Good afternoon,
My partner and I are both WP and currently booked in J to New York in September.
My partner purchased a Qantas gift voucher for $1000 last Christmas to take advantage of the bonus frequent flyer point offer. Unfortunately, he purchased it in his name only. When it came to paying for our flights, it quickly became apparent that the voucher could not be used to pay for the booking, as the booking was for both of us in 2 names (and the voucher just in his name). Apparently as systems restriction. As a result, we were told to split the bookings into two separate bookings.
Qantas have told us that though the two bookings are linked in the system, they are effectively treated separately. If we request an upgrade to First, it is possible that one of us may get the upgrade. If we were lucky enough to be granted upgrades, we only want it if both of us can have it. If only one of us is granted the upgrade, it is not possible to decline it, as the points would be already deducted. Apparently this process is completely automated so no intervention can happen.
It seems a ridiculous position to have this restriction due to a system constraint in the booking system when using vouchers. I know this really is a third world problem, but it is not everyday that we fly to NY with a paid J fare and the potential opportunity to fly in F at least to LA. On top of this, the flight from Melbourne is often late into LA missing the NY connection. I dread to think what will happen if we are treated as separate bookings by American Airlines when they try to book us on alternative flights. We could end up flying separately.
So, my question is, should we risk requesting the upgrades. At the moment, it looks like there are 5 F seats available (from Melbourne). What would you do?
Thanks and regards ninin
My partner and I are both WP and currently booked in J to New York in September.
My partner purchased a Qantas gift voucher for $1000 last Christmas to take advantage of the bonus frequent flyer point offer. Unfortunately, he purchased it in his name only. When it came to paying for our flights, it quickly became apparent that the voucher could not be used to pay for the booking, as the booking was for both of us in 2 names (and the voucher just in his name). Apparently as systems restriction. As a result, we were told to split the bookings into two separate bookings.
Qantas have told us that though the two bookings are linked in the system, they are effectively treated separately. If we request an upgrade to First, it is possible that one of us may get the upgrade. If we were lucky enough to be granted upgrades, we only want it if both of us can have it. If only one of us is granted the upgrade, it is not possible to decline it, as the points would be already deducted. Apparently this process is completely automated so no intervention can happen.
It seems a ridiculous position to have this restriction due to a system constraint in the booking system when using vouchers. I know this really is a third world problem, but it is not everyday that we fly to NY with a paid J fare and the potential opportunity to fly in F at least to LA. On top of this, the flight from Melbourne is often late into LA missing the NY connection. I dread to think what will happen if we are treated as separate bookings by American Airlines when they try to book us on alternative flights. We could end up flying separately.
So, my question is, should we risk requesting the upgrades. At the moment, it looks like there are 5 F seats available (from Melbourne). What would you do?
Thanks and regards ninin
