Originally Posted by CollegeFlyer

Sorry, flyerd, but I think the other posters here are probably right.
Basically, the airlines are allowed to run without a frequent flier program, so they are also allowed to run with a frequent flier program that has a whole bunch of rules (even if it's considered a "bad" frequent flier program because it has too many rules).

The airlines can't defraud you, but here that's not happening: it's all in the T&Cs that you don't own the miles they give you, and you can't sell them. Since they don't have to give you miles at all, they're allowed to give you miles with a bunch of rules.

Lawsuits over this are very rare (though I've seen one or two), because most often, the airline just freezes or confiscates your account (and sometimes strands the buyer at their destination). And then you have to sue them if you want to get your miles back. Which is expensive, and which you don't really have good grounds for, because the T&Cs were clear. You probably wouldn't find a good attorney to take this case on a contingency fee, because the chances of winning are too low; instead, you'd have to pay the lawyer a few hundred dollars an hour to just to try to get your miles back. And that's why few people sue over this.