British Airways has insisted the changes to its loyalty scheme are the “right thing to do” after facing criticism.
The airline recently moved from a reward system based on distance flown to one based on the amount spent – with customers earning one point for every pound.
Frequent flyer website headforpoints.com accused the airline of “effectively washing its hands of the leisure market”, claiming it will be “impossible to earn gold for small business travellers, economy travellers or self-funded leisure travellers”.
However, British Airways has said the changes will create a fairer system and are not designed to reduce the number of people rewarded.
The airline’s chief commercial officer, Colm Lacy, said awarding points for spending is “the best way of recognising our customers’ loyalty and we’re confident it’s the right thing to do”.
Under the current system, travellers could get silver status with a couple of smart business class trips to Asia, spending about £2,500. With the new system, you would be required to spend triple that amount, according to Smart with Points on X.
Mr Lacy said the changes will also make it harder for people to earn points by using “gamification and loopholes.”
In response to concerns, the airline has announced an extension of its bonus offer – allowing customers to earn up to 550 additional points per flight depending on their cabin class for the rest of the year.
In a move to appease regular commuters, it has also introduced a guaranteed bronze status for frequent flyers taking at least 25 flights a year. This status includes access to business class check-in desks and free seat selection a week before departure, even for economy ticket holders.
Gold status offers perks such as access to first-class lounges and increased baggage allowance, generally requiring 20,000 points a year.
The loyalty scheme overhaul will take effect on April 1 and includes dropping the word “Executive” from its name to become the British Airways Club.
Speaking to PA, Mr Lacy said: “This is not about reducing the number of members in each tier. The focus for this is making sure we have a loyalty scheme that rewards people for the right behaviours.”
Via the outgoing system, some customers opted to take multiple indirect flights as these cheaper and inconvenient fares helped boost their status.
While loyalty schemes based on spending are commonplace in the US, British Airways is “the first in the UK – and one of the first in Europe – to go to a system where money is the main driver,” according to Gilbert Ott, founder of the travel website God Save The Points, the Independent reported.
“But my gut is, if you look in five years, almost everybody [will have done] the same.”