United Manipulating Prices on Matching Flights of Award Redemptions?
#1
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Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 200
United Manipulating Prices on Matching Flights of Award Redemptions?
I often take my family along on business.
I typically use miles to book their awards and then pay for mine matching their flights exactly.
But I find two things happen:
a) The award tickets are not so great (i.e. not non-stop, early/late flights etc.)
b) The price of these not so great tickets is ironically really large!
Did anyone else find this pattern?
Lately, I've noticed that after a flight slips/transitions off the award list the price to purchase it drops greatly.
For example, I booked red eye award tickets SFO to IAD for 12.5k miles but they cost $400 to purchase at the time.
Today I found the same tickets are now $200 but they now cost 24K miles!
Did anyone else find this pattern of United increasing/dropping paid ticket prices to match award inventory?
I typically use miles to book their awards and then pay for mine matching their flights exactly.
But I find two things happen:
a) The award tickets are not so great (i.e. not non-stop, early/late flights etc.)
b) The price of these not so great tickets is ironically really large!
Did anyone else find this pattern?
Lately, I've noticed that after a flight slips/transitions off the award list the price to purchase it drops greatly.
For example, I booked red eye award tickets SFO to IAD for 12.5k miles but they cost $400 to purchase at the time.
Today I found the same tickets are now $200 but they now cost 24K miles!
Did anyone else find this pattern of United increasing/dropping paid ticket prices to match award inventory?
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 14,410
No, in fact if an award is available at the Saver level it almost always implies more discount inventory is available on that flight than if the Saver award were not available. Everything else equal, the same flight will cost less in cash when there is a Saver award available than when there is not. Any correlation observed in the inverse direction is likely a result of small sample size and/or confirmation bias.
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,400
What's actually happening here is that UA awards always use an international fare construction, meaning that it allows any transfer less than 24 hours. So, the "not so great" tickets aren't available for sale on a through fare, which is why the price is higher. UA would actually prefer not to offer them at all, but few enough people book them that they haven't gotten around to fixing it.
Lately, I've noticed that after a flight slips/transitions off the award list the price to purchase it drops greatly.
For example, I booked red eye award tickets SFO to IAD for 12.5k miles but they cost $400 to purchase at the time.
Today I found the same tickets are now $200 but they now cost 24K miles!
Did anyone else find this pattern of United increasing/dropping paid ticket prices to match award inventory?
For example, I booked red eye award tickets SFO to IAD for 12.5k miles but they cost $400 to purchase at the time.
Today I found the same tickets are now $200 but they now cost 24K miles!
Did anyone else find this pattern of United increasing/dropping paid ticket prices to match award inventory?
There's not some grand conspiracy against people who are trying to match up award with paid travel. It's too much of a niche for UA to worry about. Furthermore, your hypothesis falls apart for anyone who's not looking to mix paid and award travel together, as in both of your instances, they were offering a considerably good value for their points.
Believe me, UA isn't offering outsized value with points in order to try to get one over on people who are mixing award and paid travel.
#5
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Join Date: Apr 2013
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Posts: 56,452
Yes, this is literally true. But it's worth noting that because awards are not subject to AP requirements, last minute domestic saver awards can make for really great redemptions on a cpm basis.
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
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#7
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Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,400
and then I checked.
I am stunned to find that I actually see some 12.5K saver awards past 11/15. For example, AUS-DTW: walk-up fare is $407 one way, and I fully expected to see 12.5K through 11/14 and then ~40K for a few days. Instead, I see 12.5K in the calendar every day through 11/22 save Sunday (20K).
I wonder if UA will shift their inventory / pricing model once the 15th arrives.
#8
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Either they've concluded that these awards do not meaningfully cannibalize full fare business travel sales, and the benefit will remain available, or they just haven't gotten around to shutting the door yet. I'd like to think it's the former.
#9
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: IAH / HOU
Programs: UA GS, DL-Plat, Hilton Gold, IHG Platinum, Hyatt Somethingist, Marriott Titanium Lifetime
Posts: 2,853
I am hoping they continue to offer some good values. Air Houston MIL lives near MCO and I have seen tickets from IAH next year for as low as 8,000 miles one way. So there are a few good values out there.
#10
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,400
Sure -- IAH-MCO, months in advance, may well remain a bargain. The question is more about last-minute fares, which have been a good use of saver awards for years -- UA often opens saver space close to departure, particularly if you have access to XN (Premier status or a qualifying credit card). I suspect we're going to find that you only see cheap mileage amounts when you also see cheap cash amounts.
#11
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: NBO/ORD
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 188
You can't get reimbursed by your employer—or even, I believe, a client—for a miles ticket.
#12
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Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 4,188
I often take my family along on business.
I typically use miles to book their awards and then pay for mine matching their flights exactly.
But I find two things happen:
a) The award tickets are not so great (i.e. not non-stop, early/late flights etc.)
b) The price of these not so great tickets is ironically really large!
Did anyone else find this pattern?
Lately, I've noticed that after a flight slips/transitions off the award list the price to purchase it drops greatly.
For example, I booked red eye award tickets SFO to IAD for 12.5k miles but they cost $400 to purchase at the time.
Today I found the same tickets are now $200 but they now cost 24K miles!
Did anyone else find this pattern of United increasing/dropping paid ticket prices to match award inventory?
I typically use miles to book their awards and then pay for mine matching their flights exactly.
But I find two things happen:
a) The award tickets are not so great (i.e. not non-stop, early/late flights etc.)
b) The price of these not so great tickets is ironically really large!
Did anyone else find this pattern?
Lately, I've noticed that after a flight slips/transitions off the award list the price to purchase it drops greatly.
For example, I booked red eye award tickets SFO to IAD for 12.5k miles but they cost $400 to purchase at the time.
Today I found the same tickets are now $200 but they now cost 24K miles!
Did anyone else find this pattern of United increasing/dropping paid ticket prices to match award inventory?
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,400
I think most people here would agree that the best value for reward redemption is saver premium cabin reward. Economy class purchase price fluctuates widely based on market demand and competition. And more often than not, you will see very cheap economy class that do not justify miles redemption.
On the other hand, while economy awards aren't as exciting, if I needed to take the next flight from Austin to Allentown, PA, I could spend $479, or I could spend 12.5K miles. That's a 3.8 cpm valuation without even trying (it was literally my first attempt). IAH to EWR? There's a special $412 fare for the first flight of the day, but if I can' make that one, it's $609. With miles, I have six choices at 12.5K (4.9 cpm).
It's these redemptions that I worry might end tomorrow. I very much hope to be wrong.
#14
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Join Date: Apr 2013
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The consistent best value for UA award redemptions on a cpm basis these days is domestic saver economy inside the 7 day AP window. I can get 3.7 cpm (or higher) all day long doing that on west coast routes.
Yes. The lack of available inventory seriously devalues these awards.
#15
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Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 4,188
That boat sailed long ago. You're several years behind with that comment.
The consistent best value for UA award redemptions on a cpm basis these days is domestic saver economy inside the 7 day AP window. I can get 3.7 cpm (or higher) all day long doing that on west coast routes.
....
The consistent best value for UA award redemptions on a cpm basis these days is domestic saver economy inside the 7 day AP window. I can get 3.7 cpm (or higher) all day long doing that on west coast routes.
....
Last edited by Mama; Nov 14, 2019 at 2:42 am