A-List (2024) TQPs Calculation Question

[tahoedenizen]

I'm puzzled by what I see in my Rapid Rewards account for "Progress towards A-List". The new rules are "Get 1,500 tier qualifying points (TQPs) towards A-List and A-List Preferred with every $5000 spent on your Rapid Rewards card".  Year-to-date for "Progress towards Companion Pass" I currently have 112,906 points, including the 10,000 "annual boost" points -- so figure 102,906 dollars spent, which is 20.58 times 5,000.  Hence I believe I should have at least 20 x 1,500 = 30,000 tier qualifying points. But my account shows only 25,500 tier qualifying points. What gives?

[dfwskier]

The question should be how many of those 102.896 points were earned on Soutwest flights, rent cars, hotels, shopping, dining, eyc -- if you signed up you earned points beyond the dollars you spent. The point being you probably didn't spend 102,896 dollars.

[tahoedenizen]

This is a good question, but I went back through all my YTD credit card statements, and "adjusted out" 2x and 3x points earned and anniversary bonus points, which just reduces the total from 102,896 dollars to 97,601 dollars.  So 97,601 / 5000 = 19.52 and I should have at least 19 * 1500 = 28,500 tier qualifying points. But I don't -- I have 25,500.  That gap represents $10,000 of real spending -- hard to miss, and I'd like an explanation from Southwest. But AFAIK there's no Live Chat on Southwest.com, correct?

[dfwskier]

Southwest has no idea what you spend on your Chase card.

Southwest just take orders from Chase to add RR points to accounts.

So, if there's a problem, you need to discuss it with Chase.

[tahoedenizen]

I'm afraid it's the other way around:  Chase has no idea what Southwest is doing with "Tier Qualifying Points". Chase monthly statements do break out "Southwest purchases" and other subcategories where Chase (not Southwest) is offering 2X or 3X points (such as "restaurants" in some periods), but the statements show nothing about Tier Qualifying Points.

I have two other theories about the missing TQPs: One is that (hopefully) TQPs from my last statement closing date (April 3) aren't yet computed and shown on Southwest.com (today April 7).  The other theory is that (NOT hopefully) every month Southwest *discards* any spending above the next $5,000 threshold, and doesn't carry those dollars/points over to the next month. That would be a very unfriendly practice, but it could explain the discrepancy.

[dfwskier]

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@tahoedenizen wrote:

   The other theory is that (NOT hopefully) every month Southwest *discards* any spending above the next $5,000 threshold, and doesn't carry those dollars/points over to the next month. That would be a very unfriendly practice, but it could explain the discrepancy.

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That is ridiculous.

[tahoedenizen]

I hope it is.  But see the comment below from bballflyer, who I believe has identified the real issue affecting me: On a January 3, 2024 statement, Southwest won't count spending from December, only January 1-3.  Based on his/her experience this January, it is NOT the case that "Southwest has no idea what you're spending with Chase".  It appears they have full visibility on the spending by date.

[DancingDavidE]

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@tahoedenizen wrote:

This is a good question, but I went back through all my YTD credit card statements, and "adjusted out" 2x and 3x points earned and anniversary bonus points, which just reduces the total from 102,896 dollars to 97,601 dollars.  So 97,601 / 5000 = 19.52 and I should have at least 19 * 1500 = 28,500 tier qualifying points. But I don't -- I have 25,500.  That gap represents $10,000 of real spending -- hard to miss, and I'd like an explanation from Southwest. But AFAIK there's no Live Chat on Southwest.com, correct?

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No live chat for that purpose.

So there are no points from any other source, only spending and bonuses?

Is it possible that the accounting is off by a month and you had December TQP worth 3,000 points?

[bballflyer · Accepted solution]

If you had purchases in Dec that went on a Jan credit card bill, these won't count at the 2024 rate, they count at the 2023 rate.  I had this on my Jan bill and really pushed for it because their wording would imply differently, but they would not budge. 

[tahoedenizen]

Now THAT makes sense for my situation.  I had a statement period ending January 3 where I assumed they would count all the spending on that monthly statement. If they only counted spending for January 1-3, that would account for the $10,000 gap that I've seen.  Thanks!

Hmm ... I wonder if they will count December 2024 spending that appears on a January 3, 2025 statement towards A-List in 2024? Overall, I believe Southwest says that you only earn points from spending when a statement period closes, and that's what I've always seen in my Southwest account.