Avro22

As a treat, and due to missing our summer holiday this year, my wife and I have seats in First for LHR - SFO return next year, with our 2 kids on the same flights in Club. Different cabins necessitated different bookings, and when trying to reserve the kids seats I was faced with these being chargeable (£96 per seat per leg for the seats I want).

A call into the BAEC Gold line has not resulted in any progress. "I am very sorry, Sir, but there is no way we can help you with this". Apparently they can link the bookings but that wouldn't give me free of charge seating for the children. The only recourse I was offered was to "sent a letter to Customer Services" which I have done. I'm not holding my breath

As a frequent flyer of over 30 years, and also understanding the challenges of running a profitable airline, I am still astounded at the lack of flexibility and common sense in this specific scenario

I fear this is the end of the line for me and BA. I won't be able to being myself to using them for further significant personal and business spend, and my current plans are to wind down flights, let my status and Avios reduce, and actively avoid in the future
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I wondered if anyone else has experienced such a thing, or if I am missing something ?

KARFA

Welcome to FT,

this is all correct I am afraid. They would have had to be on the same booking to benefit from your status. The linking booking thing only works if you are in the same cabin. They can select seats at check in for free of course.

Malli1

I’m sorry you feel this way but I do think the rules are clear on this one and it’s a (tad?) of an overreaction. The rules are clear and the benefits are kept to them for a reason otherwise you could just start linking random bookings and get free seats which is an absolute boon for airlines making money. Sorry.

Avro22

Thanks for your help

How bizarre. So if lower value bookings are made, and all are in the same class, then I would get the Gold benefits. But in a higher value scenario, albeit slightly more complex, I do not. What a shame there is no-one available to apply some common sense !

ThatT1Feeling

Yes indeed. If you’d booked you and your wife in CW and the kids in F, spending the same amount of money overall, then all would have got free seat selection. You could then have told the kids that they’re in the “cheap” seats for the flight 😊

KARFA

well the common sense of the policy is it is supposed to allow you to sit next to family/friends/colleagues in the same cabin who happen to be on a different booking. In your case and where the people are sat in separate cabins that is no longer the case.

The value of the bookings is largely irrelevant - albeit high value bookings in business (booked in the higher value selling classes) do include free seat selection. I can only assume your kids are booked in discounted business selling classes if it isn’t included for them.

Avro22

Thanks everyone for the speedy responses, and for clarifying that this is "normal"

BertieBadger

KARFA has indeed summarised the rule correctly.

​​​​​​The Gold benefit of seating for others is, I believe, intended to allow those travelling together but on separate bookings to be seated together, which necessarily restricts it to the same cabin. It is not, as I understand it, to provide free seating at booking for anyone the Gold member knows.

Doesn't help you in your situation I'm afraid, but the rule is what it is. (Edit: and a quick look at the website suggests the same class requirement is stated there)

firstlight

yes, we had this too, travelling in revenue F (nose of 747!) but 4 (adult) kids in WT. Couldn't reserve seats without paying money, however the gold line did for some reason (significant wedding anniversary celebration)put some kind of hint into the system which then allocated them front row bulkhead seats on olci. They did also board with us in group 1 and were treated very well, the eldest was allowed to come into F for a glass of lpgs champagne and some warmed nuts.

BertieBadger

This is of course entirely the correct way to do things as there's only 2 seats in the nose. You couldn't fit 4 in, so you were surely only obeying the laws of physics

Indeed, I fell foul of my misunderstanding of the rule myself albeit on a much lower scale when a few years back as a newly minted Gold I called up to get seats for our friends who had decided to join us on a short Euro hop, only to discover the same cabin requirement. It's actually a great benefit (I find) even within the restrictions, we used it often for our travelling buddies, til they became Silver on their own.

scottishpoet

yes, and this would apply in CE and ET exactly the same way.

Agent69

Kudos to the OP for putting the kids in J and not Y!

navylad

Sorry to hear of the OPs situation, may I ask a question of the forum though, can separate classes be booked on the same PNR? I’m guessing, but have never done it so looking for confirmation, that one would need to call up or use a TA?

KARFA

no you can’t do that. All passengers on the same booking must be in the same cabins and same flights.

VSLover

yeah sorry OP! it is a rather abhorrent practice to charge for premium seats period. let alone when you qualify for waiver of fees if you had put the whole family on the same reservation...i learned this the hard way too a few years back and had to suck it up to pay for my neice's CW seat reservation when i was taking her to LHR as a graduation gift and she had never flown longhaul before so the only way to ensure she had the seat next to mine was to pay up (i used avios for her booking and cash for mine)!