Calling the BA US Call Centre to add return flights to 241 booking

[Iank]

Just to be aware when calling the US BA call centre to bag return Avios seats to a 241 booking. Make sure you use options 1,1,1 otherwise you end up in a centre in India who will refuse to deal with a Companion Voucher booking at all. The response I got at 1:00am on Saturday morning was “we are not trained to deal with Avios related bookings – sorry…here is the Executive club number”. So I called the number and guess what the response was “the office is now closed” please call back when we are open in the morning. Of course by then the CW seats on the one daily Vancouver to Heathrow flight would have been snapped up by then – which they were when I called the UK Call Centre at 8:00 am on Saturday morning uk time.

I have now sorted an alternative option flying back from Seattle after a helpful discussion with the UK BA team – it is they who reminded me of the options to press (which would have connected me to the UK Avios team at 1:00 am!!

[Concord1969]

I had same thing happened to me last week but I was not after a 241 booking just a CW booking. Got a very nice Indian lady, went thru all the details then told she could not get into my BA Avios account as it was locked! Accepted that & thought I had lost out but tried on-line at 6am next morning and the redemption Avios seats were actually still available & now booked. I need the return leg seats when they become available and thanks to you I will try the 1,1,1, method at 1am for that when I do.

[BJ]

Wasn’t 1,1,1 the old route? Now 1,1,2 to get the CS team trained up on vouchers IIRC ??

[NorthernLass]

Is Vancouver a route which would incur higher surcharges if booked as a separate return leg? If not, just book the seats online and request the 50% avios back later. Not ideal but much more likely to bag you the seats you want as long as you have enough avios for the booking.

[Froggee]

Concord1969 wrote:

I had same thing happened to me last week but I was not after a 241 booking just a CW booking. Got a very nice Indian lady, went thru all the details then told she could not get into my BA Avios account as it was locked! Accepted that & thought I had lost out but tried on-line at 6am next morning and the redemption Avios seats were actually still available & now booked. I need the return leg seats when they become available and thanks to you I will try the 1,1,1, method at 1am for that when I do.

If it was Wednesday night i.e. 1am on Thursday morning then the Executive Club was down for approximately one hour from 1am to 2am so nobody (including the call centres!) could book Avios tickets then.

[SteveJ]

Call Japan, beginning of their day. Never understood why everyone calls the US number at the end of their working day.

[Froggee]

SteveJ wrote:

Call Japan, beginning of their day. Never understood why everyone calls the US number at the end of their working day.

Indeed. The Japanese dude who failed to help me on Wednesday night was so incredibly helpful explaining that there was a systems issue, and he absolutely would have been able and willing to help me if the system wasn’t down and he then gave me his extension number should I want to try again a bit later.

[Aston100]

Are you using Skype when calling these overseas numbers?

[Froggee]

Aston100 wrote:

Are you using Skype when calling these overseas numbers?

Yes – although Wednesday was the first time I’ve called BA overseas. It took a few attempts to connect to the US for which I was rewarded with a message that the call centre was closed but Japan worked first time.

My Skype credit is a legacy from courting Mrs Froggee and was loaded about 15 years ago!

[tiriavpo]

NorthernLass wrote:

Is Vancouver a route which would incur higher surcharges if booked as a separate return leg? If not, just book the seats online and request the 50% avios back later. Not ideal but much more likely to bag you the seats you want as long as you have enough avios for the booking.

Can be, but I’ve also been gazumped whilst doing this. The seats were there, had them in my basket, but by the time I got to the end of the payment process they were ‘no longer available’. So I think an agent can grab them, and keep them secure, whilst doing all of the other admin – which is not the case when you do it online.

[Concord1969]

If it was Wednesday night i.e. 1am on Thursday morning then the Executive Club was down for approximately one hour from 1am to 2am so nobody (including the call centres!) could book Avios tickets then.[/quote]

YES it was Wednesday night/Thursday morning ! Thank you, that gives me more hope for calling for the return leg now.
I will also keep in mind the 1,1,1 may now be 1,1,2
Thank you.

[Concord1969]

SteveJ wrote:

Call Japan, beginning of their day. Never understood why everyone calls the US number at the end of their working day.

The things you learn out of the blue! So 12am here would be 9am there. I for one never even thought of calling Japan, makes perfect sense, thank you.

[memesweeper]

My top tip is call India. Seems like they answer even when they are closed. I wonder if they handle inbound international calls differently to Domestic Indian ones. I’ve only done it twice but it will be my first choice next time.