Family makes song & dance over deceased women's QFF points

[thewinchester]

Is it just me, or are this families priorities significantly out of kilter?

Scrap over dead wife's airpoints
By Michael ****ison, 5:30 AM Tuesday May 24, 2011

Qantas has refused to return frequent flyer points to a dead woman's family for a flight she will now never take. New Zealander Rachel Acton died from a heart attack five days after making a booking with Qantas to Australia, spending 41,000 of her father's airpoints which had been transferred into her account.

But when her family contacted Qantas after her funeral, the airline said it would return the airpoints only to Mrs Acton's account - for which nobody had a pin number - and in 48 hours they would be deleted.

Family members said it was an unsympathetic - and outrageous - response during a fragile time. Qantas offered an apology when the Herald brought the incident to its attention

On a reading of the QFF T&C's, the family doesn't have a leg to stand on:

8.3 Membership will terminate automatically on the death of a Member. Points earned but not yet redeemed or transferred prior to the death of the Member will be cancelled. Qantas will close the Member's account on notification of the Member's death. Qantas will not be liable for any loss or damage whatsoever suffered by any person as a result of such cancellation.

The points were in the account of the deceased member, the deceased member had not yet redeemed them, and the points had not been transferred prior to providing the airline with notification of the death.

The rules here are pretty clear, and I think the family should be more concerned about the loved ones grieving at this time, rather than trying to penny pinch and claim things they're not entitled to.

 

[Hvr]

Just goes to show that you should make provision for important things to be done before your family tells any body you're dead.

I wonder if the paper is part of nonews?

 

[Ikara]

My kids and wife have strict instructions - in writing - as to what to do when I shuffle off this mortal coil (which I thought was going to be last Saturday, but that's another thread!).

Tell no-one nuffing! Transact on the account regularly! Make sure Mum gets the trips she wants! Do not put my FF number in my death notice in case Qantas has someone reading them looking for an opportunity!

Pretty simple really.

JB

 

[cove]

Know everyone's pin number and if you are on the brink get the family on the computer booking trips using all your points.if you make an incredible recovery those bookings can be cancelled and the points can be refunded less a modest fee.

 

[Sprucegoose]

My kids and wife have strict instructions - in writing - as to what to do when I shuffle off this mortal coil (which I thought was going to be last Saturday, but that's another thread!).

Tell no-one nuffing! Transact on the account regularly! Make sure Mum gets the trips she wants! Do not put my FF number in my death notice in case Qantas has someone reading them looking for an opportunity!

Pretty simple really.

JB

Absolutely.

Leave your pin number in the will!

 

[cove]

Our pin numbers are known by all four of us and technically you should do the redemptions at least a couple of minutes prior to death.

 

[Hvr]

Our pin numbers are known by all four of us and technically you should do the redemptions at least a couple of minutes prior to death.

Makes sense, do the transfers/redemptions, make sure they work have been ticketed etc then pull the plug? :mrgreen:

 

[Ikara]

Our pin numbers are known by all four of us and technically you should do the redemptions at least a couple of minutes prior to death.

Technically - yes. But don't tell anyone and then no-one is any the wiser. Unless of-course you want your 10 minutes of fame on one of those coughpy 6.30pm shows. Then you can really stick it up the airline. Me, I'd rather keep a low profile and let SWMBO spend my milliion points. Well it would be a low profile wouldn't it - 6 feet under in fact!

JB

 

[Hvr]

... Me, I'd rather keep a low profile and let SWMBO spend my milliion points. Well it would be a low profile wouldn't it - 6 feet under in fact!

JB

Wouldn't cremation get a better urn and burn rate?

 

[Ikara]

Wouldn't cremation get a better urn and burn rate?

Beautiful....................absolutely beautiful! Wish I'd thought of it.

JB

 

[moa999]

Have a colleague in the same position who spent over 800k points very quickly...

Simple really.. whatever you do.. have the pin and don't tell

 

[jpk]

The rules here are pretty clear, and I think the family should be more concerned about the loved ones grieving at this time, rather than trying to penny pinch and claim things they're not entitled to.

All true. However, people react to death in unpredictable and strange ways. Not uncommon for grieving persons to deal with their emotions by lashing out at something/someone in a way that is totally illogical.

Of course it's also not uncommon for tabloid journalists to take advantage of such grieving persons and beat up a story about nothing purely for clickbait...

 

[thewinchester]

Wouldn't cremation get a better urn and burn rate?

Bwhahahaha. Brilliant work Hvr.

Of course it's also not uncommon for tabloid journalists to take advantage of such grieving persons and beat up a story about nothing purely for clickbait...

Couldn't agree more, and clickbait journalism is the worst kind of faux-journalism.

 

[simongr]

Actually people should read what QFF have offered. QF have said they will credit the points back and then they have 48 hours to recover them. This is more generous than they have to allow and this clearly supports the assumption that many of us have made that in fact QFF don't want to know if they don't have to know about the death. They are sort of happy to let people use the points up until they do know.

I agree with everyone here - make sure people know your PIN and just book the most expensive furthest out flight you can and change the details afterwards.

 

[JetLagged]

Well it would be a low profile wouldn't it - 6 feet under in fact!JB

How much lower a profile do you want - burial at sea?

 

[BAM1748]

Geez, it's only points and 40 odd thousand at that. This family needs a reality check.

 

[coyote25]

Makes sense, do the transfers/redemptions, make sure they work have been ticketed etc then pull the plug? :mrgreen:

Lol I have visions of the search engine slowly down giving me a few more minutes before they pull the plug!


Sent from my iPhone using Aust Freq Fly app

 

[Smackbum]

Reading between the lines here ... I think the points were originally in another account and a family transfer was done rather than have the relative book the flight themselves (possibly just needed a points top-up to get the 40K needed).

Then upon the unfortunate demise of the pax the family contacted Qantas on the assumptions that they could get a refund of points, only to find that the points could only go back into the last account. In addition now they had informed them of the death of the member, Qantas was obliged to terminate the account.

Unfortunate - but until the T&C are changed that is how the cookie crumbles. It may take a court case to challenge the ownership and value of these points.