Originally Posted by
rajsbasi
I guess if the hold fee is credited against the ticket cost then that's not bad and wont really be a revenue raising measure save for those that do not go ahead and complete a purchase.
Contrast this with "farelock" on someone like United where one can pay to hold a fare for 3 or 7 days and such a fee applies irrespective of whether the fare is purchased, cannot be credited against the fare and is a true revenue raising scheme.
I entirely concur with the above. That said, I wonder how long it will be before BA also makes what is now a 'deposit' into a 'fee'.
I think this is a very good move by BA. I see this as a means of getting a small competitive advantage over the likes of EZ and FR, by offering an extra service at relatively limited cost (save the investment in IT). As others have noted, while limiting it to 21 day advance purchase does for many reduce the utility, it also justifies the deposit approach instead of a separate fee, as even were fares to g up in the hold period it is likely only a small amount.