JAXBA

If the historical fare is applicable, so too will historical YQ. If the fare is recalculated prior to departure, so too is the YQ.

Tafflyer

JAXBA

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tafflyer

There are posters in this thread claiming to have been charged increased YQ when changing award tickets. Are these calculated differently to revenue tickets and YQ always recalculated?

Ah, with awards there isn't a historical fare, so prior to departure, the TFCs including YQ would be calculated as of the date of reissue. After departure, historical TFCs apply.

Quote:

And, wouldn’t this handling of historical YQ also confirm that it is simply part of the fare? And if so, why not just combine them?

See post #16

Gshumway

I for one, voted with my feet and canceled my Chase BA Visa card.

Blueboys999

deleted

Andriyko

What is dishonest about it? People look at the final price without breaking it down to individual components. The price is either competitive or it is not. I don't understand this obsession about the components of the price when they do not matter at all for the purchasing decisions.

Tafflyer

Tafflyer

simons1

If that is the case, and people only look at the bottom line, why the need to go through this charade of 'carrier surcharges?

Andriyko

i don't know (nor do I care) why airlines do this. I am looking at flights to Portugal in business class for next summer. Both LH and PS offer more or less the same price (around US$700), but when I look at individual components LH's fare is something like US$160 and the rest are taxes and fees, while PS' fare is 400 and the rest are taxes and fees. Obviously LH's carrier imposed surcharge is much higher than that of PS, but what difference is it to me if the final price is basically the same? Would it make me happy if LH's carrier imposed charge was smaller or zero but the final price were the same?

Carrier surcharges are not something new on award travel. The rules are very clear that Avios will basically only replace the fare component and that a carrier surcharge will need to be paid. Everyone is free to choose a different programme. i don't see a point in complaining about what people wish the programme were. I wish I were able to earn a 2-4-1 voucher or earn Avios for every day purchases, but it is not an option for me. I accept that and base my decisions around what's available rather than my fantasies about a perfect programme. Of course, everything is a rip-off on FT but it is not getting any easier to book award travel in premium classes.

Again, that question never enters my mind. I don't remember ever looking at how the price is broken down apart from now for the purpose of a comparison. For all I care, the final price may be comprised of a thousand 1 dollar charges but it's whether I like the price that matters.

windowontheAside

Fixed it for you

I understand your point of view but I think it's rather naive to presume that everybody works the same way.

Andriyko

It is not naive, it's reasonable. It's pretty safe to assume that people care about the final price rather than individual components. Looking at the fare alone just does not make any sense. Would you turn down a cheaper flight just because the fare component is zero and the entire price is the carrier charges plus taxes? I am struggling to see what role does knowing what the individual components are play. Who are those people who look at what they are? And, more importantly, what for?

windowontheAside

I would have thought you've been around here long enough and posted your view often enough to understand that not everyone shares it. If everyone thought this way, you wouldn't need to repeat this argument. I'm not saying I am one of 'those people' per se, but I learned a long time ago that the world is full of people who think and act differently from what seems entirely logical to me.

And to answer your specific question - no, I wouldn't pay much more for a breakdown that I favoured. But if the prices were close, then I may well chose the pricing model I preferred. But I don't expect everyone to think and act the same way I do.

rossmacd

BA lost our corporate contract because they do not give rebates on the carrier surcharges component. Let's just say this was a significant account to lose, and BA tried everything possible to retain our custom, but they were uncompetitive versus other (now preferred) carriers. I cannot say any more, since I will not/cannot reveal the value of the contract, but this is the fundamental reason for the loss of the contract (I am great friends socially with our global travel buyer).

To say that no one looks at them is absolutely and entirely incorrect.

Andriyko

Well, of course, I understand that some people think or act differently. When I say 'people' I don't mean everybody but the majority of people. I am putting my argument (or line of thinking) forward in order to get a response from someone who does break down the price and who views it as an important part of the decision-making process. I am honestly interested in learning why it is important as so many people call these surcharges dishonest or a ripoff or whatever, but I fail to see why. I gave an example with Lufthansa - its surcharges are very very high, and yet whenever I am looking for flights Lufthansa's flights often come up as the cheapest. From the point of view of an average passenger I can't see why it should matter what the final price is composed of. I get it if people are pissed off as a matter of principle, but if how the final price is calculated has real practical implications for some people it'd be interesting to know why.

Thank you for this example! I can see that it is different for corporate bookings. As I am a purely leisure traveler I was approaching the issue from the point of view of one (no discounts, rebates, etc). I can see how it can have major implications for corporate customers where discounts are only given on the fare itself. But your company's decision was still based on the final price (BA's refusal to give a discount on the carrier surcharge) rather than on the fact that such surcharge exists.