|
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by PremEx: In addition to a birthday/anniversary/Happy Groundhog Day card, I'm going to start giving out sworn and sealed, notarized, thumbprinted, witnessed, registered, on attorney's letterhead, statements of true gifts to my recipient. Along with a DNA sample. (In the interests of family values, I will not publish here just what that DNA sample will be)</font> I've had many kind 1K friends who have gifted me their SWU's so I can upgrade Family to overseas. Everything's been real smooth. |
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by pinniped: FWIW, the airline on which I did this no longer exists.</font> |
I seem to remember someone on the UA forum telling a story about his brother-in-law who got busted by the airline on bartering/selling his miles. So it does happen.
|
I tried to sell my miles to someone in Nigeria, but I woke up in a bathtub of ice missing a kidney.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/biggrin.gif |
Thanks tlglenn, I needed that!!!
|
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by tlglenn: I tried to sell my miles to someone in Nigeria, but I woke up in a bathtub of ice missing a kidney. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/biggrin.gif</font> |
All of the airlines are loosing money except Southwest (OK, Jet Blue does not count yet). All of these airlines prohibit you from selling your miles and make it diffucult to redeem awards. While Southwest does not allow you from selling your rapid rewards tickets, they do not go after people who do. Southwest also lets you redeem a rapid reward on any flight that has a seat for sale. Seems like Southwest knows what they are doing. |
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by onedog: No, don't you mean that you were contacted via email by a perfectly legit businessman from Nigeria who was referred to you by a member of the recent United States trade delegation to Nigeria who needed your help in transferring $millions out of the country . . . </font> I NEVER get these emails that everyone else gets. Is my money not as green? If you prick me with the pin of greed, do I not bleed? I get all the preapproved's, Wienershnitzel coupons, LazyBoy offers, timeshare come-on's, swiss watch catalogs, but never, EVER, NIGERIAN SCAM EMAILS! WHY ME?!!!!!! |
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Bidkat: I feel so unloved, so left out. I NEVER get these emails that everyone else gets. but never, EVER, NIGERIAN SCAM EMAILS! WHY ME?!!!!!!</font> Cheers Thomas |
No- I don't want any FlyerTalker to be left out of such offers (but don't ask me later to share your losses ...)
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">From: prince dilo <[email protected]> Date: Tue, 15 Oct 2002 23:34:45 +0100 (BST) To: [email protected] Subject: CONFIDENTIAL LETTER PRINCE JOEL DILO (MD) PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC VICTORIA ISLAND LAGOS, NIGERIA. ATTN:CEO/PRESIDENT First, I must solicit your confidence in this transaction, this is by virtue of its nature as being utterly CONFIDENTIAL and TOP SECRET. Though I know that a transaction of this magnitude will make any one apprehensive and worried, but I am assuring you that all will be well at the end of the day. We have decided to contact you by e-mail due to the urgency of this transaction, as we have been reliably informed of it's swiftness and confidentiality. Let me start by first introducing myself properly to you. I am PRINCE JOEL DILO, a Director at the PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC, Lagos. I came to know of you in my private search for a reliable and reputable person to handle a very confidential transaction which involves the transfer of a huge sum of money to a foreign account requiring maximum confidence. THE PROPOSITION: A foreigner, late Engineer Johnson Creek, an Oil Merchant/Contractor with the Federal Govenment of Nigeria, until his death three years ago in a ghastly auto crash, banked with us here at PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC., Lagos, and had a closing balance of USD$15.2M ( fifteen Million Two Hundred Thousand United States Dollars only) which the bank now unquestionably expects to be claimed by any of his available foreign next of kin or alternatively be donated to a discredited trust fund for arms and ammunition at a military war college here in Nigeria. Fervent valuable efforts are being made by the Bank to get in touch with any of the Creek family or relatives but all have proved to no avail.It is because of the perceived possibility of not going to be able to locate any of late Engr. Johnson Creek's next of kin (he had no known wife and children) that the management under the influence of our Chairman, Board of Directors, Retired Major General Kalu Uke Kalu, that an arrangement for the fund to be declared "UNCLAIMABLE" and then be subsequently donated to the Trust Fund for Arms and Ammunition which will further enhance the course of war in Africa and the world in general. In order to avert this negative development, myself and some of my trusted colleagues in the bank now seek for your permission to have you stand as late Engr. Johnson Creek's next of kin so that the fund, USD$15.2M would be subsequently transferred and paid into your bank account as the beneficiary next of kin. All documents and proves to enable you get this fund have been carefully worked out and we are assuring you a 100% risk free involvement. Your share would be 30% of the total amount. 5% has been set aside for expenses while the rest would be for myself and my colleagues for investment purposes in your country. If this proposal is okay by you and you do not wish to take advantage of the trust we hope to bestow on you and your company, then kindly get to me immediately via my e-mail furnishing me with your most confidential telephone, fax number and exclusive e-mail so that I can forward to you the relevant details of this transaction. Thank you in advance for your anticipated co-operation. Regards, PRINCE JOEL DILO (MD) PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC</font> |
Gee -- look at the one I just got. It sounds a little more out of this world than the usual Nigerian drivel...
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">FROM:PRINCESS. L ORGANA DEAR friend, I AM PRINCESS LEIA ORGANA ONLY SURVIVOR OF THE ROYAL FAMILY OF ALDERAN (ALDRN). I AM MOVED TO WRITE YOU THIS LETTER, THIS WAS IN CONFIDENCE CONSIDERING MY PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCE AND SITUATION. I WAS FALSLEY IMPRISONED UPON THE IMPERIAL BATTLESTATION ("DEATH STAR") WHEN MY PLANET WAS HIDEOUSLY DESTROYED AND ENDED BY THE VERY BAD SITH LORD VADER. I ESCAPED ALONG WITH THE AID OF BRAVE REBELS AND WOOKIES, AND AM NOW I AM LYING LOW DUE TO THE SITUATION IN THE 4TH MOON OF YAVIN TILL WHEN THINGS GETS BETTER. I HAVE CONTROL HERE OF THE SUM OF $25, MILLION (TWENTY FIVE MILLION) IN IMPERIAL CREDITS DEPOSITED WITH A SECURITY COMAPANY FOR SAFEKEEPING ON TATOOINE. THE FUNDS WERE SHIPPED BY A COURIER SERVICE AS DIPLOMATIC ITEMS OF HIGH VALUES TO PREVENT THEM FROM KNOWING THE CONTENT. WHAT I WANT YOU TO DO friend IS TO INDICATE YOUR INTEREST THAT YOU WILL ASSIST ME BY RECEIVING THE MONEY ON OUR BEHALF ON TATOOINE AND ASSIST IN INVESTING THIS MONEY IN ANY LUCRATIVE BUSINESS LIKE MOISTURE FARMS AND STOCK IN MULTI-PLANETARY COMPANIES AND OTHER SAFE LUCRATIVE INVESTMENT IN YOUR SECTOR. MAY I AT THIS POINT EMPHASISE THE HIGH LEVEL OF CONFIDENTIALITY, WHICH THIS BUSINESS DEMANDS, AND HOPE YOU WILL NOT BETRAY THE TRUST AND CONFIDENCE WHICH I REPOSE IN YOU. IN CONCLUSION, IN THE EVENT YOU ARE INTRESTED TO ASSIST ME I WILL LIKE YOU TO CONTACT MY LAWYER WHO I HAVE STATIONED IN MOS EISLEY TO WITHNESS THE TRANSACTION TO IT'S CONCLUSION. YOU CAN REACH HIM ON HIS DIRECT LINE VIA MAIL [email protected], HIS NAME IS WATTO THE TOYDARIAN, I HAVE THE FULL TRUST IN HIM. FINALLY,I HAVE SET ASIDE 15% OF THE TOTAL SUM OF THE FUNDS FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE, AND 5% FOR ANY ESPENSES THAT SHALL BE INCURED DURING THIS TRANSACTION. PLEASE BE FREE TO DISCUSS THIS WITH MY LAWYER. I SINCERELY WILL APPRECAITE YOUR ACKNOWLEDGMENT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. HELP US, friend, YOU ARE OUR ONLY HOPE. BEST REGARDS, PRINCESS. L. ORGANA </font> |
Rudi and xyzzy thanks, great posts: ROTFLMAO http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif
|
My story. Once upon a time, in a galaxy, far far away (actually about 10 years when I was a brash, bold, and frankly stupid grad student), a guy on soc.travel (remember those?) was selling a 1st class ticket in an airline that shall remain nameless from the US to Asia for $2,000 USD or something like that. Actually, what he was selling was an award certificate for a 1st class ticket on such a long-haul. I needed to go to Japan for a conference, so why not go in style, since the conference allowed a travel budget, and $2,000 was what they had allocated to the flight portion. So I contact this guy (let's call him "Mr A", a grad student at UIUC, verified from "finger") and via e-mail and phone complete the transaction. Now, this might seem extremely foolish (and it was, but not for the obvious reasons) but I somehow trusted this klune to come through and send me said certificate. So, I send him my 2 grand, and lo and behold, I receive an envelope with the certificate endorsed to my name. A small detail is that he wanted me to write the check to someone else, a "Mr. B", so that "they couldn't trace the transaction", according to him. So I agree, idiot me. I make my reservations, and go get my ticket at the airport. Now it gets ugly. The ticket agent was somehow distrustful as to how I got this certificate, and asks me whose miles they are, and I say, well, my "long-time friend", Mr. A, gave them to me as a gift. The agent says, these aren't Mr. A's miles, they are Mr B's, and I shall confiscate this certificate, and now go away. Now, I am SOL. If this moron Mr. A had actually told me that they were Mr. B's miles, I would have used Mr. B's name and be done with it. So I call Mr. A who's not willing to lift a finger for me, and has basically stiffed me out of 2 grand. In a last-ditch effort, I call the airline, and talk to a supervisor where I plead my case, and tell her that I didn't know they were Mr. B's miles, but that Mr. A had given them to me. I tell her that Mr. A was a long-time friend of mine, and that I had helped him on his thesis, and that he had, as a friendly gesture, given me these miles so I could go to a conference and present a joint paper we had written. Amazingly, she believed me and released the miles. I flew first class, with caviar, a chef, and a purser wearing a white waiter's outfit (no sleepers then) but this was the last time that I actually did something like that. Not because I saw the light and became somehow an upright soul, but because I learned not to be such an idiot and enter into questionable deals with questionable people I don't know. |
I have sold miles and bump vouchers for 15 years or so, never had any problems. I will say that I generally sell to neighbors/friends, though.
-Did have one boo-boo back in '90 that was actually above board. A coworker turned in miles for a ticket, but thought that the miles were not transferable. Hence, the ticket (my ticket RT Phx/Buffalo) was in his name. Irritatingly, just before it was issued the agent told him that the miles were transferable. Not wanting to look like a liar, he said that no, the ticket really was for himself. -Thinking that they would not care; and this was before the '91 Iraqi rout (IDs almost never checked). Sooooo......Blond/blue white boy shows up at the airport with a name that was along the lines of "Valentine (actual 1st name) Taranova Mussolini". Agent asks for ID, I told him what had occurred (and it REALLY DID!) and he says sorry, "rip, rip" goes the ticket. At least they did not enforce the "black death" of closing his account. In the end I guess that it was better to spend a November weekend in Phx than Buffalo. Mussolini was still out the miles though, and I never got the chance to go up there. |
Is it possible to get miles on those Nigerian deals?
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif |
| All times are GMT -6. The time now is 1:33 am. |
This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.