Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

More evidence of British Airways prioritising Avios bookings for downgrades?

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

A month ago I ran this article speculating that BA has begun to target Avios ticket holders for downgrades.

This would be economically rational.  Under EU regulations, a downgraded passenger is automatically due a 75% refund on that leg of their ticket.  For a cash passenger, that is expensive.

For an Avios passenger, it is not expensive to downgrade.  All the airline has to do is refund a few points.

British Airways BA 777X 777 9X

For an Avios passenger travelling on a 2-4-1 voucher, the downgrade is free to BA.  It has been telling some passengers that as their ticket cost zero Avios, the refund is 75% of zero which is, erm, zero.

After my original article there was some debate about whether this is actually happening.  Some BA staff told me that it isn’t easy to tell whether a passenger is on a 2-4-1 ticket or not, although it is easy to spot those on redemptions on the manifest.  Some agents have implied that it is functionality in FLY, the new check-in and passenger management system, which now allows this policy to be implemented.

It is worth noting that the person involved in my original article issued a Small Claims Court against British Airways after being refused any compensation.  As per this page of Flyertalk, it appears that BA chose not to fight the case and settled for the unspecified amount the passenger demanded.

In the last couple of weeks, two more readers have contacted me with linked stories.

The key one came yesterday from a reader.  I always weigh up news I receive by email from readers to see how truthful and verifiable it seems, but this is one I trust implicitly – the person involved is a regular commentator and has even written a guest article for the site in the past.

If you read the comments on HfP yesterday, you would have seen his regular updates as the situation developed.

This is what he said to me by email:

“At Edinburgh to start our trip to Gatwick and then what was meant to be Club World BAPP 241 reward seats to Male.  At checking in for EDI-LGW we have been told we have been downgraded, either both to World Traveller Plus or just me with my wife staying in CW.  We have been told that BA has oversold the flight and it’s because we are on reward tickets that we have been selected to be downgraded.”

Here is another email I received two weeks ago:

“I have read your article re 2-4-1 downgrades and it almost exactly mirrors our experience.  The Duty Manager was adamant her instructions were to target Redemption ticket holders first.  Given that our seats were showing as still allocated to us that morning (albeit not available to be printed due to “system error” at the hotel), it appears BA have chosen to sell more CW seats on the day . . . knowing they had a supply of 2-4-1 pax ready to be downgraded

It is a largely win-win situation for BA . . .  if there are any no-shows, no skin off their noses, but hey, why not sell an equivalent number of CW seats to exactly match the number of 2-4-1 holders on every flight!  Cheap trick but as I learned in over twenty years with them, the internal “bar” is set at the greediest money-earning opportunity.”

The reader above is not one I have met but I have no reason doubt the accuracy of what he sent me.  He had even paid to reserve specific Club World seats but even that did not protect him from being downgraded.

To clarify, there is no specific proof that this is going on.  No BA employee has yet sent me a copy of the relevant memo or email.

Do let me know if you are also impacted by this and have been told that the staff that you have been downgraded specifically because you are on an Avios ticket.

PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 65,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus card

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

Category

British Airways and Avios

Comments (353)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • John Gallagher says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:12

    Sounds like using a 2-4-1 is becoming a bit of a risk if you want to fly in a premium cabin.
    I think in future rather than spending on my BAPP card and transferring my Amex points to BA Avios, I’ll look at other cariers to get me to the Far East each each in F.

  • Liz says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:17

    Another thing to remember is that many of us will have cancelled the BAPP card relating to the voucher ticket being downgraded – how would Amex view that as they always tell us not to cancel the card – the whole thing is a mess. Are there people out there that have flown this year using their 241 and not being downgraded.

    • Mr Bridge says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:22

      yes twice no downgrades, both in first with 2-4-1

      • Genghis says:
        25 Feb25 February 09:26

        +1 but just in J

      • Liz says:
        25 Feb25 February 09:29

        Some good news Mr Bridge! At least they are not targeting every flight!

        above should say been not being!

        • Yuff says:
          25 Feb25 February 09:39

          They are only going to target extremely busy flights and anyone flying in F, where they don’t have to release availability, is unlikely to get downgraded as they will have released avios seats knowing they will struggle to fill the flight. 2 seats in J is what they have committed to and 99% of flights this isn’t a problem, however on the odd flight where they can sell cash seats, easily, they have decided to take a hard nosed business decision to it. If the court sides with customers like Anon for more that’s the cash price they will soon stop the practice.
          The fact that the MLE flight is so difficult to book, using a 241, makes this even more galling but the very reason why this has happened.

        • Nigel says:
          25 Feb25 February 09:52

          But not every flight is overbooked and requires downgrades… You would need to know what percentage of flights requires downgrades to have any idea of the probability that it might happen…

          • Rob says:
            25 Feb25 February 10:31

            As Anon said yesterday, though, why oversell Maldives? Plenty of people book themselves onto 4 JFK flights on the same night on fully flex tickets and then just take the most suitable one when their meeting finishes. That is a pain for BA to manage, I admit.

            With Male, I doubt there are many fully flex tickets sold in Club and I doubt many people ‘no show’.

          • Mr Bridge says:
            26 Feb26 February 04:42

            Hang, good point Rob,

            If you have a 2-4-1 booking, why can you not:
            1. take an interest free purchase credit card offer
            2. book fully flex tix for the same flight + free seat reservation
            3. cancel the booking b4 you check in your 2-4-1
            4. your preferred cancelled seats will open up
            5. no need for downgrades as 2 cancellations!!

    • Duncan Stevenson-Price says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:33

      I flew in January out in CW, back in First on a 2-4-1. Was not downgraded, and the CW cabin was completely full.

  • Mister T says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:29

    I’m a relative novice when it comes to AVIOS redemptions and I’m on almost at the point where I will receive my first ever 2-4-1 voucher.

    Following this thread has depressed me and the thought of telling my partner of the possibility of an upgraded trip across the Atlantic might not happen, is not something I am looking forward to.

    So is there any way to holding the credit card companies to account? Although a 2-4-1 voucher is not a purchased product, c/c companies are meant to protect customers if the services or goods purchased are not adequately supplied (getting a full refund). With this in mind, is there any merit in putting pressure on AMEX providers to take this matter up on behalf of their customers? The only way to get the 2-4-1 vouchers is to spend on their c/c and they have endorsed this scheme as an incentive to attract new customers (therefore making a profit themselves). In conclusion, would an increase in complaints to AMEX providers about this matter, coupled with an increase in social media exposure, bring this disgraceful behaviour into the spotlight?

    Sorry for the lengthiness of this email, I am new to this.

    • Yuff says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:45

      99% you will be fine.
      Lgw -MLE is a premium flight, lots of readers have flown many BA reward flight switch no problems.
      The flight in question is one of the most difficult to book as it is one of the best redemptions.
      Plenty of other options east using avios without using a 241.
      However for a bit of hassle I’d rather fly Qatar in business ex Europe for just more than BA’s taxes, which you could do last year before the £ dropped.

      • Anna says:
        25 Feb25 February 10:00

        I agree, I have had a problem free 2 4 1 each year for the past 5 years and been treated like any other passenger on the flight.

        My concern would be that my (much anticipated) annual family holiday would have a slight chance of be marred by this, and also that the problem will be become more frequent as BA lure more people in with decent cash seat offers (THEY say customer numbers are increasing, anyway!).

        On a side note, anyone who wanted to explain “first world problems” to an alien would only need to direct them to this thread. No offence to all of us, but I work with some of the most deprived communities in the country and leaving their town of birth counts as exotic travel for them!

        • Phil G says:
          25 Feb25 February 10:07

          The point of your last paragraph ?

          • Mohammed says:
            25 Feb25 February 10:22

            It’s only a joke. Don’t get all upset now 😉

          • Anna says:
            25 Feb25 February 10:50

            Absolutely, and just to keep things in perspective. CW travel is something I could only dream about without avios – though that doesn’t mean I won’t fight BA tooth and nail for what I’m entitled to! I’m a big believer in promoting the rights of consumers in the face of poor treatment from big companies.

        • vol says:
          25 Feb25 February 19:27

          Anna +1 I had the same thought this morning 😀

    • Sam says:
      25 Feb25 February 13:50

      Well you say it isn’t a purchased product but you pay £195 for it on BAPP. I’d be interested to see what AMEX says if you approached them with a downgrade which devalues what their voucher. Could I mean AMEX are breaching terms of sale?

  • Ross says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:29

    This is something that both BA and Amex need to confirm policy on.
    Both advertise the benefits of Avios, yet BA appears to have a policy opposed to the same benefits of Avios that they advertise.
    BA it seems want to have their cake and eat it too; drive customer numbers by advertising the benefits of Avios; and, remove those benefits unilaterally for greater earnings at their own discretion.
    In short, it is dishonest.

  • Memesweeper says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:30

    Yes, an airline needs to make a decision who to downgrade when overbooking happens. But IMO this should be first off a call for volunteers (who are compensated). Virgin Atlantic used to do this, but I’m not aware if BA ever have this practice.

    After that then targeting those on award flights might make some sense. But many of those will be loyal frequent fliers … so maybe not so smart to downgrade BAEC status holders.

    Targeting those on 2-4-1s above all others will make the vouchers worthless. Who the hell will want to book a flight and attach a ‘priority for downgrade’ tag to their booking, especially for long haul premium seating? Madness! If this rule is in FLY then I can see it getting removed when the implications for BAs relationship with AmEx sink in with someone in senior management. If it does get confirmed (and thanks to the internet and forums us PAX can work it out for ourselves) and not abandoned then the BAPP will be dead for all frequent/informed fliers.

  • Matthew says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:31

    One potential solution –

    On a flight on which you have an F 241 redemption, one might also purchase the requisite number of F seats on a fully flexible cash basis, and cancel those just before checkin closes.

    Fight fire with…?

    • the real harry1 says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:34

      I like the cut of your jib, young fellow me lad 🙂

    • Vinz says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:38

      But how can you do that? You can’t book yourself on two seats on the same flight.

    • Will says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:38

      Expensive but genius.

    • Andrew says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:40

      Good idea but a flexible, one way first class ticket to LA for next year costs over 10 grand. Tying up £20,000 for close to a year isn’t an option for most people.

      • Yuff says:
        25 Feb25 February 09:50

        You could do it to tie in with your statement date 7 weeks out, so you don’t have to pay the card bill 😉
        Most F cabins are never that busy until the last 4 weeks when they miraculously get filled.

        • Genghis says:
          25 Feb25 February 10:03

          Currently £10k for us at Easter. Could be worth a look closer to the time….

          • Anna says:
            25 Feb25 February 10:05

            If we co-ordinated this well, we could be turning up at the airport and asking how much for those F seats which just became available…

    • Andrew says:
      25 Feb25 February 09:47

      Could a similar approach be used to ‘force’ reward availability? Buy up the entire cabin on flexible tickets, cancel everything a few days before the flight then hope the revenue management system has a panic and releases more seats than usual for rewards to try to fill the capacity.

      If I had a 0% credit card with a 100k limit I’d be tempted to give it a try.

    • Anna says:
      25 Feb25 February 10:03

      Brilliant. How much would that annoy BA?!!

    • Ro says:
      25 Feb25 February 14:40

      If you buy a fully flexible ticket, up until what point can you cancel it without penalty? When check in desks open or even after that?

    • Lady London says:
      25 Feb25 February 18:47

      It’s been done. Remember US frequent flier schemes are longer standing than most, sure I saw such antics described on flyertalk when I used to read it

  • Amtexfly says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:34

    It’s a disgusting business practise to sell a product (2-4-1) and a have a rewards system that for most people will mean filtering funds that could otherwise be used for cash back only to treat these people like a second class citizen.

    Changes and delays are common place in all forms of travel but leaving it until the last possible moment so that a customer has almost no way of making alternative arrangements is totally unacceptable.

    In the relatively short amount of time I’ve been an Avios/BAEC collector I have nothing but praise for the programmes but these stories have made me think that you cannot be sure where you’re going to sit until your bum is on the seat. This needs to be sorted.

  • Will says:
    25 Feb25 February 09:43

    Let’s be balanced about how we look at this.
    There will always be a situation where the cabin is full (other flights cancelled etc) and overbooked and I can sympathise with the concept of bumping down redemptions ahead of cash tickets for commercial reasons.

    What really needs clarification is the compensation for that downgrade. In the instance of a companion ticket I think it should be treated as though the avios had actually been used when offering compensation and then the system seems much fairer.

    • Liz says:
      25 Feb25 February 10:21

      It does not seem to bother them that they are actively splitting up 2 people who are booked together before even asking / compensating a solo traveller. I would be more angry at being split up on a long haul flight than being given no compensation – although I would be angry about that too.

      • Caro says:
        25 Feb25 February 14:14

        I thought the whole point of 2 4 1 is you have to be in the same cabin? Talk about bend the rules to suit yourself!

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Got any questions? Ask them in our forums.

Get 25,000 Avios with the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

GET A SIGN-UP BONUS OF 18,000 VIRGIN POINTS!

Latest Forum Posts

Get 80,000 bonus points (worth 80,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card (Offer ends 27th May)

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Get up to 10,000 bonus Hilton Honors points

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.7 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

SME? GET THE ONLY FREE SMALL BUSINESS CREDIT CARD WHICH CAN EARN AVIOS

Get points worth 30,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold (ends 27th May)

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.

Got it!