How To Hold Out A Go Hacker Inwards The United Kingdom
Updated: 08/17/2018 | August 17th, 2018
I’ve been writing close move h4ck1ng a lot lately, as well as i inquiry that keeps popping upwards is “Matt, how tin give the axe nosotros move h4ck inwards the UK?” Well, patch I know a lot close doing this inwards the UK, I don’t know every bit much every bit Robert (aka Raffles) from Head for Points, the premier move h4ck1ng website for the UK. Today, I sit down downward with him as well as he explains inwards peachy especial how those of y'all from the UK tin give the axe acquire gratis flights as well as hotels similar the repose of us across the pond!
Nomadic Matt: How did y'all acquire into move h4ck1ng?
Robert: The thought of “getting a deal” was ingrained inwards me literally from childhood, every bit my household unit of measurement never had much money. This likewise meant that my parents never traveled, every bit it was really expensive to wing inwards the 1970s. My dad never had a passport, as well as my mum solely got i when she was 50.
I recollect I initiatory off flew when I was eighteen inwards 1988 on a charter to Kingdom of Spain with friends. My initiatory off “h4ck” was when I was 20, when I “arranged” to win a flying to Paris inwards a British Airways competition. This was 1990, as well as BA gave away every topographic point on every flying for i twenty-four hours to boost business. You could pick your route, as well as I was smart plenty to realize that 99% of people would pick a long-haul road with a minimal adventure of winning. I picked Paris and, despite literally millions of entries, got my gratis topographic point — as well as fifty-fifty inwards 1990 flights to Paris from London were expensive.
It was solely when I discovered FlyerTalk that I realized that I was solely scratching the surface. I contributed heavily to FlyerTalk showtime inwards 2004 — as well as soundless create — as well as inwards 2012 started Head for Points every bit the initiatory off UK miles-and-points blog.
In Jan 2016, Head for Points striking i meg monthly page views for the initiatory off time, almost all from the UK. I likewise launched Shopper Points to focus on UK supermarket loyalty schemes.
In the United States, it’s slow to endure a move h4ck3r because nosotros have got hence many ways to acquire points. Describe move h4ck1ng inwards the UK.
It’s truthful that the UK marketplace is non every bit generous every bit the US. However, it is soundless the second-best house inwards the basis for move h4ck1ng!
The payoff of doing it from the UK is that y'all tin give the axe encounter a lot to a greater extent than of the basis for a lot less. Whilst the low-level US airline saver payoff is 25,000 miles (and fifty-fifty they are difficult to find), British Airways volition wing y'all to France, Germany, the Netherlands, etc., from 8,000 Avios supply [round-trip]. Even a flying to Kingdom of Spain is solely 13,000 Avios on an off-peak date. You tin give the axe acquire to over 20 countries as well as encounter some of the world’s greatest sights for less than the cost inwards miles of a US domestic payoff flight!
The typical UK “travel h4ck3r” — someone who wants to earn payoff flights but doesn’t earn miles traveling for draw of piece of work organization — volition by as well as large focus on credit carte churning, primarily with American Express (Amex), as well as exploiting the promotions run past times Tesco. Tesco is the UK’s largest supermarket chain, as well as its loyalty points tin give the axe endure converted into British Airways Avios points or Virgin Flying Club miles.
Can y'all explicate the Tesco play a trick on a combat more?
Tesco has a loyalty scheme called Clubcard. On the human face upwards of it, it is rather dull: pass £1 inwards their stores as well as y'all earn 1 point. One indicate gets y'all 1p off your shopping or y'all tin give the axe swap it for other things, including 2.4 Avios points or 2.5 Virgin Flying Club miles.
The existent value comes from regular bonus indicate promotions run past times Tesco. These tin give the axe endure hugely aggressive. For example, they regularly offering 150 bonus points for buying selected CDs or DVDs, which tin give the axe endure every bit inexpensive every bit £3. That agency you’re getting 360 Avios points for £3. They likewise similar to offering bonus points on printer ink, which tin give the axe endure easily resold on eBay, frequently at cost cost — which agency the miles are free.
It scales upwards every bit well. They frequently offering 5,000 points (12,000 Avios) for taking out Tesco life insurance — with a minimum commitment of exactly £5 per calendar month for a year. In belatedly 2015 they offered a estimator printer for £39 with 2,000 bonus points — that was 4,800 Avios.
All of these deals tin give the axe endure bought online, hence y'all don’t fifty-fifty demand to acquire into a Tesco store. Tesco likewise offers a gratis MasterCard credit card, which earns Avios (it plant out to 0.3 Avios per £1 spent) This isn’t a peachy charge per unit of measurement but it is the best Avios MasterCard or Visa bargain available.
My novel site Shopper Points is 75% devoted to Tesco Clubcard, non exactly for miles collectors but likewise for people who role the points for non-travel redemptions.
UK-based flights have got hefty fuel surcharges (i.e., large taxes as well as fees) when y'all volume honour tickets. How does this acquit upon move h4ck1ng inwards the UK?
The key difference betwixt the UK as well as US frequent flyer scene is that, inwards the UK, y'all cannot really “fly for free,” at to the lowest degree non easily. Both British Airways as well as Virgin Atlantic (and indeed all of the other major European carriers) impose heavy fuel surcharges on redemption tickets.
This is compounded inwards the UK past times Air Passenger Duty, a difference taxation levied past times the UK regime that tin give the axe add together upwards to £166 to a business-class ticket. If y'all redeem your British Airways Avios points for a Club World (flat-bed draw of piece of work organization class) topographic point to New York, y'all volition endure asked to pay over £500 per somebody inwards taxes as well as surcharges for your “free” ticket.
This is soundless a skilful deal, of course, compared to the cost of buying a similar ticket for cash. However, when a twosome needs to notice £1,000 to embrace the additional charges on a pair of long-haul payoff seats, y'all are manifestly restricting your marketplace to people on a decent salary. Unlike the US, this is non a hobby for students or the depression paid.
The other number with the heavy taxes as well as surcharges is that it has made long-haul redemptions inwards economic scheme fundamentally pointless, except inwards peak periods. Who would redeem 40,000 Avios points as well as £350 inwards taxes for a supply economic scheme flying to New York, when the same ticket tin give the axe endure bought for £400 inwards cash?
You tin give the axe go roughly this, but it’s non easy. Air Berlin is an Avios partner as well as boyfriend Oneworld member, as well as has low-tax (£75 return) redemptions from Federal Republic of Federal Republic of Germany to the US as well as Abu Dhabi.
Aer Lingus likewise has low-tax redemptions from Dublin to the US. However, y'all demand to band British Airways to volume these — as well as the BA website doesn’t order y'all this. Only a handful of people know close it every bit a result.
Similarly, Iberia has low-tax (£150 instead of £500 for draw of piece of work organization class) redemptions from Madrid to North as well as Latin America. However, booking these on ba.com incurs a £500+ surcharge. Move your Avios to Iberia Plus (for free, online) as well as y'all tin give the axe volume the same topographic point for exactly £150 inwards taxes. BA doesn’t order y'all that either!
Does the UK have got a lot of skilful credit carte offers similar nosotros create here? What are the bonuses typically like?
It has improved massively inwards the final twosome of years. American Express has choke really aggressive. It runs (for the UK) really high bonuses on the British Airways Premium Plus carte — typically 20,000 to 25,000 points or miles — as well as is happy for y'all to churn their cards every bit long every bit y'all hold off 6 months to reapply for the same one.
As long every bit y'all know, for example, that the points from the Starwood Amex, American Express Gold, as well as American Express Platinum cards tin give the axe endure turned into Avios points, as well as hence y'all tin give the axe create really well. However, I see that 90% of Avios collectors are non aware of this.
You acquire occasional peachy deals from other issuers. MBNA/Bank of America offered 35,000 American Airlines miles every bit a sign-up bonus dorsum inwards 2013, as well as that carte was fee free. That would have got gotten y'all a one-way ticket inwards draw of piece of work organization shape on Etihad from London to Abu Dhabi!
Are in that location other cards beyond American Express?
The other large issuer is MBNA/Bank of America. They grip the UK credit cards for American Airlines, Etihad, Virgin Atlantic, Miles & More, as well as United, alongside others.
The criterion MBNA bonus offers are pretty weak: the basic Virgin Atlantic credit carte solely offers 3,000 miles for signing up. You demand to fourth dimension it correct as well as apply during a skilful bonus promotion. You likewise cannot churn MBNA bonuses, every bit these days they boundary y'all to i bonus per carte per lifetime.
That said, MBNA is a well-run draw of piece of work organization — they postal service your miles promptly, as well as their promos ever go every bit promised.
Lloyds as well as Barclays, the 2 “mainstream” banks, likewise have got some loyalty carte operations. Lloyds runs cards for avios.com (as opposed to British Airways), as well as Barclays runs cards for Hilton as well as IHG Rewards Club. In general, though, their operations are shoddy. I have lots of complaints close Lloyds non honoring sign-up bonuses, as well as Barclays has a habit of posting your points 3-4 months late.
The writing may endure on the wall for non-Amex cards, however. In belatedly 2015, the European Union capped “interchange fees” (a proxy for what shops pay to convey credit cards) at 0.3% for Visa, MasterCard, as well as third-party–issued American Express cards. The previous rates were roughly 0.75%.
It is merely non possible to run a gratis credit carte that earn miles with an interchange fee of 0.3%. That doesn’t fifty-fifty pay for the cost of funds for the carte issuer, allow lonely the miles, bad debts, contention costs, etc. You don’t brand much inwards involvement payments from airline cards because y'all have got a wealthy client base.
In future, nosotros are probable to encounter to a greater extent than annual fees as well as lower earning rates. However, the airline as well as hotel companies are desperate to maintain their logo inwards your wallet, hence compromises volition endure made. Cards may start to offering elite status, for example, or extra perks such every bit priority boarding. It volition convey a twosome of years for the marketplace to adjust.
If someone inwards the UK was looking to acquire into move h4ck1ng, what advice would y'all give them?
Focus on something simple, because i time you’ve got your initiatory off skilful redemption nether your belt, it volition encourage y'all to choke to a greater extent than ambitious.
The Hilton Visa, for example, is gratis as well as gives y'all a gratis nighttime inwards whatever global Hilton Family hotel for spending £750. Using that at, say, the Waldorf-Astoria inwards Rome or the Conrad inwards New York or Hong Kong would endure a peachy result. If a twosome each got this card, the 2 gratis nights would embrace a long weekend.
For your initiatory off flying redemption, in that location is nada incorrect with a European redemption on British Airways. Perhaps pay the extra miles for Club Europe on the way out, as well as pass an threescore minutes or hence earlier the flying inwards BA’s lounges at Heathrow. It volition whet your appetite to scale upwards your collecting.
Do y'all encounter move h4ck1ng getting easier or harder inwards the UK?
Ignoring BA’s fuel surcharges — which tin give the axe endure mitigated via Air Berlin, Aer Lingus, as well as Iberia — this is a golden age. As long every bit your credit is good, it has never been hence slow for a UK resident to rack upwards a large pile of Avios points via credit carte sign-up bonuses.
The expansion of Oneworld — with Qatar, Malaysian, as well as Sri Lankan joining inwards recent years — likewise continues to opened upwards up peachy opportunities for redeeming your miles.
Some of the peachy deals of the past times have got gone away — it was i time ridiculously slow to acquire gratis Star Alliance flights via BMI Diamond Club miles, for example. There is directly no UK airline inwards Star Alliance. All inwards all, though, these are soundless skilful times to endure playing the game.
Are in that location online shopping or dining portals similar inwards the US? Where are some ways to multiply your points per dollar spent hence every bit to rack upwards points to a greater extent than easily?
Both British Airways as well as Virgin Atlantic have got online shopping portals called Gate 365 as well as Shops Away, respectively. The work is that they were belatedly to the game.
The UK has 2 large cash-back websites, Quidco as well as TopCashback. The bulk of merchants on the airline shopping portals are on those cash-back sites, hence y'all are essentially “buying” Avios at a miserable charge per unit of measurement when y'all select non to role them as well as instead convey miles.
The solely argue I would role the airline sites is for shopping at a merchant that refuses to go with cash-back sites. The most pop merchant that does this is the subdivision store chain John Lewis.
There is some other tweak, where shopping at TopCashback is far to a greater extent than attractive for earning Avios than using BA’s ain Gate 365 portal. As I explained inwards this article , TopCashback lets y'all transportation £50 of cash-back per yr to Tesco Clubcard. This tin give the axe itself endure converted into 12,400 Avios points. You have got basically paid 0.4p each for those 12,400 Avios (£50.00 / 12,400 Avios), which is an first-class deal.
In the US, nosotros have got a lot of ways to industry spending to artificially acquire miles. Can y'all create that inwards the UK?
No, non at the moment. The primary selection — buying pre-paid Visa cards at human face upwards value inwards grocery stores using an American Express carte as well as and hence redeeming them into your banking concern draw of piece of work organization human relationship — has gone.
It is a fluid situation, however. There are a lot of innovative products existence launched inwards the UK fiscal services marketplace at the moment, as well as novel opportunities are outflow to emerge. As nosotros know from the US, they are unlikely to final for long when they do.
With US-based cards similar Citi, Chase, or AMEX, y'all have got many transfer partners, hence y'all tin give the axe displace points to where the best bargain is. Is that possible inwards the UK? What is the best way to role points on non-UK–based airlines?
If y'all are based inwards the UK but collect miles inwards a non-UK airline program, in that location are a twosome of options.
(However, for a beginner, this is non something I would recommend. British Airways as well as — to a lesser extent — Virgin Atlantic offering far to a greater extent than options for redeeming if y'all are UK based. Only expats or people who terminate upwards flying other airlines with their jobs should topographic point substantial efforts into edifice upwards miles elsewhere.)
Some non-UK airlines have got UK credit cards: Lufthansa, Etihad, Emirates, United, as well as American. Others are American Express transfer partners, hence y'all tin give the axe transportation over points from an Amex Gold or Amex Platinum card: Emirates, Etihad, KLM, Air France, Singapore, Delta.
The other selection many people forget is Starwood Preferred Guest. Starwood has over xxx airline partners, hence y'all tin give the axe earn points with the Starwood Amex carte as well as transfer them across. The charge per unit of measurement is pretty good, although the carte has a £75 annual fee.
You tin give the axe likewise transfer from American Express Membership Rewards to Starwood Preferred Guest to your preferred airline. The charge per unit of measurement is non peachy because Amex to Starwood is solely 2:1, but I have got done this inwards the past times to acquire Lufthansa miles.
Unless y'all have got substantial credit carte spend, it is unlikely that y'all would ever earn plenty miles purely for a decent redemption. There are some amazing redemptions y'all tin give the axe acquire — Emirates A380 draw of piece of work organization or initiatory off class, Etihad A380 draw of piece of work organization or initiatory off class, Lufthansa initiatory off class, etc. — but y'all volition demand at to the lowest degree 100,000 miles to redeem for whatever of those.
If y'all don’t wing these airlines for go as well as can’t construct upwards your residual that way, credit carte pass lonely is unlikely to acquire y'all enough.
If y'all desire to larn to a greater extent than close move h4ck1ng inwards the UK, banking concern jibe out Robert’s website, Head for Points, as well as follow him on Twitter. We have got it actually skilful hither inwards the U.S.A. with lucrative indicate deals as well as credit carte bonuses, but in that location is clearly a lot of chance inwards the UK.
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