What happens to reward points/miles when you are rebooked?
I'm planning a short trip just to hit rewards status, which has me thinking about the specifics of earning rewards. With air travel you can plan as much as you want, but sometimes things happen - weather problems, you miss a connection, equipment malfunction, etc. Often this means that you are forced to re-book, sometimes through another city, sometimes on another airline or even train*.
In the event of an involuntary rebooking, what happens to rewards points? I would guess that qualifying dollars doesn't change, since you have still paid the same cost. Do you get more (or fewer) miles and segments if you have to take a different route to your destination? If you end up on another airline or on a train, do you lose your points altogether? I'm assuming this varies by airline, so I'll focus on American and United.
*From personal experience, during a winter storm I had United convert a plane ticket to an Amtrak ticket at no extra cost.
Best Answer
It probably depends on the alliance. Most of my involuntary rebookings involve American Airlines and I was usually credit the miles for the original routing, plus a hefty bonus for the troubles.
One time though I had a UA flight rebooked in AC and in that case I did get miles for both the original and the new flight, credited to different award accounts. In any case, I never ended up with fewer than expected.
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Do you get your miles back if you cancel?
When canceling a flight that was purchased using miles, most airlines do not charge a cancellation fee. It is generally free to get your miles reinstated and even the taxes and fees you paid will usually be refunded.Can I get miles if my flight is delayed?
Ask for a refund If not, you can ask an airline employee for assistance in person or over the phone. Just be sure to cancel your original flight before its eventual departure so you can get the money or miles (hopefully) returned. Know your rights and take stock of your credit card protections.Do you get more miles for flying business class?
A Business Class ticket is approximately 140% more than economy when booking with cash, but only around 50% more when booking with miles. And First Class shows an even greater difference with a cash ticket costing 180% more than economy, whereas it would only be about 66% more when booking with miles.How To Travel The World For Free: Credit Cards 101
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Answer 2
I had a Lufthansa flight converted to train, and lost the miles; and had re-routings that resulted in more or fewer miles, depending on longer/ shorter routes.
So if you don't do anything, it is based on what you really fly.
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