The New York Times today runs
a piece about people who have been
stripped of their miles in unannounced “audits” by airline companies. Michael Sommer had earned more than two million
frequent-flier miles on United Airlines, and he showed up at the airport in Buenos Aires and learned that a dispute
over a ticket refund caused him to lose his elite status, dozens of flight coupons and every last mile he had
collected. Total bummer. He also had to pay an additional $977 to fly to Chile, where he was headed, a price that
included a $377 change fee and $600 for the use of “bogus denied-boarding certificates.”
In Sommer’s case it looks like he was manipulating the system, as the airline accused him of collecting miles for
flights he had not taken and trying to claim credit for a first-class seat booked in economy class. Tsk tsk.
Another traveler, Christina Zimmel, realized she’s lost 10,000 miles due to an accounting error.
What is happening here, they say, is the airlines are now orchestrating these audits on a more regular basis because
of the financial problems they are having and because of the gazillions of frequent flier miles people have
outstanding. They key, it seems, is to be good little boys and girls and not to take advantage of the system.