Changes to *A Awards Without Incurring Additional Miles after 3-Feb-2014
Sep 14, 2014, 7:55 pm
#751
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Washington, D.C.
Posts: 535
Was just successful in getting a date and routing change to a pre-devaluation one-way award. Change was:
October 2014
IAD-NRT (NH F)
NRT-SIN (NH J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
--to--
July 2015
JFK-ICN (OZ F)
ICN-SIN (OZ J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
Change took about 20 minutes as the SQ segment had to be manually priced to calculate the taxes, but ticket was re-issued for the same 80,000 miles and $20 in additional taxes. Very helpful and friendly agent, so I am quite pleased with the entire process. ^
As an aside, the IAD-NRT NH F segment I had on October 5th went back into "O" inventory if anyone is looking for award space on that date.
October 2014
IAD-NRT (NH F)
NRT-SIN (NH J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
--to--
July 2015
JFK-ICN (OZ F)
ICN-SIN (OZ J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
Change took about 20 minutes as the SQ segment had to be manually priced to calculate the taxes, but ticket was re-issued for the same 80,000 miles and $20 in additional taxes. Very helpful and friendly agent, so I am quite pleased with the entire process. ^
As an aside, the IAD-NRT NH F segment I had on October 5th went back into "O" inventory if anyone is looking for award space on that date.
Sep 14, 2014, 8:40 pm
#752
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: So Cal
Programs: UA Gold/0.744MM, WN AL, Hyatt Diamond, MR Scum, Hertz PC, National Exec, Avis PC
Posts: 5,561
Was just successful in getting a date and routing change to a pre-devaluation one-way award. Change was:
October 2014
IAD-NRT (NH F)
NRT-SIN (NH J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
--to--
July 2015
JFK-ICN (OZ F)
ICN-SIN (OZ J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
Change took about 20 minutes as the SQ segment had to be manually priced to calculate the taxes, but ticket was re-issued for the same 80,000 miles and $20 in additional taxes. Very helpful and friendly agent, so I am quite pleased with the entire process. ^
As an aside, the IAD-NRT NH F segment I had on October 5th went back into "O" inventory if anyone is looking for award space on that date.
October 2014
IAD-NRT (NH F)
NRT-SIN (NH J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
--to--
July 2015
JFK-ICN (OZ F)
ICN-SIN (OZ J)
SIN-MLE (SQ J)
Change took about 20 minutes as the SQ segment had to be manually priced to calculate the taxes, but ticket was re-issued for the same 80,000 miles and $20 in additional taxes. Very helpful and friendly agent, so I am quite pleased with the entire process. ^
As an aside, the IAD-NRT NH F segment I had on October 5th went back into "O" inventory if anyone is looking for award space on that date.
Sep 14, 2014, 11:16 pm
#753
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: SFO/SJC
Programs: AMEX PLT, AA PPro, Spire AMB
Posts: 1,617
+1
Just helped my friend move their SJC-NRT-SJC from this month to March, 2015 and even made the change online to SFO-ICN-NRT-SFO, stopover in korea and destination in NRT.
Just helped my friend move their SJC-NRT-SJC from this month to March, 2015 and even made the change online to SFO-ICN-NRT-SFO, stopover in korea and destination in NRT.
Sep 15, 2014, 9:37 pm
#754
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: U.K.
Programs: QR P; HH D; IHG SpAmb
Posts: 774
Just had the last part of an SIN-BKK-VTE (TG/I), VTE-BKK-HKG (TG/I), HKG-BKK-SIN (TG/I) changed to HKG-SIN direct (SQ/I, same day) without any problems and just a bit of a wait to "check if taxes change" (which i knew wouldn't).
Quite a difference from having the same changes done to other itineraries a couple of months ago which always required escalation to a supervision who then processed the changes "as a one-time exception".
Quite a difference from having the same changes done to other itineraries a couple of months ago which always required escalation to a supervision who then processed the changes "as a one-time exception".
Sep 16, 2014, 6:12 am
#755
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: NYC and SFO
Programs: UA 1MM (former 1K, Delta Platinum))
Posts: 1,244
I booked an international business award with mixed availability for my wife back at the old award levels, on Air Canada. Last week I noticed availability in saver business on the first 2:45 commuter leg SFO - YYC, where she had been in coach but had already paid (in old miles) for business.
In a gentler era they would have been letting me know that she had cleared a waitlist they had automatically set up at the time of our original booking. Ha! But I phoned in, and an agent happily made the change, for a modest increase in taxes but no change in award miles. I saved a PDF of the new receipt documenting the change, showing that United had accepted the same miles and new fees.
As it happens, there had been just barely 50,000 miles in her account, not the 70,000 this award would require now. A later review (computer or human, who knows) tried and failed to claim the additional 20,000 miles from her account, then contacted us to let us know that our ticket was in jeopardy.
I managed after a long hold to have the transaction honored as originally executed. It would be hard to imagine getting a call after purchasing a ticket, insisting on more money (but then, there's the best line from the Simpsons movie: "So far!"). Somehow United wanted to view this as different.
I can only imagine what the fight would have been like to get her miles back, had she had the extra 20,000 in her account. Here, there were few options, and they weren't about to wreck a long-planned trip.
In a gentler era they would have been letting me know that she had cleared a waitlist they had automatically set up at the time of our original booking. Ha! But I phoned in, and an agent happily made the change, for a modest increase in taxes but no change in award miles. I saved a PDF of the new receipt documenting the change, showing that United had accepted the same miles and new fees.
As it happens, there had been just barely 50,000 miles in her account, not the 70,000 this award would require now. A later review (computer or human, who knows) tried and failed to claim the additional 20,000 miles from her account, then contacted us to let us know that our ticket was in jeopardy.
I managed after a long hold to have the transaction honored as originally executed. It would be hard to imagine getting a call after purchasing a ticket, insisting on more money (but then, there's the best line from the Simpsons movie: "So far!"). Somehow United wanted to view this as different.
I can only imagine what the fight would have been like to get her miles back, had she had the extra 20,000 in her account. Here, there were few options, and they weren't about to wreck a long-planned trip.
Sep 17, 2014, 6:03 am
#756
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: LBB
Programs: UA 1K 1MM ★G | Marriott LTT | Hilton ♦ | Hertz PC | Global Entry TSA Pre ✓
Posts: 2,820
I booked an international business award with mixed availability for my wife back at the old award levels, on Air Canada. Last week I noticed availability in saver business on the first 2:45 commuter leg SFO - YYC, where she had been in coach but had already paid (in old miles) for business.
In a gentler era they would have been letting me know that she had cleared a waitlist they had automatically set up at the time of our original booking. Ha! But I phoned in, and an agent happily made the change, for a modest increase in taxes but no change in award miles. I saved a PDF of the new receipt documenting the change, showing that United had accepted the same miles and new fees.
As it happens, there had been just barely 50,000 miles in her account, not the 70,000 this award would require now. A later review (computer or human, who knows) tried and failed to claim the additional 20,000 miles from her account, then contacted us to let us know that our ticket was in jeopardy.
I managed after a long hold to have the transaction honored as originally executed. It would be hard to imagine getting a call after purchasing a ticket, insisting on more money (but then, there's the best line from the Simpsons movie: "So far!"). Somehow United wanted to view this as different.
I can only imagine what the fight would have been like to get her miles back, had she had the extra 20,000 in her account. Here, there were few options, and they weren't about to wreck a long-planned trip.
In a gentler era they would have been letting me know that she had cleared a waitlist they had automatically set up at the time of our original booking. Ha! But I phoned in, and an agent happily made the change, for a modest increase in taxes but no change in award miles. I saved a PDF of the new receipt documenting the change, showing that United had accepted the same miles and new fees.
As it happens, there had been just barely 50,000 miles in her account, not the 70,000 this award would require now. A later review (computer or human, who knows) tried and failed to claim the additional 20,000 miles from her account, then contacted us to let us know that our ticket was in jeopardy.
I managed after a long hold to have the transaction honored as originally executed. It would be hard to imagine getting a call after purchasing a ticket, insisting on more money (but then, there's the best line from the Simpsons movie: "So far!"). Somehow United wanted to view this as different.
I can only imagine what the fight would have been like to get her miles back, had she had the extra 20,000 in her account. Here, there were few options, and they weren't about to wreck a long-planned trip.
I am not sure why they tried to tear away an extra 20,000 miles. It sounds like a mistake on UA's part
The key is to not cancel the ticket and redeposit the miles. Then all bets are off... that would be like forfeiting miles back to the airline since the new award fares would require more miles.
Now, I wish I had booked more place-holder tickets prior to the change. Oh well.
Sep 17, 2014, 8:36 am
#757
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: PDX
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Plat
Posts: 11,500
May I ask how you were able to get UA to extend the ticket validity? I redeemed miles on January 30 for a trip to Asia in F but due to an Air China schedule change I lose two days of the trip and I want to reschedule for some time in 2015 (March would work well). I am being told that my ticket is only valid until January 30, 2015 and that I can't book anything past that date.
Sep 17, 2014, 9:39 am
#758
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: SFO/SJC
Programs: AMEX PLT, AA PPro, Spire AMB
Posts: 1,617
May I ask how you were able to get UA to extend the ticket validity? I redeemed miles on January 30 for a trip to Asia in F but due to an Air China schedule change I lose two days of the trip and I want to reschedule for some time in 2015 (March would work well). I am being told that my ticket is only valid until January 30, 2015 and that I can't book anything past that date.
Sep 17, 2014, 12:20 pm
#759
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Los Angeles / Basel
Programs: UA 1K MM, AA EXP, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 26,926
May I ask how you were able to get UA to extend the ticket validity? I redeemed miles on January 30 for a trip to Asia in F but due to an Air China schedule change I lose two days of the trip and I want to reschedule for some time in 2015 (March would work well). I am being told that my ticket is only valid until January 30, 2015 and that I can't book anything past that date.
Sep 18, 2014, 7:36 am
#760
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: PDX
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Plat
Posts: 11,500
All because of schedule change out of my control.
Sep 19, 2014, 8:55 am
#761
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: WAS
Programs: AA EXP, BA Bronze, TK Elite, Hyatt Diamond, Hilton Gold, Fairmont Premiere, IHG Ambas
Posts: 180
Final LH F burn
Successfully changed this trip: DTW - FRA - NRT // PVG-FRA-IAD in LH F to BOS-MUC-FRA-HND // ICN-FRA-BRU-EWR in LH F/C, OZ F and UA F. My return is more than 2weeks out and will change it to ride LH F home, I wish though I could make a change that includes a departure from another award region at the pre-deval price/upcharge.
First call to MP (no longer 1k since matching to AA) I was told by agent that my changes made my ticket a RTW and I would have to be transferred to Alliance Desk. I reluctantly agreed and, to my surprise, the rest of the process was so much better and the whole thing priced correctly and didn't recalculate taxes or a change fee.
First call to MP (no longer 1k since matching to AA) I was told by agent that my changes made my ticket a RTW and I would have to be transferred to Alliance Desk. I reluctantly agreed and, to my surprise, the rest of the process was so much better and the whole thing priced correctly and didn't recalculate taxes or a change fee.
Sep 19, 2014, 9:47 am
#762
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: UA GS>1K>Nothing; DL DM 2MM; AS 75K>Nothing>MVP
Posts: 9,341
I've had to call in a few times recently. Agents seems pretty competent and very helpful. First time I've been impressed with UA in quite a while.
Sep 19, 2014, 9:49 am
#763
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: SFO/SJC
Programs: AMEX PLT, AA PPro, Spire AMB
Posts: 1,617
Same thing happened to me. In my case, TG cancelled BKK-CDG on Wednesdays, forcing a second stopover in BKK (in addition to my destination in PPT and stopover in CDG). I was changing my CDG-FRA-SFO and to my surprise, they reissued the ticket with no problem.
Sep 19, 2014, 1:00 pm
#764
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: PDX
Programs: DL Plat, UA Plat 1MM, AS MVP, Hyatt Discoverist, Avis Presidents Club, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 3,938
I booked a pre-devaluation ticket for me and my wife to travel to Japan -- picked a random week in October where I could find availability and now that we're actually approaching it schedules no longer permit us to take the trip. A shame too
PDX-SFO-LAX (UA Y
)
LAX-ICN OZ F on A380
ICN-NRT OZ F on 747
KIX-SFO UA C
SFO-PDX UA F
I booked this ticket January 19th 2014. Trying to figure out if there is any sense in trying to rebook this to somewhere else for travel in early January. Knowing its the holidays it seems very unlikely I'd be able to find any availability but would welcome suggestions. Anything I should do other than cancel and redeposit (luckily its free)?
PDX-SFO-LAX (UA Y
)LAX-ICN OZ F on A380
ICN-NRT OZ F on 747
KIX-SFO UA C
SFO-PDX UA F
I booked this ticket January 19th 2014. Trying to figure out if there is any sense in trying to rebook this to somewhere else for travel in early January. Knowing its the holidays it seems very unlikely I'd be able to find any availability but would welcome suggestions. Anything I should do other than cancel and redeposit (luckily its free)?
Sep 19, 2014, 2:08 pm
#765
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: SFO/SJC
Programs: AMEX PLT, AA PPro, Spire AMB
Posts: 1,617
Can you try and go past January? Can you change the flights online?