HKG 2 single journey bookings linked – still a tax saving? (Companion Voucher)
Discuss today's stories:
-
Hi everyone,
After digging through some old posts, it seems there was a Tax strategy in the past for booking flights using a companion voucher. I wanted to confirm if this method still works and gather some insights from those who may have recently tried it.
In the past, it was possible to make two separate bookings online:
The first booking would use the companion voucher.
The second booking would involve paying the full amount of Avios for 2 people.
Afterwards, you could call BA and have the two journeys linked. This used to result in half of the second booking’s Avios being refunded, while keeping the tax elements separate. This was particularly beneficial for those looking to take advantage of tax savings, such as in the HKG flights.My specific questions are:
1) Is this method still effective? Are the taxes still kept separate after the bookings are linked?
2) Do airline agents still allow this linking process, or has there been a change in policy? Any recent experiences on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
3) When linking the bookings, do I need to select the same options for Reward Flight Saver (RFS)? Is it enough to keep the same option, or does it need to be a specific one, like maximum Avios or maximum cash?Given the subtle changes in BA policies over the last few months, I’m a bit uncertain whether this strategy still holds. I’m looking to book a journey LHR-SIN/HKG-LON and would like to maximise my benefits.
Your insights and recent experiences would be incredibly valuable. Thank you in advance for your help!
Taxes aren’t recalculated, but I don’t think the saving is so significant since RFS was introduced on long haul routes. You can see the surcharges by doing dummy bookings.
There’s no linking as such, you would get 50% of the avios refunded on the inbound but retain 2 separate PNRs, this doesn’t need to be a problem though.
Your only problem might be finding HKG-LON CW availability without the 241 to search with, but if you call BA, they should be able to “see” the extra availability that the voucher would open up on the inbound.
If you book online, yes you need to select the same avios/cash option for both legs, doesn’t matter which as long as it’s the same.
the extra availability from the new 241? How many seats is this?
Where have you been, @Zapato?!
There’s no set number of extra seats, however you can only book 2 per new 241 which can be a bit of a pain if you’re travelling as a family.
Thank you @NorthernLass, that’s very clear and helpful.
I’ll call the agent and hope, as you are right, the availability without voucher was not taken in consideration, and I think that if I use a second voucher to trigger the availability it will complicate the matter too much.
The tax saving with RFS is still enough to justify an attempt calling BA, as the taxes are still at £70 vs £550 if bought as single legs vs one booking.
New to this so just want to clarify. You make two separate, one way booking and call BA immediately to ask for 2nd booking’s Avios back. Will they not offer to rebook it as a return using 2 for 1? You still retain 2 PNRs. Is there a saving when bookign two singles if there is no 2 for 1 for economy/premium/business?
If you’re new to this, you need to read the relevant articles and threads because you can end up going quite wrong if you try and make a less than straightforward booking without being very sure of what you’re doing!
Thanks, don’t know where my head was @NL
I had a return trip booked LHR-HKG using 241 but cancelled the inbound leg. Can I book a separate SIN-LHR flight then call to request 50% Avios refund?
Will inbound leg still be cancellable even I have took the outbound leg as two booking have different PNR and 8 months apart.
Sorry for hijacking the post, thanks in advance
I have a feeling that once you’ve flown the outbound, the rules don’t allow you to cancel or change the inbound. You could cancel the return online, but if you booked a new inbound flight and asked for 50% avios back, BA might well spot that you’ve flown the outbound and refuse.
You can change the inbound subject to availability and paying the change fee. You can also cancel the return but you wouldn’t be entitled to any refund – Avios bookings are only refundable up to 24 hours before flying the outbound. It’s conceivable they won’t pick this up as it’s on two bookings but I wouldn’t rely on that. Alternatively, you could leave it in the hope BA cancels.
As this would be two separate bookings I don’t think the “can’t cancel after the outbound” rules would apply which they would if this had been booked as one trip from the get go but TBH I’m not 100% sure about this though I’m sure Rob wrote an article saying doing this this way was OK – something about couple who were in Australia wanting to extend their stay but couldn’t because it had been booked as one single trip but would have been fine if it was done as separate ones,
I have a feeling that once you’ve flown the outbound, the rules don’t allow you to cancel or change the inbound. You could cancel the return online, but if you booked a new inbound flight and asked for 50% avios back, BA might well spot that you’ve flown the outbound and refuse.
Thanks @NorthernLass
My outbound LHR-HKG flight is for this Christmas, the return has already been cancelled. I am thinking to book a SIN-LHR leg now for next Aug and ask 50% avios back. I thought the rule may be different if those bookings are under separate PNRs. Singapore trip is a bit uncertain but don’t want to waste half of 241 voucher.
I didn’t you couldn’t physically cancel the inbound, just that BA might refuse to recognise a new booking as part of the trip so you wouldn’t be able to claim the 50% avios back. They would need the details of the outbound leg to refund the avios, and at that point they would be able to see that you’ve already flown it.
You could book the SIN-LHR leg then call straight away and ask for the avios to be refunded, if they refuse then you can cancel within 24 hours for free. Or just ask if they can add the new inbound leg on the phone and see what they say.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Popular articles this week:
