Expiring miles headed for coffin?
 

I haven't seen this subject posted here yet (and excuse me if it has been), but did anyone else see the New York Times article of 12/9/98 quoting some dreamer named Randy Peterson? The article is about how frequent flier programs will undergo changes in 1999 that will make them more similar to one another as a result of the recent program mergers.

On the bad side, he says USAirways members will probably see stricter mileage redemption rules due to the stricter rules already in effect at American. But on the good side, United and American will probably do away with expiring miles to align their programs with Delta's and USAirways's (and those at Northwest/Continental). "You're going to see the complete death of expiring miles" said the Peterson chap.

Any comments? Has this appeared in WebFlyer and I've somehow missed it?

Somehow I think that somewhere within WebFlyer or in this forum, this topic has appeared. I am relatively sure, since this Peterson chap, Randy, is the guru of this web page and his organization sponsors it.

I haven't seen this before in InsideFlyer or in this forum. We have already seen Northwest follow the example of partner Continental in eliminating mileage expiration. No news yet on whether United will align their policies with Delta's or whether American will align their policies with USAirways.

I think United is being cautious about eliminating expiring miles. Instead of just coming out and saying that they do not expire, I think they will extend them each year if the account holder calls/internets the request for extension just like they did in 1998.

This will eliminate anyone who doesn't actively participate while keeping miles active for those that keep abreast of their mileage news and account activity.

My latest statement from UA said that as long as one remained a Prem EX or 1K miles never expire.

Yes, United is matching other airlines (American I think) which came up first with the idea of not expiring your miles in the year you are elite. But if you miss reaching PE or 1K status in a year you could lose miles (even those miles earned as a PE or 1K). When I was referring to United aligning with Delta, I was referring to Delta's policy of extending the life of your miles 3 years when you take a Delta flight, irrespective of your elite status.

United would also be aligning with Air Canada in dropping miles expiration. There are some other things that could be of interest there (in particular, the 15k short-haul award on AC... will it be dumped, or will UA add something similar?

USAir has just announced that they will be instituting expiring miles, so the prophecy has been a mixed bag.

...just not to offend our hosts, the article (which is available in the NY Times archive) is by Jane L. Levere, and quotes the publisher of Inside Flyer and this Webflyer site, Randy Petersen (not Peterson).

[This message has been edited by NJDavid (edited 01-30-99).]

Hold on there a minute! Unless I misunderstood or missed something, the announcement about US Air expiring miles states that as long as you take at least one US Air flight every three years, your miles will not expire. If I recall correctly, this doesn't take affect until 1/1/2000. This puts US in the same camp as DL with regards to expiring miles. I, and I believe most other FFs, can live with this type of rule. It's AA and UA who have "drop dead, use them or lose them" expiring miles rules (unless you make top tier status). I wouldn't write Randy's assessment off just yet. Given that AA is a US partner in the FF program, I wouldn't be surprised to see AA move to the same rule US just instituted. Also, UA let everyone with 20K miles extend expiration this year. I'm sure they are not doing it out of the goodness of their heart, so maybe something else is afoot there. I hope Randy is right and the expiring miles rules expire once and for all!