Aerlingus AerClub/Avios

ButtersSuki · 10-03-2016 9:01am

Arbiter of Good Taste wrote: »

Any idea about fast track check in and security? I could possibly tolerate reduced lounge access if I didnt have to go back to queuing for ages for by drop and security.

Yeah that woukd be the most important thing to me. I'm in the uk weekly. I use the lounge once in a blue moon anymore as I'd rather get 20minutes extra in bed than in the lounge. The more I think I about it I've only used the lounge when going transatlantic or going on hols.

But like a previous poster said the qualifying points are becoming very difficult to accumulate on uk flights unless you pay stupid money.

lfc200 · 10-03-2016 9:17am

ButtersSuki wrote: »

Yeah that woukd be the most important thing to me. I'm in the uk weekly. I use the lounge once in a blue moon anymore as I'd rather get 20minutes extra in bed than in the lounge. The more I think I about it I've only used the lounge when going transatlantic or going on hols.

But like a previous poster said the qualifying points are becoming very difficult to accumulate on uk flights unless you pay stupid money.

Equally the fast track is very important, I'd generally only use the lounge in the evenings in Heathrow. If meetings etc finish early it's good to be able to head to airport early and into the lounge, get free wifi and do work in relative peace and quiet before the flight!

dudara · 10-03-2016 9:26am

ButtersSuki wrote: »

.
But like a previous poster said the qualifying points are becoming very difficult to accumulate on uk flights unless you pay stupid money.

I'm finding that too - I travel every week to Amsterdam at the moment, and in the last month, only 33% of my flights qualified for points. That's just sh*tty, there's no other way to say it. I travel for client work, and the travel desk book the best priced flight. I don't have the option of booking a more expensive flight just to guarantee points. And even then the cheapest flights are still relatively expensive.

In the past, I flew weekly to Brussels and Amsterdam, and not earning points was the exception.

eusap · 10-03-2016 9:54am

Did i read somewhere that they are moving away from Qualifying flights to earning points on Euro spent?

lfc200 · 10-03-2016 10:01am

eusap wrote: »

Did i read somewhere that they are moving away from Qualifying flights to earning points on Euro spent?

Yes I believe this is the way that Aer Club is going to be.... Would be good if they could retrospectively look at all the flights someone has done over the last 12 months just because they originally didn't count for gold circle points then they could still be accrued for Aer Club tier status!

ButtersSuki · 10-03-2016 10:17am

lfc200 wrote: »

Equally the fast track is very important, I'd generally only use the lounge in the evenings in Heathrow. If meetings etc finish early it's good to be able to head to airport early and into the lounge, get free wifi and do work in relative peace and quiet before the flight!

Despite flying through there regularly, I think I've been in the Heathrow Lounge once in the last 5 years. I've been to the shared lounge in Birmingham a few times but it's very meh, it's a real case of take it or leave it.

ButtersSuki · 10-03-2016 10:21am

lfc200 wrote: »

Yes I believe this is the way that Aer Club is going to be.... Would be good if they could retrospectively look at all the flights someone has done over the last 12 months just because they originally didn't count for gold circle points then they could still be accrued for Aer Club tier status!

They'r awful at retrospective stuff right now (it's a struggle to get credited for qualifying flights they've missed in the last 3 months alone, I can't imagine they'll go back 12!)

As for spend, it all depends on how they're going to stack this.

If for example they say qualifying for Aer Club is 3,000EUR Spend you might need to take 30 UK flights (or more) to get that, whereas 1 transatlantic flight in Business Class would cover that. It could get really messy and become a Spend programme rather than a Frequent Flyer programme.

I'm a little worried and very pessimistic about it tbh but we'll wait and see.

secondrowgal · 10-03-2016 11:11am

Does anybody know what the story will be with BA and OneWorld flights/points now that AL is part of the BA group? I pretty much gave up on AL GC because of experiencing everything that all you folk have listed above. I've done a number of long haul Prem Economy or Business on BA, so my status is better on that. Can we use AL flights towards the BA Executive Club?

Another thing I will say, all the schemes are very non-transparent! I get more good, concrete info here than I can find on their sites!

brettmirl · 10-03-2016 11:35am

Found info on tiers and other stuff here: https://www.aerlingus.com/experience-aer-lingus/loyalty/introducing-aerclub/

lfc200 · 10-03-2016 5:01pm

Aer Lingus must have been looking at this thread! Just got an email from them saying that gold circle is being extended until June 30th!

Yamanoto · 10-03-2016 5:02pm

Yet more messing about by this bunch merely reinforces my intention to credit all future activity on EI to my BAEC account.

Gold Circle closure update…

Dear Xxxxxxx,

We are pleased to confirm, that following your feedback and comments we have extended the Gold Circle programme to 30th June 2016. This will allow you to continue to enjoy your Gold Circle membership benefits. As a result the new Aer Club programme will now begin in July 2016.

We are continuing to build the best airline loyalty programme for you to allow access to more rewards than ever before whilst offering true recognition when flying with Aer Lingus.

What does this mean?
It means that between now and 30th June, you can continue to enjoy all the benefits of your Gold Circle membership. You can continue to collect points for flights with Aer Lingus and utilise your membership benefits whilst travelling.

Your new AerClub membership tier will still be determined by your level of Aer Lingus flight activity within the 12 months prior to the closure of Gold Circle.

Any Gold Circle points collected between now and 30th June will still be converted to Avios points and credited to your new AerClub account as previously advised.

What happens next?
Between now and 30th June, your AerClub profile will be created. We will be in touch before 30th June with everything you need to know about the new programme, and how to make the most of your new membership.

You will also receive your new membership pack before 30th June to ensure you get a flying start once we commence the rollout of AerClub.

To find out more about AerClub please click here.

We would like to thank you for your continued support and look forward to welcoming you on board soon.

Yours sincerely

John Kavanagh
Loyalty Marketing Manager

Tenger · 10-03-2016 7:03pm

ButtersSuki wrote: »

....
But like a previous poster said the qualifying points are becoming very difficult to accumulate on uk flights unless you pay stupid money.

Im not sure bout fast track. My mate was told that they want to open up more fare classes for qualifying for points/avios. The plan is to reward spend rather than ticket class.

She did tell me they plan to introduce a new fully flex ticket that will include fast-track, lounge access, extra cabin bag, priority boarding and comp items onboard. No timeframe on that however.

ButtersSuki · 10-03-2016 7:52pm

Tenger wrote: »

Im not sure bout fast track. My mate was told that they want to open up more fare classes for qualifying for points/avios. The plan is to reward spend rather than ticket class.

She did tell me they plan to introduce a new fully flex ticket that will include fast-track, lounge access, extra cabin bag, priority boarding and comp items onboard. No timeframe on that however.

That heavily contradicts earlier posts on lounge access restrictions though? If the type of ticket you refer to is brought in you could have a passenger who's using Aer Lingus for the first time go to the lounge whilst w person who goes over and back to England weekly (and a GC member) not allowed in. Way to plss people off!

LXFlyer · 10-03-2016 8:53pm

I do think that it's fair that the fare class of ticket purchased is relevant - someone could be flying every week but on a very low fare - you have to look at what the airline is getting in terms of revenue.

For many of the lower fares, the amount of revenue going to the airline is minuscule, with the lion's share being taxes, duties and airport charges.

There has to be an acceptance that if you're only paying a low fare, even if flying weekly, that the likelihood of getting benefits (such as lounge access) is going to be less than someone paying a higher fare.

Tenger · 10-03-2016 9:47pm

ButtersSuki wrote: »

........If the type of ticket you refer to is brought in you could have a passenger who's using Aer Lingus for the first time go to the lounge whilst w person who goes over and back to England weekly (and a GC member) not allowed in. Way to plss people off!

Its a way to get people purchasing the fully flex tickets and allowing non-lounge access members to get sense of what they could get if they move up a tier.

Anyway, this info is 3-4 months old and it could have changed since my mate was told. On the day she was told that GC was ending on March 31st. And as indicated by the above email GC has been extended until June. Looks like they are still working on the integration with BA/IB Avios programs.

ButtersSuki · 10-03-2016 10:06pm

lxflyer wrote: »

I do think that it's fair that the fare class of ticket purchased is relevant - someone could be flying every week but on a very low fare - you have to look at what the airline is getting in terms of revenue.

For many of the lower fares, the amount of revenue going to the airline is minuscule, with the lion's share being taxes, duties and airport charges.

There has to be an acceptance that if you're only paying a low fare, even if flying weekly, that the likelihood of getting benefits (such as lounge access) is going to be less than someone paying a higher fare.

I see your point on one level but.....

If I fly to the UK once a week (as I usually do) on say a low fare at €64.99 EW (and that's low for the main UK airports), that's say 45-48 x €130 = give or take €6,000 PA

Now some guy who pays flex fare (even say €250 return, which would be high for a flex return) twice a year will get lounge access and I won't? :mad::mad::mad::mad:

Not that I particularly care for the lounge access mind (as I said I rarely have time to use them anymore), but it's the principle!

lfc200 · 10-03-2016 10:06pm

lxflyer wrote: »

I do think that it's fair that the fare class of ticket purchased is relevant - someone could be flying every week but on a very low fare - you have to look at what the airline is getting in terms of revenue.

For many of the lower fares, the amount of revenue going to the airline is minuscule, with the lion's share being taxes, duties and airport charges.

There has to be an acceptance that if you're only paying a low fare, even if flying weekly, that the likelihood of getting benefits (such as lounge access) is going to be less than someone paying a higher fare.

Not sure that I'd agree with that totally, the programme is a frequent flyer programme which by nature should reward those who do a lot of flying. It's an airlines perrogative to set the fare that they charge, why should someone who books earlier to take advantage of the lower fare that is on offer be penalised? Someone who travels every week at a lower fare is likely to bring just as much revenue as someone who might travel once a month on a much higher fare! That is just my opinion anyway!

LXFlyer · 10-03-2016 10:29pm

ButtersSuki wrote: »

I see your point on one level but.....

If I fly to the UK once a week (as I usually do) on say a low fare at €64.99 EW (and that's low for the main UK airports), that's say 45-48 x €130 = give or take €6,000 PA

Now some guy who pays flex fare (even say €250 return, which would be high for a flex return) twice a year will get lounge access and I won't? :mad::mad::mad::mad:

Not that I particularly care for the lounge access mind (as I said I rarely have time to use them anymore), but it's the principle!

Yes but how much of that is going to the airline? Most of that €130 is taxes/charges.

There has to be an element of realty here in terms of whilst you might be flying frequently, but the airline is getting diddly squat.

There's a balance to be struck.

ButtersSuki · 10-03-2016 10:35pm

lxflyer wrote: »

Yes but how much of that is going to the airline? Most of that €130 is taxes/charges.

There has to be an element of realty here in terms of whilst you might be flying frequently, but the airline is getting diddly squat.

There's a balance to be struck.

I hadn't checked my balance in a while but I have 8,600 active points - I had 11,000 until they took 2,400 off my total to keep my membership going in January.

I've been on 64 Aer Lingus flights (32 trips, I've flown more often than that - sometimes I have to use other airlines) in the last 12 months and accumulated a measly 1,600points in that time - and 1,200 of that was on a US trip.

Again I hear what you're saying, but..........................if you were in my shoes....you'd be p*ssed too.

Tenger · 10-03-2016 11:11pm

ButtersSuki wrote: »

If I fly to the UK once a week (as I usually do) on say a low fare at €64.99 EW (and that's low for the main UK airports), that's say 45-48 x €130 = give or take €6,000 PA

Now some guy who pays flex fare (even say €250 return, which would be high for a flex return) twice a year will get lounge access and I won't? :mad::mad::mad::mad:.....

From reading the promotion email info and having talked to my mate. I would guess that you will still get credit for your annual spend which will go towards moving you up a tier while the less frequent flex ticket holder will get the benefits when they fly but they will not get the points towards tier status.

Van.Bosch · 14-03-2016 4:42pm

Aer club pushed to July.

pclive · 13-04-2016 9:35pm

Avios appointed an Irish marketing manager a few months back

Any word on an Irish credit card or other ways to earn additional Avios yet?

goingnowhere · 13-04-2016 10:47pm

Word is Super Valu will issue Avios as part of the Aer Club program

MayoSalmon · 14-04-2016 11:51am

goingnowhere wrote:

Word is Super Valu will issue Avios as part of the Aer Club program

Super Valu are launching a new Real Rewards program in the summer. I believe there will be a partnership with EI involved.

Rock of Gibraltar · 17-04-2016 7:08pm

goingnowhere wrote: »

Word is Super Valu will issue Avios as part of the Aer Club program

I wonder if Tesco will follow suit, they do this in the UK; 1 £2.50 Tesco clubcard voucher can be converted to 600 avios.

carq · 21-04-2016 11:45am

How can I sign up to Aer lingus loyalty club??

I am already a member of BA and Etihad but cannot seem to sign up online?
It seems they are between clubs at the moment but how can I be sure my travel will be counted when the new club opens up ?

Anyone have any information ?

AndyBoBandy · 21-04-2016 11:47am

carq wrote: »

How can I sign up to Aer lingus loyalty club??

You'll have to wait until AerClub is launched in July,

Gold Circle applications were no longer accepted once AerClub was announced, so in the window of announcement of the new program to the actual roll out, there is a hold on new applicants joining.

carq wrote: »

It seems they are between clubs at the moment but how can I be sure my travel will be counted when the new club opens up ?

unless you were a GC applicant before they stopped accepting applications, you won't gain any credit from Aer Lingus for flights taken, your best bet would be to get the Avios on your BA account.

carq · 21-04-2016 3:48pm

AndyBoBandy wrote: »

You'll have to wait until AerClub is launched in July,

Gold Circle applications were no longer accepted once AerClub was announced, so in the window of announcement of the new program to the actual roll out, there is a hold on new applicants joining.

unless you were a GC applicant before they stopped accepting applications, you won't gain any credit from Aer Lingus for flights taken, your best bet would be to get the Avios on your BA account.

Aer lingus no longer seem to be a partner to BA.
Not appearing on the list of partner airlines.

brettmirl · 21-04-2016 4:10pm

carq wrote: »

Aer lingus no longer seem to be a partner to BA.
Not appearing on the list of partner airlines.

Still showing here: https://www.aerlingus.com/plan-and-book/plan/our-airline-partners/

LXFlyer · 21-04-2016 5:58pm

carq wrote: »

Aer lingus no longer seem to be a partner to BA.
Not appearing on the list of partner airlines.

Given that they are both part of the same group (IAG), and multiple Aer Lingus flights have BA code share flight numbers I think you'll find that isn't the case.

Van.Bosch · 30-04-2016 8:19pm

Super valu partnership confirmed in IAG quarterly presentation.

pclive · 01-05-2016 9:34am

Van.Bosch wrote: »

Super valu partnership confirmed in IAG quarterly presentation.

Any credit card providers mentioned?

MayoSalmon · 01-05-2016 2:12pm

pclive wrote:

Any credit card providers mentioned?

No and there will not be. Basically as I undserstand it, Revenue in Ireland views the issuance of airline points from a credit card as a form of currency and therefore should be taxable. Nonsense really and explains the non existance of reward credit cards in Ireland.

Tenger · 01-05-2016 2:20pm

I never realised that. Fibally make sense of why we have never had an airline credit card program here. I know that Aer Lingus have a program for US based frequent flyers.

Marcusm · 01-05-2016 2:43pm

MayoSalmon wrote: »

No and there will not be. Basically as I undserstand it, Revenue in Ireland views the issuance of airline points from a credit card as a form of currency and therefore should be taxable. Nonsense really and explains the non existance of reward credit cards in Ireland.

Do you have anything in writing on that? I would find it unusual, there are rewards cards such as AIB Platinum which include cash back; equally Tesco clubcard points are identical. There should not be any basis on which to tax the reward - it is neither income from an asset, investment nor an employment but essentially a manner of a non cash discount

Tenger wrote: »

I never realised that. Fibally make sense of why we have never had an airline credit card program here. I know that Aer Lingus have a program for US based frequent flyers.

Is there still a US card? There had been a BArclays US one but I know from family that it was cancelled 18 months or so ago.

MayoSalmon · 01-05-2016 3:43pm

Marcusm wrote:

Do you have anything in writing on that? I would find it unusual, there are rewards cards such as AIB Platinum which include cash back; equally Tesco clubcard points are identical. There should not be any basis on which to tax the reward - it is neither income from an asset, investment nor an employment but essentially a manner of a non cash discount

Ill have a look alright. In regards to the cash back reward cards at present, thats just an internal cost AIB or whomever absorb. I know there shoukd be no basis at all but sure theres no basis for changing VRT but revenue still do it!

I'd say Avios themselves will be trying to team up with a card issuer like they do in the UK, they'll have to have talks with Revenue of course though so not sure when we will see this happen if ever.

Marcusm · 01-05-2016 3:57pm

MayoSalmon wrote: »

Ill have a look alright. In regards to the cash back reward cards at present, thats just an internal cost AIB or whomever absorb. I know there shoukd be no basis at all but sure theres no basis for changing VRT but revenue still do it!

I'd say Avios themselves will be trying to team up with a card issuer like they do in the UK, they'll have to have talks with Revenue of course though so not sure when we will see this happen if ever.

I'm not sure if that is supposed to be flippant but VRT was legislated for in 1992 and drafted with the intention of being coherent with European single market principles. That's an entirely different proposition from something on which the tax code is silent and which does not, in the ordinary scheme of things, constitute income.

MayoSalmon · 05-05-2016 2:37pm

Marcusm wrote: »

There should not be any basis on which to tax the reward - it is neither income from an asset, investment nor an employment but essentially a manner of a non cash discount

Unfortunately it is viewed as a form of currency which in theory it is. Revenue view this as a way of increasing your personal income, but like you highlighted it works in much the same way as Tesco clubcard or chargebacks. I can't find any legislation to make a distinction between the two unfortunately.

Not sure what HMRC do in the UK in relation to Nectar/Avios pts etc.

faceman · 05-05-2016 3:25pm

MayoSalmon wrote: »

Unfortunately it is viewed as a form of currency which in theory it is. Revenue view this as a way of increasing your personal income, but like you highlighted it works in much the same way as Tesco clubcard or chargebacks. I can't find any legislation to make a distinction between the two unfortunately.

Not sure what HMRC do in the UK in relation to Nectar/Avios pts etc.

Slightly related, from an income tax perspective there is a section in the BIK documentation online that exempts reward schemes as a result of business travel from being taxed.

Marcusm · 05-05-2016 3:43pm

MayoSalmon wrote: »

Unfortunately it is viewed as a form of currency which in theory it is. Revenue view this as a way of increasing your personal income, but like you highlighted it works in much the same way as Tesco clubcard or chargebacks. I can't find any legislation to make a distinction between the two unfortunately.

Not sure what HMRC do in the UK in relation to Nectar/Avios pts etc.

It's certainly not a form of currency - in most of the participating countries, only governments can create currency or delegate the authority to do so. Likewise, it's mere existence does not make it taxable income, it must fall under a category (schedule or case) and derive from a taxable source (office or employment, possession or asset). There is no meaningful distinction between Avios and Clubcrd points, they are all electronic green shield stamps and in the nature of a non cash discount available to customers generally.

faceman wrote: »

Slightly related, from an income tax perspective there is a section in the BIK documentation online that exempts reward schemes as a result of business travel from being taxed.

That does esn't exempt them per se but is a statement that the Revenue will not assess them as a taxable benefit. The reason is quite simple, as with employer provided parking, civil servants are permitted to retain the points. To assess them for BIK would be to tax them in the hands of civil servants which would be unacceptable!

L1011 · 05-05-2016 3:49pm

MayoSalmon wrote: »

No and there will not be. Basically as I undserstand it, Revenue in Ireland views the issuance of airline points from a credit card as a form of currency and therefore should be taxable. Nonsense really and explains the non existance of reward credit cards in Ireland.

There are rewards cards (Tesco, AIB) and were more in the past - Ulster, BOI, Amex Blue, Pigsback etc. They died due to banks wanting more money and reducing retailer rates for cards, not Revenue.

As there's no work involved I imagine it would come under the CAT thresholds rather than income tax; which would be rather implausible to reach.

MayoSalmon · 05-05-2016 7:46pm

Marcusm wrote:

It's certainly not a form of currency - in most of the participating countries, only governments can create currency or delegate the authority to do so. Likewise, it's mere existence does not make it taxable income, it must fall under a category (schedule or case) and derive from a taxable source (office or employment, possession or asset).

Is Bitcoin not a currency then?

Marcusm · 05-05-2016 8:25pm

MayoSalmon wrote: »

Is Bitcoin not a currency then?

Different views exist as to whether Bitcoin is a currency, an electronic commodity or simply a tokenistic approach to a payment system. Irrespective, gold circle points, Avios etc are not accepted by 100,000 or more vendors and are not even freely transferable between members of their respective systems so irrespective of whether Bitcoin might be a currency, Avios and GC points have few similar characteristics.

MayoSalmon · 05-05-2016 10:20pm

Marcusm wrote:

Different views exist as to whether Bitcoin is a currency, an electronic commodity or simply a tokenistic approach to a payment system. Irrespective, gold circle points, Avios etc are not accepted by 100,000 or more vendors and are not even freely transferable between members of their respective systems so irrespective of whether Bitcoin might be a currency, Avios and GC points have few similar characteristics.

No different views don't exist. Bitcoin works without a central repository or single administrator/ government and the U.S. Treasury categorizes it as a decentralized virtual currency so yes it is a currency and used worldwide by more than 200,000 vendors.

Again Avios in theory "could" be accepted by thousands of vendors worldwide and it is easily transferred between members albeit at a cost.

carq · 11-05-2016 2:44pm

lxflyer wrote: »

Given that they are both part of the same group (IAG), and multiple Aer Lingus flights have BA code share flight numbers I think you'll find that isn't the case.

Well when i log into BA to claim missing partner miles, AER lingus is not on the drop down list for partner airlines.

AirBerlin
American Airways
BA
Cathay Pacific
Dragon Air
Finn air
Iberia
LANCHILE
Malaysia Arilines
Meridiana
NIKI
Quantas
Quatar
S7
Sri Lankan
TAM

Dingle_berry · 11-05-2016 3:06pm

carq wrote: »

Well when i log into BA to claim missing partner miles, AER lingus is not on the drop down list for partner airlines.

AirBerlin
American Airways
BA
Cathay Pacific
Dragon Air
Finn air
Iberia
LANCHILE
Malaysia Arilines
Meridiana
NIKI
Quantas
Quatar
S7
Sri Lankan
TAM

Those are the one world alliance members. Aerlingus isn't in the the one world alliance, it's listed under 'other airline partners' with Alaska airlines and Meridiana. You can't claim tier points for Aerlingus flights but you can claim Avios, just not as many as for the same flight with an OWA member. http://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/executive-club/collecting-avios/flights

The_Wanderer · 23-05-2016 7:39pm

Anybody have any idea when Aer Lingus send out their monthly Gold Circle Statement?

steve-o · 23-05-2016 8:24pm

The_Wanderer wrote: »

Anybody have any idea when Aer Lingus send out their monthly Gold Circle Statement?

Due in the next day or two.

Dardania · 25-05-2016 9:26am

steve-o wrote: »

The_Wanderer wrote: »

Anybody have any idea when Aer Lingus send out their monthly Gold Circle Statement?

Due in the next day or two.

just out of curiosity would you mind letting know when it arrives, as I recently entered GC, and from experiencing their delays with crediting flights, I want to keep an eye out that they have me set up correctly

I'm a bit suspicious that they mightn't have, as when I go to their old site:

http://classic.aerlingus.com/cgi-bin/obel01im1/bookonline/myAerlingus.do

it shows the correct, almost up to date points, but still as applicant

L1011 · 25-05-2016 10:59am

Couldn't find the link for that recently. No idea how I apparently have 1000 points currently, at the rate of my future bookings (another 500 points worth in the next two weeks) and how delayed AerClub is I might actually get status again before the changeover! :pac:

Aerlingus AerClub/Avios

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