Apr 8, 2015, 3:27 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
One of the more confusing aspects of cash upgrades is "does this upgrade get premium cabin mileage bonus and is the fee included in PQD?"
The best assumption is no bonus and fee is not included in PQD but there are some cases where there will be a premium cabin bonus and amount will count toward PQD.
There are multiple cash upgrade paths and different ones are offered at different times (and can be quite hard to separate).
The key is what is the new fare basis after the upgrade. Note R, RN, P, PN, ZN, ON, A and others have been reported.
The following are generally not eligible for PQD or bonus:
However the offer, in "My Reservations" via the cash method tab "Buy Up to First" under "View {Upgrade} Options" is likely to be eligible for PQDs & PQM bonus.
**** Due to UA changes in May 2018, this statement may not be relieable ****
**** This now appears to be an Upgrade Fee (no PQDs) and may book into Upgrade fare class (no extra PQMs) or into a mileage earning bonus fare class (PQMs earning). Unclear if that is a way to tell which will happen ****
Generally these will be reflected on the receipt as
Notice the words "generally" and "likely" -- those are weasel words to protect the wiki author because of the lack of transparency in this system 
For instance, some time of checkin paid upgrades that book into P, will earn PQM bonus but not earn PQDs.
Checking the actual fare basis during booking when you are given access (or using the Saudi site) is key in understanding the outcome.
UA Insider commented on this a while back, but there has been no improvement in the confusion / clarity in the meantime.
The best assumption is no bonus and fee is not included in PQD but there are some cases where there will be a premium cabin bonus and amount will count toward PQD.
There are multiple cash upgrade paths and different ones are offered at different times (and can be quite hard to separate).
The key is what is the new fare basis after the upgrade. Note R, RN, P, PN, ZN, ON, A and others have been reported.
- Many of the upgrade offers results in R/PN/ZN fare class (and post as Zx) -- so like a regular upgrade the mileage posting is based on the original fare class. The upgrade fee does not earn PQDs.
- Others bump the fare basis to a -UP fare which reports as a P/Z/A fare class, these are now earning PQMs at the up-fared fare class and the up-fare costs earns PQDs.
- And others book into a true P/Z/A fare basis and will earn the PQM bonus and the up-fare cost will earn PQDs.
The following are generally not eligible for PQD or bonus:
- Pop-up upgrade immediately following purchase on united.com
- Last minute upgrade at check-in
Additional Charges:
Date/CreditCard XXXX was charged xxx USD for the Merchandising / EDD
xxx USD for: Premium Cabin Upgrade
Date/CreditCard XXXX was charged xxx USD for the Merchandising / EDD
xxx USD for: Premium Cabin Upgrade
**** Due to UA changes in May 2018, this statement may not be relieable ****
**** This now appears to be an Upgrade Fee (no PQDs) and may book into Upgrade fare class (no extra PQMs) or into a mileage earning bonus fare class (PQMs earning). Unclear if that is a way to tell which will happen ****
Generally these will be reflected on the receipt as
Add Collect: An additional amount for the difference in fare was charged to {card} on {date}. $yyy USD per ticket for an additional total of $yyy USD was collected.
For instance, some time of checkin paid upgrades that book into P, will earn PQM bonus but not earn PQDs.
Checking the actual fare basis during booking when you are given access (or using the Saudi site) is key in understanding the outcome.
UA Insider commented on this a while back, but there has been no improvement in the confusion / clarity in the meantime.
Hi Everyone,
I’ve done a little bit of research on this, and I wanted to share some background on the scenario vandrei shared.
At a high level, and as a some of you have noticed more recently in the thread, the buy-up offer we sometimes present immediately upon booking an economy ticket is indeed distinct from the one presented when viewing a reservation in My Account at some point after the flight has been ticketed and confirmed. For example, the offer at booking enables customers to the flexibility to confirm an upgraded seat on a segment-by-segment basis, whereas the one in My Reservations is based on the line of flight.
Additionally, from a functional perspective, the offer immediately upon booking does not change the underlying fare basis for the original purchased fare (even though the visible fare class is reflective of the buy-up inventory), whereas the one in My Reservations results in a complete re-issue of the existing ticket. It is this aspect of the functionality which drives mileage accrual, which is based on the original purchased fare for the offer immediately after booking, but based on the new fare class for the offer in My Reservations. These policies are disclosed in each offer’s respective (and indeed, different) terms and conditions.
Longer-term, the vision is indeed to align mileage accrual policies between the two types of offers. In the meantime, the tradeoff between the two offers continues to be one of additional miles vs. the flexibility to confirm on a segment-by-segment basis.
Aaron Goldberg
Sr. Manager - Customer Experience Planning
United Airlines
I’ve done a little bit of research on this, and I wanted to share some background on the scenario vandrei shared.
At a high level, and as a some of you have noticed more recently in the thread, the buy-up offer we sometimes present immediately upon booking an economy ticket is indeed distinct from the one presented when viewing a reservation in My Account at some point after the flight has been ticketed and confirmed. For example, the offer at booking enables customers to the flexibility to confirm an upgraded seat on a segment-by-segment basis, whereas the one in My Reservations is based on the line of flight.
Additionally, from a functional perspective, the offer immediately upon booking does not change the underlying fare basis for the original purchased fare (even though the visible fare class is reflective of the buy-up inventory), whereas the one in My Reservations results in a complete re-issue of the existing ticket. It is this aspect of the functionality which drives mileage accrual, which is based on the original purchased fare for the offer immediately after booking, but based on the new fare class for the offer in My Reservations. These policies are disclosed in each offer’s respective (and indeed, different) terms and conditions.
Longer-term, the vision is indeed to align mileage accrual policies between the two types of offers. In the meantime, the tradeoff between the two offers continues to be one of additional miles vs. the flexibility to confirm on a segment-by-segment basis.
Aaron Goldberg
Sr. Manager - Customer Experience Planning
United Airlines
Some Paid Upgrades Count Towards PQD & mileage bonus and some DON'T!
Jun 27, 2013, 12:32 pm
#136
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Honolulu Harbor
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 15,026
Buy-ups are not always ToDs, and if you read the response, they do not necessarily book into F (but they might, if that's all that's left).
Jun 27, 2013, 12:35 pm
#137
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
So based on United's website, there *may* be bonus PQM/RDM depending on what fare class this would book into. Problem is, I don't see any indication of what that fare class would be in my case...
Originally Posted by united.com
Buy Up
Fees/Cost: No change fee — just pay the fare difference
Availability: No capacity restrictions — buy any available seats
MileagePlus Earnings: Bonus award miles and Premier Qualifying earnings based on the new fare. See Chart
Waitlist/Standby: Waitlist permitted only for unrestricted fares
Upgrade Using Award Miles
Fees/Cost: Miles + service fee up to $600 each way on applicable fares
Availability: Limited availability, capacity restricted
MileagePlus Earnings: Award miles and Premier Qualifying earnings based on original fare before upgrade. See Chart
Waitlist/Standby: Waitlist and airport standby permitted
Fees/Cost: No change fee — just pay the fare difference
Availability: No capacity restrictions — buy any available seats
MileagePlus Earnings: Bonus award miles and Premier Qualifying earnings based on the new fare. See Chart
Waitlist/Standby: Waitlist permitted only for unrestricted fares
Upgrade Using Award Miles
Fees/Cost: Miles + service fee up to $600 each way on applicable fares
Availability: Limited availability, capacity restricted
MileagePlus Earnings: Award miles and Premier Qualifying earnings based on original fare before upgrade. See Chart
Waitlist/Standby: Waitlist and airport standby permitted
Jun 27, 2013, 12:35 pm
#138
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Honolulu Harbor
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 15,026
I don't recall seeing what class I was buying into until I actually bought it, but maybe it was on the accept and confirm page. Wasn't really looking for it, though. Had to accompany mom, who was travelling on F award ticket. CPU on one leg looked impossible, so I just took the offer.
Jun 27, 2013, 12:39 pm
#139
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
Figured it out -- if you click on the "non-refundable" link on the page after saying "upgrade", it gives you the new fare rules. In this case, it would be a V-UP (V2UP14N3) fare, so no bonus PQM I believe...
To clarify, this is the second page you would come to (the first being the one on which you select to upgrade, the second being the payment page...).
To clarify, this is the second page you would come to (the first being the one on which you select to upgrade, the second being the payment page...).
Jun 27, 2013, 12:46 pm
#140
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Honolulu Harbor
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 15,026
Figured it out -- if you click on the "non-refundable" link on the page after saying "upgrade", it gives you the new fare rules. In this case, it would be a V-UP (V2UP14N3) fare, so no bonus PQM I believe...
To clarify, this is the second page you would come to (the first being the one on which you select to upgrade, the second being the payment page...).
To clarify, this is the second page you would come to (the first being the one on which you select to upgrade, the second being the payment page...).
Jun 27, 2013, 12:58 pm
#141
Join Date: May 2009
Location: IND || CMI
Programs: AA EXP 1M, Marriott LT Platinum, Hyatt Platinum, Hilton Gold, Hertz President Circle
Posts: 631
Having had to switch from beloved AA to UA last November, and having to start over with status level (I did a status match with CO in 2008 which prevented me from swapping over in case you wonder) .... I have had to do this silly buyup thing to try to help accelerate my EQM push due to the regionals I have been living on ... this is what happens ...
1. Book travel in a LLF fashion with a travel agent (e.g. concur) lets say H fare
2. Login into United and follow the buy up to first
3. United takes ownership of the ticket and revises you fare class and ticket from H to B if you are PP->John Q Premier, and M if you are GS/1K
4. United auto-upgrades you and updates the final receipt with the final fare class (which is fun to explain to accounting folks that you "didn't break LLF rules" ...
So the side effects of this are if you are GS/1K United is giving you a $$$ break on the upgrade but you lose the 1.5 PQM boost, but if you aren't you are getting it and paying more for it ... On my flights the $$$ spread difference is $30-$230 for M / B ....
Hope that helps!
+-ADT
1. Book travel in a LLF fashion with a travel agent (e.g. concur) lets say H fare
2. Login into United and follow the buy up to first
3. United takes ownership of the ticket and revises you fare class and ticket from H to B if you are PP->John Q Premier, and M if you are GS/1K
4. United auto-upgrades you and updates the final receipt with the final fare class (which is fun to explain to accounting folks that you "didn't break LLF rules" ...
So the side effects of this are if you are GS/1K United is giving you a $$$ break on the upgrade but you lose the 1.5 PQM boost, but if you aren't you are getting it and paying more for it ... On my flights the $$$ spread difference is $30-$230 for M / B ....
Hope that helps!
+-ADT
Jun 27, 2013, 12:59 pm
#142
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: DEN
Programs: United Premier 1K, Marriott Platinum, Frontier, Delta, Hertz Gold, National Emerald Club
Posts: 928
Figured it out -- if you click on the "non-refundable" link on the page after saying "upgrade", it gives you the new fare rules. In this case, it would be a V-UP (V2UP14N3) fare, so no bonus PQM I believe...
To clarify, this is the second page you would come to (the first being the one on which you select to upgrade, the second being the payment page...).
To clarify, this is the second page you would come to (the first being the one on which you select to upgrade, the second being the payment page...).
BTW . . . good catch on the "non-refundable" link. That's the ONLY way to know what your new fare basis is, and it is NOT obvious.
A good indication of whether you get the bonus or not is if you get issued a new ticket number. Then it is a legit Buy Up, and Not a Paid Upgrade (aka TOD).
And . . . it is good you double checked before buying. There is a chance that the Buy Up would be into M (for 1K) or Y/B for others for the Instant Upgrade route to the Buy Up, and those have different bonus levels than P. M has no bonus, for example.
It is not straightforward, but looks like you will be booking into P and getting the bonus.
I'll post up my result in the near future. I too got this offer IAD-DEN from E class. Only fair, because E class was some big $$$, and that was the cheapest they had for the days I needed to fly. Might as well be a FC ticket.
Jun 27, 2013, 1:36 pm
#143
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Honolulu Harbor
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 15,026
Jun 27, 2013, 1:41 pm
#144
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
No, V-UP *should* book you into P. There is no fare basis starting with P on United, yet there IS a P fare class. I have cross-referenced some other threads on FT on this exact matter, and V-UP fare should get you the bonuses.
BTW . . . good catch on the "non-refundable" link. That's the ONLY way to know what your new fare basis is, and it is NOT obvious.
A good indication of whether you get the bonus or not is if you get issued a new ticket number. Then it is a legit Buy Up, and Not a Paid Upgrade (aka TOD).
And . . . it is good you double checked before buying. There is a chance that the Buy Up would be into M (for 1K) or Y/B for others for the Instant Upgrade route to the Buy Up, and those have different bonus levels than P. M has no bonus, for example.
It is not straightforward, but looks like you will be booking into P and getting the bonus.
I'll post up my result in the near future. I too got this offer IAD-DEN from E class. Only fair, because E class was some big $$$, and that was the cheapest they had for the days I needed to fly. Might as well be a FC ticket.
BTW . . . good catch on the "non-refundable" link. That's the ONLY way to know what your new fare basis is, and it is NOT obvious.
A good indication of whether you get the bonus or not is if you get issued a new ticket number. Then it is a legit Buy Up, and Not a Paid Upgrade (aka TOD).
And . . . it is good you double checked before buying. There is a chance that the Buy Up would be into M (for 1K) or Y/B for others for the Instant Upgrade route to the Buy Up, and those have different bonus levels than P. M has no bonus, for example.
It is not straightforward, but looks like you will be booking into P and getting the bonus.
I'll post up my result in the near future. I too got this offer IAD-DEN from E class. Only fair, because E class was some big $$$, and that was the cheapest they had for the days I needed to fly. Might as well be a FC ticket.
Yeah, E fares on DEN-IAD are crazy. It's all that's being offered for the direct flights, and is $640ish each way! On the way out I'm connecting in order to save some $$, but I had to take the late departure (1010pm) on the return, so no other options there.
Jun 27, 2013, 1:53 pm
#145
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
Just pulled the trigger and it is showing P as the fare class. Hope that the bonuses post as they should!
Jun 27, 2013, 2:58 pm
#146
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: PDX (wish I was in HNL)
Programs: Platinum
Posts: 1,687
"Hello Mr. frankmu,
We’re always glad to hear from Premier Platinum members like you. Thanks for writing.
I went back to your original travel record and your travel was originally booked in "Q" class of service and then upgraded.
Mileage is earned according to the booking code purchased. Upgrades to the front cabin do not earn fare class bonus miles or additional Premier qualifying miles or segments. This includes Complimentary Premier Upgrades, Mileage Upgrade Awards and upgrades purchased on the day of departure, even when a co-pay or fee is paid.
Thanks for participating in the MileagePlus® program!
Regards,
XXXX XXXX
MileagePlus® Service Director"
Jun 27, 2013, 3:41 pm
#147
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: DEN
Programs: United Premier 1K, Marriott Platinum, Frontier, Delta, Hertz Gold, National Emerald Club
Posts: 928
Sorry, won't work. Here's an email I received recently:
"Hello Mr. frankmu,
We’re always glad to hear from Premier Platinum members like you. Thanks for writing.
I went back to your original travel record and your travel was originally booked in "Q" class of service and then upgraded.
Mileage is earned according to the booking code purchased. Upgrades to the front cabin do not earn fare class bonus miles or additional Premier qualifying miles or segments. This includes Complimentary Premier Upgrades, Mileage Upgrade Awards and upgrades purchased on the day of departure, even when a co-pay or fee is paid.
Thanks for participating in the MileagePlus® program!
Regards,
XXXX XXXX
MileagePlus® Service Director"
"Hello Mr. frankmu,
We’re always glad to hear from Premier Platinum members like you. Thanks for writing.
I went back to your original travel record and your travel was originally booked in "Q" class of service and then upgraded.
Mileage is earned according to the booking code purchased. Upgrades to the front cabin do not earn fare class bonus miles or additional Premier qualifying miles or segments. This includes Complimentary Premier Upgrades, Mileage Upgrade Awards and upgrades purchased on the day of departure, even when a co-pay or fee is paid.
Thanks for participating in the MileagePlus® program!
Regards,
XXXX XXXX
MileagePlus® Service Director"
UA CS is very confused about their own UG policy.
If it was a Paid Upgrade . . . ie . . . you got the pop up offering an upgrade, that's a TOD, and in the terms and conditions on that very page, it'll tell you get the original class of service bonus. That's simply because you didn't actually buy up and you didn't get a new ticket issued. You just paid a discounted rate, and are now sitting in F.
If you did a Buy Up, you can even see the difference from a link saying "What's the difference?" explaining a buy up versus upgrading with miles or points (which does always earn original class PQM, etc).
FOR A BUY UP, YOU EARN NEW CLASS OF SERVICE PQM, etc.
Didn't mean to shout, but UA CS screws this up constantly . . . and also personally in at least one instance with me.
It took me at least 5 emails before someone said "oops". And corrected things.
So, for PAID UPGRADE, the CS agent is right (no new ticket or new fare class, you would see "Zx" as your fare class).
For BUY UP, it is a new ticket, and the new fare class (However, the fare class may be M if you are a 1K), for instance, which only earns 100%.
My advice is to email or call them again. REFER to your NEW ticket number (hopefully, you have it), and tell them you did not receive your correct miles based on your fare class. Don't even mention that you did any sort of upgrade.
If you say "I paid for an upgrade" or similar, then that confuses them (for good reason . . . it is confusing!), and you get the response you received, even if it was a legit buy-up.
I hope this helps. Don't give up here!
Jun 28, 2013, 11:44 am
#148
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DEN
Programs: UA 1K (MM), DL, AA, AS, HHonors, SPG, Kimpton, Hyatt, IC PC, Marriott Titanium (LT PLT), Hertz PC
Posts: 7,231
Jun 28, 2013, 12:39 pm
#149
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: PDX (wish I was in HNL)
Programs: Platinum
Posts: 1,687
I've seen this exact note before . . . on my own Buy Up!
UA CS is very confused about their own UG policy.
If it was a Paid Upgrade . . . ie . . . you got the pop up offering an upgrade, that's a TOD, and in the terms and conditions on that very page, it'll tell you get the original class of service bonus. That's simply because you didn't actually buy up and you didn't get a new ticket issued. You just paid a discounted rate, and are now sitting in F.
If you did a Buy Up, you can even see the difference from a link saying "What's the difference?" explaining a buy up versus upgrading with miles or points (which does always earn original class PQM, etc).
FOR A BUY UP, YOU EARN NEW CLASS OF SERVICE PQM, etc.
Didn't mean to shout, but UA CS screws this up constantly . . . and also personally in at least one instance with me.
It took me at least 5 emails before someone said "oops". And corrected things.
So, for PAID UPGRADE, the CS agent is right (no new ticket or new fare class, you would see "Zx" as your fare class).
For BUY UP, it is a new ticket, and the new fare class (However, the fare class may be M if you are a 1K), for instance, which only earns 100%.
My advice is to email or call them again. REFER to your NEW ticket number (hopefully, you have it), and tell them you did not receive your correct miles based on your fare class. Don't even mention that you did any sort of upgrade.
If you say "I paid for an upgrade" or similar, then that confuses them (for good reason . . . it is confusing!), and you get the response you received, even if it was a legit buy-up.
I hope this helps. Don't give up here!
UA CS is very confused about their own UG policy.
If it was a Paid Upgrade . . . ie . . . you got the pop up offering an upgrade, that's a TOD, and in the terms and conditions on that very page, it'll tell you get the original class of service bonus. That's simply because you didn't actually buy up and you didn't get a new ticket issued. You just paid a discounted rate, and are now sitting in F.
If you did a Buy Up, you can even see the difference from a link saying "What's the difference?" explaining a buy up versus upgrading with miles or points (which does always earn original class PQM, etc).
FOR A BUY UP, YOU EARN NEW CLASS OF SERVICE PQM, etc.
Didn't mean to shout, but UA CS screws this up constantly . . . and also personally in at least one instance with me.
It took me at least 5 emails before someone said "oops". And corrected things.
So, for PAID UPGRADE, the CS agent is right (no new ticket or new fare class, you would see "Zx" as your fare class).
For BUY UP, it is a new ticket, and the new fare class (However, the fare class may be M if you are a 1K), for instance, which only earns 100%.
My advice is to email or call them again. REFER to your NEW ticket number (hopefully, you have it), and tell them you did not receive your correct miles based on your fare class. Don't even mention that you did any sort of upgrade.
If you say "I paid for an upgrade" or similar, then that confuses them (for good reason . . . it is confusing!), and you get the response you received, even if it was a legit buy-up.
I hope this helps. Don't give up here!
Jun 28, 2013, 1:25 pm
#150
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: DEN
Programs: United Premier 1K, Marriott Platinum, Frontier, Delta, Hertz Gold, National Emerald Club
Posts: 928
GOOD NEWS -- V-UP earned 150%
So my miles and segments did post at 150%.
It shows P class on the summary
Again, I did the "Buy Up" from the "My Reservations" link in UA. It was not a pop up. The Help there explains that "Buy Ups" earn the new fare class PQM and PQS.
My new fare basis was: V2UP14N3. My Original fare basis was: EA0CN.
SO . . . I would say that the IAD-DEN Buy Up will certainly earn 1.5x miles/segments, as was in my case.
It shows P class on the summary
Again, I did the "Buy Up" from the "My Reservations" link in UA. It was not a pop up. The Help there explains that "Buy Ups" earn the new fare class PQM and PQS.
My new fare basis was: V2UP14N3. My Original fare basis was: EA0CN.
SO . . . I would say that the IAD-DEN Buy Up will certainly earn 1.5x miles/segments, as was in my case.