aacharya

To select or review your companion or to change your companion for the next calendar year, visit united.com/MMcompanion.

mmack

Thanks.^

UA840

My wife has my Million Miler companion benefit and she is frequently treated differently from me (when flying on different PNRs). A few examples: she has Global Entry/PRE but whenever she flys on her own PNR she never gets the PRE designation (whenever we are on the same PNR she gets the PRE designation). Also, and more shockingly, she was recently turned away from the LHR United Club and told that as she was a 1K through the companion program she was not entitled to lounge entry (not being one to fight she walked away, but I was shocked).

Has anyone else experienced MM Companion discrimination?

MatthewLAX

My brother is my 1K companion and has not experienced any of that. In my estimation, there should be no discrimination.

aacharya

There should be zero distinction between a companion 1K (of a MM) and the MM. Did the lounge state that was why, or did your companion state that she was a companion? (They may have misunderstood the concept of a companion).

UA840

My wife flies often. She just went to the lounge like any other trip. The lounge attendant somehow knew she was a companion, stated such, and turned her away.

mherdeg

Hmmm, Global Entry is tracked via a separate system unrelated to frequent-flyer numbers. If you're eligible for pre-check via being a Global Entry participant, this should be unrelated to your frequent-flyer number altogether (let alone whether you're a 1K or a companion 1K).

The "traveler profile" you use to book a trip can contain a "trusted traveler number" or can be blank.

I have had it happen that there were a couple of 2-pax flights where I found that I was not getting the pre-check eligibility. When I looked, I eventually, belatedly realized that the version of "me" my wife uses when booking flights did not include my trusted traveler number. I fixed the issue (manually editing my "edit traveler info" on existing trips to include my PASS ID and also editing the version of "me" that united.com saves when she is booking trips that include me as a passenger) and the problem went away.

If you are seeing situations where your wife has a Global Entry "known traveler number" listed in the "edit passenger information" page, but only gets the TSA Pre-Check status when she's booked on a PNR which also includes you, that is super weird and sounds like some kind of profound software error you should escalate. Can you reproduce the problem by making some award bookings and checking out what shows up on the boarding passes?

That seems incorrect — I would follow up with United Customer Relations and ask them to re-train their staff to avoid future dissatisfied customers in the future (or, if this is really a rule, to ask them to publish documentation of this rule on their Web site).

This is likely to be a profitable complaint and it is likely worth your wife's time writing in.

sannmann

Your wife has a Star Gold card. Does not matter whether she's a companion or not. When she was denied entry at the LHR UC, she should have just gone over to the AC MPL instead.

UA840

I agree, there should be no difference, but clearly there is.

adambadam

Is her Trusted Traveler info correctly entered in her profile (GOES # matches her name and whatnot). That system should have nothing to do with status. If it works when she travels with you it might be that the UA.com profile for her when you are logged in is correct but her own, when she books travel for herself, is off.

The lounge story is just bizarre and I sort if doubt that a dragon would be able to see that she is a companion. Don't know what is up with that and I can say from personal experience as a companion, although not at LHR, I have never experienced that.

steppie

I always carry my MM/star alliance card, as does my daughter (my companion), it is just easier when traveling to show it, especially at LHR. Neither one of us ever had a problem traveling together or separately. Once, about ten years ago, I was questioned, since then, I find just carrying my card works all the time. Sorry she was not a little more assertive( of course, politely)

lost*in*cyberspace

I'm a 1K due to my husband's MM status and haven't experienced any lesser treatment. I have Global Entry and always get TSA Pre based on this; your wife should as well.

How exactly could lounge staff know how one gained 1K status? There's no way they could know. I wonder if your wife misunderstood what they told her?

Tchiowa

You're not clear so let me ask you. You refer to Million Miler and 1k. If you are a Million Miler (with 1 millions) then your wife gets Premier Gold status. If you are a 1k because of your own travel your wife doesn't share your 1k status. Of course if you are a Three Million Miler then your wife gets 1k.

Clarify your status.

mre5765

False. The companion of the MMer always has the status equal to that of the MMer (unless the companion has earned a higher status independently).

Case in point. I have 1.4MM lifetime miles with UA. I am a lifetime gold. I am also 1K in 2014 having earned at least 100K PQM in 2013.

My companion is a 1K (without the six GPUs).

mahasamatman

You are incorrect. One benefit of being a million miler is that you can designate a companion to have the exact same status as you have.

If you are also a million miler and she's your designee, she sure does.