Noob question: about family travel and points

[Johninperth]

Hello All,
I have been slow on the uptake and therefore new to the frequent flyer world. The question I have is this; do I need a frequent flyer account for my wife and two children to obtain points for our combined travel? When I have booked travel for us as a group there doesn't appear to be provisions to enter four account numbers, and from what I understand you cannot accrue points except the person listed on the frequent flyer account.
Any help would be much appreciated
John

 

[mannej]

Hello All,
I have been slow on the uptake and therefore new to the frequent flyer world. The question I have is this; do I need a frequent flyer account for my wife and two children to obtain points for our combined travel? When I have booked travel for us as a group there doesn't appear to be provisions to enter four account numbers, and from what I understand you cannot accrue points except the person listed on the frequent flyer account.
Any help would be much appreciated
John

Which airline are you flying, as that will dictate the answer.

 

[medhead]

Yes. You need a frequent flyer account for each individual who is flying. You enter their numbers against each passenger in the booking. This applies regardless of airline, with frequent flyer programs.

Of the two main domestic airlines there is a slight variation both of them allow collection if the points to each individual account. On Qantas you are able to transfer points between family members, but status credits remain with the member. Virgin Australia has a system called family pooling, where points and/or status credits can be automatically transferred to one account once the member earns them.

With Qantas you need to make sure you have activity in all accounts once every 18 months. Family transfers don't count as activity. It is possible to obtain free Qantas membership via various means. Just ask how if required. Virgin offer free membership.

 

[Johninperth]

Thank you so much for the rapid and detailed responses! Looks like a great community. I now have virgin and Qantas FF for my wife and I but not my two kids. I find it really strange that there isn't a 'family' membership where I can claim points for the four of us on one card, instead of transferring the points from my other three members to myself.

 

[medhead]

Virgin family pooling is effectively a family card. But it does require an account for each person. Otherwise, i guess handling status credits is probably the big impediment to a family card, for Qantas.