Open jaw BA with Amex 2 for 1

[Wally1976]

Hi, I’m looking at booking LHR-HND online with an Amex 2 for 1. We will be returning DXB-LHR. All booked 355 days out. I know this breaks the open jaw rules for the 2 for 1 but is there any chance if I book the final leg online the BA twitter team might agree to refund half the Avios? Any harm in asking?

TIA

[JDB]

@Wally1976 – well, there’s probably no particular harm in asking, just don’t expect BA necessarily to agree. Obviously putting this as two singles on two bookings isn’t technically a way of circumventing the fare construction rules, so you are relying on the agent not noticing the problem.

If you manage to slip it past BA now, it might get picked up at a later stage if you make any changes or if a flight needed to be rerouted after cancellation or other disruption.

Relying on someone else’s mistake as a basis for your holiday plans doesn’t seem ideal…

[NorthernLass]

As @JDB says, you can ask, however I have made a couple of unusual 241 bookings in my time where an agent has subsequently showed reluctance to refund the 50% avios and I have had to argue the open jaw rules to demonstrate that the itinerary was permitted.

If you don’t succeed, you can still use the “return” portion of the 241 on a “compliant” booking within 12 months of the outbound.

[nathanheywood@hotmail.com]

Slim to none. Once the initial leg’s booking reference number is issued, that’s it, done. ‘Subsequent legs, fall under a separate booking reference and cannot now be combined. I am sorry if that is contrary to what you were advised at the time’. Quote: BA Agent this very morning.

[NorthernLass]

Not sure what you’re talking about here! OP is asking about open jaw rules, not “combining” legs. Simply adding a leg to an inbound, or requesting avios refunded, is a very common practice and discussed here all the time.

[Wally1976]

Thanks for the replies. I probably won’t bother to try this, it’ll be an economy booking anyway (DXB-LHR) so not too many Avios.

[Peter Charon]

I do this on a regular basis but you cannot do it yourself online. Only through the Executive Club telephone and this week was a nightmare! I started at 6am but only managed to speak to an agent at 10am.
I booked the outbound online using my 2-1 and Avios.
The booking reference no won’t change. Once that reservation is confirmed all you need to do is call and immediately ask if the inbound on the date you want – is available. If it is, tell the agent to grab those seats. Then tell them you want to combine that inbound with the outbound. You will need sufficient Avios to “buy” that inbound but it will be quoted at a 50% reduction due to the certificate. Once the booking is confirmed the agent will send it off to the back office and after a few days you’ll get an update email showing the same booking reference no but both legs on the one booking. And that is absolutely available on 2 legs / one ways to / from different destinations. The only bugbear is that BA is horrible with a huge uplift in cost when you combine 2 such legs!
Hope that helps!

[NorthernLass]

There shouldn’t be any “uplift” in cost on a RFS booking – surcharges have been the same on both legs for over 2 years. E.g., you’ll pay (with the recent increase) £237.50 each way in taxes and fees on a CW booking to Barbados.