-
Hello all,
I am finding the rules difficult to understand, forgive me, I’m not a seasoned BAEC pro. I once qualified as Silver many years ago and never again thereafter but the lowered tier point thresholds combined with the BA Holidays double tier points offer looks tempting.My membership year expires 08 Jun 2022. Like many others at the moment, I have zero tier points thus far and I’m a Blue. I would like to book a holiday flying EDI-SOF for 5 nights in June 2022, departing after my membership year has been reset. My understanding is that I will collect 40+80+80+40=240 x 2 = 480 tier points as long as I book the holiday before 22 March 2022 and stay at least 5 nights.
However, BAEC T&Cs state that the lowered tier point thresholds are valid for those with membership years expiring until December 2022. On the basis that my membership year will expire in Jun 2023 at the point I fly, does that mean that the normal 600 tier point threshold applies for Silver or does it remain at 450 tier points for anyone that qualifies before end December 2022? The wording is inherently confusing.
Clearly I would like to benefit from as close to 2 years at Silver followed by a soft landing to Bronze in year 3 if I can. If I would have to qualify for Silver prior to 8 Jun 2022 to benefit from the 450 point threshold, at that point I only have a tad over 1 year of Silver benefits and the offer is less appealing. I would be better off targeting 600 tier points in the new membership year, initially via the June holiday and then adding a flight only tier point run to acquire another 160 tier points ex LHR. I would appreciate your expert advice!
You’ve kind of answered your own question.
Especially if you don’t fly a lot getting it in the earlier year is not worth it it’s only worth thinking about in the second year ie ending 2023 the way your dates fall. Even at full cost ie 600 needed, that’s still the case. You should do SOF in second year regardless. So there are 2 reasons to book at the time you are thinking of – it’s 2nd yr -plus if there is any chance your end 2o23 year gets the concession on tier points (BA told Rob years ending 2023 won’t) you’d book then anyway.
Also you may have missed the doubling on holidays now ends October not March. In your case timing you are thinking of works.
I think you will require 600TP if you book flights after 9 June 2022 so although you’ll earn 480TP from the BAH trip you’re planning you will still be 120TP short of the points for Silver.
If possible complete the trip before 8 June 2022 to take advantage of the lower TP thresholds. But you run the risk that the double TP don’t post in time. It’s a manual process and BA says it can take up to 60 days to post.
An alternative is to do two 5 night holidays to a 80 TP destination after 9 June. That would net you 640 TP and get you Silver for nearly 2 years
- This reply was modified 55 years, 4 months ago by .
You are not alone – the rules ARE difficult to understand. For clarity (?) your current tier point collection year runs from 9 June 21 – 8 June 22. Your membership year runs until 31 July 22. Even BA confuse those terms.
They switch from talking about reduced thresholds for TP years ends within certain dates, to saying reduced thresholds will apply until a set date. We might understand it better after 9 January when the first folk with TP years ending in 2023 will see their apps update and may show the reduced levels. There is a view, which seems to be Rob’s too, that reduced thresholds will apply to everyone until Dec 22 – but we will see. Even then, there is no real certainty as to whether that reduced threshold would apply to you until Dec22 or for your whole TP year.
I think there is a chance, supported by Rob’s article here: https://www.headforpoints.com/2021/12/21/british-airways-extends-executive-club-elite-status-2/ that you will only need 450 until Dec 22 – but you might not know until your TP year resets in June.
On that basis, your holiday plan makes sense. Even in the worst case, that you need the full TPs, you will be nearly there, and going for it soon after your reset will get you nearly 2 years, as you say.
Thanks everyone for the sage advice. On reflection I think I’ll plan to undertake two BAH trips ex London rather than faff around with positioning flights and potentially having to stay overnight in Edinburgh after returning from SOF. It’s not only a waste of time and bad for the environment, I could put this money towards a second 5 night holiday and actually enjoy the experience. In that event, I will qualify for Silver even if the 600 tier point threshold applies, subject to the possibility of taking a cheaper/more appealing trip to a 40TP destination if I only need 450TP for Silver until Dec 22. We shall see.
It makes vastly more sense to benefit from 2 years at Silver even if I need 600TP compared to qualifying as soon as possible now when I’m unlikely to fly much before summer due to ongoing Covid restrictions making the process less pleasant and more expensive. I plan to move abroad in spring and fly back to London with regularity to visit my ageing parents. Being able to travel with 2 x 32kg each time I fly is a major benefit to me, allowing me to move my belongings in weighty chunks over the next few years rather than have to pay a fortune to a commercial shipper and pay VAT (and potentially even duty) in the destination country. We all benefit from a 430 Euro tax free allowance every time we travel between the UK and EU (NB. the limit is only 300 Euros arriving in France by car) and it’s a shame to not take advantage of this every time I travel.
So here it is – following the January resets, the info is there – you will have until 31 Dec 22 to get status at the reduced thresholds.
Go to https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/executive-club/tiers-and-benefits and scroll down to the ‘How do I benefit from the reduced Tier Point requirement to upgrade or renew my Tier?‘ FAQ.
So, you only need to get 450 TPs before December, and getting them after your TP reset will be the most advantageous option.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
