rkkwan

I know this has been discussed before, but I was never very clear on this. And the Search isn't running properly. So, I hope some of the gurus can explain this to me:

- My mom (Gold Elite) is flying IAH-EWR-HKG next week. She's on a mid-ranged "B" fare. I called right after she booked the fare a month ago to use mileage upgrade (25K + $350 each direction), and was put on waitlist.

- Looking at her co.com itinerary, they immediately cleared her on the IAH-EWR flight (CO52, 762) and assigned her a seat up there; so she's lost her original Y-seat assignments. For EWR-HKG (CO99, 772), the original seat assignment is still there, and an additional BF waitlist segment is listed.

- Mileage have been deducted (25K each way), but credit card wasn't charged.

I believe all the above are properly done.

Now, here's the situation:

- Looking at the BF seat chart for CO99, only 2 of the 44 seats shown are still open. (4 seats in the last row were blocked and not shown). Appears to me that chance of upgrade clearly very low, a few days before the Canton Fair is to start.

- I understand that the miles will be redeposited automatically, so I am not worried about that.

- What I really need to know is how this will affect her EUA chance for the CO52 IAH-EWR. I believe the international upgrade waitlist is closed at 24 hours; and if she wasn't cleared still at that time, would that put her at a disadvantage for getting the normal EUA? Should I pull her from the waitlist by the 3-day mark?

(I'm not worried about her seat assignments in Y for CO52, as it's a short flight, and good seats are often opened at OLCI after some upgrades are cleared).

All advice and comments appreciated.

UA Insider

Hi rkkwan, when it comes to BusinessFirst mileage upgrades, we won't downgrade you on any of your non-BusinessFirst flights if the BusinessFirst waitlist doesn't clear. And don't worry, when this happens you'll still get your miles back. Here's how it works:

• When the upgrade for the BusinessFirst segment clears (in your example EWR-HKG), the credit card you initially provided will be charged and your BusinessFirst upgrade reward will be considered redeemed.
  
  
• If the BusinessFirst flight(s) in your itinerary don't clear the waitlist, your credit card won't be be charged, and the miles you redeemed for the BusinessFirst upgrade will be automatically re-deposited into your OnePass account after the itinerary is flown. You'll get your miles back even if the upgrade did clear on your non-BusinessFirst connecting flights. The only way your non-BusinessFirst segments would get downgraded is if you were to re-deposit the reward yourself before travel.

I hope this clarifies, and good luck with the waitlist.

rkkwan

Scott -

Many many thanks for the clarification. That's very good news and it's a very fair policy.

And yes, I'm hoping her upgrade will clear too.

rkkwan

Let me give a final update on this whole thing.

- My mom didn't get clear for BF on either CO99 outbound nor CO98 inbound, EWR-HKG.

- She kept her upgraded seats on CO52 outbound and CO51 inbound IAH-EWR.

- I called the Onepass Service Center about a week after she completed her trip as miles have not been re-deposited. I was told it would be done automatically about 3 weeks after she completed her trip.

- Today, I called OPSC again as it's been more than 3 weeks. The service rep had to talk to a supervisor, and then got back to me saying they could only redeposit 30,000 back as she was cleared for the IAH-EWR segment.

I told her it wasn't how it was explained to me originally, or as confirmed by Mr. O'Leary. So, she transferred me to a supervisor.

The supervisor said the same thing and I again explained, having to use Mr. O'Leary's name again. I was put on hold again, and then she said all 50K miles have been redeposited. I checked and they were.

---

Now, something's definitely not right here. Were she entitled to all her 50K back or not? I hate having to throw CO Insider's name out everytime I run into problem. Maybe the policy needs to be more openly known throughout the OPSC?

And I don't understand how she comes out with returning 30K to my mom. One way domestic upgrade for a discount economy fare is 15K each way, so that'd mean only returning 20K to her if she wants to interpret the rules that way.

[I have the name of the supervisor. If Scott needs the name, I can provide it by PM.]

UA Insider

Hi rkkwan, sorry to hear this didn't happen automatically and had to be escalated when you called in. Please PM me with your confirmation number, and I'll follow up with our technology group (as to why the miles didn't automatically redeposit) and with our call center group to ensure our front line is reminded of this policy.

rkkwan

[Deleted... Should have sent PM instead of reply.]

Bonehead

I was once in this exact situation, and the Elite phone agent warned me that if any of my domestic segments cleared, I would be nicked for the costs associated with the BF upgrade, even if the BF upgrade failed to clear. That's if I went ahead and accepted an "early" upgrade on one or more of the domestic legs that was associated with being put on the BF upgrade waitlist.

UA Insider

To be honest, Bonehead, this doesn't surprise me. BusinessFirst re-deposits for partially-upgraded itineraries have always been a gray area for us, and only recently did we formalize the more generous policy outlined earlier in the thread. With the help of rkkwan's example, we're working with our policies and procedures team to make sure the correct policy is re-communicated to our front line and supervisors.

Bonehead

That's good news, because since that time I've been very hesitant to request BF upgrades that had to be waitlisted (there's apparently no way to keep available domestic segments linked to the BF itinerary from upgrading if there is availability, IIRC).

bk3day

If I understand this thread correctly, if my 1st flight of the trip is BF and doesn't clear the miles will be redeposited to my account.

What then happens to my following flights, one of which (ORD-BOS) has already cleared?

Is UAInsider's info in Post #2 still the policy or do I need to proactively cancel that request so not to get hit for 15K miles to UG such a short segment?

Apologies if this has been recently covered elsewhere, but this was the most onpoint post addressing the BF upgrades in the FAQ.

Cuse44

If the BF segment doesn't clear, you are entitled to a full refund of miles and money (even if the domestic segment cleared). You still get the upgrade foryour domestic segment (think of it as a freebie).

bk3day

Thanks for the update on this policy!

I was pretty clear about the BF refund. Until I read this thread tho, I wasn't aware & no one I asked at CO could tell me with any certainty, if my previously cleared onward flights would later be downgraded.

chavala

I'm not clear! What about "International Business"? Do the same rules apply? Mileage upgrade DFW-IAH came thru , but IAH-POS just went to the 24 hr waitlist.
I'd be really annoyed to be out 15,000m for an hour flight, but on the other hand, don't want to give up my seat if I am paying for it.

sbm12

Welcome to FlyerTalk!

In your case ANY segment clearing counts as "using" the award. So if you only get up front on the DFW-IAH flight you'd be out the 15000 points.

chavala

Thanks, but Wow, that is harsh! Why the different rules do you think? Upgrade just came thru now, but please advise me for next time this happens. When should I panic and change my domestic seat back to economy? This time I'd have been stuck in a middle seat in the back instead of my original bulkhead window. No fair : p