alex_b

Interesting point to note, my wife was given 10k miles for not being upgraded out of SAN earlier this month when I complained. I wasn't actually looking for compensation; I wrote really to try and get a straight answer on what the rules really were and to point out that SAN staff really ought to know these rules by now (i.e. not say "companions never get upgraded").

The key passage from United's email seems to be:
Our Technical team is aware of the issues some passengers are experiencing in regards to upgrading their reservations. As you are aware, United and Continental had combined our reservations system back in March. While the technology migration went well and a lot of the issues we were experiencing then have been corrected, we are still working diligently to fix all of the issues affecting our reservations system. I assure you that it is our top priority to fix the issues with upgrades and we genuinely appreciate your patience and understanding during this challenging transition. We are truly sorry for the inconvenience and disappointment you and your wife experienced. I assure you that your concerns have not gone unheard as I have forwarded your comments to our Senior Management team for an internal review to ensure service improvements.

At least this suggests that they know the process isn't working as it should, it would be nice if UAInsider explained exactly how it is supposed to work so that we can feed examples of when it is broken to her for examination.

WineCountryUA

That certainty was the PMCO way but we have inconsistent anecdotal reports on what the actual practice is. The website info is sufficently vague to be either

mjg59

Are you considered to be on the same reservation once the PNR has been split?

johnden

I'm also curious what happens when an itinerary is split.

A companion(silver) and I(1k) were booked IAD-DXB using GPU upgrades. At T-24, my companion was split into a new record. We both ended up far down the wait list as silvers. I know this because a silver using miles+copay above us was upgraded to J and sat next to my companion. I have no idea why we were split and I do not know why we were both waitlisted below a silver using miles+copay.

I did not get the upgrade due to gate agent error. My companion and at least one other silver got the upgrade. I also lost my E+ seat and ended up in E-, so in a way I was downgraded The gate agent apologized after accusing me of calling to force the upgrade (I have never called about an upgrade).

haddon90

mom is premier silver...flew with my dad this past weekend. didn't even show up on the UG list. not sure what was up with that.

stephenmwiz

Hows it work if you decide not to split. Im premier Gold and flying with my wife. I decided not to split when asked at checkin (T24h) if I wanted too. Neither me nor my wife are listed on the upgrade wait list. Do you loose your upgrade eligibility if you decide not to split with your companion?

kozykritter

Yes. If you decline the split, your record is marked "No Elite Upgrade" in UA's system for the rest of your itinerary's flights.

Say Vandelay

How about if you are upgraded at the window for the outbound on one PNR and then asked to split it during checkin? Will it be "No Elite Upgrade" for the return or will you lose your upgrade? I don't know why if both the elite and companion are upgraded at the window (which I have been), why it ever needs to split...

earlson

If both are elite members, do you need to split to get on the upgrade list?

aacharya

Once you've been upgraded, you've been split. Then you and your companion would normally both go on the EUA list (though on the return the companion is below all others with your status).

If you say no at bag check, not sure what will happens.

The split v. no split is when there are more than one other pax on the res.

No.

But better to split Elites (if same status) so you'll upgrade during the window.

zoegksf

With all due respect to UAInsider, I doubt UA will ever address this publicly. These problems have been going on for months since 3/3 if not years on PMCO. They think it's fine. I personally have emailed UAInsider on 2 separate occasions with perfect examples of how the system is broken only to receive a reply that really had nothing to due with the problem. I have a feeling once he/she figures out it's a SHARES glitch they go silent.

milemonkey

Although UA policy states my non-status companion is supposed to piggyback off of my Gold status I understand that still is not happening. Since I do not want to split the PNR does that mean we both won't be upgraded?

Should I not check-in or call to keep us upgrade eligible on the same PNR?

Also, would wait listing using miles have higher priority over CPUs?

doug_999

Ok, on my flight out to LAS, we both got upgraded (I'm gold she has not status). While checking in it asked me if I wanted to be added to the upgrade list - even though WE were already upgraded. I said NO, because I did not want to split us apart. Now for the flight home, we have not been upgraded, was that because I said NO?

My point being, you have the chance to both get upgraded at the 48 hour window (based on my status), but after that you go individual or no upgrade?

dbaker

Has anyone experienced a pre-24h (e.g., a CPU email) with a companion?

I'm a 1K and have a trip coming up with a non-elite as well as another trip coming up with a gold. Not sure if I should realistically expect an upgrade in either situation or split the res or what.

doug_999

So I answer No to the upgrade question and now the Ms. (no status) is on the list and I'm not!