mileshound

MY elderly mother lives in our house. She has no interest in flying/hotels but has good credit and has not had any of the mileage CC accounts or other 1 time bonuses. She wants to help me in my quest for miles.

The thought is that she gets the sign up bonusus then transfers the miles into my account.

Which programs allow transfers between family members living in the same household for very little $$ or no $$? The typical share miles in most programs are very expensive and not worh this.

I know BA has the household account and I think AMEX MR and SPG allows cheap or free transfers.

What are those rules and who else does this? Also, any flaws in this logic, except her credit rating which she does not care about. I naturally would pay any fees.

Also, is there any flaw in our logic.


Thanks.

ffI

She does not need to transfer at all.
Just keep churning for her and ultimately, you can get an award from her miles alone. It just runs on a different cycle, like filling various buckets.
We have a large family and just book for each other.
The problem with BA family accounts is that only family members can use it.

e.g,
get Chase CO visa
get Chase CO debit card
Next year (only 6 months away)
get Chase UA debit card
get Chase UA visa
Voila - >100k for you to use.

rtraveler

I agree, just let her have her own account and book yourself an award ticket when needed.

Steve in Olympia

This feature comes in very handy when the guy at the office asks to borrow a few miles for his summer vacation.

I am a big fan of the BA household account.

RameshK

Be aware that you have to make 5 charge purchases/active debit card/month to avoid monthly service fees. Do-able, but you have to keep your eye on the ball with multiple Chase debit cards.

moretimeoffguy

SPG allowed me to transfer all my wife's points to my account without any fees. Or rather, she had to initiate the transfer to my account. However, they have no formal "family account."

For the transfer, both parties must live at the same address.

Efrem

BMI has a family account for up to 8 people. Lots more information in this thread in the bmi forum.

ffI

It is good and bad. No one at the office asks me for my travel. I tell them it is my wife's bonus. paying for it.
I can't give the BA miles to anyone else. Also the 241 is only for the person with the Visa Card.

The Chase Card fee is 6$. Even if you just paid the fee, 36$ every year for 25000 miles is OK with me.

rtraveler

I do the 5 purchases under $10 each month. Then close account after 90
days.

RameshK

Sure, I have even heard of people making 10 transactions in one trip by buying 10 apples (one apple/card swipe) at the self checkout of Ralphs or Albertsons to cover two debit cards. I was just pointing out that you have to actively manage and keep count of the no. of transactions made/card with multiple debit cards.

I try to protect my friends at the local Chase Bank by not closing the accounts that fast. I believe, they get a black mark if it is closed in <6 months. But that's me.

mooper

Precisely. Even the family, dog, if he's generous enough, could get you a free ticket if he's able to type with his paws

mileshound

Thanks.

Does AMEX work the same way?

I would rather transfer the miles into my account rather then redeem them from her account in my name. There is a lot more flexibility that way to top off accounts and manage the miles better.

Jimgotkp

OZ has a family account as well.

retired43

As does KAL

ma91pmh

An additional benefit of BA executive club is for kids (aged 2-12 I think) the mileage requirement for redemption is only 50% that of the adult. So earning and redeeming on BA as a family is generally much easier than anyone else (especially as they are also one of the best carriers for getting lots of seats on the same flight)