Why do people simply not look first?

Air NZ don't hide the booking classes when you make a booking. It just took me about 60 seconds to find the United earning page for Air NZ which details every earning class and the earn rate.

I still don't understand why anybody would ask the airline they're flying with about earning rate if you're crediting to another program. Air NZ an tell you the booking class, but it's up to the partner to decide what points they give.