Non posting and slow posting of points and SC

[Markmat]

I am writing this out of frustration. It seems every time I fly VA or Air NZ I have to chase up the points and often a number of times, with normally no response. My problems seem to stem from the association to the booking. When I look at the Velocity site before I travel it shows my bookings as my travel agent adds at time of booking, but I can't allocate seats etc (No bother as Platinum I usually get a good one). A few times I have turned up to check in and they have then said I don't have FF number against booking, despite me then showing it on website, so they add to booking. I then do not get points for a while so I use on-line form for claiming missed points, normally get no response, so use retro claim email address. Then I get automated reply but no response. In some cases I get a response after a week, but in a lot of cases no response at all.

I have flights using Air NZ that haven't credited since early June and no response, and others have only come after numerous follow ups.

Is it meant to be this difficult to accummulate points or should I be overjoyed just to receive any at all. I know with Qantas I get them normally within 2 days and have to do no follow up

Is my experience isolated or is this common?

 

[Velocity Frequent Flyer]

Hi Mark,
could you please PM your Velocity details and the PNRs (resv numbers) in question?
In regard to your missing points, have you submitted an online retro claim? If valid, the points will post within 72 hours.
Thanks

 

[Deleted member 29185]

My problems seem to stem from the association to the booking........ A few times I have turned up to check in and they have then said I don't have FF number against booking, despite me then showing it on website, so they add to booking......

You have a few issues. I'll leave the poor/slow/non-existant VA follow-ups as they have been discussed fairly well in other threads and VFF has already offered to assist (which doesn't resolve the bigger problem of poor response).

A big issue for you seems to be the association to the booking. Perhaps this a bug between TA and VA computers, but I have also noted that if there is an issue when you turn up at the airport, the VA team think they resolve the problem but because the flight is then under airport (??) control, the changes are not actually made. This has happened twice to me as well and I've had to make the tedious retro claim. I'd suggest if the initial association problem were corrected, most of your issues will disappear.

 

[eastwest101]

You have a few issues. I'll leave the poor/slow/non-existant VA follow-ups as they have been discussed fairly well in other threads and VFF has already offered to assist (which doesn't resolve the bigger problem of poor response).

A big issue for you seems to be the association to the booking. Perhaps this a bug between TA and VA computers, but I have also noted that if there is an issue when you turn up at the airport, the VA team think they resolve the problem but because the flight is then under airport (??) control, the changes are not actually made. This has happened twice to me as well and I've had to make the tedious retro claim. I'd suggest if the initial association problem were corrected, most of your issues will disappear.

Adding to this advice - I have a similar problem with corporate travel agent booking where the travel agent is using non-IBE software that used to be able to talk to the old DJ system, but with the changes in Jan 2013 the VA system is not picking up the FF details correctly and hence won't allow you to manage your booking, this is despite the corporate travel agent putting in your details when making the booking. I have double checked with our corporate travel agent and it is a known issue for VA since Jan 2013. As swanning_it says, at the airport this is picked up and corrected by ground agents under airport control and then the VA system loses all these changes once the flight leaves airport control - until VA fix their software this will continue to happen.

 

[Globetrotter]

I flew first class Las Vegas to LA on Virgin America in April. I made the booking myself at virginamerica.com and added my velocity number at time of booking. Still no points in my account. I emailed velocity my itinerary which showed my velocity number and a scanned copy of my boarding pass. They refuse to credit my account with ff points until Virgin America confirm proof of travel (isn't that what a boarding pass is?). I followed up on the retro claim 5 weeks ago and they're still waiting for a response from virgin America. I appreciate this is a short sector but nevertheless it highlights velocity's flaws and is another reason I prefer not to fly them or their partners. I don't have time to fart cough around chasing up things. :evil:

 

[Deleted member 29185]

I don't have time to fart cough around chasing up things. :evil:

I do hear you on that. I've got two retros sitting on my desk that I haven't had time to lodge. Sometimes I just tihink "are the piddly points worth it". I'm absolutely certain VA and partners save a fortune with this attitude (across many flyers) and also, how many just expect their balance to be right without checking? (I use to be one of those).

 

[Markmat]

My problem is that it seems to happen every time I fly VA or partner airlines. It seems the link between the FF system and booking system doesn't work. The advice swanning_it and eastwest101 gave sounds correct as
-our travel agent makes the booking (I can see it through mybookings, but can't manage it)
-Often turn up at airport to checkin and my velocity number has been lost on the booking
-Checkin Agent adds my FF number to booking and fly to destination
-Wait a couple of weeks if it is VA and 4 weeks if it is partner airline and generally no points or SS
-Submit Retro Claim on VA website and get message saying claim successful and will get points within 3 days
-Get no response on retro claim and no points so use retro claim email address and receive auto-reply
-Get no response on email after about 10 days so follow up email and generally get no response to that
-Use phone, or any other method to get points

All of these activities take me a significant period of time and whilst Platinum at the moment with VA will only stay at Gold as I am utilising Qantas whenever possible as I am not enjoying the process with VA and can't see how this customer service deserves any loyalty. I travel for work and my family use my points but I believe it is a benefit my family receives for me being away so often so the points are important to me. Speaking to colleagues of mine who travel frequently has confirmed my issues are common to them also.

 

[eastwest101]

-our travel agent makes the booking (I can see it through mybookings, but can't manage it)
-Often turn up at airport to checkin and my velocity number has been lost on the booking
-Checkin Agent adds my FF number to booking and fly to destination
-Wait a couple of weeks if it is VA and 4 weeks if it is partner airline and generally no points or SS
-Submit Retro Claim on VA website and get message saying claim successful and will get points within 3 days
-Get no response on retro claim and no points so use retro claim email address and receive auto-reply
-Get no response on email after about 10 days so follow up email and generally get no response to that
-Use phone, or any other method to get points

That sounds like my standard operating procedure with VA flights as well......

 

[notzac]

Gotta ask - if you have to chase points for each and every single booking, why do you bother flying with VA? If this was happening to me and I was in a situation where I had a choice of carrier, I've got better things to do with my time than chase this sort of thing.

 

[eastwest101]

Gotta ask - if you have to chase points for each and every single booking, why do you bother flying with VA? If this was happening to me and I was in a situation where I had a choice of carrier, I've got better things to do with my time than chase this sort of thing.

I can only speak for myself but I don't get to tell our corporate travel agent whom to book with. I understand that some people can - but our company is BFOD policy so a mixture of QF and VA flights for everyone in our company. For personal travel its more a case of which FF scheme I need the SC's on, and for personal self funded travel that I book for myself online, there aren't as many problems getting SC and points posting correctly, its the corporate travel agents VA bookings that are the serial offenders......

 

[Globetrotter]

Gotta ask - if you have to chase points for each and every single booking, why do you bother flying with VA? If this was happening to me and I was in a situation where I had a choice of carrier, I've got better things to do with my time than chase this sort of thing.

In my instance I actually flew Qantas to LA, drove to Vegas and needed a one-way flight to LA to connect with my flight home. I chose Virgin America first class because it was significantly cheaper than business class on other airlines at the time. On other trips (I travel to America twice a year) I try and fly QF unless VA is significantly cheaper. I pay my own fares because I work for myself so pricing is important but in saying that, if I can't afford to travel in J then I will postpone the trip or not go. Simple.

 

[Markmat]

My company has a BFOD policy, but we request the flights we want to fly. If the cost differential is not too much they will book me on the airline I request, which is usually Qantas, unless the Virgin schedule is substantially more convenient. At the moment I am inventing ways for Qantas to be more convenient and the experience with bookings and points is the reason I request Qantas almost exclusively, but the policies of the company being what they are ensure I am flying Virgin reasonably frequently. I would prefer a good experience with VA so that I don't have that sinking feeling when I see I have to book a VA flight or receive a VA booking based on the BFOD policy. I like the experience with VA when I fly, but not the poor web experience and the expectation of significant follow up.

 

[Markmat]

I have received points and credits for a flights in early June thanks to the Velocity Rep on the site. This is much appreciated!