MilesBuzz! - Is getting miles posted getting tougher???

Anyone else out there feel that the timeliness of miles/point postings has hit a new low lately? It seems to be getting tougher and tougher to actually get credit for the miles you are due without waiting a very long time and bombarding people with numerous e-mails and phone calls.

The sheer number of postings I am due from various organizations has reached such proportions that for the first time ever I have resorted to creating a spreadsheet documenting who owes me what and what the history of my contacts are. Right now I am owed over 100,000 miles for various transactions. Surprisingly, this doesn’t include any flight postings or associated elite tier status bonuses. All of the miles are from on-line booking bonuses, hotel stays and promotions, shopping (grocery and other), dining, credit card offers, brokerage account openings, and the like. Granted, a number of these transactions have only occurred within the last four weeks, but many go back a few months. The key offenders include Citi/Fi, Citibank, and Hilton Honors. My experience also suggests that AA is headed downhill with timely postings. Citi/Fi and Citibank both stated that AA has rejected numerous mileage postings in the past (not just mine either). I have also had problems with AA posting mileage certificates and a few hotel stays which Starwood has claimed were sent to AA last month. AA flight postings seem to be taking longer too. I might also add that AA Platinum cards are taking 8-10 weeks to receive….I still haven’t seen mine and requested a second one back on March 27.

How long do you normally wait for postings to appear in your account before inquiring about it? I usually allow 6-8 weeks from my transaction unless the particular offer says it will be shorter/longer. And how long does one pursue miles/points before giving up? I once chased AT&T for a year to get 5000 Marriott Reward points that I was due for switching phone service. With Marriott’s assistance I got them. I think being a Platinum level member helped.

Any good tips for getting the miles we are due? My suggestions include keeping a detailed record (dates, names, summary of discussion, copies of e-mails) of all contacts with an organization regarding delinquent postings. Also, if contacting the front-line support folks doesn’t get an item resolved on the first attempt, don’t waste any time. The next contact should be to a supervisor or higher. Finally, plead your case to both organizations, the one awarding the miles as well as the one responsible for actually posting to your account. Many times it is not clear who is at fault. Most organizations have liaisons that specifically deal with other companies and mileage postings. Asking to have your issue referred to them can help too.

I’m curious to hear about the recent experiences of other FlyerTalkers with regards to mileage postings.

My own experience is that the percentage of not-posted transactions has not changed much, but I am availing of more mileage oportunities than I used to.

The best suggestion I heard in FT was to have companies double the miles they credit you, if you do not get the miles within the time they say they would be posted (usually upto 8 weeks).

There are always some missing miles not posted on time (or within a reasonable time frame), all of them are not from flights accural. Yet the worst case often happens when the miles are awarded by non-airline companies like MCI, Sprint etc.

The problem is the over expansion of partnership with other non-airline companies in such a short time that the computer systems that are supposed to handle these miles transactions have not been fully developed, and the staff are not well-trained. Nor do they have any procedure to follow in resolving missing miles/credits with an airline.

I am glad somebody has raised this issue. I don't do the kind of travel many others here do but I am tired already of the phone calls, etc., I've been forced to make trying to get the few points/miles I've earned posted. I am all for the free market but right now my feeling is that the only solution to the broken promises, slow (and many times no) service and lack of trained personnel in the loyalty program game is a heavy dose of government regulation.

Hey, PG http://216.167.74.240/forum/smile.gif

Excellent idea!

Yet I surely won't be holding my breath waiting! http://216.167.74.240/forum/wink.gif

BTW- GREAT to hear from you, needless to say http://216.167.74.240/forum/smile.gif

My gripe also. It is especially annoying when you use the number whn making the reservation, then when checking in and then when checking out of a hotel and then nothing happens. It would seem that it is such a sad use of personnel to chase down the mile or points.

Actually, I've been pretty happy with AA's posting of miles lately.

So far this year, I've got 23,000+ from CitiAA M/C, about 10k from ClickRewards, plus another 5-6k from MCI. All of them posted like clockwork.

The only real sour point was the Platinum card, but I called to complain and received it in about 2-3 weeks.

Now that I am completely used to the AA web site, I can't imagine how it would be possible to manage your FF account using paper statements. Uggh.

I've never caught on to all these new ways of earning miles. Other than flights, I basically only earn miles from hotel stays and credit cards (although my primary card in American Express, which goes into Membership Rewards, I do also have a United CC card).

I haven't had much trouble with these things postings. Rarely if ever does a flight not post. Occasionally a hotel won't post but I've been pretty lucky in that it has taken me little effort to get it first.

I guess the smaller your avenues of earning miles are, the easier it is to keep track of them.

For the most part, all my miles post correctly.

AA Flights -- 4 days after the flight, they post. I think the posting schedule is Tu, Th & Sunday.

Hilton -- for the most part, no problem. Have a problem with the foreign hotels (non-mainland US hotels) -- it usually takes a fax or two, but eventually cleared up.

Cars (Budget, National) -- no problems.

Citibank Credit Cards -- miles post within 2 weeks of the statement being cut (i.e. last statement cut off was 5/3, miles already posted to my account)

Citi/fi -- opened in February, called two weeks ago to inquire, miles posted last week.

Southwest -- no problems. Amex Rewards point transfer (1250 points = 1 credit) took under a week to post.

Delta/US Air --no problems

--Jim

The problem is the proliferation of the airlines "selling" their miles to partners or other organizations. The perception of the consumer is that the airline is standing behind and issuing these miles with the same level of service you would expect from the airline itself. In reality, there is no oversight of these "partners" and the consumer is the one holding all responsibility of following up and getting the miles they should have automatically received.

I would suggest that the airlines be much more selective with whom they sell miles. But I am not so naive as to believe this.

A few "hints" when dealing with Hilton. Since many of the properties are franchises, you may have to double-check upon check-in/check-out that your activity is, in fact, being posted to HHonors.

There are also times that some rates are not eligible for double-dip air miles, like the Weekend Bounce Back rates, but you should always get HHonors points. I ran into this last year at the Dallas Towers, a weekend rate of $49!! and knew no air miles, but the points never showed up. When I called Hilton, they said fax them the folio and would take care of it. They gave me 2,000 customer satisfaction points, too.

The partners can always be fun. A couple of years ago Thrifty had a promo, park your car in your home city and rent for four or more days at your destination for 7,000 bonus miles. Well, we parked at CLT, rented for a week in ORL and to this date have never seen the miles, although I have not given up, just don't call them everyday! They did send some free upgrade coupons, wow! I can tell you that was the first time I rented from Thrifty and the last. Now I know why I love Avis Preferred so much.