Don't Let Your Points Expire!
Don't let your points expire! That's a problem people who collect frequent flyer points (and hotel points) need to be worried about. Typically, in the past, points would expire after 12-18 months with no activity. Thus, for those of us who are genuinely frequent with our flying (and staying) it's not a huge challenge. We earn and spend points often enough not to have to worry about it. Still, though, even when we're flying and staying with our favorite programs there are other programs we're not as engaged with where points may expire.
I had an, "Oh, shit! Are points expiring soon?" moment two nights ago as I thought about my frequent flyer accounts with American Airlines and Delta Airlines. I haven't touched either account in just over 12 months now. What if they expire after 12 months? It's a lot of points... I have a whopping 750,000 AA miles!
Thankfully neither expiry is as short as 12 months. Through the pandemic period when travel was basically stopped most airlines and hotels lengthened their expiration limits or did away with them entirely. American points now expire after 24 months of inactivity, Delta's never expire. So at the moment I've got another 11½ months to figure out something to do with AA. Thankfully I don't have to do something with all three-quarters of a million points. I just have to earn a point, or spend a point, to keep the whole balance going.
I had an, "Oh, shit! Are points expiring soon?" moment two nights ago as I thought about my frequent flyer accounts with American Airlines and Delta Airlines. I haven't touched either account in just over 12 months now. What if they expire after 12 months? It's a lot of points... I have a whopping 750,000 AA miles!
Thankfully neither expiry is as short as 12 months. Through the pandemic period when travel was basically stopped most airlines and hotels lengthened their expiration limits or did away with them entirely. American points now expire after 24 months of inactivity, Delta's never expire. So at the moment I've got another 11½ months to figure out something to do with AA. Thankfully I don't have to do something with all three-quarters of a million points. I just have to earn a point, or spend a point, to keep the whole balance going.