wilsnunn

mikeyfly

Globaliser

I'm not sure where you get those cash element numbers from, but the total TFC I'm getting from ITA are not quite the same.

ABZ-NRT-ABZ in CW is £607.73 per person.
INV-NRT in CW is £226.18 per person.
NRT-ABZ in CW is £106.32 per person.
INV-NRT-ABZ in CW is £442.20 per person.

So one thing that you can do that is undoubtedly permitted is to just call BAEC and book INV-NRT-ABZ all in one go. You'll save £160 per person over booking ABZ-NRT-ABZ.

The concession about booking UK-destination in one booking and destination-UK in another booking, and applying the 2-4-1 across both bookings, was intended to provide a user-friendly solution to the problem that people had about trying to get the inbound half at T-355d before the UK office opened. So as wilsnunn says, it is unclear whether you are allowed to do this if you do not have a T-355d problem and you're merely trying to save some cash by taking advantage of the reduced surcharge if booking NRT-ABZ as a one-way ticket.

One alternative is to book INV-NRT one-way using the 2-4-1, and then book NRT-ABZ one-way with the lower TFC for a one-way ticket but using full Avios. But the sense of that that depends on how you value your Avios.

The one thing that I fear is that if people take something which is intended to be a concession of pragmatic sense for a specific problem (T-355d) and start using it routinely to chisel lower surcharges (= cash in BA's pocket) on other bookings, the useful concession will be taken away altogether to the detriment of those who are trying to use it in the situation for which it was intended.

stephenjc

Just off the phone with US but was put through to India I think, the CSR on the phone knew exactly what I wanted and we bagged two 1st class NRT to EDI flights to add to the app based 2-4-1 purchase we made 9 days ago. Took about 25 minutes and was worried that someone would nab the seats, but it's all gone through, so super happy. Thanks to all the advice and help on here, it's really appreciated.

Ruth4325

andyedinburgh

I've had the same problem today. But to try and avoid the situation, I'd booked a one-way HKG-LHR and phoned this morning to add the EDI leg. The original taxes were c£50 and the agent said the new tax when adding on the LHR-EDI leg would be c£250. So it's nothing to do with merging this without an outbound 241 as the agent (who was very helpful) didn't even know I had an outbound already booked.

I challenged him on this and showed that the total tax for HKG-LHR-EDI should be c£70 in total (with both a revenue and a redemption booking example) and he agreed and went away to check. HIs only explanation was that if you booked it all in one that would be the case, but if you altered a HKG-LHR booking by adding on the domestic leg then the taxes/surcharges element reverted to the total £250. He recommended me to book a separate connection with a revenue booking and to enjoy the arrivals lounge! A revenue booking LHR-EDI for March next year is c£50 in Y and £143 in J, so considerably cheaper than paying the £200 extra in tax but with the inconvenience of not being able to check bags all the way through.

Incidentally, I then explained this was the return of a 241 and he happily refunded half the Avios, all very straightforward. Tickets kept separate with 2 PNRs.

So it remains somewhat of a mystery. The crux of the issue is whether its appropriate (legal) to add fuel surcharges if a HKG-originating ticket is altered. I'm not sure I understand how an altered ticket is legally different to an unaltered ticket....

pauldb

stephenjc

Still not paid for this, Avios gone instantly from our HH account, but no charges to CC!

andyedinburgh

I hadn't realised that, thanks. Perhaps we should be grateful they haven't applied it to all ex-HKG departures already :-)

KARFA

Definitely an error. Extra TFC adding a domestic flight doesn't incur an extra £250. Are you sure he wasn't trying to recalculate the TFC as a UK-HKG return instead of keeping your outbound and inbound separate?

HKG-LHR TFC for one way in F
Airport Passenger Security Charge - Hong Kong GBP 4.90
Air Passenger Departure Tax - Hong Kong GBP 11.80
Airport Construction Fee - Hong Kong GBP 17.70
Total British Airways fees and carrier charges GBP 0.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total taxes, fees, carrier imposed charges GBP 34.40

HKG-LHR-EDI TFC for one way in F
Passenger Service Charge - United Kingdom GBP 8.02
Airport Passenger Security Charge - Hong Kong GBP 4.90
Air Passenger Departure Tax - Hong Kong GBP 11.80
Airport Construction Fee - Hong Kong GBP 17.70
Carrier imposed charge GBP 23.50
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total taxes, fees, carrier imposed charges GBP 65.92

smokie36

I have a voucher which expires in Sept but unfortunately only around 70k avios available....could add to that with a biz return to Bangkok to push it closer to 90k.

Is there anywhere I could get good value from the voucher?

Happy to use INV if that helps.

Edit: The voucher expires Oct 3 2020....does this mean the only restriction is I must fly by that date?

pauldb

Moscow is only 34k return J (longhaul business class), and uniquely it's RFS as well so low fees if you fancy it.

Then the mid-hauls like Tel Aviv, Cairo are 62.5k. And then the New York / East Coast or Middle East band is 100k for J, but 76k if you did one leg in WT+.

You must fly the outbound leg before the expiry, so you have a good amount of time.

smokie36

Grateful thanks for this comprehensive reply!

I will have over 100k by next March so hopefully take my partner off to New York for a first time trip in Sept.

andyedinburgh

The odd thing was that he didn't know about any other flights at the time of quoting - I deliberately didn't tell him to avoid this.

Any suggestions as to what I should do?

KARFA

i can only suggest call and try again. i appreciate the explanation he gave was an attempt to explain the figure he was seeing, but it's completely rubbish. the other option is you can ask it gets sent for a manual calculation on the basis the figure is clearly wrong.

btw i just added some domestic connections on a 2-4-1 HKG booking about 2/3 weeks ago and extra TFC was £86 per person.