Cash payment / Western Union options gone for united.com reservations?
Nov 13, 2012, 11:59 am
#1
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Cash payment / Western Union options gone for united.com reservations?
I can no longer find the Cash payment option when booking online.
Is this another "enhancement"?
Is this another "enhancement"?
Nov 13, 2012, 12:39 pm
#3
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: SEA
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Oh no! I frequently used this function to reserve a ticket for family members who don't want to search themselves, and then have them complete the purchase. This really sucks...
Nov 13, 2012, 1:42 pm
#5
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Nov 13, 2012, 1:48 pm
#6
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Another change we'll like?
Nov 13, 2012, 2:19 pm
#7
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: ORD
Programs: UA 1K MM, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 380
Oh darn, I just did a dummy booking for an itinerary I've been price monitoring (in Jan 2013) and the cash option is gone.
Too bad. I will admit I was a HUGE abuser of the holding itineraries with the pay by cash option. Coupled with the 24-hr refund policy, I was essentially able to hold fares for nearly three days. Oh well, I knew that wasn't gonna last... so blame me fellas.
Too bad. I will admit I was a HUGE abuser of the holding itineraries with the pay by cash option. Coupled with the 24-hr refund policy, I was essentially able to hold fares for nearly three days. Oh well, I knew that wasn't gonna last... so blame me fellas.
Nov 13, 2012, 3:00 pm
#8
Join Date: Oct 2007
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The cash option only held a tkt for 24 hours. The old .bomb was mipuch better for holding tkts. SHARES was a horrible downgrade w this & now they made it worse. All fares do not offer fare lock. 
united
united
Nov 13, 2012, 3:23 pm
#9
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: SFO/JFK/MGA
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Posts: 2,043
Smisek has got to get cash into the airline somehow. Nickle and dimeing are the ways he see's able to do it with PRASM down and the lean quarters coming up. I except to see a lot more.
Nov 13, 2012, 3:49 pm
#11
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Nov 13, 2012, 3:50 pm
#12
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: ORD
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Posts: 380
The cash option actually held until midnight the next day. So it could have been well over 24 hours if you did the cash option just after midnight. Then couple that with actually purchasing the ticket and refunding it within 24 hours of ticketing near the end of the hold period.... that is how one got a nearly 3-day hold on fares. It was super useful for booking trips on relatively short notice where I knew fares were going to keep going up rapidly if I didn't act on them, so I would lock down a fare and get to planning other details of a trip and discard it all if unneeded.
Nov 13, 2012, 4:44 pm
#13
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: ORD
Programs: UA 1K MM, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 380
Also I guess I should clarify.... while I guess this pay by cash trick could have been a way to circumvent farelock, farelock isn't offered on every flight (e.g. the late booking flights that I am referring to).
Nov 13, 2012, 4:57 pm
#14
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Well, you can still buy the tickets, and cancel the next day.
Nov 13, 2012, 5:21 pm
#15
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: LHR (sometimes CLE, SFO, BOS, LAX, SEA)
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- Put the itinerary I want on hold.
- Call United and ask them to upfare the outbound segment, but not the return, into W.
- Ticket and apply a GPU to the outbound segment.
It's really, really hard to buy a ticket in W outbound / K return (if you want to apply an international upgrade to the outbound segment only) without already having the exact itinerary you want on hold.
This workflow will have to change a little now. We can still ticket, then call within 24 hours and beg to upfare without being charged a change fee; or call and book the entire itinerary from scratch with a reservations agent.