Originally Posted by
UnitedHostage
I was going to gift some expiring PlusPoints but I appreciate you flagging this possibility. I don't think the risk is worth it.
As someone who did the give away in the FT thread earlier last year, it's sellers beware. And my condition is it has to be a confirmable upgrade and not a waitlist. Then again, everyone's risk tolerance is different.
Originally Posted by
kmersh
A friend of mine alternates between GS and DL360 depending on his business and where he needs to go.
I am a UA nobody, but I have been the beneficiary of his Plus Points and before that SWUs as he almost never uses them to due to travelling in paid F/J.
He knows me, we have been friends for over 30 years and it isn't any sort of quid quo pro, he always says to me, if you need them, they are there.
Last year, my sister happened to be travelling on UA and I asked if he could upgrade my sister, he was happy to do so, again, no money changed hands, in the end she didn't get the upgrade as the Polaris cabin went out full in both directions.
He was invited to an event with a number of UA execs and he asked what their stance on upgrading friends and family with his Plus Points, at the time, they responded that it is fine as long as he isn't selling his benefits, they understood if he is traveling in paid F/J, he would not have much of a use for upgrade instruments and using them as gifts made sense.
He didn't have presence of mind to ask the UA execs when he had the chance, but a few times, he has upgraded a colleague or a friend or family member and they have upgraded him in return on AA or more recently his brother upgraded him on AF and he upgraded his brother on UA.
My sense is that technically it is against the rules, but he isn't selling anything and he does know all the parties involved, so maybe that it is a grey area?
Curious what you all think?
Technically yes. But just like IRS audits, they are looking for the big fish, or at least concrete evidence that the actual cash or equivalent exchange had occurred.