Passengers check in for United Airlines flights at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, on December 13, 2022.
Scott Olson | Getty Images
Here’s a friendship test: Would you share your frequent flyer miles with your friends? United Airlines Bet customers will be open to it.
The airline on Thursday began allowing members of its MileagePlus loyalty program to pool their frequent flyer miles and use that stash to travel on United.
A “pool leader” may select up to four additional family members or friends to participate in the shared account. The leader must be at least 18 years old, but pool members can be of any age, allowing families to use their children’s mileage stacks for tickets.
Customers will continue to maintain their own MileagePlus accounts and can decide how much they want to contribute to the pool. These miles can be redeemed for flights and other products on United’s website or app.
Individuals can decide how much they want to contribute to the pool, and there is a commitment: “Once those miles are in the pool, they stay in the pool,” said Luc Bondar, chief operating officer of United’s MileagePlus loyalty program.
United isn’t the first airline to offer loyalty point pooling. JetBlue Airways allows up to seven customers to pool frequent flyer miles Frontier Airlines allows up to eight people to collect miles. Airlines also generally allow customers to transfer miles to others, although this often comes with a fee.
“The strategy for pooling miles is to target less to moderately frequent travelers and attract them and their family members to the program,” said Henry Harteveldt, travel analyst and founder of consulting firm Atmosphere Research Group. “Allowing family members to pool their rewards points increases brand preference across the family…just like with toothpaste.”
Don’t miss these stories from CNBC PRO:
Source link
2024-03-21 20:00:01
www.cnbc.com
