Reinstating expired MileagePlus miles
Just realized when booking some travel that I forgot to take action last October to prevent some mileage from expiring. As per http://www.ualmiles.com/ReinstatementMiles.jsp, it is possible to reinstate them within 18 months of expiry by paying $50 for upto 25k miles.
How should I value the cost/benefit to decide whether to pay this fee (I have another year in the grace period to do so) or just forget about the miles? As in, what is the minimum mileage where it would make sense to pay $50 for reinstatement.
If it makes a difference, I don't travel often but when I do, its either within the US or round trip of US-India(BOM).
Best Answer
My usual rule of thumb is that one mile is worth about one cent, based on the figure that 25,000 miles buys one restricted domestic round-trip which can usually be found for around $250 on the open market. One should probably discount the miles further compared to cash, since they can only be spent on one thing, can't earn interest, and can expire (as you found).
Personally, I'd want to have almost the full 25K and a firm plan for when to use them before I'd consider paying a reinstatement fee.
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Can you reinstate expired United miles?
Eight different airlines allow you to reinstate miles for a fee after they've expired. Some of them charge reasonable flat fees, while others charge by the mile....United.Number of United milesReinstatement fee50,001 \u2013 75,000$25075,001 \u2013 100,000$300100,001 \u2013 150,000$400150,001 \u2013 200,000$5006 more rows•Jan 4, 2021What to do with expiring United miles?
As of August 2019, United Airlines miles no longer expire. That's right \u2014 United flyers don't have to worry about losing miles because they didn't keep their United MileagePlus account active. The quick answer is United miles don't expire as long as your United account is open and in good standing.How much does it cost to reactivate miles?
There's no limit to the number of expired miles you can reactivate. The price to reactivate miles is $50 for every 5,000 miles, plus a $30 processing fee per transaction, per account.How much does it cost to reinstate American Airlines miles?
If you cancel your trip on aa.com, you must contact Reservations to request the reinstatement of your miles. We'll reinstate your miles at no charge up to 1 year after the ticket issue date, but you have to cancel your ticket before the first flight departs.Top Three Ways to Redeem Your United MileagePlus Miles | To The Point | Ep 20
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