Last edit by: WineCountryUA
From MileagePlus Upgrade Awards in the T&Cs
The uncertainty on PS (previously considered BF) segments appears to have been address, as PS flights are not considered Polaris flights
Archive: UA Miles + $ CoPay Upgrade (refunded if no Polaris segments are upgraded) {Archive}
What is the refund policy for MileagePlus Upgrade Awards that do not clear the waitlist?If you request an upgrade using a MileagePlus Upgrade Award, and none of your travel segments are upgraded, then we will automatically redeposit your miles and co-pay. In most instances, a MileagePlus Upgrade Award will be considered used if any segment of your travel is upgraded. However, if your travel includes requested upgrades to United PolarisSM business class or United Polaris first class, and none of the international premium segments are upgraded, then your MileagePlus Upgrade Award will not be considered used, even if you are upgraded to United First® or United Business® on another segment. In these instances, we will fully redeposit your miles and co-pay. When applicable, these refunds will occur automatically seven to 10 days after travel.
Archive: UA Miles + $ CoPay Upgrade (refunded if no Polaris segments are upgraded) {Archive}
UA Miles + $ CoPay Upgrade (refunded if no Polaris segments are upgraded)
#121
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,853
After a CPU on EWR-IAD-SFO, I was unable to apply a mileage upgrade to IAD-SFO. The only option was EWR-SFO and the CPU blocked the use of miles
#122
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,406
There’s no reason for a Plat who is thinking about using miles + copay not to apply it to the entire itinerary. You’ll get higher priority on ORD-IAH, and if it clears and IAH-SCL does not, you’ll get a full refund. Of course, it’s 99x more likely that IAH-SCL clears and ORD-IAH does not than vice-versa. . There’s no downside, as you’re not eligible for PN anyway (as WineCountryUA mentioned) and the copay+miles depends upon the regions and fare class (PE), not the individual flights. In other words, you’re not paying extra miles because you have an economy flight attached.
#123
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: San Francisco
Programs: UA Silver
Posts: 33
Waitlist Upgrade across two segments
If I get a waitlist upgrade to business, will it automatically include both segments or can United give me one and call it a day?
One segment is 4 hours during the day and the other is 7 hours at night. My preference is both but the longer flight is the priority.
One ticket.
One segment is 4 hours during the day and the other is 7 hours at night. My preference is both but the longer flight is the priority.
One ticket.
#124
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 32,046
They can be requested individually and they clear individually. If you request both then neither, one or both can clear. If the longer one is the only priority then forgo the shorter one and only request the longer one. Depending on how you upgrade, it may or may not make a difference, it also depends if the 7hr flight is an international Polaris-marketed flight (probably).
So if you tell us the route and how you want to upgrade we can give you more/better(?) advise
So if you tell us the route and how you want to upgrade we can give you more/better(?) advise
#125
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: AS 75K, DL Silver, UA Platinum, Hilton Gold, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Platinum + LT Gold
Posts: 10,502
If I get a waitlist upgrade to business, will it automatically include both segments or can United give me one and call it a day?
One segment is 4 hours during the day and the other is 7 hours at night. My preference is both but the longer flight is the priority.
One ticket.
One segment is 4 hours during the day and the other is 7 hours at night. My preference is both but the longer flight is the priority.
One ticket.
There is no such thing as "United give me one and call it a day". One segment might clear, both segments might clear, and nothing will clear - depends on a number of factors including your status, your fare bucket, applied instrument or complementary. Even then, it would depend on the specific flight...the same flight on different days will have different upgrade probability.
#126
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,853
If I get a waitlist upgrade to business, will it automatically include both segments or can United give me one and call it a day?
One segment is 4 hours during the day and the other is 7 hours at night. My preference is both but the longer flight is the priority.
One ticket.
One segment is 4 hours during the day and the other is 7 hours at night. My preference is both but the longer flight is the priority.
One ticket.
With miles you can not request separate, upgrades, the request covers the either direction.
There are two subcases,
1)With 7 hours, you maybe requesting a Polaris segment, if so if the shorter clears and Polaris segment does not, you will get 100% refund and kept the shorter upgrade
2) If neither segment is Polaris, then if either segment clears then the upgrade is consider fulfilled and no refund -- this is a killer when you have an 1 hour segment connecting to a 5 hour transcon.
With some effort, I have sometimes been able to get a refund for that domestic cases but other times no. UA does not offer the ability to waitlist for the longer non-polaris segment only using miles
Not if talking mileage upgrades, not everyone has PlusPoints
#127
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 32,046
#128
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.995MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,853
For some reason, it changed at the time PlusPoints were introduced. I'm about 50/50 on getting a cleared 500 only refunded. Additional issue if a segment clears via cPU, you can not apply miles to the other segment,
#130
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,406
That said, your odds are better on EWR-RAK than they are on SFO-EWR.