On Friday 2 February, Channel 7's Today-Tonight aired a moving story about a dying mum who had just lost her husband and wanted to use his 400,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer points for a family holiday to Queensland.

Although she could have booked the tickets online (she knew her late husband's PIN) via the Qantas website, she did the right thing by informing Qantas of her husband's passing.  Qantas immediately cancelled the points referring her to the program's terms and conditions stating that "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".  Requests for compassion from both her and Channel 7 were denied.

You can view the full story on the Today-Tonight website.

Irrespective of what we think of the way in which Qantas handled this matter, this tragic story does present an interesting challenge: we, as consumers, tend to treat frequent flyer points as an asset (similar to cash, property or shares) which we can bequeath to our next-of-kin.  This is clearly not the case - points are subject to the rules of the airline.  And - to be fair to Qantas - most airlines have a similar policy.

So what can you do to get around this problem?  The obvious solution is to ensure that your points balance is low by either redeeming points for flights for family members, or transferring points to the frequent flyer accounts of family members.  Alternatively, ensure that your next-of-kin have access to your frequent flyer account (ie. your PIN) so that they can use your points to purchase tickets - and instruct them not to inform the airline of your passing!  This solution might not be legal (technically, its fraud!) but if you can get away with it, and until the airlines show a bit more compassion, its probably the only way to go.

UPDATE (6 Feb): Qantas have since offered to cover the family's air fares to the Gold Coast, accommodation and entry to all the theme parks.  This is great news for the family concerned, but it does raise another question: Will Qantas change their policy to benefit everyone (including those who don't have access to the national media) or is this simply an opportunistic move to counter bad publicity?

Talking Books Direct

Advertisement

February Special Offers - up to 60% discount!           Talking Books Direct offers the largest selection of downloadable Audio Books - at the best prices, directly from the publisher! *  100% Free Titles (No Credit Card Required) *  Monthly Special Offers Discounts *  No recurring subscription fee! *  No software to install! *  "No Questions Asked" Refund Policy! CLICK HERE TO ACCESS TALKING BOOKS DIRECT

FREE US Car Rentals!

A member who is planning a trip to the US is surprised as to how expensive US Car Rentals are.  He asks for suggestions and gets some good advice - including "driveaway" programs.  These programs match drivers with car owners who need their vehicles delivered to a different state. Read about this free service HERE.

Earning Qantas Frequent Flyer points

A member has compiled a COMPREHENSIVE LIST of all the ways Australian residents can earn Qantas Frequent Flyer points - such as Credit Cards, Hotel Programs, Club Membership, ETrade sign-up bonus, and of course flying.  Do you know of any additional sources?

American Airlines Platinum Challenge - The latest updates

Looking at getting airline status quickly?  The American Airlines Platinum Challenge is probably the quickest, easiest, and cheapest way to get status.  Read the latest updates for 2007 from Dave Noble - our resident American Airlines expert - HERE.

There are many choices for travel insurance policies.  Before deciding on one, consider the following:

Specify exactly what you'll be doing

Tell the insurer about the activities you plan to participate in - especially if they involve risk, as risky activities may be excluded from standard plans.  You may need a special policy to cover these activities.

Include emergency travel If you're traveling to a region with basic medical services, ensure your policy covers repatriation so that you can be flown home for medical treatment. Single Trip versus Annual Policy If you expect to make more than one overseas trip during a 12 month period, consider an annual multi-trip policy rather than a single trip policy.  Annual policies usually cover multiple trips, and will certainly be more cost-effective. Family Travel In choosing a family policy, ensure that all members are included.  Most standard policies limit the number of people covered.

Get higher coverage if further away

Increase your coverage if you are travelling further from home to include the costs of long haul travel and attendant expenses.

When searching airline websites for a fare on a specific route, have you noticed that the lowest fare tends to increase every time you do a new search?  For example, searching (say) the Air New Zealand website for the lowest fare to Los Angeles, might display a fare of $1,250.  Trying the same search a few hours later, could result in a lowest fare of $1,420.

I've certainly come across this phenomena on numerous occasions.  Initially, I put it down to benign reasons such as the last available seat at the lower price being sold during the time between the two searches or (my) human error and/or failing memory.

However, there could be a more sinister explanation:  We have it from a fairly reliable "airline source" that many airlines deliberately increase the cost of the lowest fare every time a search comes through from the same computer for the same route.  I guess a reason for this could be to encourage the customer to purchase the ticket sooner, rather than later.

If this happens to you, try doing the search from a different computer and see if you can reclaim that lowest fare.