Some councils in the UK allow you to pay your council tax with your AMEX card, but it has to be done manually every month (instead of Direct Debit), or annually. That's £1500-3000 for some folks! (so this fall under credit card spending)
To add to this, I pay my water bill, rent, and council tax at Coop who take Amex for Paypoint and I pay my gas and electric at a payzone in Tesco who take Amex for it.
Came across your video by chance and it was a very good watch. One thing I'd point out (excuse the pun) is doing surveys for avios. I do 2-3 a day if I can, sometimes more but I aim for 100 points a day. If you stick to that you could earn well over 35k avios in a year, just for making up the answers in my case! 👌
Thanks Rich - a few people have said that now and I will certainly look into it... Can probably find a few minutes a day to get 35k avios... I spend 15 minutes a day doing stuff that is fare less productive!!
I gave you a like specifically for your comment about deliberately saying Avios wrong to annoy the viewer who felt the need to correct your pronunciation. Love it.
This video reminded me that I owe you an apology. I also picked up on a mispronunciation on a different video a few days ago (routing). For that I am truly sorry for being such a horrible excuse! I actually love to watch your videos, they are informative and entertaining at the same time. Contrary to what I said in my comment, I'm now an avid viewer and subscriber. Once again, I am truly sorry for being such a douche!
No worries at all Mikey - I lived in the US for 5 years and still have a few words that I pronounce oddly - "water" being one as the American's could never understand the British pronunciation! As long as people understand what I mean, that's all that matters! Thanks for watching!
YAY you mentioned my hack i mentioned to you before about using curve to pay a credit card. So the curve black, you dont pay any charges on the first £10,000 per month. then you pay 1.5% there after Happy Birthday Matt!
Happy Birthday, Daddy Matt! BA has pulled out of the Rocketmiles hotel booking programme; however, Qatar is still on there and now that they've joined Avios, it's an easy earn and transfer. For example, stay one night at The Royal Horseguards Hotel and you earn 9K Qatar Avios. So if you'd like to test out the Rocketmiles scheme, stick around! I mean, do a video! HAHA - Red
Happy Birthday Matt. Loved the multiple avios pronunciations. Very interested in a video on paying off a credit card with a credit card. Immediately thought the costs of doing this would make it pointless but interested to hear how it will work.
Thanks Phil. As another commenter pointed out with Curve, the card that allows this will cost something but you get other benefits... Like travel insurance... Which makes this a little more viable... And you get another month's cashflow out of the arrangement....
Never flown with BA until last year. But the deal was good flying to New York and San Francisco just 6 weeks apart and went from blue to silver. LA this June should push us to gold and also now no rip off seat charge in premium. Shall have to see if flights still say at a decent price in the future
Enjoyable video Matt - I go back many years on Rob’s HFP advice and collecting Avois & Virgin points is still my hobby (hate that phrase) even in retirement Keep up the good work Now a subscriber to your channel 😊
Thanks David. A hobby that pays off with a strong reward! Just yesterday I experienced the benefits with a redemption flight on a Virgin partner... Video coming soon!
I concentrate more on TP collecting than Avios, which, for me, can be a little complicated. We share the same birthday by the way. Belated Good wishes. Steve.
@@MattsPlanet yep, it's £10K/month. I do use it but customer service leaves a lot to be desired, and some credit card companies, like Virgin Money, are starting to treat some of those transactions as a cash advance, so I can't see myself holding it for much longer.
Your channel is the most helpful I have come across regarding this stuff. I only have recently got an Amex card, and got Around 40k AMEX points. How do I know which airline provider is best to convert my points to because the options are vast and it’s very overwhelming. Is BA avios the best or something different? Binge watching this channel haha
Thanks for finding me!!! Where to shove your points is really down to where you want to go and who with!!! Leave them in Amex until you need them and push them just before any booking. There's an occasional transfer bonus although that's more common in the US. Head for points has several good articles about where you can send points and what the value could be so check them out
Excellent video and I was nodding along throughout, except for the Curve part. The paying Amex with Visa/MC cards avenue has closed with all the major providers. Notably Virgin and Creation, but almost certainly Barclaycard as well. And anyhow if there's still an avenue remaining, that is certainly not "working as intended" and will be closed eventually. Might get you into hot water with the provider as well, e.g. Creation shut down many people who engaged in this sort of thing. For Self assessment it is a different story - definitely possible, and worth exploring if one has a hefty bill.
Thanks. Curve transparently advertises this benefit, and charges for it. So you are right that its rare to be able to do this and you may be right that its an opportunity that may get closed, but it is possible right now!
A Premier salary for a Premier account! I try not to mention numbers in videos like this in case they change and I end up giving out dud information...
Hello Matt, very interesting how you managed that but i would like to know your thoughts on the new way BA is going to change how you earn Avios .yesterday i had an email telling me that from October 2023 you will only earn Avios for the amount you pay for your ticket not the miles flown . So i think they will be losing a lot of customers to other airlines . What do you think? TK.
It's not great... Rob at Head For Points analysed it better than I can... Only 1.1% of my avios came from flying in 2022 so it won't in all honesty make a huge difference to me but its another dent in the scheme which is annoying...
@@MattsPlanet Reno. I'm begining to like OTP as a starting point. I can slip a 120tp run from Man in the night before then fly out of OTP early morning. Was JFK and LAX included in that? Steve. C. YNWA.
Great video Matt, just wanna ask about the sign up bonus with certain Amex cards…so would I be able to apply for a card that gives me X amount of Avios, and then never have to use it/cancel it? Is it that easy?😅
There's usually a spending requirement to trigger the bonus... So the Black BA Amex card right now requires a £3k spend to trigger the 25k bonus. You can then cancel the card and they will actually give you the annual fee back pro-rata
Sadly not... You can move avios between airlines which use them (Aer Lingus, Iberia and Qatar) but not to an airline which uses a different system, including AA
Hi Matt, why don't you use the BA shopping portal? So many retailers like John Lewis, Sainsbury's (over 1700 retailers) to shop at and earn Avios. I just found this out a month or so ago and am now earning Avios like that.
Very good point Clare. I really don't spend much money (other than on travel!!!) so the opportunities for me are limited but I'll certainly take a look. Surveys is another avenue a few people have mentioned!
Thanks for the video, I started collecting Avios when the Barclays 100,000 points offer started and have just got on the Amex 70,000 points offer too. I’m excited to use these for things I’d never normally be able to afford, like flying business class. One thing I’d like to understand more is how to find and book rewards flights, when are they usually released, how far in advance do I need to look, are there any other things to be aware of? Do you have any previous videos that can help me understand a little better? Thanks again
Hello Mr Turnip! A strong start to your avios earning career! Plenty of stuff on the channel about the BA Exec club which answers all those questions. But quickly, as you have such a great name! Seatspy is the best resource for finding availability. Flights are created (and so can be booked) 355 days ahead of departure. You can call to book but easiest to book online. Your BA account should show most of this and allow you to play around and see what you fancy. You can find availability on BA but Seatspy is better, even if there is a fee to do the more complicated bits!
this video is hilarious. Spoiler alert to anyone who skipped the first few minutes; please go back and rewatch from the beginning otherwise you will be foaming at the mouth. tbf I would have also made a video on avvioss lol
@@MattsPlanet also a great idea to chain cards together to max out points, however I need to do some close reading of the T&Cs to ensure I'm not just wasting time/money. Most cashback schemes do not reward cash or balance transfers so I need to keep an eye on how that works here.
So I subbed @ $300/month for 16,667 Avios gettin me 200k after 12 months. I turn avg of 8k/monthly Amex points to Avios. 96k + 200k is 296k Avios. I consider buyin sort of a savings account without using USD
Hi Matt great video. Could you not pay your BA amex bill with a curve card which is linked to the Barclays card avios credit card hence doubling up on your avios?
A suggestion - may be out of your circle of interest but your take and recommendations on travel insurance would be valuable . I was a victim of the Southwest Airlines meltdown over the holidays and if I’d had any hotel that was non refundable whew!. Well I bet you can guess hotel rates in Manhattan are not low over New Years!
Thank Scott. Something I have thought about but its not a topic I particularly enjoy... I used to be a Finance Director and the annual insurance renewal process always used to be agony for me.... It is on the list though and it would be a valuable topic to cover....
Avios have a 3 year life and will expire after 3 years if you don't earn or spend at least 1 avios in that 36 month period. So with a little bit of planning they'll last indefinitely.
Hi! New to the Chanel so you might have already answered this in a video. But ba has the scheme where you can increase avios earned by x1 x2 or x3 by paying a small fee, would this work with the 200000 subscription, meaning you would get 800000 in a year?
I believe you can boost avios bought via a subscription - but there's a cap of 200k (I believe), above which the price shoots up.... So you can boost a lower subscription but you'd be slightly better off taking the bigger subscription...
@@MattsPlanet Amazing! thanks so much for your help and amazing videos, ive dabbled in points for the past few years, but looking to be a little more serious with them going forward, your videos have been such a great help!
Really helpful video. I just got my BA Amex card and i am totally last to how i would link my Amex caed to my BA account and Avios account. In other words, how do these 3 system talk to each other so that Avios points are centralised. I am so confused can you help?
When you applied for the Amex card you would have registered the BA account number (I think - it was a few years ago that I did it!!!) And avios (and vouchers) earned will automatically post
@MattsPlanet thanks for the prompt response Matt. I would have thought the same but BA account wasn't created in my case so I created one and contacted support at Amex and requested them to link the two. They said they will forward the request on to BA on my behalf. So hopefully they'll sort it but I honestly think this should all be self explanatory in both their portals.
@@iam4203 Are you sure you got the BA Amex? Regular Amexes have a membership rewards scheme where you can push points to a few airlines. That wouldn't require you to have a BA exec account to get a card....
Hi Matt, Happy Birthday, love your videos! Could you please clarify if the Avios percentage bonuses (bronze 25%, silver 50%, and gold 100%) affect earnings from credit cards? Say if I earned 1.5 points per £ spent but was a gold EC member, would I make 3 points per £ spent? Cheers!
Thanks! Tier bonuses only apply to avios earned when flying, and then only on some airlines. I looked at this yesterday and BA and AA are the full bonuses you mention - FInnair was less and Malaysian was 0%. No tier bonuses on the credit card earnings, sadly...
Do you know if there's a way to avoid transaction fees on barclaycard avios card as the fees will most certainly wipe out the benefit of the avios I will earn
@@shabba12345 Ah... I would have said Curve, although they've got this crazy idea that they want their company to make a profit (insane, right???) so keep changing their product and I've lost track of what the current offering is.... But that's where I'd look
@@MattsPlanet thanks for the advice Matt, trying to bump up those avios points and booking the hotel direct is much cheaper than Expedia or Booking but they're charging USD. Will give Chase a try 👍🏽
Its a total of how many tier points you've earned since you joined the club. Tier points reset to 0 each year and they dictate the status you earn, but lifetime tier points never reset
@@MattsPlanet yeah realised I'd put miami. Meant orlando. The 777 200 garwick or something ut says on upgraded points. But I couldn't find any availability to miami which was a bummer.
Happy Birthday Matt. Another interesting and useful video. you say you don't really shop through BA's portal, but one thing I have used on there are the food boxes like Hello Fresh, Gousto, Mindful Chef etc. there are several and all yield between 1000-2000 AVioshekles.🤭 you can order 1 box then close the account and open up a different one. it's good, fresh, tasty meals. I am currently working my way through my 4th box. What is your destination on the 12th of Jan? Anyway currently trying to finesse BA's double TP holiday offer to HNL for Aug/Sept using ITA Matrix. (it's fun) from OTP. Including MAN to OTP. whole trip at the mo is about 3k and 1680TP. Thanks for the idea. Steve. C YNWA.
Hi Steve! Aviosheckles made me laugh! Off to the Caribbean on the 12th - using my welcome bonus from getting a Virgin credit card for a KLM redemption... Stay tuned for coverage!! Saw a good fare ex BUD to HNL... Not sure you'll get double tier points from a trip starting in OTP - has to be out of the UK...
@@angelafoster5071 Ah - I see.... Somewhere in the amex website is a "refer a friend" button which will generate a unique referral code you can share... If you can find it, I'm happy to share mine!!!!
@@MattsPlanet I’m based in Ireland so I’m afraid I don’t believe we have Amex as an option. Appreciate your help though and I really enjoy the channel.
Hello, could you please let me know if by using BA American Express Premium Plus Card in supermarkets like Tesco, Asda, Morrisons or any in-store or online shop I will get Avios points? I mean by using this card anywhere where they accept American Express logo credit card. I want to buy ev charger from online electrical store and when it comes to payment it is showing that they accept payments VISA, MASTER CARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS, will I receive any points by using BA card?
It's an American Express card which is accepted everywhere American Express is accepted. Which is not quite as many places as Visa and Mastercard, but its still very widespread. The fact it is branded in conjunction with BA makes no difference to its acceptance. And with the Premium Plus card it will reward you in the form of 1.5 avios per pound spent. Some cards give cash back. other Amexes give points in the Amex scheme, this one gives Avios. You can pay for a Virgin or Lufthansa flight with the card and the seller will just care about it being Amex...
It's on the list... But Curve keeps tweaking things - they seem to have this crazy idea that they want to actually make a profit... So I want things to stabilise before I return to this - its really annoying to invest the time in making a video only for it to be out of date shortly after issue...
Good content but you’re trying to hard to be entertaining with saying avios in different ways. It’s more cringy than fun to watch. Just be yourself and act normal 👍
Hi. I've just discovered your blog. Really enjoying it. I earn similar numbers of avios per year as you and I'm lucky that I will get the 100k bonus from barclays. How do you know how many you've earned in a year? Do you keep tabs on it as you go along. Also. I do a lot of buying through topcashback which gets me quite a lot. Probably around 15k avios.
Thanks Ian. Welcome aboard! I got the data from the BA account and pasted it into excel for analysis. I don't routinely but found it quite interesting once I started! Apart from travel, I really don't spend a lot on anything but will take a look at topcashback as I have heard that to be a worthwhile investment of time!
@@MattsPlanet topcashback is a slow process and is most beneficial when booking hotels. But also good when changing power companies and mobile Companies
Some councils in the UK allow you to pay your council tax with your AMEX card, but it has to be done manually every month (instead of Direct Debit), or annually. That's £1500-3000 for some folks! (so this fall under credit card spending)
Good to know - I'll be checking mine on Monday!
👍👍 what other bills/common finances do you recommend? I usually bill my subscriptions e.g iCloud, RUclips premium, Netflix to it too
To add to this, I pay my water bill, rent, and council tax at Coop who take Amex for Paypoint and I pay my gas and electric at a payzone in Tesco who take Amex for it.
If your council does it then you’re lucky. Councils generally don’t accept credit card payments, only debit.
Came across your video by chance and it was a very good watch. One thing I'd point out (excuse the pun) is doing surveys for avios. I do 2-3 a day if I can, sometimes more but I aim for 100 points a day. If you stick to that you could earn well over 35k avios in a year, just for making up the answers in my case! 👌
Thanks Rich - a few people have said that now and I will certainly look into it... Can probably find a few minutes a day to get 35k avios... I spend 15 minutes a day doing stuff that is fare less productive!!
Very useful video on collecting the Aveoos and happy birthday!
Hope it helped! Thanks
I gave you a like specifically for your comment about deliberately saying Avios wrong to annoy the viewer who felt the need to correct your pronunciation. Love it.
Thanks!!!! I got no feedback from that original viewer after releasing this video! And the content is a bit dull so I wanted to spice it up a bit!
@@MattsPlanet it was a useful video too! But I was already hooked at that part.
Happy Birthday Matt! I don't even have any Soivas, but still enjoy your videos. That tells a story!
Thanks for watching - tried to make it fun even if its core topic was dull!
lol take a shot every time he pronounces the word differently lol he just subbed b/c why not with this humor lol
The Matt's Planet drinking game is born!
This video reminded me that I owe you an apology. I also picked up on a mispronunciation on a different video a few days ago (routing). For that I am truly sorry for being such a horrible excuse! I actually love to watch your videos, they are informative and entertaining at the same time. Contrary to what I said in my comment, I'm now an avid viewer and subscriber. Once again, I am truly sorry for being such a douche!
No worries at all Mikey - I lived in the US for 5 years and still have a few words that I pronounce oddly - "water" being one as the American's could never understand the British pronunciation! As long as people understand what I mean, that's all that matters! Thanks for watching!
YAY you mentioned my hack i mentioned to you before about using curve to pay a credit card. So the curve black, you dont pay any charges on the first £10,000 per month. then you pay 1.5% there after
Happy Birthday Matt!
I did indeed Jack - thanks for the idea... Still don't have an avios earning card to be able to do it myself though!
Happy Birthday, Daddy Matt! BA has pulled out of the Rocketmiles hotel booking programme; however, Qatar is still on there and now that they've joined Avios, it's an easy earn and transfer. For example, stay one night at The Royal Horseguards Hotel and you earn 9K Qatar Avios. So if you'd like to test out the Rocketmiles scheme, stick around! I mean, do a video! HAHA
- Red
I'll take a look! 9k miles is a decent pile, but I suppose that's a decent hotel!
I hope you had a wonderful Birthday. It is fun to watch your videos, so thanks for making them.
Thanks - a good day was had. The video doing really well helped!
Happy Birthday Matt. Loved the multiple avios pronunciations. Very interested in a video on paying off a credit card with a credit card. Immediately thought the costs of doing this would make it pointless but interested to hear how it will work.
Thanks Phil. As another commenter pointed out with Curve, the card that allows this will cost something but you get other benefits... Like travel insurance... Which makes this a little more viable... And you get another month's cashflow out of the arrangement....
Happy birthday! I love the various pronunciations
Thanks - hopefully it made it a bit more interesting to watch!
Happy birthday Matt! And thank you for all those videos. Very useful.
You are very welcome!
Never flown with BA until last year. But the deal was good flying to New York and San Francisco just 6 weeks apart and went from blue to silver. LA this June should push us to gold and also now no rip off seat charge in premium. Shall have to see if flights still say at a decent price in the future
Getting rid of those seat charges is a landmark moment!
@@MattsPlanet I'd rather the seat charges remain. As a Gold member it leaves me more options open even when booking late on.
Happy Birthday Matt! 🎉
Thanks!
Happy Birthday! 🎈🎉🎊Thanks for the info + video!
Thanks Jimmy
Happy Birthday Matt! Loved the pronunciations of Avios
Thanks!
Happy Birthday Matt! I'm new to the airline miles game and your videos have really helped me out a lot.
Thanks!
Happy birthday Matt! (pretty belated now!) New to your videos, but as a frequent BA LGW/LHR-->JFK/EWR flyer, the information has been super valuable!
Thanks so much!
Enjoyable video Matt - I go back many years on Rob’s HFP advice and collecting Avois & Virgin points is still my hobby (hate that phrase) even in retirement
Keep up the good work
Now a subscriber to your channel 😊
Thanks David. A hobby that pays off with a strong reward! Just yesterday I experienced the benefits with a redemption flight on a Virgin partner... Video coming soon!
Happy Birthday Matt! A longtime fan now and hope you have a great 2023 :)
Thanks mate - 2023 is going well so far!
Thanks Matt. This video landed at just the right time. Exactly what I was looking for.
Perfect!
Happy Birthday Matt🍾🥂🍾🍻🍷🥃🎂🇿🇦💚. Mine was yesterday😊
Baie dankie - hope you had a good day too!
Brilliant as usual Matt, thank you! Have a fantastic birthday!
Thanks so much
I concentrate more on TP collecting than Avios, which, for me, can be a little complicated. We share the same birthday by the way. Belated Good wishes. Steve.
Thanks Steven and happy birthday too! I'm 100% tier points for 2 months every 2 years then focus more on avios for the other 22!
Got 2164 points last year myself.
Think I need to step up my game for this year.
That's what they call "a good start"! Hope there were some ideas you can use...
Informative and entertaining as always. Happy birthday my guy and cheers to a great 2023 :)
Thanks very much!
Many happy returns on your birthday !
Thanks Scott
Thanks a lot, Matt! Happy birthday!
Thanks Sir!
Happy Birthday Matt! I've just noticed the Stormtrooper in the background...
Ha ha! My new camera makes things a little clearer back there... He keeps me honest!
5:35 killed me 😂😂 Aviooooosss
I had to try and keep this interesting!
Happy berthdy! You can avoid the Curve 1.5% fee by opting for the Metal Curve membership, which is about £15/month
Thanks Martin - I think there's a cap on how much you can push through before the fee kicks in? Do you use curve?
Curve looks promising - but currently don't support AMEX :(
@@speedendurance You can't post to Amex through Curve currently but you can pay an Amex bill if you fund it with a visa or mastercard
@@MattsPlanet yep, it's £10K/month. I do use it but customer service leaves a lot to be desired, and some credit card companies, like Virgin Money, are starting to treat some of those transactions as a cash advance, so I can't see myself holding it for much longer.
Happy Birthday Matt. All the best.
Thanks!
Happy birthday! Thanks for this video.
Hope it was helpful!
Happy Birthday Matt!
Thanks mate!
Happy Birthday!
Another year wiser...
Happy birthday 🎉 Matt, enjoy the day ✈️🛩✈️🛩✈️🛩✈️🛩✈️🛩✈️
Thanks - no planes today but later this week they'll feature!
Really helpful content. Enjoying your content and your dry whit!
Thanks!
Happy birthday Matt!
Thanks!
Happy Birthdays Matt! aviiiiiiiiiiiiiiiosssssssssssssssesss LOL
Thanks
Great Video! Another way I get extra points is through PayPal, they allow you to send money to family or friends via your AMEX card for no fee.
Thanks Brandon - good to know! On the list for episode 2...
Until they freeze yoir account and ypu can't get in contact with them. Don't do this, not worth the hassle. Friends have a mare with this
Your channel is the most helpful I have come across regarding this stuff. I only have recently got an Amex card, and got Around 40k AMEX points. How do I know which airline provider is best to convert my points to because the options are vast and it’s very overwhelming. Is BA avios the best or something different? Binge watching this channel haha
Thanks for finding me!!! Where to shove your points is really down to where you want to go and who with!!! Leave them in Amex until you need them and push them just before any booking. There's an occasional transfer bonus although that's more common in the US. Head for points has several good articles about where you can send points and what the value could be so check them out
A great video again Matt.
Thanks Lee!
Avioribus! Made me laugh out loud (even though it's the wrong grammatical case)!
My latin grammar is really rusty... I do have an O level though! And I am old enough to have done O levels...
Happy birthday Matt and sorry for the late happy birthday
No worries! Thanks for watching!
Happy Birthday Matt!
Peter-Jan
Dank u wel!
Happy late/early birthday!! 🎉🎉🎉
184 days late or 181 days early, but thanks either way!
@@MattsPlanet happy halfway to your birthday 🎉
Excellent video and I was nodding along throughout, except for the Curve part. The paying Amex with Visa/MC cards avenue has closed with all the major providers. Notably Virgin and Creation, but almost certainly Barclaycard as well. And anyhow if there's still an avenue remaining, that is certainly not "working as intended" and will be closed eventually. Might get you into hot water with the provider as well, e.g. Creation shut down many people who engaged in this sort of thing.
For Self assessment it is a different story - definitely possible, and worth exploring if one has a hefty bill.
Thanks. Curve transparently advertises this benefit, and charges for it. So you are right that its rare to be able to do this and you may be right that its an opportunity that may get closed, but it is possible right now!
Happy Birthday and lots of Fun🍾🥂🥂💐💐
Thanks!
Happy 35th Birthday Matt 🎉
I wish.... Thanks though!
Another excellent video!
Thanks!
Happy Birthday Matt
Thanks!
Happy birthday 💐
Thanks!
To have the Barclays account you need to pay in 75k or higher per year
A Premier salary for a Premier account! I try not to mention numbers in videos like this in case they change and I end up giving out dud information...
happy birthday bud🎂
Thanks!
Happy birthday!
Thanks!
Happy birthday Matt
Thanks!
Hello Matt, very interesting how you managed that but i would like to know your thoughts on the new way BA is going to change how you earn Avios .yesterday i had an email telling me that from October 2023 you will only earn Avios for the amount you pay for your ticket not the miles flown . So i think they will be losing a lot of customers to other airlines . What do you think? TK.
It's not great... Rob at Head For Points analysed it better than I can... Only 1.1% of my avios came from flying in 2022 so it won't in all honesty make a huge difference to me but its another dent in the scheme which is annoying...
Matt. Just out of interest, what was the TP run. you were eying up that was worth 740 aviossssis.
Steve.C. YNWA
It was OTP to RNO actually - mixing up my Nevada destinations a little! Was thinking of a couple of days at Lake Tahoe...
@@MattsPlanet Reno. I'm begining to like OTP as a starting point. I can slip a 120tp run from Man in the night before then fly out of OTP early morning. Was JFK and LAX included in that?
Steve. C. YNWA.
@@stevecraven3502 Yes - the usual suspects of JFK and LAX. This Reno needed to be LAX as its poorly served...
Can you do a video on earning Avios while living in the USA, besides flying and the chase visa ?
Thanks - an interesting idea... Not something I know a heap about but I'll add it to the ideas list and see if it would make an interesting video
hey Matt great vid. If my partner signs up and gets the 50k free avios points can she gift them to me so we can combine our points?
Basically yes - you can set up a household account and share all member's avios. You can also transfer them, but that's expensive...
If you can find award seats and if on BA you’ll pay a bloody fortune on fees outside European flights!
Its gotten a little better now Reward Flight Savers have been rolled out, provided you have the avios of course....
Happy birthday 🎉
Thanks!
Ha, i watch your videos and always thought I was saying Avios wrong
There's no guarantee I'm saying it right!!!
Great video, I always thought it was Avios but what do I know?!
It certainly is Avios! Which apparently, is like sheep in that singular = plural. Even if it probably shouldn't!
Great video Matt, just wanna ask about the sign up bonus with certain Amex cards…so would I be able to apply for a card that gives me X amount of Avios, and then never have to use it/cancel it? Is it that easy?😅
There's usually a spending requirement to trigger the bonus... So the Black BA Amex card right now requires a £3k spend to trigger the 25k bonus. You can then cancel the card and they will actually give you the annual fee back pro-rata
Happy birthday to you ;)
I have a question.. is there a way to transfer Avios to Aadvantage?
Sadly not... You can move avios between airlines which use them (Aer Lingus, Iberia and Qatar) but not to an airline which uses a different system, including AA
Is January 8 your birthday? Happy Birthday... same day as Elvis Presley!
Different year to Elvis... David Bowie and Stephen Hawking too!
Happy Birthday
Thanks Andy
Hi Matt, why don't you use the BA shopping portal? So many retailers like John Lewis, Sainsbury's (over 1700 retailers) to shop at and earn Avios. I just found this out a month or so ago and am now earning Avios like that.
Very good point Clare. I really don't spend much money (other than on travel!!!) so the opportunities for me are limited but I'll certainly take a look. Surveys is another avenue a few people have mentioned!
@@MattsPlanet I guess you buy food though! And Sainsbury's has quite good Avios to £ rate.
Thanks for the video, I started collecting Avios when the Barclays 100,000 points offer started and have just got on the Amex 70,000 points offer too.
I’m excited to use these for things I’d never normally be able to afford, like flying business class.
One thing I’d like to understand more is how to find and book rewards flights, when are they usually released, how far in advance do I need to look, are there any other things to be aware of? Do you have any previous videos that can help me understand a little better?
Thanks again
Hello Mr Turnip! A strong start to your avios earning career! Plenty of stuff on the channel about the BA Exec club which answers all those questions. But quickly, as you have such a great name! Seatspy is the best resource for finding availability. Flights are created (and so can be booked) 355 days ahead of departure. You can call to book but easiest to book online. Your BA account should show most of this and allow you to play around and see what you fancy. You can find availability on BA but Seatspy is better, even if there is a fee to do the more complicated bits!
this video is hilarious. Spoiler alert to anyone who skipped the first few minutes; please go back and rewatch from the beginning otherwise you will be foaming at the mouth. tbf I would have also made a video on avvioss lol
Thanks. And I meant to be hilarious for some of this one...
@@MattsPlanet oh I forgot happy birthday too👍
Hi Matt, great video. Do avios expire?
No, provided you earn or spend one at least every 36 months...
Happiest of birthdays, sir!! Treat yourself!!!!!! Also, it's "lev-i-o-SA" according to Hermione Grainger.
Thanks! What Hermione says must be right!
Completely fresh to Amex and Barclays so I guess I can rinse those sign up bonuses
Load up my friend! And the other half too...
@@MattsPlanet also a great idea to chain cards together to max out points, however I need to do some close reading of the T&Cs to ensure I'm not just wasting time/money. Most cashback schemes do not reward cash or balance transfers so I need to keep an eye on how that works here.
So I subbed @ $300/month for 16,667 Avios gettin me 200k after 12 months. I turn avg of 8k/monthly Amex points to Avios. 96k + 200k is 296k Avios. I consider buyin sort of a savings account without using USD
That's a fun amount to spend!
Hi Matt great video. Could you not pay your BA amex bill with a curve card which is linked to the Barclays card avios credit card hence doubling up on your avios?
Yep - that's the point I'm making!
A suggestion - may be out of your circle of interest but your take and recommendations on travel insurance would be valuable . I was a victim of the Southwest Airlines meltdown over the holidays and if I’d had any hotel that was non refundable whew!. Well I bet you can guess hotel rates in Manhattan are not low over New Years!
Thank Scott. Something I have thought about but its not a topic I particularly enjoy... I used to be a Finance Director and the annual insurance renewal process always used to be agony for me.... It is on the list though and it would be a valuable topic to cover....
Do the avios points acumulated in my executive club account expire if not used within any given year?
Avios have a 3 year life and will expire after 3 years if you don't earn or spend at least 1 avios in that 36 month period. So with a little bit of planning they'll last indefinitely.
@@MattsPlanet excellent! Thanks for the information.
Hi! New to the Chanel so you might have already answered this in a video. But ba has the scheme where you can increase avios earned by x1 x2 or x3 by paying a small fee, would this work with the 200000 subscription, meaning you would get 800000 in a year?
I believe you can boost avios bought via a subscription - but there's a cap of 200k (I believe), above which the price shoots up.... So you can boost a lower subscription but you'd be slightly better off taking the bigger subscription...
@@MattsPlanet Amazing! thanks so much for your help and amazing videos, ive dabbled in points for the past few years, but looking to be a little more serious with them going forward, your videos have been such a great help!
Really helpful video. I just got my BA Amex card and i am totally last to how i would link my Amex caed to my BA account and Avios account. In other words, how do these 3 system talk to each other so that Avios points are centralised. I am so confused can you help?
When you applied for the Amex card you would have registered the BA account number (I think - it was a few years ago that I did it!!!) And avios (and vouchers) earned will automatically post
@MattsPlanet thanks for the prompt response Matt. I would have thought the same but BA account wasn't created in my case so I created one and contacted support at Amex and requested them to link the two. They said they will forward the request on to BA on my behalf. So hopefully they'll sort it but I honestly think this should all be self explanatory in both their portals.
@@iam4203 Are you sure you got the BA Amex? Regular Amexes have a membership rewards scheme where you can push points to a few airlines. That wouldn't require you to have a BA exec account to get a card....
@@MattsPlanet yes it is the British Airways American Card. My friend sent the referral as he has been using it for a few years now
Hi Matt, Happy Birthday, love your videos! Could you please clarify if the Avios percentage bonuses (bronze 25%, silver 50%, and gold 100%) affect earnings from credit cards? Say if I earned 1.5 points per £ spent but was a gold EC member, would I make 3 points per £ spent?
Cheers!
Thanks! Tier bonuses only apply to avios earned when flying, and then only on some airlines. I looked at this yesterday and BA and AA are the full bonuses you mention - FInnair was less and Malaysian was 0%. No tier bonuses on the credit card earnings, sadly...
@@MattsPlanet Cheers! That's what I thought. Appreciate the confirmation.
Do you know if there's a way to avoid transaction fees on barclaycard avios card as the fees will most certainly wipe out the benefit of the avios I will earn
The basic avios card from Barclays is free and gives you 1 avios per pound....
@@MattsPlanet sorry meant to add non sterling transaction fees
@@shabba12345 Ah... I would have said Curve, although they've got this crazy idea that they want their company to make a profit (insane, right???) so keep changing their product and I've lost track of what the current offering is.... But that's where I'd look
@@MattsPlanet thanks for the advice Matt, trying to bump up those avios points and booking the hotel direct is much cheaper than Expedia or Booking but they're charging USD. Will give Chase a try 👍🏽
How are lifetime tier points calculated ?
Its a total of how many tier points you've earned since you joined the club. Tier points reset to 0 each year and they dictate the status you earn, but lifetime tier points never reset
Matt have you ever flown gatwick to miami, is it club suite now thought they were refitting everything but I can't find an update anywhere
Gatwick to Miami? On BA? I don't think so... And I don't think the Gatwick fleet of 777's is getting refitted any time soon...
@@MattsPlanet yeah realised I'd put miami. Meant orlando. The 777 200 garwick or something ut says on upgraded points. But I couldn't find any availability to miami which was a bummer.
I have a “Non made up word “ for people that have the time to waste complaining about the pronunciation of a made up term - Pecksniff
Duly added to my Word dictionary!
Happy Birthday Matt. Another interesting and useful video. you say you don't really shop through BA's portal, but one thing I have used on there are the food boxes like Hello Fresh, Gousto, Mindful Chef etc. there are several and all yield between 1000-2000 AVioshekles.🤭 you can order 1 box then close the account and open up a different one. it's good, fresh, tasty meals. I am currently working my way through my 4th box.
What is your destination on the 12th of Jan?
Anyway currently trying to finesse BA's double TP holiday offer to HNL for Aug/Sept using ITA Matrix. (it's fun) from OTP. Including MAN to OTP. whole trip at the mo is about 3k and 1680TP. Thanks for the idea.
Steve. C YNWA.
Hi Steve! Aviosheckles made me laugh! Off to the Caribbean on the 12th - using my welcome bonus from getting a Virgin credit card for a KLM redemption... Stay tuned for coverage!! Saw a good fare ex BUD to HNL... Not sure you'll get double tier points from a trip starting in OTP - has to be out of the UK...
@@MattsPlanet Dam. I forgot about that minor detail. More tweaking needed.
Steve. C. YNWA.
What about shopping via the ba exec club site?
Excellent point! Has a place on the list.... I really don't spend much money though so I don't have it on my personal radar though!
How do I get avois referral code? I can’t find it on the website.
You need to email me - I can't publicise it on a website.... planet@ttamsenoj.com
@@MattsPlanet I’m already with avois. I want to refer a friend.
@@angelafoster5071 Ah - I see.... Somewhere in the amex website is a "refer a friend" button which will generate a unique referral code you can share... If you can find it, I'm happy to share mine!!!!
@@MattsPlanet I’m based in Ireland so I’m afraid I don’t believe we have Amex as an option. Appreciate your help though and I really enjoy the channel.
ive got about 10000 avios through the amex BA card, how can i improve this
Apart from the other methods in the video, the answer is to spend more money! Not much else I can add really!
Can you transfer aer liingus acids to ba
Just about... You can "combine your avios" to get pools of them you might have in Iberia, Aer Lingus, Vueling and avios.com into one place.
Let me know if anyone needs a referral 😂✈️👍
Me first though...
@@MattsPlanet of course it’s your channel 😂
Avious 😂
Disappointed I couldn't keep it going for the entire video....
Hello, could you please let me know if by using BA American Express Premium Plus Card in supermarkets like Tesco, Asda, Morrisons or any in-store or online shop I will get Avios points? I mean by using this card anywhere where they accept American Express logo credit card. I want to buy ev charger from online electrical store and when it comes to payment it is showing that they accept payments VISA, MASTER CARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS, will I receive any points by using BA card?
It's an American Express card which is accepted everywhere American Express is accepted. Which is not quite as many places as Visa and Mastercard, but its still very widespread. The fact it is branded in conjunction with BA makes no difference to its acceptance. And with the Premium Plus card it will reward you in the form of 1.5 avios per pound spent. Some cards give cash back. other Amexes give points in the Amex scheme, this one gives Avios. You can pay for a Virgin or Lufthansa flight with the card and the seller will just care about it being Amex...
Mate.. you gotta make that curve video :)
It's on the list... But Curve keeps tweaking things - they seem to have this crazy idea that they want to actually make a profit... So I want things to stabilise before I return to this - its really annoying to invest the time in making a video only for it to be out of date shortly after issue...
Good content but you’re trying to hard to be entertaining with saying avios in different ways. It’s more cringy than fun to watch. Just be yourself and act normal 👍
I enjoyed it!
@@MattsPlanet fair enough, I enjoyed the content nonetheless 👍
Very annoying this time. Your viewers are not children 😮
I may have to feature this comment in my next video....
What's the matter, don't you like learning about aviosesses?
@@codimitchell5820 it might be just me then….
You can also connect uber to avios and Topcashback which earns 1 avios for every 1p of cashback plus 5% bonus
I recently linked my Uber but never use them so earned nothing from it yet... And TopCashBack is one to look at for sure - thanks!
Hi. I've just discovered your blog. Really enjoying it.
I earn similar numbers of avios per year as you and I'm lucky that I will get the 100k bonus from barclays.
How do you know how many you've earned in a year?
Do you keep tabs on it as you go along.
Also. I do a lot of buying through topcashback which gets me quite a lot. Probably around 15k avios.
Thanks Ian. Welcome aboard! I got the data from the BA account and pasted it into excel for analysis. I don't routinely but found it quite interesting once I started! Apart from travel, I really don't spend a lot on anything but will take a look at topcashback as I have heard that to be a worthwhile investment of time!
@@MattsPlanet topcashback is a slow process and is most beneficial when booking hotels. But also good when changing power companies and mobile Companies
Happy birthday!
Cheers!