Sep 28, 2018, 11:53 am
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Today we’re introducing a few updates for members with MileagePlus Premier® status — some of which are already in effect and some that will come later. These updates include added benefits related to boarding groups and baggage allowances, as well as adjustments to our upgrade structure and Premier 1K® status qualification requirements.
Better boarding
Effective on September 18, 2018
· Premier® 1K® members will be called to board during pre-boarding ahead of Group 1
· Premier Gold members will now board with Boarding Group1, previous in Group 2
Baggage allowance for Premier members
Effective on September 28, 2018:
All Premier® members, regardless of Premier status, will receive the same standard weight allowance for checked baggage: 70 lbs. (32 kg.)
Additionally:
· All Premier members flying in United Business®, United First®, or United Polaris® business class are allowed up to three bags with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. (32 kg) per bag.
· Premier Gold members flying in United Economy® between the U.S. and Europe are allowed three bags with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. (32 kg) per bag.
· Premier Silver members flying in United Economy between the U.S. and Europe are allowed two bags with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. (32 kg) per bag.
Premier qualification requirements
Effective on January 1, 2019:
· Premier qualification dollar (PQD) requirement for Premier 1K status will be raised from $12,000 to $15,000.
· P-class fares will earn 150% Premier qualifying miles (PQM), reduced from 200%.
Premier upgrades
Effective on January 1, 2019:
· The way a Premier 1K member earns additional upgrades will be changing. For every 25,000 Premier qualifying miles (PQM) or 30 Premier qualifying segments (PQS) after qualifying for Premier 1K status, we’ll add one Global Premier Upgrades into your account. No additional Regional Premier Upgrades can be earned after qualifying for Premier 1K status.
More details can be found here: www.mileageplusupdates.com
- UA Insider
Better boarding
Effective on September 18, 2018
· Premier® 1K® members will be called to board during pre-boarding ahead of Group 1
· Premier Gold members will now board with Boarding Group1, previous in Group 2
Baggage allowance for Premier members
Effective on September 28, 2018:
All Premier® members, regardless of Premier status, will receive the same standard weight allowance for checked baggage: 70 lbs. (32 kg.)
Additionally:
· All Premier members flying in United Business®, United First®, or United Polaris® business class are allowed up to three bags with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. (32 kg) per bag.
· Premier Gold members flying in United Economy® between the U.S. and Europe are allowed three bags with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. (32 kg) per bag.
· Premier Silver members flying in United Economy between the U.S. and Europe are allowed two bags with a maximum weight of 70 lbs. (32 kg) per bag.
Premier qualification requirements
Effective on January 1, 2019:
· Premier qualification dollar (PQD) requirement for Premier 1K status will be raised from $12,000 to $15,000.
· P-class fares will earn 150% Premier qualifying miles (PQM), reduced from 200%.
Premier upgrades
Effective on January 1, 2019:
· The way a Premier 1K member earns additional upgrades will be changing. For every 25,000 Premier qualifying miles (PQM) or 30 Premier qualifying segments (PQS) after qualifying for Premier 1K status, we’ll add one Global Premier Upgrades into your account. No additional Regional Premier Upgrades can be earned after qualifying for Premier 1K status.
More details can be found here: www.mileageplusupdates.com
- UA Insider
Good news! I got written confirmation from 1kvoice on the below:
We will honor 200% Premier Qualifying Mile (PQM) accrual for tickets purchased before September 28, 2018 for travel on/after January 1, 2019.
• A manual adjustment to 200% PQM accrual for P-fare flown segments can be made post-departure at the customer’s request.
• Any tickets purchased after September 28, 2018, for travel on/after January 1, 2019 are only eligible to receive 150% PQM accrual.
• A manual adjustment to 200% PQM accrual for P-fare flown segments can be made post-departure at the customer’s request.
• Any tickets purchased after September 28, 2018, for travel on/after January 1, 2019 are only eligible to receive 150% PQM accrual.
Related threads
United's New Boarding Process (with Wiki) [starting 18 Sep 2018]
Partner P fare earning after 1 Jan 2019
Updates to MP Premier Program -1K PQD $15K, P fare 150%, fewer RPU, Bag waiver & more
Sep 30, 2018, 3:15 am
#271
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: PIT
Programs: OZ Diamond, UA Gold
Posts: 9,919
Does the P fare PQM downgrade extend to OAL, like LH, LX, etc?
Sep 30, 2018, 4:35 am
#272
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: 1K, Senator
Posts: 24
Feels like UA 1K is beginning to level out with LH SEN.
Sep 30, 2018, 6:23 am
#273
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2003
Programs: UA*Lifetime GS, Hyatt* Lifetime Globalist
Posts: 12,332
Sep 30, 2018, 6:38 am
#274
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Independent! But mostly BKK, BCN, SFO, PDX, SEA...
Programs: Lawl COVID
Posts: 1,060
Suckers keep buying, y'all keep flying...
Sep 30, 2018, 6:44 am
#275
Join Date: Nov 2017
Programs: United 1K
Posts: 131
I wonder if United is thinning the herd of 1ks in preparation for a Star Alliance status above gold?
Sep 30, 2018, 7:07 am
#276
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Chicago, IL
Programs: UA 1K MM, HHonors Diamond,PC, Marriott Rewards Gold
Posts: 1,117
W
Marriott seems to have already done this. As a 1K I just received Platinum status with zero stays (but added three stays in the last few weeks as a result of this discovery).
Additional thoughts:
1. Will UA give 150% PQM for after-purchase paid upgrades that book into P? Right now it requires reticketing into a premium fare, and that process can be an issue for tickets booked through a corporate travel department.
2. What happens to P-fare tickets already booked for 2019, where the receipt shows 200% earning?
3. I wonder if Marriott will take note of the likely reduced 1K numbers and offer Marriott Platinum status to GS and 1K (like Hertz gives President's Circle to GS and 1K)?
1. Will UA give 150% PQM for after-purchase paid upgrades that book into P? Right now it requires reticketing into a premium fare, and that process can be an issue for tickets booked through a corporate travel department.
2. What happens to P-fare tickets already booked for 2019, where the receipt shows 200% earning?
3. I wonder if Marriott will take note of the likely reduced 1K numbers and offer Marriott Platinum status to GS and 1K (like Hertz gives President's Circle to GS and 1K)?
Sep 30, 2018, 7:15 am
#277
Join Date: May 2010
Location: AVP & PEK
Programs: UA 1K 1.8MM
Posts: 6,349
Sep 30, 2018, 7:51 am
#278
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Virginia, USA
Posts: 4,508
UA is the most generous of the major carriers in awarding mid-tier Lifetime Gold at 1mm so a re-alignment seems logical. But I am “certain” UA would grandfather/mother existing LT Golds and not demote them to Silver. There are lots of retiring Boomers who have done a lot of flying over their careers so the 1mm ranks logically will expand.
Sep 30, 2018, 8:10 am
#279
formerly 1984SW
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Merida, Yucatan, Mexico
Programs: UA
Posts: 1,058
Since I missed that communication, what will replace the current R bucket?
Sep 30, 2018, 8:43 am
#280
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,453
If you were Marriott Gold prior to 8/18, that is the correct result and has nothing to do with the UA changes. It will expire February 2019, when you will drop to "new" Marriott Gold.
Sep 30, 2018, 8:45 am
#281
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 57,586
UA is the most generous of the major carriers in awarding mid-tier Lifetime Gold at 1mm so a re-alignment seems logical. But I am “certain” UA would grandfather/mother existing LT Golds and not demote them to Silver. There are lots of retiring Boomers who have done a lot of flying over their careers so the 1mm ranks logically will expand.
Sep 30, 2018, 8:45 am
#282
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: ORD
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 25
Technically they can do anything they want with MP benefits.
I would hope that UA backtracks on this point and grandfathers tickets purchased prior to the announcement. That's how this has consistently been handled in the past and I'm really surprised at how they're handling it this time. It may well be an IT limitation, but that's really no excuse.
I would hope that UA backtracks on this point and grandfathers tickets purchased prior to the announcement. That's how this has consistently been handled in the past and I'm really surprised at how they're handling it this time. It may well be an IT limitation, but that's really no excuse.
Originally 23,036 PQM on the receipt now the reservation shows 17,278 PQM loss of 5758 PQM
Sep 30, 2018, 8:48 am
#283
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,453
Sep 30, 2018, 8:50 am
#284
Join Date: Jul 2013
Programs: DYKWIA, But I'm a "Diamond Guest" UA 1K/2MM
Posts: 2,257
You can't be serious. Recall that the majority of pax experiencing "Polaris" are still flying on the crappy old seats, e.g. 8-across "coffin seats" on 777s. Even if you get the new seats (which are only catching up to seats that other carriers had 5 years ago), you get some of the worst intl on-board fare available -- e.g. <$10 wines and utterly un-inspired entrees.
Good airlines allow you to pre-order food. On United, even if you're IK/GS, you're likely to be asked for your "second choice." Second choice on a $10,000 fare? Give me a break.
And don't even get me started with the service. As a very frequent flier, the recent incident with the FA kicking a baby and mom out of Biz class didn't surprise me one bit. I see slightly lesser variants of that kind of FA behavior on a regular basis. It's really quite incredible.
Sep 30, 2018, 9:03 am
#285
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 11,461
My understanding is that the O,A,R designation for P+ has not been definitively confirmed. However, it is a credible rumor, so I am not expecting to see anything different, just wondering about other possibilities. I may have missed an official communication, though.
Come on, really? They’re getting rid of a perk (RPU) that most find useless and it’s killing you? They’re thinning the ranks across their higher tiers, so there is some semblance of exclusivity to them and you want to walk away - especially when you’re GS. After the merger, they had 2x the people in every tier. That alway happens after mergers as you want to keep everyone happy. The time has come to return some exclusivity to the tiers.
Come on, really? The Polaris product is one of the best in the sky and new Polaris lounges are world class. Economy pricing rivals ULCCs while still giving you E+ seating. RT from SFO to SIN, HKG, CDG for $580, $535, $515. Large companies are rebated 30% of the business fare, so they’re competitive.
Sure, the 12-15K spenders get downgraded but the 15K+ spenders and LT 1K/GS should be quite pleased with reduced competition.
You can't be serious. Recall that the majority of pax experiencing "Polaris" are still flying on the crappy old seats, e.g. 8-across "coffin seats" on 777s. Even if you get the new seats (which are only catching up to seats that other carriers had 5 years ago), you get some of the worst intl on-board fare available -- e.g. <$10 wines and utterly un-inspired entrees.
Good airlines allow you to pre-order food. On United, even if you're IK/GS, you're likely to be asked for your "second choice." Second choice on a $10,000 fare? Give me a break.
And don't even get me started with the service. As a very frequent flier, the recent incident with the FA kicking a baby and mom out of Biz class didn't surprise me one bit. I see slightly lesser variants of that kind of FA behavior on a regular basis. It's really quite incredible.
There is a very long history of people expecting improvement from "thinning of the ranks." The history of them being disappointed is equally long.
Good airlines allow you to pre-order food. On United, even if you're IK/GS, you're likely to be asked for your "second choice." Second choice on a $10,000 fare? Give me a break.
And don't even get me started with the service. As a very frequent flier, the recent incident with the FA kicking a baby and mom out of Biz class didn't surprise me one bit. I see slightly lesser variants of that kind of FA behavior on a regular basis. It's really quite incredible.
There is a very long history of people expecting improvement from "thinning of the ranks." The history of them being disappointed is equally long.
Last edited by fumje; Sep 30, 2018 at 9:08 am Reason: add reply