Erasmus

Yes, I'm one of those folks, who joined BAEC entirely due to the recent Chase bonanza. Now that all the miles have hit, I have set about booking awards. I must say, however, that I have been extremely disappointed with the competency of the agents I have reached using the standard BA US 1-800 number. I've now successfully booked five awards on partner carriers, and with only one exception, each time I had to walk the agent through the process and still had difficulty.

Unfortunately, this morning, for the second time now, I missed out on an award seat due to agent cluelessness. I was trying to change an existing partner award booking from coach to business (coach was all that was available when I booked it, and business just opened up this morning), and by the time the agent got through checking with this desk and that to confirm it was indeed allowed, wouldn't cost me any additional miles, figured out the right city codes, carrier, flight number, etc., etc., the seat was gone!

Given my ample experience with DL and UA, I am well aware that service levels vary dramatically from call center to call center, especially when dealing with overseas offices. Hence, I'm wondering if there is a way to reliably reach a competent agent for booking partner awards? Do folks generally have better luck calling a UK number? Can I do that with a US-based credit card that will need to be charged for the changes?

HIDDY

You have to contact the BAEC service centre in the country where your account is registered.