BA e-Store – not tracking

[WA81741]

Hi,

We are trying to use the BA e-Shop to make some purchases however when I click on the Shop Button, it doesn’t show as ‘Tracked’ or that I have visited said website when clicking on the Shop button. Also, when I click on the heart symbol, a blank box just floats above the symbol.

The websites are LoungePass and AirBNB.

I know BA say that if a purchase isn’t ‘tracked’ they won’t award the Avios points. I was wondering if this is a common error and if there is any workarounds? I have tried with and without VPN, tried different devices and tried ‘InPrivate’ mode to no avail.

Many thanks

[davefl]

All the sites including the cashback sites track using cookies. I use a seperate browser (Chrome), clear all cookies in the history/cache, the method varies between browsers.

Now you have a clean base, open the estore, TCB or whatever and accept cookies on its home screen. Then click through and accept cookies on the retailer site. If you then examine the cookie history you’ll see 10-20 affiliate companies have placed cookies on your device.

Every time you do a purchase clear them again. If your browser is set to block cookies in any way there’s potential for it to fail.

Since doing this I have a 100% tracking on TCB and 95% on QC. The only time QC doesn’t track (suspicously) is when they’re awarding one of their £25 or so bonuses.

[WA81741]

Hi @davefl, thanks for this, I tried using a different browser with no luck. I didn’t clear the cache / cookies so will give that a try – thank you.

[WA81741]

I tried clearing the cookies, unfortunately, it didn’t work. I should have mentioned early that other sites show as tracked, e.g., Funky Pidgeon, Confused.com.

[davefl]

If everything is tracked on the other sites then it’s the affiliates that are not passing the informtion back to BA. There is a way to look at the cookies after you cleared them to ensure they are empty, and then look again after you have clicked through to the site. You’ll see them change from 0 to many.

If it’s not tracked then it will require a manual claim which will most likely be rejected even if you send them screenshots. That’s an unfortunate result of the unregulated wild west of affiliate marketing.

I was denied by Hilton years a few years ago as even though it tracked successfully they refused to pay as they said my booking couldn’t be found… I sent the hotel invoice marked paid with my name and address on it and a copy of the Hhonours page showing my completed stay but still they refused. I’ve not used the estore since.

[Rob]

If you don’t accept cookies when you land on the merchant site, it may not track – it depens on how the data is sent across.

[JDB]

WA81741 wrote:

I tried clearing the cookies, unfortunately, it didn’t work. I should have mentioned early that other sites show as tracked, e.g., Funky Pidgeon, Confused.com.

On the BA e-store, when you click on a retailer you should immediately get a notification “we have tracked your visit” – you can check it in your account on another device before making your purchase. As long as you have that, you should be fine and the transaction should appear in ‘pending’ within two or three days. In the event of a dispute/missing Avios, being able to show that (which has a click reference number) will ensure you get paid. I find most track just fine, but I’m not clever enough or bothered enough to use any sort of blockers or VPN than can inhibit cookies tracking successfully.

[davefl]

Just tried to replicate your issue.

Loungepass doesn’t track, you need to wait for 3 days after purchase and then raise a claim
Airbnb doesn’t track in the same way as for example John Lewis. They’ll award avios based on you entering your BA number on their opening screen.

As I said above, affiliate marketing is just like the wild west.

[polly]

We just had a notification from BA saying they were taking back our 875 avios. Stated it was because there was a refund. Well, no refund as my OH is happily wearing the sports shoes. So l have had to reapply for the points, and resend receipt etc, even tho the exact same info is within BA e store. Tracked well etc.. very puzzling.

[Jill Kinkell]

I booked a tour through Viator on the BA esite away back in September for a trip at the end of October. My 1500 avios are pending. It seems I need to wait between 90-120 days after the trip is completed for points to be awarded. Well. We’re past that now and still no sign. I’m not hopeful!