vnv1974

I have no airline memberships, but I'm thinking about signing up for AA's program. I need some help here. I've been searching online but nothing seems too clear.

My dad is about to retire and wants to give me all of his miles & points (about 2 million total, 400K miles AA is the biggest account). He is tired of traveling and wants to spend his time with his grandchildren. How would this happen... or is it even possible at all? I understand that airlines have a max on how many miles can be transfered? And, converting hotel points to miles is never a good deal. Plus, hefty charges for transactions. So, lots of AA miles, UA,DL,BA,US,NW, Marriott, Starwood and a few other small account balances. Can I transfer all of these to my soon-to-be AA account? I really just want the air miles. Any thoughts, suggestions? Thanks ahead.

ESpen36

The only way for you to receive all of your dad's AA miles into your account at once is if he bequeaths them to you in his will and subsequently passes away. And even then, you would have to provide documentation and might owe inheritance tax on the value of the miles. I know because my mother did it when my grandmother passed away eight years ago. We had to fax documentation to AA and then they transferred all of her miles into my mother's account. (Because my grandmother was not a U.S. citizen/resident, we didn't owe any tax, so I can't tell you how much the miles would be worth for tax purposes.)

If your dad wishes to let you use all of his miles, the easiest way is for him simply to claim awards in your name, out of his account, as often as you need them, until the account runs out. Keep in mind that if your dad is not currently Executive Platinum, you will need to plan ahead in order to avoid expedite fees (which apply starting at 21 days before the departure date).

Not sure about Starwood and the others....but after all, we are in the AA forum.

GoBears

If you want the miles, I assume you want to use them for air travel. Why not leave them in your dad's accounts, and redeem them as you need them? Your dad's miles can be used for awards in anyone's name, including of course your name. There will be no penalty, taxes, or fees beyond the usual.

If you try to transfer them to your name, it will probably cost you either a lot of money or a lot of points.

tom911

That pretty much says it all. Also keep in mind you'll need to generate some activity in his account to keep it alive or the miles will disappear after 18 months of inactivity. If he hasn't been flying for a while, this may be something you need to focus on soon.

rbessler

As an aside, Starwood allows free transfers between households... I can't quite recall if there is a limit, but if there is its pretty high.

muddy

This raises an interesting question ... since this is 2 MM miles, would this make the OP lifetime PLT? Probably not, but ....

Blumie

Re-read the OP. Only 400k AA miles. But any miles that are transferred to the OP's AA account would count towards lifetime miles.

muddy

yeah I missed that ... thanks

so I could gift my wife 2MM miles and make her liftime PLT? not sure what it would cost to xfer, but it wouldnt make any difference to me to have the miles in her account ...

mvoight

You can't receive more than 15K miles per year with ShaareMiles, and that costs $150.

billgrates3

When my Mother passed away 4 years ago, her 60k BA miles and her 50k Amex points were lost. Neither allowed them to be bequeathed to others.

mvoight

With 400K AA miles, I am sure he can find a way to fly.

Another alternative would be to transfer them to Hilton points and use the other airlines' 1.6 million for travel.

muddy

so with $20K and a mere 133 years .... .... thanks for the reality jolt!

mvoight

Yes, if you want to give them to her at some time other than your death.

pjoalfa

Much cheaper and quicker if you will them to her and subsequently bump yourself off.

To the OP, SPG as said above is freely transferable. Marriott is, too, at award claim time (useful for moving miles in a travel package reward.)

cmjaffe

Fortunately 3 years ago I was able to transfer my late Dad's AA miles to my AA account when he passed. I payed the requested $50, sent a copy of D. certificate and also filled out the necessary affidavit. No problem and miles (think there were about 35K) were transfered over. No problems or delay.
Well Mom just passed away in December. I called AA up and got the necessary form e-mailed to me. She's got almost 200K miles. I'm 45K miles away from 1MM. I don't travel on revenue tickets but DH does. He just made (on his own) 1MM and is platinum. I'm debating whether to transfer all the miles to his account to help him along status or (if possible) split them between our two accounts. It probably will take DH a while to make 2MM though (unless he gets agressive w/credit card offerings -- don't know if it's too late for that).

So, in the round about way I'd suggest that if you're planning on using the actual miles now I'd just have your Dad ticket things in your (or who ever will use the tickets) name. DON'T pay a fee to transfer them now. If you're trying for status (which I believe you're not) then use your own miles first. As of this time you WON'T lose AA miles if your father bequeaths them.
Carolyn