Wild Reward Flight Tax and Fees

[TreborMint]

I booked an EI reward flight last week, which usually I’d do on the EI website but Combine my Avios wasn’t working and I knew the flights were likely to disappear at midnight (because that’s what seems to happen with all EI reward availability two months out now), so I Skyped the BA US number and booked with a very helpful agent in… Manchester… because I had sufficient Avios in BAEC.

He secured the seats and advised the tax team would be in touch to advise the value of the cash component, which from a flight from Cork to Heathrow for 2 adults, 1 child and 1 infant, came out at £156!

Usually it is much much less than this. Buying the same flight cash on the BA website shows fees of ~€40 for all of us, which is around what I would be expecting to pay based on experience.

Yesterday I spoke with a similarly helpful agent who advised the breakdown was £32 for each adult and the child and £61 for the infant – which she admitted looked very strange. She sent it back to be looked at again.

Any idea what’s going on here? The ~€40 taxes and fees is consistent for my party for the same flight booked cash on EI and also for a much more expensive flight in the New Year.

Any advice or insight as ever gratefully received!

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

There is no direct link between the taxes and fees on cash flights and those on avios flights.

Also BA can charge what it likes when it sells seats on EI so again no correlation between the two

[Froggee]

You can buy your flights on BA.com (well not your actual flights if they have disappeared) if you choose to leave the infant behind for 4,000 Avios + £12.20 each (no difference in fare for the child).

I assume the flights you want are no longer available for Avios so you are being held hostage by BA’s made up number?

As a dedicated family man myself I would not recommend leaving the infant behind but would call back with the actual cost of booking a redemption on BA.com, explain it won’t ticket online with an infant on the booking and question why they are adding on £123 for the infant.

I assume they have charged 400 Avios already for the bairn?

[George K]

Such a funny thing – I booked EI flights to JFK via AerClub a couple of months ago and the taxes were about £100. Same flight, bookable via BA, would throw up a £386 tax bill.

I don’t think there’s a rationale. EI charges what it wants, and same with BA.

[LittleNick]

George K wrote:

Such a funny thing – I booked EI flights to JFK via AerClub a couple of months ago and the taxes were about £100. Same flight, bookable via BA, would throw up a £386 tax bill.

I don’t think there’s a rationale. EI charges what it wants, and same with BA.

From what I understand with surcharges on reward flights. There will be fees levied by the operating carrier. Depending on the reward/partner scheme these will either be passed on in full to the redeemer or not. Then the marketing carrier may or may not then also levy surcharges on top. Additionally the operating carrier might not levy the surcharges in full to their own reward members. So unfortunately it is not very transparent as you will not see who is levying what, at least I don’t know a way