Dear Alex,
I am amazed that British Airways in the UK has been allowed to invent a set of ticketing rules and a mileage programme (or frequent flyer programme) that would never have been allowed to take off in the US.
I am a million-mile flyer with US carrier United and am used to paying change fees on low-fare nonrefundable tickets to upgrade before and after departure [on return or onward flights, for example].
But when I have flown with BA (paying both with cash, and part cash, part BA mileage) I have lost money when I wished to change because of BA’s restrictive rules. Such fleecing of customers would not be allowed at a major US carrier. Do you agree regulators should examine such sharp practices?
Peter Marshall, London
Alex replies:
BA is not alone here. There are cultural differences between US and European airlines that have resulted in more restrictive tariff rules being applied not just here but across mainland Europe by our local carriers.
You have to bear in mind that European carriers have grown up in a more restrictive environment than their colleagues in the US, where fares have been liberalised for decades.
From a consumer viewpoint, it would be good if European regulators could investigate frequent flyer programme anomalies. But this is unlikely to happen as governments here dislike these schemes for tax reasons and banned them in Europe for a number of years.
