have full aircraft because of the supply shortages; they also got a better hard product that, say, Lufthansa; AFKL has their own problems including the capacity constraints imposed by the Dutch government at AMS

  Bottom line:
  – BA may hurt a little from making somewhat excessive changes and from communicating very poorly;
  – However, it’s simply not possible a ton of those travelling upfront on TATL flights switch to the competition. Not just Iberia has record load factors, so does the competition
  – If macroeconomic activity in the UK and Europe recovers, demand for TATL may even go up!
  – Ultimately, even if it turns out BA made some questionable decisions, there are a lot of reasons BA will have enough time and sufficient opportunities to iron this out!
  – It remains to be seen if they end up a less or more profitable company. Due to big data, neural networks, and other tech, IAG loyalty was in a historically unprecendeted situation as they could comprehensively simulate and test the impact of these changes!

  • Phoenixed says:

    7 Jan7 January 16:22

    Much more could have been done on the tier point earning front for sure but a number of senior commercial leaders in BA are very against earning status without flying, and are the reason for the low cap on Amex earning.

    It would be really nice for us and shareholders to believe that these changes had been comprehensively simulated and tested, sure. McKinsey charge extra for that.

    • Tim S says:

      7 Jan7 January 18:04

      I’m entirely in the set that gaining TP via CC spending is just plain wrong.

      What are airlines trying to achieve by offering it? Normal people can’t possibly expect to put the expected level of spending (25K+!) onto a personal credit card. Much personal spending, rent mortgage, council tax, utility bills, is impossible to pay that way. And large single items (new kitchen) are far too sporadic to be useful.

      Nope, the only people who can put mega amounts of spending onto a CC is corporate hospitality costs. And if you are trying to attract corporate customers to fly with your, then give them TP for flying with you.

      simples.

      • CJD says:

        7 Jan7 January 18:50

        A nice big chunk of money from Amex for selling the Avios to them for starters.

        It also helps build your loyalty ecosystem and puts BA more in line with their competition. Plenty of other airline and hotel branded cards in the UK and abroad offer a measure of status just for holding a card.

        • Tim S says:

          8 Jan8 January 11:49

          If it’s possible for BA to sell TP to Amex for £1 per 100 (or whatever)

          why can’t they sell them directly to me at £1 per 100?

  • RC says:

    7 Jan7 January 17:52

    I’d dispute a couple of points there.
    On many routes easyJet have better and better timed services than BA. Other flag carriers on Heathrow short haul routes also do. Between those, BA is only better to few destinations: Spain, Italy, Greece, beach routes and Nice. In almost every other core market it’s a poor second already, eg Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Lisbon, Athens, Istanbul, Dusseldorf, Luxembourg. Oslo, etc etc.
    Generally the AFKLM and Lufthansa products are better. Same middle seat blocked. Cleaner more punctual services and less issues with carryons. The food can be a bit weaker but if you’re trying for high yield traffic, the schedule and punctuality matters more.
    Remember AFKLM also has plenty of room to grow at Paris and Copenhagen through SAS. Though niche, the SAS long haul J product is far better than BA. So is AF.
    So BA is now a long yield leisure short haul and USA flights only business – with a few others like S Africa, Lagos, Accra, and an Indian network about to be decimated by a resurgent Air India.
    If they’re betting on US point of sale, that all AA and AS card holders, so it seems strange to go so far to alienate your home market.
    Before anyone jumps on corporate, United are aggressive marketers and pricers with London based corporates, while AFKLM are also.
    So?
    I agree BA had to act: there’s no other way to put it, but like Amex PP card, BA silver has become a bit too common.
    However, they’ve gone from one extreme to the other and may well regret making Gold so tough to get: incrementally there’s no much extra in it over Silver, and now GGL is for the birds, the likelihood is the incentive to go beyond silver is now minimal.
    It’s on that, and for ‘road warriors’ that I suspect this move will backfire.

• John says:

  7 Jan7 January 16:10

  I think the biggest issue with the new Club is the scheme for earning tier points is simply too complex. It is very difficult to plan ahead to atain a certain level of status as it relies on too many variables.

  Also, of all the posts I have seen, I havwe not seen one from a BA staff member. any cabin crew are keen status collectors as having e.g. Silver or Gold benefits them too. I would be interested to know what staffers think of these changes (anonymously of course).

  • Rhys says:

    7 Jan7 January 16:12

    Staffers hate the changes. Apparently the post announcing the changes on the internal intranet was inundated with ire.

    • Pat says:

      7 Jan7 January 16:15

      Plenty of staff with status.

    • Mr. AC says:

      7 Jan7 January 16:25

      I talked about it with CE cabin crew 2 days ago. They weren’t aware of the details of the changes, just the fact that they were announced, so not everyone among the staff are clued in. Everyone was Silver FWIW.

    • GUWonder says:

      7 Jan7 January 16:31

      Of course. Many current and former BA employees and their family and friends have had a run or two with having BA elite status. But the cost increase to stay or get on the BA elite status hamster wheel has been hiked so much that most of them are being priced out of the posher personal travel benefits of BA elite status. If most of these current and former employees held a lot of shares in the airline and valued that more, then maybe they wouldn’t be as widely opposed to the elite status levels become so very unaffordable for so many.

      • GUWonder says:

        7 Jan7 January 16:40

        A lot of the activity that makes the BA board on FT the most active board is because there are a lot of current and former BA employees with elite status. As BA elite status becomes a worse value proposition for most people, they and a lot of others will become less interested in the frequent flyer program and views/participation will fall there because of that.

    • RC says:

      7 Jan7 January 18:12

      I’ll be surprised if any IAG staff do.
      They all get free Silver or Gold cards, so are probably quite happy that there’ll be less customers occupying ‘their space’ in the lounges.
      The right thing to do would be for the CFO Cadbury to remove that perk so they have to earn it like everyone else.
      Now BA have effectively put a value on this, it’s also likely HMRC will go after this as a BIK and expect an income tax and NI charge on this.

      • Helen Winter says:

        7 Jan7 January 23:14

        It’s certainly not all IAG or all staff.

        Gold (used to be silver status) is given to IAG, BA & IAGL Directors.

• George says:

  7 Jan7 January 17:26

  Following on from comments about a drop in IAG share price yesterday, it was up 2.6% today versus a very marginal decline in the ftse 100

  • Numpty says:

    8 Jan8 January 11:07

    and today its now at its highest price since covid.

• NickBS says:

  7 Jan7 January 17:30

  Interestingly, I think I fit square into BA’s market here except for booking through a travel agent.

  I fly 14 to 16 times per year on long haul, almost always in WTP (Business travel and standard to book is WTP) and quite often booking last minute. Consequently, I think my total spend last year on BA alone was ~£34,000.

  However, all my travel is booked through a business travel agent, so BA don’t have access to the fare paid. I only ever get the standard Avios (Toronto is my most visited place, and that’s always 5336 or 8004 Avios depending if its a W fare or E,T). Reading the BA post, I’ll be awarded tier points based on mileage which for Toronto will set me around the 800-1000 mark per trip instead of the 2000/2500 mark that I’d get if it was based on the fare. As such, I can’t see myself hitting gold, which is incredibly frustrating when so much money is spent on BA flights.

  • Bertie says:

    7 Jan7 January 20:28

    Of course BA know the fare paid. Not by you, but by the Travel Agent though.

  • Tim S says:

    8 Jan8 January 11:53

    I think that misunderstand the relationship of the TA here.

    As far as BA are concerned, this is a cash fare and you will accrue (new) points on the cash basis.

• David says:

  7 Jan7 January 17:57

  I’ve been British Airways customer for years, but the changes to the reward program has infuriated me. BA makes it harder to maintain your status.

  The downgrade of my benefits makes it impossible to Maintain a Gold Card, what’s the point of staying with British Airways?

  I’ve had enough of this downgrade, their terrible website and the reduced meal services on transatlantic flights!! I’ll take my business elsewhere. There are plenty of other airlines that still understand the importance of rewarding their regular customers. This marks the end of me flying with British Airways in 2025!!!

• RC says:

  7 Jan7 January 17:57

  I believe BA managers and IAG staff all get a free Silver or Gold card without having to earn it.
  Will BA be ensuring none of these renew and all must be earned too?
  Investors in IAG should be asking this.
  Otherwise it’s hypocrisy the investor staff at IAG parade around with Silver cards while defending removing them from others.

  • Helen Winter says:

    7 Jan7 January 23:18

    Directors at BA, IAGL & IAG get free gold status most certainly NOT all managers or IAG staff.

    • RC says:

      7 Jan7 January 23:58

      As an IAG/BA employee, isn’t that a touch hypocritical? (That they don’t have to earn it through flying)

      • Rob says:

        8 Jan8 January 08:51

        Some media (not us) get free Silver cards.

        • apbj says:

          8 Jan8 January 09:36

          I’m sure they do, but in my extensive experience in the media I haven’t met anyone (editor, md, or otherwise) who has one. Importantly, this includes senior execs in the big TV news orgs who are lucrative to airlines because of the spend on baggage and last-minute flexible travel. So it must be a tiny number.

      • Helen Winter says:

        8 Jan8 January 17:40

        If you are a Director, you get confirmed travel at ID rate (or free is traveling on duty) usually in F or J). You (rightly) do not earn Avios or TP on ID or duty flights.

• Jonally says:

  7 Jan7 January 18:11

  I have been reading these comments with interest. I have a slightly contrarian view to most.
  I can understand the upset from those who have got used to “status”. The changes have been handled really badly and the notice period is too short. But the general direction seems inevitable, lots of people saying “status” has become too easy to achieve, lounges are too crowded, too many families with kids, too many people flying economy in lounges. So the only way to make club more exclusive is to reduce access, and that means making it harder to achieve. That’s going to upset some people.
  Most people commenting seem to say I usually fly First or Business anyway, so surely most of the benefits come with the ticket anyway. It seems to me that what’s really upset most people is the loss of that “status”. Is a little Gold or Silver card really such a big deal? Who wants to hang around in an airport lounge when doing a 2 hour flight in Europe? I aim to board last and spend as little time as possible on the plane.
  Personally, I have never had any airline status beyond Blue. I was actually thinking about trying for Silver from April, but that’s out of the question now. But I won’t be boycotting BA. Heathrow is far and away the most convenient airport for me. I just booked a BA holiday in Amsterdam for next month. Better choice of flights than Easyjet and cheaper once baggage charges included. Also better value than booking flights and hotel separately. Travelling to western USA later in the year, I am struggling to find significantly better options in terms of price and convenience. And I need to top up Avios to take full advantage of my AMEX 2 for 1, so probably won’t cancel the BAPP just yet.
  BA carried 43 million passengers in 2023, they are not all on HforP and FT. I think they will survive a while yet.

  • Richard E says:

    7 Jan7 January 20:03

    I am in exactly the same camp. I’ve never ever had status (beyond blue!). But I have used the excellent advice on this site to make sure that, for about a decade, every single flight I’ve taken has been business or first via Avios. So, I get all the benefits I need.

    In many ways, it does seem like there are some posters here who don’t realise just how much their status is trapping them to be “loyal” to BA or OneWorld. Honestly, I prefer to shop around and not be confined.

    That said, this has been handled terribly by Ba. Saying it’s what members asked for?! Moving to cash spend so crudely?! Soft landings and notice period….

  • Throwawayname says:

    7 Jan7 January 22:34

    Not everyone lives next to a hub airport, and even LHR doesn’t always have the right routes (due to slot constraints) or timings (due to aligning with intercontinental connection banks) for the short haul flyer.

    Hanging around a lounge for three hours when connecting tends to be a lot more pleasant than sitting in metal seats for those three hours or waiting for three days until the next direct easyJet flight.

  • Tim S says:

    8 Jan8 January 11:58

    If the problem is too many families in the lounges, then the solution is simple. Remove/downgrade the “plus guest” element of rewards.

    • Rob says:

      8 Jan8 January 12:19

      Most families are ALREADY blocked from the lounges. How many families (apart from mine, admittedly!) have BOTH parents with elite status, which is what you need if you are guesting in a child along with your partner?

      The number of BA Golds who get angry because they can’t bring their partner and a child into the lounges on the rare occasion they fly BA for leisure is huge and is a major source of dissatisfaction with BA.

      In fact, it is one thing that BA may change when the number of Golds is culled rapidly – perhaps allowing unlimited numbers of kids alongside the guested partner at weekends, for example. This would REALLY improve loyalty. Eurostar already does this, allowing 5 guests at weekends for elites and only 1 midweek.

      • Dev says:

        8 Jan8 January 15:58

        I’m guessing that you are not going to be unloading £40k to BA to maintain those 2x BA Gold cards going forward…

• Hooby says:

  7 Jan7 January 19:32

  As an avid, but hitherto silent reader of HfP, I’ve been following the last 9 days of thread and the varied opinions expressed both about BA and those who play the FF game, and it’s finally convinced me to stick my head above the parapet!
  I’m UK based, and until last year I worked in-brand at a relatively senior level for a large US global multi-brand consumer goods company. Everything we did internally aimed to achieve long term positive brand awareness, customer retention, and ultimately sales, through marketing in its broadest sense – classic 4 Ps (or more Ps, depending on which management theory you prescribe too).
  However the factors that negatively affected us at brand level most were goals imposed on us by the parent company, and its need to meet “The Street’s” expectations as a NASDAQ listed company. Depending which year/quarter, this could be top line sales, margin, operating income, stock holding, payment days, overhead reduction etc., and in most cases a combination of them all.
  The reason I’m boring you all is to illustrate running a large company (or airline in this case, but subject to the same rules of business and economics) isn’t a simple black and white, or either/or process: It’s so much more nuanced than many of the arguments on here characterize.
  However, after 20+ years of corporate experience, I cannot imagine any organization the size of BA entering into changes of this magnitude without at least some analysis to try and model the effect (doesn’t mean the analysis wasn’t flawed – shi* in, shi* out etc.), but looking from outside (without any knowledge of the internal BA/IAG discussion – other than what is reported anecdotally on HfP) this decision feels like one driven to meet applied targets, rather than “improve” the Exec Club as they claim, and I’m sure they have their reasons for doing it.
  Personally I think they got it wrong. This is blowing up into a massive PR own-goal, at least among a lot of the people it matters to – all of us on HfP!
  BA’s decision to so radically change the terms of Executive Club status earning clearly affects a significant number of people. No one outside of BA knows the numbers for sure, but objectively, anything that potentially alienates a larger group of paying customers “who can choose” whilst keeping a smaller group happy “who are onboard already” doesn’t make financial business sense. Why would you let all that discretionary spend go?

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