MP Accounts Closed by UA Alleging Fraud/Misuse
Jul 10, 2017, 2:36 pm
#1156
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.99MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,777
This is all covered in http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unite...hensively.html -- So let's continue the discussion there.
WineCountryUA
UA coModerator
Last edited by WineCountryUA; Jul 10, 2017 at 6:06 pm
Jul 10, 2017, 6:34 pm
#1157
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: RNO
Programs: AA/DL/UA
Posts: 10,766
People who sell miles are selling miles they earned from flying. Those miles are free.
Here are a few things that you can buy but cannot sell:
tap water
cable TV service
internet service
gasoline
airline tickets (the normal ones that you pay money for)
medical advice
legal advice
Jul 10, 2017, 10:03 pm
#1158
Join Date: Jan 2012
Programs: UA Gold MM, HHonors Gold, Hertz Five Star Gold, Marriott Gold, Avis First
Posts: 462
Just to clarify - you can sell tap water. There are a number of companies who bottle tap water and sell that. Not that it matters to discussion at hand
Who in their right mind would buy miles from the airline and then sell them to a broker? I'm not familiar with the exchange rates, but I'm willing to go out on a limb and say that such a transaction would probably be just as un-profitable as buying foreign currency at TravelEx and then turning around and selling the foreign currency back to TravelEx.
People who sell miles are selling miles they earned from flying. Those miles are free.
Here are a few things that you can buy but cannot sell:
tap water
cable TV service
internet service
gasoline
airline tickets (the normal ones that you pay money for)
medical advice
legal advice
People who sell miles are selling miles they earned from flying. Those miles are free.
Here are a few things that you can buy but cannot sell:
tap water
cable TV service
internet service
gasoline
airline tickets (the normal ones that you pay money for)
medical advice
legal advice
Jul 10, 2017, 10:44 pm
#1159
Moderator: Budget Travel forum & Credit Card Programs, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: YYJ/YVR and back on Van Isle ....... for now
Programs: UA lifetime MM / *A Gold
Posts: 14,427
Jul 11, 2017, 10:07 am
#1162
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Houston, TX, USA
Programs: UA 1K, AA Lifetime Platinum, DL Platinum, Honors Diamond, Bonvoy Titanium, Hertz Platinum
Posts: 7,969
Jul 11, 2017, 10:08 am
#1163
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: ATL
Programs: Delta PlM, 1M
Posts: 6,363
Miles are only valuable in bulk quantity. Thus they nudge one to flying all on one (or a small number of) airline.
If they were freely bartered, this would not work as one could swap miles with others to aggregate them.
Jul 11, 2017, 12:23 pm
#1164
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: RNO
Programs: AA/DL/UA
Posts: 10,766
doctors == pilots
passengers == patients
Doctors and pilots have gone to school to gain the education and the right to sell their services to the public. Usually pilots are mere employees, but a group of pilots is free to start up their own airline and sell tickets to the public.
Passengers are not allowed to sell their FF miles, and patients are not allowed to take the medical advice given them and turn around and sell medical advice to other people. You can go to jail for practicing medicine without a license. No one goes to jail for selling FF miles! @:-)
passengers == patients
Doctors and pilots have gone to school to gain the education and the right to sell their services to the public. Usually pilots are mere employees, but a group of pilots is free to start up their own airline and sell tickets to the public.
Passengers are not allowed to sell their FF miles, and patients are not allowed to take the medical advice given them and turn around and sell medical advice to other people. You can go to jail for practicing medicine without a license. No one goes to jail for selling FF miles! @:-)
Jul 11, 2017, 12:50 pm
#1165
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: New York NY
Programs: UA Gold, CO Plat, CO Million Miler
Posts: 2,615
let's get over this silly parsing of what we can sell and what we can't...Let's focus on the fact that UA says you can't sell, period. and what that means...whether or not is should be better communicated, whether or not UA is transparent enough or shouldn't be in regard to FF accounts, how severe the penalties should be, etc. etc.
Aug 19, 2017, 12:10 pm
#1167
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Honolulu Harbor
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 15,004
I'm well off. I'll bend over to pick up a dime off the asphalt. I'm not dumb enough, however, to jeopardize my standing with an airline that provides me with my best travel options.
Aug 19, 2017, 1:44 pm
#1168
Join Date: Nov 2014
Programs: UA 2MM
Posts: 1,679
Also, I have met some 1Ks who have a nice middle class lifestyle, but would not say rich, if they think they could sell a handful for GPUs and make a few thousand dollars for the next vacation they would. Many 1Ks travel a lot for work but are by no means extremely wealthy.
Aug 19, 2017, 2:01 pm
#1169
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: SAN
Programs: 1K (since 2008), *G (since 1990), 1MM
Posts: 3,215
Aug 19, 2017, 2:16 pm
#1170
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Houston
Programs: UA GS 2.6MM & Lifetime UC, Qantas Platinum, Hilton Lifetime Diamond, Bonvoy Platinum, HawaiianMiles
Posts: 8,682