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Question about transferring points which are going to expire soon...

Justme2018
Explorer C

I have a friend who has a significant number of points that will expire this October. She wants to transfer them to me. My party and I will be traveling in February. For reasons, I won’t go into, it isn’t an option for her to book the flight for us and it isn’t an option for her to add more points to the current total to “reset” the expiration clock. So, my question is this... If she transfers the points to me and I book our flight for February, will I still be able to use the points or will they expire before our trip because the flight hasn’t been completed before the expiration date? Or, would I be able to transfer the points to me and then purchase some points to add to the total? Any help anyone can give me is greatly appreciated! I can’t seem to find a clear answer anywhere. TIA!

5 REPLIES 5

Re: Question about transferring points which are going to expire soon...

CareforNOLA
Frequent Flyer A

@Justme2018,

I would suggest calling the Rapid Rewards customer service line for clarification.  First, do you and your friend realize that a transfer of points costs money?  That is why most people do not go that route.  The cost is usually close to the cost of a wannaGetAway fare, so, that is why people book tickets for others. 

Assuming your account is getting an influx of points regularly, then I would expect that once the points enter your account, the expiration clock would be set to your account activity.  That is, if you fly regularly or use a Rapid Rewards VISA that puts points in your account monthly, the points may not expire.  Again, call RR customer service just to be sure to verify.

 

A transfer is just usually not the answer to the problem.  Good luck!  

Re: Question about transferring points which are going to expire soon...

chgoflyer
Aviator A

Points themselves don't have expiration dates, so as long as they were transferred to you before her account expires, they would then be subject to the expiration date on your account. Southwest requires point-earning activity every 24 months in order to keep an account alive and all associated points from being forfeited. When points are transferred to an account, that qualifies as point earning activity -- so your account would be good for another 24 months from that date.

 

As mentioned earlier, there is a fee to transfer points (1 cent per point) which eats up much of the value, so in general it's not a good idea to transfer.

Re: Question about transferring points which are going to expire soon...

dfwskier
Aviator A

@chgoflyer wrote:

Points themselves don't have expiration dates, so as long as they were transferred to you before her account expires, they would then be subject to the expiration date on your account. Southwest requires point-earning activity every 24 months in order to keep an account alive and all associated points from being forfeited. When points are transferred to an account, that qualifies as point earning activity -- so your account would be good for another 24 months from that date.

 

As mentioned earlier, there is a fee to transfer points (1 cent per point) which eats up much of the value, so in general it's not a good idea to transfer.


As chgoflyer said transferring points costs money - enough money that the cost is, at least in my opinion, prohibitive.

 

I know you said your friend does not want to add points to the account, but doing so is a simple as signing up for the RR dining program and spending a few dollars at a participating restaurant. That is the option that, in this case, makes the most sense. - at least in my opinion. That adds two years to the expiration date.

 

As far as booking a flight, having your friend make the reservation really is the way to go.

Re: Question about transferring points which are going to expire soon...

basslaw2010
Frequent Flyer B

To add on, Rapid Rewards shopping is even easier than Rapid Rewards dining because with dining you have to find a participating restaurant and may have to spend more than you want. With shopping, you can buy something online for just a few dollars and choose in store pickup to avoid shipping fees. And, you can buy something you were going to buy anyway.

Re: Question about transferring points which are going to expire soon...

DancingDavidE
Aviator A

@basslaw2010 wrote:

To add on, Rapid Rewards shopping is even easier than Rapid Rewards dining because with dining you have to find a participating restaurant and may have to spend more than you want. With shopping, you can buy something online for just a few dollars and choose in store pickup to avoid shipping fees. And, you can buy something you were going to buy anyway.


I eat a lot, so I'm clear on that one, but I see what you mean about any item that you were going to buy anyway. 

 

 

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