Has your less-mile-savvy spouse, friend, family member ever FAILED to get miles?
Oct 29, 2010, 10:19 pm
#1
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Has your less-mile-savvy spouse, friend, family member ever FAILED to get miles?
Today my dear wife went to the dentist and had $450+ worth of work done. She just got her new Citi AA Visa and had left it at home, and the dentist office doesn't take AMEX.
She paid with a... debit card from a bank that does not award miles!
Oh, she knows the game and understands what I do here, but... well... I could only get over it by starting a small fire in the back yard and burning sticks and leaves (and empty cardboard boxes from US Mint deliveries) whilst the kids played on the playset. Ok ok, we have a fire pit so that's semi-normal, but you know what I mean
I had also signed her up for the Citi checking account. Why... Why didn't she at least take the 1/2 mile per $1 debit card with her!
Has this ever happened to you?
Don't worry... everything's... fffine between us. This time...
She paid with a... debit card from a bank that does not award miles!
Oh, she knows the game and understands what I do here, but... well... I could only get over it by starting a small fire in the back yard and burning sticks and leaves (and empty cardboard boxes from US Mint deliveries) whilst the kids played on the playset. Ok ok, we have a fire pit so that's semi-normal, but you know what I mean
I had also signed her up for the Citi checking account. Why... Why didn't she at least take the 1/2 mile per $1 debit card with her!
Has this ever happened to you?
Don't worry... everything's... fffine between us. This time...
Oct 29, 2010, 10:44 pm
#2
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: DCA
Programs: DL DM, AA EXP, various hotel
Posts: 2,227
Right before we met, my partner went to Buenos Aires on DL and didn't sign up for Skymiles, so he missed about 11,000 miles. I didn't find that out until a year after we started dating, or I'm not sure the relationship would have kicked off as well as it did. 
Oct 30, 2010, 12:03 am
#3
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SAN
Programs: PR Premier Elite
Posts: 1,950
Mom has an 820+ FICO score but is really struggling hard with the 75,000 AA Citicard promotions. It wasn't easy, but at least she has the Amex now. Getting her to take the Visa is still very "iffy". She's a good woman... and I've done the best I could with her. But.... alas.... the promise of 150,000 FREE AA miles throws me into a blind frenzy yet barely inspires her to to spend 3 minutes filling out a web form.
Oct 30, 2010, 12:18 am
#4
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: ORD
Programs: HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Bonvoy Platinum
Posts: 1,028
Mom has an 820+ FICO score but is really struggling hard with the 75,000 AA Citicard promotions. It wasn't easy, but at least she has the Amex now. Getting her to take the Visa is still very "iffy". She's a good woman... and I've done the best I could with her. But.... alas.... the promise of 150,000 FREE AA miles throws me into a blind frenzy yet barely inspires her to to spend 3 minutes filling out a web form.
mentioned and explained the citi AA offers to my folks as well. First my mother wanted to know what I could get out of the deal. Then after a couple of weeks, she passed. Doesnt want anymore cc/
Oct 30, 2010, 1:32 am
#5
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: GUM
Programs: DL, AA, UA, SPG
Posts: 223
Oct 30, 2010, 4:03 am
#7
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Oct 30, 2010, 4:04 am
#8
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oh... on a side note, I have had a few friends and family allow me to take their personal info and sign them up for CCs, etc. Especially when it has to do with things like that promo AMEX SPG sends out now and then where you get 5k points for referring someone. Come to think of it, I dunno if me wife even really KNEW she had that AA Citi Visa!
Oct 30, 2010, 4:32 am
#11
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I honestly feel as though I'm like the only person in my area who is into this stuff. Everywhere I go it's the same story -- like say, the hardware store, grocery store, school, barber, pizza or sandwich shop, etc --you start being a regular and eventually get to know the people who work there, or some of the other reg. customers, and no one is into anything of what we do. I feel like some sort of cosmonaut who just landed or something.
Then you meet the occasional jet setter type... lots of bling, hair gel, heavy cologne... and he's like, oh yeah, my wife and I got that American Express Membership Rewards thing... we got tons of points! But he doesn't want to listen to you, he just wants to babble on (and I thought I was bad!)
It is at these times that I give up and just stick to home. I am already trying to brainwash me kids by making funny necklaces out of expired credit cards for them to play with! they are 2 & 4
Then you meet the occasional jet setter type... lots of bling, hair gel, heavy cologne... and he's like, oh yeah, my wife and I got that American Express Membership Rewards thing... we got tons of points! But he doesn't want to listen to you, he just wants to babble on (and I thought I was bad!)
It is at these times that I give up and just stick to home. I am already trying to brainwash me kids by making funny necklaces out of expired credit cards for them to play with! they are 2 & 4
Oct 30, 2010, 4:53 am
#12
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when my wife & i got engaged, she had just started a new job & had to travel for work to a hospital in another city for 2 days every week....so that was about 8 flights a month....she did this for the whole year & took close to 100 flights....
right before her first flight i asked her if she had opened up a ff account with the airline she was using....she said she had so i thought all was good....
when we got married she quit that job & took up another which required no travel....one day we were planning a trip & i asked her how many miles she has & she had no clue....it turned out that even though she had opened an account, she never bothered to quote her membership number during booking or flying....she has a bit fat zero miles in her account, even after taking close to 100 flights....
luckily, she never deletes an email & every single e-ticket from her travel days was still in her inbox....the very next weekend i went through her entire email & got all the pnr & flight details & sent them to the airline....we finally managed to get all 100 flights updated....she made platinum overnight & had about 200k miles in her account at the end of the day....
right before her first flight i asked her if she had opened up a ff account with the airline she was using....she said she had so i thought all was good....
when we got married she quit that job & took up another which required no travel....one day we were planning a trip & i asked her how many miles she has & she had no clue....it turned out that even though she had opened an account, she never bothered to quote her membership number during booking or flying....she has a bit fat zero miles in her account, even after taking close to 100 flights....
luckily, she never deletes an email & every single e-ticket from her travel days was still in her inbox....the very next weekend i went through her entire email & got all the pnr & flight details & sent them to the airline....we finally managed to get all 100 flights updated....she made platinum overnight & had about 200k miles in her account at the end of the day....
Oct 30, 2010, 5:00 am
#13
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wow.
just plain wow.
she is so lucky you had remained calm lol
I would have been like.... like....
wow
just plain wow.
she is so lucky you had remained calm lol
I would have been like.... like....
wow
when my wife & i got engaged, she had just started a new job & had to travel for work to a hospital in another city for 2 days every week....so that was about 8 flights a month....she did this for the whole year & took close to 100 flights....
right before her first flight i asked her if she had opened up a ff account with the airline she was using....she said she had so i thought all was good....
when we got married she quit that job & took up another which required no travel....one day we were planning a trip & i asked her how many miles she has & she had no clue....it turned out that even though she had opened an account, she never bothered to quote her membership number during booking or flying....she has a bit fat zero miles in her account, even after taking close to 100 flights....
luckily, she never deletes an email & every single e-ticket from her travel days was still in her inbox....the very next weekend i went through her entire email & got all the pnr & flight details & sent them to the airline....we finally managed to get all 100 flights updated....she made platinum overnight & had about 200k miles in her account at the end of the day....
right before her first flight i asked her if she had opened up a ff account with the airline she was using....she said she had so i thought all was good....
when we got married she quit that job & took up another which required no travel....one day we were planning a trip & i asked her how many miles she has & she had no clue....it turned out that even though she had opened an account, she never bothered to quote her membership number during booking or flying....she has a bit fat zero miles in her account, even after taking close to 100 flights....
luckily, she never deletes an email & every single e-ticket from her travel days was still in her inbox....the very next weekend i went through her entire email & got all the pnr & flight details & sent them to the airline....we finally managed to get all 100 flights updated....she made platinum overnight & had about 200k miles in her account at the end of the day....
Oct 30, 2010, 5:07 am
#14
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: DSM
Programs: AA Platinum, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum, Fairmont Platinum, United Silver, National Exec
Posts: 1,035
My wife thinks I'm crazy for thinking about FF miles all the time. She passes up on opportunities--or simply forgets--to use her FF cards/numbers too often. If I know she's going into a point gathering opportunity, I'll remind/coach/nag her to do the right thing. She's a good sport about it but generally oblivious to earning points without my friendly reminders.
To me it's just a game...with an amazing set of winner's rewards. I look for ways to get miles wherever I go. Our family has made countless trips to numerous places around the globe, often in the pointy end of the plane...and at the top of the hotel where they treat us like royalty. I can't begin to imagine the retail value of all of our "free" trips over the years, but it would have to be in the seven-figures.
I'll take "crazy" any day in exchange for the perks!
To me it's just a game...with an amazing set of winner's rewards. I look for ways to get miles wherever I go. Our family has made countless trips to numerous places around the globe, often in the pointy end of the plane...and at the top of the hotel where they treat us like royalty. I can't begin to imagine the retail value of all of our "free" trips over the years, but it would have to be in the seven-figures.
I'll take "crazy" any day in exchange for the perks!
Oct 30, 2010, 5:10 am
#15
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