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UA • CONFIRMS • Status Extension to JAN 2022; PQP Thresholds Reduced by ½ for 2020

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Old Mar 6, 2020, 1:30 pm
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Last edit by: WineCountryUA
05April 2020
MileagePlus Status Extended Until 2022

Throughout these unprecedented times, we remain committed to doing what is right and fair for all of our MileagePlus members and are pleased to share the steps we are taking to reciprocate the trust and loyalty that you have placed in United. These steps include not only Premier status updates, but also an extension of current memberships and subscriptions. The updates will happen automatically over the next few weeks — there's nothing you need to do.

The big news: If you have current 2020 Premier status, it will be extended to January 31, 2022. At a minimum, you will enjoy the same published status next year that you have today, up to Premier 1K®.

We're reducing the 2020 Premier qualifying points (PQP) and flight requirements for all tiers by 50%. You'll still need a minimum of four flight segments on United or United Express®.



We're also doubling PQP for United Explorer cards and quadrupling PQP for the United Club cards.

At the same time that we're decreasing the published program's PQP requirements, via a promotion from May 1 – December 31, 2020, we're doubling (for United Explorer cards) or quadrupling (for United Club cards) the maximum number of PQP that Cardmembers can earn during 2020 to help achieve a higher level of status than you already have.

1K® and Platinum members, we're increasing your ability to upgrade by extending PlusPoints expiration dates by six months and expanding Skip Waitlist.
  • This means a six-month extension of any PlusPoints set to expire on or before January 31, 2021.
  • Last year we introduced Skip Waitlist on select flights as a benefit to 1K members, giving you more opportunities to confirm an upgrade request at the time of booking. This benefit will now be available for the rest of 2020 in a significantly expanded selection of long-haul international regions and will have expanded availability in 2021 as well.
We're extending all annual membership and subscription benefits by six months.
  • We want to make sure your benefits are still there when you're ready to start flying again. That's why we're extending purchased United Club℠ memberships and purchased subscriptions for Economy Plus®, United Wi-Fi℠ and checked bags by six months. You should see this reflected in your MileagePlus account soon.
All electronic travel certificates now have 24 months to be used.
  • If your travel plans have been disrupted, and you have an electronic travel certificate from us for the value of your ticket, you now have two years from the date it was issued to book a new flight, as well as up to an additional 11 months to travel. This includes all currently valid and all new electronic travel certificates issued on or after April 1, 2020.
We have removed some redeposit fees for the rest of the year.
  • We are currently waiving all award redeposit fees for travel through end of May 2020.
  • We are now also waiving all redeposit fees for award ticket cancellations made more than 30 days before departure for the remainder of 2020.
Finally, we'll be making it easier to earn status in 2021 for the 2022 program year. We recognize that getting back to travel will occur at a different pace for different members. Keep an eye out for changes we will make to help you earn status in 2021 for 2022, as we'll share details later this year.

Over the years, you have placed your trust and loyalty in United, and we are honored to do the same for you. We are all in this together.

Status extension to January 31, 2022, applies to all members that met the published criteria of the MileagePlus program in 2019, status associated with the United/Marriott RewardsPlus program and status offered as part of a Sales nomination. Status granted from other programs and policies may not apply.
FAQ
With extended status. will we automatically get additional PlusPoints in 2021 (40 for Plats and 280 for 1KsGS?

No, your existing PlusPoints will be extended 6 months but to get additional 2021 PlusPoints you will need to meet the reduced thresholds for 2020

[5 April 2020] Status extended 1 year - United Hub
- Status extended 1 year (expires 1/31/22)
- Plus Points extended 6 months
- Lower qualifying thresholds to gain 2021 status in 2020 (about 50%)

[5 April 2020] United will extend Premier status for 12 months (SF Gate):
United will announce on Sunday that it is extending elite status to MileagePlus Premier members through 2021 and members will retain their current status through January 2022. This follows a similar move by Delta Air Lines on April 4 to extend SkyMiles Medallion elite status to 2021.

A United spokesperson has confirmed this to SFGATE, adding: "We are also going to help both general members and members who want to reach the next status level by lowering thresholds for Premier Qualifying Points (PQP’s) for the 2021 status year."

In addition to the elite status extension, United will extend all its annual subscription options by six months, including United Club memberships, wi-fi, checked bags and EconomyPlus, according to the spokesperson.
-------------

[7 March 2020] A message to our Premier members (email):
At this time, we are not planning any changes for our 2021 Premier program but we will continue to evaluate our options as we learn more about how the current climate is affecting members' activity. In the interim though, we do plan to give members who are participating in a MileagePlus 2020 Premier Status Match Challenge promotion an additional 30 days to complete their challenge. This extension will automatically be reflected in member accounts within the next week.
-------------
Originally Posted by Sykes
There's a good (but not exhaustive) crowdsourced list of company travel restrictions here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...bWhYFM/preview .....
Originally Posted by Fims
Hey there!

As true loyalty is best tested in challenging times, I did a bit of research on how different airlines and hotel programmes have responded:
  • 74 airline loyalty responses (status, miles expiration extensions) and booking flexibility terms (changes and refunds)
  • 18 hotel loyalty responses (status, points expiration extensions) and booking flexibility terms (changes and refunds)
The full outcome is freely available at https://bit.ly/loyalty-response-covid19

Feel free to comment that Google Sheets file and if you have some better insights, let me know (I used only what was available on English-speaking websites and some blog posts I could find, showing emails from the programmes). ....





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UA • CONFIRMS • Status Extension to JAN 2022; PQP Thresholds Reduced by ½ for 2020

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Old Jun 6, 2020, 4:45 pm
  #1066  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 1K, AA EXP, Hyatt Glob, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Plat, Total Wine & More Reserve
Posts: 4,524
Originally Posted by cfischer
makes absolutely no sense. But this is what UA has decided on. Certainly affects my 2H20 travel plans as UA is offering me no additional PPs when I actually fly my $10k ticket ... so I will likely get a refund and book elsewhere instead.
Originally Posted by cfischer
possibly. Could also go AS, not sure yet. No incentive to fly UA; they wanted it that way.
Agree there's little incentive to fly UA.

AA, AS, DL, WN are at least doing something to try to incentivize bookings (seat blocking and/or bonus award miles). Meanwhile it seems UA strategy is higher fares & smaller aircraft.

AS sells a $10k ticket somewhere?
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Old Jun 6, 2020, 8:38 pm
  #1067  
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Originally Posted by econ
AS sells a $10k ticket somewhere?
credit to AS ...
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Old Jun 7, 2020, 8:07 am
  #1068  
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: TX
Programs: UA 1K, Million Miler, BA
Posts: 194
20 PPs v 280 PPs with 1K

Originally Posted by Doppy
I (re-)qualified for 1K under the reduced requirements ($12k PQP), so I already earned the 1K PPs, but they didn't also lower the requirements for additional PPs, so you have to get to $21k PQPs to earn the next 20 PPs. So it's another $9000 in spending (or potentially less if you fly on partners, not that there's much international travel this year) to get the equivalent of one domestic upgrade.

Doesn't make any sense. They should have reduced the requirements to earn additional PPs as well.
Well, the additional 20 PPs are minor league compared to the 280 PPs that 1K earns. And would we really spurn 1K status and fly other carriers for lack of another 20 PPs? I am not sure that makes much sense either, but everybody decides what's best for him or her!
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Old Jun 8, 2020, 7:17 am
  #1069  
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Washington, DC
Programs: UA 1K 1MM, AA, DL
Posts: 7,418
Originally Posted by marklyn
I know there are worse things in the world but we've been scrimping and saving miles and buying miles for 2 years now and pulled the trigger in January 2020 to move to Gold status. Yay!
Then Covid-19 happened.
All of our trips so far this year we'd planned on are cancelled and I'm sure that our Oct Hawaii trip will likely cancel out too due to restrictions.
So we thought we had two years of Gold status for 20/21, and if we're lucky we might get next year but darn it we lost this year
I did read where United was "extending" status's but in our case it didn't help us at all based on when we started Gold status and when the 2 year cycle for it ends.
What trigger did you pull? Were these some credit card PQPs you used?

What you might do is ask, given the situation, if you can switch the benefit years to 2021-2022 instead.
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Old Aug 19, 2020, 9:23 am
  #1070  
 
Join Date: Dec 2019
Location: EWR
Programs: UA 1K, DL DM
Posts: 255
Originally Posted by Doppy
I (re-)qualified for 1K under the reduced requirements ($12k PQP), so I already earned the 1K PPs, but they didn't also lower the requirements for additional PPs, so you have to get to $21k PQPs to earn the next 20 PPs. So it's another $9000 in spending (or potentially less if you fly on partners, not that there's much international travel this year) to get the equivalent of one domestic upgrade.

Doesn't make any sense. They should have reduced the requirements to earn additional PPs as well.
Finally found a thread discussing my question. A few follow-ups, if anyone is kind enough to answer, and don't shoot me if this is covered somewhere else... I did search, promise!

1. I can't find this now, but thought I read somewhere when initial changes were announced, that you can also earn incremental PPs with incremental PQFs. I could totally be wrong, but I thought it was every 24 PQF over a certain number, OR 3,000 PQP over 18,000. Is that wrong?

2. Currently UA says "Members meeting the higher 24,000 PQP goal for 1K will receive 40 additional PlusPoints after reaching 1K for having earned 6,000 PQP beyond the lower 18,000 PQP requirement." I assume this means if you reach 26 PQF + 9,000 PQP, and then meet the 12,000 PQP later, that's still in effect?

Last edited by threecap; Aug 19, 2020 at 9:23 am Reason: spelling
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Old Aug 19, 2020, 10:59 am
  #1071  
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Originally Posted by threecap
1. I can't find this now, but thought I read somewhere when initial changes were announced, that you can also earn incremental PPs with incremental PQFs. I could totally be wrong, but I thought it was every 24 PQF over a certain number, OR 3,000 PQP over 18,000. Is that wrong?
20 PlusPoints for every 3,000 PQP over 18,000, provided that you reach 1K (not an issue this year, but under the original plan, it was possible to have 21,000 PQP and be Platinum, if you didn't have enough PQF). It is not possible to earn bonus PQP based on any specific number of PQFs.

Originally Posted by threecap
2. Currently UA says "Members meeting the higher 24,000 PQP goal for 1K will receive 40 additional PlusPoints after reaching 1K for having earned 6,000 PQP beyond the lower 18,000 PQP requirement." I assume this means if you reach 26 PQF + 9,000 PQP, and then meet the 12,000 PQP later, that's still in effect?
They did not lower the thresholds for incremental PQP. If you reach 26 PQF + 9,000 PQP, and then get to 12,000 PQP, there are no additional PlusPoints for doing so. The first incremental PlusPoints kick in at 21,000 PQP.
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Old Sep 7, 2020, 1:44 pm
  #1072  
exp
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No change fee is for domestic right?

A lot of MP elites qualify by accumulating a lot of miles on international flights, so the change fee would be irrelevant to them.
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Old Sep 7, 2020, 4:04 pm
  #1073  
Moderator: United Airlines
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
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Originally Posted by exp
No change fee is for domestic right?
...
And international if purchased before 31 Dec 2020
For tickets issued between April 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020, customers will be permitted to change without paying a change fee to a flight of equal or lesser value for travel up to 12 months from the original ticket issue date.
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Old Sep 11, 2020, 12:28 pm
  #1074  
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My work travel alone has gone from 1K levels to absolute zer. I don't see my work travel changing any time soon.
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Old Sep 26, 2020, 1:53 pm
  #1075  
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Join Date: Jun 2007
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Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
...
2. All these 1Ks will be awarded a fresh allocation of PPs in Jan 21
.... .
Beleive you have to "earn" at the reduced levels new PlusPoints
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Old Sep 26, 2020, 1:57 pm
  #1076  
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Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
I doubt you'll see many STW offers till 2022. Currently, there are a huge number of plus points in the ecosystem for a variety of reasons:

1. The scheduled 2020 1K culling didn't happen as they were extended till Jan 22
2. All these 1Ks will be awarded a fresh allocation of PPs in Jan 21
3. Additionally, the 2020 PPs were unused by most and have been extended till July 31, 2021.

Interestingly, the 7 months between Jan 21 and July 21 will see more upgrade currency in the UA ecosystem than at any point in UA's history. UA simply cannot afford to allow all this upgrade currency to take seats away from paying J passengers.

So the bottom line is STW (and far-out PZ) will be rare in 2021.
I believe this one is incorrect. You only get new +P if you qualify anew for 1K, i.e. hit the spend/segments count, in 2020. In that case the +P will come on the day you cross the threshold. (Only >3MM lifetime accounts will be getting a fresh allocation of +P in 2021 Jan.)
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Old Sep 26, 2020, 2:13 pm
  #1077  
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
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Posts: 1,250
Are you guys sure about this? Extending 1K means extending 1K and all the benefits that came with your earned 1K status. If UA had extended 2020 PP by 1 year, then I could see not awarding new PPs, but they only extended PPs by 6 months.
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Old Sep 26, 2020, 2:39 pm
  #1078  
Moderator: United Airlines
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
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Programs: UA Plat 1.997MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,859
Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
Are you guys sure about this? Extending 1K means extending 1K and all the benefits that came with your earned 1K status. If UA had extended 2020 PP by 1 year, then I could see not awarding new PPs, but they only extended PPs by 6 months.
To earn PlusPoints you need to be Plat or 1K and meet the other requirements -- but being a 1K only is not enought -- aka 1K MM companions, also some status challenges offer 1K status and some or none PlusPoints (GPUs)

Now could UA also extend new PlusPoints, perhaps but have not seen that explicitly stated
WineCountryUA is offline  
Old Sep 26, 2020, 5:23 pm
  #1079  
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Programs: UA LT GS | UA LT Club | Marriott LT Titanium
Posts: 1,250
Originally Posted by WineCountryUA
... 1K MM companions, also some status challenges offer 1K status and some or none PlusPoints (GPUs)...
All these examples are folks who didn't 'earn' 1K via the core 'butt in seat' flying or 'cold hard cash' spending methods. The entire spirit of the status extension was to allow folks to enjoy their 2019 earned status, in 2021, because they couldn't really fly in 2020.

Again, if they extend PP till the end of '22 that's fair, but if they only extend till mid '22, they'll frustrate their customer base at a time when they're trying to welcome them back.

There's usually a firestorm on FT around extending 80 PP at year end. Imagine if the majority of elites are faced with all 320 PPs expiring, just as they're about to start flying again...not pretty.
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Old Sep 26, 2020, 6:28 pm
  #1080  
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Originally Posted by fumje
I believe this one is incorrect. You only get new +P if you qualify anew for 1K, i.e. hit the spend/segments count, in 2020.
Correct.

Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
Are you guys sure about this?
Yes.

Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
Extending 1K means extending 1K and all the benefits that came with your earned 1K status.
No, it doesn't. It means whatever they say that it means, and, in this case, it means extending 1K status for a year, but PlusPoints for six months.

Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
All these examples are folks who didn't 'earn' 1K via the core 'butt in seat' flying or 'cold hard cash' spending methods.
Irrelevant.

Originally Posted by spartacusmcfly
The entire spirit of the status extension was to allow folks to enjoy their 2019 earned status, in 2021, because they couldn't really fly in 2020.
OK, but stop and think for a moment about what you're suggesting. If they were planning to give a new allotment of PlusPoints to all current 1Ks in January, 2021, they would simultaneously be destroying a powerful incentive for those passengers to meet the now-lowered status requirements during 2020. (Unless you're suggesting that they were going to give, essentially, double credit to people who actually qualified this year).

If you don't meet the 1K requirements, you will get new PlusPoints in January, as a result of being a 3MM flyer. I will not, unless I reach the PQF/PQP levels during 2020.

That said, I'm sure that they will consider another extension of the already-granted PlusPoints if travel stays depressed through the middle of the year — not because they're afraid of offending their customers, but because the PlusPoints will serve as an incentive to stick with UA and not move to AA/DL.
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